• Format: 360 (version reviewed), PS3, PC
• Unleashed: Out Now
• Publisher: Ubisoft
• Developer: Ubisoft Montreal
• Players: 1 (4-8 online multiplayer)
• Site: http://www.assassinscreed.ubi.com/

The Assassin’s Creed franchise has remained consistently decent since the original game back in 2007, but once again rather than release a numbered sequel it has gone down the subtitle route with Revelations, following on from Brotherhood which in turn followed on from Assassin’s Creed 2.

Once again players take on the role of Desmond Miles, who himself takes on the role of ancestors who were prominent assassins during significant moments in history via the who-needs-laws-of-science Animus machine. Without going into too much detail regarding the ending to Brotherhood, Desmond was exposed to the machine too much and his mind began fragmenting, causing him to confuse himself with his ancestors; and this, coupled with some emotional events, resulted in him being stuck in a coma within the Animus. Revelations picks up with Desmond still trapped in the machine, his mind scheduled for deletion, with his only chance of escape being to sort through the last of his ancestors’ memories.

Where the first game only centred on Altair ibn La-Ahad during the Crusades, and the sequel and Brotherhood on Ezio Auditore de Firenze during the Renaissance, Revelations actually jumps between both ancestors to round off both stories (as well as interlocking plot points between them). Given the title of the game it might also be obvious that this tries to tie everything up, though actually all it really does is confirm logical conclusions reached after seeing Brotherhood’s ending.

The feeling of ‘been there, done that’ is hard to avoid this many games down the line when so little has changed. This doesn’t just apply to the plot (which, while decent enough, will leave you wishing that the bigger picture would be dealt with) but also to the most essential gameplay mechanics and even the returning multiplayer.

Ezio’s journey takes him to Constantinople in search of keys to unlock Altair’s library, as well as to assist the assassins there against Templars seeding descent in the Ottoman rule. Like previous games Ubisoft have taken just enough real historical events and twisted them ever so slightly to fit in their plot in an entirely believable way. While the change of setting from around Europe is nice, the game plays out exactly like the previous two, with Ezio’s missions rarely being anything you haven’t seen before. That isn’t to say they are bad, just not to be expecting anything as different as using Leonardo’s flying machine.

New to Ezio’s arsenal is the hook blade which lets him glide down convenient zip lines and also get a few more inches of reach for those especially long jumps. Also new is bomb crafting which promises dozens of different combinations – though we just stuck to the basic kinds and only used them when the mission dictated. This was down to a problem which has existed since the latter half of the second game – Ezio is just too powerful.

The chain-kill mechanic from Brotherhood returns where upon killing one guard, you can then continue to link instant kill attacks to any others around you as long as you take no damage. Even if you do take damage you can carry far too many medicines and they are far too easily replenished for free by searching dead guards. Couple this with the returning meta-game of finding and training new assassin recruits who you can call to aid you, and it removes a lot of the challenge. The only time we failed a mission was due to slightly vague instructions and boundaries, save perhaps restarting if you want to go for the optional 100% sync objective.

The final addition to singleplayer combat is another new meta-game which can be described as tower defence mixed with RTS elements. If you claim an area of the city and establish an assassin den it may be attacked by Templars. During these events you spend points which regenerate over time to place units of various classes to fight off waves of enemies. Generally these are also pretty easy, until the final enemy which will nearly always be a huge siege machine which takes about twice as long to die as it should.

Multiplayer returns and this time with a plot showing what the modern day Templars are up to while Desmond finishes his journey; playing as one while quickly climbing the ranks by using Animus collected data, to train to become just as potent a killer as an assassin. There are a handful of new maps but most are just borrowed from Brotherhood and most changes made to the abilities and mechanics by and large have made things worse. The biggest problem is an unfair advantage granted to people of a higher level than you and matchmaking is still painfully slow if you are part of a group. The only thing that will keep people playing is the story cutscenes unlocked at various levels.

The strongest feeling we had after finishing Revelations was that the series really needed to start doing something different. It’s a good game, but it’s the same thing for the third time in a row and it’s now showing its age and lack of creativity. The disappointment will only grow if, when Assassin’s Creed 3 is inevitably revealed, yet another excuse is found to go into the past of yet another ancestor when really the only thing that matters is the bigger picture in the modern day. If you are a long standing fan of the games by all means see how Altair and Ezio’s story ends; just don’t be expecting a fresh experience.

• Format: 3DS (version reviewed), PS3, Wii, 360
• Unleashed: Out Now
• Publisher: SEGA
• Developer: SEGA
• Players: 1
• Site: http://www.sega.com/captainamerica/us/index.html

Captain America: Super Soldier has spread itself across nearly every platform (and in fact would have been on them all had the PC and PSP versions not been cancelled) and ties into the plot of the recent Captain America: The First Avenger movie, chronicling one of the clashes between the all-American hero and his Invader allies against the Red Skull’s Hydra Army.

The basic plot and the events that unfold in this 3DS outing and the bigger brothers on console are very similar. Captain America leads the charge on a Hydra base that was once an ancient castle belonging to Baron Zola, who isn’t too happy about the occupation of his home and actually sides with the allied forces as a result. From disabling AA guns to taking down Hydra officers, anyone who has played a console version of Super Soldier will feel significant deja vu early on.

Across nine levels broken into different areas of the castle you’ll explore, fight, platform and have the opportunity to take part in a number of side quests to unlock concept art, character dossiers and more. These optional distractions include taking out hidden bombs, rescuing prisons of war, finding hidden artefacts belonging to Baron Zola, and also challenges.

