Showing posts with label best new video games ps3. Show all posts
Showing posts with label best new video games ps3. Show all posts

God of War III

God of War III - Playstation 3
Customer Ratings: 4.5 stars
List Price: $29.99
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Thanks for reading my first review here on Amazon. I normally don't review stuff like this online but I can't get this game out of my head. I've had my jaw hit the floor more times in the first couple hours than I've ever had in an entire game before. When people describe this game as epic, they are not just using some cliche word everyone on the internet throws around. The cover of God of War 3 should be in the dictionary next to the word.

First, I highly suggest anyone new to the series to go ahead and pick up the God of War Collection. It is some of the best the PS2 has to offer for only $30. It will bring you up to date on the story and help you get aquainted with the combat system so you can jump right into part 3 no problem. This brings me to my next point, difficulty. I'm hearing the term "button-masher" thrown around quite a lot in regards to this game and while this might be true for the easy and normal difficulties, it couldn't be further from the truth on Titan (hard) mode. Having beaten the two previous games recently, I started GoW3 on Titan difficutly. There is no way you can spam the same combos and expect to make it anywhere. For those familiar with the previous instances of God of War, or for you hack-n-slash pros out there, I highly suggest starting off on Titan mode. This will provide a much greater challenge and get you ready to play on Chaos mode after you've unlocked it.

For the most part, the gameplay remains unchanged from the previous titles. If it ain't broke don't fix it right? However, there are a few differences that greatly enhance the experiece. For starters, the QTEs now put the button prompts in relation to their location on the controller (triangle appears at the top of the screen, X on the bottom ect.). This allows the player to view whatever violent act Kratos is performing at the time without having the button prompt cover it all. Another great change is the ability to switch weapons on the fly, mid combo. This allows for a lot of creativiy to be used in how you dispatch each enemy. Lastly, one of my favorite additions to the combat system is the combat grapple. Kratos will fling both blades into an enemy and pull himself towards them. This greatly increases combo variety and makes it easier to string together lots and lots of hits.

When it comes to presentation in video games, God of War 3 takes the cake. You can tell a lot of work was put into making the game look amazing. I must have spent the first 10 minutes just staring at how detailed Kratos looks. The boss battles and level design redefine what scale is in games today. Some people might be put off by the fixed camera, but this allows the directors of the game to give you breathtaking views and truly show off all the hard work they put into making this one of the most visually pleasing experiences you will ever have. All the trailers and screens you could watch won't hold a candle to how this game looks live on a nice 1080p TV set.

In closing, God of War 3 is one of most amazing experiences you can find in gaming today. Other games might have a little more depth to their combat systems, but none of them put together the entire package of gameplay, graphics, sound, story, and overall fun. If you've been on the edge about picking up a PS3, let Kratos make that decision for you. Do yourself a favor and BUY this game!!!

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If you don't then you will be missing out on, easily, one of GREATEST games of all time! I thought I was blown away by Uncharted 2. I was but I am even more so with God Of War 3. Unbelievably, God Of War 3 floored me from the 30 minute opening sequence to the mind blowing finale. How did Sony Santa Monica pull this off? The SCALE of this game will boggle the mind and make your jaw hit the floor! When I first played the demo some 3 months ago I was in awe. After having played through every luscious drop of GOW 3 I am spellbound beyond belief. If I could only use one word to describe this game: EPIC! Remember the old home arcade system Neo Geo and SNK's motto for it "Bigger, Badder, Better"? This applies to GOW 3 in spades.

Upon first sight of GOW 3 you'll notice that the high def graphics are probably the best, on any system anywhere, computer gaming rigs included. Sony really tapped into the "true" power of the PS3 with this one. Some of the things I saw in this game is making me think it was all a dream because it just isn't possible in games, right? Wrong. Seeing the gigantic titans filling up the whole screen in perfect graphical splendor, on a 50 in. plasma, all the while Kratos is scaling it, and fighting a boss(Poseidon) on it, is completely amazing. Gamers, this is what we live for! The detail of not just the titans, the environments, and the Ghost of Sparta himself, but the minor enemies, such as the skeleton warriors, is astonishing. And seeing 15 or so of these skeleton warriors pile on Kratos and then seeing him violently power them off is unbelievably cool and empowering. It almost makes you feel like a god! The sheer power you feel controlling Kratos and watching him annihilate everything in his path in the name of vengeance will cast a spell over you.

The combat control is much the same as before, if not better. In other words, the control is flawless and if ain't broke don't fix it philosphy applies here. There are timed button presses for the boss battles(quick timed events). And bosses there will be. Some of them are absolutely enormous, such as Hades. Dealing death to the bosses is quite a sight. Impale them. Check! Rip off body parts. Check! Let blood and guts flow like a river. Check! This is one of the goriest and most violently graphic games I've seen. EVER! Kratos can still have sex in GOW 3! Always a welcome addition. Even one scene with a goddess! I think what might impress me most besides the scale of the game, is the number of enemies that can be on screen at one time. At times, there had to be close to 50 or more on screen. That is incredible considering it's running at 60 FPS the entire time with no slowdown. All of that even when there are cyclopses and minotaurs on the same screen, along with a titan in the background. Ridiculously amazing!

The story, sadly, was the most disappointing part of the game. It seemed a bit convoluted; like too much was going on with too many different characters. The story is not bad mind you and it`s easy to follow, it just feels like it's taking a major backseat to everything else. Still, it takes nothing away from the greatness of GOW 3. The puzzles in the game are challenging without being overly so and some of them very clever and ingenious. More than a few I was a bit stumped by. All in all it took me about 10 to 12 hours to roll through this masterpiece. I don't really remember how long it took me to go through each of the first two, so I can't compare length. While a bit short, for my taste, it was still one hell of a magnificent ride! The camera still can't be controlled by the player, but that has never bothered me and I think it was put to even better use this time around. It seems the angles and various shots are Hollywoodesque, if that makes any sense.

Weapons! The Cestus easily steals the show of the several new ones that you'll earn. The Cestus is completely WICKED! The combo moves are spectacular and more so than ever before and you can now swap weapons on the D-pad in the middle of one. When surrounded by a bunch of baddies and knowing you have different button options to pound the pulp out of them is especially gratifying. The use of the bow and arrow is easy and very useful. Very cool shooting the harpies with it and grabbing on to them to further your progress across chasms or to the top of places well out of your reach. I like the fact that now the bow quickly recharges after each use. I love being able to pick up enemies and charge with them, using them as a battering ram on other baddies. Completely awesome! Controlling the cyclops is amazing as well; swinging him around and pulping your enemies is gleefully sadistic. It must be experienced! You level up your health and magic much the same way as the two previous GOW's via feathers, stones, and now, minotaur horns.

The music is excellent! But hasn't the music always been excellent in the series? The voice acting IMHO is top notch. Seems even better than before. The action and pace of the game are relentless. Something new(and amazing) and unique is always happening to keep you glued to the screen; even if it happens only once. There is so much more I could go on talking about with this stunning, amazing, and breathtaking game known as God Of War 3, but I`d be here for a while and then you`d be bored;)

I don't care what genre of games you like or whether or not you even like GOW 3 type games, this is a game that absolutely MUST be experienced. I won't say this is my favorite game of all time, but it's right there at the top with Uncharted 2, Modern Warfare 2, Metal Gear 4, and Resident Evil 4. I don't care if you have to get an extra job(gulp), rob a convenient store(gasp) or steal if off your friend(yeah!) you have got to get this SOON! I've been playing games for 30+ years(since the days of Colecovision) and I've never been this AMAZED by a game! There is so much diversity, so much to see, so much so tightly packed in such a spectacular game that it will make you wonder how they pulled it oof. Folks, the next generation of gaming has arrived and I am stunned, blown away, mesmerized and spellbound by what Sony Santa Monica created. My hat goes off to them for they are a TRULY talented team! Kudos of accolades go to Stig Asmussen for his brilliant direction of this game and for making it so much more than I thought possible.

