INCLUDES XBOX 360, HARD DRIVE, GAMES, 4 CONTROLLERS, 4 HEADSETS, REMOTE, FACEPLATES, -- TONS MORE! SEE PAGE 143 


ELECTRONIC 


GAMING 


The #1 Niereogame enel 


FANTASY XII 


XBOX 360 REVIEWS 
* SERIOUSLY SERIOUS 
4 GAMES 












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LIVE IN YOUR WXRLD 
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Shadow of the Colossus (02005 Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. PlayStation and the "PS" Family logo are registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. "Live In Your World. Play In Ours." is a registered trademark of Sony Computer 
Entertainment America Inc. 











THIS IS WHAT ІТ TAKES TO ACHIEVE VICTORY. 

For performance that leaves your buddies’ systems chugging in the dust, play Call of Duty® 2 on 

a PC powered by an Intel? Pentium® processor Extreme Edition. To check out a free live.demo of 
Ol Of Duty? 2, visit www.intel.com/go/gaming 


| 











Blood and Gore y 


Intense Violence à A 
Language Ye, = idos 
Suggestive Themes 

EZ [DER Use of Drugs DEADLINE GAMES 





©2005 SCi Games Ltd. All Rights Reserved. Total Overdose is a trademark of SCi Games Ltd. Developed by Deadline Games A/S. Deadline Games and the Deadline Games logo are trademarks of Deadline Games A/S. Eidos and the Eidos logo are trademarks of the Eidos Group of Companies. The 
rating icon is a registered trademark of the Entertainment Software Association."PlayStation" and the "PS" Family logo are registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. Microsoft, Xbox and the Xbox logos are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the U.S. 
and/or in other countries and are used under license from Microsoft. All rights reserved. 


A Special Bonus DVD with an in-depth first look at the highly-anticipated game, 
LARA CROFT TOMB RAIDER: LEGEND. Includes interviews with the development team 
about Lara's new look, new moves, and all-new storyline as well as gameplay footage 
of Lara in action, exploring an ancient Mayan tomb in the jungles of Peru. 


гур 





AX PAYNE. 
TONY HANK me moss E 
RODRIG eager § FILMS 


SMASHED TOGETHER” 








hae HOTLOVERDIS SS .сом 


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@ 2005 Activision Publishing, Inc. Activision is a registered trademark and GUN is a trademark of Activision Publishing, Inc. All rights. reserved. Developed by Neversoft 

- Entertainment, Inc. "PlayStation" and the "PS" Family logo аге registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. Microsoft, Xbox, Xbox 360, Xbox Live, the Xbox logos, ` 
апа the Xbox 8 logo are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the U.S. and/or С countries. TM, ® and Nintendo 6 meCube are trademarks 
of Nintendo: 2001 o. All rights reserved. PC CD-ROM logo ТМ & O-IEMA. The ratings icon is a registered tra rk, of the Entertainment Software As ation. All other 
trademarks andi trade names are the properties of their respective owners. ` к . 





























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ESRB CONTENT RATING — www.esrb.org 





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SEGA is registered in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. SEGA, the SEGA logo, the SONIC TEAM logo, and Shadow the Hedgehog are either registered trademarks or trademarks of SEGA Corporation. © SEGA Corporation, 2005. All rights reserved. "PlayStation" and the 


“PS” Family logo are registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. Microsoft, Xbox and the Xbox logos are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries. TM, & and the Nintendo GameCube 
logo are trademarks of Nintendo. © 2001 Nintendo. The ratings-icon is a trademark of the Entertainment Software Association 








Meet Shadow, a hedgehog with a mysterious past. Your choices throughout the game will enable him to discover 
wha his enemies really are. With a little help from some high-speed vehicles and high-powered weapons, aF 
course. Shadow’s either going to destroy the world, or save us all. But either way, youll have a blast. 













































LETTERS 
18 Here is where we print the 
crap you write for a change 


This is alpha base for all our 
news, previews, and features 


NINTENDO DS GOES ONLINE 

Mario and gang finally step into 

the '90s and go on the Internet 
METAL GEAR SOLID 4 

An interview with the mind 

behind the game 

AFTERTHOUGHTS: BLITZ THE LEAGUE 
We talk X's and 075 with the makers 
of the Mature-soaked gridiron 
BORING GAMES 

We asked some gaming go-to guys 
to punch up some of the most yawn- MI 
inducing games we've ever heard of i Es 
AFTERTHOUGHTS: GUITAR HERO : 
Are we ready to rock? Yes. Thanks to | 
Guitar Hero | 3 
TAKE THIS JOB: LEVEL DESIGNER 4 
This clever fella is an imaginary 
interior decorator 

EGM 200: TOP 10 WORST 
REVIEWED GAMES 

Our last Top 10 before Issue 4200 is 
full of games we'd never want to see 
again , 
CELL PHONE GAMES 





Е, Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter . . . . . . . 64 mem. Kingdom Hearts II ..... 









Е Console favorites are migrating onto Driver: Parallel Lines............. .....66 < „ yg Tomb Raider: Legend 
Ше cell phones. Our exploration of this 1 5. : 
strange phenomenon Hitman: Blood Money ................ 68 b yum - Saints ROW in Dies aa 


Final Fight: Streetwise ................ 68 y 
Phantasy Star Universe ............... 70 
Metal Gear Solid 3: Subsistence ......... 


74 7 
REM ree ы 


Onimusha: Dawn of Dreams . . ‚74 





GAME OVER 
The game is over 
when Fats says it's over... 


138 SEANBABY'S REST OF THE CRAP S " =m 

140 CROSSWORD/GRUDGE MATCH Lo" a 
142 OLD SCHOOL 

45 NEXT MONTH 

1146 HSU & CHAN The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess ... 
2 қ Kirby .. 


ГОНАР УРНИ, АТАРА, 
— а =ч" 7 





































1 





ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY 


ZIFF DAVIS MEDIA GAME GROUP 
















EDITORIAL CONTRIBUTORS HEAD HONCHOS Anne Marie Miguel Account Executive Brent Martyn Consumer Accounts Senior Advertising Coordinator 

Editor-in-Chief Dan “Shoe” Hsu Robert Ashley, Tom Byron, Minerva President Scott C. McCarthy Production Manager Monica Brent Southwest Senior Director of Consumer Tipler Ubbelohde 

Executive Editor Mark MacDonald Chihuahua, Che Chou, Karen Chu, Robert Vice President of Sales Scott McDaniel Southern California and Arizona Advertising Sales Administrative Assistant 

Managing Editor Jennifer Tsao Coffey, Kevin Convertito, John Davison, Vice President of Operations and Business CIRCULATION Regional Sales Director Marc Callison Lynn Fortunato 

Senior Editor Crispin Boyer Nigel Dennis, Randy Dodson, Jon Dudlak, Development Bill Daniher Consumer Marketing Director of Retail Leslie C. Gelfand h West Regional Sales Director Sales Assistant Tiffany 0rf 

Previews Editor Shane Bettenhausen Greg Ford, Jenn Frank, Garnett Lee, Vice President and Editorial Director Sales William Michalopoulos Account Executive Rita Kline Laura Hill 1UP.com 

Reviews Editor Demian Linn James Lee, Matt Leone, Nich Maragos, John Davison East East Regional Sales Director Editor-in-Chief Sam Kennedy 

News Editor Bryan Intihar Kimi Matsuzaki, Patrick Mauro, James Group Creative Director Simon Cox SALES AL, AR, CO, CT, DE, FL. GA, IA, ID, IN, Bruce Kaplan Senior Manager of Client Services 

International Editor John Ricciardi Mielke, Christian Nutt, Ryan O'Donnell, Vice President of Sales Scott McDaniel KS, KY, LA, MA, ME, МІ, MN, MO, MS, | Account Executive Alex Jakovieski 

Intern Kathleen Sanders Jeremy Parish, Andrew Pfister, Joe COPY DESK Senior Director of Advertising Sales MT, NC, ND, NE, NH, NJ, NM, NV, NY, Jessica Reinert Senior Manager of Ad Operations 
Rybicki, Ryan Scott, Seanbaby, бету Copy Chief Tom Edwards Marci Yamaguchi OH, OK, OR, PA, RI, SC, SD, TN, TX, UT, j Adam Carey 

DESIGN Serrano, Greg Sewart, Evan Shamoon, Copy Editors Greg Ford, Susie Ochs Territory Managers & Acct. Execs. VA, VT, WA, WI, WV, WY, Canada Automotive - Detroit Manager of Ad Operations 

Art Director Monique Convertito Justin Speer Gaming Accounts Regional Sales Manager Regional Sales Manager Steven Ng 

Associate Art Director Stefan Belavy PRODUCTION Northwest Andrew Reedman Ken Stubblefield Audience Development Manager 

Intern Melissa Tribur Founder Steve Harris. ні Senior Production Manager Regional Sales Director Amy Mishra Account Executive Jessica Reback Promotions Manager Wendy Donohue | Nopadon Wongpakdee 

















12» ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY ° www.1UP.com 






B EDITORIAL 


My industry pisses me off. 
| was a little suspicious of 

the cover choices one of our 

competitors was making, so 1 

checked in with a contact of 

mine from a major game 

publisher. "Yes," he confirmed. 
“Ме can pretty much get 
whatever cover we want from that 

magazine. All it takes is for us to meet with 
the publisher, promise that we'll buy some 
ads, and discuss the details from there." 
So...that magazine's cover stories are for 
sale. Great. 

Recently, some publicists for another game 
company were iamenting the fact that they 
couldn't get any coverage on a certain, very 
high-profile website out there, because they 
weren't advertising with that site. To get 
stories written up on their games, they'd have 
to start spending the bucks. More editorial 
coverage for sale. Wonderful. 

Sadly, I’m not making this stuff up. 

| have no stake in these two situations, so 
why should | care so much? Because even 
though they're competitors, they affect ту 
business and my reputation. Why do so many 
mainstream newspapers and periodicals 
command respect? Because they don't act 
like the idiots | referred to above. But how 
will gaming journalism, a relatively new field, 
gain any credibility when certain prominent 
outlets or even entire publishing groups 
whore out their editorial integrity (if | can 
even Call it that)? 

So now I have companies thinking they 
can treat Electronic Gaming Monthly the 
same way...that we're all like this. We even 
heard through the grapevine that one ad 
buyer recently told our sales department that 




















118 The Matrix: Path of Neo 128 SOCOM: U.S. Navy SEALs 





4 | 104 Madden NFL 06 119 Gun Fireteam Bravo their client wants Ziff Davis publications to 
qf 105 Condemned: Criminal Origins 119 Shadow the Hedgehog 129 The Legend of Heroes: A Tear start playing ball with them, or else they’re 
106 Call of Duty 2 120 True Crime: New York City of Vermillion pulling support (meaning, if we don’t start 
и 108 Kameo: Elements of Power 120 Need for Speed: Most Wanted 129 The Lord of the Rings: Tactics 6 putting their games оп our covers, we can 
| لے‎ ui ms Speed: Most Wanted PURO adimoney руін eres wellas 
ë 112 NBA 2К6 122 Magna Carta: Tears of Blood 130 Mario Kart DS SURPOrt Or попа впшацсоуөгацеуо[ her 
* 112 МВА Live 06 122 WWE SmackDown! vs. RAW 2006 131 Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time titles). You know what? Those guys can kiss 


113 Ridge Racer 6 132 Animal Crossing: Wild World my ass. With full backing from my editorial 


134 Sonic Rush director (former EGM Editor-in-Chief John 
123 Half-Life 2 И Davison), we're prepared to tell them to go 
| 114 Perfect Dark Zero 124 Operation Flashpoint: Elite t ahead and pull that "support." We've never 
| 114 Project Gotham Racing 3 124 Stubbs the Zombie in 134 Mario Tennis: Power Tour been and never will be beholden to any 


115 FIFA 06: Road to the 2006 Rebel Without a Pulse outside party. If we miss out on some 





3 World Cup ; à е 
115 NHL 2K6 135 Gizmondo Extravaganza ы coverage... well, too bad—ultimately, they're 
115 Tiger Woods PGA Tour 06 125 Mario Party 7 136 Reviews Wrap-up -punishing their own customers (you guys), 

125 Super Mario Strikers 137 Reviews Archive iss not us. 
re It looks like gamers won't be missing out 
116 Peter Jackson's King Kong ~ ! on any of that coverage, though—a few of 
118 James Bond 007: From Russia 127 Star Wars Battlefront Ш Е our competitors have editorial real estate for 
With Love. 128 Kingdom of Paradise UR ` Sale, and business is looking good for them. 
- и | ЖУ шь U > —Dan "Shoe" Hsu, Editor-in-Chief 














ZIFF DAVIS MEDIA INC. SUBSCRIPTION SERVICE 
MARKETING Chairman & CEO Presidents Martha Schwartz (Custom Solutions Aaron Goldberg (Market Experts) Stephen Sutton (Internet Audience See pesi 79-1174 
Senior Director Rey Ledda Robert F. Callahan Scott C. McCarthy (Game Group) Group) Barry Harrigan (Internet) Development) E-mail subhelpGegmmag.com 
Desa Director May Tong President, COO, and Sloan Seymour (Enterprise Group) Elda Vale (Research/Market Intelligence | Kristin Holmes (International Licensing) Stephen Veith (Enterprise Group peg 9. 
Hind Jason Л reidenfelds Interim CFO Jason Young (Consumer Tech and Corporate Marketing) Michael Krieger (Market Experts) Publishing Director) 
ерее or Bart W. Catalane — Group & Ziff Davis Intemet) ë Rick Lehrbaum (Internet) Monica Vila (Event Marketing Group) All content copyright © 2005 Ziff 
Marketing Graphic Designer Executive Vice President RÊ b Vice Presidents Carlos Lugo (Production) Randy Zane (Corporate Davis Media Inc. Reproducti 
Drow Hathaway & Editorial Director Senior Vice Presidents Ira Becker (Internet) Eric Lundquist (Editor-in-Chief, eWEEK) Communications) avis Media Inc. Reproduction, 

Michael J. Miller Jasmine Alexander (Technology & | Aiden Colie (CTO, Ziff Davis Internet) Chris Maginn (Internet) modification, or transmission, in 
To contact Sales & Advertising, Executive Vice President, | Sales Operations) Bill Daniher (Ops and Business Jim McCabe (PC Magazine) IT West Coast whole or in part, by an ai 
please call 415-547-8000 General Courtsel & Kenneth Beach (Corporate Sales) Development, Game Group) Scott McDaniel (Sales, Game Group) Senior Technical Analyst o 8.01 mp , DY ад у ІШЕ US, 
(Contact anyone on this. Secretary Jim Louderback (Editorial Director, | John Davison (Editorial Director, Game | Paul O'Reilly (Event Marketing Group) Bill Schmelzer without written permission from 
‘masthead via e-mail using. Gregory Barton Internet) Group) Ellen Pearlman (Editor-in-Chief, CIO Insight) Desktop Administrator Ziff Davis Media Inc. 
firstname lastname Angelo Mandarano (Sales and Sara DeCarlo (Consumer Marketing & Beth Repeta (Human Resources) Nick Kalister z Sed 
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All rights reserved. 

















ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com 9 13 


Embark on heroic missions while facing fierce beastmen 





There's never been a better time to join the adventure 


® - 





о 


THE VANA'DIEL COLLECTION 


THE COMPLETE ORIGINAL GAME PLUS EXPANSION PACKS FOR 


Chains of Promalhia. 


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SUBSCRIPTION 
FOR 30 DAYS’ 


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Windows* j 


, 4 
Animated Blood | amie CONNECTION к. ADDITONAL ONLINE FEES REQUIRED. биеп inder the us г f Includes FREE Vanadicl Buddy Pass 
P are not permitte use PlayOnline services, including games. Acceptance of certain. ете! » a 2, 
A Tél View them at www.playonline.com. Users i3 ТЕ 23 all applicable internet and - z and iTunes Collector's Card for 
Mild Language subscription fees. A valid Visa or MasterCard is required to set up account. y one FREE music download’ from 


Violence © 2001-2005 SQUARE ENIX GO., LTD. АП Rights Reserved. Title Design by Yoshitaka Amano. FINAL FANTASY ) Н N AL F l | T 1 HI 
m 4 TETRA MASTER, PLAYONLINE, the PlayOnline logo, RISE OF THE ZILART, and VANA'DJEL are registered . 


trademarks of Square Enix Co., Ltd. THE CHAINS OF PROMATHIA, SQUARE ENIX and the Square Enix logo are q TUNES 
trademarks of Square Enix Co., Ltd. © 1996-2003 ACCESS CO., LTD. All Rights Reserved. The ratings icon isa 1 "Ofer expires 8/16/2006 
trademark of the Entertainment Software Association. Software platform logo™ and © IEMA 204 Р 








- — 
ef 











Summon Innocent Devils to do your bidding. Collect Evolution: Crystals to enhance your Innocent Devils. Level up by destroying the creatures of the night. 


© 1986 2005 KONAMI. “KONAMI” and “CASTLEVANIA” are registered trademarks of KONAMI CORPORATION. “CASTLEVANIA Curse of Darkness" is a trademark of KONAMI CORPORATION. Microsoft, Xbox and the Xbox logos are either registered trademarks 
or trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the U.S. and/or in the other countries and are used under license from Microsoft. "PlayStation" and the "PS" Family logo are registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. The ratings icon is a registered 
trademark of the Entertainment Software Association. All other trademarks are owned by their respective owners. 











2 


p 


When Love lies 
Vengeance Filly th the je hi. 


Wield the powerful Sill of Devil Forgery as you return 
to (һе ruins of Dracilla' S ќа B. in your quest for vengeance 
ELI „Ж the Jife of your true (ove, 








jae 





Acquire and create powerful new weapons. Explore the biggest 3D Castlevania world yet. Experience a darker story of betrayal and revenge. 





MATURE 


Blood 
M Violence Б х КОМАМ! 
ESRB CONTENT RATING ТІПТІ! P | ау ta ti ОП» E E 3 xBox www.konami.com/castlevania 





guns, nipples, and totally 733t videogaming 


hat 

You're owned by Sony! You must be! 
Reading your Xbox 360 launch guide [EGM 
#197] made me aware of that fact. How 
can you have five reasons not to buy a 
game system? And | don't want to hear 
about "getting the most for your gaming 
dollar." Gamers at every economic level buy 
systems. Kids living in poverty-stricken 
homes have them. | hope you have the 
same article for the PS3. If you don't like 
Microsoft, don't cover them. 

— Joe Domanico 


You're right. Our 24-page cover feature 
on Xbox 360 was just another clever ploy 
to destroy Microsoft, and it would have 
worked if it weren't for you meddlesome 
kids! Now no one can stop the "poverty- 
stricken" children from buying Xbox 360 
Core systems. 


socially unacceptable. I'd just like to say to 
those two Joseph McCarthy wannabes: If 
you point out one extreme, please don't 
forget the other, because that's me and 
about 99 percent of gamers out there. 


Even overachievers 


I'm an 18-year-old high school senior. My 
GPA is 4.5, and I’m the valedictorian of my 
Class. | play soccer, run track, and 

have held down an after-school 
job for two years now. Next fall 
I’m going to an Ivy League 
college, and | hope to go to 
medical school after that. And 
to Jack Thompson and 

Hillary Clinton’s utter shock, 
Гат a gamer. I’ve played and 
loved Resident Evil 4 and 
Grand Theft Auto, and ме yet 
to shoot up my school 
(actually, | want to 
be a doctor and 
help people) or 
fade into the 
cracks of the 

























Is this drawing 
corrupting 
our children? 
More at 11.... 


POST OFFICE 


Yeah, yeah, we’re all geniuses. 
Call us back when life knocks 
the shine off your shoes, kid. 
Maybe then you'll 
understand the secret 
messages in Grand Theft 
Auto (must buy sequel, must 
buy sequel, must buy...). 


Nerd gets 
It seems nowadays that 
everywhere you look 
there's a п00В. 
Personally, | pWn п00В5 
for a living. Just the 
other day | rolled up in 
my drop top and 
pWned one with my 
+87 staff of п00В 
smiting. | really just 


— Paul Goodnight 


want to know where all these nOOBs аге 
coming from and if you have any advice 
regarding my problem. 

— “Jam Masta n00B pWnr" Julian 
"Euthyphro" Levy 


Well, you could get a job and save 


enough money to move out of your 
mom's house. 


EGM makes kids 
This is about your little sex comments. First 
of all: Your comments аге lame—as in 
inappropriate, dudes! This mag isn't just for 
adults; kids about my age (12 to 17) are 

reading this crud. Not to mention my mom 


said three times in the past hour that she 





wished she never subscribed to it. Plus, 
you're contributing to HIV by making kids 
think they should go out and do it. So if all 
you can think about is sex, dudes, you need 
to get a life. And just because you can have 
sex in a game doesn't mean it's that great! 
—Jacob C. Lenz 


Dude, we haven't given anyone an 
STD—not that we know of, at least. 





Rambling and ranting from our message boards, boards.1URcom (look for Electronic Gaming Monthly's forums) 


Xbox 360 get: 
launch, later, or 
never? 


Skett: Launch, thanks to one 
game: Call of Duty 2. 


Jaundicejuice: Later. | 
wanna see how the 
competition stacks up (with 
actual games) before taking 
the plunge. 


Ragnarok 32: Later, when | 
don't have to sell my future 
children to Michael Jackson 
to afford one. 


KadeMedion: | have two 
preordered. ЕВау, here 
I come! 


TheGamingintern: Later. 
Probably five years later. | 
hate being poor. 


18 • ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com 


NYCMajestic: What 
happened to maybe? 
Maybe... 


Fedyakin: Maybe is not an 
option! Never give up! Never 
surrender! 


Shadow_of_a_Doubt: Not 
for a new console. This year’s 
PS2 lineup alone beats the 
360’s launch titles. 


Botkiller: Launch. The 
launch lineup looks really 
good to те, and а end up 
getting one anyway. 


Firestar46: Later, and only 
because l'Il be able to stack 
my 360 on top of my original 
Xbox to form a Voltron of 
console goodness. It will 
run on Perfect Dark Zero... 
and love. 








Thanks for the 
comments, 
Clinton. For your 
Letter of the 
Month, you'll be 
receiving a (still- 
legal) game from 
the EGM vaults. 





Missing 
Looking at your review of Trauma Center: 
Under the Knife [EGM #197], | noticed the 
line that says, "Female patients: have no 
nipples. Sorry, Dr. Pervert." Getting to the 
point, what is the point of having female 
patients if we can't see their nipples? I 
know it's against Nintendo's standards, but 
come on. Oh, and being a guy has nothing 
to do with it. 

—Ethan Saeedian 


It’s nipple-crazy gamers like you who 
make this mag too hot for kids. Not that 
we don't want hot pixelated nipple 
action in our surgery games... 


CONTACT EGM 


E-mail us at: 


EGM@ziffdavis.com 


Or write to: 
EGM Letters 
101 2nd Street, 8th Floor 
San Francisco, CA 94105 


For subscription help, contact: 
E-mail: subhelp@egmmag.com 
Web: http://service.egmmag.com 
Phone: (800) 779-1174 


To order back issues: 
E-mail: back_issues@ziffdavis.com 








Burn rubber in London. Power-slide through turns in Tokyo. Pick-up kudos 
catching air іп New York. Project Gotham Racing З puts you behind the 
wheel of the world's fastest exotic cars. Hacing in the world's most exotic 


cities. Like a fuel-injected bat outta hell. GOTHAM 3 





AO. oS Microsoft 


gamexstudios: 


ge ee LAI 
iw, A =. ` < ea, 2 Ғғ 
bA A = Ё. ЖШ 2 
£ я 7. 
P ET А ds. ` a I @ 
| | BIZARRE 
CREATIONS 





S, Xbox Live, and the Xbc 
tions Limited: © Bizarre 








EVERYONE 





Mild Lyrics 


ks of Ferrari Spa: The body designs of 
sign rights.in andassociated with the 






е of Ferrari Spa. FERR 
ected as Ferra 
eu 










ESRB CONTENT RATING — www.esrb.org 











BONUS GALLERY 


Going the extra mile for love of the game 


Star Wars AT-GC 


I fit the guts of a GameCube into 
an Imperial Walker (AT-AT), 
becoming quite possibly the 
coolest nerd ever! (Is that an 
oxymoron or what?) It sports two 
memory cards, four wireless 
WaveBird controllers, and a lovely 
red cockpit power light. | built it for 
display in my store, called The 
Gamers Haven, in Columbus, OH. 
—Chett M. Muzzalupo 


over Madden 

| cannot express my shock and dismay that 
EGM failed to recognize that EA shipped a 
defective product in the PSP version of 
Madden NFL 06. Anyone who has spent any 
amount of time playing the game knows 
that it causes random shutdowns of your 
PSP while playing franchise games. | expect 
such sloppy reviews from those who play 
preview builds of the game, but EGM 
is supposed to only review the 
shipping version of the 
game. | was 
counting on 
you to 
provide a 
real review. 
Instead, one 
of your 
reviewers even 
went so far as to 
give it a 9.0! 

Clearly one of two things is occurring: 
1) You have been lying to your readers for 
all these years regarding what version of 
games you review, or 2) You are so far down 
in EA’s pockets that you can’t give an 
honest review of a defective game. EA has 
even gone so far as to officially post a 
workaround for the problem (which doesn’t 





work), yet there’s no mention of it on your 
website or [in your] magazine. 
—Јау-Јау Lord 


We didn’t know about any problems with 
the game until a reader pointed it out to 
us on our message boards 
(boards.1UP.com) last month. We 
didn’t find out about it in 
time to address it in 
our last issue, so 
we're doing it 

now. 

We're not 
7 trying to hide 

anything—our 
reviewable versions 
didn't have any of the 
problems many people are 
experiencing, honest. All three of our 
reviewers independently played the 
game, then played it together for 
multiplayer, online, and so on, and didn't 
run into any of the bugs. Since not all of 
the PSP Madden 065 out there were 
affected, we're guessing we got burns of 
one of the healthy discs. We wish we 
could've warned our readers, but our 
discs (which were 100 percent 
reviewable, not previewable) were 













GAME DESIGN-O-RAMA 


Got proof that game design is best left to the pros? Send your concept (with 
art) to EGM@ziffdavis.com, subject: Design-o-rama 


4 


PlayStation.2 


Calamari Damacy 


When the King of All Crustaceans accidentally 
destroys all the fish in the sea, he orders you, 
his shrimpy son, to put the inky lifeblood back 
in the ocean below. How, you ask? By frying 
everything and anything on Earth in a delicious 
beer batter, so he can start a fast food chain 
(Captain King’s House 0’ Batter) and fund the 
Repopulate the Ocean Endeavor (ROE). The key 
to success? Sperm whales, of course! Try this 
game with some seaweed, or “reefer,” as some 
folk like to call it. The shimmering water 
effects are amazing! 


Calamari 


Ет 


Damacy.. 


—Nate Zuckerman 


20 • ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY е www.1UP.com 





perfectly fine. 

But now you all know, some PSP 
Madden 06s are bad. If you have 
problems, check out 
www.easports.com/madden06/ 
psp_news.jsp for updates and a 
possible workaround. 

Inclusive 

| couldn't have been more then 
5 years old when my dad 
brought home an NES, 
beginning my long gaming 
career. But a few months ago, 
| was in a surfing accident =! t 
and am now a quadriplegic ] 
(technically now known as a 
tetraplegic). I’m not going to 
say the first thing to run 
through my mind was, “How 
will | hold a controller ever D 
again?" But it was number rise 
two or three. | thought | was 

going to be forced to quit 

gaming forever. Then | b) 
read about the Revolution 

controller. It’s perfect! | can 
hold a TV remote. | can 
swing my arm around. 

І can make small wrist 
movements (with my right 
hand at least). | can be a 
gamer again! Nintendo’s 
willingness to think outside 
the box really will open up 
gaming to people who have never been 
physically able to play, and gamers like me, 
who for one reason or another are no 
longer able to play. 


A 


—Travis Taft 


Gandhi 
Recently, thanks to the scandal caused by 
Grand Theft Auto, gaming has once again 
found itself on the receiving end of 
negative press. Of the critics, none is more 
prominent than attorney Jack Thompson, 
who has repeatedly decried not only the 
videogaming industry but gamers 
themselves. As you can imagine, this 





Reviewer David Chen lamented the lack 
of a tilt feature in his review of Metroid 
Prime Pinball [ЕСМ #198] but 
discovered later that a tilt feature was 
included. David: "Players can, in fact, tilt 
the table by rubbing the screen, thereby 
obscuring the action. So yes, Virginia, 
there is a tilt feature, but it's a pain in 
the ass to use and won't really affect 
your enjoyment of this great game one 
way or another." 








angers me. But what really upsets me is 
the response from many gamers. The 
reports of large amounts of hate mail and 
even death threats directed at Mr. 
Thompson from gamers are, to say the 
least, very disappointing. This is like trying 
to smother a fire with kindling. | 
> ask gamers to set aside your 
} anger and prove to this man and 
those like him that we're not the 
violent, angry monsters he 
depicts us to be. 
—Anthony Houdyshell 


best policy 

It seems like every month you 

guys print a letter from someone 

under 17 who complains that their 
parents won't buy them a Mature- 
rated game. Well, I'm 16, and | get 
M-rated games all the time. It's not 
because my parents are ignorant 
and don't know what they're 
buying me—it’s the exact opposite. 
When | want ап M-rated game, | tell 
them about all the "questionable" 
stuff inside. At the store l'Il show 
them the ESRB rating and explain 
why the game got it. Sometimes l'Il 
get on the Internet and show some 
screenshots of the most violent 
parts, and other times they'll do their 
own research. 

They know my personality and 
know | won't snap and bring an automatic 
rifle to school after playing Halo 2 or take a 
baseball bat to my friend's head after 
playing GTA. Sometimes they say yes, and 
sometimes they say no. | don't call them 
four-letter words and run to my room 
screaming when they say no, either. | just 
deal with it. Maybe if more kids would stop 
calling their parents bad guys and told the 
truth about the games they wanted to play, 
they'd have better luck. 

—Kevin Schram 


Wow, we still throw fits at the toy store 
when our parents won't buy us stuff. 4 





PlayStatio 


TEL. 


NEW YORK CITY 


|! a MG 
TOW 
а" 


DI. M 


ы Kg 
Lü na^ 
Wn BF 


яҙ 
ea mU ic 





Pe. 2.0 0. d 


“ONE OF THE MOST REALISTIC SETTINGS EVER.” 


“THE SHEER DIVERSITY. ..IS NOTHING SHORT OF ASTONISHING” 
—PSM 





X 9 
Lux af exo 


xBOX NINTENDO 


GAMECUBE. BRADYGAMES: 











© 2005 Activision Publishing, Inc. Activision and True Crime are registered trademarks of Activision Publishing, Inc. All rights 
reserved. Developed by Luxoflux. "PlayStation" and the "PS" Family logo are registered trademarks of Sony Computer 
Blood and Gore Entertainment Inc. Microsoft, Xbox and the Xbox Logos are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corporation 
Intense Violence in the U.S. and/or in other countries. TM, ® and Nintendo GameCube are trademarks of Nintendo. © 2001 Nintendo. The ratings 
icon is a registered trademark of the Entertainment Software Association. All other trademarks and trade names are the properties 
of their respective owners. 


Strong Language 
Strong Sexual Content 
Use of Drugs 


ESRB CONTENT RATING — www.esrh.org 











IN STORES 


TRUE 


ACTIVISION. 


activision.com 








EVERYONE 





Visit www.esrb.org 
for updated rating 
information. A к 
ESRB CONTENT RATING —— wwwesihag namco XBOX 3600. ee > 


RIDGE RACER™6 ©2005 NAMCO LTD., ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Microsoft, Xbox, Xbox 360, Xbox Live, the Xbox logos and the Xbox Live logo are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries. The ratings icon 
is a registered trademark of the Entertainment Software Association. All other trademarks and trade names are the properties of their respective owners. 


DO REA l UEALNG TAKE 130 NEW MACHINES DRIFTING 
: THROUGH OVER 200 RACES. 


|... ТИН? 


FEEL THE FULL-THROTTLE EFFECTS 
OF THE EVOLVED NITROUS SYSTEM. 


THE ORIGINAL 
TOUR DE CENTRIFUGAL FORCE IN DRIFT RACING 


<= HAS OFFICIALLY LEFT ITS IMITATORS IN THE DUST. 
2 RIDGE RACER 6 DOLES OUT ONE NITROUS-PUNCHING, 
WHITE-KNUCKLED RIDE AFTER ANOTHER THROUGHA 
HARROWING ARRAY OF HAIRPIN TURNS. AND WHEN THE SMOKE CLEARS, 
YOUR RACING SKILLS WILL REVEAL IF YOU'RE AMONG 





THE FEARLESS OR THE FORGOTTEN. 





TM 


VID ERKA L £ rd 


p = А — 


= COMING NOVEMBER 2005 


О) press start 








ELECTRONIC ARTS RECENTLY ANNOUNCED THAT BIG- TIME HOLLYWOOD DIRECTOR STEVEN SPIELBERG (JAWS, JURASSIC PARK) HAS SIGNED 


26 е ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY e www.1UP.com 








ІНЕ NUTS AND 





BOLTS OF DS WI-FI 


Everything you need to get your Mario mojo working...online 


nline? It’s-a-not-for-me. That's 
0 been Nintendo's attitude 

toward online gaming for 
some time now. (Company execs cited 
“lack of profitability" as its reason for 
staying offline.) The GameCube has 
only one Internet-ready title, the role- 
playing Phantasy Star Online, and it 
didn't even come from Mario's bunch. 
But the hardware maker is finally 
changing its tune; Nintendo just added 
online functionalities to its DS hand- 
held (which before only featured local 
wireless play) and is releasing games 
that support it. Since we know some of 
you are new to this whole Internet- 
gaming thing (especially if you're a 
Nintendo fan), here's the 411 on play- 
ing your DS online. --./егету Parish 


Essential gear 
О: How do І take my DS 
online? Do І need some 
kind of special adapter? 
A: Actually, the DS comes with wireless 
networking capabilities built right in to the 
hardware. The trick is getting it to connect 
to the Internet. First, you need a game that 
actually supports online action. Next, you 
need a Wi-Fi connection. Many wireless 
routers work with the DS out of the box, 
but even if your eyes go out 
of focus when people toss 
around terms like “802.11b,” 
Nintendo's got your back 
with its wireless adapter. 
Simply plug this little guy into O 
any USB-equipped Windows- 3 
based РС with an Internet 

85 





= 


tendo Wi-Fi USB Connector 


N 


connection and you can jump 
online with your DS: quick, sim- 
ple, painless. 


Q: Great! But what about 
when I’m away from 

my PC? 

A: Nintendo will be offering tons of free 
hot spots across the country thanks to its 
partnership with McDonald's and Wayport. 


Drop in for a Happy Meal and humble your 
favorite EGM editor in Mario Kart all at 
once. Just be sure to wash your greasy 
fingers before using the touch screen. 


Q: But I don't want 
Ronald and Grimace to 
supersize me! 

A: That's cool—most free, non-password- 
protected 802.11b-compatible Wi-Fi net- 
works should work. Other commercial net- 
works (like the T-Mobile Wi-Fi available at 
Starbucks) won't, however: They require 
the use of a Web browser (and a credit 
card) for access. And right now, Nintendo 
has no plans to release browser software 
(like Internet Explorer) for the DS. But that 
can't stop someone else from doing so.... 


Making friends 

(and keeping them) 

Q: Online gaming is cool, 
but most people on the 
Internet are jerks. 

A: Don't sweat it. When you log on to the 
Nintendo network for the first time with 
a new game, you're given a friend code 
unique to you. This allows you to create 
a buddy list, so that you can be sure 

to play games only with the jerks you 
actually like. 


Q: Nice. How do 

І add friends? 

A: Simply exchange codes with your pals, 
then add their codes to your game. The 
resulting list is saved in your game card 
and is keyed to your hardware. Obviously, 
this means you can't simply use a single 
buddy list across every game. You need to 
add your friends to each game you wish to 
include them in. 


Q: Does that mean I 
can't use my Mario Kart 
buddy list on a friend's 
DS, too? 

A: Well, you can, but it's complicated and 
means that you'll overwrite the buddy info 


ON TO HELP CREATE THREE ORIGINAL VIDEOGAMES FOR THE PUBLISHER 


on your friend's DS. So you'd better hope 
your friend really, really likes you. 


The name of the game 

О: What DS games can 1 
look forward to playing 
over the Internet? 


A: It's a short list for now. Nintendo's lead- 


off for the online launch is the one-two 
juggernaut punch of Mario Kart DS and 
Animal Crossing: Wild World. A few other 
titles in the near future will offer con- 
nectivity features, too, 
including the 

next Tony € 
Hawkand,of | 
course, 
Metroid Prime 
Hunters (which 
is slated for 
early 2006). 


Q: So 

what 

else? 

A: Well, it's all 
speculation at the 
moment, but 
Nintendo's always 
been a strong sup- 
porter of multiplayer 

gaming...it's just that until now the com- 
pany has supported multiplayer of an 
offline nature. But some of those games 
are а natural fit for remote action. Zelda: 
Four Swords Adventures? Check. Super 
Smash Bros.? Definitely. Mario's sports 
spin-off du jour? Rock on. 


О: But Рт a sketchy 
communist/terrorist who 
hates Mario and Zelda! 


A: Don't worry; the DS should get plenty of 


third-party support, too. Square Enix, for 
instance, is working on a DS version of 
Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicles, an RPG 
that's just begging for online gameplay. 
And the sports-heavy publisher Electronic 
Arts is a given. 


. EXPECT SOME INFO ON THESE NEW PROJECTS IN 2006.... 


















“Is there anybody out there?” 
Q: Voice chat—yay or nay? 
A: At the moment, Nintendo says the DS 
won't support voice chat over its Wi-Fi con- 
nection. That's not to say it won't happen, 
though; Nintendo previously showed off a 
voice-over-IP demo that proves it's certainly 
possible. For now, any crude insults you 
want to hurl must be typed out one letter at 
a time in games that support text chat. 


Backward 
a compatibility? 
Q: So will it be 
backward 
compatible? 
Can І play ту 
older DS and 
GBA games 
online, too? 
A: Wouldn't that 
be nice? 
Wouldn't it rock 
to be able to 
go head-to- 
head against 
a stranger in 
Pokémon 
Emerald? Or to swap 
Nintendogs gifts with some dude in 
Kalamazoo? It totally would! Unfortunately, 
it's also totally not going to happen. This is 
simply due to technical limits (read: The 
games weren't designed for it). 


Q: So...no online 
PictoChat? 

А: Sorry, you'll have to wait until the next 
version of the DS if you want to send dirty 
doodles of Samus to fellow perverts across 
the country. 


So what's the online DS experience 
actually like? Turn to pages 130 and 132 


to see what our reviewers had to say 
about going online with Mario Kart DS 
and Animal Crossing: Wild World. л 





ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com • 27 





EGMINTIERNATI@NAL 


Work out (and then relax) your brain 


m Nintendo DS 


SOUKAI! MACHIGAI MUSEUM 


Is it me, or is the DS just swimming in 
“brain” games? It’s not you: Ever since 
Nintendo's DS Brain Training for Adults 
broke six-figures in copies sold, third par- 
ties have been scrambling to get their 
own version on Japanese shelves. This 


take involves a rapid-fire volley of “find 
the difference between the two pictures" 
puzzles, the sort of thing you skip over to 
get to a newspaper's comics section. 
How does this help my brain? Oh, it's 
totally scientific: “Тһе game measures 








28% ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY e www.1UP.com 








reflexes, concentration, cognition, judg- 
ment, and memory to determine an over- 
all ‘right-brain score’ for the player,” says 
publisher Namco. So if you struggle 
solving these puzzles, maybe it's time to 
consider taking the short bus to school. 








PORTABLE RESORT 


Рт sick of my PSP's crappy game 
library! Then why don't you take a vaca- 
tion from it by visiting the polygonal 
tropical island inside your PSP? Namco is 
hyping Portable Resort as a "healing 
entertainment tool," a free-roaming, sun- 
drenched virtual resort where you're free 
to do what you want, Animal Crossing 
style. Take in the sunset while relaxing in 
a hammock? Sure. Feed the local fauna? 
You got it. Hold your PSP like a goof and 
play a virtual ukulele? No problem. 

How is pretending to be on vacation 
restful? You'll start to feel it in watch 
mode, as the game plays soothing ambi- 
ent sounds while you sleep. It's like that 
thing they sell in the Sharper Image cata- 
log, except even fruitier! 


WHATS PLAYING IN THE 
COMPUTER 


GAMING 


WORLD 


0 Christmas tree, 0 Christmas 
tree...how you drain our gaming 
budgets. Another landmark year for 
PC games comes to a close—so 
what should you snag (and avoid) 
during the mad post-Thanksgiving 
shopping spree? 


Shooty-Shooty Bang-Bang 


WA 


a 


At first glance, trigger-happy first- 
person shooter nuts have a veritable 
platoon of titles to choose from...but 
you'll want to be a little picky about 
which ones end up on your PC. Quake 
4 looks very enticing in its special- 
edition box, but a sad realization soon 
kicks in: The game’s just a prettier 
version of Quake Ill with а by-the- 
books single-player mode. Better 

yet, go snatch a copy of FE.A.R., 
which sports hair-raising thrills and 
some of the sharpest shooter A.I. in 
recent memory. 