For a 3DS game the visuals are fairly good, and the 3D effect is well used in terms of visual appeal without being significant in any way to gameplay; for example watching as Captain America corkscrews through an explosion in slow motion as the camera circles around him. Each area is usually broken into a twenty minute chunk of gameplay (more if you do all optional objectives) with regular checkpoint saves which is handy for those who, like us, tend to suffer headaches rather quickly if exposed to the 3DS’ full effect for too long.

While there are intermittent platforming sections (made all too easy by the captain almost auto-locking from one to the next as long as you see a directional arrow where you want to go) and also a fair chunk of shield deflecting or throwing related puzzles (which never really test the brain too much), like the console versions you will spend most of your time fighting Hydra forces.

As in other versions of the game, this one features a hand-to-hand combat system that can only be described as one which is heavily influenced by that created by Rocksteady for Batman: Arkham Asylum/City. Captain America will glide around the battlefield locking from one soldier to the next, unleashing combos and countering attacks from any direction if a button is pressed when prompted, complete with slow motion finishers on the last enemy to be brought down and using his shield like Batman uses batarangs.

Should SEGA should be applauded for using a free-flowing brawling style of gameplay which is addictive and translates surprisingly well onto a hand-held, or criticised for so shamelessly stealing someone else’s good idea? It’s a contentious issue. In time it may well be that free-flow combat becomes to brawlers what regenerating shields in Halo did to shooters, and that may not be a bad thing.

The game steadily introduces new enemy types beyond the basic Hydra troopers who either engage in fisticuffs or shoot at range, such as officers which encourage peons into doing an unblockable attack, or evasive sword-wielding female Hydra who must be stunned first. Later in the game large brutes are introduced, which take altogether far too long to take down in comparison to what is supposed to be the toughest enemy (a grenade firing large robot type) which only needs one grenade flung back at it to expose a one-hit kill chance.

There is a levelling system in place, but we honestly couldn’t really tell much difference in any of the upgrades we picked other than one which points out the location of collectables. There aren’t any to increase your damage or health for example, just to lock onto more targets when throwing your shield or to add some combat moves.

You will be using your shield a lot to stun or to solve puzzles as previously mentioned, and it gets a little annoying that there is no button to instantly reset the camera behind Cap’s back. This would make things much less frustrating at times. With the way the shoulder buttons are placed on the 3DS it can also be cumbersome to sometimes defend with the right shoulder button and then ready your throw with left shoulder, and then aim using a finger on the touch screen.

Rounding off the experience are a few boss battles. These usually boil down to learning the attack routine, exposing a weakness which leads to a Quick Time Event, then repeating for three times total. That said some of the larger fights and the final boss were actually quite impressive for a handheld. Strangely, though there are quite a few bosses, not one of them is Captain America’s nemesis the Red Skull. Though Red Skull does appear for the final quarter of the game there isn’t much to his presence, and this is especially confusing given that the game box promises that you will ‘Battle the infamous Hydra Army and the evil Red Skull.”

The 3DS outing for Captain America isn’t a bad game, thanks largely to the borrowed fighting style and fair enough graphics and puzzle solving. It just isn’t a huge game or exceptionally memorable, or one with much replay value once finished; but it’s worth a look by new and old fans of the super soldier that haven’t already tried a version available on the consoles.

• Format: PS3 (version reviewed), 360
• Unleashed: Out Now
• Publisher: Namco Bandai
• Developer: Spike
• Players: 1-2
• Site: http://www.namcobandaigames.com/console/dragon-ball-z-ultimate-tenkaichi

Originally given the mysterious mouthful of a title Dragon Ball Game Project Age 2011, it eventually transpired that the spiritual successor to the Raging Blast, Budokai and Tenkaichi games based in the Dragonball universe was given the slightly more reasonable title of Ultimate Tenkaichi.

Long term fans of the original manga or animé will be more than familiar with the plot, and even newer fans brought in by the Kai release will know enough. Dragonball Z is about two shirtless men spending about five minutes powering up and then another five minutes punching each other, which sounds like the perfect thing to translate into a fighting game – and it has been for many years now.

There are the basic modes you would expect in any beat ‘em up; with a versus mode for battles against a friend in the room or AI opponents (with tag variants also available for battles including three or more characters), an online mode for matches, tournaments and a tutorial/training mode which is far clearer than recent games.

The game before this (Raging Blast 2) caused consternation by excluding a story mode from the game and instead introduced Galaxy Mode. Ultimate Tenkaichi has taken a few steps back and once again includes the classic Dragonball Z story from start to end, with fleeting encounters against enemies only seen in the movies and also the final enemy from the subsequent Dragonball GT. However, huge chunks of the plot are explored only via walls of text split between brief exploration sections and battles.

What is probably most infuriating about the story mode is that it actively mixes the old dubbing cast from Dragonball Z with the new cast brought in for Dragonball Kai. Characters literally change voice from one sentence to the next on occasion. It is unacceptably cheap, lazy and pathetic to think it was passable to do this. This is not an argument for or against the cast of either dub or even if the original Japanese is the better choice (which is also included); it’s purely about an incredibly stupid decision that ruins multiple cutscenes and battles.

Perhaps it would be possible to forgive such a lazy story mode if there was more to the game. You may have noticed that the graphics are top notch, which they are (though every single playable stage is recycled from Raging Blast 2 more or less) and battles are suitably over the top with destructive scenery and impressively large special attacks. There are also large boss battles that lift heavily from those found in Naruto Shippuden Ultimate Ninja Storm 2. However, there are more problems.