This seems to be the end of this GOW saga and I hope we'll see more of Kratos in the future, because this is only a scratch on the video game surface of the great things the future could hold for the Ghost of Sparta. I am truly moved!

It's a 10/10 experience!

ARE YOU GOING TO JOIN THE SPARTAN ARMY NOW?

SIDE NOTE(or bottom note) I'm not sure why this game was released earlier than it's scheduled March 16th release date. I had originally preordered GOW 3 on Amazon, but after I found I could get it nearly a week earlier on eBay I cancelled my Amazon pre-order. Not that I'm complaining about any of that. The same thing happened with Modern Warfare 2. I'd like to know how people are getting these games so early. The guy I bought my copy from on eBay said he'd had his copies since March 6th,. He wouldn't elaborate as to where he got them. I received mine on March 11th. I had to pay and arm and a leg for it, but it was worth every dime.

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I have seen my share of games throughout my life. I'm almost 30 years old and video games have been one of my life's greatest hobbies. I have enjoyed playing video games more than anything else. But never did I dreamed more than 15 yrs ago when playing in an Game Gear from Sega that I would experience such a thing.

God of War 3 is simply breathtaking. It is as epic as any movie. It has no equal in the video game world.

The graphics, the music, the superb gameplay everything combines into a massive juggernaut that will rock you to the core. GOW3 deserves its place among the all time greats like Tetris, Super Mario, etc.

In the hack-n-slash genre, it reigns supreme. In the all-time great, it can be debated if it takes the top spot, but no one will leave this game feeling the same.

We live in a truly amazing World where a treasure such as this can be purchased for such a paltry sum.

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I got a PS3 for this game, great investment; reality i am just starting the game, but man in the first chapter is bar none the best graphics i have ever seen in a video game, yes even Uncharted 2 and Mass Effect2 ; and the gameplay is godly smooth, well i will update the review later on , but until now is incredible and awesome, i never thought i will see this types of greatness in my time. Buy it guys , if you dont own a PS3 is about time you get it , you are missing one unique experience.

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+ 5 Bonus Stars For The Blood-Spalttered RAGE Simulator!

BEST GOD OF WAR GAME / BEST PS3 GAME

SONY, we who are about to play, Salute You. For taking a legendary amount of badassedness, and cramming it all in one game. No one else in the market is giving us naked 1080p nipples, just because it's sexy funny. Another game maker would have taken the Greek Mythology idea and given us a PG-13 experience with casual puzzles and no blood. But GOD OF WAR became HARDCORE. You could have dumbed it down like Halo to get super mass market sales... But you stayed true to your Ambition. Because you made this game with your balls, I'm buying it NEW, at LAUNCH, with MONEY. Please accept my cold hard cash, and my thanks. GOD3 is another reason why I'm a Playstation fan-for-life.

HARDCORE FANTASTIC ONE-OF-A-KIND EXPERIENCE!

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Guitar Hero III: Polycarbonite Faceplate Kit

Guitar Hero III: Polycarbonite Faceplate Kit
Customer Ratings: 5 stars
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Sale Price: $14.99
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I have added a photo of three of the other faceplate's to the Amazon photos. After only having this 2 days we have managed to already misplace 2 of them. However if I locate them, I will add a picture of them as well.

They all are made of a glossy paper, about as thick as construction paper. This set comes with 1 clear plastic cover that you use for interchanging each of these paper faceplate's. The plastic cover does not feel flimsy at all. It feels quite thick and well made. Once you have the faceplate's on the guitar, they look great and it makes it look like a whole new guitar. Taking the old plate off and putting these on is very simple and took about 30 seconds. They are a perfect fit and do not interfere with any of the buttons in any way.

I highly recommend these as an affordable way to change up the appearance of you guitar!

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HD Component Cable PS3

HD Component Cable PS3
Customer Ratings: 4 stars
List Price: Price Unavailable
Sale Price: $5.85
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After ordering my cable the package came quick and in a nice secure bubble rap envelope. The product functions as it is advertised and seems durable.

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For the price you pay this cable is amazing. It performs just like brand name cables, but it does feel as though it could be pulled apart, in other words, feels like if pinch or bunched it will short out easily. But for $4 who can complain?

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First off this cable feels very nice. the quality is outstanding, just the feel of it is pleasing. it has no problems the L and R audio cables are kept together with a piece of plastic that can move up and down, this makes it so you dont accidentally plug the the audio into the video. must have. it is something that just you cant go wrong with

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Had some static and some fuzziness with these cables. Sound also was not as crisp than HDMI cables. Seem more flat than stereo

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I tried using this cable on two different PS3's and on two different TV's. Out of the box (er bag), it did not work. So, I gave it 1 star. Then, I did some research and there was a note on a different site regarding using a PS/2 and that the output settings needed to be changed. This made me think that the same could be true for a PS/3. Now here is the Catch-22. You need to be able to turn the PS/3 on and view the settings screen to change the settings. If all you have is the composite input available, then you get a blank screen because the settings have not been changed from HDMI to Composite video output. My HDMI input stopped working which is why I ordered this cable. Luckily, I have another TV with a working HDMI input so I was able to take the PS/3, connect it to another TV using HDMI, then change the settings to use Y, PB, PR to support the composite video. So, if you have no available HDMI, then you may have an issue changing the settings. The resolution is OK but not great. Since this works but is not great, I'm change my rating to three stars.

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Playstation 3 Memory Card Adapter - Use PS2 Memory Cards on Sony PS3

Playstation 3 Memory Card Adapter - Use PS2 Memory Cards on Sony PS3
Customer Ratings: 4.5 stars
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Very nice. Only have one problem with it. It does not come with a cable. But it works with the charging cable for PS3. Does not work with off-brand memory cards. Only Sony and Standard PS2 cards. Very quick transfer. Manual transfer only (had no instructions) Very good overall though, very smooth and quick transfer.

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The ps3 memory card adapter transferred all my ps1 save files with no hang ups or issues. Great product as advertised.

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Transfers ps2 and ps1 memory card data to the ps3 and allows you to save from the ps3 back to your cards if you want... Yes you can load the games to play (ps1/ps2) and pick up right where you left off (on ps3). The only thing I was dissapointed with is that it only works with official Sony memory cards. So make sure you transfer your data (from ps2 or ps1 cards) over to an official card before selling your console. I borrowed my friends ps2 to transfer from my off brand card to official card and then onto the ps3 with no problem : ) There are a few videos on yt that help a lot with understanding how the product works. It creates a virtual "card" on the ps3 and you assign that card to slot 1 or 2 so when you play your ps1 or ps2 games you still select memory card 1 or 2 even though it's now internally stored on the hard drive...

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Appears for a second or two but then disappears, making it almost impossible to copy or move saves around. I was able to copy a playstation 1 save on to the PS3's harddrive after attempting it 12 times. I had to be quick enough to do it before the memory card adapter disappeared. Not sure why it doesn't work or if it's the wrong version but it would otherwise be an immensely useful tool.

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Worked perfectly with no issues, right out of the box. Was concerned when the writing on the packaging was lacking in English text but there were no complications. Transferring data from both PS2 and PS1 memory cards to my PS3 was smooth with no hang-ups. It was affordable and a sturdy device. Unobtrusive as it doesn't occupy much space at all. (It's just bigger than a PS2 memory card)

Used it with a PS3 slim 160GB 4th Generation model.

