Medal of Honor:
European Assault
Publisher: Electronic Arts
Platform: X-Box and PS2
Taiwan Release: Already available
After a couple of rather so-so forays into the World War II Pacific theater of war, Electronic Arts' hugely popular Medal of Honor series makes a welcome return to the North African and European theaters, where players are once again tasked with ridding the world of the Nazis.
Gamers take on the role of US intelligence officer William Holt as he joins forces with British, Russian and US troops in order to undertake risky and bloody missions. The game begins with the most compelling of these as Holt teams up with a unit of British SAS guys and gamers get the chance to recreate the famous raid on St Nazaire.
Holt gets involved in combat in North Africa, where he helps stem the advance of Field Marshall Erwin Rommel's Afrika Korps, fights alongside Russian partisans on the Eastern Front and gets down and dirty in the Ardennes, where he takes part in the Battle of the Bulge.
While the game's campaign mechanics are the same as all the other games in the Medal series, Electronic Arts has made a couple of nifty changes to the way in which the characters interact and environments can be explored. They're far from cutting edge, but they do enhance game play.
The levels are no longer simply linear affairs, and players are now free to choose how best to approach an enemy position instead of tackling it head-on, which was the norm in previous games.
The other major change to the game engine is the incorporation of an order interface, which allows players to give commands -- even if they are rather simple -- to other members of the squad. The function is very basic and only allows gamers to send guys forward to scout out an area or recall them from said recon mission. It is a breakthrough for the Medal series, though, and given time it will no doubt become a standard feature in Medal of Honor games.
Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory
Publisher: Ubisoft
Platform: PC, X-Box and PS2
Taiwan Release: Already available
Secret agent Sam Fisher returns to consoles and PCs this month with the third instalment of the superb Splinter Cell saga, which is based on Tom Clancy's techno thriller. Like its predecessors, Chaos Theory pits the hero against a myriad of gun-toting bad guys, mad scientists and evil geniuses intent on world domination.
The game's campaign focuses on the breakdown of relations between the US, Japan and that old friend of console/PC espionage action shooters and the world's favorite foe, North Korea. Sadly the story line is somewhat lacking in punch, and while gamers get to kill a heap of bad guys and assassinate many a high ranking official, the rather muted plot doesn't allow gamers to become deeply involved in what they are doing and does not explain why its happening.
Cut screens, which would normally be used to tell the story and set the scene for upcoming missions are not that well produced. And instead of relying on cut screens and character interaction to relay mission info, gamers gather their intel from some rather drab monologues and less-than-inspiring text messages.
Players looking for some depth to their game play might be sorely disappointed by these faults, but Chaos Theory is still worth checking out, if only to kill a few hours wasting bad guys, which, of course, you can do in many different ways and by an equal number of differing means.
The graphics are excellent. The environments in which Fisher battles range from a lighthouse in Peru to a North Korean coastal gun battery. A bathhouse in Japan and the streets of Seoul look hauntingly real. All of the environments are well designed and, although the game is a wee bit to linear for this reviewers liking, each environment makes for compelling play.
Batman Begins
Publisher: EA Games/Warner Bros
Platform: X-Box and PS2
Taiwan Release: Already available
While this reviewer tends to shy away from playing movie tie-in PC/console games, Batman Begins is one of the very few to impress. Released to coincide with the release of the latest on-screen adventures of Gotham City's famed Caped Crusader, EA Games' console version of Batman Begins looks and sounds fantastic.
The game's audio soundtrack, both musical and oral is superb and features the voices of Christian Bale, Liam Neeson and Michael Caine. Graphically the game kicks some serious ass. All the characters look like the actors who portray them in the movie and the dark and moody environments, which range from a Himalayan monastery to the Wayne family mansion, have all been superbly recreated to mimic those of the movie.
The story line follows that of the movie to the letter and begins in the Himalayas where Bruce Wayne learns how to fight evil under the guidance of a mysterious sect of monastic ninja-like folks. After completing his training Wayne moves back to Gotham City, where the paddle driven fun begins in earnest.
As Batman, players get to pull off a lot of fancy moves. Be it climbing buildings, crawling across pipes or leaping from ledge to ledge, there is really no end or limit to the stunts Batman can pull off. Unfortunately the same cannot be said of his ability to deal with certain types of bad guys.
Players will find that Batman's skills are more than enough to scare unarmed combatants, but up against those toting heavy weaponry Batman often comes a cropper.
Along with getting to control Batman's every move, players also get to drive the Batmobile. Although only two of the game's 10 levels actually incorporate the slick black car, being given the keys to the most world's most famous cartoon automobile is great fun. The aim of the driving modes may be simple -- ram and destroy as many enemy cars as is possible -- but the levels are still engaging.
Forza Motorsport
Publisher: Microsoft
Platform: X-Box
Taiwan Release: Already available
Forza Motorsport is the first driving simulation to have been developed by Microsoft, and while it is not without its faults, the game is for the most part superb and offers players the chance to drive really fast cars, well, really fast, without hurting anybody.
The game ships with 230 cars ranging from American muscle cars to European roadsters and Japanese saloon cars. As with many other Microsoft games this number will no doubt increase as the software giant adds more downloadable components to the game's official website. There are 17 environments in which to drive and race over and while many are fictitious this doesn't distract from the overall feel of the game.
The game's playability is enhanced by the fact that the cars actually feel heavy. Unlike many driving simulation games, Microsoft's cars act and feel like the real thing. They don't float when cornering; they don't zigzag across the track as if possessed by some video-game poltergeist and they don't jerk or wobble when acceleration is added.
While players can opt to drive manually, the game engine includes something called a "suggested line" feature, which acts like a driving instructor and tells gamers how best to tackle cor-ners, when to apply the breaks and with how much pressure, and even what speeds should be employed on certain tracks.
It might seem like the function takes all the fun out of video-game driving, but the function actually makes the game all the more enjoyable. You don't wipe out as much and players can always turn the function off should they wish, which is not advisable as the game is near impossible to master unless you use the "suggested line" function.
AI has often been the downfall of many a driving game, but players need not worry with Forza Motorsport, as the game's artificial intelligence is one of the best on the market. Cars seem to know where they are on the tracks and will swerve rather than crash into other vehicles and even block cars as they attempt to pass.
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