The game is cinematic to the point where it stops being a game and is an example of something which is probably more fun to watch than play. In either an effort to make the game more dramatic and reminiscent of the animé or to remove complaints players had in previous games (certain irritating tactics in online play) most of the fighting has been boiled down to a game of heads or tails.

When trying to gain distance from an opponent, or get in close, or attack with the one combo all characters have, or try to counter, a button press will be required which has two options. If your opponent presses the same as you then you lose (so if you had started a combo they counter it). Fights quickly boil down to the same 50/50 chance of attacking or being attacked over and over – at least until you realize that the CPU will always have a particular preference and once you know what it is that makes any battle ridiculously easy. Repetition soon sets in as every battle plays out in exactly the same way over and over and kills any perceived belief that skill matters for anything in Ultimate Tenkaichi because it doesn’t – it’s just luck.

The innovations brought in aren’t all bad though. Reaction commands based on varying amounts of stored Ki which allow you to block, evade or counter an incoming special attack help balance things out, and special attacks themselves are no longer connected to stored Ki and instead are based on a separate spirit bar which builds from landing combos. This helps remove special move spamming which plagued previous Dragonball games. Finally, the hardest hitting ultimate attackers are totally locked out until either you or your opponent are near death.

Hero Mode is another good new addition where you can make your own unique character based on three builds, which you can then equip and take through a fairly short what-if story set alongside established characters. You can customise the look of your character (though the selection when you start is very limited) and level up various statistics by taking part in battles and training under different masters to learn their techniques.

As with most games based so heavily inside the universe of an animé it already has an established niche market, and will be ignored by everyone else. But even for fans – even for the most dedicated ones – Ultimate Tenkaichi has strayed too far from what a proper fighting game is into experimental territory that unfortunately just turned out bad. The game is worth renting for Hero Mode and to try out the cinematic battles for a little while, but beyond that fans would be better off returning to previous games rather than Ultimate Tenkiachi.

• Format: 360 (version reviewed), PS3, PC
• Unleashed: Out Now
• Publisher: Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment
• Developer: Rocksteady Studios
• Players: 1
• Site: http://www.community.batmanarkhamcity.com

In 2009 the gaming world was surprised by Rocksteady Studio’s Batman: Arkham Asylum, quite possibly the first game themed around the dark knight’s exploits to be loved on a mass scale; and for many, it was the best thing released that year. It’s a big ask to try and not only recreate that level of success but surpass it, but Rocksteady are back with the direct sequel to try. Set a year after the events of Arkham Asylum, things are still not going well for Gotham City. The slums of the city have been walled off and turned into one large prison in which former asylum inmates and criminals are left to bicker amongst themselves under the watchful eye of Hugo Strange and his Tyger security force.

The game begins with Bruce Wayne attempting to seek the closure of Arkham City through political means, which results in his unlawful incarceration within its walls. Becoming Batman, he then sets about righting all the wrongs of the prison in a large free-roaming area dealing with past villains (and plenty of new ones along the way) while the Joker plots in his funhouse and Strange levies the fact he knows Batman’s true identity.

While it certainly pays off to have played Arkham Asylum, it is not a necessity to get into or enjoy the game. Interest or vague knowledge of the source material certainly helps though as Rocksteady constantly dangle references or nods or even direct links to plots from some of the best known comic book storylines that fans will greatly appreciate.

The free flowing combat system returns which balances counters, evades and strikes with brutal take-downs for when stealth is not an option. While it can be a little tricky to get to grips with for beginners, a few brawls down the line you will be raking up combos with deadly proficiency and shrugging when the game throws you up against a room with fifteen or more opponents. It can be strangely addictive to find brawls to get into around the city, simply because of how free it feels for what is essentially at its core a more complicated button mashing system.

Equally addictive is the returning stealth element. The game balances out areas where you are fighting off dozens of unarmed opponents with areas where going loud will just get you quickly gunned down. In a move which far more sequels should follow, Rocksteady also grants the player most of the gadgets Batman ended the first game with giving you variety to tackle each situation with from the get go. There is still a levelling system to unlock the more complex take-downs or upgraded armour and new gadgets, with most actions rewarding the player as they progress.

It can be a little daunting grappling and gliding around the city as along with the reasonably lengthy main storyline, there are numerous multi-part side quests and literally hundreds of Riddler puzzles and riddles to solve. You aren’t forced to do any of the side content, it’s all just there to distract you as you go. It’s very hard to ignore, but at the same time seeing where the story will go next remains a powerful draw and culminates in perhaps the first example of a conclusion that will elicit sympathy for someone with absolutely no redeeming qualities whatsoever.

A sticking point in Arkham Asylum was the Detective Vision mode which let the player see through walls, and also identified threats and points of interest. It was simply too good and resulted in having it on nearly all the time which meant the impressive scenery was a constant flushed pale blue. For some the same may be said for Arkham City and some players will find themselves rarely turning it off except for brawls.

Music and most of the voice acting are exceptionally high standard. Kevin Conroy puts in yet another great performance as Batman and Mark Hamill’s Joker is unmatched. Corey Burton’s Strange is suitably sinister and Troy Baker’s Two-Face decent enough. In an amazing achievement, Nolan North has found a different voice he can make when voicing a game character and lends it to Penguin which is to be applauded – at least until you find he lazily uses his only other voice for most of the random thugs you will be beating up.

