I don't have time for a full, professional review right now, so I'll limit my speech on Alice in Wonderland (2010) to a few words.
First of all, calling this film "Alice in Wonderland" is completely wrong. The more suitable title would have been "Alice in Underland". Even the characters welcome Alice in Underland, not Wonderland.
Seriously now, how many Tim Burton films have you seen recently?! I can say a few words about this director:
1) Johnny Depp is in EVERY ONE of his movies.
2) All his movies have a dark and bloody theme, so it was a big surprise to me when I found out he was going to do an Alice in Wonderland remake.
3) Despite all that, he is a fuckin' genius! Tim Burton rocks!
Now, back to Alice in Wonderland. I think the actors do a great job. Johnny Depp fits perfectly as the Mad Hatter, and Helena Bonham Carter was a great big-headed queen, despite her desire too cut people's heads off. The choice for the main character, Mia Wasikowska as Alice, is also well inspired. I had my doubts when I first heard the blue caterpillar talk, but a second later I was sure I recognized Alan Rickman's voice. Yeah, even Stephen Fry does voice acting in this movie (he provides the teleporting cat's voice).
The story is easy to follow. Alice is now 19 and her family forces to marry some rich lord. At her wedding, right before having to say yes, she sees the good ol' white rabbit again and follows it. She yet again falls in the rabbit hole and finds herself in Underland. She can eat a special cake to become bigger and drink some potion to become smaller (maybe it's vice-versa, I don't know, I'm confused too). At first, the rabbit thinks he brought back the wrong Alice, but then she is proved to be the right one. There's a prediction Alice will slay a dragon (can't remember it's name right now), and thus defeat the Red Queen once and for all. The rest of the story you'll have to find out by yourself, as I'm really in a hurry right now and I have to end this prematurely. I won't even add a final judgement. I'll just say that I'd give this movie an 8,5/10.
Friday, May 21, 2010
GTA IV Review
Grand Theft Auto IV (or 4) continues the series of action games created by Rockstar Games back in the late 90's and continued until the present. This is probably the original sequel to GTA III, as the other PC ones, Vice City and San Andreas are just like an expansion, like, using the same engine, but adding better graphics, and they only complete the story of GTA 3 and therefore are not called GTA 4 and 5, but in fact they're named after the cities the action happens into.
In GTA IV, you play as Niko Bellic, a russian imigrant who came in America for an apparent reason (his cousin's description of the country) and for a hidden reason that I'm not going to reveal right now.
The game installs along with Windows Live, for multiplayer gaming, and Rockstar Games Social Club, which probably has the same purpose. I don't know exactly, I wasn't interested in trying it out. Besides I couldn't try the multiplayer even if I wanted to, because I got my game from torrents and if you don't have the original game you can't use the multiplayer feature.
When you start the game, you can either begin playing with the graphics settings the game automatically selects depending on your computer's capabilities, or you can go to Options and then the Graphics tab and modify them as your like.
The graphics are good and live up to people's expectations. The characters are well designed and their personality is reflected by their looks, in the first place, and then by their actions.
The controls in this game are great. I could say they're way better than in the previous games. Despite that, the helicopter controls suck. I prefer the San Andreas ones over these ones. I just can't do anything with a helicopter because as soon as I take off, I crash. That's why the final mission was impossible for me to complete. And that's a big surprise, as all the other missions are easy to accomplish without any cheats. The shooting is better than in it's predecessors. I am glad they now let you hide behind items\walls, to cover during a gunfight. That way my character doesn't take that much damage from enemies' bullets. The weapon selection sucks because there's no Minigun (my favorite gun in GTA!) and a lot of other guns I used to have in previous GTA's are gone (OK, there are new weapons in Episodes from Liberty City, but that's another story). Also, I'm disappointed in the clothes selection. There aren't enough clothes to choose from, and the existing selection is not very satisfying, at least not to me.