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Hyperdimension Neptunia (Premium Edition)

Hyperdimension Neptunia
Customer Ratings: 3.5 stars
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Hyperdimension Neptunia is one of those games that I have somewhat mixed feelings about. On one hand, it's got a very clever setting and characters. On the other hand, it's got a lot of reused features from other Idea Factory/Compile Heart games (especially Trinity Universe). It's a game with superb 2D art, and rather mediocre 3D graphics. It's a game that I can't honestly say is a great *game*, but was nevertheless enjoyable enough (read: addicting enough) for me to play through twice and hunt after the game's platinum trophy (which is unusual for me, Neptunia makes only my 2nd platinum).

So what is Hyperdimension Neptunia? It's a turn-based RPG based on console wars. Specifically, each of the current major consoles (+ Sega Neptune) is personified as a Goddess, and each of the Goddesses rules over one of the landmasses in the world -Planeptune, Lastation, Leanbox, and Lowee. And the main antagonist of the game is based on game piracy. Party members -Compa, IF, Nisa*, and Gust* -are the personifications of real life game developers Compile Heart, Idea Factory, Nippon Ichi Software, and Gust. And you can summon old Sega characters during battle. And the world is called Gamindustri. (*Note that Nisa and Gust are both in the game regardless, but aren't *playable* party members unless you buy the DLC. Not a necessary purchase to beat the game, but if you like Prinnies, Nisa may be worth the purchase just so you can check out her Prinny backpack :P)

I'm not making this up. The game really is this ridiculous. But that's honestly part of it's charm. The game is very much a satire of the video game industry itself and those who have familiarity with the industry will find quite a bit to chuckle and laugh at during the game. Final Fantasy references? Check. Gears of War? Check. Mario brothers? Check. Pokemon? Check. Sonic the Hedgehog? Check. Red Ring of Death? Check.

What I found to be particularly outstanding with Neptunia is the localization done by NIS America. While I can't vouch for the accuracy of the translation since I don't speak/read Japanese, I can say that the dialogue in the game just feels spot on. The voice acting in particular I found to be exceptionally good, in large part because the voice actors never quite take themselves too seriously. In a more serious game, this would be a major flaw as it would feel jarring and take us out of the game world, but in Neptunia, this kind of voice acting actually supports the written dialogue and feels much more natural for these characters. It takes a special kind of voice acting to succeed when the characters are actively referencing "party members", "experience points", and "level ups", and Neptunia nails it perfectly. Call me crazy, but I think this is some of the best voice acting for a game I've seen in a long time. In particular, Neptune and Compa have outstanding voice acting in this game, special kudos to their respective voice actresses.

As you've probably figured, there's quite a bit I found to enjoy in Neptunia. But unfortunately, there's a fair share of problems in the game as well, some of which are more forgiveable than others. So let's go through them:

1.) GRAPHICS -for me, this actually isn't a problem, but it might be a concern for some people. Like I mentioned before, the 2D animation in the game is really quite good; the moving, breathing portraits from Trinity Universe return once again and the character portraits look quite nice. The 3D on the other hand is somewhat lacking; we're looking at somewhere between PS2 and low-tier PS3 graphics (again, it is comparable to Trinity Universe).

2.) GAMEPLAY -the basic gameplay uses an AP system -you get a certain number of action points per turn and can use them to perform different types of attacks. There's actually a fair amount of depth here -you can make your own combos in the menu before battle, then you can use combo links, switching between front and back characters, transformation into Goddess mode, elemental attacks, physical/magic attacks, etc. The main problem is that most of the time, there's not really a whole lot of strategy. Once you find a good approach, you can more or less spam that sequence of actions for the rest of the game. A little bit of strategy does come into play during more difficult fights though, as you can choose to Defend rather than use all of your AP -the amount of damage reduced is based on how much AP you had left when you defended. This becomes particularly important...

3.) ...here: HEALING -the healing system is pretty unique. Throughout the game, you can collect different colored potions to utilize during battle. From within the menus, you set up "Item Skills" -skills that trigger with a % chance given certain conditions and use up a fixed number of these potions. You can choose to set up these skills however you want -distributing more points into one improves the % chance of it occuring. Using these skills are the ONLY way to heal during dungeons. And these can ONLY be done DURING a battle. Not after a battle. And that makes this both good and bad. On one hand, it does add a bit of extra strategy, as you may need to be a little more clever about how you defend. On the other hand, it does get incredibly frustrating to beat a fight with a little health left only to die against the next enemy because you couldn't heal.

4.) TRINITY UNIVERSE LITE -this game is pretty similar to Trinity Universe. They're both turn-based, AP-based RPGs with silly stories; they use the same style of portraits and cutscenes; they even share a number of enemy models and dungeon interiors. And while Neptunia has some new gameplay features that I think have the potential to be interesting, they definitely need to be fine tuned some more. What's more, Trinity Universe seemed to have a better, more complex battle system -Neptunia's does seem simpler; additionally, Trinity Universe definitely has more content. So if you want something different, this may not be the best of games to pick.

And yet despite all of this, I love this game. I'm eagerly hoping for NIS America to localize the recently announced Neptunia Mk. 2 (coming to Japan this August, so we'll probably see it sometime next year). The gameplay for Neptunia does admittedly need work, and as I said before, it may not be a great game in the strictest definition of the word, but it is fun. I definitely don't regret purchasing this game, and if NISA localizes the 2nd game, I'll be buying that on day 1 for sure. "I choose you, Compiffytune!" :D

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Runaway favorite for "game with the strangest name" for 2011, Hyperdimension Neptuina is sequel-in-spirit to 2010's Trinity Universe, with the same combat and exploration systems. We do have plenty of differences, though...

First thing most will notice is the unusual setting-literally called Gamindustri, during a troubled time in its history, The Console Wars. Yes, really. Accordingly, different continents are all wordplay relating to the current generation of consoles. There are a lot of overall concepts and ongoing themes through the game like this, where there's no real impact on the game itself, but fans of series or persons that know some video game history will get a bit more out of it. Really, I have to give credit for piecing the game world up this way, as being something never really attempted before. Boldness often leads to good things!

Another quirk you'll spot quickly is that all the protagonist party characters are named after the studios and development companies involved in the game's creation. Again, extremely cute, extremely silly. For added irony, the group plays itself out to be a stereotypical RPG adventuring group, completely ignoring the so-called Fourth Wall in games. Logic such as "once you join the party you can never leave" and "I bet that NPC has lower stats than me so let's beat her up" apply. Constant references to all things gaming: culture, stereotypes, common expressions, "blogs" written by higher-up villains, and tons more. It's more than any one person could spot on their own.

Right, so the setting is unlike anything really seen before, has undeniable humor and charm, and gives a pretty open slate. What about the actual gameplay, you ask? This is where things take a tumble. How much of a tumble really depends on what experience you're looking for. This game is in no way developed with the "serious gamer" in mind. One could enjoy it, but more for completion purposes than soaking in the game experience. It's extremely lighthearted, with a non-linear relaxed pace, generally slow combat speed and relatively low difficulty. Combat is based on setting up skill combinations, though it must be done manually from a menu and adjusted often as you learn more abilities. Still with me? Read on.

With the slower battle pace, things can get extremely boring. Well, either boring or time consuming, or both. Sure, you can perform a flashy attack and combo, if you don't mind some attack animations in the 10+ second range, and mostly repeat. In the end, it's by far easiest and most effective to repeatedly use a character's strongest attack, which results in near button-mashing to get through a fight. There is one work-around on the time consumption; pressing L2 will skip the current animation and greatly speed up battles, though its liberal use merely means even more continuous button-mashing, and you'll see no action at all even in a big fight.