The game also allows first hand purchasers (or second-hand if they buy the pass) to play four fairly short sections as Catwoman with her story running into Batman’s at numerous points. These little asides offer yet another story the city has to tell, and give a bit of variety as her gadgets and movements are unique to her and upon finishing the game you can actively switch between them both to collect her own series of Riddler trophies.

The game isn’t without some faults though. Enemies still glide instantly along the floor to strike you if they are upright while you attempt a ground take down, loading checkpoints is overly long even with an install, there appears to be one rather large plot hole, and we experienced very occasional sound hiccups. These are all small criticisms though.

It was never going to be easy following on from such a huge success but, for the most part, Rocksteady have achieved it. Even ignoring all the content in the main campaign there are dozens of challenge maps, predator maps and mini-campaigns to tackle with numerous characters as well as hundreds of unlockables (concept art, figures, back-story, etc.) making it one of the fullest games on offer in recent times that will give fans everything they want, and has enough solid core mechanics and content to appeal to almost everyone else. Arkham City is a credible contender for game of the year.

• Format: 360 (version reviewed), PS3
• Unleashed: Out Now
• Publisher: Rockstar Games
• Developer: Team Bondi
• Players: 1
• Site: http://www.rockstargames.com/lanoire/

With the backing of Rockstar, Australian developer Team Bondi set out to make a different kind of game. Drawing from stylistic detective and gangster movies of yesteryear and boasting revolutionary facial animation, does L.A. Noire earn a commendation or does it deserve to sleep with the fishes?

Set in 1940s Los Angeles, L.A. Noire places you in the role of Cole Phelps, a decorated war hero making his way up through the ranks of the LAPD. Players achieve this by getting involved in crime scenes, looking for clues, piecing together puzzles, tailing people, interviewing witnesses and interrogating suspects.

It would be a mistake to approach L.A. Noire expecting an experience similar to anything else backed or produced by Rockstar. Though it may look and play like a GTA game (with its open world setting, gunplay, tedious collectable hunting and minimal optional extras), Noire is very different.

Most of Noire will have you involved in the various steps of investigation, with the interviews and interrogations being the key selling points due to the aforementioned facial animation technology. Boasting the ability to accurately capture an actor’s face (if by accurate they meant everyone looking like they have a lisp) the game expects you to watch their reaction to Cole’s questions and thus be able to guess whether or not they are telling the truth. The doubt option is particularly vague, and can at times have totally random outcomes. Optional musical chimes will tell you if you have guessed correctly (though you can guess by what is said either way).

Unfortunately there are problems with this questioning system, beyond the obvious flaw of instantly telling you whether you were right or wrong, and this is just the first of many things which will slowly eat away at the enjoyment you will have with this game.

The first problem is that accusing somebody of lying is only successful if you have proof to back it up (realistic at least); but there are times when you have multiple pieces of evidence which, while all circumstantial when separate, prove absolute guilt when combined. The game does not allow you to do this and forces you to guess which it wants you to pick. There is no game over for going down the wrong route in a conversation and things will play out differently based on what happens, but it is incredibly frustrating when you are not at fault.

There are also ridiculous accusations of murder thrown about by Cole if you spot a provable lie of minor importance. The game cannot tell the difference between you believing someone to be a liar and believing that they are a murderer. It feels as if Team Bondi has assumed that the player is unintelligent, to be blunt.

The worst crime occurs during the homicide cases when a string of murders happen under the same circumstances. It is infuriatingly obvious even within the first case that a serial killer is getting away with murder and that you are going after the wrong people, yet the game arrogantly thinks it has fooled you – culminating in one of the most boring climaxes to a plot we have ever seen. It even goes one step further by lying to the player. Cutscenes at the start of the homicide cases show the murder happening and go so far as to use character models of suspects within the case carrying out the kill, even though it later retroactively changes the continuity of this to nobody’s surprise.

Another major gripe is in the replay option. There is no harm in getting through a crime scene or a questioning session without being perfect; however those who want to strive to get perfect five star ratings without resorting to following a guide will be the most frustrated of all.

Noire uses a similar checkpoint system to GTA IV, yet it only applies if you die or otherwise do something that utterly ruins the case (kill a hostage by mistake for example) yet there is no option to reload a checkpoint if you want to try again at correctly spotting all lies. The game expects you to restart the whole case if you want to do this and of course even if you get through the interview you messed up there might be more within the same case you weren’t sure about. It becomes an endeavour into punishing trial and error, the game presumably (wrongly) assuming that you will enjoy constantly restarting when trying for perfection.

We would be less harsh on the core mechanics of Noire if it had something else to fall back on, but all there is is a limited range of very repetitive, short cases that are spread across all desks which you will not be inclined to replay. The one area it shines in is the voice work which, for the most part, is stellar.

L.A. Noire succeeds only at failing to achieve almost everything it attempts to do. We applaud the concept but scorn the outcome. The core mechanics are flawed, the slow pacing and predictability of the plot remove any momentum to push you towards the end, and the bottom line is that there is not enough to do and what is there just isn’t interesting enough.

If you are looking for a superior lie-spotting, crime-solving experience we would recommend the Phoenix Wright games (not that they are flawless by any means). If you don’t mind a game which thinks you’re unintelligent and has very little to do in it, then by all means buy L.A. Noire.

The concept is simple: stand in front of the camera, and watch yourself act in a movie clip of your choice. The two big questions though are does it work, and is it actually any fun to play?