The story is great, the characters' lines are well made-up and the jokes... well, let's just say I laughed out loud every time Niko made an ironical comment. The only thing different from the other GTA's is the finale. Usually, the main character becomes rich and powerful, and kills all his enemies, but in this one the ending is a bit different. Since I hate spoilers, I won't do one here.
The things I liked most in this game, even though I never took advantage of them are: being able to make friends and go out with them, to eat or to play darts or pool or bowling, to make girlfriends and date them (even though I only went 100% with the first one), and to ride in cabs wherever you want. I only took a cab when, for instance, I couldn't get past a mission and I failed it a lot of times, and I didn't want to go all the way back to where the mission starts.
I also need to specify this game makes you choose who to kill at some point. I recommend looking up this info on the internet before shooting. When you get to choose between A or B, you need to find out which one gives what advantages and make your decision based on that. In the final part of the game, you get to choose whether to make a deal with one of your enemies or go to his location and kill him. Either way, the ending you get will not be the one you expect.
Overall, GTA IV is a great game and I enjoyed playing it. Now I thought I should give Episodes from Liberty City a shot. That one is a game that somehow fills some blanks left by the original GTA IV. It consists of two games, "The Lost and Damned" and "The Ballad of Gay Tony". You can get it from Steam as a digital download, or from torrents, as I did.
Graphics: 9,5/10
Soundtrack: 9/10 (for radio tracks and a great main theme)
Gameplay: 9,5/10
Story: 10/10
Overall: 9,5/10
In GTA IV, you play as Niko Bellic, a russian imigrant who came in America for an apparent reason (his cousin's description of the country) and for a hidden reason that I'm not going to reveal right now.
The game installs along with Windows Live, for multiplayer gaming, and Rockstar Games Social Club, which probably has the same purpose. I don't know exactly, I wasn't interested in trying it out. Besides I couldn't try the multiplayer even if I wanted to, because I got my game from torrents and if you don't have the original game you can't use the multiplayer feature.
When you start the game, you can either begin playing with the graphics settings the game automatically selects depending on your computer's capabilities, or you can go to Options and then the Graphics tab and modify them as your like.
The graphics are good and live up to people's expectations. The characters are well designed and their personality is reflected by their looks, in the first place, and then by their actions.
The controls in this game are great. I could say they're way better than in the previous games. Despite that, the helicopter controls suck. I prefer the San Andreas ones over these ones. I just can't do anything with a helicopter because as soon as I take off, I crash. That's why the final mission was impossible for me to complete. And that's a big surprise, as all the other missions are easy to accomplish without any cheats. The shooting is better than in it's predecessors. I am glad they now let you hide behind items\walls, to cover during a gunfight. That way my character doesn't take that much damage from enemies' bullets. The weapon selection sucks because there's no Minigun (my favorite gun in GTA!) and a lot of other guns I used to have in previous GTA's are gone (OK, there are new weapons in Episodes from Liberty City, but that's another story). Also, I'm disappointed in the clothes selection. There aren't enough clothes to choose from, and the existing selection is not very satisfying, at least not to me.
The story is great, the characters' lines are well made-up and the jokes... well, let's just say I laughed out loud every time Niko made an ironical comment. The only thing different from the other GTA's is the finale. Usually, the main character becomes rich and powerful, and kills all his enemies, but in this one the ending is a bit different. Since I hate spoilers, I won't do one here.
The things I liked most in this game, even though I never took advantage of them are: being able to make friends and go out with them, to eat or to play darts or pool or bowling, to make girlfriends and date them (even though I only went 100% with the first one), and to ride in cabs wherever you want. I only took a cab when, for instance, I couldn't get past a mission and I failed it a lot of times, and I didn't want to go all the way back to where the mission starts.
I also need to specify this game makes you choose who to kill at some point. I recommend looking up this info on the internet before shooting. When you get to choose between A or B, you need to find out which one gives what advantages and make your decision based on that. In the final part of the game, you get to choose whether to make a deal with one of your enemies or go to his location and kill him. Either way, the ending you get will not be the one you expect.