There's just a layer of depth that's missing to add true variety. One common activity is a dungeon "time attack" to perform a certain task, and though that sounds simple enough, liberal use of L2 is basically required for a good score; The game rather contradicting itself. I'll again emphasize that for the most casual player all of the above is not the worst thing.

Standard RPG item use system for cures and the like? Does not exist, and very frustrating. ALL forms of curing or recovery are performed via certain "item skill" triggers that the player sets up a percentage chance of a character using if conditions are met. Simplest being to set "use cure item at 50% HP", akin to Final Fantasy XII's gambit system, but you're limited on allocation points such that it's often not possible to resurrect someone, or you just have a random chance to, or can only perform this at higher levels. In defense, with the relatively low difficulty this might not feel particularly vital, but it's still quite annoying.

I'd like to comment again on the target audience, with the game presented. On one side, one might make the point that it's but 'fanservice' to the usual audience with its 100% all-female cast. However, I'd far more make the case that the game is an attempt to attract the more casual gamer and women as players. Although one might assume an all-female cast would be a field day for "normal" RPG shenanigans of animations and pictures, at no point is sex appeal really pushed to get a reaction from the player. Quite the opposite-the characters are dressed very moderately and have extremely "normal" appearances (for an RPG) for the most part. Though I give high marks for the efforts in this area, I feel that the game on the whole suffered a bit in trying to find a balance that would try to please everyone.

Still, it is good fun, and good laughs. The story is pretty shallow, but as it's driven mostly by humor and RPG stereotypes it hardly matters. Graphics are a bit garbled, but it has no effect on the game itself. Fans of other games in the ongoing Gust/NIS/Idea Factory/Compile Heart series of games will likely be content to play Neptunia assuming they walk in with fairly low expectations, and I'll be bold to say that those that are curious about the genre might pick this as a place to jump in because of the attempted accessibility. It's rare for me on a 3-of-5 review, but I've got to say that because of the slower pace and humor, this could be a good chance for new players to hop into the genre.

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I'll try to sum this game up in a sentence: This is an ultra-flashy, fully professionally voice acted (Cristina Vee is even in this in a major role!), tongue-in-cheek manga-style RPG crammed full of lolis and fanservice, along with a storyline which is a metaphor for the current-gen console wars that is designed to be humorous, and it succeeds, and every main character knows they're part of a video game. If that sounds good to you, then you will love this game, because there is nothing so bad as to be deal-breaking if that sounds appealing to you.

It's funny, the combat is great and incredibly over-the-top flashy, written with beautiful grace and excellent humor, and there's nothing particularly wrong with it, and tons to like. They don't make a lot of games like this, and it's a real treat to take it all in. It's rare we'd get something like this in the States, so it's a blessing that it's here, and it's been treated and localized wonderfully. I have no problems whatsoever with the ever-talented NIS treatment of it.

There are a few problems that should be noted, in case these happen to be total deal-breakers for you in anything. One, battles are, unfortunately, random. No visible enemies here; you get random encounters. On the bright side, dungeons are extremely short, often under ten minutes long, so this isn't too bad a problem. Still, it does mean you'll have to fight monsters that are pointless to fight once in a while, and who you'll blow away easily. Also, there's a skip button for any given attack in battle, which will make combat fly by. Another thing worth noting is that the main story tends to preamble before getting into the real thing. There's a lengthy sequence between Neptune and two other characters who you will not use later on. Still, this section is not boring, and both characters have character (one is voiced by the always-entertaining Cristina Vee) and their own brand of humor to go along with all of it. This may not bother you at all, since in the end, this is a game that's supposed to be humorous above all else, so the fact that you spend a good chunk of time with two fairly useless characters might not bother you. IF and Compa, your companions for a while, are funny and entertaining, and voiced by talented actresses. They are by no means throwaways, but they are definitely outclassed by the major characters that will join your party later on, since neither IF nor Compa has any transformation or super mode of any kind, making them kind of pointless. Neptune, the main character, will completely dominate the battlefield while these characters are in your party (even moreso if you snag the DLC, and battles become laughably easy once you learn Neptune Break, your first major skill that is given a massive power boost if done while transformed).

One thing worth mentioning is that the healing/item system in this game is excellently done. In most RPGs, you heal your characters with a spell and waste a turn doing so, only to have them get damaged just as much again, forcing you to repeat the process. Healing and buff spells work differently in this game, in that they are automatically triggered under certain conditions; for instance, having under 50% HP might trigger the use of an item that heals your character. These are called "item skills", because you aren't actually using items so much as you're using materials. There are only a few types of "essences" that make up items. When you gain an item skill, you can use those essences to trigger effects. For instance, one might cost 5-25-25-5, that much of each respective essence (just as a random example). When these are triggered, you do not lose your turn, and will even happen when it is not your turn so you heal instantly, should it be triggered. I found this to be an excellent system, as it removed the need to use buff or healing spells yourself, instead making it an automated process you customize yourself. Keep in mind, this game has no form of SP, MP, or anything of the sort. There is only HP and AP, the latter determining how much you are allowed to do per turn. AP is not used during healing or buffing, only during attacking.

The bottom line is that this game is a Godsend for me. It's hilarious, the characters are designed with individual character, the voice acting is excellent, and the battle mechanics and game world all work as they should, and in some ways even better, as the automated healing is a beautiful touch. I enjoy the hell out of this game, and if you believe the premise is interesting, chances are, you'll feel the same.

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I have been pretty critical of the download of RPGs published by NIS, which has ranged from merely mediocre (Atelier Rorona, Trinity Universe) to downright stinky (Cross Edge, Last Rebellion). For PS2, NIS was one of my favorite publishers, bringing great games like Disgaea and Phantom Brave. But this generation? Well, I liked Disgaea 3, at least.

However, I respect the tactic. Clearly, the JRPG is a forgotten genre on the PS3, with big budget titles like Final Fantasy XIII disappointing, and smaller titles being wooed to Microsoft. NIS sees a hole in the industry, and they have capitalized. I have no doubt that this quantity of time-wasters has been profitable for them, and it has certainly been a boon to the fanboys of these games, so while I often haven't been impressed in the least, I can't fault their spirit or business acumen.

However, finally, I have found a game that I have enjoyed from beginning to platinum-end. No, it's not a perfect game, but it's fun and relaxing. "Hyperdimension Neptunia" is the first title that has made me want to continue playing beyond one or two hours at a time. It tells a good story. It has a simplistic but satisfactory battle system. The aesthetic is generally agreeable. What more could I ask from a budget title (I picked this up for thirty bucks at a rival competitor).

THE GOOD:

Story I really like the story in this game. It's not fall-over funny, but the idea of game consoles being protected by busty goddesses fighting a war is just too good to pass up. However, more than the main theme of the story, I like its development. During conversations, numerous game references are dropped. It's fun to try to guess what game they are referencing before you're told. I could do with less talk about boobs, or diarrhea, but all in all, I enjoyed the trip as much as the destination.

Battle A lot of people have complained about battle in this one. I am not going to be one of them. I like the simplified battle of Hyperdimension Neptunia. The battles boil down to button mashing (which gets a little old, I'll grant), where particular button configurations set off pre-set combos to attack the enemy. Battle is generally very easy (more so, since you can essentially attack AND defend at the same time), but it's not unsatisfying. Moreover, THERE IS NO GRINDING! Most of your leveling will come from defeating bosses or "special" enemies (AKA Cliones). You can fight regular battles if you want, to the tune of a few thousand experience points (even at high levels), or you can fight a single Clione for...2,000,000 experience points! I can't tell you how satisfying it is to play a JRPG that doesn't rely on hours of nonsensical grinding.