The answer to the first question is emphatically ‘yes’ – but while most of the technical wizardry is down to the game itself, we must stress that only the Kinect version was tested for this review. It’s difficult to imagine exactly how the Yoostar tech works, but the end result is impressive. The actor/actress you replace (you often have a choice) is gone without a trace. Move from the space Yoostar tells you to stay in, and only the set is to be seen behind; miss a line, and the original speech is nowhere to be heard in the recording. You really are given the starring role.

Just how well are you scanned into the clip? Is it 100% perfect as the TV advert implies? The answer is certainly ‘no’, but in ideal lighting conditions it’s much closer than you might expect. If you tend to only play games in the evenings, it’s worth bearing in mind that without stadium-quality floodlights, your image will be grainy and likely carry a little of your background with it. Again however, with the right light the effect is mightily impressive.

Worry not Trekkies, one of the clips is Tribbletastic.

Considering the fact that the best lighting conditions mean plenty of sunlight – therefore requiring you to pose, exclaim and gurn in front of a window – perhaps there should be a special edition of Yoostar 2 bundled with a set of net curtains. Anyway, sound recording too we found to be impressive, especially given the distance you must stand from the camera (roughly 6ft). While the recording can sound just a little tinny, background noise is cut out well.

The choice of clips, and the movies/TV series they are taken from, can seem a little erratic. Ben Stiller fans will certainly be pleased as Along Came Polly, Meet The Parents, Meet The Fockers, Tropic Thunder, and Zoolander are all featured. Coming To America and Beverly Hills Cop remind you what a great comic actor Eddie Murphy is – or at least, used to be. The family dinner scene from The Nutty Professor only serves to emphasise how much better the Jerry Lewis original was. We can’t help wondering how many people are desperate to star in a clip from Norbit, Baby Mama or Up In Smoke (no, us neither). It feels suspiciously like filler in an attempt to justify the DLC that’s already started to appear.

Life is like a... no, wait, that one's DLC.

There are no doubt several reasons certain movies are missing, but we can’t help but yearn for some more classic scenes. No Star Wars, no Rebel Without A Cause, no Life of Brian. That said, if none of the lines that are included tickle your thespian areas – such as ‘I’ll be back’, ‘An offer he can’t refuse’, ‘Here’s looking at you kid’, and ‘Wax on, wax off’ – then you are surely dead inside.

‘Challenge’ mode is as close to a story mode as you’re going to get, throwing a series of clips at you and requiring you to earn various rewards – such as ‘high energy’ by jumping around like a loon, or simply doing a half decent job of acting – in order to progress (and unlock extra footage to lark about in front of). By and large this mode requires you to take the whole experience seriously however, which will be off-putting for some.

Fear not, for ‘Quick Play’ allows you to jump into any scene – and forgo the Teleprompter should you so wish. Select ‘ad-lib’ and you’ll be scored not on your timing, delivery and mark placement, but ‘energy’ and ‘originality’. Of course, the best fun is to be had from ignoring the scoring system completely and just being very silly. Want a glove puppet to deliver Arnie’s lines in The Terminator? We did. Bouncing off the po-faced delivery of other actors with your own lines can be most amusing too.

There's little more depressing than having your console tell you your acting isn't good enough for an award.

Narcissists will be pleased to hear that you can save any movies you’re particularly proud of, with the option of uploading them to the Yoostar community (though they have to pass moderation first – spoilsports). Watching people acting badly isn’t any fun – but now and again you’ll come across somebody with a decent sense of humour. If you become a ‘Fan’, you can quickly and easily find all of their past, present and future uploaded clips.

The in-game search system makes finding a particular video extremely difficult (Fan system aside), with the result that only newly uploaded videos – or those promoted by Yoostar – tend to get any views at all. The cavalry here is Facebook, the only way to share your clips outside of the game.

Link a Facebook account with your Yoostar game, and all of your clips will become available in the ‘Yoostar Playground’ app. You can then provide links for others to watch your videos – provided they have Facebook accounts. If you’re one of those people with a thousand ‘friends’, who knows? Perhaps one of your clips will go viral.

The fun to be had from Yoostar 2 depends entirely on the people playing it, more so perhaps than any other game. Acting out a scene alongside a friend will surely appeal to most, and we’d all be tempted to make fools out of ourselves in front of stock footage… but for how long? If the very idea of this game makes you cringe, probably not long at all. If you’re looking for something to amuse you and a group of friends or family, this is perfect. Just don’t expect each of the 80 scenes to be a classic.

• Format: XBLA (version reviewed), PC, Mac
• Unleashed: Out Now
• Publisher: Microsoft Game Studios
• Developer: Runic Games
• Players: 1
• Site: http://www.torchlightgame.com

It’s no surprise that Torchlight is an excellent action-RPG filled to the brim with monsters, loot, and dungeons; after all, it was released for personal computers in 2009 and later saw a Mac version in 2010. But now Runic Games has ventured into the realm of console games with this XBLA release in 2011, and trading the mouse and keyboard for a controller brings up a whole bevy of issues to overcome. At its core, this game is still Torchlight through and through – but the trip to the Xbox 360 has left it feeling a mite discombobulated and more than a little shaky. The mysterious mining town of Torchlight is having all kinds of trouble as humans and monsters alike flock to the magical veins of ore that glow beneath the earth, known as Ember. As one of three classes (the beefy Destroyer, the long-ranged Vanquisher or the spell-focused Alchemist), you must get to the bottom of these unnatural events – quiet literally- by venturing down into a deep series of dungeons. The plot is little more than a frame on which to hang the stellar setting and gameplay, and there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that. Trust us, you’ll be far too busy smashing rat-men in the face to worry yourself about a story.

