Game Reviews thread

[VashTheStampede]

Not sure if this goes in here. But i figure this could be where we post our own personal reviews for any game we play or just got. I just got five games this past weekend and played alot on both.

Star Wars: Empire at War gold pack.
Company of Heroes Gold box
Portal
Galactic Civilization 2
Frontlines Fuel of War

well here are my reviews:

Galactic Civilization 2: 6 out of 10
Turn Based Strategy

For those of you unfamiliar with the game, think of any Civilization game and then put it in space. The campaign was decent but, i found out that it still is just a civilization game. What impressed me the most were the economics in the game. trade, influence, and overall production of goods have a greater impact on your economy than the tradiatioal civ game. That's pretty much it. Oh look for the second expansion sometime this year.

Frontlines Fuel of War: 6 out of 10
First Person Shooter

Unique in how its played. Different combinations of weapons loadouts and classes force you to change your playing style to the situation. Has a small rating system where you can unlock certain items. To be honest i really havnt played it that much because i underestimated its system requirements. I am just shy of it being able to play smoothly on my computer. However from what ive played its decent, but its no call of duty 4, or for that matter, battlefield 2. The reason why it got a 6 instead of a 7 is while its a unique game, it didnt really adopt the traditional fps interface (battlefield, call of duty series). And there's no leaning against the surfaces, which bugs the crap out of me.

Company of Heroes: 8 out of 10
Real Time Tactics Game (RTS but without the easy massing tactic)

Vanilla CoH is very good, easy to pick up, amazing A.I., and great physics engine (starcraft fans, the updated version of this engine is used in Starcraft 2). Though im still unsure why i have an aid station out in the field that does nothing that i know about, even though the hospital lets me heal my units.....maybe i should play it more. The expansion to CoH which was included in the gold box is a little more confusing. I havnt had a chance to play as the panzer elite yet but the british set up is....odd. While its still playable, i cant just feel comfortable with it. But i suppose thats what makes the british side unique.

Portal: 10 out of 10
First Person Shooter Puzzle

Hello! Deploying. Are you there? Is anyone there? Could you come over here? Dispensing. I don't hate you. Nap time. Please move quickly to the chamber lock as the effects of prolonged exposure to the button are not part of this test


Star Wars-Empires at War: 9 out of 10
Real-Time Strategy

I am in love with this game. There's something so satisfying about having your own fleet of star destroyers facing up against a fleet of x-wings and a-wings. To be honest, the space combat is my favorite aspect of the game. And so is attacking AT-ATs with the cable attack from a speeder. I started the campaign and, well it seems decent so far, just wish they had the death star assault in here as a skirmish at least. Only downside to this game is the new faction in the expansion. I just had a problem with that third side butting in the way of a traditional storyline. This aint no Expanded Universe, so dont force it down our throats (except, keep admiral thrawn, i like him). Other than that though the expansion is what makes this game with added units and abilities. Now if only they made a clone wars version.......

[-IRC-MIKE]

Good Reviews. Thanks for the info. I may be trying a few of these games.

[Hammy]

Actually- we have a place for this:

Its towards the bottom called Other Games.

http://www.cainslair.org/forumdisplay.php?f=30

Cheers.

[VashTheStampede]

Actually- we have a place for this:

Its towards the bottom called Other Games.

http://www.cainslair.org/forumdisplay.php?f=30

Cheers.

ohhh, well could an admin move it?

[JohnyRico]

I don't have Frontlines but I'm pretty much on board with your scoring except I must be the only person in the world that doesn't get into portal.

[VashTheStampede]

More Review.

Now i know these are dated but i figure i should input my two cents.

Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare - 8 out of 10

Amazing game, its a movie-quality storyline. Amazing graphics and physics. Online is pretty good The reason im giving this an 8 instead of a 10 is due to the multiplayer. While i like it, its too closed in. I am a huge fan of Call of Duty: United Offensive. I consider that to be the benchmark for all online fps. CoD 4, again while very good, the multiplayer gets old. Spawning and dying withing 3 seconds. No spawn protection in this game, which should have it. I understand the concept of this game and that it is different from UO. but, close combat was never the best idea for an FPS multiplayer. Other than that though, it really is just a work of art.

Battlefield 2 - 7 out of 10

Made for online play, this was CoD4's master. With an expansion, two booster packs, and tons of mods, this game will not get old for years to come. Only problem is the departure of control of singlepayer. In Bf42 and BfV, you can choose how many people on each team in singleplayer, ,the skill, and tickets and such. In bf2 you can only choose the map. Im one of those people who love to play singleplayer, especially when im not internet connected. Another shortcoming is the game itself. Dunno what it is, wether its the game engine or my computer or what, it is an EA product, which means it is extremely glitchy. It is the first battlefield game to make me want to rip out my hair because i shot someone with an entire clip, and they didint die, but yet they shot me once with some puny gun, and its like im naked without body armor. All in all though, if you want a competitor with CoD4 and you dont have a pc, go and get battlefield 2.

Battlefield 2142 - 6 out of 10

I love this game. That being said, i hate it too. The reason the scoring is lower (which by the way, i was very generous), is the fact that it was just a rushed product. Not much time had passed from Bf2 when we suddenly got Bf2142. To be honest, i just see 2142 as a Bf2 total conversion mod. It is the weirdest game as bugs go. When you die you see through your titan. You cant shoot through walls yourself but a sentry gun can. And like battlefield 2, when someone shoots near you with a rocket, you dont explode like you would in real life. Nope it just misses you. Oh and demo hopping. Thats annoying. However there are some improvements over bf2. For instance the ranking, it goes faster, which makes you feel like you're achieving more than in bf2. More ways to get points, more than just weapons unlocks. Oh and the ability to modify your class loadout with your unlocks. This really is a good game, and the Titan mode is still the best out of all of them, even better than Conquest and Assault Lines.

