G.I. JOE: The Rise of Cobra

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List Price: $29.99
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i'm freely admit i'm a GI JOE fanboy, so keep that in mind when reading this review.

i really didn't know what to expect from this game. trailers aren't always indicative of actual gameplay and the videogame community seemed bound and determined to hate this game before it was even released and without even playing it, but i took a chance and bought it anyway. what can i say, i'm a fanboy.

i finished the campaign last night and here are my thoughts:

the good:

1) it's GI JOE!

2) there's a decent mix of old [duke, scarlett, snake eyes, heavy duty, ripcord, shipwreck/parrot] and new [sgt. flash, kamakura] characters, including one character built just for the game [agent helix]. i would have preferred a line up of classic joes, but the inclusion of the newer joes by no means lessens the game. and being able to play the cobra characters is fun, too [firefly, destro, baroness]. kind of fun to play the baroness and scarlett side-by-side.

3) each joe's special moves are pretty fun. i was fond of scarlett's homing arrows and beach head's motion-detected, homing mines. they're both very effective against the enemy. other's were less interesting, but fun all the same.

4) the 3rd person co-op mode is a lot more fun than COD's split screen.

5) the boss battles are challenging, but not inordinately so.

6) there are plenty of trophies to be won, even if most are pretty easy to achieve.

7) some have complained about the graphics -but the story more embraces the cartoon than the larry hama-penned comics. i didn't have any problems with the graphics. they were suitable, colorful and fun.

8) i liked the storm shadow-trained red ninjas. kind of corny, but kind of cool.

9) good nostalgia factor.

10) buy it on amazon and you can unlock scarlett's classic uni.

11) accelerator suit mode!

the not-so-good:

1) the voice acting is horrendous. i mean truly bad. if it were so-bad-it's-good, i'd be ok with it, but it's not. the 'jokes' are lame. the characters flat. the dialogue is equally bad.

2) the player has no control over the camera. there were a few times i had no idea what i was shooting at until i took the most circuitious rout down a hallway just to find out. no good.

3) it's fairly short [but does offer some decent replay value]. there are three environments, six missions in each.

4) price point -it's WAY overpriced for what you get. if you want to buy it, wait a few months until the price drops to $19.99 or buy it used.

5) somewhat repetitive game play. this is a classic shooter, nothing more, nothing less. the developers could have spent a bit more time and come up with some a more clever storyline, or more engaging missions, but like i said, it's a straight up duck & cover, run & gun shooter.

6) scarlett is cross-eyed in the cut scenes. i don't know what that's all about, but that should have been fixed.

all in all, this is a game directed probably at the 11-15 year old crowd, but i had a good time with it. if you're looking for a sophisticated shooeter like COD:MW, or BioShock, this isn't it. nor should it be. but that doesn't make it a stupid or unworthy game. just take it for what it is. having said that, if this were a $ game, i'd give it four stars. but since it's overpriced, it's a solid three.

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Actually, notwithstanding the previous reviewer's comments, you *can* switch targets by using the *right* analog stick to toggle between targets. You don't get visual crosshairs, but that works (and yes, it's in the instructions.) But the other reviews are right about the lack of camera control and the sometimes dumb camera angles, and the lacklustre graphics (not much better than one would have expected from a PS 2 game).

What is good about the game is that the controls are pretty simple and if you're a very casual gamer AND a G.I. Joe fan, like I am, you can just pick it up and enjoy mindlessly mashing buttons, blasting things, and getting through the levels without wanting to bash your head against a brick wall and solve time-consuming, complex puzzles. In this sense, it is more arcade-like: put in another quarter and play some more ... except there's no need for quarters! Hurray! If you fit that description, you might enjoy it as I have, and it would be especially worth picking up this game once it goes on deep discount (as it no doubt will). But if you are a video game connoisseur or frequent gamer who enjoys intricate gameplay and complex controls ... stay away. You will not be happy with this game.

Note: Snake Eyes is an astonishingly feeble character. He literally uses a tiny handgun that barely inflicts any damage, and he injures quickly and recovers slowly. Scarlett has more firepower and stamina than ol' Snakes does.

Buy G.I. JOE: The Rise of Cobra Now

I wish I had a chance to see just how bad this game really was, but I can't even get passed the first Mission. Upon completion of the mission, I had to buy my first Joe (Heavy Duty). Unfortunately, this proved to be impossible, as none of the buttons would allow me to complete my purchase in the Team Roster. This was very aggrevating to say the least. Save yourself the money and buy something else more worthwhile.

Read Best Reviews of G.I. JOE: The Rise of Cobra Here

The thought that this was developed for the PS3 is a joke, this game would not be worthy of a PS2 release. The graphics are terrible, the game play is PS1 like and when it came out you could buy it for $59.99?! At the current $9.96 I still wouldn't buy it and use that as a warning to how bad this game is because no PS3 game goes for that low this quickly unless it's crap to begin with.

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This game blows. hard. I'd rather spend the day knitting with my Aunt Martha than play one level of this piece of crap game. No offense, Auntie M. :)