Some people go to a store to acquire some new shoes; others murder mutant bat things. To each his own.

Those familiar with Diablo should have a good idea what makes this game tick, which makes sense considering the two titles share a number of the same designers, and Torchlight does a great job of striking out on its own while remaining true to its roots. Using your weapons and faithful pet to bring down hordes of foes is endlessly entertaining, and the piles of shiny loot they drop make every step rewarding. You’ll pick up axes, swords, guns, bows, armour, rings, spells, potions, scrolls, gems, fish, and more even than that as you battle your way through floor after floor of diverse enemies. Popping back up to the surface allows you to restock your supplies and take on a few quests, but most of the better items can be found in the dungeons themselves; and you can always send your beast of burden on its way to sell things in your absence. You’ll nab experience points with every kill, too, which can be put towards character stats and skill trees. Learning to use purchased abilities in conjunction with your weapons is key, granting you meaningful tactics and highly entertaining results. The dungeon floors use a clever system of randomisation to keep things fresh, ensuring that you’ll never know exactly what to expect around the corner. Some dull and repetitive spots can arise here and there, but (aside from the frustratingly overpowered final boss) the constant character progression and top-notch combat rarely disappoint. After sinking 10 to 20 hours into completing the story, an endless dungeon is unlocked, which will keep the Torchlight fanatic playing all the way up to the level cap. One could ask for multiplayer, but it’s hard to complain about such a polished single-player experience.

An intelligent interface makes sorting through loot a non-painful process. In fact, it's kind of fun. Okay, it's pretty much the meaning of life.

And Torchlight is a lovely place to spend time, at that. Visuals highly reminiscent of the Warcraft series virtually pop out of the screen, and the oftentimes ominous music creates an excellent mood with deep drums, baleful horns, an echoing Spanish guitar, and subdued electronic elements. The only drawback to Torchlight’s production values on the XBLA is the terrible framerate that crops up whenever masses of enemies appear, which is not at all uncommon. It’s easy enough to overlook after a while, but this is a serious issue that needs fixing. Speaking of console problems, the Xbox controller has less skills readily available (only four at a time) than did the old-fashioned keyboard, although a tap of the D-pad opens up a second set, doubling that number. It’s a shame this same idea wasn’t implemented for weapon sets, as manually digging through the inventory to switch them is a useless chore that was absent from the PC version. The menus and overall UI are slower to navigate and less elegant this time around, but considering the restrictions involved, the new set-up suitably gets the job done.

You can't go wrong with an analogue stick in situations like this.

The XBLA release does contain a positive trait of its own, however: direct control over your character. Instead of clicking on monsters and dragging a cursor across the screen, as was custom in the PC version, using the analogue stick to dodge attacks helps to tighten up an already tight game. It’s a little rough around the edges, but spelunking and collecting loot is still a blast, Xbox or no Xbox. If you have a decent computer, that’s still the definitive version to buy; but this is a great substitution for console gamers and will provide many levels of dungeon-delving good times.

• Format: XBLA (version reviewed), PSN
• Unleashed: Out Now (PSN version TBA 2011)
• Publisher: Ubisoft
• Developer: Ubisoft Shanghai
• Players: 1
• Site: http://beyondgoodevil.com

Beyond Good & Evil HD is a remake of an underplayed gem. It tells the story of Jade, a freelance photographer who finds herself amidst a government conspiracy she must uncover to save the people of Hillys. You’ll sneak behind enemy lines along with a partner, where it is in your best interests to stay hidden from the patrolling guards. Your mission: photograph suspicious government activity in hopes of persuading the Hillyan people to rise up against the Alpha Sections. Sometimes you’ll want to be as discrete as possible; others, you’ll be forced to fight. Your primary character is Jade, but you can also give commands to your partner to help fight off enemies or to solve puzzles jointly.

The game’s new facelift does not disappoint. Character outlines are now smoother, textures are enhanced, and colour schemes consist of vibrant hues instead of the original grainy palette. The water you often glide across in your trusty hovercraft is especially beautiful. You also spend much of the game snapping photos, which are now crisp and vivid instead of dark and pixelated.

One does not simply walk into Alpha Section HQ.

Photography has been improved in other ways. You’re encouraged to photograph Hillys’ vast wildlife in exchange for precious currency. When you’re trying to photograph an enemy, they don’t exactly sit around and strike a pose. They often run up in your face as you whip out your camera, ruining that once perfect shot right before taking a chunk out of your health. In the remake, the camera automatically zooms out slightly on pictures, making it easier to safely get a usable photo. You can now shift your ‘camera vision’ side to side without having to actually move Jade—particularly useful for shooting at an enemy from around a corner while remaining hidden.

Ironic that a game that concentrates so much on photography has issues with the in-game camera. We quickly noticed in BG&E HD that the camera controls are counterintuitive—whenever we tried to turn the camera a certain way, it did the opposite of what was expected. We therefore promptly set the controls to Inverted; however, the setting combines both the X and Y axes, forcing us to choose between awkward side-to-side and awkward up-and-down camera controls. This may not even bother those who are not already well acquainted with the camera of the original game. When you find yourself in tight spaces, it can be difficult to get the camera to turn the way you want, though when you’re in a passage so narrow that you have to crawl, this is understandable. Camera issues weren’t fixed in the remake, but we only found this to be a minor annoyance.