Real-time strategy buffs definitely get 
the lion's share of holiday games—at 
least in terms of quality. The Dungeons 
& Dragons-branded Dragonshard 
melds RTS gameplay with fast-paced 
role-playing-style action; Warhammer 
40,000: Dawn of War— Winter 
Assault goes beyond the typical 
expansion, giving fans an entire new 
game's worth of content; and Sid 
Meier devotees have Civilization IV to 
keep them busy. Just don't get too 
excited about Age of Empires III or 
Black & White 2...unless you're in the 
mood to dampen holiday spirits. 
—Ryan Scott, 
Computer Gaming World 





>> NEXT SPRING, EA SPORTS WILL RELEASE NFL HEAD COACH (PS2/XB), A STRATEGY GAME THAT CENTERS ON RUNNING А REAL NFL TEAM.... >> 

















CHANGE THE FACE OF 
ANCIENT EGYPT. 





OVERHAULED INTERFACE: RTS style, intuitive interface 
gives you greater unit and city control at faster speed. 


3D LIVING WORLD: Elaborate, detailed environment set in 
a vibrant and colorful world. 





NEW FEATURES: Introducing religion, Holy Cities, missionaries, 
Great People, variable scale games and loads of new civic options. 


A MODDER'S DREAM: ^n unprecedented level of modding 
power including: World builder editor, XML, Python Scripting 
Language, and coming soon: The Civilization IV SDK - mod the A.I. 
to meet your vision. 


MULTIPLAYER: Built from the ground up with Era starts, 
variable game speeds, hot join, team play and a bevy of connectivity 
options (LAN, internet, PBEM, hot seat and more). 


m] I a 
" 





9.4 out of 10 5 out of 5 stars 











9.4 out of 1 10 | 
"The only reason | "If you have even a passing ooo 
to stop "Риа | interest in strate. eripe "Civilization IV stands 

Civilization IV is to | world history, or getting less s. Z alone. No fan of strategy 

tell other people just at night, you owe it to pe (С ames should leave 
how good the game is." РЕЗ to give Civilization IV a try. this on store shelves." 

-IGN | — GameSpot — GameSpy 
EVERYONE 
Violence | o www.CivIV.com 

ESRB CONTENT RATING se > “Ха? < ment F І RA XIS GAMES 
o ee a и аита worn OY St et re aes ge mt cn oe a Inc. 


ж” 
-—— = i ^ £C < 


кы m. ЧН... em m = 


The man behind Ме: 


| onami recently fired its first 

volley into the next-gen 

console conflict with a stun- 
ning trailer for Metal Gear Solid 4, the 
upcoming PlayStation 3 instaliment of 
the revered stealth-action franchise. 
Never one to shy away from daring 
Surprises, series mastermind Hideo 
Kojima shocked fans with a grizzled, 
gray-haired Solid Snake, chaotic 
urban warfare against multiple Metal 
Gear robots, and unbelievably detailed 
visuals. Instantly, the PS3 had its 
must-buy game. Since MGS4 isn’t 
expected until the end of 2006 at the 
earliest, concrete facts about the 
story line and gameplay remain 
scarce, but we were able to squeeze a 
little info out of Snake’s notoriously 
secretive creator... 

—Shane Bettenhausen 


EGM: Fans were a bit 
surprised by Snake’s new 
mustache.... 


| о Kojima: Of course, the team 
researched many different beards and 


30 • ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY ° www.1UP.com 


mustaches, and we eventually decided 
on this Lee Van Cleef-inspired look. And 
the power of the PS3 allows us to repre- 
sent the facial hair with such amazing 
detail, along with his facial features, like 
wrinkles. It's very easy to create a sim- 
ple texture, like the skin of a young, 
beautiful lady, so we decided to use the 
machine's power to create 
something far more com- 
plex...an old guy. 


EGM: We were 
wondering if 
Snake’s beard 
grew in real 
time and you 
had to shave it 
in a minigame? 
K: We actually first had 
that idea for MGS2, but we 
weren’t able to do real- 
time whisker shaving. So, 
this time we also want to 
include that...hopefully 
we'll be able to get it in 
the final game. Also, we'd 





goes to war 


like Snake’s face to look older and to 
show realistic expressions of fatigue as 
he goes through the game. Well, | told my 
team that, and they said, “Please, we 
don’t want to have to do that.” We’re not 
sure what’s going to happen with that. 


EGM: MGS has always 
seemed to be 
inspired by real- 
life events. With 
all the wars rag- 
ing right now, 
һауе those соп- 
flicts inspired 
MGS4? 

Of course, what’s hap- 
pening today—not just one 
specific war, but all the 
global conflicts—influ- 
ences my works. | haven’t 
really gone to actually see 
the fighting, but | plan to 
go near it. I’m not sure if 
РІ come back alive, but | 
really want to go by the 
end of this year. MGS4 will 


PA 


=, 
Actor Lee Van Cleef 
inspired Snake's new look. 


>> WANT EVEN MORE DISH STRAIGHT FROM MR. KOJIMA'S MOUTH? SCOPE HIS SURPRISINGLY VERBOSE PERSONAL BLOG (IN ENGLISH) AT 





not be based on a specific location; we 
just call it "the battlefield." It's any loca- 
tion where a war is raging: many different 
Situations and several different countries. 


EGM: Has Mr. Mori, your 
military advisor, been by 
to teach you new tactics 
for urban combat? 

Yes, Mr. Mori is backing us up in the 
combat department. We're actually going 
to have more training sessions very soon. 
And since MGS4 is a wrap-up for the 
whole series, I'm planning on visiting the 
most dangerous locations possible with Mr. 
Mori. But since we're a company, and I’m 
important to Konami, | have a hard time 
convincing my bosses to let me go. When I 
say dangerous, it isn't just the physical 
danger, though—this time we're also try- 
ing to highlight the psychological effects of 
war. lm worried that some of my team 
might suffer some serious mental damage 
and be unable to return to the real world. 


EGM: How will Snake's 
new *Solid Eye System" 











affect gameplay? 

HK: In the past, Snake wore several dif- 
ferent types of goggles, like the thermal 
or night vision [ones]. Now, those will be 
integrated with the radar system in order 
to make it more user-friendly. Of course, 1 
thought about this from a gameplay point 
of view, but | also wanted Snake to wear 
an eye patch, so | said to the design team 
to integrate it all together. 


EGM: You’ve chosen a 
specific keyword for the 
theme of each MGS 
game: meme (MGS), 
gene (MGS2), scene 
(MGS3), and now sense. 
What does “sense” mean 
in the context of MGS4? 
HK: In the past MGS games, we focused 
on the theme of passing genetic informa- 
tion on to the next generation, and how 
the next generation evolves in its new era. 
So, with technology advancing, the very 





8 The view from Snake’s Solid Eye System. 


nature of genetics can be transformed into 
digital information, and you could control 
exactly how your DNA is passed on. At the 
same time, the Internet evolves, allowing 
all people the free and open transfer of 
information. And what's important is to 
digitally maintain the memory, the sense 
of a person, after they have passed. 
What's not possible is for their will, or 
their spirit, to be passed on 
or kept forever. People cre- 
ate society, and we felt that 
the "sense" of a person is 
the core of what everything 
is all about. MGS4's 
ІІ Metal Gear 
looks oddly 
familiar. 


EGM: Uh, 
yeah...we'll fig- 
ure that out 
later. So, will 
the healing, 
hunting, and 
camouflage sys- 
tems from 
MGS3 return in 
MGS4? 

HK: | felt that the new 
systems of MGS3 were 
appreciated by many 
users, and in the end, the 
development team was 
very happy as well, even though there 
had been some internal battles about 
these systems within the team. Those 
systems all occurred, though, because 
survival was the theme of MGS3. Some of 
them might carry on into MGS4, but since 
the theme is battlefield, we might imple- 
ment them differently. There are bullets 
flying around everywhere, so you don’t 
have time to go hunting for a frog to eat. 


EGM: In the trailer we 
see Snake’s old friend 
Otacon operating а 
remote-controlled Metal 
Gear Mark Il unit. It 
looks a lot like the one 
from your classic Sega 
CD graphic adventure 





isin ot merely just an old тап...” қ 


—MGS4 Director Hideo aia 





game, Snatcher. 15 there 
any connection between 
the two games? 

НК: You should probably forget about that, 
since these are totally different worlds. | 
always dreamed of having a remote- 
controlled robot in MGS, but we never had 
enough memory to actually do it. But now 
with PS3, we can finally pull it off. 


EGM: In the 
trailer we see 
Snake fighting 
enemy troops in 
a city. Will there 
be bystanders 
in the final 
game? 
HK: Yes, there will be inno- 
cent people in the game, 
just not in the trailer, since 
we didn’t have time to 
show that many people 
onscreen. In the previous 
games, Snake infiltrates 
enemy facilities, so from 
his point of view, anyone 
inside of there is a bad 
guy. And from the bad 
guys’ perspective, Snake 
is the bad guy. So, this 
time, the battlefield is vast and varied. 

For example, imagine that Snake has 
teamed up with country C. And he goes 
into a battle where country A and country 
B are fighting and Snake is kind of neu- 
tral. So, in that situation, Snake’s mission 
might be to sneak in and get something. 
It's possible that he could get in and 
complete his mission with neither side 
ever finding him. Or, if he's not success- 
ful and gets spotted by country A, then 
he’ll have to fight against them. And of 
course, country B could also spot him, 
and then they'd fight him...so then it’s 
possible for both of those countries to 
become your enemies. 

There’s also a strategy at work where 
if the item you need is in the area con- 
trolled by country A, you might team up 





with them to make it very easy to get the 
item. Of course, if you become their ally, 
you’ll have to fight alongside them 
against their enemies. Or another strate- 
gy is that Snake can wait until the war 
between A and B is over and then get the 
item. Of course, | doubt anyone will play 
that way. So, the new thing is that Snake 
will definitely have to go to the battle- 
field, and he will have the opportunity to 
interfere with the war, and that interfer- 
ence will affect the next stages. This is 
the new plot. 


EGM: Is it your intention 
to make this a more 
open-ended adventure? 
HK: Well, there is still only one main story 
line, but heading toward that ending, you 
will alter the circumstances along the way. 
Here’s an example: When you play ina 
battlefield with country A and B at war and 
Snake allies with country A and then 
destroys country B, in the next stage, there 
was supposed to an ongoing war between 
A and B, but now that will not occur. 


EGM: Now that Snake is 
older, will that change 
the gameplay? We see 
him injecting himself in 
the trailer... 

HK: Well, we don't want to cause the 
players a lot of stressful upkeep, but the 
player does have to be Snake. And our 
intention of Snake is an old man still try- 
ing to be a hero. There is something else 
that we're thinking about that's actually 
relevant, but we can't quite tell you. | 
want you to know that Snake is not mere- 
ly just an old man.... 4% 





WWW.BLOG.KONAMI.JP/GS/HIDEOBLOG_E/. EXPECT UPDATES ABOUT HIS PROJECTS, PHILOSOPHIES, AND LUNCH CRAVINGS.... 


ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY ° www.1UP.com • 31 








ET A TASTE 0 
. NO LOAD TIMES 


LESE EE 


27” 


customiz pyr 100 


апа TRIC 


- all in game 


Blood 
Crude Humor 
Language 


Suggestive Themes 
2 W 7 


Violence y % 
IE. 
ESRB CONTENT RATING — www.esrb.org | PlayStation.2 Eie Ls 








in the vast 


“bust NEW! mind-blowing 


x8OX X 36 qamnespy | кө 


Tony Hawk's American Wasteland © 2005 Activision Publishing. Inc. Ac S a re on Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved. Tony Hawk is a registered trademark of Tony Hawk, Inc. 
Developed by Neversoft Entertainment, Inc. "PlayStation" and the "PS" F / Computer Entertainment Inc. GameSpy and the "Powered by GameSpy" design are trademarks 
of GameSpy Industries, Inc. Л rights r d. Online play requii nternet connection and Memory Card (8! tation 2) (each sold separately). The Online icon is a trademark of Sony Computer 
Entertainment Ате Inc. TM, ® and Nintendo samed аге tr arks of Nintendo. © 2001 Nintendo. M 0 box, Xbox 360, Xt ive, the Xbox logos, and the Xbox Live logo are either registered 


trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the U r other countries. All rights re: The ratings icon is a registered trademark of the Entertainment Software Association. All other trademarks 
and trade names are the property of their respective owners 


unlimited SKATING 





ACTIVISION. 


activision.com 


Б 





AFTERTHOUGHTS: 


: THE LEAGUE 





Talking X's and O's with the makers of mature-rated football 


ar fights, gambling, late-night 

visits from some prostitutes— 

sounds more like Grand Theft 
Auto than a pro football game. But 
those are just some of the ways that 
Blitz: The League (PS2/XB), Midway's 
arcade-rich (and unlicensed) gridiron 
title, deviates from the genre norm. We 
spoke with Blitz Lead Designer and 
EGM alum Kraig Kujawa about how 
being freed from the МҒІ:5 shackles 
allowed his team to make the sports 
game they've always wanted to...both 
on and off the field. --Вгуап Intihar 


EGM: Who do think the 
game's non-Madden 
antics would shock 
more: a football mom or 
legendary coach Vince 
Lombardi? 

| would definitely say a 
football mom. A lot of those cleaner, more 
sterile [football] titles shy away from any- 
thing controversial, so a football mom might 
be surprised that B/itz actually tackles these 
issues. But I don't think she's going to be 
surprised that this kind of stuff actually hap- 
pens in football. Vince Lombardi's a tough 
ass; maybe some of this stuff wouldn't 
happen on his team. 


EGM: Yeah, Lombardi 
probably wouldn't stand 
for a player pretending 
to piss on the goalpost. 
Which taunts didn't make 
it into the final game? 

We had some stuff that involved your 
sister and daughter. [Laughs] Let me put it 
this way: We're doing something completely 
different, and we have some really crazy 


stuff [in the game]. You have [the Lawrence 
Taylor character] sacking the quarterback 
and saying, “Turn over, bitch, | like it from 
the back." And at that point, we're like, “ОК. 
We've sort of hit that line. People get it. 
Let's just see what the reaction is. and then 
maybe we'll put in some of the other stuff." 


EGM: Blitz quarterback 
Mike Mexico is a dead 
ringer for NFL superstar 
Michael Vick...and pokes 
fun at his rumored sex- 
capade. Any other NFL 
players inspire those in 
your game? 


Tito Moss is a good Terrell Owens clone, 


if you hear some of the stuff he says. And 
then there's another guy who's a very *me- 
too" sort of player. And if you don't feed 
him the ball, he—in sort of a Keyshawn 
Johnson way—will start to get pissed at 
the quarterback. 


EGM: Hall of Famer 
Lawrence Taylor plays 
the Quentin Sands role, 
your main adversary in 
Blitz. Did he have some 
good stories about 
his glory days? 
The Joe Theismann 
story was kind of 
crazy. When we talked 
to LT about it, he told us 
how he called the guy in 
the hospital, and 
Theismann was like, 
"Yeah, you got me pretty 
good." And LT told him, 
"Yeah, you're lucky. | usu- 
ally don't do anything 


е, 
6 


< T ST 
= По an Internet search for “Michael Vick” and “Mike 
Mexico” and you'll quickly learn the hilarious connection. 


ж. 
>> ELECTRONIC ARTS CONFIRMED THAT A SEQ 


34» ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com 


i 


half-assed.” And he’s referring to only 
breaking one leg instead of two. 


EGM: Late in the cam- 
paign mode, Quentin 
Sands plays really dirty. 
Can you exact revenge on 
that cheap-shot artist? 

І knew when we put this in that maybe 
only 10 percent of people would see it, and 
that's kind of a bummer. So I'm really glad 
to answer this question. In the champi- 
onship game, you can do something that 
you can’t do throughout the game, and 
that’s injure the defensive player with an 
unleash [move]. So if you can perform any 
unleash move on Sands—like a QB evade, 
or ball-carrier stiff- 
arm or juke— 
you can 
injure Sands 
and get an 
extra piece 
of the story 
line. It’s 
very tough 
to do, 
though. 






























EGM: The cut-scenes 
were a long ways from 
earning an Emmy. Are we 
being too picky for a 
sports game? 

That's a valid point. | think one thing that 
might have contributed to that feeling is that 
we have over 25 minutes of cut-scenes. And I 
think we were really trying to make it so you 
got a little bit [of story] every game, but I 
think some scenes ended up being too short. 
Next time, we'll probably have more interac- 
tivity within the story, and probably do bigger 
yet less frequent chunks. 


EGM: Players in the 
game can take “pills” and 
*juice." Did anybody on 
the development team 
try out some similar sub- 
stances? You know, for 
research purposes? 

[Laughs] I'll put it to you this way—t did 


. alot of research for [the game's] bar scene. 
Î But we have some other shady characters 
FF on staff who may have done a couple of 


things here and there, but not so much that 
they'll admit to. 


O THIS YEAR'S UNDERWHELMING FIFA STREET IS CURRENTLY IN DEVELOPMENT. ... >= 


2 
Qz 
27 


perfectdarkzero.com 
Microsoft 
gamexXstudios: 


& 
RARE 


www.estb.org 


Language 
Violence 


Ə1Ə1SI6ƏJ1 Jayzie ase 060) әлі] 
о1ҙе104102 230501214 6002 O 


ESRB CONTENT RATING 





(») press start 


Source: NPD TRSTS Video Games Service. Call (516) 625-6190 for questions regarding this list. 





E SALES CHARTS 


BEST-SELLING GAMES 





John Madden 
loves being on top. 


1 Madden NFL 06 ° PS2 • EA Sports 


FOR SEPTEMBER 








NBA Live 06 

NASCAR 06: Total Team Control 
Tiger Woods PGA Tour 06 
X-Men Legends ІІ: ROA 

NCAA Football 06 

Burnout Revenge 

Star Wars Battlefront 
Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Dest. 
Mortal Kombat: Shaolin Monks 


XB0X 





12 | NBA Live 06 • PS2 • EA Sports 








3 | Mario Superstar Baseball • GC е Nintendo 








4| Madden NFL 06 * XB * EA Sports 








5 E Six: Lockdown • XB • Ubisoft 








Madden NFL 06 - 





6 | NASCAR 06: Total Team Control * PS2 * EA Sports 





Rainbow Six: Lockdown 





Burnout Revenge 





7| Tiger Woods PGA Tour 06 e PS2 e EA Sports 


NBA Live 06 





X-Men Legends 11: ROA 





18 ww Day of Reckoning 2 • GC « THQ 


Ninja Gaiden 








9 | Nintendogs: Chihuahua and Friends • DS • Nintendo 


Tiger Woods PGA Tour 06 
NASCAR 06: Total Team Control 





Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Dest. 





10| Burnout Revenge • XB • EA 





Mortal Kombat: Shaolin Monks 








Mario Superstar Baseball 





WWE Day of Reckoning 2 

Sonic Gems Collection 

Madden NFL 06 

Super Mario Sunshine 

Pokémon Colosseum 

Super Smash Bros. Melee 

The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker 
Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Dest. 
Pokémon XD: Gale of Darkness 


HEAD TO INSOMNIACGAMES.COM AND READ THE PREQUEL WEB COMIC TO THE RECENTLY RELEASED RATCHET: DEADLOCKED (PS2).... 


36 • ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com 





RENTAL 


FOR THE WEEK ENDING 10/09/05 





Nintendogs: Chihuahua ° DS 
Madden NFL 06 е PSP 
Nintendogs: Labrador ° DS 
Nintendogs: Dachshund ° DS 
Pokémon Emerald е GBA 

Advance Wars: Dual Strike • DS 
Burnout Legends • PSP 

Yu-Gi-Oh! Nightmare Trou. е PSP 
Namco Museum Battle Coll. « PSP 
Lego Star Wars • СВА 


P АС, BAN 

Ultimate Spider-Man • PS2 
Madden NFL 06 е Р52 
Burnout Revenge е PS2 

МВА 2К6 е Р52 

Ultimate Spider-Man • ХВ 
X-Men Legends Il: ROA • PS2 
Madden NFL 06 е XB 
Burnout Revenge ° XB 
Incredible Hulk: Ult. Dest. е PS2 
МВА 2К6 ° ХВ 








Source: Blockbuster Video 








WHAT'S UP AT 





EGM.1UP.COM 

Sometimes, we’ve got so much to 
say that it won't all fit on the 
blessed printed page. That's when 
we turn to our cohorts at 1UP.com, 
who post additional content at the 
above-mentioned website. Go 
there now to read our interview 
with EA Vice President Neil Young, 
in which he discusses the compa- 
ny's recent partnership with 
Steven Spielberg and how the 
movie director has a thing for the 
PS2 cult classic Ico. 


CHEATS.1UP.COM 

Don't be mistaken; this ain't where 
you go to indulge your nefarious 
side and cheat on your significant 
other. That's a different site alto- 
gether. At this URL, you can figure 
out how to get around that mon- 
ster that's been troubling you for 
so long on your quest to get with 
the hottie in danger. 


Featured Club: 

30-plus Single Gamers 
We know you're out there. You're 
reading this alone. You've got a 
profile on several different dating 
sites. You're tired of hiding your 
racks of videogame consoles and 
action figures when it's time to 
show someone your place. Start 
off on the right foot and meet 
someone fully realized and at 
peace with their playful side at 
30plus-singles-club.1UP.com. 


Featured Blog: 

Viva la Liberante 

It's the brisk new flavor that's a lit- 
tle bit sunshine, a little bit salsa. 
While some groups champion 
women's rights, the rainforest, or 
products that haven't been tested 
by pumping kittens full of 
shampoo, Liberante believes in 
one thing and one thing only: 
Schweppervescence. Go. Now. 
Liberante.1UP.com. 














YOU 
BE SERIOUS! 








Five famous designers rehabilitate the world's most boring games 


he edutainment games that, 
back in our grade school 
days, taught us how to spell 
Connecticut and carry the zero have 
come a long way. Taking cues from 
military combat simulators, these so- 
called serious games now aim to 
simulate political conflicts, business 
deals, and the all-out action of the 
daily corporate grind. Not surprising- 
ly, most of these specialized PC titles 
would put console gamers to sleep 
the second they started playing, so 
we tasked developers with punching 
up a particularly boring selection. 
And, yes, all these “games” are real. 
—Robert Ashley 





38 • ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY e www.1UP.com 





















>> ELECTRONIC ARTS HAS ACQUIRED THE RIGHTS TO MAKE GAMES BASED ON THE LONG-R 











= | ЖУЛ 
UNNING ANIMATED TELEVISION SERIES 





gm 
> J ` 


“Н could be worse, Ken—you could 
be in Sim Insurance Salesman.” 


Original developer: SimuLearn 

Like a long staff meeting at 
the big conference table, but without the doughnuts, 
Virtual Leader teaches managers how to squash the 
hopes and dreams of worker bees. Well, not exactly. 
You learn to keep them happy and productive, sort of 
like The Sims meets Office Space. Gauge the emo- 
tional state of your underlings by reading over 200 
possible body gestures, so next time the mail room 
guy urinates in the coffeemaker, you'll know whether 
to fire him or give him a raise. 


“First, all employees in the 
game should be armed. Weapons can be concealed 
or visible and widely varied—from damage-over-time 
devices (rabid squirrel in pocket) to giblet-makers 
(shoulder-mounted rocket). Having everyone packing 
heat means you'll need to be more careful when 
interpreting body language. Is that employee really 
upset? Should you have purchased full body armor 

before castigating your assistant for missing 
| that deadline? Is that an evil ‘I'm going to kill 
you...literally’ smile or just a ‘don’t worry, ІЛІ 
' only stab you in the leg’ smile? But to make 
things more interesting, each employee 
should have a unique psychosis. 
Perhaps Linda has a real problem 
with paper clips. it you give her a report 
that's clipped instead of stapled, you're going 
to lose an eye to her switchblade. Or Maybe Bill 
thinks he's female...on Tuesdays and Thursdays. 
Tell a sexist joke on the wrong day and— 
blam!—you better have life insurance." 
—Ted Price, President of 
Ratchet & Clank developer Insomniac 


ЖІ 








ТНЕ 











A Force 

Original developer: BreakAway Games 

The serious specifics: "Teach the children well," saith 
Crosby, Stills, Nash, Young, and this here war game—err, 
make that antiwar game. Though the brace-for-police- 
baton-impact button probably won't replace the fire button 
anytime soon, A Force More Powerful still gives peace a 
chance by forcing the player to find nonviolent solutions to 
military conflicts. Taking its scenarios from the pages of 
recent history, Force explores the possibilities of not letting 
Dr. Strangelove types make foreign-policy decisions. 
Patchouli oil and hemp clothing sold separately. 


Let's polish this turd: "Let's make it a whole country sim- 
ulator, with millions of relatively intelligent А.1.5 that we 
must sway to our faction through various nonviolent 
means. Our enemy is a corrupt faction that would be dev- 
astating to the local populous should it win popular opin- 
ion. So, to start, the player seeds the media with a bit of 
slander aimed at the good faction—while leading the pop- 
ulation to believe that the dark side is actually trying to 
launch the smear campaign. Popularity swings a tad 
toward our side, and it's only improved when our faction 
helps a neighboring disaster-prone country with relief aid. 
"Now it's time to turn up the heat and get a major gov- 
ernment body or two to go on strike. Hmm...how about the 
folks licensed to deliver liquor, and then the trash collec- 
tors, and then the mail force. | press the go-on-strike-now 
button (you know, the one right next to the win button). 
Time for the real nail in the coffin: We infiltrate people into 
the government and have them do something completely 
unacceptable—something so outrageous that the general 
population will have to force an impeachment. We 
make the current government outlaw 
videogames! Now the sober, garbage-ridden, no- 
2, mail-havin' oppressed masses 
8 simply have to act. Of course, 
2771 they will side with our group— 
you know, the ones that 
э», Y - promised to clean up the trash 
1 7) and continued to help the 
) neighboring country out of its 
/ disaster. That country just hap- 
| pens to reward our lovely land 
| with plenty of good single malt— 
| ‚ү its best export. And now that 
4 we've restored the mail and 
, A" X legalized games, all our loving 
; , country-folk can once again get 
their latest copies of EGM in the 
mail—the real reason peace has 
returned to the land." 
--Кеп Lobb, manager of the 
Microsoft studio overseeing 
Perfect Dark Zero 


T Virtual U 

Original developer: Enlight Software 

The serious specifics: From massaging the egos of self-impor- 
tant professors to keeping the football team off steroids (on 
paper, at least) to sweeping the latest frat-boy alcohol-poisoning 
incident under the rug, university administrators have a lot on 
their plates. That's where Virtual U comes in. Like a collegiate 
SimCity, this simulation forces you to make decisions at every 
level of your virtual school, from the number of parking permits 
issued to the salaries of basketball coaches. It might take a PhD 
just to understand the instruction booklet. 


Let's polish this turd: Higher education's mask of quiet dignity has fallen away, 
and now we see these viper pits as the for-profit enterprises they really are. Why 
not reward the players of Virtual U in a fashion similar to their real-world counter- 
parts...with slave girls and mountains of cocaine! virtual U 
players will be able to visit each other's campuses and show off their ill-gotten 
booty. After all, a little personal customization (even in a game with dry subject 
matter) is great for hooking people into the overall mechanic." 

—Nate Fox, game designer with Sly Cooper developer Sucker Punch 










| Objection! 


Original developer: TransMedia 
The serious specifics: Imagine the fun and funny courtroom DS es | еме 
game Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney, but replace its modern = = 
graphics with those of a text adventure circa 1986. 0h, and 
instead of memorizing a few trivial details, try reading a shelfful 
of encyclopedia-size law books, and then use that knowledge to 
win simulated court cases. The Objection! series of law-educa- 
tion games is so hardcore, you can customize it for the different 
legal codes of all 50 states. Sadly, winning court cases in the game won't earn you a night of cocaine and 
hooker-fueled debauchery, a Jaguar X-type, or a trophy wife in the suburbs. So much for realism. 


Let's polish this turd: *How about if it was called Guilty! instead, and you play a lawyer who has to do 
whatever it takes to get your guilty clients off the hook—and as far from the electric chair as 
possible. (Sounds like a cool “game over" screen already.) You could place a guy on the 
jury to rig its vote, then threaten or just plain beat up witnesses for the prosecu- š 
tion. This could be much more fun and probably a better training ground for 
would-be lawyers. Lie on the stand, bribe witnesses, 
and cheat and steal to get the only verdict 
worth getting. He's dead-to-rights guilty with ‘I did it’ writ- 
ten all over his face—do you have what it takes to get him off?" 
—Alex Ward, creative director of Burnout 3 developer Criterion 





Straight Shooter 


Original developer: Games2Train.com 

The serious specifics: Most of us have been forced to sit through a low-budget job-training video steeped 
in that glorious combination of '80s video-camera technology and sales-strategy acronyms (wait, what 
does T.E.A.M.W.O.R.K. stand for again?). The makers of Straight Shooter thought, “You know what would 
make those videos better? If they were first-person shooters." Roam the airports and hotels of the business 
world in search of clients. Along the way you'll zap "problems" with “ideas.” Hey—just like Halo! 


Let's polish this turd: “I'm thinking something along the lines of Knights of the Old Republic meets 
Glengarry Glen Ross. Break through clients’ defenses with intimidation, mass 
mailings, double talk, or the ol’ bait and switch. or play nice—win them over with 
your winning smile. Go for a 'stealth sale' and recruit them into your word-of-mouth sales force to fight 
alongside you through the rest of the game. Perfect for the Revolution's motion-sensing controller for full 
control over the deadly Firm Handshake." —Zak McClendon, game designer at Crystal Dynamics hı 














/ | 
* SIMPSONS. THE FIRST TITLE BASED ON THE LICENSE IS SLATED FOR THE NEXT-GEN CONSOLES, BUT THAT'S ALL EA WILL TELL US. D'OH! 





ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com • 39 


(>) press start 


OVERHEARD 


They say it, we write it, you read it 


че CENE *| view Tony Hawk as a franchise that we should 


EVERRTHING, be exploiting every year forever. | don’t see any reason 
why we can’t.” 


—Activision CEO Robert “Bobby” Kotick 


“The end goal is that players at the 
end of the game are actually 


because we’ve done our job so well.” 


—God of War designer David Jaffe comments on his next project, a PSP game 





answering the question that our company was founded 


— Space marine Portman from the Doom movie, on ы 
ап early favorite for a Best Screenplay Oscar в 


—EA LA's general manager, Neil Young, who announced a partnership with 
Director Steven Spielberg, also wants in on the crying game 


zı, “1 think 
£ +a you all 










м “ , i EF L 
$ ь 4 PEN. > recog- | Don't kid yourself—you’re gonna see more 
Є e = са nize | based around that controller than you could ever possibly imagine.” 
wi % je: IF | —Epic Vice President Mark Rein di: the motion-sensing controller for 
b à > this: It S а | Nintendo's Revolution onse posu ii d nes а сы systems 
ы, “ >” 
‹ { ene PENNY ARCADE WWW.PENNY-ARCADE.COM 
NOVIE DiayEr that Some little bastard crawled all 
‚з over him Por about ten minutes, and That's the God's honest. 
also plays some music. Did you hear then — I $*** you nob — stabbed нім What have I been saying about 
КУЗ what happened No! What right in his Special magical these things, huh? 
—-Peter Moore, corporate vice president 50 Bob? h appened bo weak p oinb. 


for Xbox, holding up a PSP to an Bob? 
audience at the Digital Life electronics ні 
show in New York City. He was demon- 
strating how the Xbox 360 can stream 
music from Sony's handheld 


"We're trying to 
erase the first 
one from peo- E es = 

ples memories.” | 5 7 m ; ЖАҚ, A — 


—House of the Dead 2: Dead Aim 


x 
© 
= 
E 
5 
Е 
ç 
x 
Е 
5 
5 
g 
= 
8 
š 
© 


actress Emmanuelle Vaugier talks 
about how great the first movie was 











QUOTATION SOURCES FROM TOP TO BOTTOM, STARTING WITH LEFT COLUMN: DOOM, EGM, SCIFI.COM, THESTREET.COM, MTV.COM, MTV.COM, IGN LIVE NEXT-GEN PANEL 





>> SPEAKING OF THE DOOM MOVIE, SOME CAST MEMBERS (BUT NOT THE ROCK) ARE UNDER CONTRACT FOR A (STRAGIHT TO VIDEO?) SEQUEL... >> 


40 • ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com 





Blood 
Intense Violence 


E D d 
Fm PlayStation.@ X 
& gee Mates Use of Drugs and Alcohol A ФАСО COMBAWY в XBox i 





A: Sexual Themes 
x< Strong Language 





The R, logo is a registered trademark of Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. "PlayStation" and the "PS" Family logo are registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. Microsoft, Xbox, and the Xbox logos are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in tho US 
and/or in other countries and under license from Microsoft. The ratings icon is a trademark of the Entertainment Software Association. All other marks and trademarks are properties of their respective owners. The Warriors (% & © 2005 Paramount Pictures. АП Rights Reserved. 





GUITAR 0 


Backstage with the producer who rawks 


t's official. We've spoken with 
Ж the producer of Guitar Hero 

and requested Led Zeppelin’s 
“Stairway to Heaven” for the sequel. 
Read on for our backstage tour with 
John Tam, producer at publisher 
RedOctane, who tells us all about mak- 
ing the game that uses a guitar con- 
troller to fulfill even a gamer-klutz's 
rock star dreams. —Jennifer Tsao 





EGM: Your song lineup 
is hot, but a bunch of 
stuff's missing. Fill us in. 
John Tam: A lot of songs never made it 
through approvals because we just never 
heard back. Or we may have thought that 
certain songs may not have played well in 
terms of gameplay. Where "Stairway to 
Heaven" didn't make it into the game, 
Deep Purple's "Smoke on the Water" did. 
We only had 30 slots for licensed music. 
That was what was budgeted in. 


EGMI: What specific songs 
were you bummed you 
couldn't get? 

JT: “Back in Black" by AC/DC was one of 
the ones we tried hardest to get. There 
were a number of Van Halen songs we 
were trying to get. The first prototype of 


42 • ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com 


the game was actually Weezer's 
“Dope Nose.” 


EGM: And...? Weezer 
rocks! What the hell 
happened? 

JT: They never got back to us! They just 
didn't get it.... It's so frustrating to sit on 
something that you totally believe in, and 
either the artist or someone in between 
[us and them] doesn’t get it. We had Velvet 
Revolver. We had Van Halen. We had these 
songs authored into the game. But they 
just never showed up in licensing. It was 
really sad that a lot of people didn’t get it. 


EGM: Could that change 
now that the game is out? 
JT: One of our dreams is that someone 
goes up to Eddie Van Halen and says, 
“Hey, my kid’s playing this game called 
Guitar Hero. Why aren’t you in the game?” 
A lot of people just ignored us or didn’t 
respond or we were below their budget. 
But we think the next round of licensing is 
going to be so much easier. This game 
teaches another level of appreciation for 
rock, and we think that once it gets out 
there, people will realize that. If this game 
does well, we want to increase the budget 
with Guitar Hero 2. 


EGM: What’s the 
strangest thing you’ve 
seen someone do while 
playing this game? 

JT: A lot of moaning and groaning. The 
funniest reaction is when people really 
get into it and they want to start living out 
that rock star dream. Everybody’s jumped 
around their living room and jumped off 
their couch and played air guitar, of 
course, but the funniest thing is that when 
they do it playing Guitar Hero, they start 
missing notes because they’re so busy 
trying to look cool. 


EGM: Have you started 
teasing your hair and 
wearing studded leather 
belts to work now? 

JT: A lot of people here were already into 
that lifestyle. We see guys carrying the gui- 
tar [controller] on their backs around the 
office, unplugged. We're like, “What are 
you doing?” They think it's cool. 


EGM: OK, who would rock 
harder: Ronnie James Dio 
circa 1983's Holy Diver, 
or Yngwie Malmsteen 
circa right now? 

JT: Who was that second опе? 








E Guitar Hero producer John Tam told us the 





game prototype looked like Pong—and he x gon 
wasn’t kidding (above). The game in its final С 
state (below) looks suitably more pyrotechnic. 
(Left) An early concept sketch for Guitar Hero. 





EGM: Never mind. Next 
question: The guitar con- 
troller's complete lack of 
a flamethrower attach- 
ment is unfortunate. 
What happened there? 
JT: Well...it's not...uh...rated for fire resis- 
tance. That's probably the main issue. 


EGM: We have one more 
VIP request from EGM: 
Europe's “The Final 
Countdown.” 

JT: Huh? 


EGM: Oh god. 
JT: Europe? 


EGM: [Sings] "It's the 
final count- 
dooooooown....” 

JT: Wait, let me yell it across to a couple 
guys on the team. [Covers phone] They 
say, “That song’s more keyboard driven.” 


EGM: Nice recovery. So 
can we blame you person- 
ally if your game causes 
the return of air guitar? 

JT: We believe that, with Guitar Hero, air gui- 
tar is dead. But yeah, you can blame us. жй 


SQUARE ENIX HAS PUSHED BACK THE RELEASE OF ITS CG MOVIE FINAL FANTASY VII: ADVENT CHILDREN (PSP/DVD) ТО JANUARY 2006€. ... 


i play. i win. i gloat. i kick back. i catch a movie. 
i hear some tunes. all thanks to one little card. 


Turn your PSP" (PlayStation? Portable) handheld entertainment device into a fully loaded 
multimedia machine. How? With a SanDisk? memory card. It gives you the power to play 


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= 
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Е L 1 ТЕ a а 


and Soviet weapons: 
40 authentic land, air and sea vehicles 
including AHI Cobra Helicopter 
and М1А1 Abrams tank. 


“ONE OF THE FINEST WAR GAMES OF ALL TIME.” -xvox wort 


Visit www.esrb.org pe X*eox 


for updated rating : - 1 NZ t 


information. 
ONLINE ENABLED 





© 2001-2005 Bohemia Interactive Studio. All rights reserved. Bohemia Interactive and Bohemia Interactive logo are trademarks owned by Bohemia Interactive Studio. “Codemasters” and the Codemasters fixo: are registered trademarks owned by Codemasters. "Operation 
Flashpoint"TM, "Operation Flashpoint: Cold War Crisis" TM, "Red Hammer" TM “Operation Flashpoint: Resistance" TM and "GENIUS AT PLAY"TM are trademarks of Codemasters. All other copyrights or trademarks are the property of their respective owners. Developed by 
Bohemia Interactive Studio. Published by Codemasters. Microsoft, Xbox, Xbox Live, and the Xbox and Xbox Live logos are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries. AH64D Apache Longbow image: 

© Crown Copyright/MOD, image from www.photos.mod.uk. © Crown Copyright/MOD, image from www.photos.mod.uk. Reproduced with the permission of the Controller of Her Majesty's Stationery Office. M1A1 Abrams image: © 2005 United States Department of Defense. 





A AN 


INFANTRY SOLDIER SNIPER MACHINE GUNNER MEDIC TANK COMMANDER PILOT SPECIAL OPS 





\ Se 
"Ñ ЕНЕ. ر‎ 


LASHPOINT 





Total military realisn 

from erunt, to US commander; drive tanks, 
troopcarriers, pilot military helicopters In the depths of the Cold War, join 
or take aim as a sniper. US forces to fight а Soviet invasion 


AS CLOSE Т9 WAR AS YOU EVER WANT TO GET. 





www.codemasters.com/flashpoint 


Codemasters (Á 


GENIUS AT PLAY 


Ç 1 )Bohemia d 
Z Interactive 











TAKE THIS JOB: 


Our monthly look at the jobs you want— 
with tips from the guys who have them 








` McMANUS' DETAILS 








Experience: Six years in the industry 
Notable games: Star Wars 
Battlegrounds, Indiana Jones and the 
Emperor's Tomb, Star Wars Republic 
Commando, and Tomb Raider: Legend 


Salary range: $50,000 to $100,000-plus 
Recommended education: McManus 
studied graphic design in school but 
says any sort of art background is really 
helpful. “Of course, since you can now 
go to a school to be a game designer, 
that’s probably your best bet,” he says. 
Location of most jobs: West Coast— 
with some exceptions, like Austin, TX 
Current level of demand: Medium 


Someone who looks at an outline of a 





story, takes specific elements and sec- much of his time is spent walking 
tions of that story, and creates gameplay around and checking in with people— 


>> IN A RECENT FINANCIAL REPORT, ROCKSTAR STATED THAT IT HAS PLANS TO RELEASE ANOTHER GRAND THEFT AUTO FOR PSP IN 2006.... >> 


46 * ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY * www.1UP.com 


from them. Beyond that, the job’s also 


seeing how far along certain in-game 
encounters are and whether they actual- 
ly work. The job also involves a lot of sit- 
ting at his desk and playing things on 
the fly to see if they function the way he 
envisioned. Before any of this, in the 
early preproduction days, most of 
McManus’ time is spent in meetings and 
creating design plans. 


about creating the moment-to-moment 
gameplay—the players' path as well as 
most everything they will see and do in 
the level are shepherded by the level 
designer. The gig also involves working 
with artists and programmers quite a bit 
to make sure things (like the difficulty) 
are ramped properly. Essentially, level 
designers create what players experi- 
ence when they pick up the controller. 
Six years ago, McManus was in graphic 
design when he expressed an interest in 
getting into games to his brother, who 
was already a tester. “It wasn’t as tough 
as it might be today,” says McManus. “At 
that time it was still somewhat early. 
Games were big, but not like they are 
now.” Still, with what McManus calls 
“creative cover letters and creative 
résumés,” you too can get your foot in 
the door. —Evan Shamoon 


“Depends what stage—but first thing is 
always coffee,” says McManus. After 
checking e-mail and the database to 
make sure no fires need putting out, he 
spends a lot of time playing through his 
level, implementing new features, and 
meeting with the level team. In fact, 














TOOLS OF 
HIS TRADE 


Essential software 

The team uses modeling program 3D 
Studio Max to build Lara Croft’s world, 
“so | use it to adjust objects, enemy 
placement, stuff like that,” McManus 
says. Perforce, meanwhile, is a soft- 
ware tool that tracks his progress. “If 
we've managed to fix something,” he 
says, "other people need to be able to 
see what we've done." 