Overall, GTA IV is a great game and I enjoyed playing it. Now I thought I should give Episodes from Liberty City a shot. That one is a game that somehow fills some blanks left by the original GTA IV. It consists of two games, "The Lost and Damned" and "The Ballad of Gay Tony". You can get it from Steam as a digital download, or from torrents, as I did.
Graphics: 9,5/10
Soundtrack: 9/10 (for radio tracks and a great main theme)
Gameplay: 9,5/10
Story: 10/10
Overall: 9,5/10
Saturday, May 15, 2010
Game Previews
1. Lara Croft And The Guardian Of Light
Gameplay trailer:
Well, I've seen the gameplay trailer above myself and I'm left with only a few words about this game: THEY FUCKED UP! How can you turn Tomb Raider into a fucking RPG?! HOW?! I'm so pissed I could go over to Crystal Dynamics and shoot every last bastard working there! There was one game series I liked and they FUCKED IT UP! First Ubisoft fucked up Prince of Persia with that stupid joke of a game that wasn't even titled, released back in '08, and now Eidos fucks up Tomb Raider! How very convenient is that?!
By the way, guess who brings us the next Tomb Raider game on PC! Aw, yes, I just noticed, the game is not called Tomb Raider anymore! Just Lara Croft and The Guardian of Light! That's great! It means the producers know this is going to be an epic fail and don't want Tomb Raider to be connected with it.
2. Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands
Ubisoft preview with commentaries:
Well, it's a good thing Ubisoft realized they fucked up and now they try to make up with the fans by releasing another Prince of Persia, called The Forgotten Sands. As far as I could see, the game is promising, except for the Prince's face. I'm sorry, but to me, Prince of Persia ended with The Two Thrones. The pile of shit that is Prince of Persia 4 (2008) helped me to draw this conclusion. Anyway, we're a few days away from the release date, so... the waiting is killing you, right?
Gameplay trailer:
Well, I've seen the gameplay trailer above myself and I'm left with only a few words about this game: THEY FUCKED UP! How can you turn Tomb Raider into a fucking RPG?! HOW?! I'm so pissed I could go over to Crystal Dynamics and shoot every last bastard working there! There was one game series I liked and they FUCKED IT UP! First Ubisoft fucked up Prince of Persia with that stupid joke of a game that wasn't even titled, released back in '08, and now Eidos fucks up Tomb Raider! How very convenient is that?!
By the way, guess who brings us the next Tomb Raider game on PC! Aw, yes, I just noticed, the game is not called Tomb Raider anymore! Just Lara Croft and The Guardian of Light! That's great! It means the producers know this is going to be an epic fail and don't want Tomb Raider to be connected with it.
2. Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands
Ubisoft preview with commentaries:
Well, it's a good thing Ubisoft realized they fucked up and now they try to make up with the fans by releasing another Prince of Persia, called The Forgotten Sands. As far as I could see, the game is promising, except for the Prince's face. I'm sorry, but to me, Prince of Persia ended with The Two Thrones. The pile of shit that is Prince of Persia 4 (2008) helped me to draw this conclusion. Anyway, we're a few days away from the release date, so... the waiting is killing you, right?
Tomb Raider Underworld Review
Crystal Dinamics made, as usual, a masterpiece out of this Tomb Raider title. The graphics are awesome, they feel more realistic than in Legend or Anniversarry, and the controls are a bit better. I don't like that the game is full of puzzles you need to solve in order to proceed further. I wouldn't mind, but the game is totally unlinear and you need to walk around for a lot of time in order to find the proper way to solve them. It's also complicated to move around without getting lost at least a few times. I personally had to use a video walkthrough to get over some scenes. Clearly, Underworld is far more challenging than Legend and Anniversary. Another thing that caught my atention is the way to set the game difficulty. You don't simply choose easy medium or hard. This time, there are a few options like how much damage Lara takes (little, medium or much), the ammunition quantity and stuff like this. Interesting. I guess there might be some sado-masochist who likes to see Lara getting killed and therefore will choose her to take much damage. I admit it, I chose little damage. I'm not as much into challenge as I am into the story development. For me, good graphics + good story means a good game. Of course, some puzzles won't hurt anyone, but let's not exagerate. This game has way too many puzzles. The enemies are easy to kill, yet you can also lose health depending on the damage settings you choose. Inevitable, the game benefiths of the regular bugs, like Lara's legs being half inside the ground. Of course, that bug doesn't last that much, but it's still there, so... we have a minus!