Downtown Hillys

Gameplay does not rely solely on stealth, and luckily the combat system is improved. Jade is now agile instead of sluggishly swinging her arms around, leaving herself wide open to attack. Gone is the tendency from the original to get ‘stuck’ on one enemy, because combat is now more responsive. This newly improved mechanic is especially prudent for the final showdown of the game. But don’t expect deep combat; it’s a simple, three-button system – one to string together combos, one to dodge, and one to command your partner as needed. Some may preemptively wrinkle their noses at this because it does run the risk of feeling like button mashing devoid of any ‘skill.’ Well timed dodges, implementation of the correct strategies, and cooperation between you and your partner mean combat still feels rewarding.

The level design of the ‘dungeons’ is great and consists of many puzzles, but is also fairly linear. It’s just the right level of difficulty; you may have to stop and think a while on the puzzles, but the dungeons are not so full of branching paths that you must wander through numerous hallways before finding your next destination. It’s straightforward, but not too much so, and makes for good pacing that doesn’t leave players feeling frustrated or bored.

Another of BG&E HD’s strong suits is its fantastic soundtrack. There’s a nice mix of politically charged rap, ambient stealth tracks, peppy mini-game anthems, exhilarating electronic tunes during boss fights, and more, and every track masterfully conveys that area’s atmosphere. Sound quality seems unchanged; but then, the game needed no such improvements.

"D.B.U.T.T. - Don't break up the team!"

Above all, BG&E HD shines in its storytelling. The characters are charming, each with his or her own distinct personality and quotable one-liners; certain cutscenes may coax even the most serious gamer into cracking a little smile or the most frivolous one to deeply sympathise for Jade. Unfortunately, we don’t get to spend enough time with Jade and company; the game is too short. It’s a respectable length of about 10-12 hours (if it’s your first time playing), but the time spent actually developing and explaining the story is far too brief. Players will be intrigued, but there will still be plenty of questions remaining when the credits roll that easily could have been answered if Ubisoft had made those cinematics just a bit longer. The ending raises more questions than it answers which is a bit disappointing, but also sets the game up nicely for a sequel—if it ever sees the light of day, that is.

Even by today’s standards, BG&E HD manages to shine through as a unique and worthwhile journey for devoted fans and newcomers alike. This is simply an experience of which no gamer should be deprived, and for 800 Microsoft points, owners of an Xbox 360 (or PlayStation 3, once it releases on PSN) have virtually no excuse to pass this one by.

• Format: PS3 (version reviewed), 360, Wii, DS
  
• Unleashed: Out Now
• Publisher: THQ
• Developer: Blue Tongue Entertainment Ltd.
  
• Players: 1-2
• Site: http://www.deblob.com/

De first game was a Wii exclusive, but de sequel has gone multiformat. Wid lots of bright colours, cute character designs and happy bouncy music, de Wii origins are clear for all to see. De question is: is dis a good ding or not?

You take control of de (okay, enough) heroic globule of.. er… stuff Blob. The basic premise runs thus: The evil black & white Inkies, led by Comrade Black, have once again run riot through Blob’s world, draining it of all colour. In addition they have forced the colourful citizens to wear bland suits, draining them of colour, individuality and will. Others they have hypnotised into conformity, forcing them to join the Blanc cult. It’s your job to put the world to rights by restoring colour and kicking Inky backside.

Blob’s default state is clear and colourless. He’s invisible to most enemies in this form, but is also at his most vulnerable. In order to defend himself and restore the world to its former glory, you’ll need to colour him in. There are two ways to do this; absorb paint from a pool, or stomp an ‘inkbot’ to paint Blob that colour and gain a smaller amount of paint points. Colouring most things in (or killing enemies or destroying Inky objects) requires a varying amount of these points, which also act as a kind of HP counter. Touch black ink and you’ll be unable to colour anything – you’ll need to find water before you’re poisoned, and then colour yourself in again.

Blob looking very wise, i.e. well red (groan).

Colouring objects and rescuing ‘Graydians’ means simply touching them when coloured. Killing enemies and destroying objects means targeting them with one button, then stomping them with the jump button or charging them with the, er, charge button. So far, so simple. However, while paint pools give you the relevant colour regardless of your current state, stomping inkbots in sequence will mix the colours together. Need orange, with no orange pool around? Stomp a yellow inkbot and then a red one, without touching any water, black ink or different colours in between.

This idea is exploited often after the first few levels where certain objects, enemies, or entrances (to one of the many brief-but-fun 2D platforming sections) require specific colours. It’s also a great way to have kids embarrass you if you let them have a go. “Daddy, he’s yellow. How do I make him brown?” “Er…”.

In addition, it means that the ‘hold down target and jump till everything is dead/coloured’ tactic that works at the beginning of the game is soon not an option. Especially when some objects and enemies punish you for stomping when you should charge, or charging when you should stomp. Oh, and did we mention that different colours are sometimes required on different levels and parts of the same building?

If only flying buses were real. *sigh*

There’s a simple joy to be had from watching each black and white level slowly transform into a colourful paradise, but credit must go to the superb sound design too. The music begins as a brooding minimalist glumtrack. Each time you colour a part of the environment however, you get a brief ‘Ooooh’ or jolly ‘ting!’ and, before you know it, you’ve coloured enough of your surroundings for the music to have completely transformed into funky jazz that’s impossible to dislike.