Апу 
inspiration 
Fantasy-art collec- 
tions such this Spectrum 
book “get my mind moving a little 
bit,” says McManus. “The page ! was 
looking at had a great headdress- 
looking piece. It's inspirational." 








Photographs by Michael Sexton 












Chart attack 
McManus first charts 
out levels with a pro- 
gram called SketchUp. 
It maps out not only 
the level's layout but 
also what happens in 
each room. 


War fare 
McManus has been leafing through the 
Jane's series of weaponry guidebooks 
for combat ideas in Tomb Raider: 
Legend. It covers handguns, Kx " 
rifles—and pretty much every- 2 м = 
thing else. “Kinda like an encyclo- : COMPO. 


pedia of weapons," he says. С -OSER . 














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оғ Power (9% 
— У 






Mess with me, 
you-mess with all of me, 








hi 
You are Kamao. Morph into 10 different formidable elemental warriors at will: t ы-у), i 
Explore enchanted lands/Then crush, clobbér, chat, freeze, elude. ensnares ` \ X Um 
and destroy the evil boss Thorm and his minions. Only you have the power 10 ^ | > ( 
restore peace-to the Ringdom. Make-that, several.powers... Kameo.com Š py 2 = 4- S 
ы EON : X ۹ 
Ф Microsoft XBOX Ne ASS МЫ IS 
1 Violence L DSa PELIS TER | fN [A b 5% ; ^ NE ait QE: : 
ESRB CONTENT Ж АЛЛ X m vx Š Wa. E ES 
х | Q im SSE RES ате | 


2005 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. Micrasoft;Elements of Power, Kameo, the Microsoft GatmeiStudios одо аге, thé Bare 1990, Xbox, Xbox 360, the Xbok logos, Xbox Liye Jana thes bok" 
Live logo are either registered trademarks or trademarks ofMicrosoft Corporation or Rare-Limited imthe: United States and/or other countries, Rare-timited is a subsidiaty of Microsoft Gorporatíol б 


(>) press start 


SOUNIDOW! 


THE TOP 10 


і DR at 


his is it. Well, almost it. 

We’re one issue away from 

our 200th magazine, and 
before that magical moment of ink- 
stained fingertips, blistered thumbs, 
and spontaneous fits of hugging 
happens, why not take the house 
lights down a notch and contem- 
plate the 10 lowest-scoring games 
in EGM history? We had to actually 
play ’em for hours and hours—will 
it kill you just to read a few words 
about them? Possibly yes. 
(All games are reviewed using a 10-point scale. In 
the case of a tie, we’re ranking newer games 


lower than older games, because people should 
know better by now.) 


В 
ге» 


[^ 


ЫД; 


Score: 








PS1 ° Ubisoft ° 

EGM #138 (Jan. 2001) 

History will show that 

Batman Beyond did its 

damnedest to uphold the formerly 
great tradition of superhero 
videogames that totally sucked ass. 
Inspired low points include the com- 
plete lack of a save feature, and 
jumping vacuums that fire lasers. 
Developers of Catwoman 2, class is 
now in session. 


GBC • Bam! • EGM #139 (Feb. 2001) 
The best thing our reviewer had to say 
E about this brand-name-embossed 
P.0.S. is that the cart had a battery 

a backup, so you could save without 

= having to enter a 

16-digit code. And 

people wonder 

why (some) girls 

don’t like the 

videogames. 





N 








Dreamcast ° Simon & Schuster ° EGM #139 (Feb. 2001) 

This may have been a big hit with militant Marxists, but Beat Up's parody-with- 
fisticuffs twist on Regis Philbin’s horrible game show is probably even worse 
than you can imagine, depending on the power of your particular imagination. As 
reviewer Greg Sewart put it, “Go into your local retailer, stand in front of the 
game, and direct people away. Wear a big sign.” 


Score: 








Powerpuff 

Girls: Bad 

Mojo Jojo 

GBC * Bam! * 

EGM #139 (Feb. 2001) 

Just another Powerpuff Girls 
game. (Editor’s note: To make 
this inside joke a no-longer- 
funny outside joke, it’s a ref- 
erence to 1985 U.S. National 
Video Game Team member 
Donn Nauert’s review of 
Flying Dragon in EGM #2, 
which reads as follows, in its 
glorious entirety: “Just 
another karate game.”) 
Score: 1.0 























Take-Two % 

EGM #144 (July 2001) 
You’d think that a game 
called KISS Pinball 
might have some actual 
music from the heavy- 
metal band included 
somewhere in there 
along with the totally 
crappy pinball. Nope. 
Consequently, we want 


our $10 back. 
Score: 








MICROSOFT'S PETER MOORE TOLD MTV.COM THAT DEVELOPER RARE (PERFECT DARK) WILL UNVEIL TWO NEW XBOX 360 GAMES IN '06.... 


48» ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com 








со-ор online play 


a e Go global with all-new | | Intuitive squad control | | The deadliest hotspots: urban, | 


over each operative | mountain and jungle 


eV "pe нн i. TS _ЫЄсыС—с—— 
In the war on terror, the battlefield is global and only one special'ops squad can protect the world’ ҮП, 
It’s up to you to lead this elite group through deadly missions againstan enemy fueled by hatred! 


ELS 

GAMES PCS ^ 

Language PC X LIVE P. PlayStation. ТЩ cm rne 4 Ee 
>< [ер 


тили Violence CD-ROM BROADBAND ONLY 
2 САМЕ5 


Conflict: Global Terror © and trademark 2005 SCi Games Ltd. ©2005 Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. 2K Games is a wholly owned of Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. 2K Games and the 2K Games logo are trademarks of Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. "PlayStation" and the "PS" Family logo are registered 
trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. Online play requires internet connection and Memory Card (8MB) (for PlayStation 2) (each sold separately). The online icon is a trademark of Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc. Microsoft. Xbox. Xbox Live. the Live logo and the Xbox logos are either registered 
trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries and are used under license from Microsoft. The ratings icon is a trademark of the Entertainment Software Association. All other logos are the property of their respective owners. 








(>) press start 


THE TOP 10 


WORST REVIEWE 








GBA e-Card е Nintendo ° ЕСІМ #163 
(Feb. 2003) 
To this day, Executive Editor Mark 
MacDonald can be heard periodically shouting from the 
@ depths of his office, “Urban Champion was really not 
Ë completely terrible when it came out in 1984!" Perhaps, 
but it's still the worst Nintendo game ever published. 











PS2/XB ° Gathering ° 
EGM #184 (Nov. 2004) 
The thing about the 
Internet is that it almost 
completely removes all 
barriers between naked 
breasts and the people 
who wish to view naked 
breasts. The thing about 
The Guy Game is that it 


makes you play through 40-plus minutes of crap, 
memorizing dumb trivia questions the whole time, 
just to see a few fleeting seconds of tit. And you get 
to pay for it. We hate The Guy Game. 

Scores: 





PS1 ° Southpeak ° 
EGM #135 (Oct. 2000) 


DS • THQ ° EGM #187 (Jan. 2005) 


GBA * Midway * 

EGM #152 (Mar. 2002) 
Mortal Kombat Advance 
has been called a lot of 
things. Unplayable. Krap. 
A million times worse 
than all other bad fighting 
games put together. But 
it’s also the first title to 
ever receive a score of 0.0 
from EGM—and that’s 
something you haters can 
never take away. 

Scores: 


09 


= as 
-F 


i» 
ea. J 


eq 


Whenever we begin to feel bad about scoring 

this “game” so low—it's basically the same 

idea as the handheld's PictoChat feature, except 

with less functionality and lame avatars you can 

play dress-up with—we just remember that 
some poor fools 


actually paid 


20 of 





NOT QUITE 
HORRIBLE ENOUGH 


Тһе five games that, if only 
they’d tried a little harder, might 
have been something. 


PS1 ° Empire е p< 
EGM #138 

(дап. 2001) 

Score: 1.5 





PS1 ° Take-Two • 
EGM #133 (Aug. 2000) 
Score: 1.5 


PS1 • Midway • 
EGM #135 (0ct. 2000) 
Score: 1.5 


N64 e Ubisoft ° 
EGM #138 (Jan. 2001) 
Score: 1.5 


GC • Кетсо • 
EGM #167 (June 2003) 
Scores: 1.5 ° 1.0 ° 2.0 


00702000 


ШЇ ӨК 


your real American 
dollars for it. And our 
hate burns again with 
the fury of a thousand 
suns. ih 

Scores: 


Bedrock Bowling doesn't feature 
any actual bowling; instead, you 
slide around a track and knock the 
occasional pin over while wonder- 
ing what you might have done in a 
former life to deserve this torture. 
So that's a problem. 

Score: 





YOU CAN NOW DOWNLOAD TWO FREE MULTIPLAYER MAPS VIA XBOX LIVE FOR THE FIRST-PERSON SHOOTER DOOM 3 (XB).... 


50 • ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY e www.1UP.com 









РТТ 
“2173 ра t М. 


еТорг 
ee E 2 DOUG 


after EB Games mail-in gift voucher 
when you purchase any of these three 
featured games by 2K Sports. 


Ba ЕСС 



























> PR ы SES UE. 
10 EB Games Май in Gift Voucher 
П NBA еке O NHL еке п Amped З 
МАМЕ: Mail this completed form along with your original sales receipt to: 
EB Games Rebate Center, 770 Pilot Road, Suite F, Las Vegas, NV 89119 

ADDRESS: Savings will be sent in the form of an EB Games gift voucher. No cash will be issued. Gift voucher cannot be redeemed for cash 

except where prohibited by law. Gift vouchers are good toward future purchases at any EB Games, Electronics Boutique or EBX 
CITY: STATE: ZIP: in the U.S. or Puerto Rico. All incomplete forms will be discarded. EB Games is not responsible for lost and/or stolen mail-in 

and/or gift vouchers. Limit one per customer. Cannot be combined with any other offer or promotion. Not valid on previous pur- 
EMAIL: chases. Not valid on Pre-Played games. While supplies last. Selection may vary by store. No substitutions can be made. No rain 





checks will be issued. Some exclusions may apply. See Sales Associate for complete details. Typographical errors are not the 


ENTER YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS TO RECEIVE VOUCHER STATUS UPDATES, NEWS AND SPECIAL OFFERS. ‘esponsibility of EB Games. All items must be purchased on the same receipt. Offers valid 12/13/2005 to 12/27/2005 
Must be postmarked by 1/10/06. Allow 4-6 weeks for delivery. ID: 4212 








| PRODUCTS RANGE FROM 
EVERYONE ro TEEN 


CONTENT RATED BY || 
| —cE- 3 


EEGAMES 5 
electronics boutique We take games seriously 
www.ebgames.com SPORTS 





(>) press start 








FA 


ILIAR RING 


Move over Snake and Bejeweled! These console favorites are 
making their way onto cell phones. Are they worth your minutes? 





The Sims 2 
EA Games Mobile 







The basics: Watch your little com- 
puter people go to the bathroom 
while you go to bathroom—how 
meta is that? The Sims 2 for 
cell phones is available in two 
versions: an online-enabled 
Connected Edition and a stan- 
dard one that doesn't link to the Net. Both 
come with new items just for mobile 
phones, plus a slimmed-down interface. 


The gimmick: The Connected Edition lets you 
download Sims from your PC version, play god on the 
go, and then upload them back to your PC or the Web, 
where you can trade them with other players. 


The verdict: This is the long-awaited final step in any 
Sims fan's descent into complete immersion into their 
pretend life. The Connected Edition makes a lot of 
sense, but the game's interface is awkward enough to 
make the unconnected version too limited and cumber- 
some to be worthwhile. 


Doom RPG 
Jamdat Mobile 


ГА 19 мен 


Тіояғ [)ооо5, B 
р 


(ETC (0519 
Power:[98%: 


| * 
ETE acu 


Snor View 


Tiger Woods PGA Tour 06 
EA Sports Mobile 





The basics: Cocrafted by Doom developer id 
Software and Fountainhead Entertainment, this role- 
playing shooter lets you rampage with 10 of the tradi- 
tional Doom weapons—including the BFG—through 
10 levels and even offers an 
end-game URL that lets you 
track your performance. 


The gimmick: To make this 
classic shooter playable on 
the cellular level, the devel- 
opers converted it into a 
simple turn-based role- 
playing game, then packed it with elements fans of 
the series should enjoy. Like Pinky Demon. It even 
has all the same MIDI music and sound effects. 


66,59 2547. W 


Henu пор 


The verdict: 10 is proud that Doom is so beloved 
across so many systems—and it should be. The 
turn-based running and gunning is surprisingly well 
done, and all the Doom sights and sounds make it a 
one-handed trip down memory lane. 








* Game prices vary based on the title and cell-phone carrier. 


52 • ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY ° www.1UP.com 


DON'T SEE YOUR FAVORITE GAME LISTED HERE? HALO, RATCHET & CLANK, AND DESTROY ALL HUMANS! WILL GO MOBILE NEXT YEAR.... 





The basics: Play with your choice of 
five famous golfers and courses as 
announcers whisper dramatically 
before every putt. It's styled after 
the handheld version of the game. 


The gimmick: From its courses to 
your golfer to club selection, PGA 
Tour 06 is highly customizable and 
littered with licensed icons, 
including Arnold Palmer and the 
titular Tiger. The developers also 
simplified the features of the hand- 
held game to make it more playable 
on a cell phone. 





The verdict: Simple pull-down/press- 
up swing mechanics provide a feel 
more realistic than what you'd get 
from a phony meter. Plus, now you 
can play with your putter on the 

bus and not get arrested. » 





80936 
eoo 





IN STORES NOW FOR 


(PLAYSTATIONEPORTABLE) SYSTEM 


MATURE 11+ Strong Language 
Blood and Gore لے لے‎ 
Strong Sexual Content | D B e UC 
PlayStation. Portable LX 
® 


Use of Drugs 
Intense Violence 


CONTENT RATED BY 
ESRB 





©2005 Rockstor Gomes, Inc. Rockstar Games, Rockstar North, the FR, logo, Grand Theft Auto and the Grond Theft Aulo logo ore trodemorks ond/ or registered trademarks of Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. "PSP" is a trademark ond "PlayStation" and the "PS" Family logo ore registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. Memory Stick Duo™ moy be 
endorse, condone or encourage this kind of behavior. 


required (sold separately). The content of this videogame is purely fictional, and is not intended to represent any actual person, business or organization. Any similarity between any character, dialogue, event or plot element of this game ond any actual person, business or organization is purely coincidental. The makers ond publishers of this videogame do not in опу way 








FAMILIAR RING сок, 





EA Games Mobile 


The basics: Rock on with your 

bad self with yet-to-be-announced licensed tunes as 
you race and chase through 42 challenges with eight 
customizable cars. 


The gimmick: Part of the appeal of the Need for Speed 
console version is the ability to pimp your ride and take 
it to the streets against friends. The mobile-phone ver- 
Sion offers half of that equation: You can customize 
your car, but you can only race against computer-con- 
trolled autos. The game also boasts eight vehicles 
licensed from real-world manufacturers. 


The verdict: It honestly looks and feels a bit like play- 
ing an old-ass OutRun arcade game that hasn't been 
taken care of and has very gummy control. Trying to 
race using your phone pad might be something you just 
have to get used to, but why subject yourself to any 
more road rage on your morning commute? 


54 • ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com 








NBA Live 06 
EA Sports Mobile 


The basics: This baller boasts 
3D graphics with a rotating 
camera and shows off 
30 licensed NBA 
teams and real 
announcers' voices. 


The gimmick: For a game you 
play on your phone, the 

3D visuals are sort of impres- 
sive. You get different anima- 
tions for slam dunks and jump 
shots starring all your favorite 
МВА players. 


The verdict: Basketball is an 
awfully intense sport to try to 
play on a cell phone's wonky 
keypad. We guarantee you'll get 
frustrated when your thumb 
slips and you end up foul- 
ing out at the buzzer. 


VU GAMES ANNOUNCED ITS UPCOMING GAME 50 CENT: BULLETPROOF (PS2/XB) WILL FEATURE 13 NEW SONGS AND REMIXES.... 












SOCOM: U.S. Navy Seals Mobile Recon 
Jamdat Mobile 








The basics: Armed WEALTH. 
with supertiny assault 
rifles and adorable C4 
charges, you'll hide in 
shadows, snipe, and 
order your team 
around in eight mis- 
Sions. Each has a 
briefing and an in- 
game map to help 
your squad achieve its 
objectives. menu 





The gimmick: The 3D levels are pretty and somewhat 
interactive, and you'll even find vehicles you get to ride 
in and shoot from—hey, just like in SOCOM 3. 


The verdict: You have to give the game credit for being 
so ambitious—although the A.I. might be dumber than 
even the console version's. Still, this is probably the 
best you could ask for from SOCOM for your phone. ж 
—Kathleen Sanders 
































































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1) Sugar, We're Goin' Down - poly? 850. 
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Badd - Ying Yang Twins real5230 | Is That A Cellphone In Your Pocket fun5590 | Go Sit Down - Maceo real5220 Crazy Frog -Axel F - Ringeding 11002765 
Cute Without... - Taking Back Sunday real5231 § Mamma Calling fun5591 | Grind With Me - Pretty Ricky real5221 [Ringtones poly Screensavers) 
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------ 






(>) press start 






Some of this s” 


e’ve all got a weakness. Some 

fall victim to chocolate. Others 

simply can’t get enough of 
watching the boob tube. For me, it’s 
Dance Dance Revolution; turn on any 
edition and | suddenly think I’m the 
next Michael Jackson. No, not in that 
way, perv. Shoot me an e-mail at 
quartermann@ziffdavis.com, and tell 
me your Achilles heel. And now, on 
with the scuttlebutt.... 

—The Q 


Colossal happenings 

When | say that I’ve got some really big 
news for this issue, | mean it both literally 
and figuratively. Hopefully by now you've 
completed the greatness called Shadow of 
the Colossus, but believe me—that’s only 
the beginning of the ridiculously large 
creature hunting. I’m hearing that those 
artsy-fartsy developers are prepping a 
Shadow of the Colossus sequel for 
PlayStation 3. And here’s the kicker: 
You'll be able to tackle these colossi 
alongside a friend over the Internet. Nice, 
very nice indeed. 






Iron clad 
No year in gaming would be complete 
without playing as some comic-book 
















F THE RUMOR MILL 


ж + 


ts even true 


heroes (or Mega Man...or Tony Hawk...or 
about 70 other peeps). And 2006 will be 
no different, as a game based оп the 
X-Men 3 flick will mutate your consoles 
next spring (expect Wolvie to play a major 
role in this one). But that's.not what has 
The Q all pumped: I’ve learned on good 
authority that the long-talked-about Iron 
Man game will head our way, too. And it's 
about damn time. 


Visually impaired 

The Q hates being the bearer of bad news, 
but it comes with the territory (at least 
that's what the rumormonger handbook 
says). During a recent powwow with a few 
well-known gamemakers, some discussed 
their hands-on time with early Revolution 
development kits. OK, here it goes: 
According to those fellas, the graphics 
that Nintendo's next-gen system can 
produce аге barely better than those 
on GameCube. Hey, sounds a lot like 
Xbox-Xbox 360. 











Killing spree 

They say things happen in threes, and 
apparently,'Guerrilla is taking that to 
heart. Right now, the Sony developer Has 
a trio of Killzone projects іп the works. 
I’m guessing one’s for PlayStation 
Portable, another's for PS3, and—from 
the looks of that Killzone footage shown 
earlier this year—a first-person shooter 
for PS7. That's right; don't believe 
Guerrilla's prerendered warfare. 


Old friends 

Just because Microsoft now owns 
developer Rare (of Perfect Dark fame) 
doesn’t mean the studio can’t make 
games for its former boss...as long as 
they are of the handheld variety. Rare is 
staffing up for two Nintendo DS 
projects, one of them being a Banjo 
Kazooie platformer. I'm still trying to 
figure out the other's identity, but dear 
God let's hope it's not a portable Grabbed 
by the Ghoulies. 












One of three Killzone titles 
currently in development. 








— E Burnout on an 
| iPod? Don't think so. 
ра 





56.» ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com 





>> PEEP 1UP.COM’S DOWNLOADS SECTION AND LEARN HOW TO LISTEN TO YOUR ( 


Is the release of Apple's Video iPod a sign that 

the company will eventually bring out a ver- 

Sion that plays games of DS or PSP quality? 

Sounds cool, but the suits on Wall Street certainly 

don't think it'll happen. “The iPod already has 

games on it, but like the PSP—which isn't a great ‘ 
music device because of the storage, interface, and ease of Р. ғ 
use issues—the iPod doesn't lend itself to be a great game ا“‎ Á: А 
player," says one member of the financial community. But as b MZ 
with all new Apple products, if it does becomes a reality, we 
probably won't know about the handheld until it lands on 
store shelves. йй 












| 
WN TUNES WHILE PLAYING GRAND THEFT AUTO FOR PSP... >> 


Lo 






ams 


= 








| 


Crude Humor Nin 8 


Fantasy Violence 


Language 
Use of Tobacco ura LIVE IN YOUR WXRLD. 





BROADBAND ONLY PLAY IN OURS: 





www.jakx.playstation.com 


Jak X Combat Racing is a trademark of Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc. Created and developed by Naughty Dog, Inc. @2005 Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc. "PlaySt 
are registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. “Live In Your World. Play In Ours? is a registered trademark of Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc. Online icon i 
Entertainment America Inc. Online play requires Internet connection, Network Adaptor (for PlayStatione2) or PlayStatione2 with internal network connector and Memory Card (8MB) (for PlayStat 






mil 





y logo 
k of Sony Computer 
separately). 











THE HOT 10 





The cool stuff you tell your friends you discovered on your own 


GAME DOCK 


GAMETAP 


It's like a genie agreed to grant 











all the old videogames ever!" and 
he was like, “OK, it'll be just $15 a 
month and you'll need a PC with 
broadband." Deal! (No, you can't 

| wish for more wishes.) Check it 

| out at Gametap.com. 








you any wish and you said, “I want 


| ANIMAL 
CROSSING 
DIARY 

Head to animalcrossing- 
daily.blogspot.com and 
check out this hilariously 
twisted blog's dark spin on 
the innocent world of 
Nintendo games. “Рорру 
needs to be put to sleep.” 

















HANDHELD FINAL 
FANTASY INVASION 


FFIV is on its way to the GBA on December 12, with FFV and FFVI 
due sometime after that. FF// is coming to the DS, and FFVII; 
Before Crisis will be on cell phones in the next year. With God as 
our witness, we'll never be bored waiting in line again. 


>> 


58 • ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY * www.1UP.com 








MAKING 
FUN ОҒ 
THE 
XBOX 
3605 
HUGE POWER SUPPLY 
Apparently, the Shaquille 
O'Neal-sized guy who 
designed the original 
ginormous Xbox pad still 
works in the hardware 
department at Microsoft. 
Seriously, the thing is 
huge and heavy as hell. 








VIRTUA FIGHTER 5 
Arcade * 2006 
A challenger comes.... 


dh 





THE IMPORT 

SHADOW OF 

THE COLOSSUS 
The Japanese version comes with a 
bonus disc featuring early footage 
of the game (that shows several 
riders taking down one of the giant | 
bosses—was it multiplayer?), plus 
a look at the original version of /co 
for the PS1. Yep, the PS1. 











ARMIES OF THE NIGHT 

Rockstar tips its hat to beat-em-up classic 
Double Dragon in this unlockable Warriors 
minigame. Beat every mission in the game 


and try the arcade machine at your hangout. 


| THE NEW PSP 
| HEADSET MIC 

Sure, it’s great for SOCOM: U.S. 
Navy SEALs Fireteam Bravo multiplayer 
chat, but we’re more excited about the 
inevitable hack that'll basically turn Sony's 
handheld into a free cell phone. 
E Cheap food, a Playland for 

exercise, and now free Wi-Fi 


access (at some locations) for online hand- 
held gaming. Why would you ever leave? 


MCDONALD'S 








>> 


4 


С traders 





1 OUT OF EVERY 6 PSP™ (PlayStation® Portable) System 


BROTHERHOOD. 
йе BLADE 


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SONY ONLINE 
|| ENTERTAINMENT 


"и" NÉ: S —€— 


OWNERS PORCHASED ONTOLD LEGENDS' 





“If youre looking for another fun multiplayer “Ontold Legends: Brotherhood of the Blade is 
game, Untold Legends is definitely for you. a necessary purchase for any action-RPG fan.” 


Available at your local retailers 


BEST 


ау “ш 


Thousands of Possibilities 


GET YOURS 


GAMES 
electronics boutique’ 


EC 


ped pe MO CV CORO O1 C6] (el Ce ele ен SONY ONLINE 


ENTERTAINMENT 





PlayStation. Portable 














› 7 ES 





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MATURE 174 


Blood and Gore iv чы : a 
Intense Violence Faw ж) 
pum: Strong Language 7 Шш» b Адан XBOX 360. 


SEGA is registered in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. SEGA and the Sega logo are registered trademarks of Sega Corporation. "Condemned: Criminal Origins" is a trademark of Warner Bros. 
Entertainment Inc. 2005. Developed by Monolith Productions, Inc. MONOLITH and the Monolith logo are trademarks of and @ Monolith Productions, Inc. Microsoft, Xbox, Xbox 360, Xbox Live, theXXbox logos, 


and the Xbox Live logo are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the U.S. and/or other countries. The ratings icon is a trademark of the Entertainment Software Association. 








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cover stor 
$5: 006 previews 


W Not pictured (because it's invisible): 
GRAW’s dynamic ambient musical score 
heats T multiplayer action for hipsters 


Surround-sound systems. 


W Your cross-com E! 
eyepiece gives you -| 
a handy overhiead ` | 
гайаг of the area. 


aS WW. 

































GHOST RECON 
ADVANCED 
WARFIGHTER 


Xbox 360 е Ubisoft ° February 2006 


j 

|: Although Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter hasn't taken prospective fans on quite the 
—] | emotional roller coaster that Rare's Perfect Dark Zero has, this latest installment in the hit 
ў squad-based-shooter series definitely hurled a few unexpected loops and corkscrews their 
24 way. The thrill ride kicked off with the game's announcement: GRAW’s stunning graphics 
ы й instantly dropped jaws, but when new footage surfaced а few months later, the visuals 


looked drastically downgraded. Apparently, that early trailer was actually a dreaded 
"gameplay target" CG clip. Oh, and as if that wasn't enough bad news, Ubisoft dropped a 
bombshell by revealing that the game wouldn't be ready for the 360 launch, either. Cut to 
‘our expectations careening down the metaphorical hill at breakneck speed. “When you 
first show a game, you focus on the visuals,” explains GRAW Designer Christian Allen. “But 
then development starts kicking in, and you're like, ‘OK...now | gotta get 16 dudes in this 
тар, and everything had to be scaled back.” 

med only with skepticism and a desire to be thrown clear of the potential wreckage, 
recently checked out the current state of GRAW on Xbox 360. The verdict? Stand down, 
rs— GRAW is officially back on track. One new map called Drydocks blew us away: 
"clouds rolling past the moon cause brief periods of darkness, realistic water gushes 
the sides of shipping containers, an ocean rages all around the edge of the map, and 
oes through large pipes as bullet casings roll around the pipe floors. Now these 
деп graphics. Did we mention the lighting effects? Stare into a spotlight for a few 
ids, then gaze out at the dark ocean and watch as your "eyes" adjust to the lighting 

S. (Head over to www.1UP.com for an exclusive look at this level.) 

Wis slick audiovisual package could certainly validate your bank-breaking Xbox 360 
, but it's the gameplay that will determine whether or not your life needs more 
соге single-player action doesn't stray far from the past games’ tense squad- 
shooting. A near-future setting (war-torn Mexico City in the year 2013) does afford 

e nifty gadgets, though, including the swanky new cross-com system—a 
monocle that lets you scope satellite recon maps, issue commands to your 


E Warfighter will 
also land on PS2, 
XB, and GC, but it 
won't look like this. 

























rural landscapes, and Ubisoft promises that both friendly and enemy А..— 

nts to this game's success—will impress in the final game. 

igns in GRAW's 16-player online multiplayer action: Here, you can 

game types by adjusting nearly 1,000 variables, including respawns, 
control. Also, the. game wisely borrows Rainbow Six: Lockdown's (XB) 

Í N ou to choose a persistent class, face, body type, head- 

online soldier. And the online play isn't only about com- 


һе released as downloadable content via the Xbox Live 
inches. —Кїтї Matsuzaki 


@ In the year 2013, 
helicopters...still 
look more or less 


E The entire == 
game takes place~ 
in and around 
Mexico City. Stick 
to bottled water. 





W Your cross-com | 
сап tune іп other 


soldiers’ views of. | — 
the battleground, 


= 


мер 
Á 


cover story: 
2006 previews 


p: 


TTN 
| LAS wa шаң) 
7s 





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1 






















DR 


PS2/XB е Atari е March 2006 
Driver developer Reflections has devised a cunning plan to make 
gamers forget about the glitchy, frustrating, and tragically named 
DRIV3R—disco music. OK, groovy tunes are just the beginning: 
Driver: Parallel Lines transports you to the heady setting of New 
York City in 1975, where you play as an up-and-coming wannabe 
mobster called "the Kid." Yep, that means that established series 
hero Tanner gets the boot (who wants to be an undercover cop 
when you can be a real crook?), allowing you to indulge in plenty 
of mission-based kidnappings, turf wars, and grand theft auto. 
Success requires skillfully driving gas-guzzling '70s vehicles 
through a pared-down version of the greater NYC area (with a 
detour to scenic New Jersey). "Since it is a period piece, we did 
our homework," explains Reflections Studio Manager Gareth 
Edmonson. "All vehicles—whether sports cars, sedans, trucks, 
motorcycles, tanks, bulldozers, or even semis—are relevant to 
the era in their design, and also in performance and handling." 
Don't expect a full game of Saturday Night Fever trappings, 
though—about halfway through the game, a job goes awry, land- 
ing you in the clink for 30 years. (Thankfully, this part is not 
playable and you will not be subjected to a “don’t drop the soap" 
minigame.) Fast-forward to modern-day NYC with its sanitized 
Times Square and wasteful SUVs. Hard time served, you emerge 
from prison middle-aged and hell-bent on vengeance. This 


PARALLEL LINES 


means Ensure-fueled violence and death in a modern city, but 
those who flinch at the memory of DRIV3R's disastrous on-foot 
missions should take comfort. “Тһе on-foot side of the game is 
really very small," reassures Edmonson. "Allowing the player to 
exit the car is more to allow you to change cars rather than be 
involved in gunfights...players will find themselves driving almost 
all the time." 

And really, in a game called Driver, gamers ought to be driving. 
“Тһе real focus of the game has been for us to come up with any 
excuse we can think of to get players in the cars, driving fast 
through the traffic, crashing through stuff, breaking the law, 
running people over, and bailing out before your ride explodes," 
Edmonson explains. “So all the missions use different mechanics 
to achieve this—race, chase, be chased, time restrictions, dam- 
age restrictions, escort other vehicles, protect other vehicles, 
destroy other vehicles, or perform stunts." All things that, if done 
properly, make for a beautiful apology. —kKathleen Sanders 


It is no secret that Reflections knows it f'ed up 
with DRIV3R, and it looks like this game is a return 


to the roots that made the series great. If so, it 
could make amends. 
















WIN AN HDTV AND EXPERIENCE 
Х-МЕМ" LEGENDS ІІ 
IN HI-DEF! 


Log oñ to xmen.1UP.com for details. 









LEGENDS 


z ERASE OF APOCALYPSE pe 


Upgrade, customize and unleash a Co- -Op online and off with up т 4 ree , „г at dii. 


massive arsenal of over 160 superpowers. { ; ye va Í I a b | е. N ow 
“A bold new chapter for the X-Men.” 
—Game Informer 


X-Men-Legends2.com 


This title is available for the PlayStation®2 computer entertainment system and PSP" (PlayStation®Portable) system. 


; NOKIA 
ШЖ, ВУЖ: 
ышшы CD-ROM Bn 


MARVEL, X-MEN and all related character names and likenesses thereof are trademarks of Marvel Characters, Inc. Copyright © 2005 Marvel 
MARVEL ACTIVISION. 


Characte! C. All rights reserved. Game @ 2005 Activision Publishing, Inc. Activision is a registered trademark of Activision Publishing, Inc. All WIRELESS 
activision.com 


Mild Language 


Vinlence 


ESRB CONTENT RATING _ wwwes.og 





| 
| | 

e Р | гаг Ire 
| 


BROADBAND ONLY 


















righls reserved. "PSP" is a trademark and "PlayStation" and the "PS" Family logo are registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. | (GAME 
Memory Stick Duo’ may be required (sold separately). Online play requires internet connection and Memory Card (8MB) (for PlayStation 2) (each sold 
separately). The Online icon is a trademark of Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc. Microsoft, Xbox, Xbox Live, the Live logo and the Xbox 
logos аге either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries and are used under license 
from Microsoft. TM, &, Nintendo GameCube logo is a trademark of Nintendo. © 2001 Nintendo. All rights reserved. PC CD-ROM logo TM and © 2004 
IEMA. The ratings icon is a registered trademark of the Entertainment Software Association. © 2005 Nokia. All rights reserved, Nokia, N-Gage and N- 
Gage OD are trademarks or registered trademarks of Nokia Corporation. GameSpy and the "Powered by GameSpy" design are trademarks of GameSpy 
Industries, Inc. All rights reserved. All other trademarks and trade names are the properties of their respective owners. 





cover story 


2006 previews 


ity > i 
WS к>” p 


7 


| W Kyle learned to 


4 - 
`. . 


HITMAN: NS. 
| BLOOD MON 


Р52/ХВ » Eidos • February 2006 

Agent 47 only wishes that male-pattern bald 
ness was his biggest problem. Now this 
hired assassin has to contend with a 

rival agency that's out to acquire his con- 
tracts...and kill him. So begins Blood Money. 

While watching your own back, you'll-still-be 
required to perform your usual criminal duties; 
Number four іп the stealth-action series will feature 
“more normal-life killings,” says Level Designer Peter 
Flech. This translates into realistic and heavily populat- 
ed settings, such as a hotel on the Las Vegas Strip and 
a Paris opera house. Luckily, Mr. Clean has picked up 
a few tricks from another sneaky fella, Metal Gear's 
Solid Snake. You can now use people as human 
shields, throw items to distract enemies, and even 


— — 


deliver some knuckle sandwiches. 

Also, as in every Hitman game, you'll 
always:have more than one avenue to take 
out a target. For example, at the opera 
house, you can even dress up as though 
you're part of the show, head out on stage, 
and extinguish your foe in plain sight. And if 
you're caught, just say, "Hey, they told me | 
was supposed to be a Soprano.” 

—Bryan Intihar 





We like Agent 47’s new (albeit 
ripped-off) moves, but hope- 
fully, Blood Money’s enemies 
will finally have some brains. 





STREETWISE 


ж” PS2/XB * Capcom ° February 2006 


ath No, this isn’t Beatdown: Fists of 


Vengeance...Capcom released that brawler back 
in September. “A while ago, even we were wondering 
why Capcom would release two similar games,” muses 
Final Fight game designer Joe Spataro. “But even 
though the features seem similar, our gameplay is totally 
different.” Here, gameplay unfolds in a vaguely Grand 
Theft Auto-inspired fashion, with required brawls across 
the city’s various areas, optional missions to raise cash, 
and various minigames. Proceedings feel more familiar 
in the streamlined co-op mode featuring old-school 
heroes Haggar, Cody, and Guy.  —Shane Bettenhausen 





swing a mean bat 
from his big bro (and 
classic FF star) Cody. 


Frankly, we're not sure if Streetwise will please fans of the classic games with 
its decidedly modern take on brawling (guns aplenty) and sandbox-style pro- 
gression. And after seeing how Rockstar raised the bar in terms of presentation 


with The Warriors, many will likely chuckle at this game’s amateurish visuals. 








flay 


ИША OF M 


= 





HEROES. EIGH'h As WARK 
“LIVE AS LEGENDS. ` 








GET YOUR TEAM TOGETHER FOR A FAST-PACED, HACK'N'SLASH ADVENTURE. NOW WITH ONLINE CO-OP, FOR 
THE FIRST TIME YOU CAN GATHER YOUR TEAM FROM ANYWHERE IN THE EARTH REALM! 


2186165 





2 xeox | 
LIVE | s | 
s ONLINE. 
xBox Laka пира» | < > | BROADBAND ONLY 


WWW.GAUNTLETSEVENSORROWS.COM 
POWERED BY 


Violence PlayStation.2 Gamespy 





A cover story: 
9&: 2006 preuie.us 


W PSU's online lob- 
bies aren't all in 
cities—this one lies 
in a vast desert. 


PHANTASY 
STAR UNIVE 


PlayStation 2 е Sega е February 2006 mal. This time, with three planets to explore and a large cast of 
Right now, publishers are tearing out their hair trying to figure out characters contributing a fully cinematic, in-depth story, offline 
whether to make an engrossing single-player RPG or an online questers will actually get their money's worth. 
adventure that takes advantage of gamers' current obsession And while we're sure that story mode hero Ethan Waber is an 
with questing with real, live human beings. Developer Sonic Team upstanding young chap, PSO diehards have other issues on their 
decided to take the tough way out: do both in one game. minds—specifically, how will this game's online feature set stack 
While it was possible to play PSU's predecessor, Phantasy Star up to what came before? Many of the innovations fulfill long- 
Online (GC, XB, Dreamcast), offline—and more gamers did than standing Р50 users' wishes, such as increasing the number of 
those who bothered to hook up to the Net—it wasn't exactly opti- simultaneous party members (from four to six), adding a new > 


қ a 


VERLO LM 
У COMISABPoRS 
F /71 x 


E You'll be able to buy, | 
sell, and trade items in 
the lobbies while online. 


= 





game, SE E = 
EU UD 


CONTENT RATED BY | ENSEMBLE, 
ESRB 5 


3 





© 2005 Microsoft Corporation. АЦ ane reserved. Microsoft, Age A res, 
States and/or other countries. Тһе NVIDIA logo and the "The way it' "gant tobe P à x 
trademarks of their respective owners. d 


















& cover story: 
f 2006 previews 


'"PHANTASY STAR UNIVERSE сок 


race (beastmen), offering the ability to change and customize while amassing piles of jealousy-inducing equipment. Yeah, at its 
your character's attire, implementing an item creation system, heart, PSU is still a treadmill RPG that dangles the carrot of cool- 
and building technology to avoid the rampant cheating that infect- ег-Іоокіпо, hyper-rare goodies in front of you...and we wouldn't 

ed Р$0 (characters are now stored server-side). Combat receives have it any other way. —Christian Nutt 


some crucial tweaks, too—get ready to strafe around enemies, 
fire guns from a first-person perspective, and master longer, 
weapon-specific multihit combos. 

The structure for online play appears fairly similar to that of 
PSO: You meet up in massive lobbies, form an adventuring party, 
and systematically tackle myriad dungeons and bosses, all the 









PSO was fantastic. PSU looks very like more of the 
same—but developed in 2005 instead of 2001, with 
the full power of the PS2 brought to bear. It’s time 

to get ready to sideline your social life. 






Ш New to PSU are “partner robots,” 
heefed-up versions of Phantasy Star 
Online’s stat-boosting mags. They сап 
forge weapons and special items for you. 