Trophies Finally, a JRPG that gets it right! Most trophies are based on the story. They take time, but you want to get all of the content out of the game, right? Of the three or so that require particular actions, they are embarrassing, but mostly easy. I hate that there is a trophy that rewards you for incompetence (you have to revive a dead party member 20 times, e.g.). But generally, your trophies require you to see certain events in the story. It's certainly much better than getting 900 battle trophies in Star Ocean.

Be warned there are missable trophies, which is always an annoyance.

THE BAD:

No Overworld this game screams for an overworld. I know that such things are out of vogue now, but in a game that wishes to explain the difference between multiple planets (each related to a particular console), it would be much nicer to actually move through the world, rather than getting a single, mostly-still image of the world. I can't really tell the difference between Leanbox (supposedly a medieval world) and Lowee (supposedly a fantasy world). I could if I was actually traveling through the world.

Repetitive Dungeons For the huge number of dungeons you will face throughout the course of this game, you'd think they'd make the templates marginally interesting. Nope these are reminiscent of those dungeons from early 1st Person RPGs. Long tunnels which move only N-S or E-W. Boring, boring, boring. Thankfully, they are mostly short.

Repetitive Monsters I like that there is a huge number of monsters in this game...sort of. The problem is, there are really only about 10 monsters, each with 10 palette swaps. What's worse is that you have a bestiary, but it doesn't even bother to describe the monster. Some monsters with different names actually have the exact same look. Come on you could have done better. Or at least, could you have put the Bestiary in alphabetical order?

But anyway, I'm nitpicking. I actually think this game is a step above some of the other dreck that NIS has given us. It must have done marginally well it's getting a sequel, after all. If you like this sort of game, I think you'll like this one. That's the first time I've said this in a while.

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This game is a excellent choice for those people who enjoy and have the patience to level up and unlock things Slowly. My thought is that this game is great. I love Story line and it has great animation. if you are wondering if you should buy this game i recommend you do. But this game isn't a RPG game like Skyrim. It has a third person view (which is fine with me and is normal) and you can set the language they speak to Japanese or English. The sub text is always English but for those who are buying this and only know how to read japanese (of course i think there is a japanese version of this game..) can set it to japanese but the sub title will not change. The game is a story line where you pick up more comrades to defeat monsters. To be honest im not sure if this is a game a 25 year old person would enjoy.. The graphics are nice no bugs for me. I have had no freezes are memory deletion. Overall This Game is Excellent. (for me) And if you are thinking of buying this its totally worth it.

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Dual Triggers for Playstation 3 PS3- Blue

Dual Triggers for Playstation 3 PS3- Blue
Customer Ratings: 2 stars
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The top of the triggers where it attaches cracked after a month. Eventually a week of use later it broke off. I used super glue to salvage it. Maybe it'll last another week. Don't get unless you want to pay $5 a month for new ones. At least it looks nice. Only reason I got it because it's a nice blue color. Get the black ones by PDP.

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The Idolm@ster 2

The Idolm@ster 2
Customer Ratings: 4.5 stars
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I watched the videos on youtube for months before actually having an opportunity to own the game on PS3. Glad I bought it! Prepare to fork out SERIOUS cash for the DLC, though. Roughly each month at least $50 worth of stuff gets released... yeeeeah. If you get too sucked in, you'll be spending hundreds on DLC alone. You've been warned...

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The menus for this game and dialogue options are in Japanese as are the options so I wouldn't exactly call this English import friendly. However, with a bit of help from the wikis you can figure out the basic way to play this game.

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Disney Sing It: High School Musical 3 Bundle with Microphone

Disney Sing It: High School Musical 3 Bundle with Microphone - Playstation 3
Customer Ratings: 5 stars
List Price: $29.99
Sale Price: $16.88
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My daughter and her friends (9yrs old) love this and all the Sing It games, I think we own them all. This is the second bundle pack I bought so she could have two mics. I have read many reviews about how the mics you buy separately cannot be used with the Sing It games.

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Loads of fun. I have seen a HUGE improvement in my daughter's singing ability. The kids love to sing and jump and dance..........I love to watch.

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Beowulf: The Game

Beowulf: The Game - Playstation 3
Customer Ratings: 3.5 stars
List Price: $19.99
Sale Price: $19.00
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I originally bought this game because of its price and because I really liked Beowulf the movie. I was actually really surprised when I started playing the game. It starts off with giant sea serpents that you have to fight and that is a great way to start the game. It shows you a glimpse of what is to come. From there, the game just got more fun. This is a nice hack em up kind of game. The graphics are decent, but not like most PS3 games like Uncharted or Motorstorm. The gameplay is fun, but some of the puzzles can be confusing at times.

All in all, this is a great game and for only $20, you got nothing to lose. If you liked the movie, you will like this game.

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The only reason I picked up this game was because of the $19.99 price tag and the need for some hack 'n slash before God of War 3 (and chains of Olympus) comes out. Beowulf is not a bad game, but it's certainly not a very innovative title. The graphics are on par with a good PS2 game. Some of the controls are a little awkward. Learning the combos is easy (pretty simple button mashing). Beowulf is capable of fighting with "carnal fury", which is a state where he becomes very powerful and can inflict intense damage for a period of time. He can also give commands to his Thanes (army of buddies). The games uses contextual button presses during boss battles and certain sequences. That can be a little frustrating at times. If you don't time your button presses just right, you either die or have to start over. It seems to me that Ubisoft tried to rush this game out to coincide with the release of the film, and it shows. It needs more polish, but what do you expect for $19.99?

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I bought this game from amazon for about 17 bucks. It was my 2nd ps3 game and it was a great deal. The graphics are not spectacular, people got that right, but the gameplay is really fun and it is a decent slash game. The only part i disliked was the really repetitive mission where you are in mother grendel's lair and you need to refuse her sexual "come-ons." That was really annoying, playing that part 3 or 4 times in one run through isnt too cool. Other than that its a great game and there is alot of hacking if you are into that kind of stuff. I recommend it for a cheap game and also for quite a bit of fun.

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Now, you may have seen this game rated in the worst 10 games of the year by a popular game review site...I have played MANY games and have been an avid gamer since the days of the Timex Sinclair, before there were console games. I have to disagree with the view that this is a bad game, and has nothing innovative. This game was a lot of fun for me, I played through it twice on both difficulties, and am currently writing a walkthrough for it, since I couldn't find any.

The storyline, having one of the great works of literature to pull from, is quite rich. This is bolstered by a wonderful cast of voice actors, including Anthony Hopkins, Ray Winstone, Brendan Gleeson and Sebastien Roche. If you think this doesn't matter...think again. These guys do a wonderful job, and elevated my game play experience considerably. Not to mention, it makes the cinematic cut scenes spectacular, and welcome (I usually hate cut scenes!)

The game starts out with a tutorial, which is quite boring, and actually requires you to die to obtain one of your characters attribute(carnal Fury)The end of the tutorial introduces you to one of the coolest aspects of the game...the inspiration command. You control up to 12 subordinates, and at certain times they require direction or inspiration. Inspiration is a fun system where you need to press buttons in time, something like playing an instrument in a song. The game also has a nice struggle system, which requires you to button mash in a sometimes random sequence. This is how you will finish off most of the bosses in the game. The game also has a cool rock climbing system where you can swing several times to gain momentum, and super jump.

The actual combat system is a bit under whelming, with few combo moves, but you can also grab, throw, crush or disarm your enemies with the struggle system. The weapons do break often, but the ability to steal your opponents weapon is nice, and there's always a weapon close by in debris or on a rack. There's a nice trophy system for the PS3 or 1000 achievements for the Xbox360.