Credit where it’s due also to the cutscenes which sew the levels together. The name ‘Pixar’ has more than once been thrown into the mix when people have tried to describe de blob 2, and nowhere is this more appropriate than the movies. Not only do they technically look fantastic, they’re well directed with visual humour that hammers your funnybone virtually every time. The ending even contains a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it Mario reference. In fact, the final level is little more than a love letter to Mario Galaxy and believe it or not, another level makes two (very) thinly veiled jokes aimed at Guantanamo Bay and the Bush administration…

Each level is a sandbox-style environment, and as a result there are plenty of things to find and do – such as ‘inspiration’ that you spend to upgrade Blob – that are entirely optional. If you ignore all these non-essentials, then your first playthrough could be over in about ten hours. However, you’ll love the experience so much, you will be determined to clean the game out completely; be that on your first time round or your third.

"Another Call of Duty! Don't worry, I'll handle this."

A second player can join you in the main adventure but if they do, they’ll find themselves acting as little more than an aiming reticule – a la Mario Galaxy. There are however dedicated two player, split-screen levels to be found in ‘blob party’ where two Blobs can tackle the Inky menace together.

It couldn’t possibly look any more kid-friendly, the plot is absolutely preposterous cartoon script fare, it’s happy to exploit platforming clichés such as wall runs and jumping on heads, it doesn’t start to get particularly difficult until it’s almost over, there’s nothing approaching a traditional boss fight until the penultimate level, and overall it’s exactly the kind of game publishers tend to avoid bringing to the PS3 and Xbox 360 – and it’s absolutely fantastic. Consider our hats very much doffed to Blue Tongue (note that the DS version is made by a different developer, and we can’t comment on it) and THQ.

The only real problem with the game (rare camera issues in later levels aside) is that you’ll most likely play the game to death for a week – possibly two – and then never play it again. It’s such a joyful and unique experience, however, that you’ll love every second. And dat’s de trud.

Once he’d tracked down Larry Charles Jr. – level designer at Killspace Entertainment – Steven felt a little foolish. It soon became obvious that he’d misunderstood the title; his eyepatch, pegleg, and carefully rehearsed pirate jokes would not be appreciated.

CG: Many on the Killspace team have come from developers known for AAA games. Has scaling to an XBLA / PSN release been problematic, or a great opportunity?

Larry: Working on a downloadable title doesn’t take as long as developing a AAA box title, but it’s no cake walk either. A lot of the same stresses in developing for boxed titles happen when developing for DLC as well. Lucky for us, we did have a very knowledgeable team and were able to deliver a high quality downloadable title. Overall it was a good opportunity for Killspace to work with Atari on the Yars reboot as our studio’s first shipped title.

CG: How hard is it to take such an old game and drag it into 2011?

Larry: Ha, well I don’t think we did much dragging when it came to the reboot, but it was a process. Yars’ Revenge was of the best selling Atari 2600 games so we had a good game to start from, I’ll say that for sure. The thing is, when trying to modernize gameplay there is only so much you can borrow. We couldn’t just make a 3D version of the original Yars and add achievements and high score, and expect people to pay $10 or $15 for it. What we decided to do was make the reboot a rail shooter that takes place in the Yar Universe. We gave Yars’ look quite an upgrade as she’s a humanoid insect in rocket powered battle armor. We made the game a rail shooter so that we could give the player a breath taking cinematic experience while they play a very tight and refined arcade shooter with an addictive and very challenging combo multiplier meta game. While making Yar’s we did pretty well with our prototype, and essentially kept adding to it until we shipped. Though our environments did get an overhaul once or twice, we didn’t ever need to redesign the entire package.

CG: How long does a game like this take to make, from initial design to delivery?

Larry: 10 months give or take.

CG: The style of gameplay seems similar to Nintendo’s Sin and Punishment franchise. Is that a fair comparison? Is it twin stick only, or are there motion controls such as with the Wii’s Sin and Punishment 2?

Larry: Yes, Yar’s Revenge and Sin and Punishment are similar as much as NBA 2k11 and NBA Jam are related. As a rail shooter, you have expectations for the gameplay that both games would satisfy. Yars is a twin stick shooter and yes, we even thought about how we could implement some of the successes that S&P2 had into Yars. The key difference is, Yar’s being on PS3 and Xbox 360 allowed us to make a more beautiful game with more onscreen enemies, more detailed environments, and just as much if not more fun as S&P2 for 1/5 of the retail cost

CG: Is there a multiplayer option to the game?

Larry: Yes actually, two players can compete against each other playing through the Yar’s levels.

CG: Online leaderboards and DLC?

Larry: Though we do have a nice online leaderboard system, we do not currently have any plans for Yar’s DLC, the game itself is DLC and given the price for the value, it’s a fair trade.

CG: Are there plans to bring the game to the 3DS? It would seem to be a perfect fit with the controls and 3D perspective.

Larry: I’d love to see a 3DS version of a Yar’s continuation game, and yes it would be a perfect fit. The future of Yar’s depends on how well this first version does on the Xbox 360 and PS3 and Atari’s interest in continuing the franchise. If both signs say yes, I would be all for working on another Yar’s title. It really was fun watching this project come to life.

CG: Can a casual player pick up and play this game or is it pretty hardcore?

Larry: This game is designed to challenge everyone. Each stage has 3 levels of difficulty and for the real experts we have challenge modes for each stage as well. If you beat one of the challenge modes, you’ll probably not feel like you’ve won, but survived.

CG: Can the player unlock the original Yars’ Revenge with the game?

Larry: This was also something we thought about doing, but we feel pretty fair about the amount of content we produced in the time allowed for making this game. We did put in some original Yars’ content, but you’ll just have to discover it on your own.

CG: Will the PSN version be 3D enabled?

Larry: No.

CG: How long till Yar’s Revenge 2?

Larry: This is currently unknown… but the better Yar’s sells, the sooner we’d get a sequel.