The
Force Unleashed is one of the best Star Wars games to hit the consoles
in quite some time, but as Toby Hillard discovered the Nintendo Wii
version is a step above the rest. Using the Wii-mote to swing your
light saber, it's one of the most involving Wii games you'll play this
year.
We're not monkeying around this time - we're actually giving games
away! We've got three copies of Space Chimps for the Nindento Wii to
give away. All you have to do is answer a simple question, send us an
email, and BAM! Free stuff delivered to your door.
The
evil Emperor has taken control of the senate. Anakin Skywalker has
become Darth Vader. The Jedi Knights are being systematically hunted
down. And in this cool new game, which fills in the story between
Episode III and IV, you play the evil guy who hunts down the Jedi.
Stop monkeying around. Quit with all that monkey business. Monkey see
monkey do... with all the puns out of the way, Jay Williams takes a
sensible look at one of the most visually impressive kids games to hit
the market in some time.
We call this one a spooker. It's part spook-fest, part shooter, and
the sequel the impressively scary F.E.A.R game. You take on the role of
a solider in a world where an all-powerful young girl has the power to
alter the very fabric of reality. Will Barker skipped bible
club to investigate.
Is Fallout 3 the most anticipated game of 2008? Well, that vote may
have gone to Grand Theft Auto IV, but this new non-linear shoot-em-up
RPG is looking stove hot! Set 150 years into the future, your job is do
exactly as you please thanks to the open-ended gameworld.
First there was LEGO Star Wars, then LEGO Indiana Jones hit the
scene, and now it's time for LEGO Batman to start busting blocks. As
Will Barker explains, the new game plays better than previous titles
and is a much richer, more diverse experience. And it features the
batboat!
Imagine playing a videogame, beating it, and
then being entered into
the
Guinness World Record archives... Now you can, and as Will Barker
discovered in this hands-on preview, the entertaining new game
will give fans of Mario Party something to cheer about
The Jackal has just posted his review of
Metal Gear Solid 4, and
already it's being touted as the PS3 Game of the Year. With more
gadgets, weapons, and moves in his arsenal, Solid
Snake's covert operations have never been so awe-inspiring nor
so jaw-dropping to look at.
Tennis games have always been a bit
'arcadey' but this is all set to
change with Top Spin 3. As our intrepid tennis fan Will Barker
explains, "This is what the die-hards have been waiting for -
brilliant, nuanced, in-depth digital tennis that is tough as
nails".
With Wipeout HD coming to the Playstation 3
soon (video included),
we thought we'd take a look at the PS2 version of Wipeout. This
futuristic anti-grav racing game is super-cool; a cultural phenomenon
with a stylised look and loads of pumping electro music.
The Guitar Hero franchise is a musical
juggernaut that is
steamrolling across the globe. It's popularity is massive and now
Guitar Hero has made its way to the Nintendo DS handheld, in the form
of the new "On Tour" game. Will Barker rocks out this review.
We're all pretty excited about the arrival
of Red Alert 3 in late
2008, so we decided to rewind the clock by eight years and retrieve the
Red Alert 2 review. As Will Barker explains, it's classic real time
strategy gaming that blurs the boundaries of time.
When it comes to cyberpunk conspiracy
movies, Ghost in the
Shell is one of the best. So what is The Laughing Man?
It's a 2-disc DVD set that compiles the entire 26-part TV series into a
handy-dandy two hour movie and though sometimes confusing, it's
excellent anime.
Ported to the PS3 and Xbox 360 from the well
regarded PC game, Enemy
Territory: Quake Wars can now be played with a control pad. But will
you want to do this? If you've already played the PC version, then
probably not. But for newcomers there's a lot to like here.
We previewed Street Fighter IV a few months
ago, but now new
screenshots, video and a range of new information on the most important
videogame of the decade has emerged. As well as 'focus'
attacks
and other gameplay additions, we've got the skinny on new characters
like C. Viper.
Meet Vibri, the female rabbit from one of
1999's most original
games, Vib Ribbon! In this flashback review of the Playstation One
game, James Anthony explains that one of the first ever rhythm games,
using vector line-based graphics, was simple but utterly addictive.
Mark of Chaos was a enjoyable real-time
strategy game set in the
medieval Warhammer universe, which Will Barker called a "rewarding
tactical strategy game". The expansion pack has been released more than
a year and a half later. Is it a case of too little too late? Find out
in the review.
It's finally here!! Resident nut job Will
Barker reviewed it, calling the title "a monumental game that will go
down in the annals of not only gaming history, but cultural history as
truly visionary and eminently interactive work of art." Yep, another
almost perfect score. Find out why in this banging review.
When the Lagoon Company's pirate shit
intercepts Rok's business
charter, his incredibly dull life takes a mind-blowing twist. As Will
Barker explains, Black
Lagoon is an intriguing anime series that's a little
absurd, but has supreme action overkill to keep fans glued to their
TVs.
When Devils cry, do the wings of a thousand
butterlies fell trees in deserted forests? We can't know for sure, but
Capcom's latest action game Devil May Cry 4 certainly felled us with
its superlative visuals and engrossing combat. Tommy Machuca
reviews one of the best PS3 games yet.
Will Barker sat down with what is being
described as the next big manga hit - Death Note
- where a student discovers a book that can kill. We're giving DVD
anime reviews a try here on the Games Channel, so feel free to write in
and tell us what you think.