@ You'll he able to decorate your bed- 
room with items gained on your journey. 





wi 
7 #@ 


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Bigger mountains, 
deeper powder, 
Progressive tricks. 
Gameplay SO killer 
it’s got no filler, 
"new physics engine, 
perfected controls, and 
advanced customization, - Ж 
Snowboarding 
fast forward, 


All 


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92% $i Xbox logos, and {| 
ampedsnowbog, Ж — | the Жох Live logo > 
7 are either registered |.- 


?» £2 , f| | p Z trademarks or trademarks 
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02005 Take-Two | 
Interactive 
Software and its 


subsidiaries. All 
4 AS rights reserved. 
E Қ 2K Sports, the 
On Shelves ? у 2K Sports logo; 
This Season. T К and Take-Two 
Interactive 
Software are all 
trademarks 
and/or 
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& cover story: 
f° 2006 previews 


“SONIC RIDERS 


PS2/XB/GC • Sega • February 2006 
“We don’t want gamers to view this as a nor- 
mal racing game,” explains Sonic Team’s 
Takashi Yuda. “We know that a lot of gamers 
feel left out by the hardcore serious racing 
games, and we also want to reflect Sonic’s 
unique gameplay and style.” Gran Turismo 

| nuts hoping to adjust Sonic's gear ratios, pre- 
pare to look elsewhere. 

Having Sonic strapped to a hoverboard 
(*...like the ones from Back to the Future II” 
notes Yuda) isn't the only thing different from 
the other 3D Sonic games—in fact, this game 
is being developed by an entirely new team, 
different than the one responsible for Sonic 
Heroes and Shadow the Hedgehog. What has- 
n't changed is Sonic’s addiction to speed and 

| glitz; this is a colorful, fast-paced racing 
game, with Sonic and his furry little pals on y 
planks. A strong focus on landing massive > N 

| tricks (you can score serious air time by hit- c E ois are tra ditionally du ds, T. 
ting packets of “turbulence” zooming about я 


































da's team seems determined to 
the ether) should help to keep Riders from d it deu шіні 
being just another Mario Kart clone. rus high*fiying, Пеһ ре 


E tion, the kind Sonic is known for. 


ONIMUSHA: 7 
DAWN OF DREAMS | 


PlayStation 2 • Capcom е March 2006 ment to discover, and towering bosses to 

After Onimusha 3 jumped the shark with topple. Dressing up the proceedings in 

its laughable time-travel plot and bizarre some of the most detailed, beautiful visu- 
starring turn by French actor Jean Reno, als ever seen on the PlayStation 2 doesn't 







areturn to form was in order. Enter hurt, either. 

Dreams, a back-to-basics slashathon that An unlockable two-player co-op mode 
offers five playable characters (ranging sweetens the deal even further, although 
from a traditional samurai to a dainty lass ме do wish that this mode would be 
toting heavy artillery), oodles of equip- made available from the outset... --5.В. 


Strangely, we're not sensing much excitement in Oni 4 from the general 
public...perhaps that last game damaged the brand even more than any- 


one expected. Hopefully, fans will return to the fold once they peep the 
additions and improvements in this sequel. 





. METAL GEAR SOLID 3: 
SUBSISTENCE 


PlayStation 2 е Konami • February 2006 returning players can tackle an extreme dif- 
All right slackers, here's your second ficulty setting, Boss Rush mode, and new 
chance to finally play one of the PS2's primate-packed Snake vs. Ape missions. 
finest games. This stealth-action prequel New mode Metal Gear Online represents 
boasts a lengthy quest, killer bosses, stun- Subsistence's most substantive upgrade, 
ning visuals, and a story line that's been offering eight-player simultaneous play, а 
known to drive grown men to cry. And host of original maps, playable characters, 
those who've already solved Konami's Cold and voice-chat support. You'll be able to. 
War epic will find plenty of original content stealthily take out your pals in four different 
here to validate a second purchase. game types, including deathmatch and res- 
The core game receives few tweaks, but cue, but the highly original Sneaking 
gets one crucial addition that players have Mission mode—one player is Snake whi 
requested for years—a fully 3D, adjustable the other seven play enemy troops— 
camera à la Splinter Cell. In addition, embodies the true spirit of MGS. | 


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N = УНЕ. TWO. THRONES: 
I RETURNED HOME EXPECTING PEACE. INSTEAD I FOUND MY KINGDOM RAVAGED BY WAR AND MY 

PEOPLE ENSLAVED. NOW I AM A FUGITIVE, HUNTED BY HOSTILE ARMIES AND PLAGUED BY A CURSE | 
THAT IS GRADUALLY POSSESSING MY SOUL. A DARKER PRINCE RESIDES IN ME NOW. AND I MUST © 


EMBRACE HIS POWERS AND SKILL IF | WANT TO RESTORE PEACE TO MY LAND, MY PEOPLE, AND MY SOUL. 


_ AVAILABLE DECEMBER 2005 





Blood and Gore | 
Intense Violenc 
Nudity 





UBISOFT 





EMBRACE YOUR CURSED SOUL 
AS THE DARK PRINCE... 


BATTLE FOR REDEMPTION 
AS THE PRINCE... қ 





Craft your own combat style with Surpri - 3 Seize the reins of а chariot and battle Inflict surprise decapitations and other Deliver vicious new combo Perform long-range attacks and navigate (һе 
i Form Fighting. stealthy Speed kills through the open-ended city of Babylon. аку Speed Kills. attacks unique to the Dark Prince. environment with the deadly new Daggertail. 


š =" ри 
first few months of 2006 will 
play host to a surprising number of 
releases for PSP, DS, and even the 


dusty о” GBA. Prepare to rock the 
daily commute. 


Nintendo DS 

Capcom's Resident Evil: Deadly Silence 
(1) represents the umpteenth remake of 
the original survival-horror zombiefest, 
but some neat touch-panel gameplay 
additions inject some fresh flavor. All 
you'll taste in Super Princess Peach (2) 
is saccharine—this über-cutsey title 
finally gives Mario's main squeeze her 
own platforming adventure. Also be on 
the lookout for Super Monkey Ball: Touch 
& Roll (3), the perfect blend of touch- 
panel control and four-player wireless 











PLEASURES FOR WINTER 


monkeyshines. If we're lucky, we'll also 
get the long-delayed Metroid Prime 
Hunters (4), plus the U.S. version of the 
educational Japanese puzzling hit, Brain 
Training. Oh, and artsy types and druggies 
should trip out over interactive music 
“game” Electroplankton. 


PlayStation Portable 

Solid Snake once again plays with a full 
deck in Metal Gear Ac!d 2 (5), another 
dose of card-based strategy. This time, a 
wild new visual style and a creative 
stereoscopic 3D glasses attachment 
spice up the proceedings. Jak's 
wiseacre sidekick finally busts out on 
his own in Daxter (6), an ambitious 3D 
platformer that fills in the story line 
gaps between the Jak titles. If you still 


need more sassy animal high jinks, 
check out Ape Escape Academy (7), a 
collection of wild multiplayer 
minigames. Gamers questing for some- 
thing less cuddly can tackle Namco's 
Bounty Hounds, a blistering third-person 
shooter offering 500 different pieces of 
equipment. Or maybe the serious strate- 
gic role-playing of Generation of Chaos 
(8) meshes with your grown-up sensi- 
bilities. Though if you prefer your tacti- 
cal encounters 100 percent elf-free, 
sample Field Commander, a turn-based 
multiplayer war sim in the vein of 
Nintendo's Advance Wars series. Finally, 
Untold Legends: The Warrior's Code (9) 
adds true online play and new character 
classes to the previous game's success- 
ful formula. 


Game Boy Advance 

First up, look for Tales of Phantasia (10), 
the grandpappy of Namco's long-running 
Tales series (see: Tales of Symphonia for 
GC, among others). It's a charming, old- 
fashioned RPG in the style of Final 
Fantasy. Of course, you could skip this 
wannabe and wait around for the 
inevitable GBA releases of both Final 
Fantasy V and Final Fantasy VI, both com- 
ing out at some undisclosed time in 2006. 
Also be on the lookout for Drill Dozer (11) 
(formerly known as Screw Breaker), a 
wildly entertaining platformer by the guys 
behind Pokémon. Oh, and even though it’s 
not officially a new game, Konami’s 
Castlevania 2 in 1 (12) (with Harmony of 
Dissonance and Aria of Sorrow on one 
cart) isn’t to be missed. > 


ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY е www.1UP.com ° 79 










s. Se story: 
2006 previews 





Perhaps winter really is the new fall— 
many of 2005’s coolest games (God of 
War, Resident Evil 4, etc.) came out 
during the traditionally bleak first 
quarter. 2006’s snowy months appear 
similarly jam-packed with releases. So 
many, in fact, that we didn’t have 
enough room to cover them all. So 
here’s a quick rundown of what’s on 
tap for early 2006. 


Xbox 360 

Assuming you aren’t already crashed out 
on the current-gen versions, Burnout 
Revenge (1) for Xbox 360 should make a 
worthwhile investment for reckless dri- 
vers. Likewise, the next-gen version of 
Battlefield 2: Modern Combat (2) won't 
stray too far from its already-released 
cousins, but it’s a solid multiplayer shooter 
nonetheless. And THQ's squad-based tacti- 
cal war sim The Outfit (3) might sneak 
onto shelves just before spring blossoms. 


Multiplatform 

Shark enthusiasts will finally assume the 
role of the legendary great white when 
Majesco’s Jaws Unleashed (4) surfaces 
for PS2 and Xbox. Eidos’ Commandos 
Strike Force (5) (PS2, XB) has also been a 
long time coming, and hopefully its gun- 
play has come a long way from the previ- 
ous forgettable installment. The squad- 
based shooting in Full Spectrum Warrior: 
Ten Hammers (PS2, XB) seems a Safer bet. 
Don’t expect any terribly daring innova- 
tions over the previous game, though. And 
if you want to be on the cutting edge of 
sports games, tackle EA Sports’ inaugural 
Arena Football (PS2, XB). 


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PlayStation 2 2 
Role-playing fans will be forced to choose 
between several different quests laden 
with sassy princesses. Square Enix offers 
Grandia ЇЇ (6), XSeed hits with a one-two 
punch of Wild Arms 4 and Shadow Hearts: 
From the New World (7), Namco delivers 
Tales of Legendia, and Ubisoft surprises 
with Drakengard 2. If you're sick of count- 
g ing hit points, relax with Sony CEA's Ape 
d Escape 3 (8), another breezy monkey-nab- 
۴ bing romp. And the hipsters among you 
g“ | can drop some dope beats with Konami's 






Beatmania DJ simulator, complete with a 
heavy-duty turntable controller. 


Xbox 

Looks like slim pickings on the black box, 
but a few stragglers should keep you 
entertained. DreamCatcher's Painkiller (9) 
brings the cult-hit PC first-person shooter 
to a new audience, while Ubisoft's Blazing 
Angels (10) breathes new life into WWII 
flight sims with Xbox Live action. 


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батебиһе 

Sorry guys, but the GC winter release list 
looks like a barren desert peppered with 
tumbleweeds. The only major releases on 
the slate are oddballs like Odama (11) (a 
military pinball sim) and Chibirobo (12) 
(action-puzzler starring a tiny robot). 





76 + ELECTRONIC GAMING MDNTHI Й 


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KEYWORD: : BIA 





KEYWORD: 


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www.gameloft.com 


© 2005 Gameloft. All Rights Reserved. Gameloft, the Gameloft logo, Asphalt: Urban GT, Midnight Pool and Midnight Bowling are trademarks of Gameloft in the US and/or other countries. All manufacturers, cars, motorbikes, names, brands and associated 
imagery featured in Asphalt: Urban GT mobile game are trademarks and/or copyrighted materials of their respective owners. © 1989 Jordan Mechner. All Rights Reserved. Based on Prince of Persia® created by Jordan Mechner. Prince of Persia and 
Prince of Persia The Two Thrones are trademarks of Jordan Mechner used under license by Gameloft. Universal Studios' King Kong movie © Universal Studios. Licensed by Universal Studios Licensing LLLP. A Note to Parents: Please consult 
www.filmratings.com for information regarding movie ratings in making viewing choices for children.Brothers in Arms Earned in Blood Mobile Game © 2005 Gameloft. All rights reserved. Published by Gameloft under license from Ubisoft Entertainment. 
Brothers In Arms Earned in Blood is a trademark of Gearbox Software and is used under license. Gearbox Software and the Gearbox logo are registered trademarks of Gearbox Software, LLC. All other trademarks, logos and copyrights are property of their 


respective owners. 


& cover story: 
"A 2006 previews " 















PlayStation 2 ° Square Enix е May 2006 
“Рт just very picky and very detailed,” said Kingdom Hearts Il 
Director Tetsuya Nomura earlier this spring. Yeah, no kidding— 
thanks to his obsessive-compulsive nature (plus being tasked with 
putting the finishing touches on Square Enix’s CG-animated flick 
Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children), one of this year’s most- 
anticipated titles will now carry those high expectations into 2006. 
And a delay may be a smart move. Nomura has stated that he’s 
aiming to make this action-RPG, which melds the worlds of Disney 
and Final Fantasy, roughly twice as big as the original. The game 
picks up one year after the events of the card-filled Chain of 
Memories (GBA), as a tad-more-mature Sora and animated buddies 
Donald and Goofy find themselves battling hordes of Heartless, the 
Organization (those shady dudes in the black cloaks), and famous 
Disney villains. Facing this trio of evil will take you to a number of 
Disney-themed worlds, many of which have never appeared in pre- 
vious Kingdom Hearts titles. Some areas you probably could’ve 
guessed: the castle from Beauty and the Beast, The Lion King’s vast 
jungle, the snow-covered fields of Mulan, and so on. Other con- 
firmed environments, however, may surprise you, like the ones 
based on the black-and-white Steamboat Willie (Mickey Mouse’s 


DOM HEARTS II 






1928 coming-out party) and the live-action blockbuster Pirates of 
the Caribbean (which will see Capt. Jack Sparrow fight alongside 
Sora). And that’s just the beginning; Square Enix reps tell us that 
almost half of KH2’s areas have yet to be revealed. 

While these wonderful backdrops provide the game’s sizzle, you 
could call its revamped combat system the hearty steak. Aside 
from tweaking the camera (the first Hearts’ jittery view drew 
almost universal ire from critics), Nomura’s group plans to intro- 
duce a host of new fighting mechanics. The first enables you to 
join up with select party members—such as FFX’s Auron—for 
some devastating double-team beatdowns. Another new twist lets 
you press the Triangle button at the appropriate time to perform 
Instant Command Actions—context-sensitive special moves like, 
say, swooping under Mulan's hovering fish boss and going to town 
on its belly. And lastly, KH2's new “Form Change" will have spiky- 
haired Sora merging 
with certain allies and 
transforming into a 
combo-crazy, dual- 
keyblade-swinging 
expert. BI. 


Skeptics balked at the first 
Disney-meets-Final Fantasy 


mashup, but fans ate it up. 
This sequel will be huge. 











B Haven't played Tomb Raider in a while? No biggie: The 
team is rewinding Lara's mythos. “You'll find out who she 
is and what makes her so violent and driven,” says Croft Í 
creator Toby Gard, “She’s not your typical hero character.” 








XB360/PS2/XB ° Eidos • Spring 2006 

It was the big decision, and the guys at Crystal Dynamics tackled 
it head-on. Inheritors of Lara Croft and the Tomb Raider legacy 
after previous handlers Core Design nearly entombed the fran- 
chise for good, Crystal had to decide whether to make 'em bigger, 
take 'em down a few sizes, or leave 'em be. In the end, "they're 
Still a bit scary," says Lady Croft creator Toby Gard, whom Crystal 
hired to mastermind the she-daredevil's redesign and backstory, 
“but they're more reasonable. She's more athletic." 

Oh, don't pretend that you don't know what we're talking 
about. It's her melons, man! "The fact that Lara's bra size is 
more reasonable," says Gard, “has to do with the overall goal to 
make the game more realistic." And that reality check meant 
plenty of tweaks beyond just cup size for this franchise's rebirth. 
Lara's backpack, like her front rack, is no longer magically 
boundless—instead, weapons and gadgets are now visible on 
her character model. She'll also get grimy when she tumbles in 
the dirt, and her tomb-raiding attire clings to her bod when she 
gets soaked. Don't get too excited: “She dries off over time,” 
says Producer Morgan Grey. 

The game's world is more rooted in reality, too, thanks to a 
true-to-life physics engine that has puzzles making more sense. 
In one tomb we raided, Lara rolls boulders, Marble Madness 
style, into niches to open a giant door. She'll use a new grappling 
hook to swing across chasms and yank down obstacles. In fact, 
Lara feels much more natural in your hands now that Crystal 
Dynamics has abandoned the archaic, rigid grid-based control 
Scheme that plagued the series right up to 2005's Angel of 
Darkness. "We've taken her off the grid," says Grey. *She doesn't 
move like a cow anymore." She'll even stop herself automatically 
from falling off ledges and reach out her hands to make last- 
minute grabs. “She has her own movement А...” Grey says. 
"She's smart enough to put her hands where they should go and 





balance her body. She'll save herself from the simple 
mistakes so you can focus on the big challenges." 

The team revamped the combat system, too, giving Lara 
more to do with her guns. Special "targets of opportunity," 
such as collapsible walls, power lines, and the requisite 
exploding barrels, become tagged with a button on your con- 
troller; tap the button and Lara will shoot the target. Slinking 
in close to bad guys lets her do special proximity attacks, such 
as jumping off enemies' heads or stunning them with her 
grapple gun. Tapping the right analog stick cycles through 
foes, although she can look down her gun sights for precise 
aiming. That's not to say that Crystal has turned Lara's game 
into a first-person shooter. “We never want the combat to 
be a slow, plodding experience," Grey says. “Ме want 
players to always have Lara in motion, always have her 
flipping and leaping. She's tougher than you or me, 
but she's still pretty easy to kill when she's just 
standing there." 

See—realism! But it’s not like Crystal has got- 
ten too carried away with bringing Lara Croft to 
the real world. "She's still not really proportioned 
like a normal human being," admits Gard of Croft's 
more athletic figure. *But then the Tomb Raider 
world is not the real world, although it's more real 
than before. It's more like a comic book now." 

—Crispin Boyer > 


The Legend levels we tried—which feature some 
tomb exploration, puzzle solving, gunplay, and 
new Dragon's Lair-style action events during 
cinemas—have even the Raider haters on our 
staff itching to slip into Lara's pants...er, boots. 














































* 


couer stor 
° 2006 previews 


SAINUS ROW 


Xbox 360 ° THQ ° April 2006 

‚ Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas—the cars, the 

gang wars, the...bargain shopping? Bzzzt! Wrong 

game. Only Saint's Row, the first GTA-style title 

_ On a next-generation console, mixes shopping 
sprees with crime sprees. “Store commercials [on 
the radio] announce special sales and promotions 
in progress,” says Saint’s Row Design Architect 
Chris Stockman. “If the player visits the store 
during a sale, he’ll actually receive the discount 
on those items.” 

OK, so maybe real-time deal hunting isn’t 
enough to lure players to this thug-life simulator. 
But what about the character-customization 
options (enough to create a virtual clone of your- 
self)? Or—better still—the anything-can-happen 
physics engine? Vehicles explode into showers of 
auto parts. Just about all the objects in the world, 
from fire hydrants to dumpsters, tumble when you 
bump them. “One of my favorite physics moments 
is when the player takes a rocket launcher and 
destroys a police chopper,” says Stockman. 

“The chopper blows up into a million pieces and 
the occupants fall from the sky and rag-doll to 
the ground.” 

Saint's Row even packs clever Xbox Live- 
enabled multiplayer games. Take the Blinged-out 
Ride mode, which has two teams driving junkers 
they can improve with money earned from killing 
enemies and tagging buildings. After pimping their 
rides to the max, players must haul tail to a final 
drop-off location. "It's a really hectic and enter- 
taining mode," Stockman says, "because of all the 
different things you have to do—combat, driving, 
tagging, et cetera." --С.В. 


Saint's Rows makers claim the game 
takes the “open-world genre to the 

next level.” We’re not so sure, but we 
can’t wait to blow some stuff up. 








HE PLAYSTATION 3 


game in uncertain times. While we try to maintain a brave b 
ice and pretend to be excited about new games for our all these unknown factors, imer coc arida ack 
| oid consoles, the next-generation system war looms on when it comes to announcing PS3 support. Here's a glimpse 
the horizon. Xbox 360 is here now, but when will Sony bring of some of the games you'll eventually be rockin' on the PS3. 
its PlayStation 3 to market? Good question. At press time, (Be sure to also head to pg. 30 for details on the PS3's first 
Sony won't comment on specifics regarding price or a release must-have title, Konami's Metal Gear Solid 4.) 
date, but a spring 2006 launch in Japan still seems feasible, we 


E The PlayStation 3 waits 
patiently їп ambush. 


80 ° ELECTRONIC 


BLACK 


E Blowing apart massi 
chunks of the levels is no! 
only fun, but also highly 


effective at wasting fools. 


PS2/XB * EA Games * April 2006 
Prepare for the true story behind Black's 
creation: ^We had just come out of a meet- 
ing where we had a massive argument for 
four hours over what style jeans the char- 
acter in our third-peson shooter would 
wear," laughs Black Creative Director Alex 
Ward. “So | suggested we make a first- 
person shooter, because there's no charac- 
ter onscreen and we're not going to argue 
over what color the stop is on the AK-47." 
Black aims to be an intensely serious 
shooter, packed with realistic guns, smart 
enemies, and huge levels for you to perfo- 
rate. “No cut-scenes, no bulls**t—it really 
is just about you and your gun, shooting 
and blowing stuff up," Ward explains. 
"We're getting the best guns and the best 
sensation of pulling the trigger.” Alex's 
weapon of choice? "You can't beat the AK- 
47,” Ward says. “It’s the loudest, scariest 
motherf***ing gun you could ever fire, and 
very popular with the children.” --К.5. 


The guys behind Burnout 
bring their destructive 
streak to shooters...we're 
hyped. (And a little scared.) 





@ Create your own, er...phar- 
macist using the game’s 
MobFace character editor. 











24: 


Li j 
ХВ360/Р$2/ХВ » EA Games ° March 2006 
"It was a wonderful book," says Executive Producer 
David DeMartini of The Godfather, reminding dear read- 
ers that the seminal movie, the hallowed movie, the 
movie whose legacy must not be tarnished...didn't even 
start as a movie, "[It] evolved to become a great film," 
DeMartini continues, “and now it's our opportunity to put 
our own stamp on it by creating a fantastic game." 
DeMartini isn't being defensive; he's simply making the 
point that it's perfectly fair to extend The Godfather into 
another medium. 

The game presents an open-ended videogame version 
of the world seen in the first movie: New York circa 
1945. Players create their own main characters that 
must work their way up through the Corleone family, 
earning respect and attempting to become the Godfather. 
The MobFace system, which is used to customize your 





character, should add à personal connection to the story 
that can't happen in movies and books. "Being able to 
create someone totally unique, then see my character 
face-to-face with the Don is a fantastic feeling," he says. 
Details about specific levels are scant, but it's clear 
that the core story missions will be familiar. "Can you 
вау horse's head?" DeMartini jokes. "Our goal from the 
start has been to be respectful of this franchise but not 
in awe of it." -Jennifer Tsao 





The Godfather still seems like a difficult 
property to faithfully adapt to the gaming 
realm, but with new voiceover work from 
Marlon Brando (recorded before his death), 
Robert Duvall, and James Caan, it's gonna 
sound great. 


ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP com • 81 


Our goal is to preserve classic video game magazines so tha 
they are not lost permanently. 







People interested in helping out in any 
please visit us af www.retromags.c 


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this site, please do not support them and do let us know. 


Thank you! 





HE Select the target HEX 






H boy from a village Ehe war spared, a troubled girl оп the run. 
H traveler and an artist. Together they will save the world. 


Welcome En Wild ARMS 4, Ehe latest chapter in the popular 

Wild ARMS series. Featuring а new cast of characters, an original ? 
Storyline and many new innovations. Use the new НЕЯ battle system 

to integrate strategy, action, and speed into battles. 


2 SEED. 


| GAMES . 
шшш. шаг. соп оке сою 


Fantasy Violence 


Mild Language 


М ау5 ta По П 5 e Wild ARMS is a registered trademark of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. © 2006 Sony Computer Entertainment Inc, 


All Rights Reserved. "PlayStation" and the "PS" Family logo are registered trademarks of Sony Computer 
Entertainment Inc. The ratings icon is a trademark of the Entertainment Software Association 









































cover story: 
98% ° 2006 previews 


PlayStation 2 е Capcom ° May 2006 
This game isn't for action fiends or twitch 
freaks. No, no, no—it's for artistes. Look 
at the environments—virtual paintings 
that are perfect for a game where your 
weapon is a brush (a celestial brush) and 
you play as a wolf (a white wolf—very 
artsy). You'll explore these gorgeous 
environments, drawing constellations to 
gain skills and solve puzzles. You can also 
destroy enemies directly with a few deft 
brush strokes. 

Atsushi Inaba, president and CFO of 
Clover Studios, which is developing the 
game, doesn't worry that switching back 
and forth between the brush and the 
exploration will be disjointed. "Like with 
Resident Evil 4, players were not disori- 
ented when switching between the gun 
and exploring," he says. "We feel the 
same can be said for Okami.” —JT. 






Inaba's right. In the 
Japanese demo we played, 
using the paintbrush felt very 
fluid, and the game looks 
beautiful. Better put your 
beret on—Okami could bring 
out the artiste in you, too. 















HN ë 


DEAD RI 


Xbox 360 * Capcom ° May 2006 

Rising seemed dead on arrival when Capcom 
first revealed it back in May 2005. This blatant 
retread of the classic Dawn of the Dead story 
line conjured up long-repressed memories of 
State of Emergency (PS2)—just because you 
can fight oodles of enemies in a shopping mall 
doesn't mean that you should. But we must 
admit that as development progresses, the 
whole shebang's looking more enticing. All 
that stands between you and becoming the 
food court for the walking dead is your trusty 
camera (you’re a photojournalist), your primal - Р ( Я Pa 
drive to live, and the bounty of weaponry the еше... З анаа... едаш 3 EM 
mall provides (such as lawn-mowers and li Blood enthusiasts will revel in Dead Rising's wonderfully viscous arterial spray. 
baseball bats). An early demo we tried looks 
bloody promising, but the shambling enemies 
didn't put up much of a fight. —K.S. 


M ABS 



































If Capcom can continue to 
polish the visuals and game- 

play, Resident Evil might have a 
respectable new cousin... 





C9 JUS ИДО Д АЛС 
U.S. NAVY SEALS 








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Entertainment Inc. “Live In Your World. Play In Ours.” is a registered trademark of Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc. Online icon is a trademark of Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc. Online 
play requires Internet connection, Network Adaptor (for PlayStation@2) or PlayStation@2 with internal network connector and Memory Card (8MB) (for PlayStation@2) (each sold separately). The U.S. Navy 
provided technical assistance, but does not officially endorse this product. 







cover story: 
#85: 0006 previews 


Chirping birds, buzzing bees, enchant- 
ing fields of flowers welcoming the 
renewal of life...bor-ing. Bring on the 
next-gen murder simulators! 


Xbox 360 
So you plunked down a fat wad to be the 
first kid on your block with Microsoft's 
swanky new console, but by now you've 
played the living hell out of every launch 
game. The cavalry arrives this spring. First 
up, grizzly superspy Sam Fisher snoops 
around in Ubisoft's Tom Clancy's Splinter 
Cell 4 (also coming to PS2/XB/GC), 
the latest installment in the hit stealth- 
action franchise. Details remain sketchy, 
but these shots reveal that our hero has 
apparently gone all Prison Break on us. If 
you're in the market for something a bit 
more fanciful, check out 2K Games' Prey, 
a first-person shooter that casts you as an 
American Indian mechanic who's been 
abducted by aliens. And no, we didn't just 
make that up. The gunplay in Atari's 
Timeshift (3) (also coming to XB) doesn't 
adhere to the laws of reality, either—you 
can rewind, pause, and fast-forward time 
at will. If you're still feeling trigger-happy 
after all of that, go for some third-person 
takedowns in Namco's Frame City Killer 

, in which you play a hardened hit man 
inspired by Tom Cruise's character in 
Collateral. After spending all those clips, 
peel out in Sega's Full Auto (5), an explo- 
sive racer blending equal parts Burnout, 
Twisted Metal, and Destruction Derby. 


£ 


Everything else 
Square Enix might actually ship the long- 
awaited Dirge of Cerberus: Final Fantasy 
VII (6) (PS2) sometime this spring, assum- 
ing it gets the online multiplayer action up 
and running. Normally we'd run something 
bigger on a FFVII spin-off, but this one still 
feels a bit iffy. Likewise, we're not entirely 
sure about Enlight's bizarre Bad Day LA 
(XB), in which you play a deranged 
homeless man fighting terrorists, mascots, 
and zombies in a wildly stylized version of 
Los Angeles. The chaos in Midway's 
Rampage: Total Destruction (8) (for 
PS2/XB/GC) will be far more controlled— 
you topple buildings as oversized mon- 
sters, just like in the classic arcade games. 
EA Sports launches its devious plan to sell 
even more sports games with the oddly 
timed NFL Head Coach (9) (PS2/XB) and 
its first-ever college baseball sim, MVP 06 
NCAA Baseball (PS2/XB). If dumb fun 
isn't your style, get all brainy with Atelier 
Iris 2 (PS2), the alchemy-centered sequel 
to 2005's quirky RPG. 

Spring will feature scads of portable 
titles, but we can't pretend to care about 
the latest Berenstain Bears game for GBA. 
Let's pare it down to two safe bets. Square 
Enix's all-new Children of Mana (DS) 
adds wireless co-op to the legendary 
action-RPG gameplay of Secret of Mana 
(SNES), while Sony CEA's Syphon Filter: 
Dark Mirror (PSP) delivers an original 
mission for series hero Gabe Logan, along 
with online deathmatch action. 














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cover story: 
f° 2006 previews 








90 • ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY ¢ www.tUPcom 





THE LEGEND OF ZELDA: 
TWILIGHT PRINCESS 


GameCube • Nintendo е Summer 2006 

Man, talk about stating the obvious—when Nintendo 
announced last August that the next iteration in its beloved 
Zelda franchise wouldn’t be available this holiday season, the 
company statement read, “This may come as a disappointment 
to many eager fans...” Ya think? The lack of Link this Christmas 
has, for the most part, turned the GameCube into an amazingly 
expensive paperweight. Still, the company promises the change 
in date is for the best, as this will give the development team 
the time needed “to add new levels, more depth, and even 
higher quality.” 

To be honest, though, our limited time with Twilight Princess 
has already mightily impressed us. Set a few decades after 
Ocarina of Time (N64), the game drops our favorite elf back into 
the land of Hyrule, where a mysterious force called “twilight” is 
threatening to turn this merry place into a desolate kingdom. 
Hyrule’s in trouble...again? No surprise there, but what may 
shock you is what happens to Link when he enters Twilight 
Princess’ mysterious alternate dimension: He transforms into a 
wolf, and an odd catlike creature named Midna will ride on his 
back, opening up a slew of new attacks. Also, when on all fours 





Link can converse with other creatures. “Maybe he’ll even be 
able to talk with [his horse],” said Producer Eiji Aonuma earlier 
this year. 

Yet Twilight Princess isn’t all about Link sporting the hairier 
side of his personality; most of the time it’s business as usual. 
The game will include a number of complex dungeons—a 
series hallmark—brimming with intricate puzzles and bosses 
that'll test both your mind and muscle. Your trusty steed returns 
in this adventure, and aside from using the animal to get from 
here to there rather quickly, you'll engage in some heavy-duty 
combat while on horseback. Plus, expect more than your fair 
share of lighthearted segments, such as canoeing, fishing, and 
even herding goats. --В.. 





Several critics were pegging Twilight Princess as 
Game of the Year material, and the move into '06 
won't change those predictions. Still, we've heard 


rumblings that the game won't make its summer 
ship date. And if so, does that mean Nintendo will 
give it a Revolution-ary makeover? 





IF PRESSURE'S PUSHING YOU TO GET HIGH 
AND GET INTO THINGS YOU'RE NOT REALLY INTO... 
MAYBE IT'S TIME TO PUSH BACK. 





RY 


OFFICE or NATIONAL DRUG CONTROL PoLicy/PARTNERSHIP FOR A DRUG-FREE AMERICA? 


+ 





& cover story: 
f° 2006 previews 


E Kirby straddles the world’s 
least manly motorcycle. 








92 • ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY © www.1UPcom 


. "KIRBY 


GameCube е Nintendo е Summer 2006 
Sometimes it's the waning days of a 
console that see its most brilliant 
moments. Right? OK, maybe not. But it 
could happen, and wouldn't it be nice to 
see Kirby's first real GameCube plat- 
forming adventure (the one-button rac- 
ing madness of 2003's Kirby Air Ride 
doesn't count) knock one out of the park 
in the final innings? 

Don't expect any major change-ups— 
this is a Kirby game after all. He does 
have a new attack system, where he can 
team up with three helpers in bizarre 
totem pole fashion. The borrowed pow- 
ers stack, so the more helpers, the 


stronger the attack. JT 


After the brilliance that was 
Canvas Curse (DS), we think 


it’s fair to keep hopes high for 
Kirby’s next adventure. 








ALSO ІП) SUMMER 


As amazing as our powers of divination 
are, we'll admit to having a tough time 
channeling a vision of summer 2006's 
gaming landscape. The warmer months 
traditionally tend to be light on releas- 
es, but expect a lot of surprises. 

Namco’s Pac-Man World Rally (1) (PS2, 
XB, GC) represents the spherical yellow 
vanguard’s first foray into the lucrative (yet 
wildly unoriginal) world of kart-racing 
games. Come to think of it, though, 
Nintendo actually hired Namco to make its 
recently released Mario Kart Arcade Grand 
Prix, so maybe this trek around the track 
won't be half bad. 

The aforementioned plumber will get 
down to business in New Super Mario 
Bros. (DS), an all-new platformer that 


hearkens back to the old days of breaking 
bricks, munching 'shrooms, and the ilk. 
Sony CEA plans to launch an original 
RPG franchise with Rogue Galaxy 
(PS2). Comparable to Final Fantasy in 
depth and ambition, this game centers on 
swashbuckling space pirates. You'll 
explore huge, seamless planets utterly 
devoid of load times, effectively conveying 
the vastness of the game world. In addi- 
tion to being huge, the landscape is also 
quite beautiful: Developer Level-5 (Dark 
Cloud) has come up with its most gor- 
geous engine yet in a game that pushes 
the PS2 to its absolute limits in the last 
days of the system. If the PS2 has to go 
out, it'll go out with a bang—and Level-5 
will make sure it's a very big bang indeed. 








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VIDEO. PRO LOGIC TI 


IPG-13|PARENTS STRONGLY САШТІОМЕРЄ 


FOR SEQUENCES OF INTENSE SCI-FI ACTION VIOLENCE e 


© 1997, 2005 SQUARE ENIX CO., LTD. All Rights Reserved. CHARACTER DESIGN: TETSUYA NOMURA. 
FINAL FANTASY is a registered trademark of Square Enix Co., Ltd. ADVENT CHILDREN is a trademark of 

Square Enix Co., Ltd. = = and “UMD” are trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. 
Dolby, Pro Logic, and the double-D symbol are trademarks of Dolby Laboratories. 





2. cover story: 
"9005 previews 











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FINAL FANTASY XII 


PlayStation 2 ° Square Enix • Fall 2005 

Let's stop dancing around the subject: Final Fantasy XII has 
been delayed...a lot. We can rule out foul play—it's not as if 
Square Enix enjoys making fans endure an interminable wait for 
the latest chapter in gaming's most popular RPG series. But 
FFXII should have been out over a year ago, and it would have 
been if not for a maelstrom of behind-the-scenes drama that 
overwhelmed the game's development. 

When Square Enix delivered a meaty playable demo of ҒҒХ// 
at 2004's E3 gaming trade show, everything seemed to be on 
track for a speedy release...but here we are nearly two years 
later without a firm date. What went wrong? We'll probably 
never get the full story, but we do know that Yasumi Matsuno, 
the visionary producer originally helming the game, quietly left 
the project last summer, citing health reasons. (Rumors claim 
everything from exhaustion from overwork to a full-scale mental 
breakdown.) Renowned for his work on PS1 role-playing clas- 
sics such as Tactics Ogre, Final Fantasy Tactics, and Vagrant 
Story, Matsuno infused FFXII with his signature touches—a nar- 
rative dense with political intrigue, a cast of haughty royals with 
confusing names, and a bevy of intricate gameplay systems that 


98 • ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com 


Attack & Fran 
Attack © Balth 
ШЕН... =й п „= жаша 


` E Phew, at least the 
over-the-top sum- 
mons spells persist. 


bos 


might require a calculator to master. At least Matsuno’s sudden 
departure hasn’t halted progress: Square brought in veteran 
producer Akitoshi Kawazu (the brains behind the SaGa series) 
finish up the game. 

So by now, we’ve all had a chance to check out the playable 
FFXII demo bundled with Dragon Quest VIII. 15 it the train wreck | 
many of us feared? Not really...but it certainly doesn't play like | 
your average FF title, what with its free-roaming exploration, 
vaguely automatic combat, and ornate art style. And although 
the game definitely feels like a departure from what we 
traditionally know as FF, the intangible feeling of wonder and 
gravitas that makes the series so special remains intact. Let's 
just hope the game actually makes it out next fall... —$. 









Can you believe that it will have been five years 
since the last “normal” Final Fantasy (FFX) came 
out by the time FFXII hits shelves? Needless to s 
gamers hold astronomical expectations for this 
Although we're still not sold on the new battle 
tem, we're pulling for Square to deliver in the: 












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oale 010 after В Games mail- -in gift E I e A 


PlayStation. ° PlayStation.2 PlayStation. 


electronics boutique’ 
Enter your email address to receive voucher status updates, news and special offers. | | www.ebgames.com 


Mail this completed form along with your original sales receipt to 
EB Games Rebate Center / 770 Pilot Road, Suite F / Las Vegas, NV 89119 
Savings will be sent in the form of an EB Gomes gift voucher. No cash will be issued. Gift voucher cannot be redeemed for cash, except where prohibited by law. Gift vouchers are good toward future purchases at апу ЕВ 
Games, Electronics Boutique or EBX in the U.S. or Puerto Rico. All incomplete forms will be discarded. EB Games is not responsible for lost and/or stolen mail-in and/or gift vouchers. Limit one per customer. Cannot 
be combined with any other offer or promotion. Not valid on previous purchases. Not valid on Pre-Played games. While supplies lost. Selection may vary by store. No substitutions con be made. No rainchecks will be 
issued. Some exclusions may apply. See Sales Associate for complete details. Typographical errors are not the responsibility of EB Games. Offer valid 12/6/05 - 12/20/05. Must be postmarked by 1/3/06. Voucher id #4209 








SONY 


electronics boutique’ We take games seriously™ 


UTER 





cover story: | 


#2006 previews 4-4 K 
ALSO ІП) FALL 


Xbox 360 
š Gazing this far into the future without the 
% Р help of a spirit guide сап be dangerous, so 
Y we'll stick to known quantities. Back in 
D ' October, Microsoft bravely played its first- 
А О — party Xbox 360 hand early, revealing a 
>) іпешр of exclusive original titles from top 
ë d ү developers. Epic's gorgeous Resident 
da P Evil-meets-Unreal Engine third-person 
7 І shooter Gears of War (1) continues to 
make most other 360 games look positive- 
ly last-gen. On the other hand, we're still 
not quite sure what's going on with 
Сгаскаоилт (2) art style—cartoony thugs 
wreaking havoc in a candy-colored virtual 
slum just seems wrong. Still, its promise of 
co-op online action in the vein of Grand 
Theft Auto has our interest piqued. 

If you're in the market for something 
wildly ambitious, you have your choice 
between the first chapters in two different 
sci-fi trilogies: BioWare's action-RPG Mass 
Effect (3) or Silicon Knights' action-adven- 
ture Too Human (4). (For further study into 
the hubris of multipart game series, see 
Advent Rising or Xenosaga.) 

Finally, the first fruits of Microsoft's 
partnership with Final Fantasy creator 
Hironobu Sakaguchi may ripen in time for 
the holidays: Lost Odyssey (5) dishes up 
serious fantasy roleplaying, while Blue 
Dragon (6) rocks a lighter action vibe (with 
character designs by Dragon Ball Z 
creator Akira Toriyama). 











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100 « ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY e www. ОРОО | — 





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“Superbly Playable” WAYS S 
“A Fresh Experience For Mobile” ҮЗ” 
“Hugely Recommended” \ 


IBN RATING 9:0/10 





| IGN.COM 
| AWARD A 








raising the bar ver i70nwireless 











GAME DIRECTORY 


Xbox 360 

104 Madden NFL 06 

105 Condemned: Criminal 0rigins 
106 Call of Duty 2 

108 Kameo: Elements of Power 
110 Amped 3 

111 Need for Speed: Most Wanted 
112 NBA 2K6 

112 NBA Live 06 

113 Ridge Racer 6 


Xbox 360 Gameplay Impressions 

114 Perfect Dark Zero 

114 Project Gotham Racing 3 

115 FIFA 06: Road to the 2006 
World Cup 

115 NHL 2K6 

115 Tiger Woods PGA Tour 06 





Multiplatform 

116 Peter Jackson's King Kong 

118 The Matrix: Path of Neo 

118 James Bond 007: From Russia 
With Love 

119 Gun 

119 Shadow the Hedgehog 

120 Need for Speed: Most Wanted 

120 True Crime: New York City 


PlayStation 2 
122 Magna Carta: Tears of Blood 
122 WWE SmackDown! vs. RAW 2006 


Xbox 

123 Half-Life 2 

124 0peration Flashpoint: Elite 

124 Stubbs the Zombie in Rebel 
Without a Pulse 


батебиһе 
125 Mario Party 7 
125 Super Mario Strikers 


PSP 

127 Star Wars Battlefront II 

128 Kingdom of Paradise 

128 SOCOM: U.S. Navy SEALs 
Fireteam Bravo 

129 The Legend of Heroes: 
A Tear of Vermillion 

129 The Lord of the Rings: Tactics 


DS 

130 Mario Kart DS 

131 Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time 
132 Animal Crossing: Wild World 
134 Sonic Rush 


Game Boy Advance 
134 Mario Tennis Power Tour 


Extra Stuff 

135 Gizmondo Extravaganza 
136 Reviews Wrap-up 

137 Reviews Archive 





102 • ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com 











( GUIeLU сгеш 


t-minus five years until xbox 720...preorder or you're screwed! 


