Squaresoft has always been a producer of quality RPG's since waaaaay back. Their most profitable RPG franchise has been a little series called Final Fantasy. Now, in its eigth installment, Square E.A. does not dissapoint. You play the role of Squall, a soldier in an elite mercenary group known as SeeD, who finds himself playing the leader in a fight against the evil sorceress Edea. The story is not as basic as I described: it is a twisting, dramatic plot based on evil, unlikely love, and personal discovery. The story is great, sure, but what about eye candy? Don't worry, this one packs enough ridiculously elaborate spell effects to make your head spin. Also, the characters actually have human proportions, unlike FF7's deformed look. Oh yeah, the game plays pretty nice, too. Control is great, the new trigger timing system adds an element of skill to battles, and of course, the controller vibrates. So, stop reading about it and buy the thing already!!! SHADESPECTRE
System- Playstation
Graphics- 10
Sound- 10
Fun- 10
Replay- 9
Control- 10
TOTAL SCORE--49.6
|
In its last use of the WWF license, Acclaim has pulled out all the wrestling game stops with WWF Attitude. This gem of a game is a whole lot like WWF WarZone: Same control scheme, same graphics engine, same presentation. However, this is not a problem. First off, the create-a-wrestler is freakier and cooler than ever. I was able to make myself with ease. You can adjust everything, from your special moves, to your looks, right down to your entrance animation. Also, this one's got more play modes like 3 on 1, Triangle, War, Cage, King of the Ring: hell, you can even make your own pay-per-view event!! As for graphics and control, nothing's changed. It's still as tight as ever. This game makes no attempt to fix what ain't broken. Thank goodness. SHADESPECTE
System- N64
Graphics- 8.4
Sound- 6
Fun- 8
Replay- 8.3
Control- 8.6
TOTAL SCORE--48.4
|
Shadow Man is, well, mediocre at best. And the bad part is, it should'nt be. It has all the right elements. The graphics are great (I could see all the way down a long room with NO FOG!!), the control was pretty tight, and the story was gloomy, dark, and very atmospheric. So what's wrong? The level design. All the levels are twisting, gargantuan labyrinths of confusion. Now normally I would'nt mind the challenge, but as I went through the levels, I felt like I was constantly lost and the only reason I got out was because of sheer luck. Also, the enemies are few and far between, and when they do attack, they can range from drooling morons to near-impossible. These two things just killed the whole thing for me. My advice: rent it first. And draw out a map. SHADESPECTRE
System- N64
Graphics- 8
Sound- 6
Fun- 4
Replay- 3.5
Control- 7
TOTAL SCORE--28.5
|