Fresh
from his posting with Interpol in Eastern Europe, Oliver Von Trapp III
found time in his busy fake-dossier building workday to put together
the ultimate list of console multiplayer games.
You will laugh, you will cry, and possibly even shake your head in
bewilderment.
Texas hold 'em poker has riden a tidal wave
of success as the most
popular card-based gambling game since the French government banned Pog
in 1995. But are the videogames any good? We test the best of the best
- WSOP 2008.
Once again Oliver Von Trapp III has managed
to add to his
eclectic portfolio, this time with a quartet of reviews for the
Nintendo DS. As well as classics like Theme Park and Age of Empires, he
also casts his biased eye across Final Fantasy 3 and Anno 1701.
Mr Von Trapp returned to Australia for a few
weeks to "get away from
the heat" in icy Ukraine to write about the year that was... He is one
of the gaming industry's foremost authorities, having been a gaming
guru since 1978 when he 'appropriated' a shipment of arcade cabinets in
former Czechoslovakia.
Command
& Conquer 3 is finally here, but is it worth your hard-earned
moola? Will Barker reckons it doesn't have enough innovation
to be
truly brilliant, "...but it did make me happy for hours at a
time."
If you like real-time strategy games, Command &
Conquer 3
should be high on your list, with a strong multiplayer aspect and a
hugely entertaining storyline. Check it out here.
When LucasArts gave the green light to
create a Star Wars game based
in the LEGO universe, everyone thought it was pure madness. But as we
now know the LEGO Star Wars games are hugely entertaining, and Thomas
Machuca reckons this latest compilation is the best yet.
It's rare for a game to come along
that makes Will Barker
cream his tweeds, especially a hand held game. But the new Zelda title
has done just that, with its innovative use of the touch screen and
addictive adventuring. "Zelda is beyond good, it's
extraordinary."
With games like Quake Wars, Call of
Duty 4, and the
Battlefield series all vying for the mantle of best online shooter, can
Unreal Tournament 3 make an impact? Like a sledgehammer, as it happens.
The Jackal reviews one of the year's biggest releases, and the verdict?
Find out in the review.
What is a Fanboy?
Perhaps a more
appropriate question would be, when does a fan become into a Fanboy?
Sandra
Maksimovic has taken time out of her videogame development studies to
take a closer look at the Fanboy (Fan-people?) phenomenon, and some of
the possible reasons for their one-eyed love of Nintendo, Sega, Sony,
or Microsoft. And sometimes Atari.
The Call of Duty franchise has been a
strong seller, and for
good reason - the games are some of the most realistic, pulse pounding
experiences you're likely to encounter on the small screen. The fourth
game in the CoD series has arrived and it's definitely the
best
yet.
The
Tony Hawk franchise is starting to see solid competition in
the
form of EA's Skate, but the latest game in Hawk series is crammed with
new stuff. But will a new video editor, open-ended gameplay
and the online factor be enough? Will Barker investigates.
The
theme park simulator genre has but a few inhabitants and though
LucasArts all-ages game may look simplistic at first, it's got plenty
of depth for gamers who want it. There's also 34 cool minigames which
have made it very popular in the Games Channel office.
With games like Team Fortress 2, Unreal
Tournament 3, and the
Battlefield series all vying for the #1 spot on the team
based first-person shooter charts, Quake Wars has a
tough job
ahead. But as The Jackal explains, Quake Wars is one of the best
multiplayer shooters ever.
It's
time to get completely blotto and rock out the only way true guitar
heroes know how - with extreme awesomeness. Yep, another instalment of
the wildly popular Guitar Hero series has arrived on the PS2, which
includes 30 new songs. Not much else has changed, but fans of the
series probably won't mind.
The Master Chief returns for his third and
final sojourn, but will
he succeed? Arguably the biggest videogame launch in the history of the
world, Will Barker reviews the game and says it's got
some
issues. Ouch! We've also included a full run down, description
and
even a rating of each weapon, grenade, and vehicle in the game. Take a
seat, this one's big...
There
are about nine million gamers eagerly awaiting the new expansion pack
recently announced by Blizzard, the Wrath of the Lich King. Currently
under development, the new expansion pack adds a new hero class that
must be unlocked via difficult quests, plus there are new weapons,
armour,
hairstyles, dance moves, and of course a new continent to plunder.
If there's one thing that unites Xbox 360
and Playstation 3 gamers,
it's Stacie Orrico. But, in the grand scheme of things, Will Barker
writes that an online mode for the upcoming Resident Evil 5 game could
also change the way rival console gangs approach each other. In-game
trailer included.
Looking for some
vehicular warfare
that won't turn Little Johnny into a psychopath? Mario Kart DS is the
perfect game for young racers, but also gamers of all ages, explains
Will Barker. Join Mario, Luigi, Bowser and their demented
friends
as you speed around some of the wildest race tracks this side of pluto.
And
the icing on the cake? WIFI gaming means multiplayer mayhem anywhere,
anytime!
Featuring
some of the most gorgeous anime babes in the history of gaming, Dead or
Alive 4 on the Xbox360 is quite an eyefull. But on top of the stunning
eye candy, there's also a eminently playable fighting game hidden
beneath the gorgeous veneer, and as the sometimes
lucid William
Barker explains, it's easily accessible for newcomers to the fighting
game genre, yet has the kind of depth to keep core gamers happy.