THIS MONTH IN REVIEWS... 


پھ ۸۹ دې 


ll, 


ou say you want an evolution? Well 

the next next-generation is here, 

ready or not. But if you are ready, 

you’ve got deep pockets; those HD 
TVs don’t come cheap, and neither does an 
Xbox 360—or the games, many of which are 
clocking in at $60 now. 

We've reviewed as many Xbox 360 launch 
titles as we could get for this issue (and the 
ones we didn't get in time, including Perfect 
Dark Zero, we've reviewed on 1UP.com), but in 
some ways, the jury's still out. Are slightly 
prettier graphics matched with mostly 
traditional gameplay enough? You'll have to 
decide for yourself. Either way, the next gen 
begins when you turn the page.... 


& pg $ 








Xbox 360 
Launch 
Games 

We couldn't get 
every 360 launch 
title in on time for 
this issue, but check 

1UP.com for full EGM reviews of 
almost every game that's out. 








HE RATING SYSTEM & AWARDS 


straight 10s. 


For games 
that are life- 
changing. 


for 
games with 
an average 
score of 9.0 
or higher. 


for games 


with a mean 


score of 8.0 
or higher. 





Öö ESRB Ratings 
< The ESRB's game 
a ratings range from 

“Everyone” to 

“Adults Only.” Visit 
www.esrb.org for 
the full lowdown. 


The highest- 
Scoring 
game each 
month gets 
a star. 


The lowest- 
rated game 
with unani- 
mously bad 
Scores. 






















THE REVIEW CREW 


DAN “SHOE” HSU е Editor-in-Chief 
The snowboarding bug bit 

Shoe in the ass, thanks to 

Amped 3. New season, 


new injuries... 

Now Playing: Amped 3, 
Hulk: Ultimate Destruction 
Blog: egmshoe.1UP.com 





JENNIFER TSAO е Managing Editor 
Jen’s putting off home 

buying till she pays off her 

house in Animal Crossing: 

Wild World. One mortgage 

is bad enough! 

Now Playing: Amped 3 

Blog: egmjennifer.1UP.com 


















MARK MACDONALD * Executive Editor 
When he’s not working 
(playing games) or 
pursuing his hobby 
(playing games), Mark 
relaxes by playing games. 
Now Playing: Call of Duty 2 
Blog: egmmark.1UP.com 





CRISPIN BOYER • Senior Editor 
Crispin respects a game like 
Gun for naming itself what it 
is. Besides, Grand Theft 
Mustang doesn't have the 
same ring. 

Now Playing: Half-Life 2 
Blog: egmcrispin.1UP.com 





SHANE BETTENHAUSEN e Previews Editor 
When not playing review 
games or editing the 2006 
previews, Shane watches 
Laguna Beach. 

Now Playing: Mario Kart 
DS, Soul Calibur Ill 

Blog: egmshane.1UP.com 









DEMIAN LINN • Reviews Editor 
After a crushing loss in Mario 
Kart DS, Demian decided that 
this whole online gaming 
thing is really just a fad. 
Now Playing: Mario Kart 
DS, Soul Calibur III 

Slog: egmdemian.1UP.com 








BRYAN INTIHAR • News Editor 
After writing his third 
Madden review this year, 
Bryan has discovered 43 
synonyms for “football.” 
Now Playing: Madden NFL 
06, NBA Live 06 (XB360) 
Blog: egmbryan.1UP.com 


























ROBERT ASHLEY • Staff Reviewer 
Robert's grateful for the good 
games thrown his way this 
month, though his skin has 
turned Elmer's Glue white. 
Now Playing: Stubbs the 
Zombie, Indigo Prophecy 
Blog: robertashley.1UP.com 











JON DUDLAK е Staff Reviewer 
When not reviewing games, Jon 
tortures himself by making the 
EGM crossword puzzle! 

Now Playing: We ¥ 

Katamari, Shadow of the 
Colonoscopy 

Blog: egm_jonathan.1UP.com 














GREG FORD • Staff Reviewer 
Playing five Kong-based 
games (Donkey and King) 
in a month has Greg Ford 
thinking like an ape. 
Now Playing: King Kong, 
Mario Kart DS 

Blog: egm_ford.1UP.com 








JENN FRANK Staff Reviewer 
Jenn's New Year's 
resolutions for 2006 will 
include finally defrosting the 
Thanksgiving turkey. Mmm! 
Now Playing: EyeToy: Play 2, 
The Legend of Heroes 

Blog: superjenn.1UP.com 












JAMES LEE * Staff Reviewer 
Jimmy loves Josie 
Maran from Need for 
Speed...and the 360 ain't 
half bad either. 

Now Playing: The games 
that EGM gives him 
Blog: egmwiley.1UP.com 





PATRICK MAURO • Staff Reviewer 
This syndicated radio guy can 
and will kick your ass next- 
gen-hoops style. 

Now Playing: 360 sports 
titles, The Warriors 

Blog: Patrick believes the 
Internet is a fad, thus no blog 














CHRISTIAN NUTT ¢ Staff Reviewer 
Christian was late with this 
bio because he was 
reading a book. A book! 
And playing Kameo. 

Now Reading: American 
Psycho by Bret Easton Ellis 
Blog: ferricide.1UP.com 









KATHLEEN SANDERS • Staff Reviewer 
Hopefully, excessive Animal 
Crossing is the reason 
Kathleen has been 
carrying an ax around. 
Now Playing: NFS: Most 
Wanted, AC: Wild World 
Blog: cookiecups.1UP.com 








GREG SEWART 9 Staff Reviewer 
Feeling lucky? Look for 
“DrJealousy” and prepare 
to suck exhaust in Project 
Gotham Racing 3 on Live. 
Now Playing: Forza 
Motorsport, Resident Evil 4 
Blog: stewy.1UP.com 





JUSTIN SPEER ¢ Staff Reviewer 
Justin believes exploding 

heads in videogames 

have lost all meaning. 


Where did we go wrong? 
Now Playing: Culdcept, 
Shadow of the Colossus 
Blog: zepyulos.1UP.com 











[ Those beautiful birds at the OFFICIAL 
U.S. PLAYSTATION MAGAZINE and 
1UP.COM are always there to help us out 
with reviews and we love them so much! 
Even when they come home late and 
crawl into bed reeking of fast women 
and cheap liquor. 





ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com • 103 














® Thankfully, this version of 

Madden doesn’t require you to use Е 

06's tricky vision control system. 

But it’s there if you want it. Ке 
Келес 


Уһпу З6П 


MADDEN NFL 06 


Lean, but mean 


It’s third down and goal, and the ball 
rests inches away from pay dirt. The play calls for 
а lob pass to the sure-handed All-Pro receiver 
Marvin Harrison. Colts QB Peyton Manning sur- 
veys the D, and beyond the secondary he sees a 
picture-perfect home stadium with its working 
Jumbotron and screaming 3D fans. You hear 
Manning calling an audible (yes, that’s his actual 
voice) and use hand signals to relay info to his 
wideouts. The defense notices the formation 
change—a linebacker barks out his own adjust- 
ments. It’s a handoff to the ever-elusive Edgerrin 
James. The hole quickly closes, leaving No. 32 
with one option: dive over the pile and into the 
end zone. James scores! The crowd erupts, and 
listening to the local radio announcer call the 
action only adds to the excitement. 

Sickly detailed stadiums, all-new animations 
such as backpedaling screen passes and goal-line 
leaps, an emotion-filled broadcaster—this is a 
great start to next-gen football. And collectively, 








104 ° ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com 


these elements (along with the series’ continually 
stellar gameplay) make it nearly impossible for 
me to go back to the older Maddens. Some will 
bellyache about this version’s skinny feature set 
(no create-a-player, no ego-heavy NFL Superstar 
mode)—legitimate complaints, for sure. But I'd 
say the fact that you can't challenge plays, which 
has a significant impact almost every Sunday, is a 
bigger deal. Even so, Madden fans won't want to 
miss this gridiron evolution. 


Let me say that yes, Madden on 360 is 
a great game. When you start playing, it’s hard 
not to get sucked in as you easily slip back into 
your favorite routine. And from the gorgeous sta- 
diums and incredible crowds (finally!) to the tons 
of new animations, you'll find plenty of visual 
upgrades. I’m going to be the voice of caution 
here, though. If you are expecting to ditch your 4- 
month-old current-gen Madden for a game that’s 
worlds better, you'll be disappointed. While some 








affect surface degradation. Nice touch. 








aE ean coc ERA: 
OED AAT 
= 


people are fine with the graphical bump and other 
tweaks, others, like myself, would appreciate 
more substantial changes and not having multiple 
modes axed. 


Next-generation Madden makes the 
Xbox 360 purchase an absolute must for this foot- 
ball fan. The mesmerizing visual details—grass 
stains on uniforms, a mega variety of tackle ani- 
mations, awesome stadium re-creations—more 
than live up to the hype, but the actual gameplay 
is why I'm planning to upgrade my hardware. 

The stripped-down QB control system allows 
бог ргесізіоп passing without making players 
worry about the vision cone. | also dig the easy- 
to-navigate play-calling screen and the fact that 
you can choose plays based on type, not just for- 
mation. Even though there's no owner mode—you 
won't be building a stadium and pricing the 
nachos—this makes Madden on any other system 
feel completely obsolete. ыл 





~ inclement weather like rain and snow now 













(QUT OF 10) 


BRYAN 


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G. FORD 


PATRICK 





Publisher: EA Sports 
Developer: EA Tiburon 
Players: 1-2 (2 online) 
ESRB: Everyone 


www.easports.com 


Xbox 360 


e 

CONDEMNED e JENNIFER: Condemned is absolutely gor- KATHLEEN: Hey...you want to ® 
geous—truly vivid in all its gory glory. see something really scary? Sure, we all 
Every severed limb, blood-sprayed wall, do. It's why you'd pick up a game like this. 
and dead bird in this first-person action- Condemned's seedy, squalid spook-viron- 


horror game looks stunningly detailed as ments simply scream, “I’ve seen all of 
First-person gore you hunt down a freakish serial killer in a David Fincher's movies,” and are the best 
city mysteriously overrun by looters and part of this title. Which is why it's a damn 
psychos. One level was so creepy | called a shame it just isn't much fun to play. 
friend over to watch as | played, tense and Bludgeoning raging hobos as an FBI agent 
apprehensive, late into the night. If you whose heart is apparently so clogged with 
loved Doom 3’s dark hallways and zombies fat that he can't manage to run the breadth 
springing from the depths, you'll be right at of a lobby gets old fast. Ultimately, this 
home here. It becomes comically pre- game's truly creepy sights and sounds end 
dictable, though. (I laughed when my flash- up only slightly more shocking than your 
light was smashed at one point in the character's loafing stupidity. 
game only to be conveniently replaced 
moments later.) 1URCOM—RYAN: Silent Hill 4 proved first- 
The enemy A.I. is great when they're hid- person games can be just as terrifying as 
ing—it really adds tension when you know those with a third-person view; Condemned 
a baddie is lurking, ready to strike. But their confirms it. Graphically on par with the best 
smarts cut both ways; more than half the of the 360 launch lineup, it also has the 
time they attack you from behind, when most memorable sound design of any 
you're already іп battle—too cheap, consid- ^ recent horror title. Yes, the levels are 
(mon, just give the guy a ering how clunky the fighting mechanic is. clichéd; you'll visit subways, rotting depart- 
quarter for bus fare already. , + Unfortunately, it all gets terribly repeti- ment stores, and other genre mainstays 
tive after a while. | got the feeling the that have been abandoned by all except 
- developers tacked on a bunch of hallways some rats and homeless thugs. 
eds M and enemies just to make the game a bit The combat is startlingly visceral if a bit 
Players: 1 longer. | appreciate what Condemned tricky to master, but your thumb may ache 
ESRB: Mature almost was; its story is relatively rich and after hours of pressing in the analog stick to 
intriguing, with a cool twist at the end. Too sprint. It's not a survival-horror revolution, 
condemnedgame.com bad the gameplay came out lacking. but it's an adventure worth experiencing. 


THE VERDICTS 
(OUT OF 10) 


JENNIFER KATHLEEN — RYAN 


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Spoiler: The Allies win again 


MARK: True story: Almost every time | played 
Call of Duty 2, about 30 minutes in, my eyeballs 
would start to hurt. Nothing so serious that I 
Stopped playing, but definitely distracting. At first 
| had no idea what was going on; I'd never had 
this happen with any other first-person shooter...| 
wasn't sitting too close to the TV...the room was- 
n't too dark...suddenly, | realized what it was: / 
wasn't blinking. | was so wrapped up in Duty's 
intense firefights that 1 wasn't blinking enough to 
keep my eyes moist. 

Which is ironic, because when playing most of 
the other 30,000 interchangeable World War II 
FPSes out there | have trouble keeping my eyes 
open. What makes Duty stand out? It's not the 
wow factor of next-gen graphics. From crum- 

’ bling cities to sprawling rural villages, the sheer 
scale of Duty's levels is impressive, but close-up 
and indoors things sometimes look like a pretty 


106 е ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com 


good Xbox 1 title. The game never looks bad by 
any means, but it's no showpiece for the power 
of the 360. 

No, what makes Duty so special is the A.l. 
Enemies make great use of cover; they charge 
when it's to their advantage and give up posi- 
tions when they know they're beat; they actually 
seem to understand grenades, running from them 
or tossing them at the perfect spot to draw you 
out of hiding. Same goes for your numerous, 
ever-present squadmates, who actually con- 
tribute (killing and dying all the time) and com- 
municate (the fact that someone always seems 
to be shouting something—enemy positions, 
orders, taunts, curses—adds a lot to the experi- 
ence), rather than acting as window dressing to 
make you look good. Add excellent, crisp audio 
and wide levels that rarely feel like preordained 
paths and you have a game that conveys the 


It'S a testament to Duty's solid controls 
and excellent variety of well-balanced 

1 weapons that multiplayer is such a blast, 

despite its and fairly standard assortment 
of modes. The mix of indoor and outdoor 
areas on most maps gives just the right 
ratio of action and strategy (we could write 

қ pages on smoke grenade tactics alone). 

| Oh, and we love the feature that, while you 

| wait to respawn, shows the last few sec- 
onds leading up to your death from the 
point of view of your killer. Brilliant. 


THE VERDICTS 
(OUT OF 10) 


MARK JAMES 


the Great War, both sides 
enjoyed some friendly 
games of capture the flag. 


loud, confusing, and yes, exciting as hell chaos of 
war like no other. In my book, that’s worth $60. 
Er, $65—don't forget the eyedrops. 


JAMES: Heh, you said "Call of Doodie...number 
2." Sure, | may not have grown up yet, but this 
series sure has. Duty continues to show how 
great a war game can get with its immersive 
environments and enemy A.I. that doesn't feel at 
all scripted. Imagine if you cut the strings on the 
puppetlike enemies from Medal of Honor and 
turned them into real boys, Geppetto. 

A quick training lesson where you practice 
your shooting by firing at bottles proved to be 
one of the few unrealistic parts of the whole 
дате--іп my experience, Russians do not 
destroy perfectly good bottles of vodka. But 
you'll soon find yourself in the winter terrain of 
Mother Russia, your face in the snow with bul- 


Publisher: Activison 
Developer: Infinity Ward 
Players: 1-4 (2-16 online) 
ESRB: Teen 


GARNETT 


www.callofduty.com 





During slow moments in 





a - 


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ç А 


lets whizzing above you, as you repair telephone 
wires and always feel a sense of emergency— 
especially since the enemy A.I. is far superior 
than your Allied buddies’ intelligence. You'll 
weep when you see your boys rushing out into 
ruthless machine-gun fire. But witnessing a 
neighboring soldier get perforated just adds to 
the chaotic environment and reminds you to 
duck once in awhile. 

No need to lose sleep before a big battle, 
though—you're almost as hard to kill as John 
Rambo. You don't have a health bar, but it'll take 
a direct grenade hit or an absolute hail of bullets 
to take you out (get shot and the screen flashes 
crimson—maybe you die from pinkeye rather 
than bullet wounds?). Keeping you in the midst 
of the awesome action—rather than worrying 
about health packs—is what Duty is all about, 
and | must say, unrealistic or no, | dig it. 


1UP.COM—GARNETT: Call of Duty 2 makes a pret- 
ty strong statement about the capabilities of the 
360. It's not the first WWII shooter to tap the whole 
Band of Brothers/Saving Private Ryan vibe, but it is 
the first to make it feel like you are really in the 
midst of battle. Bullets ricochet through the sur- 
round speakers, artillery shells boom through the 
Sub, and anxious voices drift through the clouds of 
smoke and debris that obscure your vision. 

Unlike its brothers in film, though, Duty has no 
emotionally moving story. This is more Six Flags 
the WWII Experience, with intense snapshots of 
battles taken in the shoes of a Russian, Brit, or 
American soldier subbing in for the rides. 
Outside of a few missteps in North Africa, you're 
so swept up in the chaos of battle your brain 
doesn't register that it's being manipulated along 
a carefully scripted path. 

There is more at work than just the show. For 


You play as three different soldiers in Call of Duty 2, each їп his own area of сопїїїсї 


SAN 


1 led Masi 


one, you're never taken out 

of the moment by fiddly 

controls. Movement maps 

intuitively to the sticks, as does the aim that 
strikes just the right balance of accuracy, 
and having grenades handy on the shoulder 
buttons is a godsend. ІІ go on record right 
here: It's better than playing with a mouse 
and keyboard. And for that matter, the game 
itself works better on 360 than on PC. It 
runs with film-like smoothness; you 

don't have to concern yourself with 
whether your hardware can handle 

it; and this is the game to show off 

your home theater gear. With solid 
multiplayer (especially the 

excellent team modes) to 

keep you coming back, this 

one's well worth it. ж 





Eastern Front 

Fighting as part of the Russian army 
(who all speak in English but with per- 
fect Russki accents) offers a refresh- 
ing look at that often-forgotten part of 
the war, and the snowy streets of an 
absolutely devastated Stalingrad make 
for Duty's most effective backdrop. 


North Africa 

The open areas and vehicular mis- 
sions of the British campaign in North 
Africa are a nice change of pace. A 
couple dusty desert-town battles are 
thrilling as well, demonstrating just 
how scary a single enemy machine- 
gun nest or tank can be. 


Western Front 

The American missions start off with, 
you guessed it, D-Day. Don't groan at 
the thought of another beach landing 
just yet—you haven't seen it like this 
before. Later, battling house-to-house 
in France adds strategy and freedom 
in the form of a few large, open levels. 


ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com • 107 




















reuieuJ Crew: 
xbox 360 


LE Kameo's most fearsome 


foe: Shrek in S&M gear. 
° 


| Xbox 360 


KAMEO: ELEMENTS OF POWER 


TCR 


Scores a point for each year of development 


k №: Nearly five years since its public 
debut, Kameo is finally here. Though developer Rare 
and Nintendo are long divorced, this game is heavi- 
ly influenced by that rocky marriage; it references 
Mario and Zelda as much as it forges its own path. 

Dopey characters aside, Kameo is a very attrac- 
tive adventure game. Its Xbox 1 roots show, but 
Rare’s artistry is intense. The fantasy realm of 
Kameo is so lush and vibrant that it can, at times, 
be distracting. 

As for the gameplay—well, sometimes its 
shape-changing conceit leads to brilliant moments, 
but often the game's annoying or outright frustrat- 
ing. Boss battles require perfect precision—OK, fair 
enough—but you have to repeat every step ad 
nauseum; by the death of each boss, | was invari- 
ably bored, not exhilarated. 

The levels, on the other hand, do offer some 
interesting challenges. The fighting can get repeti- 
tive, but the powers of the warriors you can trans- 
form into offer a ton of variety. | wish these were 


Kameo’s Long, Strange Trip: This elf’s 


1999: 


Nintendo 64 (t 


Kameo was 
originally planned Cube titles, Kameo 2003 and 2004 
for N64, along was originally Electronic 


with Perfect Dark 
and Star Fox 
Adventures. 








Good: Vibrant visuals, gameplay variety 
Bad: Too short to make us 


Best Warrior: Thermite. 





its ideas, frustrating 






t him last 


shame you c 





108 • ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY e www.1UP.com 





One of the first 


more colorful and 
aimed at a younger 
audience. 


explored more; you only scratch the surface of 
each warrior's abilities before you unlock the next. 

Perhaps Rare spent so much time shuffling 
Kameo from system to system that it never got the 
chance to perfect the gameplay or levels. It's a 
brief, disappointing adventure with occasional 
flashes of greatness. 


: Despite an abnormally long gestation peri- 
od, Kameo arrives on Xbox 360 surprisingly bereft 
of content. It's kind of a short, straightforward take 
on Zelda, plagued by hit-and-miss level designs: 
Some sections sparkle with creativity (like the final 
area's thrilling chase across a fleet of airships), but 
many stages seem totally half-baked. Luckily, the 
central gameplay concept of using Kameo's crea- 
ture transformations to solve environmental puz- 
2165 remains engaging throughout. The same can't 
be said for combat, however—whether you're 
using Kameo's unresponsive flip-kick (her only 
move) or her googly-eyed alter egos' maneuvers, 


been around the block, from N€ 


Сир 








THE VERDICTS 
(OUT OF 10) 





Playable at the 


Entertainment Expos. Bum 
Pokémon-esque gameplay bits later | 
axed. “95 percent done" in 2004. | 


CHRISTIAN 


none of it feels particularly precise or fun. 

Still, you might want to suffer through the sloppy 
battles in order to bask in the technically brilliant 
next-gen graphics, but some ugly Bratz-doll char- 
acters and tacky Day-Glo aesthetics conspire to 
ruin the art appreciation session. 


P.COI N: After all these years, it's 
comforting to see that Rare hasn't lost its ability to 
make moderately amusing Nintendo knockoffs. The 
problem is that Kameo's design lacks the polish 
and finesse of the games it's trying to emulate. For 
instance, the Major Pain form is essentially Samus' 
morph ball from Metroid, but instead of it being fun, 
what with the zooming around, jumping off ramps, 
and crashing into enemies, it feels more like a 
chore. There seems to be a disconnect between 
your abilities and the level design— most of the 
cool upgradeable powers end up being unneces- 
sary. Kameo certainly isn’t bad, but as crazy as this 
may sound...maybe it needed a little more time. sh 


years in develop- 
ment Kameo is 
one of Microsoft's 
three first-party 
launch titles. 





ANDREW 


SHANE 





ұлт” 





Publisher: Microsoft 
Developer: Rare 
Players: 1-2 

ESRB: Teen 


www.kameo.com 


ار 


AW Since Kameo is oddly incapable of diving, trans- 
: DY form into Deep Blue for underwater action (above). 






3 








"5/5 STARS" @) 





“CLEARLY...THE LEXUS OF PSP CASES" 


в 


THEATEREXPERIENCE 


for PSP 


554. SLAN 
Bits, ` 
4 en %, 





NYKO’ 


www.NYKO.com 





review crew: 
xbox 360 


E Xbox 360 


Good: Ambitious cut-scenes, fun gameplay 


AMPED 3 


We're stoked on it 








Publisher: 2K Games 


Bad: Relentless wackiness may drive you insane, no online play 
Minor Spoiler: There's an all-hands musical number at the end 


Yeah, Amped is a snowboarding 
game...but the weird thing is, all | really 
want to talk about are the cut-scenes. 
Developer Indie Built must have aspirations 
to break into Hollywood; the folks over 
there put some incredible effort into the 
game’s diverse, manic story-advancing 
Clips. Some are hilarious, some are annoy- 
ing, and some were clearly filmed in the 
office hallway, but | give Indie Built credit 
for going all out. 

Oh, and then there’s the part with the 
actual snowboarding. Though Amped's 
slopes are re-creations of real runs, the 
gameplay takes a sharp left away from 
semifrustrating sim territory and into you- 
have-to-try-really-hard-to-fall arcade pow- 
der wonderland. I’m OK with that (even 
though the last game’s finicky control was 
part of its charm). While | really enjoyed 
some of the missions—such as sledding 
off a cliff to self-inflict the most damage 
possible—playing the same event types 
over and over gets boring. And the (option- 
al) two-player missions are just plain bad. 

| really enjoyed Amped, but it definitely 
could be more next gen. It’s cool that you 





Someone told these 
developers to crank up the Gen X/Y/Z/what- 
ever irreverence to 11...thousand. I’m sure 
some of you won't be digging the 
MTV/Adult Swim vibe of these crazy-ass 
cut-scenes, but the effort that went into 
them is mighty impressive. (I liked them.) 

On the slopes, the action’s all a fresh 
snow day. You feel like you have more con- 
trol over your character than you do in the 
SSX series. The mountains aren't as fun to 
traverse since they’re more grounded in 
reality, but you get so much terrain to ride 
here—which you can customize on the fly. 
With so many different challenges, it’s 
every snowboarder’s dream game. 


Amped is known as the “realis- 
tic” snowboarding series, so you can imag- 
ine my surprise when | first glimpsed the 
Day-Glo art direction that’s more wacky and 
psychedelic than extreme. Even if the actu- 
al snowboarding does retain a more realis- 
tic feel—you may not be doing all sorts of 
crazy monster tricks every three seconds— 
the game is a whole lotta fun. The pacing’s 
a bit off—the story missions seem to take 








e Developer: Indie Built can drop terrain objects anywhere—every forever on the first few mountains, then you 

® г Players: 1-2 mountain is like your own custom level if scream through the last three. Also, Amped 

E ESRB: Teen you want to get nuts. But while Amped may be next gen, but you wouldn't know it 
о "mn : 

T. looks good and the soundtrack is incredibly | from the looks. l'II take fun gameplay over 

i DEMIAN SHOE JENNIFER 2kgames.com huge, my socks remain unknocked off. sparkling graphics any day, though. 








GAME Фе геге 


Play your game anywhere! 








GameCube: 






PlayStation:2 


XBOX 360" 


©2005 Intec 





5 
х 
ЗЫ 


M 
a 


NEED FOR SPEED: 
+ MOST WANTED з 


Breakin the law, breakin’ the law 


THE VERDICTS 
(OUT OF 10) 


JAMES 


KATHLEEN DEMIAN 


+. 


- Publisher: EA Games 


| | Developer: EA Canadá = 
Players: 1-2 (2-4 online) = 


ESRB: Teen | 


www.eagames.com Š 


ч 


ү 


I'm a nice, quiet boy at heart, 
really. But there's something satisfying 
about leading a dozen-odd cops on a long 
chase that doesn't end until they're all in a 
twisted, smoking heap. 

Need for Speed: Most Wanted combines 
the free-roaming city from the Underground 
series with Hot Pursuit's frantic runnin’ 
from the law, then adds a new, bossy NFS 
hottie, cover model Josie Maran. But | have 


no problems obeying when she gives 
orders. My Beemer gets stolen, and Josie 


tells me to race against 15 drivers by first 

impressing them in racing events and 

evading-the-cops challenges. Yessum! 
Thankfully, 1 didn't feel whipped because 


1 Most Wanted has its good points and looks 


gorgeous (the cars, too...not just Josie) 
from a next-gen perspective. The 360 ver- 
sion offers a larger swarm of cops on your 
ass than the PS2/XB/GC game—playing 
bumper cars with the law on the back nine 


J| of a golf course is like nothing else. 


But | feel like Most Wanted's open city 


— wasn't really necessary, since | could just 


access the next events through the main 


Im Plus, the formulaic gameplay gets a 
| bit tiring halfway through, when уоште still 


running the same few race types, just 


| against tougher opponents. But who really 
| cares when you're fueled by the thrill of the 


chase and the next Josie Maran cut-scene? 
EE NERE 


IntecGamer.com 


n d 
Next-gen Most Wanted 

is the same as the current-gen versions on 
the inside; it's just wearing a bit of lipstick. 
My score's going down slightly—360 has 
the muscle to make races and chases more 
intense, so it's disappointing to see mostly 
cosmetic changes and a higher price ($60). 
The same cars are closer to photo-real- 
ism...fog rises off a mountain road, and as | 
you race along you stir up clouds of ^ | 
leaves...and urban areas of the city have — 
just a bit more debris than in the current- 
gen game. Chases can support additional 
coppers, but you'd have to sit down and 
count them to notice. | ain’t got time for à 
counting when I've got a smokey on my six. | 


Uh, yep. What they said. Most 

Wanted looks dang good on 360. Not 
Project Gotham good, but still very good, 
what with the sunsets, the violent weather 
changes, and the impeccably detailed car 
models. Aside from the high-shine gloss, 
though, a few extra pursuers in the cop 
chases are about all that differentiates this 1 
version from the current-gen game. My | 
main beefs—the repetitive race events and | 
not-very-challenging cop chases (especially 
earlier in the game)—are still here. 

You'll enjoy it. It's probably the second- 
best racer at launch. But it's not an 
absolute must- have: 


i Ee Ee . 7 eros 





Available at: 


Ses Pamida (57722727) FUTURE SHOE 


is a registered trademark of Nintendo of America Inc. Xbox?» is a registered trademark of Microsoft® 
of America or Microsoft® Corporation 





w amazoncom 


©2005 Intec, Inc. All rights reserved. PlayStation® 
Corporation. These 


2 is a registered trademark of Sony® Computer Entertainment Inc. GameCube“ 
items are produced by Intec and are not manufactured, sponsored, endorsed or distributed by Sony® Computer Entertainment Inc, Nintendow 


5: TRACY MCGRADY 1.73 SPG 





review crew: 
d 360 


E Xbox 360 


NBA LIVE 06 







You may want to play around 
with-Live's-camera; the default 
one is set slightly too far away. 


(une) 


The prettiest baller around 


Good: The best-looking sports game for the 360 


Bad: Shooting free throws is way too tough 
Requests for 07: Slam-dunk and three-point contests 


| admit it: When a new console 
arrives, | become something of a graph- 
ics whore. Sorry, but when I’m droppin’ 
300-400 bones on a system, | expect to 
see results. Thank you, NBA Live 06. 

On the sports side of things, this baller 
is hands-down the most visually stunning 
game at the 360 launch. Actually, it’s the 
only one that truly looks “next-gen.” And 
it ain’t just the incredibly accurate players 
dripping sweat; arenas—featuring 
banners of past championships, score- 
keeping Jumbotrons, and reactive 3D 
crowds—help deliver a sense of realism. 
The NBA superstars also now play a more 
physical game, as defenders will use their 
forearms to keep big boys like Shaq from 
getting position on the block, and you'll 
see guards take a jarring step back if 
they’re pressuring too close. Next year, 
though, players need to show more emo- 
tion after committing a foul or hitting a 
big shot—these guys are soulless. Plus, 
Ра like to see 07 play faster; sometimes it 
feels like you're wearing cement shoes 
and can't explode to the basket. Minor 
issues aside, МВА Live 06 is definitely the 
hoops game to buy...for the 360, that is. 


Е Current-gen (left) vs. 360 Live (right). 


e 
= 
б 
- 
2 
е 


THE VERDICTS 





ВВУАМ PATRICK 








GARNETT 


ж 
Es 
Мы 

The visual advances of the 
XB360 bring NBA Live to life. The beads 
of sweat, the stitching on the jerseys, the 
tremendous depth of the arenas...this 
game looks big time. | love warming up 
with some practice shots as the game 
loads, and it plays well for a first effort 
on a new system. If anything, the А.І. 
seems dialed down a notch—the pump 
fake, all but useless in the current-gen 
versions, is an easy way to get the 
defender in the air here. I'd like to see 
the speed of the game increased and the 
horrific default camera adjusted, and 
though it may be bare-bones in terms of 
game modes, you know you're embracing 
a next-generation hoops experience 
when you hit the court in МВА Live. 


| feel silly men- 

tioning menu and loading screens, but it 
really shows how much EA Sports has 
elevated its basketball game for the next 
generation. You and up to three friends 
can shoot around while the game loads, 
and nothing compares to the moment 
when you get swept into the arena for 
your first game. 

This is why you dropped four bills on 
a next-gen system. Players are so natu- 
rally proportioned that with Marv Albert 
calling the game it looks like a TNT 
“дате of the week." But the rookie 
needs a season or two to really hit 
championship caliber. | struggled, unsuc- 
cessfully, to find a comfortable camera; 
the animations feel mechanical; and the 
right analog-based free throws...ugh, 
don't get me started. 


Publisher: EA Sports 
Developer: EA Canada 
Players: 1-4 (2 online) 
ESRB: Everyone 


www.easports.com 


112 • ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY e www.1UP.com 


Xbox 360 


NBA 2K6 


Looks all too familiar 


(СЭ) 





BRYAN: Now this a toughie, because on 
many levels NBA 2K6 is one serious 
baller. Thanks to the all-new right analog 
stick shooting mechanics, it feels so nat- 
ural burying a three-pointer or driving the 
lane for a rim-rattling jam. Computer- 
controlled opponents are fairly intelligent; 
they'll recognize open teammates around 
the key, run off picks and screens, and so 
on. And in terms of feature set, NBA 
2K6—with its surprisingly interactive 
franchise and player-centric 24/7 
modes—blows away ЕА'$ hoopster. 

But here's the thing: The game is prac- 
tically a carbon copy of the current-gen 
edition. Seriously, now | know why the 
words "Xbox 360" are scribbled on the 
score overlay—it's almost the only way 
to tell that you're playing a supposedly 
enhanced version of NBA 2K6. Sure, the 
close-ups look better than the older 
games', but they don't even compare to 
Live's spot-on player models. Nothing 
about this one screams—or even whis- 
pers—"next-gen." And when you can 
pick up the PS2 or Xbox installment for 
$20 less (and, mind you, not have to 
worry about scratching up enough coin 
for a new console), you've got little rea- 
son to play on this hardwood. 


PATRICK: 2K6 rocks on the current-gen 
systems; it's by far the best hoops game. 
And it brings all that good stuff to the 
360 version, but | expected more than an 
enhanced version of current-gen 2K6. 
The revolutionary shot stick plus all those 
game modes are cool on the 360, but the 
look falls way short of NBA Live's. Live 


THE VERDICTS 
(OUT OF 10) 


BRYAN PATRICK 


did a better job of layering 

all the visual elements into the complete 
basketball package, from the player 
models to the re-created arenas. Don't 
get me wrong: 2K6 delivers solid, fun 
basketball action, but it doesn't feel that 
much different than the 2K6 we've been 
playing. | wouldn't race out to buy the 
new system for this game. 


1UP.COM—GARNETT: Don't think you're 
alone if you couldn't tell from the 
screens that this is a next-gen game. | 
dusted off the trusty Xbox and fired up 
NBA 2К6 on it to compare. Sure, on 360, 
2K6 plays a great game of basketball. 
Players animate naturally, the pace of 
play feels right, and the controls are 
dialed in. But it already does all of that 
on the Xbox (it appears some of the 
crowd-panning atmosphere shots are 
even absent from the 360 version). 

My, how the tables have turned since 
developer Visual Concepts (now 2K 
Sports) took the world by storm at the 
Dreamcast launch. Then, its NFL 2K con- 
vinced thousands to go out and buy new 
consoles. Just the opposite is true today. 


кошы 2К6 (left) vs. XB360 (right). 


Publisher: 2K Sports 
Developer: 2K Sports 
Players: 1-4 (2-8 online) 
ESRB: Everyone 


GARNETT 


www.2ksports.com 





LB Xbox 360 


RIDGERACER 6 


Just coasting 





































Cars inspired by obscure 
arcade shooter Gaplus? 
Cool. Billboards for Death 
by Degrees? Yuck. 














Publisher: Namco 

Developer: Namco 

Players: 1-2 (2-14 via Xbox Live) 
ESRB: Everyone 


THE VERDICTS 
(ОЛ OF 10) 


SHANE 





MARK 


www.namco.com 


Good: Fun arcadey gameplay, plenty of tracks 
Bad: Graphics barely next-gen, no customization or extras 


Turn Off: The obnoxious announcer 


Color me confused—| thought 
Ridge Racer games were supposed to show 
off just how snazzy games look on your 
new hardware. RR6 lazily limps into the 
360 debut party wearing last year's fash- 
ions. Seriously, this doesn't look any better 
than Forza (Xbox) or Gran Turismo 4 (PS2). 
The stages you're drifting through unani- 
mously disappoint with simplistic struc- 
tures and an utter lack of subtle, realistic 
details. Frankly, Namco should be embar- 
rassed to have this on shelves beside 
Project Gotham Racing 3. 

Thankfully, series fans will find a solid 
racer beneath the antiquated exterior. 
RR6's gameplay packs relatively few sur- 
prises (it's more or less a beefed-up version 
of the PSP Ridge Racer game), but careen- 
ing around corners at absurd speeds never 
loses its charm. Adding triple nitro blasts 
pushes the racing even further toward 
arcade-style insanity, but hey, it's not as if 
players flock to this franchise for its lifelike 
physics. A huge number of races (200-plus) 
and smooth online play help to extend the 
game's appeal, but really, there's little here 
that you haven't played elsewhere. 


Ridge Racer is the cheese pizza of 
the 360 launch—a safe, no-frills arcade 
racer that is guaranteed to please, but only 
mildly. The graphics are fine but nothing 
special, the controls are solid (with the 





series' trademark easy drift- p 
ing technique returning unchanged), and 
the...well, that's really all the game has to 
offer. | like how you can choose the order 
and tracks you'll race, but since new cars 
(that differ only in their top speed) are your 
only real reward for winning, beating your 
best time quickly becomes the sole reason 
to keep playing. | was impressed when 
Namco squeezed this very same game onto 
the PSP, but a modern home-console racer, 
much less one with competition like PGR3, 
needs more. 


Those of you familiar with 
the Ridge Racer series will know exactly 
what to expect from its latest 360 iteration: 
a brisk sense of speed; butter-smooth con- 
trols; ridiculous, over-the-top drifts; and the 
most irritating commentator since Fight 
Night's Tigger. With the popularity of arcade 
racers like Need for Speed, though, I'd go 
out on a limb to say that the Ridge series 
has become a strictly acquired taste. But if 
you can subscribe to the game's quirky 
drift mechanics and old-school arcade-rac- 
ing mentality (e.g., lifeless bumper-car A.l., 
major time penalties for slamming into 
walls), you'll unearth a certain Zen-like 
quality about the game as you scream 
around bends while bopping to its Euro- 
beat soundtrack. It's the same о!” game in a 
prettier package. 





>> 


<> 
r 
Main Campus - Tempe, AZ >> West Campus - Phoenix, AZ 


Collins College offers a Bachelor of Arts degree in Game Design and a 
Bachelor of Arts degree in Visual Arts with a concentration in Game Art. 


1-800-728-4500 


Wwww.CollinsCollege.edu 


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Collins College is accredited by the Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges of Technology 
(ACCSCT). Financial Aid is available for those who qualify. Career services assistance. Collins College West is 
a branch of Collins College. Not all programs available at all locations. 


by Rick O’Connor 





review crew: 
xbox 360 


WRAP-UP 


Microsoft shows up late to its own party 


eah, so no Perfect Dark Zero 

or Project Gotham Racing 3 

reviews yet. Don’t get us 
started. We gave Microsoft the brow- 
beating of a lifetime, but our sighs and 
sour looks had no effect—MS wouldn’t 
give us the final versions in time for 
this issue. Our reviews should be up on 
1UP.com now, but if you don't believe 
in the Internet, you'll have to wait until 
next month to see 'em in EGM. For 
now, you'll have to do with our hands- 
on gameplay impressions.... 





After hours of playing a near-finished 
PDZ, it seems the game really did come 
together in the nick of time. It may have 
slightly odd-looking and overly tanned 
enemies, and some of the more "Asian" 
enemy troops have voices straight from 
the Charlie Chan school of offensive 
stereotypes, but there's no denying the 
replay value of a large, sprawling single- 
player adventure you can run through 
countless times with different gadgets 
and guns. 