The scenery is beautiful, and the game will take around 7-10 hours on your first play through, though an experienced player can finish in under 4. This game, while you probably won't spend hundreds of hours playing it, is a great value for under $20 dollars. The way I see it, if you spend 8 bucks to rent it...why not spend a few more bucks and own it? Just don't judge the game by the tutorial, it gets more fun as the game goes on. I would give it an 80 out of 100. If your fan of the film, or the poem, I think you will enjoy it...certainly worth 20 bucks!

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For $20 this game is awesome. The graphics are desent and the story line is more complete then the movie.

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Thor: God of Thunder

Thor: God of Thunder - Playstation 3
Customer Ratings: 3 stars
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Ignore what some of the professional reviewers say about this game. It is NOT the worst game of the year. If anything, it was the most over hyped game of 2011, but the hype came from the same critics that hated it later on. Mostly because it didn't live up to their own hype.

Yes, there is button mashing to the game. And yes, the cut scenes are generally left in the 3D mode, so they seem a little blurry. But they are surprisingly short for cut scenes these days, and are easily ignored if you don't want to look at them. Granted, the story wasn't as good as the movie. But you aren't watching the movie, you're playing a story made for a game. BIG difference.

Let's break all of this down. First off, the button mashing. The designers seemed (at least to me), to acknowledge that there is a fan base for Thor beyond the movie. For those that don't know, the character is over 40 years old. He has his traditional comic book version (the 616 world Thor), the Ultimate version (the universe the Marvel movies are based on), the Dimension X series, as well as the movie variant.

If the designers went with any one of those versions, there would have been fans complaining. So they obviously (at least to me), tried to meld them together to some degree. This still didn't satisfy the fanboys out there, since they can only tolerate one version of a character. The one that THEY want.

This amalgam also led to some button mashing. The programmers wanted to give Thor as many of his powers as they could. I remember when the trailers for the game came out. Certain TV critics on a cable show raved about how Thor should be a powerful character, and the trailer made it seem like he would be. Then the game came out, and they complained that Thor not only had all of these powers (the button mashing), but that he started off too weak for them. Yet if the programmers started him off at full power, the same critics would have said he was too powerful, making the game too easy.

Finally, the story. If you made the game an exact transcript of the game, then the critics would have complained that the game was only two hours. Not worth $60. So the design team stretched it out, and gave you more to do. They turned the character(s) into a game version, and gave you more to do with Thor. What was their reward? Being compared to virtually EVERY RPG out there. Yet, when their favorite series come out with a "new" game, they can over look the fact that every war game is basically you, as the good guy, killing off all of the enemies and winning the war. Every dungeon crawler tends to be you trying to avenge a fallen king (friend or mentors may also be used). In the end, you kill off all the evil in the world, and either become the new ruler, or marry the former kings daughter to become the heir.

Buy Thor. Play it, enjoy it. And if you have a 3D TV, all the better. Just don't let all of the jaded fanboy critics out there deprive you of a game that really isn't as bad as they say it is. Just as the movie was a "popcorn" movie, that you go to see, have fun, and move on with your life, the game is a fun, play it once, and move on with your life game. You won't be playing it for years to come, but if you get it on sale, you will get your money's worth from it.

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Thor: God of Thunder is a movie tie-in game that could of been very unique and fun but instead turns out to be a very bad clone of God of War mixed with some The Force Unleashed (in my opinion). While I do not own a physical copy of Thor I was given the opportunity to play through the game by a friend and in doing so I was glad I did not purchase the title, despite being a big fan of Thor.

GAMEPLAY

This is one of the major problem this game has in my opinion. What we have here is a bad clone of God of War mixed with a little The Force Unleashed style gameplay. I enjoyed both titles and the hack and slash style of gameplay. However, Thor's execution of this gameplay style was poorly implemented. After the first hour of smashing and electrocuting mobs I began to notice there is very little in the way of enemy variety or reason to even use your combos. Just mashing attack is often good enough (on normal difficulty setting) to get past most mobs with the occasional need to perform a simple combo attack to break a mob's armor and such. Like in God of War, when you kill mobs you will get experience points pretty much and can use them on a grid to level Thor's abilities up. The grid I felt was easy to use despite having a complex look to it. Included in the gameplay are numerous bugs that plague the title. Animation glitches, sound glitches, bad dialogue, poor physics engine the list goes on. While the problems are not game breaking, they are annoying and some of the bugs I ran into were down right inexcusable to have in a game. ( Next objective did not load for me twice during my playthrough. Restarting at the last checkpoint/save resolved it ). My biggest gripe about the gameplay is the poor execution of the grapple. Sometimes you will get the grapple notification and I would grapple the mob only to have the mob "automatically" counter my grapple and throw me away. It seemed completely random and I never could figure out why the enemy was able to just randomly counter me(could of been a PS3 bug as it didn't happen nearly as much on the 360).

GRAPHICS

I would say the graphics in this game are lacking. In fact early 360/PS3 or perhaps almost PS2/Xbox level at times. At times it felt like the Remastered God of War II where they took a 480p game and remastered it in 720p. It looked nice but you can tell something wasn't right. There are plenty of graphical hiccups throughout the game including a funny moment where Thor's cap actually rendered backwards and he was walking around with his cape over his chest for about 5 minutes. Don't expect mind blowing graphics from this title pretty much.. however the game is 3D capable. I was not able to test this feature out however due to a lack of a 3DTV.

SOUND/STORY

When it comes to music and sound effects I would say they are fair. The game uses the actors from the movie so there is some care and thought put into the dialogue, even if it was sometimes very cheesy. Game sound effects were not bad either but seemed to lack some power/muscle to them at times. STORY wise, this is a movie tie-in game which technically does not follow the movie. In a way this is good since it tries to be its own entity while using the movie actors and voices. However the storyline is very shallow and is essentially there to give you a reason to move to the next room of bad guys to smash.

REPLAY/LENGTH

It took me about 7-8 hours to beat the game on the standard difficulty setting (Midguardian). Throughout the game you will find various bosses to slay and of course hidden collectibles. The placement and nature of the collectibles reminds me a bit of The Force Unleashed here as these collectibles will unlock additional costumes, colors for Thor's lightning, etc. The added replay value here really isn't in the gameplay or storyline... but that these collectible items have DIFFICULTY REQUIREMENTS. Some of the collectibles you will be unable to pick up unless you are playing on the proper difficulty.

OVERALL F (58%)

Sadly I have to give THOR 1 star (an F rating in my book). The game is plagued with problems, and feels a bit like a fancy PS2 / Xbox title trying to mimic God of War II but left off much of what made that game fun. Is Thor: God of War a horrible game that should be avoided like the Lunchroom Meatloaf? No. It is a game that just has many problems and feels rushed and badly executed. Playing through the game, you can feel and even see the potential for a great game here that could of even brought some unique aspects into the genre but instead just got thrown out there to capitalize on the movie. With that said I feel Thor: God of Thunder is the kind of game that is perfect as a weekend RENTAL

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Let's be honest. I've played the game... but not played it all the way through to the end. So, as a result, my review may somewhat seem a little bit premature, but I sincerely doubt it. The reasons are numerous: The graphics belong to a game of 7-8 years old. The dialogue, cheesy... The fight/action sequences, reminiscent of Mortal Kombat games, combos and such... Player interface, poor and old-fashioned... Screen mechanics/layouts, those that have been used many times past, no innovation there. All in all, nothing new, nothing exciting. Just go, go, go, fight, fight, fight...

To be fair, I will come back and edit this entry in a positive light if I do find anything new or exciting along the way, if this game gives me something to be thrilled about. Otherwise, this entry will stay as it is.

