Tag: First Impressions

Write off

Given the affection PlayStation fans still have for Destruction Derby, it’s surprising no one’s attempted to recreate the smash-heavy vehicular formula on PS3. It may be late to the party, but DiRT Showdown is exactly that: a game that can’t be pitched without referencing Psygnosis’ 1995 hit, like its inspiration it’s hard to...

End of the line

Spec Ops: The Line owes a lot to the Uncharted series — and not just because Nolan North lends his voice to the game’s gruff protagonist Captain Martin Walker. The combat – which takes place from a third-person perspective – is hugely derivative of Nathan Drake’s series, as you meander between conveniently placed vehicles...

Cycle shattered

Well, it looks like SEGA got the abysmal message about Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode 1 and actually did something about it. We're happy to report that, based on our time with two zones of the game at PAX East, the long-awaited Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode 2 plays a lot closer to how our nostalgic hearts remember the series before...

Carnage

Twisted Metal is an important brand for PlayStation veterans. Many will have fond memories of weekends spent with turbo-charged cars and homing missiles, settling disputes between friends and family. It’s a franchise that, like WipEout and Gran Turismo, is an important part of PlayStation’s iconography. And if a short hands-on with Eat...

When Sony debuted Escape Plan at GamesCom last year, we were so infatuated with the game's Tim Burton-esque artstyle that we failed to pay attention to its actual gameplay

It was only when we attended a PlayStation Vita preview event at the tail-end of last year, that we really got a feel for the mechanics behind the Fun Bits Interactive developed...

MicroStorm

When you think MotorStorm you think big cars, off-road mayhem and more collisions than an engine can rev at. Peep in the direction of Evolution Studios’ PS Vita/PlayStation Network title, however, and something far different than expected can be found. Sure, there’s the occasional bump, and driving definitely takes place off-road...

Let’s get it started

Gaze upon the launch spread of PS Vita — WipEout 2048, Uncharted: Golden Abyss and those cheeky Little Deviants to name but a few — and it’s easy to overlook the system’s in-built software. Stop salivating over Nathan Drake for ten seconds, though, and flicking around Vita’s bubbly operating system uncovers a pile...

Wow-pEout

PS Vita’s launch line-up is crammed full of quality, yet WipEout 2048 looks to rocket past many of its competitors right out of the gate. Set before the other games in the franchise, 2048 takes fans back to the start of the anti-gravity racing league and gives SCE Studio Liverpool ample opportunity to experiment with its high-speed baby...

Floaty

The presence of Keiichiro Toyama, famous for his work on the Silent Hill and Siren franchises, is welcome in the launch window of PS Vita. Seemingly breaking away from his horror roots, Tomaya serves as creative director on Gravity Rush, a game that allows players to reject the rules of gravity itself in the palms of their hands. Kat awakes...

The latest tennis contender

The recent Grand Slam Tennis 2 demo on PlayStation Network supports PlayStation Move, so we got to grips with its motion controls to see how it shapes up. Ever since Sports Champions redefined motion controls with its table tennis mode, we’ve longed for a similarly accurate tennis game. Both Top Spin 4 and Virtua Tennis...

Skill based control has become a foundation of EA Sports' output this generation

Tiger Woods, Skate and Fight Night have all experimented with right analogue stick inputs, bringing a new level of fidelity to traditionally arcadey experiences. Grand Slam Tennis 2 mimics EA Sports' ambition, bringing a new level of shot precision to the game of tennis. Dubbed "Total Racquet Control" by a..

Hustle and flow

Hustle Kings knows it’s up against a tough crowd. Like the similarly styled Top Darts, it’s vying for attention against Uncharted: Golden Abyss and WipEout 2048 in the PlayStation Vita’s launch line-up. What chance does a pub game simulation have against such blockbuster names? At first glance, not a whole lot — but Hustle...

Hustle Kings knows it's up against a tough crowd

Like the similarly styled Top Darts, it's vying for attention against Uncharted: Golden Abyss and WipEout 2048 in the PlayStation Vita's launch line-up. What chance does a pub game simulation have against such blockbuster names? At first glance, not a whole lot — but Hustle Kings has the last laugh. Sure it might not have explosions or speeding..

Hard to beat?

Novarama’s one of the few developers that’s actively pushed the potential of augmented reality. Alongside Sony Studio London, the Spanish developer has been instrumental in driving camera-based experiences on the PlayStation Portable — conjuring up the inspired, but flawed, Invizimals series. While the Pokémon-inspired franchise...

Novarama's one of the few developers that's actively pushed the potential of augmented reality

Alongside Sony Studio London, the Spanish developer has been instrumental in driving camera-based experiences on the PlayStation Portable — conjuring up the inspired, but flawed, Invizimals series. While the Pokemon inspired franchise has struggled to reach its full potential worldwide, Invizimals has..

Stand on your head

If Simon Says had an illicit affair with Nintendo’s madcap minigame series Wario Ware, Frobisher Says would be the hyperactive accidental love-child. Honeyslug’s eccentric PlayStation Vita launch-title might not be drawing the headlines like Uncharted: Golden Abyss and Wipeout 2048, but it's easily the most humorous

If Simon Says had an illicit affair with Nintendo's madcap minigame series WarioWare, Frobisher Says would be the hyperactive accidental love-child

Honeyslug's eccentric PlayStation Vita launch-title might not be drawing the headlines like Uncharted: Golden Abyss and Wipeout 2048, but its easily the most humorous game we've played in a long time. Borne out of an inside office joke, Frobisher Says..

Do the splitz

It’s a bit of a shame that Super Monkey Ball has been relegated to launch window fodder. SEGA’s zany primate-populated pseudo-puzzle platformer felt like a breath of fresh air when it debuted on the Nintendo GameCube ten years ago, transforming a basic gameplay concept into something cute and, most importantly, memorable. But an...

It's a bit of a shame that Super Monkey Ball has been relegated to launch window fodder

SEGA's zany primate-populated pseudo-puzzle platformer felt like a breath of fresh air when it debuted on the Nintendo GameCube ten years ago, transforming a basic gameplay concept into something cute and, most importantly, memorable. But an overzealous SEGA was quick to oversaturate the wafer-thin concept,..