The multiplayer seems to combine the 
best bits of Counter-Strike, Halo 2, and 
Unreal, but with jetpacks and hovercraft 








PROJECT GOTHAM 
RACING 3 


Of the Xbox 360 launch games, Project 
Gotham Racing 3 feels arguably the most 
“next-gen.” Building on the core arcade 
racing gameplay developer Bizarre 
Creations established with its Xbox pre- 
quels, PGR3 is a decadent slice of hyper- 
realistic graphics and a jaw-dropping suite 
of Xbox Live features. And since most of 
us don’t drive a car while strapped to the 
bumper, PGR3 includes a convincing in- 
cockpit view that simulates, to an amazing 
degree, the shaky-cam violence of shoot- 
ing down the road at 150 mph. But the 
leap into next gen isn't just skin-deep. 
PGR3 also rocks Xbox Live with a poten- 
tially huge online spectator mode that lets 
you watch the global PGR3 scene as if you 
were tuning in to ESPN. And for that, we're 
entirely sold. 


114 ° ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com 


PERFECT DARK ZER 0 


















Жа 
| 
(and more content scheduled for 
early 2006). The novelty of “biggie sizing" 
your maps depending on the number of 
players ensures that quick or lengthy bat- 
tles are as enjoyable as they are strate- 
gic, thanks to the sheer number of 
weapons and their various fire functions. 

Co-op play is also a real bonus and 
allows for radio chatting while you wipe 
out goons. We just wished for more types 
of single-player opponents—ideally of 
the hulking dreadnought variety. 

From what we've seen so far, PDZ 
should be the launch title you'll be play- 
ing well into winter. 


۹ 





MORE SPORTS PORTS 


One improved game of footy to consider, 
don't even bother with the other two 


NT АНИ 


XB360 ° EA Sports • ESRB: Е 

Wow, soccer got a whole lot rougher with the move to 
a new console; you'll see players toss elbows as they 
jockey for position, do somersault tumbles after a 
slide tackle, etc. And we like it. The A.I. is also much 
smarter this go-around, very Winning Eleven-esque. 
Plus, we dig the 360-exclusive mode that's all about 
winning the popular gold trophy...er, we mean cup. 


Physical play—good. Brainier oppo- 
nents—great. Players who look like they've been 
dipped in a vat of Crisco—ugggly. 


XB360 ° EA Sports ° ESRB: E 

Wait a sec: Tiger on 360 comes packed with only six 
courses (compared to 15 in the current-gen edition), 
marginally improved visuals, and a stripped-down 
single-player game? And you want us to pay $60 for 
it? That's funny. 


You've got problems when you're 
biggest next-gen feature is crowd-filled courses. And 
you've got major problems when that next-gen power 
still can't produce foliage that doesn't look like it was 
pulled right from a pop-up book. 


XB360 • 2K Sports ° ESRB: E 

From the looks of it, you'd never know NHL 2K6 was 
a 360 title. Still, we do enjoy the new goalie mechan- 
ics, which for the first time in a hockey game really 
give you complete control over stopping the puck— 
money dekes in multiplayer are no longer gimmes. 


As much as we enjoy the greater 
emphasis on net play, we recommend taking this 
next-gen season off. Hopefully in '06, 2K will make its 
frozen pond faster and its skaters smarter (they still 
never break out for a two-line pass). ж 


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review crew: zd 
multiplatform 


What's the Diff? 
We'd sure like to 
know—we were 
only able to play 
{һе PS2 version 
for this review. 
We'll give the 
XB360/XB/GC 
Kongs a thor- 
ough going-over 
as soon as we 
can, and if 
there's anything 
to note (or that 
would change 
our score) 
besides minor 
graphics 
tweaks, we'll let 
you know in 
next month's 
Reviews Wrap- 
up. The 360 ver- 
Sion is basically 
the same, but 
from what 
we've seen, it 
looks much 
prettier...which 
is saying 
something. 


Turok: Dinosaur Hunter 
The original shooter that pitted 
you against prehistoric beasts. 
King Kong's first-person battles 
with dinos, mutant bats, and other 
creatures are simple but intense. 





B PS2/XB/GC 


РЕТЕК JACKSON'S 


Great ape 


Rarely does a game based on a 
movie actually manage to bring together the ele- 
ments of both cinema and videogame as well as 
King Kong does. 

As the action-adventure begins, Kong puts you 
in the shoes of Jack Driscoll, the writer of a (quick- 
ly abandoned) movie script for conniving filmmaker 
Carl Denham (portrayed in both the movie and the 
game by Jack Black). The script gets shelved, of 
course, because the marooned crew has bigger 
problems—like the giant, prehistoric beasts stalk- 
ing them through Skull Island’s untamed terrain. 

| haven’t seen the film yet, but the amount of 
story detail | picked up from the game is amazing. 
With Denham, Ann Darrow (Naomi Watts), or others 
tagging along with you, gameplay and cinema 
mesh. The characters subtly lead you if your pace 
Slackens, effectively assist in battle, or just talk to 
keep things from getting stagnant. 








The most impressive element of the game, 
though, is Skull Island itself. Grand and gorgeous, 
the environments never repeat, and the adventure 
never slackens. Though Driscoll’s parts of the 
game take the first-person perspective, this isn’t a 
shooter—it’s a multimillion dollar Disneyland ride 
mixed with an adventure game: more /co than 
Halo. Playing as Kong himself, on the other hand, 
is majestic in scope. As the ape, the island is no 
less beautiful, but the gameplay is more brutal; 
the gravity and weight of the beast is striking. 

Nothing the developers do here is really com- 
plex (as Driscoll, you have only a few weapons; as 
either character, you have an extremely linear path 
to follow), but it’s executed with such panache and 
artistry—and it's so compulsively entertaining— 
that | guarantee you won't care. This game takes 
simple elements, constantly reworks them, and as 
you master them, strips away more and more of 





out actual pirates. 


Good: Breathtaking adventure on a beautiful island 
Bad: So linear you’re never quite in control 
Spears: Get good at throwin’ 'em; you'll rely on them later 


116 • ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY ° www.1UP.com 


Pirates of the Caribbean 
The way the game always pushes 
you forward, past tons of things 
to see (and kill), creates a very 
linear but exciting ride. But with- 


Simple combat. Intense mood. 


A girl at your side. Yes, Kong's 
similarities to cult classic /со 
can't be ignored. 





THE VERDICTS | 
(OUT OF 10) 


CHRISTIAN 


G. FORD 


Kong subscribes to the Resident Evil 
school of strict ammo conservation...and 
you can only carry one дип at a time. 


Clever puzzles. Cinematic flair. 








your options, sliding the challenge up gradually as 
the game reaches its climax. 

A very subtle and fine-tuned level of game 
design underpins this action movie/adventure 
game—and it’s strikingly, consistently gorgeous. 
Its simple polish allows the game to shine. | knew 
King Kong was successful when | asked myself 
aloud while playing, “Do | really need to see the 
movie now?” 


It’s hard to explain how rewarding using 
a spear—yes, that most basic of all weapons—is 
in King Kong. Sure, when fighting the bigger, 
bosslike creatures, you'll prefer more powerful 
ordnance, a machine gun or shotgun, perhaps, but 
when it comes to taking out a lone raptor, it's hard 
to beat the feeling of perfectly lobbing a spear 
your target's way and pinning it to a tree. And if 
the sucker's still squirming, you can yank the 


King Kong 


Publisher: Ubisoft 

Developer: Ubisoft Montpellier 
Players: 1 

ESRB: Teen 


ROBERT 


www.kingkonggame.com 






















weapon out and finish the job. 

This whole spear spiel is testament to just how 
impressive Kong's Skull Island is, a deadly yet 
immersive playground of survival. The widescreen 
format, lack of onscreen displays (should you so 
choose), and, yes, simple weapons combine to 
Suck you into this world while delivering the 
appropriate sense of urgency that will propel you 
through its all-too-fast seven-hour playtime. 
Surprisingly, the third-person Kong bits are the 
game's weakest. While maneuvering the behe- 
moth through his element is certainly enjoyable, | 
couldn't help but think he's too powerful and the 
resulting action too simplified—it’s like platform- 
ing gameplay on rails. Treat the king's sections as 
bonus levels, though, and you'll better appreciate 
them (especially the excellent final stages). 

While Kong's simple fire-based puzzles and 
waves of generic enemies may not be overly 





ж „т=з Х“ NI 


inspired, the heart of this adventure is, as a classic 
tale begets a classic game—isn't it nice when 
these things work out? 


ROBERT: Plenty of games these days mimic the 
movie experience, but none get it like Kong gets it. 
Obviously, removing the clutter of health bars and 
ammo helps, but there are more subtle things at 
work here. For starters, the pace is less like the 
simple, steady climb of a typical game and more 
like the dramatic tension and release of a good 
flick. Instead of throwing more and more bad guys 
at you, Kong builds tension with dialogue ("What 
was that?"), creepy scenery, and small, surprise 
ambushes. And when you do hit a big fight, it feels 
big, with dramatic horns taking over the score, 
party members screaming for help, and your 
ammo always running low. 

Keeping the player's gun j de is another 


t 
Ала 









GRUDGE MATCH 
KING KONG VS. DONKEY KONG 


The big monkey of gaming versus the 0G ape of films. Only one 
primate can win. Unless they stop fighting and opt to pick nits 
from each others’ hair instead. Or tie—wouldn't that be lame? 


HISTORY 

19335 origi- 
(27% nal Kong is а 
cinematic 
touchstone 








1981's Donkey Kong is Shigeru 
Miyamoto's first game, and the 
debut of both DK and Mario 
Advantage: Donkey Kong 























Film score by the dude who did 
Batman Begins’ soundtrack 
Advantage: King Kong 






That moronic, irritating “DK Rap” 


EX 
Huge, brutal, imposing 
Advantage: King Kong 





Clad in goofy necktie 


ENCORE APPEARANCES 


Star of entertaining 
Nintendo games 
and their spin-offs 
Advantage: Donkey Kong 


WINNER: TIE 








Trotted out for 
several cheesy 
remakes and 
sequels 







Both apes have their place: one in the hearts of Nintendo 
fans, the other occupying valuable vintage-poster real estate 
' on cinemaphiles’ bedroom walls. 







subtle stoke of genius. You have to hold down 
à button to draw your piece (if you have 

one), so for much of the time your view 
remains completely clear. It's like a 

movie camera with a wide-angled 

lens, and you're the cameraman. 

In contrast, the rampaging, ; t ы 
full-on cinematic “scenes” with 
Kong himself trade depth for 
visual impact and a big payoff. 
You won't notice how incredibly 
simple the game is when you're rip- i ` 
ping a T-Rex's jaws apart and ' z 
swinging through the jungle like a i t 
100-ton Prince of Persia. And New š 
York! | don't want to spoil any- 
thing, but though it lasts only 
about 10 minutes, | remember 
every second. h 





А TA d 
хе? 








ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY * www.1UP com « 117 














review crew: 
multiplatform 


A 


E 


PS2/XB 


THE MATRIX: 
PATH OF NEO 


Almost the one we had hoped for 






Good: Tons of sick moves 
Bad: Learning the combo system is mostly trial and error 
Whoa: The ugly Keanu Reeves look-alike in the finale's cut-scene 







\ 


-M 
. 


( 


w 
im 


E PS2/XB/GC 


JAMES BOND 007: _ 
FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE 1ے‎ 


А good bonding experience 










BRYAN: OK, so maybe | was a bit too gen- 
erous when | reviewed Enter the Matrix. 
What can | say? I’m a sucker for red pills. 

Putting that aside, Path of Neo will go 
down as the Matrix game that should’ve 
been made two years ago. Instead of play- 
ing as a couple of nobodies like last time, 
you assume the role of the flying, kung fu 
fighting Mr. Anderson and relive the movie 
trilogy’s greatest moments: the first flick’s 
lobby scene, Reloaded's brawl against a 
gaggle of Agent Smiths, etc. And thanks to 
a surprisingly deep combat system, you 
can look damn good in action. But here’s 
the glitch in this Matrix: While the moves 
dazzle (slick-looking weapon strips, light- 
ning-fast kicks to the face, dodging—and 
even stopping—bullets), the game does a 
poor job of showing you how to link these 
superhuman abilities together. So by the 
time | figured out the exact button 
sequence to leap over an enemy’s back- 
side, juggle him in the air, and then finish 
the punk off with a Street Fighter-like 
dragon punch, the credits were near. Also, 
too many of the non-movie-plot-related 
"filler" missions involve protecting А.І. 
characters. Stick to the script! 


Е Neo exterminates bald men on sight. 


THE VERDICTS 
(OUT OF 10) 


BRYAN ROBERT A. 





JON D. 


ROBERT A: Picture a close- 

up of Keanu Reeves at his Neo-playing, 
facial-expressionless best saying, “Whoa.” 
That's about how I felt sinking my thumbs 
into Path of Neo. | avoided the last Matrix 
game, just based оп word of mouth. So 1 
was shocked to find myself sucked into 
this follow-up, with its flashy combat 
gracefully flowing from gunplay to sword- 
play to fisticuffs, crashing through walls 
and pillars, camera flying into re-creations 
of Matrix movie moments. But beating up 
dudes in 50 different ways is still beating 
up dudes. Another wave of Agent Smiths, 
and | would've passed out. Oh well. There 
are worse things. Like Hardball on DVD. 


JON D: Although the game offered me the 
blue pill, | wasn't allowed to follow the 
adventures of "normal life" Neo—paying 
bills, picking up dry cleaning—who is 
blissfully unaware of The Matrix or any 
glitchy beat-em-ups that milk its aging 
name. Nope—instead, | was force-fed a 
red lozenge, destined to play out scenes 
loosely based on Matrix movies that just 
felt like Max Payne with more kick-ass 
kung fu. The game has a real bright spot 
between your mastering the first wave of 
Slick, eye-pleasing special attacks and 
ultimately realizing you're doomed to 
repeat 'em for a long-ass time. Sloppy 
gunplay and normal action-game conven- 
tions like busting crates, shooting explo- 
sive tanks, and planting explosives make 
Neo's path an altogether forgettable trip 
down the rabbit hole. 1 don't know what 
pills my fellow reviewers swallowed, but 
that must have been some good s***. 


Publisher: Atari 
Developer: Shiny 
Players: 1 

ESRB: Teen 





www.atari.com 


118 е ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com 


as shplendid as the real deal, From 
Russia With Love's in-game incarnation 
of Sean Connery is a polygonal snapshot 
of the best Bond in his prime. It's just 
what you'd expect from a character built 
with the actor's cooperation (he gave the 
development team Bond-honing feed- 
back, as well as recorded dialogue for 
the game, which is based on his favorite 
film in the superspy franchise). Just as 
faithful: the 1960s setting—the outfits, 
the gadgets, the hairdos—to the point 
where Bond fans weaned on Pierce 
Brosnan might think Love's kitschy vil- 
lains and underground lair are purposeful 
Austin Powers-style parody. 

The game's retro world is boosted 
with XXX sensibilities. Bond's upgrade- 
able arsenal includes armor-piercing 
cannons and rocket launchers. Special 
boat, car, and jetpack stages spark big- 
ger explosions than the special effects 
guys thought possible back when the 
original film was made. It all makes for 
an action game kinda like your typical 
Bond girl: fun to look at but shallow. With 
simple mission objectives, cinch puzzles, 
and autoaim (that you can tweak for 
more skillful shots if you like), this game 
practically plays itself. 


Connery is really getting on 
in years, but in his return to the role he 
defined he's still lovably misogynistic, 
and his unmistakable accent is the best 
part of the game. While a faithful adapta- 
tion of the classic action film into a game 
sounds good at first, you soon discover 


As dapper and as charming and 


Good: Blockbuster production values, great-looking Bond T 
Bad: Simple, sometimes blah shooting n _ 
Shirtless Sean Connery Scenes: One too many y "m 


how ruthlessly linear it is. | 

couldn’t shake that stuck on rails feel- 
ing...the lock-on targeting for dummies 
drives that feeling home in single player 
and absolutely neuters multiplayer. The 
whole experience ends up being about as 
exciting as the Universal Studios tour: a 
couple of neat explosions and stunts, but 
not a whole lot of substance. 


Man, it’s 
pretty rocking to hear Sean Connery pre- 
tend to be 42 years younger than he real- 
ly is. If this is your first foray into playing 
Bond in the third person, then yeah, this 
is a decent game filled with lots of shoot- 
ing, Connery-isms, and car chases. But if 
you've played Everything or Nothing, this 
will feel more like a lukewarm follow-up. 
Compared to EON, Love's levels are 
shorter and more linear, and focus mostly 
on straightforward run-and-gun action; 
also, the vehicle sequences are kinda 
boring and padded out a bit. Love is a 
decent Bond game with the best Bond, 
but it pales in comparison to the previ- 
ous, much superior Bond game that fea- 
tured a not-the-best Bond. 


Bond focus helps you target weak points. 





CRISPIN KATHLEEN 


(OUT OF 10) 


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б 
Z 
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> 
шы 
x 
= 











ENTE Publisher: EA Games 
Developer: EA Redwood 
Players: PS2 1-2 (3-4 w/MultiTap), XB/GC 1-4 
[5] ESRB: Teen 
SCOOTER 


www.eagames.com 


PS2/XB/GC 


SHADOW TRE 
HEDGEHOG 


Armed and dangerously dumb 


The second pipsqueaky 
Charmy Bee up there 
speaks, you'll wanna turn 
your gun on it. 


THE VERDICTS 
(OUTOF10) 


SHANE JON D. 


Ш PS2/XB/GC 





How quickly the West was won 


Milk Gun's side missions—such 
as cattle herding—if you want the 
game to last past sundown. 


Варум 





2) 
2 
es 
ES 
ГА) 
шқ 
m 
I 
= 


ROBERT A. CRISPIN 


MILKMAN 





SCOOTER 


Publisher: Sega 
Developer: Sonic Team 
Players: 1-2 

ESRB: Everyone 10+ 


www.sega.com 


oe 
rer 


v 4 
p E Pos 2 › 


Publisher: Activision 
Developer: Neversoft 
Players: 1 

ESRB: Mature 


www.gunthegame.com 


Good: Creative levels and bosses, unintentionally funny story 
Bad: Frustrating control, annoying objectives, glitchy camera 
You'll Want to Shoot: Charmy Bee's voice actor 


SHANE: Are kids so jaded these days that 
they really need a hipper, tougher, and 
more 'tude-filled alternative to Sonic the 
Hedgehog? We're bordering on Poochie 
(see: Simpsons episode #167) territory 
here with Shadow, Sonic's more morally 
malleable twin. Apparently, tykes these 
days want their cuddly mascots to spew 
hot lead, angry expletives, and smoldering 
rage all over the place. Prepare to feel old. 

Shadow desperately seeks relevancy by 
injecting elements of other successful 
titles into the aging Sonic Adventure mold. 
But our antihero's Ratchet & Clank-style 
firepower feels limp without customization 
or decent strafing, and multiple progres- 
Sion paths based on moral choices (à la 
Knights of the Old Republic) come off as 
artificial and confusing because both a 
good and evil sidekick follow you through 
each level barking conflicting suggestions 
in your ear. Even worse, Shadow's control 
feels floatier than Sonic's, and homing 
jump attacks inevitably lead to countless 
accidental deaths. 

Still, the game has its moments. Some 
Stages hearken back to the classic run- 
like-hell roller coaster design philosophy, 
and the visuals remain stylish throughout. 
Plus, the unique structure demands multi- 
ple playthroughs to see everything, 
extending the game's life span quite a bit. 


Good: Plenty of side missions and odd jobs 


Bad: Story missions over quickly 


JON D: Technically, this ain't. ™ 

a Sonic game, but it’s peppered with high- 
flying, fast-dashing sequences that show 
off its Sonic lineage. | love a good speed 
dash, but more often | was scouring the 
surroundings for collectibles, firing 
blasters and stationary cannons, and 
jumping platforms in...cyberspace? Truth 
is, without the attachment to Sega’s flag- 
ship series this game wouldn’t have much 
on any early PS2 platformer (especially 
since the two-player mode is android- 
arena-battling crap). The light-dark path 
treatment gets minor props—the execu- 
tion isn’t perfect, but at least | can elect to 
be an SOB if I'm in the mood. 


1UP.COM—MILKMAN: Seems like some- 
one in Japan decided it was a good time 
to make a Sonic game that was “street” 
but had no idea of how to go about it. 
Shadow loses his memory, starts toting 
guns he finds on the bodies of characters 
he kills (both friends and enemies), says 
words like “damn,” and is the angsty yin 
to Sonic’s hopeful yang. This premise 
would still be stupid even if Shadow didn’t 
suffer from slowdown issues, a nonexis- 
tent lock-on system, a horrible camera, 
and bottomless pits in which to fall. But it 
does, and it is stupid—just like this is a 
stupid way to spend 50 bucks. 





On the Rocks: Shot to hell? Whiskey refills your health bar 


You would think the American 
Wild West would make a great breeding 
ground for games, but you’d be wrong— 
mosey into your local game corral and 
you'll find more tumbleweeds than notable 
titles. Gun does its part to kick-start the 
genre by blending a third-person shooter 
and a go-anywhere, do-anything world. 
You might say Gun is Grand Theft Auto on 
horseback, but you'll find some pretty 
huge differences. 

For one, Gun does gunplay better. The 
majority of the game is one long gunfight, 
shifting between a traditional free-looking 
aim to lock-on, slow-mo shooting. It’s 
good stuff, if you don’t mind your foes act- 
ing like targets in a carnival game. 

The world of Gun is also a much pretti- 
er, albeit smaller, place than the cities of 
GTA. The stark beauty of the rocky West is 
rendered in muted colors, and at sunset 
the landscapes look like oil paintings. It’s 
too bad, then, that the game constantly 
harasses you to move on to the next mis- 
sion. And when you do, it’s over sooner 
than you might expect. 


From its fun slow-mo gunplay 
to its glorious big-sky terrain to its 
Deadwood-meets-Raiders of the Lost Ark 
plot, Gun is a straight shooter that lights a 
stick of dynamite under the poke-along 
Western genre. But not everything here is 





high caliber. Enemy gun- — 
slingers sometimes fight like they're 
liquored up—1 plugged one boss to death 
after he became wedged in a rock. And 
while you get plenty of rootin’-tootin’ side 
missions (highlights include cheating in 
poker tourneys, riding for the Pony Express, 
and keeping the peace with your piece), 
the story pushes you along so quickly that 
if you begin at high noon, you'll reach the 
explosive finale by sundown the next day. 
Still, Gun is a high-horsepower start to a 
series that deserves a fully loaded sequel. 
You'll surely enjoy it while it lasts. 


If you 
were hoping for Grand Theft Auto: Dodge 
City, sorry—all you get here is Grand Theft 
Auto: Dodge City Block. This “еріс” tale of 
the West, while decent, is a mere 10 to 12 
hours of gunslinging, not the 20 to 30 
hours you'd expect. Besides being short, 
the game world is a bit small (it takes like, 
two minutes, to go from end to end), and 
the A.I. is way inconsistent (I was able to 
finish a nonstealth mission without getting 
shot at because the A.I. didn't detect me, 
even through | was running around in 
broad daylight). Still, the horse riding and 
general gunplay are enjoyable, despite 
how quickly they go by, and the voicework 
from the likes of Ron Perlman and Kris 
Kristofferson is awesome. 


ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com • 119 


review crew: Ё 
multiplatform 


INFRACTIONS Ж. 
Driving Off Roadway” 











£25 


BUSTED 


Missing: a CB radio and 


Smokey and the Bandit. 


PS2/XB/GC 





benevolent truckers, à la лыда 


BOUNTY > 700 


MILESTONES > 0 


(XB ONLY) 


NEED FOR SPEED: 
MOST WANTED 


A total lack of respect for the law 


Good: Huge, open world; fast cars; and plenty of smokeys 


Bad: Can get a touch repetitive, unrealistic 


Get Out of Our Heads: Kenny Loggins singing "Danger Zone" 


KATHLEEN: Most Wanted combines the 
customizable street racing of Underground, 
the Bandit-worthy cat-and-mouse-ing of 
Hot Pursuit, and a brilliantly designed 
city—and mercy, it's a humdinger. 

In career mode you earn cash in races 
and cred in chases. Build the bounty on 
your head and you'll attract the attention 
of notorious racers on the "Blacklist." 
Race them to work your way up, keeping 
an eye out for the men in blue all the 
while. And when the smokeys do spot you, 
the city is laced with with cop-foiling 
traps, like a huge donut-shaped sign on a 
rickety awning—knock it over and show 
that porky bear posse on your six that 
irony tastes like Krispy Kremes. 

The gamemakers respect the player 
enough to offer choices: wander the city in 
free-roam mode looking for races and 
cops yourself, or warp right to them via a 
simple menu. Even cut-scenes, though 
pretty cool looking, are skippable. If you 
don't want to make a career of it, the 
challenge race mode drops you into differ- 
ent objective-based missions right away. It 
all comes together in a sweetly designed 
experience made to maximize fun. 


THE VERDICTS 
(OUT OF 10) 


KATHLEEN DEMIAN 


8.0 75 70 


DEMIAN: After two years in 

the Underground, m glad to see the 
Need for Speed series tinker with its 
own engine again, even if the rides still 
drive more or less the same. Well, aside 
from the bullet-time “speedbreaker” 
feature (as seen in such games as 
*cough* Midnight Club 3*cough*), which 
can make for some cool moments, and 
the whole cop-chase thing. But the chas- 
es take forever to ramp up in difficulty, 
and early on you'll find yourself puttering 
around in white-Bronco-like low-speed 
chases, just so you don’t accidentally 
lose your pursuers before you can rack 
up big points. Most Wanted is a solid, fun 
racer, but its repetitive single-player 
events and limp four-player online multi 
(Xbox only) sap its horsepower. 


JAMES: ІЛІ put a screeching halt to my 
stalkerlike infatuation with Josie Maran 
for a second. Most Wanted's racing 
events don’t add much to the street- 
racing genre—but the awesome cop 
chases pick up where Hot Pursuit left off. 
An on-screen meter shows how close 
you are to evading the Man (or not; get 
busted and it'll cost you). But when you 
lose smokey for the 20th time by setting 
off a Road Runner cartoony booby trap, it 
does get a little old. Plus, | found the 
Slow-motion bullet-time mode somewhat 
useless, as it induces pretty much 
instant oversteer (though you can tap 

the Nitro button to minimize your slide). 
But there's no need to worry; buried 
underneath the new features, the fun's 
still here. 


Developer: EA Canada 
Players: PS2/GC 1-2, XB 1-2 
(2-4 online) 

ESRB: Teen 


JAMES 


x Publisher: EA Games 


www.eagames.com 


120 е ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY е www.1UP.com 








Ti 


Good: Nicely detailed version of Manhattan 
Bad: Rampant bugs and occasional crashes 
Ridiculous: Battlin' a fire-breathing dragon boat in an opera house 


New York City, once a rat- 
infested cesspool of punk rock and peep 
shows, is now well on its way to becom- 
ing Disneyland for urban-curious subur- 
banites. | prefer the NYC put across in old 
movies and TV shows, the dangerous city 
where you might get mugged in broad 
daylight. So the idea of a Grand Theft 
Auto—style crime game set in real New 
York (not Liberty City) has serious appeal. 
With its block-for-block re-creation of the 
entire island of Manhattan, True Crime: 
New York City could have been great. 

Certainly, the setting is the game's best 
asset. l love cruising in a fast car, Sonic 
Youth blasting, looking for familiar streets 
and landmarks. But inevitably, a call from 
police HQ comes in, and it's off to 
fight/commit crime. That's when you dis- 
cover that everything you do outside a car 
is a clumsy mess. The fisticuffs are con- 
voluted and unresponsive. The lock-on 
aim for weapons is worse than in GTA, 
sometimes grabbing the guy a floor above 
instead of the one right in front of you. 
You'll be too distracted by technical grem- 
lins to notice much else. The game is a 
circus of bizarre glitches and occasional 
full-on crashes. No thanks. 


Someone took a big bite out of True 
Crime: NYC. It's missing smooth anima- 
tions, artificial intelligence, and that pre- 
cise, clean programming that keeps bugs 
and crashes out. The gameplay can get 
molasses slow (especially on PS2 and 
GameCube). The nonplayer characters are 
idiots (they love running blindly into obsta- 
cles and getting stuck, or climbing into 


UE CRIME, 
NEW YORK d 




















cars then sitting there when 
trying to escape from me). I’ve been 
unable to enter enterable buildings, gotten 
stuck trying to take the subway, and fallen 
through solid floors. But if you can just 
ignore all of that—a pretty tall order, mind 
you— True Crime is actually decent. The 
role-playing-game elements (like your cop 
rating or upgrading your skills and 
weapons) gave me plenty of incentive to 
keep playing through the mess. 


For everything | like about True 

Crime, at least two other things drive me 
nuts. | like that | can get into any type of 
vehicle and tear up the streets of 
Manhattan. | hate that the game's plot 
constantly asks you to travel to opposite 
ends of the island, and that the car 
physics are so screwed up that the light- 
est tap from a motorcycle can send a 
delivery truck spinning like a top. Then 
when l get out of the car for some crime 
fightin’, the camera swings so wildly that I 
constantly lose my bearings. 

Basically, it's a game with loads of 
potential, but awful physics and endless 
technical glitches are the real сгіте here. 








THE VERDICTS 
(OUTOF 10) 





ROBERT A. 


SHOE 


Publisher: Activision 
Developer: Luxoflux 
Players: 1 

ESRB: Mature 


GREG S. 


www.activision.com 





Кече anaterTarzta 


Qe 
















Pelican 
Predator 2.4 GHz- Wireless 
for PS2 






Pelican’ 
Blade 2.4 GHz- Wireless 


for xbox 
ea. 
ea. 





Mad Catz’ 
Control Pad Pro 
for PS2 | 





Mad Catz’ 
Control Pad Pro 


for xbox 
ea. 
ea. 
5 
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к------------------4 


74 





review crew: 
pse 


PlayStation 2 


MAGNA CARTA: 
TEARS OF BLOOD 


Nobody likes a crybaby 


He A 1 м 
MIB РІ 
Ili See next week's 


| paper for solution 
С word jumble. 


$ Hikyu Madoh Calintz “Haren 


"THp. 090 © 


ESRB: Teen 


75 £ 0 5 5 Developer: Soft Max 
е ° е 


Players: 1 
JUSTIN CHRISTIAN GREG S. 


THE VERDICTS 
(ОТ OF 10) 


] x Publisher: Atlus 


www.atlus.com 


E PlayStation 2 


WWE 
SMACKDOWN! 
VS. RAW 2006 | 


Baby steps 














Publisher: THQ 

Developer: Yuke's 

Players: 1-2 (3-6 w/MultiTap, 
2-4 online) 

ESRB: Teen 


THE VERDICTS 
(OUTOF 10) 


KAREN 


GREG S. 


BRYAN 


www.thq.com 


122 • ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com 


Good: Strong visual design, technically solid 
Bad: Slightly uneven battle system 


Something In the Water: The gals are really...big 


JUSTIN: Watch out role-playing fans— 
there’s a sexy new RPG in town asking for 
your number. Using the same story-driven 
structure established by games like Final 
Fantasy, Magna Carta makes its pitch by 
coming across as both exotic and familiar. 

As in any other RPG, slaying monsters is 
a top priority. When you make contact you'll 
manually position characters, select from 
multiple fighting styles, and execute a mini- 
mum of three timed button presses to 
unleash an impressive series of strikes 
and/or radiant bursts of elemental energy. 
It's interesting, but uneven. Major con- 
frontations have some depth to them, but 
applying a complex and sometimes 
unwieldy battle system to frequent low- 
challenge battles with rabid wildlife 
amounts to nothing but empty hours. 

Other than striking character designs by 
an insanely talented artist (Hyung Tae Kim) 
and a flashy, complex combat system, it's 
business as usual in Magna Carta. Level up, 
chase the semi-engaging plot around the 
world map, find and confront the true vil- 
lain, etc. Hey, the formula works, and | can't 
call out any elements weak enough to deter 
role-playing afficianados. 


CHRISTIAN: This game desperately wants 
to be Final Fantasy X, but it doesn't have 
the chops. Sure, the graphics are good and 


the main character looks so 

effeminate he might be a drag queen 
dressed as Christina Aguilera. The problem, 
then, is that the quest is dull. It's a simple 
rehash of everything you've done before in 
bigger, better games—and the storytelling 
is sloppy enough that it's not much of a 
motivator. The slow, awkward battles are 
probably the weakest facet of the game. 
Despite the clever ideas at play here, the 
different gameplay systems all put an 
unnecessary strain on each other. Fans of 
FF, Star Ocean, and Grandia will all find ele- 
ments lifted from their favorites, but this 
game just isn't quite at that level. 


GREG S: Magna Carta never really gets off 
the ground. The deep, unique battle system 
that has so much potential at first quickly 
bogs down with endless random skirmish- 
es. You'll be doing more waiting than play- 
ing—waiting until somebody, anybody gets 
to actually do something during the fight. 

The rest of the game doesn't fare much 
better. While the story should be engaging, 
everything moves at such a snail's pace 
that it's hard to care about what's going on. 

Basically, what you're getting here is a 
visually interesting RPG with a broken bat- 
tle system and gorgeous music. And a 
bunch of dudes who look like chicks, but 
that kind of comes with the territory. 





Good: New features like the stamina meter and ignoring rope breaks 


Bad: Idiotic tag-team partners, laggy online 
Try This: Bodyslam The Big Show using The 


Surely this can’t be a WWE game 
that actually attempts to do something new 
with the genre. SmackDown! vs. Raw 2006 
isn’t just a rehash of last year’s game, 
which should give fans hope that, eventual- 
ly, WWE games in general will be able to 
pull themselves out of the rut they’ve been 
in for the past few years. 

The little things matter in SmackDown. | 
love that | can ignore a rope-break com- 
mand on a submission hold and that the 
new stamina meter keeps gamers from 
endlessly pummeling each other without 
fear of tiring out. These new features actu- 
ally break the endless grapple-after-grap- 
ple cycle of the standard WWE game. 

Of course, many of the old issues do 
remain. Matches still take way too long (my 
fellow reviewers might dig that, but not this 
guy); single-player tag-team matches are 
about as much fun as 1,000 paper cuts 
thanks to dumb-as-dirt tag partners whose 
punches and kicks can’t break you out of a 
throw or hold. 

SmackDown is a nice step in the right 
direction for the series. WWE games still 
have a long way to go before they’re great, 
but this is the best so far. 


First things first: Thanks to whoev- 
er made Hulk Hogan strut out to “Real 
American.” Now that’s entrance music, 
brother. Anyway, SmackDown continues to 


play 
Hurricane 





be the dominant wrestling 

brand because of its ability to play up the 
WWE's soap-opera-like atmosphere; excel- 
lent voiceovers add some much-needed 
drama to the cut-scenes, and fans will dig 
the subtle references to old story lines. As 
for inside the ring, the new stamina meter 
helps bring a slower, more realistic pace to 
matches— only wish A.I. grapplers weren't 
so reversal-happy. And while online play is 
improved (tons of match types, trading cus- 
tom characters), 1 can't believe that voice 
chat is missing again. 0h it's true, it's true. 


Finally, a SmackDown 
game that's paced like real wrestling and 
veers away from the usual arcadey button- 
mashathon. The enormous roster of super- 
stars are no longer superhumans, but 
rather real athletes whose moves actually 
affect their staying power, thanks to the 
humbling stamina meter (which also cuts 
down on cheapass-ness in multi). 

Additions aside, the story is meh, the 
über-customization is excessive, and the 
sometimes overly cinematic camera may 
throw you off your game. But you can 
always take a break and jam in the office in 
the GM mode, where making moolah and 
keeping the bloodthirsty fans entertained is 
key. It’s complicated, but scheduling my 
own SmackDown show and ad spots is a 
just reward for my anal-retentiveness. 


m Nothing illustrates 
Half-Life 2's fun-with- 
physics formula like 
using a crane to 
smoosh the bad guys. 


ihenPetol W 


RAS СЦО 


ех) 


VITE: 


Magnificent desolation 


review crew: 


NUR SCC аалда 


E 14 
| 


xbox 


G-spotting 
Keep your 
peepers peeled 
for a briefcase- 





toting dude ina | 

sensible suit | 

If you're a PC gamer who has already Unconventional to the extreme, Half-Life 2 isn't progress by engaging in tense firefights or travel- interacting with | 

played Half-Life 2 оп your home supercomputer, divided into levels (despite frequent loading hic- ing in a bouncing buggy. It’s a shame then that the enemy or | 

stop reading. Go buy this month’s latest graphics cups as you wander the world). The game instead frequent loading times and pauses spoil the other- watching you | 

card or whatever it is you people do. Seeing your is built of killer encounter after killer encounter, wise engaging mood. Practice a little patience (or from afar. He's | 
beloved first-person shooter compressed in reso- each опе feeding into the next апа not all of them spring for a 3-gigawhatsit PC), though, and this the G-Man, last 


lution, debased in detail, and occasionally stutter- 
„ing along will make you angry, as if your favorite 


mandatory. Pull your dune buggy off the seaside 
road in one of the game's two long vehicle com- 


scientists-gone-wild adventure will grip you. 


seen in the first 
Half-Life, and 


sci-fi flick was redone as a basic-cable TV movie. mutes and you'll find creepy houses you can | played through the PC ver- he’s spawned 

But so much of the PC original’s greatness—its explore or choose to ignore. Explore! Explore! This sion of Half-Life 2 last year and instantly fell in an online cult 
incredible physics, its moody atmosphere, its game has nothing you'd want to miss. love. It offered a better single-player experience that tracks his 
gameplay variety—has survived here that console than Halo 2, and playing through it again on the sightings as if 
gamers new to Half-Life 2 will easily see what the About a third of the way through Half- Xbox just reaffirmed my love. Going from mouse he were a 
fuss is about. You can have your way with any Life 2, while playing catch with robopup Dog, | and keyboard to gamepad is always a hairy transi- sharp-dressed 
object, from barrels to buzz-saw blades to aban- realized just how fun physics can be. He chucked tion, but developer Valve did it perfectly—HL2 Sasquatch. 
doned cars, in the game’s dystopian wasteland— a box, and | used my just-acquired gravity gun to controls extremely well with the Xbox pad. (Google him— — 
especially once you find the junk-chucking gravity rope it in, tractor-beam style, and launch it back. It doesn’t look as good as it does on the you'll see.) Can | 
gun (see sidebar below). It makes for lots of outta- Soon, | was using similar techniques to create PC...nor should one really expect it to. But it’s you spot the G- | 


the-box thinking. Overwhelmed by monsters in the 
Resident Evil-like Ravenholm town? Build a barri- 
cade with your gravity gun, then crowbar those 
nasties as they try to break through. 


makeshift furniture ladders and barricades. Nifty 
physics engine aside, the game succeeds through 
its atmosphere: With little direction, you intuitively 
know you have to keep moving and make 


completely serviceable, and at some points down- 
right impressive considering the Xbox’s age. And 
thankfully, the awesome physics remain intact, 
even if the visuals get sluggish sometimes. 4h 


Gravity Games: Four Must-Try Tricks With the Zero-Point-Energy-Field Manipulator (aka the gravity gun)... 


Best Defense 


Midair Grenade Grab 


A Thousand Cuts 


Man more than 
once before the 
game’s finale? 


Turrets Syndrome 

While building up defensive perime- 
ters with autoturrets, do yourself a 
solid and tote one around with Те 
gravity gun. The [ 

turret’ll mow down 

enemies so you 

don’t have to. 


Need to run a goon gauntlet? Heft 
something heavy like a barrel or 
bookcase using the gun’s alternate- 
fire mode (which 

lifts objects) and 

shield yourself 

as you dash. 


Suck tossed enemy grenades out of 
the air and launch ’em back before 
they explode. Works with your own 
grenades, too, З 

giving you an 

impromptu bomb 

launcher. 


When those annoying little manhack 
robots—basically flying chain saws— 
soar your way, snag one with the gun 
and use it to CEDUS 
Slice away at 

enemies. Ah, it's 

the little things. 








Developer: Valve 
Players: 1 
ESRB: Mature 


Good: Phenomenal physics, terrific atmosphere 
Bad: Sometimes choppy visuals, no multiplayer 
For Comic Relief, See: www.hlcomic.com 


s 
б 
E 
5 
е 


THE VERDICTS 





9.09.0 9.5 Publisher: Valve 


| CRISPIN — G.FORD ANDREW | G. FORD ANDREW 


www.half-life2.com 


ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com 123 


review crew: 
xbox 


OPERATION 
FLASHPOINT: ELITE 


War gets ugly 


THE VERDICTS 
(OUT OF 10) 





STUBBS 
THE ZOMBIE /- 


Don't fire until * 
you see the blur of 
their jaggies. 


8.5 70 8. 


СКЕС 5. KATHLEEN 


IN REBEL 
WITHOUT 
A PULSE 


Bringing gaming back from the dead 


THE VERDICTS 
(OUT OF 10) 











ROBERT A. JENNIFER MATT 


124 • ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY ° www.1UP.com 


Publisher: Codemasters 
Developer: Bohemia 

Players: (2-14 online, 2-25 
with a dedicated server) 
ESRB: Teen 


www.flashpointelite.com 





Publisher: Aspyr 
Developer: Wideload 
Players: 1-2 

ESRB: Mature 


www.stubbsthezombie.com 


Good: Superrealistic gameplay, gigantic maps, multiplayer modes 


Bad: Awful graphics, easy to get lost 


Ugly: Comical voice acting by Brits trying to sound American 


GREG S: Disappointing is the only way to 
describe Flashpoint when you first fire it 
up. The game is downright ugly, especially 
when you see characters up close and per- 
sonal. And they walk like they need to go to 
the bathroom really badly. Worse: The 
graphics grind along like an Abrams with a 
busted tread when the action gets intense. 