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You know that rule about comic book movie adaptations that have really bad tie-in video games? Yeah, that's in full effect with Thor: God of Thunder. From the same crew that was behind Sega's two Iron Man games (and the upcoming Captain America game), Thor puts you in the boots of the titular God of Thunder as he takes on Frost Giants and other assorted baddies, in a style that is pretty much a quasi-God of War ripoff. That in itself would only make the game monotonous, but combine that with the dated graphics engine (it looks like an early PS2 game), buggy gameplay, and horrible controls, and you have a game that is flat out atrocious. Actors Chris Hemsworth and Tom Hiddleston, who portray Thor and Loki respectively in the film, sound like they're both half asleep, and the game as a whole feels like it was so rushed out of the gate that it comes off as being unfinished. Avoid.

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This game has so many problems.

First is that it seems like it takes the game about 3/4seconds to respond to certain commands. I feel like this gets worse as the game goes along, especially with the need to grapple and press button combinations in a fight sequence. But even a simple walk+jump together and Thor walks off the edge of something.

Which brings me to #2 level design. Most of the time what to do or where to go is confusing. Part of it stems from the fact that Thor can only jump about as high as I can (forget that he can fly). But the camera views don't seem to move behind the avatar at all. Instead the camera is far away looking down at you and a wall and any attempt to look towards the camera view is pointless. So if you need to go up or over or something other than what's right in front of you, forget it. As you are trying to jump from here to there, the camera might angle or pan for no apparent reason and suddenly you're falling and hero rescue kicks in and you can do it like a hundred times while cursing the poor level design and camera and lagging controls.

#3 This game isn't fun. It should be fun to be Thor, there should be really cool combos. There should be bodies bouncing all over the screen. Instead Thor is phenomenally weak. It takes him a hundred hits to kill most monsters. The combos to do it are awful. The grappling is lame.

Some people have mentioned other games. Force Unleashed had some button combos, but the timing to press the button seemed long enough and the icon was big unlike the tiny ones in Thor and the buttons actually seemed to respond when you pressed them. That game you could do a bunch of different force powers, push pull explode lighting throw saber, any number of ways to mix it up. This game is just so bad. It isn't fun to kill things at all. I feel like the easy guys are maybe too easy and then the bosses are for some reason overly complicated. It'd be nice if there was more divisions of easy, medium, medium hard, hard, difficult and there was a understandable reason for each and maybe a unique sort of mindset to tackle each kind. There isn't any kind of thought process like that.

What amazes me is how not current the game play is in this game. With games like Drake's Fortune with really good camera and controls and hint system, to Darksiders fun story good leveling, even Halo with grunts and chiefs different weapons and everything in between to mix it up. This game has no thought. None. And all the other problems just make it worse. I'm really disappointed.

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PlayStation 3 Call of Duty: Black Ops PrecisionAIM Controller

PlayStation 3 Call of Duty: Black Ops PrecisionAIM Controller
Customer Ratings: 2.5 stars
List Price: $49.99
Sale Price: $44.99
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I'll start off by saying I never write reviews for any products I purchase, but I feel compelled to write a review for my fellow gamers out there seeing as there are hardly any reviews for the PS3 Black Ops PrecisionAim Controller.

The controller looks and feels great. The design and graphics are really top notch. I'll even go as far as saying it feels better than a stock PS3 Dualshock controller in your hands. The L2/R2 triggers are way better than Sony's triggers and they should take a page from MadCatz book in terms of the trigger design. The red glow illuminating the analog sticks gives the controller a nice touch.

Now on to the most important aspect of the controller. How does it handle during gameplay? The analog sticks actually perform very well when they want to work. Due to the included 'lag free' (lol) usb dongle this isn't the case. The analog sticks themselves don't really have any dead zones, but it's the connection between the controller and dongle wherein lies the problem. The connection isn't always consistent therefore causing a jagged flow to the movement you're trying to accomplish on the screen. If the connection would have been wired like its Xbox360 counterpart perhaps the translation from analog sticks to screen would've been smoother. Another missed opportunity was the placement of the (2) combat buttons on the back of the controller. The buttons work great if you have really small hands. I almost have to bend my fingers on the back of the controller in a crab shape in order to even get near the buttons. They should have been placed lower so as to provide a more comfortable, ergonomic position for the way you grasp the controller.

Overall, I wouldn't recommend this controller as the key features didn't really come together as I hoped. We all know if you're looking at this controller it's because you want an edge in most probably a FPS game. This isn't the controller for that added edge. Unfortunately, it was a missed opportunity and not by that much. Take it from me, as I look for every edge I can take as I have Tritton AX720 Digital Gaming Headset and Gunnar Optiks S6126/2-C004 Catalyst Shredder Digital Performance Eyewear with i-AMP Lens Technology (Crimson) for long gaming sessions and hearing all the small audio details that escape regular TV speakers.

Hope the review helps anyone that's on the fence right now. FYI: Don't bother trying the Pro EX Controller for PS3 it's worse than the Black Ops controller (really big dead zones).

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Ok i've read alot of reviews about how much people hate it, but i thought why not and bought this controller and so far im glad i did! i overall really enjoy the controller but i dont absolutely love it. Pros: Size this controller is PERFECT for me its pretty much a bigger dual shock 3, another pro is the "combat buttons" they are located on the back where your fingers lay what the combat buttons do is they can be set to certain buttons on the front i.e. the left combat button can be used as L3, square, triangle and LP,while the right can be used as R3, X , circle and Rp, they also can slow down the aiming speed for better accuracy , but i dont use it so its more of an "extra" the final pro for me was the price tag i got it used, like new for $26 not bad. Cons: the 3 main cons i have are it has to use a dongle, no sixaxes, and the last complaint is some lag not enough regret buying but enough to miss a perfect shot. all in all its a near perfect controller but what third party controller is? For me its Great. *UPDATE* 2 WEEKS LATER its broke so i fed it to the trash can...

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Received the controller today and gave it a whirl on Medal of Honour, as Black ops is still a week or so away. Anyways the look of the controller is top notch, the artwork looks great and the red LED glow from the base of the stick is again very pleasing to the eye, especially at night.

I found no lag from the wireless controller, as some seem to think you might get,and the general build quality seems sturdy. The sticks are responsive, very much the same if not better than the stock controller. Shoulder triggers also feel abit grippier.

For the cons, the way I hold the controller, I feel the combat buttons are alittle low. Its not a bad thing as I am happy with them, just if the buttons we bigger, or oval in shape they might work alittle better. The Precision Aim isnt a big winner. Yes it slows the right stick down when the combat button is pressed but its to slow, unless your lining up a target on the other side of the map. The good thing though is you can remap the combat buttons on the fly so at least they dont go to waste. The D-Pad is also not as good as the stock controller so for anything D-pad dependent I wouldnt recommend it.

Overall I am happy with it, going to be a good addition to the PS3 and its seems to be built to last. If you like the look and keen to spend the money on a controller that isnt stock standard, I would recommend this all the way.

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So i Found this remote at my Best buy store. I was sold on how cool it looks. After i came here and read all the bad reviews and issues with this controller. I must say the feel and looks on the controller is beyond expectations. I got mine and I tried it out under these conditions.1 ) my computer was off. I did not have any 2.4 gh equipment runing in the house at that moment. The uSB Hub had a diret and clear view of the controller...and my controller had no lag or any problem. The issue is when I had it in my back the signal would become choppy. Beyond that i was happy with it. However my controller had a side pad that was loose and rattled, so the next morning i took it back in exchange for a new one that would not rattle. I was content with this change. Here are the bad news. Tonight i try the new remote (the not rattling one), my computer is on this time with a clear view between the USB HUB and my controller and now i can't play anything because of this huge lag. The controller went from 5 to 1 star instantly. I need to be able to play as my wife uses the computer. THIS IS CRAP. I don't know if the first controller was the exception to the online reviews but under other wreless devices it just won't cut it.

