Gaming Diary: Resident Evil: Code Veronica

Hey guys, Mark here and I've gotta say over the summer I've been playing on my Dreamcast a lot. Also recently I bought Resident Evil Code Veronica for it, have been playing it and it is amazing.

It follows on from Resident Evil 2 and Claire Redfield is still looking for her brother Chris, and she gets captured by Umbrella. She is transferred to a prison on Rockfort Island and a strange guy called Rodrigo frees her but is too wounded to leave the room, Claire then finds that the T-Virus has been released onto the island and there are zombies and B.O.Ws (Bio Organic Weapons) She meets Steve (another prisoner) and together they have to get off the island. That's a basic rundown of the story and it is like the other resident evil games I suppose. The game also features 2 discs, 1 for the first half of the game and another for the second half. I have just started the second disc and I'm enjoying the game so far.

The game has pretty good graphics (for a Dreamcast game that is) and I've heard it has a nifty first person view when you get the sniper rifle in the game. It plays like the early resident evil games but I like it because it uses fixed camera angles at some points but on others the camera actually follows you, which is a nice change. Ammo is limited in the game and so are saves, so you have to use what you get and only save when you think you've made significant progress. I discovered this the hard way when I got to the end of disc one boss and realised I'd used up most of my grenade launcher ammo and explosive rounds on another fight with him. The puzzles in the game are also very clever and will really have you thinking. You really have to examine everything and go with every idea you get.

Overall this is probably one of my favourite games in the RE series because it has a fairly unique vibe to it all even though it is similar to the other RE games. I also enjoy the story and it has a great cast of characters. Also people who have played Resident Evil 5 and know about Chris and Wesker's hatred for each other may want to play this as it has some pretty good moments with them. Alfred and Alexia Ashford are both...interesting characters as well.

Images from Lejeuvideo.com and gamershell.com

Fifa 09 (X-Box 360)

Well I thought I would do a sport game as no one has really done one, and no this isn't josh or mark or anyone else this is callumthesalmon. I recently got an X-box 360 with gears of war 2, Farcry 2, Fifa 09 and Call Of Duty: World at War.

So as I said earlier I thought I would do a sports game. To put it bluntly if you don't like football don't buy this game. But if you stumble upon a cheap copy then get it! I don't like football, I think it is so pointless but the amount of times that you will cheer or boo or get angry at this game is just immense really. There are several different gameplay modes like the mangers mode or tournament mode and you can play online as well (which I tried but i got thrashed).

The graphics are amazing, when I first played this my mum walked in and said 'why are you watching football when you don't like it'. It took me a while to explain it was a video game but that's another story. Each player has been designed to look just like their real life counter part and they do, they look pretty realistic. EA also do a lot to get this game the way they do because every week they watch every single football match and update each player depending on how well they played which I can say would take a very long time. (But it's alright if you like watching football i suppose.)

Next up is the music, this ranges from chart music to just general annoying game music, you all know what I am talking about. So yeah I was a bit surprised to hear Duffy on there so, I think that's it for music.

For those hardcore fans of football and actually know who the players are then there is a special mode for you, where you can make your dream team of football players which is a real nice touch to this game.

My last point about this game which I found very amusing it was the fact that when you score a goal in the game, you have the opportunity to perform a celebration by pushing different buttons on the controller. So yeah you can do anything from sliding on the knees to the robot.

So that about wraps this up for Fifa 09

Gameplay:3

Graphics:5

Presentation:3 (The menus get very confusing at times)

Sound:4

Replay value:5 (You can never get bored seen as you can play as any team that ever existed in professional football.)

Beautiful Katamari

Beautiful Katamari is such game that cannot be summed up in a review just because of its unpredictability. You play as a lil green guy called The Prince and its your job to replace all the planets that got sucked up by a giant black hole. Not to forget this hole in space was made by your Dad in a game of tennis... Think that's random then you'll be blown away later on. The game has you rolling a ball called a Katamari which sticks to almost anything that's smaller than the ball itself. You are spawned in a section of the map and you roll your ball around until its bigger to get other parts of the map and it means you can also pick up bigger items as the Katamari gets bigger. When I first played this I was laughing so much after picking up flying cows, THE BIGGEST SUMO WRESTLERS EVER! and other goofy things. Its really just a fun game to play to while the time away. The game is structured though with time limits and goals to collect certain items (e.g. one has you trying to collect only wheels).

Don't let the controls however put you off. They're very... Different (Much like the game) but work brilliantly. You guide the ball with the right analog stick and decide the speed with the left, then double tap both to change direction quickly. They take getting used to but before long you'll be collecting up items like a pro.