At least, that’s how | felt until | actually 
gave the game a chance. This is, hands 
down, the most realistic military shooter 
I've ever played. No running in where 
angels fear to tread in this bad boy, as 
sprinting down a street for a stand-up fight 
almost always results in a hail of lead, with 
you on the receiving end. 

No, in this world where a single bullet 
can mean the difference between life and 
the afterlife, you have to plan every move, 
advance with extreme caution, and stay 
low and covered whenever you're station- 
ary. The sense of tension in each mission of 
Flashpoint is unrivaled; you’ve got no hokey 
radar screens telling you where the next 
enemy is coming from, no warning about 
that squadron of tanks waiting for your butt 
over the next rise. It’s just you, your allies, 
and your wits. It’s awesome. 

If you’re looking for your next Halo fix, 
make no mistake, you will hate this game. 
But if you’re looking for something different 
and challenging, Flashpoint is it. 


Good: Lovable character, fresh ideas 


Bad: Patches of boring downtime 
Sad: Occasionally tone-deaf humor 





As the well-worn story goes, 
Alex Seropian and a small cadre of fellow 
Halo-teamers left the relative safety and 
security of blockbuster game development 
to form a studio focused on eccentric 
games for weirdos. Stubbs is the (smelly, 
decomposed) fruit of their labor, a game 
starring a zombie let loose on a dead- 
boring, McCarthy-era town. While you'd 
never guess it from the out-there concept, 
Stubbs feels surprisingly like Halo. 

Substitute Master Chief with a chain- 
smoking, charismatic corpse, pull the cam- 
era back behind him, shift the focus from 
gunplay to an array of gross-out attacks 
(gut-grenades, toxic flatulence, cranium 
bowling, and so on), and you get Stubbs. 
And just like Halo, it has great, open-ended 
battle options that encourage you to replay 
the scenarios in creative ways. 

Stubbs is golden when there are plenty 
of brains to eat, but the first few levels get 
off to a slow, shambling start. The action- 
packed second half more than redeems the 
whole, though—Stubbs is required playing 
for anyone who craves more bold originality 
than our current gaming culture churns out. 


Robert's right—playing as a 
cigarette-smoking zombie eating brains, 
tossing explosive spleens, and possessing 
cops with disembodied flesh feels strangely 
similar to playing Halo. | didn’t think it 


KATHLEEN: “War is boring. Is 

anyone else bored?” One of your super- 
smart squad members asks this during one 
of the excruciating, real-time, inescapable 
cut-scenes. My answer? Yes. Although the 
game's А.І. is excellent—fellow troops and 
enemies march like they've got a pair—the 
game is just too freaking strict to enjoy. It 
may be realistic to sit in the back of a truck 
and ride to battle with only your ugly com- 
rades to look at, but it is also boring. If 
you're the sort of gamer who takes their 
war games very seriously and can look 
past just how hideous it is (1 wanted to put 
a paper bag over my TV), this title’s brains 
should impress your camo pants off. 


1UP.COM—CHE: From a technical stand- 
point, Flashpoint looks like an ugly, 
washed-out mess—but consider, for a 
moment, what it's doing under the hood. 
You're skirmishing with intelligent, hard-as- 
nails enemies in huge environments (in 
fact, an island you can traverse coast to 
coast at any time); at your disposal are 
vehicles, helicopters, and even jet fighters. 
And because the game is essentially the 
ultimate military gameplay sandbox, no 
mission ever plays out the same way twice. 
Great online multiplayer modes and a 
mission editor ensure that Flashpoint has 
the legs to carry you well into the next gen. 





would work, but it does. 

Stubbs presents a fun, frivolous package 
that | suspect everyone, from the jaded 
hardcore to the total novice, can appreciate 
at least a little. | wish the game had a more 
traditional third-person control scheme (you 
move Stubbs like in a first-person shooter), 
but you get used to it quickly. The humor is 
perfectly mainstream...a little raunchy here, 
a little gory there, and pretty clever most 
everywhere. Plus, with two-player co-op 
and four difficulty levels (you can even 
adjust difficulty midgame), this game has 
“Friday Date Night” written all over its 
decaying body parts. Check it out. 


I third the Halo compari- 
son, but Stubbs is like Halo for lazy people. 
It's more about laughing than saving the 
world; you rarely need superprecise attacks 
or elite gaming skills—hell, even your main 
attack (the brain-eat maneuver) is designed 
to create zombie helpers to do your work 
for you. But don’t look at this as a flaw; 
give it a shot and you'll find an amazingly 
charming and well-designed game. The 
novelty of building up a mess of zombies 
and then fighting alongside them doesn't 
fade, and your powers are both hilarious 
and effective. Stubbs may be short (6-10 
hours), but I've spent more time hunting 
secrets and messing around in co-op than 
in any 20-hour game recently. 


SUPER 


MARIO STRIKERS 


What's next? Mario Cricket? 


Good: Simple yet deep gameplay 
Bad: Where are the minigames? 


Frightening: Luigi break-dancing after a goal 


BRYAN: Tennis, golf, baseball, and now 
soccer—who knew so many jocks lived 
in Mushroom Kingdom. And as Super 
Mario Strikers proves, some of these guys 
are even varsity material. 

Just like the plumber’s previous 
arcade-heavy sports titles, this one’s quite 
accessible...and unconventional. Simple 
controls make it remarkably easy to fake 
out defenders, put some English on shots, 
or lob the ball to your teammate for a 
fancy schmancy bicycle kick. At the same 
time, though, the Mario Kart-esque 
power-ups add a welcomed element of 
unpredictably to the pitch; imagine being 
on a breakaway with only the goalkeeper 
standing in your way when—BAM!—out 
of nowhere a blue shell nails your back- 
side. Even better, the A.I.-controlled 
squads are smart enough (especially on 
the higher difficulties) to use these special 
items to their advantage, helping keep 
matches competitive. 

While the on-field action is as good (if 
not better) as other arcadey sports titles', 
Strikers leaves me wanting more because, 
man, the game's feature set is thinner 
than actress Lindsay Lohan after she hit 


watuigi, Ў 
х3% 


THE VERDICTS 
(OUL OF 10) 


BRYAN G. FORD 


7.0 70 70 


the big time. So forget about 

any minigames or alternative game 
modes—all you'll find here is the option 
to face familiar Nintendo faces for tro- 
phies, which gets old rea/ quick. 


G. FORD: The latest stop on Mario's Wide 
World of Sports tour has a familiar feel to 
it—highly accessible gameplay, light on 
the simulation, good fun. By keeping the 
matches short, adding power-ups to the 
mix, and introducing the two-point super- 
strike goals that make you feel like you're 
always in the game, Mario Strikers appre- 
ciably livens up the sport. 

But | have to blow the whistle (sorry) on 
a few points: The lack of minigames and 
multiple modes is shocking, switching 
characters midplay doesn't always select 
the most logical dude, and passing is a lit- 
tle too sensitive. Also, why can you have 
only one Mushroom Kingdom A-lister per 
team? But fire up the multiplayer and the 
problems all seem to melt away. 


DEMIAN: It's funny what a little Mario can 
do. Somehow in Strikers, launching a bar- 
rage of turtle shells at an opposing soccer 
player makes a strange kind of sense. This 
exercise in Mario brand extension could 
just as easily be based on water polo, 
lacrosse, or hockey, but while the arcadey 
gameplay is simple to learn, it packs 
some real strategy in a two-player game, 
on both offense and defense. That feel- 
good Mario glow won't last too long if 
you're playing alone, though—once you 
suss the A.I's intricacies, the game holds 
little mystery or reason for replay. 


Publisher: Nintendo 
Developer: Next Level 
Players: 1-4 

ESRB: Everyone 


DEMIAN 


www.nintendo.com 








E | m GameCube | 


review crew: 
gamecube 


"27 


LLL M 


MARIO PARTY 7 * 


Partying like it’s 1999...still 


+ 


Г ІЛРІ 


Good: Simple board-game gameplay has its charms... 


Bad: ...but it still feels old 
Most Creative New Board: Windmillville 


You may notice some cynicism 
in these upcoming reviews, which is per- 
haps warranted considering this is the 
seventh entry in this board-game-on-the- 
screen series. Myself, | haven't played a 
Mario Party since the Nintendo 64 
days...and | had no problem getting геас- 
quainted with things. The same setup 
applies: Take оп a group of friends іп a 
variety of themed boards, each with its 
own tweaks on the get-the-most-stars 
rules. Got no friends? No prob, you sad 
social outcast; you can try solo mode, 
which pits you against one opponent, CPU 
or otherwise. And if you’ve got too many 
friends, there are some new supersimpli- 
fied eight-player games, two players per 
pad (one uses the analog stick and L, the 
other uses the C stick and R). 

So the options are there, the minigames 
are generally fun, and the content is safely 
Disney-fied. Same old story...and for a 
while, | enjoyed it, especially the constant- 
ly seesawing multiplayer matches. But as 
the minigames started repeating and the 
CPU turns dragged on (would anyone be 
against a TiVo-esque multispeed fast-for- 
ward feature?), even the various modes 
and boards couldn’t help my enjoyment of 
the game from becoming tempered. 


Familiarity, as we know, can 
breed contempt. So it’s really an accom- 
plishment that Mario Party still manages 
to be fun at all, considering how shocking- 
ly unoriginal each installment remains. 
But it never fails: You get a couple people 
together and before you know it someone 
is saying something funny, another is 


doing something funny, and 

the game is just, well, being Mario Party. 
This doesn’t mean | don’t have some 
major complaints: The minigames are 
simply too short—newbies might find a 
game ending just when they’ve gotten the 
hang of it. The A.I. of the computer-con- 
trolled players also needs better balanc- 
ing. They’re either a little too good or a lit- 
tle too bad. And from now on, can we call 
these expansion packs, just to be fair? 


Oh, bless your heart G. Ford. I 
learn so much from you and your child- 
like sense of wonder. See, | thought I 
understood the reason behind Mario 
Party's popularity, because 1 have seen a 
lot of parents use videogames as a baby- 
sitter. Mario Party offers all the fun of your 
average board game, only the game liter- 
ally plays itself, so adults don't have to 
waste time playing with their kids. G. Ford 
helped me understand that it is a great 
time for anyone who likes board games 
but hates thinking and moving. It does the 
job that it set out to do— 7 is a totally 
average Mario Party game and therefore 
earns the totally average score of 5.0. 


+ | 








THE VERDICTS. 
(OUT OF 10) 


G. FORD JENNIFER 








Publisher: Nintendo 
Developer: Hudson 
Players: 1-8 

ESRB: Everyone 


KATHLEEN 


www.marioparty.com 


ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com • 125 






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revieuw crew: 
psp 


- STAR WARS BATTLEFRONT II 


A tong, long, load time ago... 


Good: All your Star Wars toys are here 
Bad: But artificial intelligence is not 


Long: Load times in between stages 





These guys sure know what 
Star Wars fans, want. In the first 
three Single-player levels of 
Battlefront Il, you get to exterminate 
Gungans, Jawas, and Ewoks. Smart. 
But guess what else you'll get to 
fight in those first few stages? The 
control scheme. The PSP just isn’t 
made for shooters, and this is one of 
the most ambitious around. Ground 
troops, tanks, spaceships...big army- 
versus-army battles can make for a 
fun time, but not on a portable sys- 
tem with only one analog stick. You'll 
feel more Jar Jar than master Jedi 
when you're awkwardly looking 
around for that stormtrooper who's 
. blasting you from five feet away. It 
gets worse in Wi-Fi multiplayer, when 
+ the action gets choppy as all hell... 
“But if you can Jedi-mind-trick 
yourself into playing Battlefront Il 
more as a shooting gallery than a 
plain ol’ shooter, you'll have a much 
better time. Just a simple tap on D- 





Vader dispenses ^ 
Imperial justice on 
an Ewok, and the d 
galaxy rejoices. 


pad Down and you can lock on to 
the closest foe, then fire away. Since 
the artificial intelligence is brain- 
dead, you can play through the entire 
game this way without any road- 
blocks. Sure, it's not challenging in 
the least, but hey, killing Ewoks was 
never about the challenge. 


It feels like 
уе consumed enough Star Wars 
lately to kill a metric ton of nerds, but 
one last version of Battlefront Il must 
be evaluated. If | didn't already play 
the console game to death, then I'd 
be more than happy with this slightly 
stripped PSP version. Alas, | grew 
fond of multiplayer...rea/ multiplayer, 
not four-player local Wi-Fi with 
crippling slowdown. 

Granted, I’m impressed.that they 
squeezed most of the game ihto 
portable form (a few notable sacri- 
fices aside, like not being able to. 
sabotage ship systems from the — 


EMPIRE LOST THE 


TEMPLE 








THE VERDICTS 
(OUT OF 10) 





SHOE ANDREW 





Developer: Pandemic 


ESRB: Teen 


Publisher: LucasArts 
SCOOTER x 


inside, making space battles 
more boring), and the story mode is 
strong enough to stand on its own, 
but the soul of Battlefront Il is the 
huge multiplayer battles, which are 
AWOL on the PSP. 


Oh 
man, | was all ready to totally dig this 
game. A faithful translation of the 
home console version, plus extra 
missions where you kill Ewoks and 
Gungans? Despite the lack of a 
second analog stick, | didn’t get as 
tripped up as Shoe; the revised 
control scheme is a pretty good 
substitute (once you learn to use the 
D-pad for target lock-on). Even the ` 
quirky space combat is easy to adapt 
to. Except what blows a Death 
Star-sized hole into the whole expe- 


” rience is the utterly terrible slow- 


down in multiplayer (which is the pri- 
mary reason most people would 
want to buy this game). ж 


Players: 1 (2-4 via local Wi-Fi) 


www.swbattlefront2.com 










aS 
RHYTHM CITY 
VOLUME ONU CAUGHT UP 







sony 


2 


А UMD MUSIC VIDEO 


HEAR IT. SEE IT. CARRY IT. ANYWHERE. 


ў 
1 
j 
| 
` 


ыл т, 


© 2005 SONY BMG MUSIC ENTERTAINMENT 


revieW Crew: 
psp 


OF PARADISE ' 


| love the night life, | like to Bugei 





шс, 


70 L3 5% 


JENN F. CHRISTIAN SHANE 





SOCOM: 


U.S. NAVY SEALS FIRETEAM BRAVO 


Compact switches to full auto 


Missions are shorter than 
in SOCOM 3, but the lack of 
checkpoints still makes for 
frustrating do-overs when lev- 
els get trickier two-thirds in. 


! x24/30. 9 x2 


(ЕЭ) 





THE VERDICTS 
(OUT OF 10) 


CRISPIN 


128 • ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com 





Publisher: Sony CEA 
Developer: Climax 

Players: 1 (2 via local Wi-Fi) 
ESRB: Teen 


www.us.playstation.com 





Sandman 4 
ШІЛІГІ 





€ o 


Publisher: Sony CEA 
Developer: Zipper 
Players: 1 (2-16 via local 
or online Wi-Fi) 

ESRB: Mature 


www.us.playstation.com 


Good: Fast load times, great graphics, sweet moves 


Bad: Dry story and dialogue, uneven A.I. 


Enjoyable If: You mute the music right away 


JENN F: In this hack-n-slash fest, you are 
Shinbu, one of the last members of an 
otherwise buried clan—and the hero of a 
really dry story. Despite your bizarre Larry 
Hagman eyebrows, Shinbu, your character 
model looks really good, even if your voice 
acting is stilted and scene chewing. 

Nonetheless, you compensate for your 
shortcomings with fluid, responsive move- 
ments and nifty sword brandishing, mak- 
ing sweet combos with these Bugei scroll 
thingies you've collected. Unfortunately, 
Shinbu, you face infuriating opponents: 
Either they just stand there and take it like 
a sissy, or they whale on you relentlessly, 
which makes your quest a little bit no fun. 
Plus, weird glitches pop up once in a 
while, like that time you got a bomb stuck 
to your head and couldn’t shake it off. 

But we've got some terrific action going 
on here, Shinbu, and fast load times, to 
boot! So, Shinbu, if you can focus on your 
quest without getting frustrated or letting 
the terrible music distract you, you might 
be in for a good time. 


CHRISTIAN: This game surprised me. At 
first, it looks like an unassuming action- 
roleplayer. The story never really gets 
interesting, but the action-heavy combat 
system is fresh and gets more fun the 
longer you play. The game is more of a 


brawler than an RPG, and 

dicing up hordes of enemies is kept very 
entertaining by the fact that you can find 
(or even create) a huge variety of combos 
from a massive pool of individual moves. It 
would be an innovative combat system 
even in a PS2 game. Paradise looks very 
good, too. If it weren’t for the weak first 
two hours, the snore-inducing story, and 
the sometimes-rough translation, Paradise 
would be one of the best games on PSP. 


SHANE: While | want to encourage Sony to 
keep making original PSP properties, I'd 
gladly trade Paradise for a solid port of 
God of War or Dark Cloud 2. Gamers seek- 
ing a Zelda-esque action-RPG will surely 
be disappointed by this glorified hack-n- 
slash adventure. It cribs the most obnox- 
ious parts of role-playing games—poor 
pacing, endless dull cinemas of people 
talking, and an obnoxious five-way rock- 
paper-scissors system of elemental effec- 
tiveness. The core combat system sports 
more ingenuity, but it’s not entirely suc- 
cessful. Normal enemies offer scant chal- 
lenge, while boss encounters unfold in 
lengthy canned combo exchanges. 
Paradise’s attractive visuals and plentiful 
customization might be enough to propel 
you through this lukewarm quest, but 
don’t expect to like it all that much. 





Good: Looks nearly as good as the series does on PS2 


Bad: Auto-aim is kinda lame 
Worth It for Multiplayer Chatter: The new PSP headset-mic 


If SOCOM 3 for the PS2 is a 
steely-eyed, terrorist-terminating com- 
mando, this first PSP installment in the 
military-approved shooter series is his 
spazzy little brother who plays war by 
making machine-gun noises with his 
mouth. Try the default difficulty and you'll 
see why. You'll run from enemy to enemy, 
killing each with a button press, ticking off 
simple mission objectives that rarely 
require the skulk-through-the-shrubbery 
strategies of the big-console version. 

Because no one has dreamed up how to 
make a PSP shooter shoot straight (see 
also: Coded Arms), developer Zipper has 
made its game aim for you. Holding the 
lock-on button levels your gun on the bad 
guys and even hones in for a head shot if 
you sneak close and hunker down. You 
can manually aim if you want to snipe, but 
then your movement options are limited. 
It’s a feature that saps the skill out of the 
16-player multiplayer modes, where sur- 
vivors learn to tape down the lock-on but- 
ton. Fireteam Bravo still makes for easy, 
breezy fun, but | figure fans of the series 
on PS2 may wonder what's the point in a 
shooter that does the shooting for you. 


With all due respect, sir, go a little 
easier on the new recruit. | say bravo, 
Zipper, for squeezing so much SOCOM into 
Fireteam’s teeny disc: a good variety of 





levels, lots of cut-scenes 
and voicework, and plenty of dad to 
plant, hostages to escort, and terrorist 
clipboards to retrieve. Just like the full 
console games, the controls are compli- 
cated yet exhaustive, and the enemy A.l. 
isn’t always that bright. Online is a blast, 
but I think the new targeting system limits 
its long-term value; while the automatic 
lock-on keeps aiming smooth in the solo 
campaign, in multiplayer it removes two of 
the series’ most enjoyable aspects: preci- 
sion shooting and the use of camouflage. 


Don’t expect an 
identical experience to the PS2 SOCOMs; 
we had a few casualties in the march over 
to PSP. Thankfully, the changes all work 
reasonably well once you get past the 
learning curve of the new controls. Losing 
an analog stick is a pain at first, but the 
combination of lock-on and several strafe 
options helps mitigate this problem. These 
changes do make Fireteam Bravo a much 
more fast-paced run-and-gun experience 
than its PS2 brothers in arms, especially in 
the astonishingly smooth and well-imple- 
mented 16-way online multiplayer (which 
sports two great new game types, the 
freeze-tag-like Captive and the every- 
man-for-himself Free for All). But the 
important thing is it still feels very much 
like a SOCOM game—only portable. 


P MOVE 








SS 


И you can read the 
elvish on this screen, 
give yourself six wed- 
gies and three swirlies. 


CEE 
THE LORD OF THE 
RINGS: TACTICS 


Frodo a-go-go 


Good: New ideas for the tactics genre 


Bad: Sloppy menus and general rushed feel 


The Story: Is told with recycled movie clips. Yawn 


CHRISTIAN: Though it takes some sloppy 
shortcuts, The Lord of the Rings: Tactics 
is an entertaining and, at times, original 
turn-based strategy game, with a combat 
system that feels fairly fresh. The twist: 
Both sides in the battle move at the same 
time, which makes precise strategizing 
difficult but also adds tension. The 
game’s proprietary Zone of Combat sys- 
tem forces units to engage the opponents 
directly in front of them, and it’s an inter- 
esting idea that makes sense in the con- 
text of battle. 

Tactics, though, suffers from an 
extreme lack of polish, particularly in the 
awkward and disorganized menu system. 
It's easy enough to get used to, but the 
obviously rushed feel undercuts the 
game's top-tier aspirations. And in con- 
trast to Tactics’ novel ideas, character 
skills are pretty standard. Though all of 
your heroes raise levels, you can’t use 
them all in most battles. Instead, generic, 
disposable stand-ins comprise your 
forces. What gives? 

Still, these missteps can’t wreck a 
fundamentally solid game—but with a 


little more thought, Tactics 
could have been much, much better. 


MARK: Outside of its plentiful movie 
Clips, stirring orchestral soundtrack, and 
sharp graphics, most every part of 
Tactics fails in one way or another. The 
interface is annoying, the movement sys- 
tem is a poorly thought out mess, and 
the quick-cutting camera makes follow- 
ing the battle phase a chore (especially 
in multiplayer, where you sometimes 
both control identical heroes). With so 
few character-building options, you never 
grow attached to any of your soldiers, 
and what little gameplay you'll find is 
generic and forgettable. Avoid this sloppy 
disappointment. 


OFFICIAL PS MAG—TOM: Could publisher 
EA have made it any more obvious that 
LOTR: Tactics was a rush job? Let's exam- 
ine the evidence: It's a basic by-the-num- 
bers tactical role-playing game that seems 
to be using character models and environ- 
ments from last year's LOTR: The Third 
Age; it conveniently relies on the LOTR 
films and footage for its story and cut- 
scenes—despite EA having finally 
snagged the book license—and it's short. 
The core Fellowship campaign took me 
around 13 hours to complete. In contrast, 
Final Fantasy Tactics Advance, EN's obvi- 
ous inspiration, took me over 100 hours. 
Strategy-RPGs should be long games, 
period. Still, as an FFTA derivative, and 
despite a few graphic and camera glitch- 
es, Tactics delivers a competent and, at 
times, engaging ride through Middle-earth. 


Publisher: EA Games 
Developer: EA Games 

Players: 1 (2-4 via local Wi-Fi) 
ESRB: Teen 


www.lotr.ea.com 


THE LEGEND OF HEROES: 
A TEAR OF VERMILION 


Just like old times 


3S. 4 


ШР ED 


№ p FR 





Elcargot A < 





Good: A return to RPG form: classic style and feel 
Bad: A return to RPG form: boring battles and trite story e 


Remake: Of a 10-year-old PC game that never hit the States 


What, is everything new old 
again? Just as there's a fresh Lunar 
game for the first time in 10 years (the 
lackluster Lunar: Dragon Song on the 
Nintendo DS), someone else puts out a 
classic-style roleplayer that's even better 
at recapturing that long-gone magic. 

Legend of Heroes has nothing to do 
with Lunar. The similarities are remark- 
able, though: A young swordsman and his 
best friend leave their village, searching 
for a girl with mysterious powers as an 
evil man seeks to control her. Dungeons 
need exploring, and turn-based battles 
need fightin'. 

Remember when all RPGs were like 
this? Fans who clamor for a return to the 
days of old will be in heaven. In most 
respects, Heroes truly turns back the 
clock, but its visuals are very refined— 
they really shine on the PSP's clear, 
bright screen. All the same, the game is 
too stock to really excite me. | miss the 
old days as much as anyone else, but | 
love right now, too. Inane, sloppily trans- 
lated prattling and “just hit X” battles 
take their toll. But as the years of RPG 
innovations melt away...| find myself 
charmed. 


Naysayers could call this game 
trite, but yea-sayers will call it “old 
school!” The adorably squat characters 
are totally Super Nintendo era, moving 
atop mind-blowingly gorgeous back- 
grounds. The story is pretty standard, and 
the fighting is overly simple, but whatev- 
er, man. Old school. 

When you go old school, however, the 


same old failings apply: The 

top-down view often obscures your char- 
acter, and the fetch quests can be 
tedious. It’s disappointing that the battle 
screens don’t look as impressive as the 
rest of the game—no pyrotechnics, just a 
sparse combat view. Still, even if this 
RPG isn’t quite a classic, it takes a cue 
from the greats. 


The damsels in dis- 
tress, youthful heroes, and corrupt 
churches that figure so heavily in Legend 
of Heroes’ hoary plot are certain to earn 
a yawn from veteran RPG players. 
Nevertheless, they’re the audience devel- 
oper Falcom is catering to here. Heroes 
sticks comfortably to conventions, to the 
point that it seems to be jockeying for 
the title of Most Clichéd RPG Ever. Look 
more carefully, though, and you'll find 
that underneath the rote plot elements is 
a thoughtful tale packed with great char- 
acterization and surprising humor. And 
really, really good music. Sure, it's by the 
book, but aside from the absolutely terri- 
ble translation, Heroes has much more to 
offer open-minded adventurers than first 
impressions would suggest. 








| Méefas love humans. 


gat 


ree 





(OUT OF 10) 


2 
Q 
Q 
a 
[n] 
> 
ш 
= 
= 


CHRISTIAN JENN F. 








Developer: Bandai/Falcom 
Players: 1 
ESRB: Teen 


Publisher: Bandai 
JEREMY x 


www.bandaigames.com 


ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com • 129 


review crew: 
ds 


You can't 
drag power-ups 
behind you in 
online multi. 
And that sucks. 





m DS 


Welcome to the WFC, bitch! 

As Nintendo's flagship title for its new Wi-Fi 
Internet matching service, WFC, Mario Kart DS 
delivers the long-awaited online multiplayer 
goods. You can race three other players across 
20 different tracks with no noticeable slow- б. FORD: 
down or latency problems. But it's not without 
some issues: You can't chat (neither text, voice, 
nor PictoChat) with your opponents, you can't 
race on many of the coolest tracks, and you 
can't play battle mode over WFC. Dang. 





Good: Plenty of trac premely fun gameplay 


Bad: Some classic tr: are dull 
Best Mario Kart Power-up Ever: Bullet Bill 


9.0 8.5 8.5 


SHANE G. FORD DEMIAN 


THE VERDICTS 









ч? 


3 Ф 
рл 
= d Š 
“et 
a tt | 
DUUM 


MARIO & LUIGI: 
PARTNERS IN TIME ° 


Another lucrative partnership 


Good: Action-intensive combat, fun dungeons 
Bad: Game Boy Advance graphics, cliché story line 


Even: The animations are funny 


Like its GBA prequel and the 
Paper Mario series, Partners in Time 
succeeds by paying close attention 
to the laws of the role-playing game 
genre...and then smashing them with 
a runaway turtle shell. Take RPG law 
No. 1: Combat is boring and repeti- 
tive. Not in Partners, where timed 
button presses (to dodge, inflict extra 
damage, or counterattack) turn every 
battle into a minigame. 0r RPG law 
No. 2: The plot is as dry as it is seri- 
ous. Sure, Partners has its share of 
clichés (a captured princess? 
Hunting for crystal shards again?), 
but its slapstick humor and memo- 
rable Mario-world characters keep 
you invested. RPG law No. 3: 
Dungeons are long, interchangeable 
mazes. Most levels in Partners are 
built around puzzles that make use 
of all four characters (Mario, Luigi, 
and their baby counterparts), their 
many powers, and a nice bit of plat- 
forming gameplay. 


Т... 


i 
; 


If you're a serious RPG fan looking 
for a change, a more casual gamer 
willing to give the genre a shot, or a 
fan of the last M&L eager for another 
fix, make time for these partners. 


Consider this a warning for 
uncoordinated role-playing fans out 
there: No RPG in history has required 
this many precision button presses. 
Partners demands your full attention 
with its brilliantly complex four-char- 
acter, two-screen dynamic—every- 
thing from navigating dungeons to 
stomping Bullet Bills requires pin- 
point jumping skills. Clever, addictive 
gameplay like this fits the Mario sub- 
ject matter perfectly, but neither the 
story line (it's too cute to stomach, 
really) nor the visuals (can you say 
GBA?) do it justice. And what's with 
the lack of touch-screen gameplay? 
Nintendo chose to support the 
optional Rumble Pak but not the 
hardware's biggest innovation? 








MARK SHANE 


THE VERDICTS 
(OUT OF 10) 
tn 
o 
o 





Publisher: Nintendo 


Players: 1 
ESRB: Everyone 


ANDREW 


www.nintendo.com 


Developer: AlphaDream 






Despite these missed chances, 
Partners succeeds as a charming, 
creative RPG with wide appeal. 


The last few 
Mario role-playing games had me 
writing off the “traditional” RPG bat- 
tle system forever. The timing- and 
rhythm-based attacks and counterat- 
tacks make Partners in Time almost 
seem like an action game, and every 
battle—no matter how insignifi- 
cant—is exciting. Even though some 
of the fights (especially with bosses) 
are drawn out longer than need be, 
the baby/adult dynamic adds another 
layer of strategy and makes sure you 
always pay attention. 

And once again, developer 
AlphaDream's quirky humor gives 
Partners a great personality, despite 
another collect-the-shards story. The 
antics between the adult and baby 
characters lead to many LOL 
moments. Yes, | LOLed. ж 








“| would love to 
change the world, 
but they won't give me 
the source code.” 


Higher Degree of Geek. Master of Science in 
Technology. Experience accelerated and customizable 
programs that will ignite the vision that burns in your 
dreams. You're already in the game. Now, prepare to join 
technology's elite. www.uat.edu/graduate or 800-658-5744 





hardcore S&M dun- 


geon.,your house's t 
ome js ир to you... 


[00 1900 





fam 2 | 
ANIMAL CROSSING: WILD WORLD 


More like.completely insane world 


SHOE: If you've never played the original Animal 
Crossing on GameCube, then you've never stared 
into the face of total insanity. In the fairy-tale land 
of AC, you discuss nonsense with deformed ani- 
mals, collect bizarre furniture, and, well, do a lot of 
boring, everyday activities (like catch insects or 
write letters). The “game” doesn’t make any sense 
whatsoever, yet manages to tap into something 
that must be hidden way, way down deep in a lot of 
gamers (hardcore or casual, male or female) 
because so many of us just couldn’t get enough. 
Now the sequel’s here, promising online multiplay- 
er and more stuff to do and collect. Technically, 
Wild World delivers on everything, but people don’t 
say “technically” unless something’s amiss.... 
Online multiplayer? We had problems (see box- 
out below), but even after connecting, it wasn’t 


that fun. You can text chat, fish together, and steal 
some fruit, but that’s about it—unless you want to 
make up your own games of Tag or Hide and Seek 
or Please Kill Me Because I'm That Bored. More 
things to do? Sure (see the other boxout), but they 
affect the gameplay so little, you'd hardly know 
they're there. Stuff to collect? While you'll find 
some funkier items, the coolest stuff is either MIA 
(classic Nintendo games) or near impossible to 
find (the musical gyroids from the last game). 

I guarantee nine out of 10 fans of the original AC 
will be disappointed with this one. Oh, we'll still 
spend hours with it, sucked into its insanity, but 
this certainly isn't the sequel we were hoping for. 


JENNIFER: Animal Crossing on DS has me per- 
plexed. Nintendo's got three years of user feed- 





Where You At? 


Wireless Internet is supposed to be a cinch to set up (see pg. 26), but our 
testing was full of hiccups. Kathleen connected via her wireless router at 
home, no problem, but Shoe couldn't do the same from his pad, even with 
firewalls turned off, the correct WEP key code inputted, etc. The crew then 
hit the streets of San Francisco but couldn't hook up to all that free, unpro- 
tected Wi-Fi just sitting out there...not even at the local McDonald's 
(Nintendo's official partner in all of this Wi-Fi business). Plus, we needed to 
coordinate offline anyway to decide when to meet up, which town we'd 
visit, and what everyone's friend codes were. Overall: not so cinchy. 





Good: Touch screen makes drawing and writing notes easier 


Bad: Not much new here 
Landlocked: No Animal Island to visit this time around 





132 © ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com 


THE VERDICTS 
(OUT OF 10) 





7.5 70 9.0 


SHOE 





back on the game, a truly innovative portable plat- 
form in the DS, and a few really ingenious titles 
recently...yet we get this? Sure, it's the same bril- 
liant game that captivated me before, but anyone 
who played the GameCube version will find it far, 
far too familiar. The touch pad isn't used in very 
bold or creative ways, as it is in Nintendogs or 
WarioWare—a shamefully missed opportunity. | 
wanted Animal Crossing to feel fresher, maybe 
with more new fish or real minigames in multi- 
player. But enough whining— gotta go. Tom Nook 
might have something great in the store today... 


KATHLEEN: That's cool, l'Il be the lover. Animal 
Crossing on the Cube kept me spellbound for 
weeks, but it wasn’t online and | couldn’t play with 
my friends, which was ultimately the flaw that 
allowed me to kick my raging addiction. | took 
solace in my belief that Nintendo doesn’t do 
Internets. Turns out, | wasn't safe. 

With new temptations like the slingshot and 
improvements to original elements like the fossil- 
ID system, Wild World has the powerful hoodoo to 
bewitch me again. But chatting with the online vis- 
itors to my town is cumbersome enough (why isn't 
it more like PictoChat?) that 1 may well shake the 
addiction again in a few weeks...or months. If you 
don't hear from me by spring, please send help— 
and maybe a few hundred bells. 4 


JENNIFER KATHLEEN 


What's New? 
Nothing excit- 
ing, really: a 
touch screen 
(which is nice 
for drawing 
designs, writing 
letters, and 
moving invento- 
ry around), a 3D 
view, creating 
your own con- 
stellations in 
the night sky, a 
coffee shop for 
socializing, a 
slingshot for 
knocking pre- 
sents out of the 
sky, a hair 
salon, and vari- 
ous other odds 
and ends. OK, 
maybe they’re a 
little exciting...if 
you're really 
into Animal 
Crossing.... 


Publisher: Nintendo 
Developer: Nintendo 
Players: 1 (2-4 via local and 
Internet Wi-Fi) 

ESRB: Everyone 


Www.nintendo.com 


Coming Soon... 





GAMEVIDEOS.COM 


See the latest game trailers, video strategies, features 
and much more at www.gamevideos.com 


[y 3 Part of the 1UP.com netrwork 


review crew: 
ds/gba 


SONIC RUSH - 


Harder, better, faster, stronger 


` ie 
` B c 


й. 


In Rush's 30 bonus stages, you'll 
control the hedgehog with the stylus. 


0010001001000000000009% 


боой: Subtly enhanced, superfast classic Sonic 


Bad: Still has those cheap deaths 


Scary: When cute little woodland creatures pop out of dead robots 


ROBERT A: A great Sonic game creates 
the illusion that you’re in control of the 
blue blur zipping across your screen, 
even when you’re not. Sure, when you 
run into a patch of robot baddies, you’re 
fully in the driver’s seat. But the real fun, 
and this is especially true for Sonic Rush, 
is in the speedier bits that feel more like 
a roller coaster. It’s all about the looping, 
twisting tracks that propel our hero at 
ridiculous speeds, the spring-loaded plat- 
forms that launch him in the air, the 
impromptu shift to a parachuting/hang 
gliding/rocket riding bit. These elements 
induce maximum impact with minimum 
effort, making sure that everyone feels 
like a badass playing Sonic. 

Which is not to imply that Sonic Rush 
is a pushover. On the contrary, | found my 
gaming credentials thrown into question 
by Rush’s relentless pace and split-sec- 
ond, button-pressing ninjitsu. The action 
is all the more overwhelming spread 
across both screens of the DS, requiring 
sharp changes in focus from screen to 
screen as Sonic sprints a one-minute 
mile. Did | mention that this game is 
fast? Rush makes Sonic relevant again 


(OUT OF 10) 


THE VERDICTS 


ROBERT A. G. FORD 


by pushing the razzle-dazzle roller 
coaster to dizzy new heights. 


G. FORD: For someone who grew up 
playing the Sonic series back in the 
Genesis days, l've felt a disconnect with 
it ever since its move to 3D—it's never 
recaptured the great sense of speed, and 
subsequent fun, of its forebears. By 
seemingly taking a step back, though, 
Sonic Rush proves that less is more. And 
it's not just the side-scrolling gameplay 
that makes things right; developer Sonic 
Team's excellent level design and cre- 
ative use of the two screens open up the 
2D gameplay, and you'll find yourself 
happily exploring the game world at warp 
speed. Yes, it's too short and deaths still 
come cheaply, but from the bosses to the 
graphics to the enjoyable multiplayer, 
Rush is a successful return to form. 


1UP.COM—JEREMY: Finally, someone at 
Sega remembered that Sonic isn't about 
fishing or climbing or raising little blue 
pets or collecting anything but rings. 
Sonic is about speed, and that's what 
Rush delivers in spades. He's as fast as 
ever here—and when that's not fast 
enough, you can press the Nitro button to 
make him go even faster. The result: the 
first Sonic game worthy of the name in 
ages. All the nuisances that detracted 
from Sonic's 3D console adventures are 
thrown out the window in favor of sheer 
adrenaline. A few too many untelegraphed 
pits and dead ends riddle the levels...but 
who has time to stop and complain when 
you're shattering the speed limit? 


Publisher: Sega 

Developer: Sonic Team 
Players: 1 (2 via local Wi-Fi) 
ESRB: Everyone 


JEREMY 


www.sega.com 


134% ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com 








oa 





CEN 
MARIO TENNI 


— 


4.2 


a 





POWER TOUR 


Backhanded fun 


Good: Simple controls and solid gameplay 
Bad: Role-playing portion can drag; uneven difficulty 
Hand-Cramp Inducing: The duck walk minigame m 


Yak, yak, emote. Emote, nod, 
yak, nod, nod. | swear, half of my nearly 
18-hour playtime (believe it) with Mario 
Tennis was spent watching super- 
deformed characters spit out emoticons 
and nod like bobblehead dolls. Sure, it’s 
nice having the dressings of a role-playing 
game around tennis tournaments and 
training exercises, but you sure waste a 
lot of time slogging through it. 

Anyway, the game itself—the latest in 
the always solid Mario Tennis series—is 
as good as ever (never mind that hater 
James). The simple controls smoothly 
translate to the small screen, and besides 
the mostly enjoyable but sometimes 
tedious RPG-esque Power Tour (in which 
you put a rookie through the paces at a 
tennis academy, eventually competing 
against the Mushroom Kingdom crew), 
you get the typical exhibition mode and 
multiplayer action. Mario Tennis’ unlock- 
able minigames really have legs; some 
aren’t even tennis related and instead just 
test your reflexes...plan on breaking 
bricks, climbing ropes, and even playing 
some rochambeau. Think of this as the 
lighter side to PSP’s Virtua Tennis. 


Wait, you mean a country-club 
sport turned into a role-playing game is 
kinda tedious? Surprise, surprise. But for 
every minute | wasted wandering aimless- 
ly or stuck in go-nowhere conversations, 
Mario Tennis made amends with fun 
minigames and solid tennis gameplay. It’s 
just what you’d expect from the makers of 
the similarly themed Mario Golf: Advance 
Tour. You get easy-to-suss-out controls 


THE VERDICTS 
(OUT OF 10) 


G. FORD 


CRISPIN 





2 “Ç, 


(which lack quite the same level of tech- 
nique as Mario Golf’s), addicting skill- 
building challenges, and an intense multi- 
player game—although it blows going 
back to GBA link cables after getting used 
to DS Wi-Fi. And you don't have to play the 
18-hour role-playing quest if you don't 
wanna; Mario Tennis' quick-hit exhibition 
matches add love to your commute. 


Ew, they put RPG in my tennis, 
and what's worse, G. Ford and Crispin 
like it. This is like seeing Agassi cosplay- 
ing as a Final Fantasy character...with a 
mullet. It just got too repulsive for me— 
the big heads, challenging higher ranks 
on your varsity squad with Pokémon the- 
atrics to level up...the cutie-pie with the 
nice forehand, | choose you! But only 
because | have to. When | wasn’t force- 
fed line after line of dialogue in the 
pursuit of “sophisticated” character 
development, | was lectured with 
diagrams on proper backhand service 
reception. The tennis itself is tedious and 
a cinch; hilariously, the minigames that 
have nothing to do with tennis are really 
the only things worth playing. 