The motorcicle controls are the same as in previous games. I don't know about you, but I didn't really like those. Sorry. Also, the Mexic area was hardcore. Had I not watched a video guide there was no way I could find my way through that jungle. And that's not the only hard level.
The story is mediocre by my standards. I'm sorry to disappoint those who liked this game 100%, but I think they could have made a better story. I mean, if Avalon is really under the Arctic Sea, then why the fuck did Lara go through so much trouble trying to get there?! In the end, it feels like it was all for nothing. The whole game had one single purpose: to find Thor's belt and hammer. Full stop. Once that was done, I had to go to Avalon, as it's position has conveniently been revealed to me. Also, killing Allister (sorry, if you don't want spoilers don't read my reviews) felt kinda random. I was expecting to see him again in the Underworld, but shit! I had no such luck! From the story's point of view, Tomb Raider Legend was the best. It was also great doing stuff outside jungles and underwater realms! But wait! The programmers realized continuing on that basis was a pain in the ass, so they came back to jungles and underwater realms in Anniversarry and Underworld!
The soundtrack is awesome, as I expected it to be. The graphics, as I said below, are way better than before. The controls are quite the same (small differences, don't fuck up gameplay so it doesn't matter).
So, I guess I said enough about this, therefore I'll go on with the final judgement! (OOPS NOW PEOPLE WILL SAY I COPY FAT MAN JUDGETH!! NEVER MIND! FUCK THEM! I'M JUST A GOD DAMN FAN!).
Graphics: 9,5\10
Story: 6,5\10
Gameplay: 9\10
Soundtrack: 10\10
Personal option: -1 point for the extreme difficulty of the puzzles and for the lack of more urban areas.
Overall: 8,7/10 - 1 point = 7,7/10
The motorcicle controls are the same as in previous games. I don't know about you, but I didn't really like those. Sorry. Also, the Mexic area was hardcore. Had I not watched a video guide there was no way I could find my way through that jungle. And that's not the only hard level.
The story is mediocre by my standards. I'm sorry to disappoint those who liked this game 100%, but I think they could have made a better story. I mean, if Avalon is really under the Arctic Sea, then why the fuck did Lara go through so much trouble trying to get there?! In the end, it feels like it was all for nothing. The whole game had one single purpose: to find Thor's belt and hammer. Full stop. Once that was done, I had to go to Avalon, as it's position has conveniently been revealed to me. Also, killing Allister (sorry, if you don't want spoilers don't read my reviews) felt kinda random. I was expecting to see him again in the Underworld, but shit! I had no such luck! From the story's point of view, Tomb Raider Legend was the best. It was also great doing stuff outside jungles and underwater realms! But wait! The programmers realized continuing on that basis was a pain in the ass, so they came back to jungles and underwater realms in Anniversarry and Underworld!
The soundtrack is awesome, as I expected it to be. The graphics, as I said below, are way better than before. The controls are quite the same (small differences, don't fuck up gameplay so it doesn't matter).
So, I guess I said enough about this, therefore I'll go on with the final judgement! (OOPS NOW PEOPLE WILL SAY I COPY FAT MAN JUDGETH!! NEVER MIND! FUCK THEM! I'M JUST A GOD DAMN FAN!).
Graphics: 9,5\10
Story: 6,5\10
Gameplay: 9\10
Soundtrack: 10\10
Personal option: -1 point for the extreme difficulty of the puzzles and for the lack of more urban areas.
Overall: 8,7/10 - 1 point = 7,7/10
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