MadCatz do something better and try it out before you put it in the stores. IT'S NOT THAT HARD!!

I ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,will take it back and it will stay in the store this time!!!

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I purchased this controller....simply because of its name "Black Ops PrecisionAIM Controller". I consider myself to be very very good in the game and in order to play the game good, you need a controller that responds to your finger fast. This controller has the worst LAG I have every seen. I read tons of reviews that also mentioned this lag, but dumb me...I went ahead and purchased it anyway! Within the last year, I've purchased over 4 different controllers looking for that "perfect" one. This is the only controller that is absolutely horrible. Do yourself a favor, don't buy this controller.

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NEW Singularity PS3 (Videogame Software)

NEW Singularity PS3
Customer Ratings: 3 stars
List Price: Price Unavailable
Sale Price: $31.89
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If you are a fan of shooters then you will love this game. It has a very good story, graphics are very good, but maybe a bit linear in the way you progress. I stopped at the first "Boss". More than I could deal with. I am not a fan of shooters but decided to give this a try seeing as how I had bought it. It was fun and kept me more interested than frustrated til the first Boss. That is when the frustration kicked in and I said enough. For thise of you who like this sort of thing, you will like it. FDor you folks that think it's an action RPG, it isn't, it's a shooter.

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Where the Wild Things Are: The Videogame

Where the Wild Things Are: The Videogame - Playstation 3
Customer Ratings: 4.5 stars
List Price: $19.99
Sale Price: $14.98
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Usually I never go out of my way to buy role playing video games, I like simple games that keep me entertained. Usually the rock band and guitar hero games and gta iv do that perfectly for me but I decided to take a chance on this. I was mainly attracted to the cover and how it reminded me of the book so I went with it. Next thing you know I'm almost on Chapter 2! The game has a bunch of mini movies in it which are a nice addition since the gameplay seems to get repetitive following around a wild thing for awhile but it goes by pretty fast. I would recommend this for a family. Definitely not for any hardcore gamers. It reminds me a little bit of Batman Arkaham Asylum but way more kid friendly and easier.

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I will admit that I liked the movie and am on a quest to get related items before they are discontinued. If this was not a "Where the Wild Things Are" item, I would have passed over this.

The game is simple. Playing as Max, you'll navigate the island on a set path by running, jumping, and climbing, squish bugs with your scepter, collect items for the Wild Things, and unlocking secret places in the Village. A player can also achieve trophies; I am sure there are Xbox360 Achievements to be earned as well. The game does not follow the movie; apparently, the island is being destroyed. I have not progressed too far into the game to know much else.

All in all, this game is very simplistic. It reminded me of Playstation 1 games like "Klonoa" or "Spyro", to name a few. The controls are not too difficult to learn. The left analouge stick controls Max while the right controls the camera. The X,Square, Triangle, and Circle are all actions like jump, swing scepter, hug Wild Thing (for health), slide, or interact. A single shoulder button is used to make Max dance.

The camera is a bit dodgy, though. While you can make it rotate around Max, it doesnt always help. Itll get stuck if an obstacle is blocking its path. Sometimes the camera will be off center which makes you control Max right off a fallen tree or miss a jump. All in all, this game is easy and enjoyable.

The instruction booklet is laid out well and easy to follow.

The sounds of the island are good and the voices are similar to that of the movie.

The graphics of the game are good for a unpublicized game. Carol's fur seems to look a bit funny.

A bonus for this game is that a coupon worth $7.50 is included. This coupon is for a free ticket to see "Where the Wild Things Are" at a participating theater. The game came out before the movie. The coupon expires December 1, 2009.

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Pros-

Spyro like game play

Like the movie and book

Easy trophies

Fun

Cons-

Constant button mashing and blocking

1 basic attack

Too repetitive

Kid game? on hard it gave me a constant challenge

Your hands will hurt and your head will hurt, but is it worth a rent, yes. 1 play though and its enough for me.

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You know what's funny? The game version of Where the Wild Things Are is better than the movie. It actually has a plot, the characters are developed a little instead of just throwing fits now and then, and it's interesting. I'm wondering if maybe the scripts for this and the movie got mixed up. But this is a pretty good game, and I was surprised. I honestly only bought this because I was looking for an easy trophy game, and something that my daughter could play too. This is your standard run around and collect everything kind of game, and you can beat it in a weekend.

The story's pretty interestingyou start off as Max right as he arrives on the island, and encounters the Wild Things. Rather than making him king right away, he has to earn the respect of a couple of them, and show that he's brave and strong enough to lead them. Some of the Wild Things don't like Max, and have their doubts about having him as their king, and actually try to hurt him pretty bad in a few levels. As you progress, you find out that the island's in big trouble, and there's a weird kind of monster made up of black slime that can drag you into nothingness. Pretty creepy eh?

You play as Max the whole time, running and jumping your way through the levels that mainly consist of forest environments. You attack with the scepter, and can do standard, charged and jumping attacks with itnothing fancy. Enemies are limited to big bugs and the black slime creatures, so don't expect much variety here either. But the level design is where the game shines, and I have to say that I was impressed with how they set up some of these stages, and how beautiful some of them were, especially the later stages. There's not much challenge in them, and most of the time you'll end up dying because of missed jumps instead of them being too hard, but a lot of that problem has to do with the camera. Sometimes you can rotate it 360 degrees with the right analog stick, but most of the time, moving it around will just pan the camera left and right a little. There are two other kinds of levels that you only get to play in 2 times eachriding on top of Carol's head and sailing levels in your boat. When you ride Carol, you have to jump over/slide under logs in your way, jump over pits and smash through bushes to reach your destination. They're kind of cool, but I would've liked better controls here, and maybe a way of slowing him down in order to make turns easier. The boat levels simply have you move Max's boat around obstacles in the water, and dodging whirlpools too.

There are a few nice little touches involving the Wild Things. You can throw dirt at them to start dirt fights just like in the movie, get healed by them with a loving hug, and dance and howl with them too. But if you choose to attack them, they'll eat you when you get down to your last heart. It's a bit unsettling to see Max get engulfed, but I did laugh seeing Alexander headbutt him instead.

Visually, this game could've been done on the GameCube. There are some long loading times in-between areas, and the character models are very basic. It's actually a bit shameful that this was put on the ps3 because of how simple everything is, but you can't expect every game to look like Uncharted 2. The graphics do their job well for the kind of game this is (rushed movie tie-in). The voice actors for the Wild Things sound very similar to those in the movie, and Max really is Max Records, despite the lack of dialogue. But it's the soundtrack that really impressed me. When you start out on the beach, the music is very depressing, yet has a sense of wonder to it. A lot of the tracks for the stages are like thisvery down, and they set the mood for what happens with the story. It's nothing I'd buy if the soundtrack were available, but it's worth noting.

All in all, Where the Wild Things Are is a standard adventure/platformer game, but one of the better ones. I enjoyed playing through it, and getting all the trophies was easy. Some parts were a little tough for my daughter to do on her own (she's just 3 but beat New Super Mario Bros. for DS last year), but it's probably easy for kids 5 and up. There's no blood or gore here, aside from bugs exploding when you smash 'em. At the very least, rent it and see how it goes.

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I loved this game! I originally bought it for my son who loves all wtwta stuff. I usually don't like video games based on films but this was the exception. It was entertaining and imaginitve and just challenging enough to keep it interesting. I had a lot of fun alternating turns with my son. If you're looking for a light quick play for an adult or a semi challenging game for a kid its a good buy.

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