PS3 Game Reviews
Review Alien Breed: Impact (PlayStation 3)
Alien Breed: Impact is a claustrophobic attempt at revitalising a classic genre
It certainly packs plenty of atmosphere across its five or so hour campaign; but some control quirks, and drawn-out mission design make it hard to stomach in long stretches. Alien Breed is a Team-17 classic. Released on the Amiga in the early-1990's, the game was a...
Clearly inspired by the catalogue of Robert Rodriguez and Streets Of Rage, Shank is a gritty yet childish beat-'em-up romp through 2D plains
The story - which is told through a sequence of flash-backs - is merely justification for the violence; but this is a revenge tale. It's an angry, messy game set to the visual style of a children's cartoon, and...
Review Kane & Lynch 2: Dog Days (PlayStation 3)
The polarizing rag-tag duo Kane and Lynch return for a notably low-brow outing in Shanghai
Teaming up for a final "smuggling operation", events turn decidedly sour when Kane unwittingly takes out the daughter of a corrupt government official, Shangsi. The plot is littered with some pretty uncomfortable moments, but it primarily takes a...
Review PixelJunk Racers: 2nd Lap (PlayStation 3)
By focusing on the underlying competitive nature of PixelJunk Racers, 2nd Lap is worthy add-on that will bring newcomers and veterans alike back to the PixelJunk franchise's roots
Being an early PlayStation Network release, and the first in the PixelJunk franchise, a large proportion of the PlayStation 3's user-base are unlikely to have experienced...
Review Scott Pilgrim vs. The World: The Game (PlayStation 3)
Boy meets girl
Boy falls in love with girl. So far, so cliche? Not quite — see, there's a twist to Scott Pilgrim and Ramona Flowers' burgeoning relationship; Scott must defeat her seven evil ex-boyfriends in order to go on a date with her. Thus ensues the perfect set-up for a seven-stage beat 'em up game moulded around classics such as Final...
Review Earthworm Jim HD (PlayStation 3)
Essentially a re-release of the Mega Drive (/Genesis) version of Earthworm Jim with pretty visuals and a few bells and whistles; Earthworm Jim HD is extremely faithful to its original 16-bit counter-part
Sadly, the original game wasn't brilliant even in its day. The platforming and level design remain second-fiddle, with the game's focus being on...
Review DeathSpank (PlayStation 3)
Loosely tied together by a plot about as thin as its titular heroes' thong, DeathSpank is a hack-and-slash title written by legendary industry comic, Ron Gilbert
DeathSpank spreads its plot pretty thin, sending you on a lengthy quest in order to recover a mysterious object known as The Artifact. What ensues is a series of fetch quests in which you...
Review Singularity (PlayStation 3)
As Captain Renko, a modern-day military operative, you're sent by the US to investigate an unusual Russian Cold War-era research island known as Katorga-12
It's clear bad stuff is going down there, because after a pretty brutal helicopter crash, you find yourself warped from the ruined propaganda-laden halls of the island in the present day, to the...
Review Naughty Bear (PlayStation 3)
Naughty Bear's probably the best PlayStation anti-hero since the God Of War himself, Kratos
The mis-understood plushy just wants to be everybody's friend. But he's constantly ignored by the other bears of Paradise Island, who'd rather laugh at him than invite him to groovy birthday bashes. Naturally, this all results in the scorned super-ted turning...
Review Transformers: War For Cybertron (PlayStation 3)
Transformers: War For Cybertron is set years before the events of the original cartoon series, commonly referred to as Generation One
Fans of the franchise will know that it's at the start of said series where the Transformers take their fight away from their native land of Cybertron to the energy-ridden plains of Earth. War For Cybertron, as the...
Review Sam & Max Episode 302: The Tomb Of Sammun-Mak (PlayStation 3)
Sam & Max: The Tomb Of Sammun-Mak is a clever follow-up to the sometimes formulaic events of the Episode One
The clever story-telling mechanics and challenging puzzles make this episode a solid entry in the season. While the escapades of evil space gorilla Skunka'pe made for a solid return for crime-fighting duo Sam & Max, The Tomb Of...
Review Sam & Max Episode 301: The Penal Zone (PlayStation 3)
Ultimately, it's clever story-telling and interesting puzzles that are going to make you want to check out Sam & Max's third season debut, The Penal Zone, even if the episode does overstay its welcome
Providing a story more mind-boggling than the sheer fact that Telltale are able to churn out these adventure games at such an alarming rate, Sam...
Review Joe Danger (PlayStation 3)
Formed by four legendary Guildford developers, Joe Danger is the fruit of new studio up-start Hello Games
Based around the concept that jumping off ramps is fun (it is!), Joe Danger is a combination of influences. Clearly inspired by Nintendo's overlooked Excite Bike franchise, Joe Danger's a 2D motorcycle side-scroller, in which your objective is...
Review Green Day: Rock Band (PlayStation 3)
There's perhaps no game quite as subjective as Green Day: Rock Band
In all honesty, your purchasing intent should depend on one factor only: how much do you like Green Day? As a reviewer, it doesn't really get easier than this. Green Day: Rock Band is a package so firmly routed in subjectivity, that it's impossible for us to educate you as to...
Review UFC Undisputed 2010 (PlayStation 3)
The sequel to last-year's surprise hit, UFC Undisputed 2010 tunes all that was in the 2009 version and turns it up to eleven
Naturally the roster has been beefed up, with now over one-hundred fighters to choose from. The gameplay's also been tweaked, with defensive sways now added to heighten the countering strategy during gameplay. It's the career...