The game itself is rather short. I managed to finish all the levels in one sitting (WARNING: This game DOES NOT have auto save. So try not to make my mistake and turn the game off after finishing it without saving!) but then I realized I had only scratched the surface. In each level there are some of The Princes cousins hidden in the level for you to find and unlock so you can play as them. Like the rest of the game they are all very abstract and quirky but in a good way. They make you laugh (Well the tall lanky pink one with a dolphin tail did with me!). Not to forget the online play and co-op play(Which to be honest I have not tried either but if its worth it I shall do a separate review on the multiplayer expects). This game has got DLC but what it seems it is a bit over priced but any hard core Katamari fan probably won't mind shelling out some extra cash.

The cute and colorful graphics add a toy like look to it. As if the world around you are toys. Its all good and captures the fun happy go lucky mood of the game perfectly (And makes a nice change from the likes of Gears of War).

Gameplay: 5

Graphics: 4 - Although they suit the game they can be too basic at times and a little more detail wouldn't do it any harm.

Presentation: 5 - Everything is integrated into the game very organically, although it can forget to tell you important information.

Sound: 5 - The catchy J- Pop tracks will stick in your head and keep you humming them way after you've put the game back in its box

Replay Value: 4 - You can replay all the levels to beat your high scores, get all the accessories for The Prince and find all his cousins... Although you'll probably need a walkthrough to find them all.

Teh E3 News: Microsoft

Hey guys, it's Mark bailing out Luke who was supposed to do Microsoft's E3 conference but didn't and so I'm here... Let's get started then...

First thing Microsoft revealed was the Beatles Rock Band, which to me seems almost like a retaliation to Guitar Hero Metallica but I guess any Beatles fan will enjoy this extra game for their Rock Band collection.

Microsoft then showed the new controller to go with Tony Hawk Ride, a new game that doesn't require a conventional controller but uses a Skateboard itself that you stand on and can be used to steer and pull off tricks.

Infinity Ward showed off Modern Warfare 2, they showed a snow covered level and it appeared to be very appealing. It looks better than the original modern warfare. It had some vehicles in it, dazzling graphics and awesome gameplay. It is scheduled for release sometime in November so keep your eyes out for that!

Also hitting in November is Left 4 Dead 2, the sequel to the zombiefest that was L4D. It appears to be set around the same time as it's predecessor. It features new characters, new campaigns, new weapons, Melee weapons (Chainsaw please!), new special infected and special ammunition. It appears to have different things to do from the original, for example there will be areas where you'll have to alert the horde then advance somewhere else to stop them again.

Square Enix showed a brief battle trailer to their highly anticipated game... Final Fantasy XIII, this stops the rumors of it being PS3 only. It looks like its going to be awesome so I'd order that soon if you are a fan of the series. (Editor: This news was announced last E3!)

Several 360 exclusive games were also showed off, the first was Crackdown 2, which had a trailer, it seems to look like the original and so lets look forward to that (Editor: Apparently it will have zombies! Or mutants... Something along those line anyway). Anyone out there like Splinter Cell as well? Splinter Cell Conviction was shown off, it features Sam Fisher and he's on a revenge fest after his daughter was murdered. Also revealed was Metal Gear Rising, I've already mentioned this though (go back to my Konami post if you want to know more about this).


Bungie though, revealed quite a bit this E3 as well, showing Halo 3: ODST (also known as Recon) where you play as an ODST (that's Orbital Drop Shock Trooper- I read the books too much) and its set during Halo 2 on New Mombassa, when the humans and covenant were still at war. It features Firefight mode, where you play as an ODST in a mode that is very similar to Gears Of War 2's Horde mode with the covenant. It's scheduled for release in September. If you pre-order it now you'll unlock... Sgt. Johnson =D

Bungie also showed us Halo 3 Reach in a teaser trailer. It showed a planet, explosions and some voices. Its unclear what it's about or what it'll be like but hopefully it will be revealed soon (Editor: It will be based on Reach and probably cover the invasion by the Covenant. This is also a prequel to Halo Combat Evolved as it takes place just before The Chief goes off onto the Pillar of Autumn. Oh and it WILL be an FPS)

Another game showed was Alan Wake... This game has been delayed so many times but now it is apparently coming to the 360 in Spring (Yay?) It appears to have some creepy gameplay and so hopefully it will be worth the wait.

Project Natal has also been revealed, its a new way of gaming using gestures and spoken commands with the help of an add-on. A price has not been revealed yet and this aims to expand the 360's audience. This features many things, like Face recognition and looks pretty awesome.

And that's a wrap for Microsoft this year, the batch of games is looking very promising and Microsoft will struggle to outdo themselves at next years E3... But they will :D

Pictures from dosomething.org and wikipedia.org