Publisher: Nintendo 
Developer: Camelot 

Players: 1 (2-4 via link cable) 
ESRB: Everyone 


www.nintendo.com 


review crew: 
wrap-up 


Not reviewed: the Taco Bell commercials 





It's no killer app, but the billiards-like Sticky Balls 
has the simple playability of a semiaddictive 
Internet game—which is what it was originally. 
You'll crack balls around geometric boards, stick- 
ing similar colors together and playing for points. 


As fun to play as it is to say out loud. 
Meaning...it's kind of fun. 


ош can use the Gizmondo ($229 from 

gizmondo.com) to play MP3 music, view 

movies іп Windows Media format, take 
photos, convert U.S. dollars to British pounds, or 
watch commercials (mandatory if you don't want 
to pay the full $399 price for the unit). You can 
even employ it as a semiaffordable GPS device. 

Then there’s the last thing ETUR want to use 

“the Giz” for: gaming. Should you find yourself in 
some dire situation where you must play a game 
and you believe the Gizmondo is your only option, 
try checking for a public Internet connection or a 
group of schoolchildren playing hopscotch. After 
exhausting all other routes, your best hope is to 
boot up one of these four passable launch titles. 



















Considering the high price and miserably low quali- 
ty of Gizmondo software overall, getting four time- 
tested board games (checkers, chess, backgam- 
mon, and Connect Four) for $30 is actually some- 
what appealing. Presentation is clean and crisp, 
and the A.I. players won't make fun of you. 





Classics are infinitely better than crap. 














This is the closest thing the Gizmondo has to a 
legitimate, full-featured game. The graphics are a 
bit of a letdown, but this soccer sim sports decent 
control, several game modes, and depth that goes 
beyond quick-fix arcade-style gameplay: three 
things the vast majority of Giz games sorely lack. 


Fun. If you like soccer. 














It's murder on the system's battery, but this 
accurate port of EA’s shred-happy boarding series 
delivers the best audiovisual package on the sys- 
tem—provided you dig the music. D-pad controls 
aren't perfect, but the slopes feel surprisingly legit. 


With FIFA, it's the nearest approxima- 
tion to modern gaming on the Giz. 






















Real World Education 


Game Design & Development [ 


Bachelor of Science | 


Degree Program 





Y і7 d Н "T 1 
Bachelor of 74! & 
Associate of Science 
Degree Programs: 









PPE Ва 
Entertainment Business =m 
P Game Design & Developm 
Recording Arts E 
Show Production & Touring 

۵ 


2- 


“800.226.7625 
fullsail.com 












3300 University Boulevard 
Winter Park, FL 32792 
Financial aid available to those who qualify 


Career development assistance 
Accredited College, ACCSCT 





2005 Full Sail, Inc. All ug 
Education,” and the Full Sait 





1. Th "Full Sail," "Full Sail Real World 


d service marks or service marks 


















review Crew: A 
wrap-up 4 


ri 


REVIEWS 


The games that меге ` ` 
too little...or too late 


REVIEWED ON TUPCOM 


Check out 1UP.com for full reviews 

of these games on or about the day 
they hit stores. Some may appear in 
our next issue, too. 












Dead or Alive 4 (XB360) 
Perfect Dark Zero (XB360) 
Project Gotham Racing 3 (XB360) 
Quake 4 (XB360) 
Peter Jackson’s King Kong (XB360) 
Tony Hawk’s American 
Wasteland (XB360) 
Harry Potter and the Goblet 
of Fire (PS2/XB/GC) 
Call of Duty 2: Big Red One (PS2/XB/GC) 
The Chronicles of Narnia (PS2/XB/GC) 
America's Army: Rise of 
a Soldier (PS2/XB) 
50 Cent: Bulletproof (PS2/XB) 
Prince of Persia: 
The Two Thrones (PS2/XB) 
Aeon Flux (PS2/XB) 
EyeToy: Operation Spy (PS2) 
Dynasty Warriors 5 
Xtreme Legends (PS2) 
Wild Arms: Alter Code F (PS2) 
Samurai Shodown V (XB) 
Metal Slug 5 (XB) 
The Sims 2 (PSP/DS) 
Infected (PSP) 
Tokobot (PSP) 









































DANCE DANCE | 
REVOLUTION MARIO MIX 


GC е Nintendo е ESRB: E 











Sportos, gearheads, party animals—it was only a matter of time until Mario went after 
the club kids. It's DDR in the Mushroom Kingdom, and the fusion works pretty darn well. 
Dance numbers alternate with Mario Party-style minigames, all using the packed-in 
dancepad controller. Serious dancing feet won't find much of a challenge, though. This 


one's strictly for the kids. 


Play it just to see Waluigi's moves—fantastic and scary at the same time. 








GBA е Nintendo • ESRB: Е 
Two classic puzzlers meet on 
the GBA. You may know 
Puzzle League better as Tetris 
Attack or Pokémon Puzzle 
League. Dr. Mario you may 
recognize as the game no one 
gives a damn about. 








You'll find a few 
new, minor modes and head- 
to-head link play here, but 
nothing too exciting. But 
damn, that Puzzle League is a 
great game (more than one 
EGMer’s all-time fave).... 















PS2 © Sony CEA ° ESRB: E 
Apparently, story modes are 
the new “in” thing for sports 
titles. And that’s OK, as NBA 
06 pulls it off pretty well 
(you'll find some surprisingly 
convincing voiceovers here). 
But the developers should’ve 
first made sure people would 
want to actually play the 
game. Major miscues plague 
this, especially when it comes 
to shooting the rock. 





Take your ball 
to either NBA Live's or us 





court instead. 














136 • ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com 







PSP ° EA Games е ESRB: E104 
You can really tell it’s been 
less than a year since the last 
Need for Speed on the PSP, 
because 5-1-0 looks and 
plays almost exactly like its 
predecessor, aside from the 
new pursuit mode (where you 
play as a copper—something 
you can't do in the console 
Most Wanted) and updated 
car roster. 


Burnout 
Legends is still the better 
portable racing fix. 














PS2/XB/GC е Namco • ESRB: E | 
Pac-Man as a real character 
with friends, family, and voice 
acting is still a weird idea, but 
this solid, Mario-aping plat- 
former is quality stuff. Distinct, 
surprisingly dark levels save it - 
from the ever-present threat of blandness. 



















Good, clean fun, if you like that sort of thing. A 
bargain-bin find next year. 






Р52/ХВ ° беда ° ESRB: E 
Taito Legends makes up for the 
unevenness of its retro selec- 
tions with sheer volume—29 


games in all. It's easy to over- 

look duds like Jungle Hunt 

when you've got Bubble 

Bobble. Not every title here is as legendary as advertised... 


...but who cares? Bubble. Bobble. Definitely a 
must for retronauts. ж 








REVIEWS ARCHIVE « 


EN 
N ç 


Guarded by well-dressed leprechauns 


Donkey K 
(GC) 


Samba de Amigo (Dreamcast) 


GAME 

Battalion Wars 

Battlefield 2: Modern Combat 
Blitz: The League 

Burnout Legends 

Burnout Revenge 

Castlevania: Curse of Darkness 


The Con 

Crash Tag Team Racing 

Devil Kings 

Dragon Quest VIII 

Evil Dead Regeneration 

Far Cry Instincts 

Fatal Frame Ill: The Tormented 
Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance 
Genji: Dawn of the Samurai 


GripShift 

Guitar Hero 

Gunstar Super Heroes 
Indigo Prophecy 

Jak X: Combat Racing 
Karaoke Revolution Party 
Kingdom Under Fire: Heroes 
L.A. Rush 

Lost in Blue 

Lunar: Dragon Song 
Madden NFL 06 


Marvel Nemesis: Rise of the Imperfects 


Metroid Prime Pinball 

Mortal Kombat: Shaolin Monks 
MVP Baseball 2005 

NBA Live 06 

NCAA March Madness 06 

NHL 06 

NHL 2K6 


Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney 
Pokémon XD: Gale of Darkness 
PoPoLoCrois 

Ratchet: Deadlocked 

Resident Evil 4 

Romancing SaGa 

Shadow of the Colossus 


SYSTEM 
GC 
PS2/XB 
PS2/XB 
PSP 
PS2/XB 
PS2/XB 


PSP 
PS2/XB/GC 
PS2 

PS2 
PS2/XB 

XB 

PS2 

GC 

PS2 


PSP 

PS2 

GBA 
PS2/XB 
PS2 

PS2 

XB 

PS2/XB 

05 

05 

Р5Р 
PS2/XB/GC 
DS 

PS2/XB 
PS2/XB/GC 
PS2/XB/GC 
PS2/XB 
PS2/XB/GC 
PS2/XB 


DS 

GC 

PSP 
PS2 
PS2 
PS2 
PS2 


Shin Megami Tensei: Digital Devil Saga 2 PS2 


The Sims 2 

Sly 3: Honor Among Thieves 
SOCOM 3: U.S. Navy SEALs 
Soul Calibur III 

Spartan: Total Warrior 
Spider-Man 2 

SSX on Tour 

SSX on Tour 

Star Wars Battlefront II 

The Suffering: Ties That Bind 
Suikoden Tactics 

Tiger Woods PGA Tour 06 
Tony Hawk's American Wasteland 
Trapt 

Trauma Center: Under the Knife 
Viewtiful Joe: Double Trouble 
Viewtiful Joe: Red Hot Rumble 
Virtua Tennis: World Tour 

The Warriors 

We ¥ Katamari 

Without Warning 


PS2/XB/GC 
PS2 

PS2 

PS2 
PS2/XB/GC 
DS 
PS2/XB/GC 
PSP 
PS2/XB 
PS2/XB 
PS2 
PS2/XB/GC 
PS2/XB/GC 
PS2 

DS 

DS 

GC 


*Games in red are previous Game of the Month winners. 


VERDICT 


IB Cartoony real-time strategy-action shooter that's challenging and at times infuriating 


W What pretend war is good for: explosions, rad weapons, and online havoc with friends 
W Controversial, arcade-soiled gridiron game will shock those uptight NFL execs 

W What sort of magiks shrink all the big crashes and breakneck speed into the PSP? 

W The series that turned homicidal road rage into art brings home another delight 

IB Lacks a bit in looks and scope, but offers deep combat and weapon customization 


W Rotten camera and long-ass load times ruin this mishmash of strategy and brawling 
W Kiddie-safe kartfest with weak platforming elements and lame minigames 

W An over-the-top, combo-driven battlefield brawler that repeats itself ad nauseam 

ША polished and perfectly respectable return to the style of rich, fun RPGs of the past 
ША cliché-ridden, repetitive, and annoying horror-adventure starring Bruce Campbell 
ША beautiful first-person shooter with lotsa guns and teeth but brain-dead enemies 
W Going ghost-busting with young hotties and a camera should be more fun than this 
Ш Grid-based strategy series with a ton of characters brought into the 3D realm 

W Pretty, passionless Bushido-bladed action-adventure with a one-hit-kill gimmick 


W Ride the brake around ugly tracks and play with a track editor that isn't so awful 

W Now that ain't workin'—that's the way you do it. You play the guitar on the...PS2 
ША semi-disappointing, yet solid sequel to the beloved Genesis side-scrolling shooter 
W Unexpectedly smart murder-mystery game—mature movie-type adventure 

W Car combat that never really catches up to its peppier peers 
W Vocal minigames and impressive song selection give reason to sing yourself silly 

W This totally fugly action-strategy mix-up doesn't have the technical mettle to be good 
W This racing game offers a ton of cool cars that crash in random, frustrating ways 

ША survive-on-a-desert-isle simulator, like The Sims: Cast Away Edition, only no Wilson 
W Pretty graphics can't make up for an outdated RPG that's slow and cruel 
W Apparently, making mighty Madden tiny increases load times substantially 
W Imperfect is right. Just a mediocre button masher with no-name heroes 
W The normally dignified Ms. Aran is dropped into a decent pinball game 

W A good action-adventure spin-off with a solid fighting system 

W Slick minigames help make this the best hardball sim yet 

W Easily the prettiest baller we've seen during this round of consoles 

W A new defensive play-calling system makes lockdown D a reality 

W EA's hockey series finally battles its way back to respectability... 

W ...while shoddy goalies let the 2K Games team down 





WA lawyer simulator that is clever and involved but litigiously nasty and repetitive 

W The series makes some strides on the Cube with this passable RPG for pokémaniacs 
W This repackaged roleplayer puts the “old” back in “old school" 

W Chicken guns and robots galore spice up this platformer-shooter 

W Stunning graphics, thrilling gameplay, and extras just for PS2 

W Wide-open but totally confusing RPG means a ton of wandering and not much fun 

ША soulful, thrilling, and inventive action game whose reach exceeds its grasp 

ША sleek, smart, and addictive RPG that gives cosplayers cause to commit cannibalism 
W Long load times keep this sequel from being all it should be 

W An entertaining mix of stealth and action in this platformer will steal... your heart! 

W Multiplayer, with vehicles and up to 32 players online, make up for the dumb-ass А.І. 
IB All the smooth, responsive fighting gameplay you've come to expect from this series 
W Gladiator-themed epic battles and a blah story round out this action game 

ШІ your spider sense is оп the fritz, let us warn you to avoid this ho-hum adventure 
W More of the same snowy excitement you'll find in SSX 3—now with skiing 

W Making it portable leaves it awkward to play, but it's still a decent snow-sport game 
W Ambitious and fun-filled action-shooter—everything that Star Wars fans could want 
ША creepy but cheap survival-horror game with a thin story and a dirty mouth 

ША decent strategy-RPG and a gentle intro to the rather confusing Suikoden series 

W it's grrreat! A new putting system relieves typical golf-game tedium 

IB A lack of fresh, new stuff makes this addition to the skater series a bit eh, whatever... 
W This build-it-and-they-will-come-to-be-impaled trap-building adventure is repetitive 
W This innovative supernatural surgery action game can be a bit too unforgiving 

ША modern but repetitive update to the side-scrolling brawlers we grew up with 

ША chaotic, button-smashing frenzy of fighting, bubble gum, and moviemaking 

W World tour mode is tedious, but smart A.I. and fun multiplayer make it worthwhile 

WB We dig this sweet resurrection of both a '70s cult-classic film and the brawler genre 
W This game has huge balls 

Wi There are no heroes in this lackluster third-person shooter with a preposterous plot 


ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com ° 137 


6.0 
9.0 
8.0 
8.5 
9.0 
8.5 


5.0 
5.5 
7.0 
9.0 
5.5 
8.0 
6.5 
8.5 
7.0 


7.0 
9.0 
7.5 
9.0 
7.0 
8.5 
5.0 
6.5 
7.0 
3.0 
7.0 
5.0 
7.5 
7.5 
8.5 
7.0 
75 
7.0 
75 


7.0 
7.0 
5.0 
8.0 
9.5 
7.0 
9.0 
8.5 
7.5 
8.0 
8.0 
9.0 
75 
6.0 
8.0 
7.0 
85 
7.5 
7.0 
9.0 
7.0 
6.0 
75 
8.0 
45 
6.0 
8.5 
8.5 
45 





gu 


switched to calling fat people “Presidents of Ham." I 
xury: 24% | don't have time to rethink what words mean to make а 98% 

| There is something aristocratic about spending 5100 — с. JÎ whole other group of people feel better. Let the decadence of living forever wash over you. 

оп maybe less than nothing. > 
8% 84% 
Е J е: 6% Something about swallowing dirt-flavored imitation At this point in the experiment, | was sitting in the 

Й in the end, SOUNDaround made me worse at meth didn't make me feel like a beautiful debutante. explosion hazard epicenter of a tangled snarl of wires 
videogames since f was gullible enough to keep lis- and power strips. If two people on my block switched 
tening for nes of its claims as I played. For 61% a lamp on at the same time, the power surge would 
example, | was sure it was working when | heard а With all the huperzine and guarana, my throbbing have created an electrical fire you could see from 
voice come from behind me and say, "What's that arousal acted as a handy extra appendage when | was space. Being immune to death really helped get that 
f***ing thing on your TV?” playing EyeToy games. off my mind and my head back in the game. 






МВАВУ" 






uam 


/ 
/ 


Ве elad money ts an object 


an has always wondered what to get for the P 

person who has everything. We thought we'd & 

solved it a few years back when Macho Man 
Randy Savage released an album, but thisWas a 
false alarm. Macho Man songs, such as “Macho 
Thang” and “Perfect Friend,” only serve to remind 
you that you’ll never be No. 1, since that’s Macho 
Man, brother. | knew that the only way to finally solve 
the problem would be to have everything myself and 
then try to want something. 

It’s not really possible to have everything, but with 
all the crap sent to our magazine, it was very possi- 
ble to have everything for the PlayStation 2. So Í got 
to work stealing peripherals from EGM's hallowed 
vault of gadgets, which is by no means just a drawer 
of forgotten junk buried beneath Atari Linx cartridges” 
and triple-XL game shirts. PII rate each peripheral in! 
the categories of luxury and performance. To give 
these numbers perspective, a luxury score of 0 per- “ ax 
cent would be the equivalent of your face being made. | 
into а milking machine at а nude-man dairy farm. А 
luxury score of 100 percent would be the same thing, 
only now you're Phil Collins. —Seanbaby 






















—- 


ый: 












° wwwexitel.com ; )° www.mind-fx.com • www.alexchiu.com 





With the SOUNDaround, you can turn any two speak- These pills contain all the nuts and twig juices an | ordered these on the Internet from Alex Chiu, who 


ers into a surround system. All for about the cost of a "athlete's" thumb needs for maximum button-mash- assured me that they would make me immortal and 
surround system! It's as if technology has finally егу, but it was hard to tell if they had any effect since 1 that the profits would be used to develop teleportation 
combined with stupid to create the impossible! was trying to wrap my head around gamers calling technology. І sent an e-mail back thanking him for my 
Imagine my dísappointment when all this did was «| themselves "athletes." | mean, Га love for people to sweet new powers and to warn that teleportation dab- 
blink a few lights. You see, our brain determines think | was totally rad for playing videogames, but is bling is a good way to get torn apart by an Earth 2 









audio sources through the vibration of hairs on our this semantic game fooling anyone? If we could monster-version of yourself. He ignored me and just 
ear's basilar membrane. These are harder to fool than choose to be called anything, why didn't we pick ran my credit card, which seemed like a ballsy way to 
some filthy robot box might think. "Shirtless Jean Claude Van Dammes?" | already act toward a guy he knows he just made unkillable. 






























DD» 


° | 
138 • ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • ҰЛЫ UP.com , 9 i е 4 
e 1 ee EM 1 GU 
; , Ж Рр get 


37 


T 


1 



















Cost: $100 * www.hip-europe.com * www.i-glassesstore.com 





These are revolutionary gloves that claim to “dramatically reduce finger pain and dra- 
matically increase your cool factor!" Let me tell you what they really are, though. 
They're spandex gloves with two fingers and puffy pads glued on. Which would be 
sad enough, but the marketing platform for their coolness is finger safety. Finger 
safety isn't cool. That's something you learn about from Glippy the Sharicorn on the 
cloud bus so you and the other bunny bears don't injure your paws when you pick 
cookies from the cookie bush. Plus, these aren't even that safe. If the uncoolness of a 
hand-pain emergency díd happen, your floppy, padded fingers couldn't dial the num- 
ber to the glove removal center. 






























This is a video conversion unit that 
turns an ordinary television into a 
portal to 3D adventure. It didn't really 
work, it added about 25 feet of wires 
to my home theater setup, and strap- 
ping wireless, infrared goggles to 
your skull is only slightly faster 

than just implanting your own 

tumor there. 


In virtually any conceivable circum- 
stance, a tiny TV on your controller that 
still needs to be plugged into the wall 
is less convenient than a PS2 con- 
troller that dispenses mayonnaise. 







Luxury: 12% 
None of the luxury of a big screen TV, 
yet with none of the convenience of a 
handheld system! Incredible! 









Luxury: 2% 

These suck so bad that mine came with an apology letter 
from the Taiwanese toddler who stitched the things togeth- 
er. Tiny fingernails had scratched into a shard of slate, 
“Forgive my shame. 1...1 had no choice.” 














Ixury: 22? 
This rating is impossible to fathom 
without plugging your brain directly 
into all human knowledge. 














Performance: 90% 

One of the trump cards the women in 
my life will always have is how they 
can stand in front of the TV when I'm 
using videogames to ignore their 
harpy, shrewish screaming. With the 
Screen Pad, I’m no longer at the mercy 
of their barbarism. 












Performance: 98% 
For added power, І wore the Nintendo Power Glove under 
them. Sure, this made it almost impossible to move my fin- 
gers, but when most games saw me coming, they just gave 
BI up and skipped to the final cut-scene anyway. 








Although sweet, it's hard to concen- 
trate on videogaming when almost 
half your face is in the future. ж 


ик 











Photographs by Michael Sexto ` 
























АСВ055 


1. 


9. 
10. 


11. 
14. 
17. 
18. 
19. 
20. 
21. 
22. 
23. 
26. 


28. 


30. 
31. 
32. 
33. 


34. 
35. 
37. 
38. 
40. 


41. 
43. 
45 
46. 
47. 


Nintendo series due for ап '06 
update 

Red or White in MLB 2006 
Measured per minute in Gran 
Turismo 4 gauge (abbrv.) 

Metroid Prime insect War _ 
Those concerned with 12 DOWN 
Xbox 360 Wild West title 

Blocky Xbox Star Wars 
Pac-Man's job? 

Xenogears protagonist 

Like GTA: San Andreas' Loc 
High-def output 

Donkey or King 

How one experiences DS' The 
Magic? 

Super Metroid boss Spore Spawn's 
projectiles 

Like Grand Theft Auto language? 
Ghosts "n Goblins setting 

Faction and Alert 
C64 political game _ 
Minister 
Microsoft’s home state (abbrv.) 
Fantasy Zone ship _ Opa 

King Kong’s Darrow 

Breaks cracks in Zelda walls 
Destroy All Humans! basic 
transportation 

Tony Hawk 3 helpful tricks 
Like PS2/Xbox Echo 

Clone Wars Separatist hovertank 
Like PS1’s Cardinal 

'06 sequel to hot PS2 RPG 


Prime 





DOWN 


1. 
2. 
3. 
4 


5 
6 
7 
8 


12. 
13. 
14. 
15. 
16. 
18. 
20. 
22. 
24. 
25. 
26. 
27. 


29 
30. 
34. 


36 
37. 
38. 
39. 
40. 
42. 
43. 


44 


140 • ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY ° www.1UP.com 


Tekken’s Marshall 

Sega sports affiliate 

Burnout booster 

How colorized Game Boy games 
are denoted 

First-person shooter kill 

Mega Man X sidekick 

Square Enix’s Parasite _ 

Star Wars Battlefront walking 
tank 

ESRB breakdowns 

'06 Konami RPG 

Part of Mat Hoffman's BMX? 
Developed 17 ACROSS 

Sonic sidekick 

Frogger floaters 

Object of The Black Bass 

Evil ог To Rights 

Command & Conquer currencies 
Platform featuring 20 DOWN 
Enemy 

Company name, short for Service 
Games 

Rockstar's Max 

Blaster Master level 5 boss 
Former pinballer parent company 
of Midway (abbrv.) 

Guards graves in Ocarina of Time 
Drakan dragon 

Resident Evil 3 Nemesis casualty 
Spider Man 2’s Octavius 

Next to Mr. Bones’ radius 

SMB2 Birdo's projectile 

Wind Waker pirate 
acknowledgement 

StarCraft genre, for short 











GRUDGE MATCH | 


Battle of the pigskin 





It’s winter again—the time when our thoughts turn to burly men entangled 
in sport on a pristine field of green. Well, more so than in any other season. 
The latest Blitz bucks the National Football League with an establishment of 
its own, but only one can rule the gridiron. Let’s call some fouls. 








DELAY OF GAME 
а E. 
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АҚ S W bone to slow down | "16-0015, peek Á A 
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ILLEGAL USE OF THE HANDS 


Bar fights, boinking 
cheerleaders 


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Randy Moss has done 


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nads can draw this one Flag: The МЕ! 


Paying to watch the Texans lose again | 
| 





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ONLY ТНЕ 


Games that croaked quietly before their release 


hey say that only the good 
die young, and it would 
stand to reason that the 


same holds true for videogames. But 
is that really the case? We look back 
at three games that died so young 
they never even made it out: They 
were cancelled before they could land 
on store shelves. Did gamers lose 

out on a great experience, or was 

it a lucky break for their unsuspect- 
ing wallets? —Jeremy Parish 


MEGA MAN 2 
BATTLE | 
& СНАЅЕ 





Р$1 • Сарсот 


What Was И? Опе of the first whole- 
sale Mario Kart rip-offs, this PS1 
racer featured classic Mega Man try- 
ing to thwart Dr. Wily's plans to 
conquer the world with go-karts. Of 
particular note was the ability to 
swipe parts from defeated foes to 
tune your own ride. 


Why Did It Have to Die? Japanese 
and European gamers were able to 
enjoy Battle & Chase, and Capcom 
advertised it extensively in the United 
States. Rumor has it that Sony CEA 
(which must approve all third-party 
titles) was responsible for the game's 
11th-hour cancellation; the awkward 
racing controls must have offended 
someone important. 


Should We Mourn Our Loss? Battle 
& Chase wasn't too bad for what it 
was...but it doesn’t matter, because 
Capcom’s including it in the upcom- 
ing Mega Man X Collection (PS2/GC). 


142 • ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com 





GOOD DIE YOUNG? 





PS1 ¢ Virgin Interactive 


What Was It? This 

would've been the first 

four-player brawler for a 

home console...had it 

been released. It would also 

have been the first fighting game in 
which you could perform lewd acts 
with a midget on stilts. And to think 
that some people argue that games 
aren't art. 


Why Did It Have to Die? Good taste 

killed Thrill Kill; when megagiant 

Electronic Arts purchased the game's 

publisher, Virgin Interactive, it decided 

that dismembering a French maid in 

graphic detail wasn't really keeping 

with the company's family-friendly 

image. The game engine lived on and Ж? КО 
eventually powered the unremarkable а: os: 
Wu-Tang: Shaolin Style (PS1). | 





A 
ч 


Should We Mourn Our Loss? Thrill Kill 
was designed around shock value 

and titillation rather than, you know, 
good gameplay. And four-player action 
is no longer a novelty; be content 

with your Super Smash Bros. and 

Power Stone 


EARTHBOUND ZERO 


NES • Nintendo 


ё ч 
W Playing “horsey” suddenly 
doesn't seem so fun. 


What Was It? Nintendo's answer to Dragon Warrior, this seemingly 

generic role-playing game has two things that make it very differ- 

ent than its contemporaries: It stars normal kids in a modern-day 

setting, and it is strange to the point of being nearly nonsensical. The Super NES 
sequel came here as Earthbound and earned a frothingly loyal cult fan base. 


Why Did It Have to Die? According to sources close to Nintendo, Earthbound Zero 
was finished up and ready to go but ultimately found itself delayed for marketing 
reasons. Then the Super NES arrived, causing interest in games for the company's 
first system to fizzle. 


Should We Mourn 0ur Loss? Definitely, if you're 
a fan of Earthbound—its predecessor features the 
same kind of quirky gameplay and humor. Our 
advice: Skip the illegal ROMs and write to 
Nintendo and politely request that it release the 
Japan-only GBA Earthbound 

collection in America. 4%. 








OLD SCHOOL 


10 years ago in EGM 
D ss 


Gover: 

Nintendo 64 

Mario's pudgy mug 

dominated this 

month's cover. And 

like him, we were a 
impressed with the Nintendo’s 64 
unveiling (and its first Mario game). 


м” 

Seed 
Game of the Month: 
X-COM UFO Defense (PS1) 
This strategy game’s alien-invader 
angle gave us a reason to own the 
PS1 mouse. It also prepped us to 
behold the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air 
saving the Earth in the summer 
movie Independence Day. 


Extra Storage 

During an interview, Nintendo's 
Howard Lincoln promised us that the 
Nintendo 64 would get a detachable 
magnetic optical drive (similar to a 
zip drive) by the end of the year. 
Fast-forward to 1999 and the 
peripheral was released in Japan, 
but never saw the light of day here. 


Occupant Villainy 

An early look at Resident Evil (PS1) 
definitely scared us. So much so 
that we screamed like little girls, 
causing us to spill a Big Gulp onto 
our laps. “It’s soda, | swear! Hold 
me, I’m cold....” 





THE ULTIMATE 
) GIVEAWAY! 


EB Games and Microsoft are teaming up to give you stuff. Lots of 
stuff. Lots of really, really cool stuff! Several of you will win one of 
the awesome Xbo ) prize packages shown below. Check out 
what these did peeps are giving away: 


| <=" THE ULTIMATE XBOX 360 DREAM PACKAGE 


n No mum 


ТЕЙ Теп (10) Grand Prizes 


y d Prize package includes: 


— Hardware 7 xe 
|» Xbox 360 Console 
(with hard drive!) 
* 4 Wireless Controllers 


| Games 
* Perfect Dark Zero 
* Kameo: Elements of Power 
* Project Gotham Racing 3 


_ Official Xbox 360 
— Accessories 
* Xbox 360 Camera 
* 9 Xbox 360 Faceplates (including 1 
several that aren't available in ` & Ж v 
the U.S.) 4 < ^ § Runner-up Prizes 
4 Headsets Я 


бы 
* Universal Media Remote = a XBOX oo 
* Wireless Networking Adapter “ TRAVEL 
* Memory Unit e oom ie Su EET ERTS T TIT Y. 
* Play & Charge Kit ) = = ашыш A metal, lockable hard case that can 

4 Rechargeable Battery J ` hold one game and comes packed with 


Packs * Wireless Controller 


* Memory Unit 


Plus: A one-year membership to » Play & Charge Kit 


Xbox Live Gold (a $50 value)! 





gamexstudios 





ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com • 143 


WORD 


The videogame universe is expanding... 


he holiday season is upon us, 

so what do we here at EGM 

do to celebrate? Put the ulti- 
mate casual gamer on staff, Managing 
Editor Jennifer Tsao, and the hardest of 
the hardcore, Previews Editor Shane 
Bettenhausen under the mistletoe and 
see if somebody gets punched. 


If you want to go way back, there 
was a time when the main literature that 
existed was religious in nature. OK, maybe 
that’s not entirely true, but way back 
when, the vast majority of the literate pop- 
ulation were priests. Now look where we 
are—we’ve got bloggers getting book 
deals to write about...blogging. We've got 
Harry Potter. We've got graphic novels; 
Harlequin romances, self-help books. 
Entertainment is always expanding, and it 
has to, | wouldn't want to see gaming go 
the way of comic books. 


Are we supposed to disagree 
here? Sorry, you're totally right. 


Wow.... All idealism and rainbows 
and kumbaya over here. But do you think 
game publishers agree with us? 


| think that most gaming publish- 
ers only care about turning a quick buck. 
But | have heard from developers who 
want to create things outside the expected 
norm...hopefully they’ll be allowed to. 


Indigo Prophecy is definitely a start... 


\ 144 ° ELECTRONIC, 


T Nintendo's Revolution: a great 
leap forward for casual games? 








Yearly sequels will ultimately implode. :.. 





Products like EyeToy, games like 
Nintendogs, and the absolutely brilliant 
Nintendo Revolution controller are obvious- 
ly key. If you think that the Revolution con- 
troller is dumb, you’re part of the problem! 


I'll grudgingly admit you've got a 
point, and yet the problem with 
Nintendogs is it got boring fast. Even 
EyeToy games aren't.much fun.single 
player. | want to see.something with the 
magnitude of Halo for a casual audience. 


Hmm, it’s pretty tough to reach 4 
million casual people with the same single 
piece of Software, but if anything can do it, 
it's the Revolution: | gotta believe! 


Technology is all about upgrading, 
and it’s much harder to “upgrade” the 
basic foundation of gaming: competition 





and storytelling. You can't just decide to 
have better core gameplay mechanisms. 


Well, Рт a bit of a graphics 
whore, so | want to be blown away by the 
пехї gen. Sure, gameplay is king, but daz- 
zling visuals help to make the $400 or so 
you spend on a new system feel worth- 
while. Watching the Metal Gear Solid 4 
trailer fills my heart with joy: It looks so 
damned pretty. | want everything to look 
that good now. 


Yeah yeah, we all know you cried 
when it played at Tokyo Game Show.... | 
just wish these technological improve- 
ments didn't force development costs to 
balloon—it just insures:that “garage” 
game designers will’have to stay under- 
ground, making experimental games that 
never see the light of day but might have 
real potential if given half a chance. 


Sequels are great—they take a famil- 
iar quantity and expand on it. But coming 
out with.a Sequel every single year right 
around the holidays is a problem. It takes 
the fun out of it, when you know that the 
game you're playing this year is going to 
be obsolete in a year—and that next year’s 
version won't be all that different. A year 
just isn't enough time to make wholesale 
changes. Splinter Cell Pandora Tomorrow is 
the only recent rapid-turnaround sequel 
that had radically different gameplay. 
(That's the only one that pops to mind, but 
then, my memory ain't what it used to be.) 





Wait, was that the second Splinter 
Cell or the third? Who can tell these days? 


Right. Mostly, you get a decent 
revamped version of the game you played 
a year ago, which is fine. But | bet gamers 
would be willing to wait for revolution, 
rather than have evolution a bit too soon. 


| firmly believe that popular games 
should respawn every two years. That way, 
gamers have a chance to actually antici- 
pate them and developers have proper 
time to upgrade and innovate. Yearly 
sequels will ultimately implode, losing fans 
as overly similar. games clog store shelves. 
If you miss Ratchet & Clank 3, you know 
you can wait 11 months for part four. 


I'm not even sure two years is 
enough.... | almost think you have to 
slightly forget what was so great about 
the original to really, really anticipate and 
appreciate a sequel. 


Maybe three years...but if you 
wait too terribly long, the fans tend to 
move on. If Nintendo actually were to 
make a new Kid Icarus, nobody under the 
age of 30 would care. 


Who's Kid Icarus? 


Exactly. 4 


>) 







Jen better bust out 
her NES and get 


cracking on Kid Icarus у, N 
or else Shane threatened e J 
to come to work cosplaying [7 


as the fabled Greek hero. 


NEXT MONTH: FEBRUARY ° 


KC 22 е ее  егеуеуетеуетегерегерееуеуеуеуереуеуеуау 7 7 


Electronic Gaming Monthly 
cordially invites you to commemorate 
Our 200th Issue 
17 years of videogaming 
~ Starring ~ 
The Top 200 Games of Their Time 
As celebrated by some of the greatest 
minds of the gaming industry 
heduled to appear in no certain order: 
Mario, Pac-Man, Tetris Blocks T and L, 
Master Chief, Tommy Vercetti, Samus Aran, 
and many, many, many more... 
We'll also be talking about the rising stars 
of the videogame universe, including: 
Nintendo’s Revolution, Xbox Live Arcade, 
and you! (In a story on how to set videogame records) 
Join us for the greatest 200th issue of EGM. EVER, 


ON SALE. 


Wi Full Auto (XB360) 

W The Da Vinci Code (PS2/XB) 
W Grandia III (PS2) 

I NBA Ballers 2 (PS2/XB) 










REVIEWS 


Wi Project Gotham Racing 3 (XB360) 

Ili Dead or Alive 4; Dead Rising (XB360) 
@ Quake 4 (XB360) 

W Gauntlet: Seven Sorrows (PS2/XB) 






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(All planned editorial content is subject to change.) 
ут 














INDEX ~~ ANSWERS TO 
2K GAMES SONY ONLINE ENTERTAINMENT SEE You NEXT 
www.2kgames.com ...............« 29, 49 www.sonyonline.com ..................59 b» YEAR! 
KONAMI AMERICA . ° on page 140 
www.konami.com ..............16-17, 148 ш 

ACADEMY OF ART UNIVERSITY TAKE 2 INTERACTIVE 

www.academyart.edu .................115 www.take2games.com ........... ..41,53 
MIDNIGHT POOL 
www.gameloft.com ...................77 

BL00D RAYNE UBISOFT ENTERTAINMENT 

www.bloodrayne-themovie.com .... www.ubisoft.com MP 74A-F 
MOVIE GALLERY 
www.moviegallery.com .............. mr 

COLLINS COLLEGE VERISIGN, INC. 

www.collinscollegeedu ...............113 2 WWW.VeriSIQN.COM ...................55 
NYKO TECHNOLOGIES INC 
www.nyko.com "ERI 

ELECTRONICS BOUTIQUE WIZARDS OF THE COAST 

www.ebgames.com ................51,99 www.wizards.com ................ AEL 
SANDISK 
www.sandiskcom ................... 43 2 

IBUYPOWER ZALMAN USA 

www.ibuypowercom ................94-95 www.zalmanusa.com ....... dtu LL. 
SONY COMPUTER ENTERTAINMENT 
www.scea.com ................2-3, 57,85 

INTEL CORP. 

www.intel.com .....................« 4-5 




















ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY (ISSN #1058-918X) is published monthly by Ziff Davis Media Inc., 28 East 28th Street, New York, NY 10016. Periodicals Postage Paid at New York, NY 10016 and additional mailing offices. For subscription service questions, address changes, or to order, please contact us at: Web: 
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Without limiting the rights under copyrights reserved herein, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in, or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise), without the prior written notice of Ziff Davis Media Inc. Copyright © 2005 
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FosteReprints at Tel: (866) 879-9144, Visit www fostereprints.com to obtain quotes and order reprints online. Electronic Gaming Monthly and EGM are trademarks of Ziff Davis Media Inc. TM and © for all other products and the characters contained therein are owned by the š д ®6 
respective trademark and copyright owners. All materials listed in this magazine are subject to manufacturers change and the publisher assumes no responsibility for such changes. The Canadian GST Registration number is 140496720 RT. Publications Mall Agreement No. Printed in the U.S.A. _..~ 
40009221. Return undeliverable Canadian addresses to P.0. Box 503, RPO West Beaver Creek, Richmond Hill, ON L4B 486. Did you know that Mr. Snuffleupagus’ first name is Aloysius? He also has a sister named Alice. Boy, is she ever ugly. 


ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com 145 


H 
i 


WHO GET EXCITED ABOUT 
THE GAMES OF 2006 NOW, 
\ ASK ЧОО? 


STILL HAVEN'T GOTTEN i 
AROUND To PLATING "PSYCHONALTS, 
FoR CRYING OUT LOUD! 

WE SHOULD ALL AGREE To TAKE A 
COUPLE MONTHS BREAK, LET EVERY- 
BODY GET CALGHT UP ON THE STACK 
OF GAMES THEY HAVEN'T FINISHED, YET... 


WE START THE MACHINERY? 

басқ UP IN APRIL, AND 

EVERYBODY'S BACK ON THE 
SAME PAGE! 


TRAFFIC'S BACKED 
U? A BIT, AND. 
WELL, YOULL 
PROBABLY WANNA, 
STEER AROUND 
Rr. 36, TODAY... 


146 • ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com 


THATS CRAZY TALK, CHAN! 


THE INDUSTRY CAN'T HANDLE 
LONG PAUSES, oU KNOW THAT! | 
THE STABILITY OF OUR ECONO™ 
DEPENDS Ow A STEADY STREAM 

OF TWO-AND-A-HALF STAR 


RELEASES THAT NOBODY EVER 
FINISHES ! 


REMEMBER, A GUY 
WHO'S STILL PLAYING 
A GAME 1$ ^ ee 
WHO AIN'T OUT ING 
ANOTHER ONE! 


Got) SUPPOSE THATLL. 

BE A BIG CONCERN IN THE 
NEXT GENERATION, LONGEVITY? 
Үт 16 STANDARD TO PACK IN 

А DOZEN OR MORE LITTLE 

TIME-\WASTERS ALONG WITH 
THE MAIN GAME, THESE DAYS, 
AND THEQ'RE GETTING MORE 


COMPLICATED AG THE REARS 
Pass! ; 
ALL THAT EXTRA PLARTIMES 
GOTTA EAT INTO THE PROFIT 
MARGINS! 


GREETINGS, VIDEO GAMERS! LOOK FOR FULL-LENGTH HSU & CHAN COMICS 
AT YOUR LOCAL COMIC SHOP! (OR ORDER ONLINE AT WWW.SLAVELABOR.COM.) 


ЧОО WON'T BELIEVE үү. 


THERE'S, LIKE, A THOUSA 
ERISGEES DP кс ОУ 


Оң, | PROBABLY 
SHOULD HAVE REMEMBERED 
THIS EARLIER -- COULD 
SOMEBODY TOSS OP 
MR SwoRD? 


THATS WHERE ONLINE 
COMES IN, BROTHER! 
THE NEXT 
GENERATION TOON E 
ABOUT THE Р, K- 
ITLL Бе ABOUT THE 
SNEAKY BUCK! IN-GAME 
ADD-ONS! SUBSCRIPTION 
FEES! PAD DOWNLOADS! , 
OPTIONAL ADULT CONTENT! 
REMEMBER OUR 


OLD MASTER'S 
WORDS! 





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The Konami Music Series. The ultimate in interactive singing and dancing. Hot new hits like Crazy in Love. 
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