Blur is the sum of a combination of games
At its very core it is Project Gotham Racing: take to the circuit with semi-sim, semi-arcade car handling and earn "fans" (as opposed to kudos) by racing creatively. But there's much more to Blur than its PGR inspired core. The power-up racing concept is very much a Mario Kart staple, though here...
Review Split/Second: Velocity (PlayStation 3)
Split/Second's a game which puts its best foot forward first
The first few races you'll experience are among some of the most exciting moments in video games. The premise is simple - you're part of a mad futuristic game-show, in which competitors race around an ever-changing track rigged to the teeth with explosives. Ambitious driving will reward...
Review Prince Of Persia: The Forgotten Sands (PlayStation 3)
Prince Of Persia: The Forgotten Sands takes the PoP franchise back to its Playstation 2 heyday
Set some time after the events of the infamous Prince Of Persia: Sands Of Time (and sometime before the not-so infamous Prince Of Persia: Warrior Within), this is a return to the franchise's glory. And when we say "return" we mean return. The...
Review Anarchy: Rush Hour (PlayStation 3)
Anarchy: Rush Hour tries hard to be the sum of one too many popular arcade racers, and as such loses a chunk of its own identity
But hidden beneath the game's meandering plot of stolen girlfriends and souped up supercars is a decent, if unoriginal, racing experience. And at £5/$8 a pop, it's hard to really deny the value in Gaijin Entertainment's...
Review Lost Planet 2 (PlayStation 3)
Capcom should be kicking themselves right now
Lost Planet 2 is a very good game, held back by some rudimentary and bizarre design choices. The game's essentially a four-player co-op shooter, in which you play as a series of factions in the varied and artistically interesting world of EDN-III. The game's narrative is revealed through the eyes of...
Review Iron Man 2: The Video Game (PlayStation 3)
Released just in time to coincide with the big budget summer movie of the same name, Iron Man 2 sees protagonist Tony Stark don his steel suit once more
This time he's alongside his companion War Machine, for a fight that picks up almost directly after the events of the original Iron Man. The story's fairly well told during missions and cut-scenes,...
Review Lead & Gold: Gangs Of The Wild West (PlayStation 3)
It's certainly a competent online third-person shooter, and the Western twist is strong enough to give the game some personality
Sadly, Lead & Gold: Gangs Of The Wild West lacks the staying power that it'll need to maintain a fan-base post Red Dead Redemption. Wild west games lie fondly in our hearts. This is a statement from the same...
Review 2010 FIFA World Cup: South Africa (PlayStation 3)
The improvements to the actual gameplay may only be subtle, but improvements to the way information is presented and some good online implementation make 2010 FIFA World Cup: South Africa the best football game on the market
Until FIFA 11 comes out anyway. The stop-gap summer cash-in with a heart - for years people have questioned the relevance of...
Review After Burner Climax (PlayStation 3)
It's After Burner
Originally released in the arcades in 2006, After Burner Climax is the sequel (sort of) to the classic After Burner games of old. In simple - you fly an awesomely kitted out plane through interchanging zones blasting bad guys with rockets. The loose terrorist plot serves only as a means of justification as you fly ridiculously fast...
Review Grand Theft Auto: Episodes From Liberty City (PlayStation 3)
Grand Theft Auto: Episodes From Liberty City is the combination of last year's XBOX 360 "exclusive" downloadable content campaigns finally available on the Playstation 3
The episodes, The Lost & Damned and The Ballad Of Gay Tony, both offer complete campaigns from some of Grand Theft Auto IV's "blink and you'll miss them" cameo...
Review Final Fight: Double Impact (PlayStation 3)
Final Fight: Double Impact's a loving re-release of the definitive late-80's arcade brawler Final Fight - with lesser known Magic Sword thrown in for good measure
Double Impact ups the nostalgia to eleven, bringing the shady streets of Metro City to the HD generation complete with grimy scan lines and the bulge of glass. This is classic arcade...
Review BlazBlue: Calamity Trigger (PlayStation 3)
Developed by Guilty Gear's Arc System Works, BlazBlue: Calamity Trigger is a fresh break for the company after countless re-releases of the fighting franchise they're best known for
It's a 2D beat 'em up, released on the backfoot of the genre's re-emergence, and it feels fresh. With a 12-character strong roster, each with their own unique fighting...
Review Namco Museum Essentials (PlayStation 3)
Namco Museum Essentials is a beautifully presented trip down memory lane that's worth an hour or so of anyone's time
Packing five classic Namco arcade titles (and one "new" game), it's hard to argue that Namco Museum Essentials goes below the call of duty for its sub-£10 price-tag. But some glorious presentation and procedural unlocks...
Review Just Cause 2 (PlayStation 3)
Honestly, who cares? The game's too badly written and voiced to give any sane player a semblance of interest
But that's kind of the point — Just Cause 2 is a sandbox where the crux of the experience depends on exploration and making your own fun. The B-movie type plot shoots for a James Bond under-cover agent style motive that attempts to justify...
Review Prison Break: The Conspiracy (PlayStation 3)
Fans of the American TV show will be right at home with Prison Break: The Conspiracy's storyline
It's based around the events of the first season, with Lincoln Burrows wrongly committed of a crime he didn't conduct. You play as Tom Paxton, an undercover agent sent by "the Company" into Fox River Penitentiary to keep an eye on Burrow's...