Team Fortress 2 - 9 out of 10
Amazing game, multiplayer is phenominal. Actually thats all there is. It doesnt have the problem most multiplayer games have of one class to rule them all. In fact i would plead to all gaming developers to look at this setup of classes. Take notes,, and then fix yourselves. Not to mention the custom maps out are just amazing. Like dodgeball and volleyball. Hehe. Only thing i see wrong with this, well , it is a valve product online. Which means those annoying AOL kids are now Teenagers and guess what, they bought TF2. So now they spam VOIP constantly. That and the lack of a singleplayer, and problems with importing sprays (at least for me), chipped the points down a bit. This game is amazing though, and i urge anyone who doesnt have it to get it. IF you cant get it, go repent. Its a sin not to have. On a personal note: is it me or does this game also look like a pixar movie. It should be.


Dont be afraid to post your own reviews of any game yall.

[JohnyRico]

Before Warhammer 40K: Dawn of War 2 come out try #1. It plays almost exactly as Company of Heros but with a kick but sci-fi setting. I think you can the base game and 3 expansions in 1 box now.

[VashTheStampede]

Before Warhammer 40K: Dawn of War 2 come out try #1. It plays almost exactly as Company of Heros but with a kick but sci-fi setting. I think you can the base game and 3 expansions in 1 box now.

I actually tried the Demo, and while it was good, it didnt really hold me. Honestly the biggest reason to play it is just because of the massive starcraft-like battles you'd have and the fact that its War40k. But to be honest it got repetative. Not to mention there are alot of upgrades and its a Macro RTS that requires alot of Micro skill. Which doesnt work as well as you think. Example: Dreadnaughts. You have little different guns that you have to upgrade on each little dreadnaught you make. Same with infantry squads. Its not a good idea to be honest, i mean in the middle of a big battle you cant upgrade everywhere.

So ill give the Demo 5/10 only because its a Demo and its War40k. Any other game that would try to combine Micro and Macro like that would get a 3. The graphics helped too. Because i can tell they were way up there way back when it was new.

[VashTheStampede]

Mod Reviews! Where i review mods for games. Mods that are up on the grill today are for battlefield 2 and empire at war.

Allied Intenet Extended Mod for BF2: 7/10

I liked it. At least the aircraft aspect of it. No more pain in the ass dumb-bomb aiming. This has laser-guided and heat-seeking bombs or something. Which is really coold. And bombs do damage to bridges when it hits a vehicle on them. Vehicles arnt that bad either. Little bit different than we're used to but still far better than battlefield 2 vanilla. Tanks for instance have two different rounds. And APCs have different ammo. But they're still the same as we know it.Helicopters got a complete make over. Some have anti-air missiles. Some have the seeking ground smart-bombs. Others just got a big honkin minigun! Infantry is a bit of a problem. Almost good, but not quite there. I just could never get a feel for it. And it seems that no matter how hard you try, the computer is aiming the minigun better than you. What i like about this mod is the maps. Actually, thats what also gave it a bad rating. While they're very unique, and very big for alot of them. After awhile the whole mod is prone to memory leaking. And some of the maps are so big that they will lag even the mightiest of computers. And this is all from singleplayer. But still if you're looking for a good mod to just start killing things. Download AIX.

Forgotten Hope 2: 5 out of 10.

Wasn't impressed. But this is a work in progress, and therefore i am cutting it slack. But this will be reviewed. And if the final product (which will probably be a few years down the road) isn't as amazing as the original for BF42. Then it just wont have a score anymore. They're trying to do too much in this mod it looks like. Changing not just everything to world war two, but the game mechanics itself. I cant use a grenade or grenade launcher without accidently killing my team. Commanders have to use special radio posts that make you great targerts. Oh and its nothing but the african campaign down there. And it sonly british or german for now. Dont get me wrong i love the british, but i love americans more. and the M1 Garand. However right now the mod is extremely well made, and the people who are doing it know what they're doing in the technical department. Then again, i could be wrong about the whole thing. But this is my rating for now. And to be honest, its the only WW2 conversion for BF2 out there that i know of that's decent.

Phoenix Rising for Empire at WAr: 4 out of 10.

I'm giving it a bad review for a good reason. Its buggy. You can't build certain units, the ones you do want to build you cant deploy. The A.I. is as dumb as a rock now. And there are too many ships. Look im all for upgrading and having a diversified fleet. But when you cant build one of each units minus the giant units like super star destroyers, well then its time to rethink the mechanics. I'm being harsh on this mod because its not done. This mod will also be reviewed again after i see improvements. You all might think "why is he being this harsh?". To put it simply, because i have a standard for mods and games. Very rarely do i buy or download something that doesnt meet my preliminary standards. So thats why instead of it being rare to see a higher rated game, it will be rare to see a lower rated game. This would be one of those rare moments. Everything else about this mod is great. The ships, the resizing, but its frustratingly slow and they're trying to put alot in there at once. If i could tell the devleopers for this mod something, it would be to start from scratch and make a Clone Wars mod.

Conflict In Space: 8 out of 10

Absoluetely love this mod. Mainly because of the super star destroyers. And the new liberator cruisers for the rebels (i dont know why they just look awesome). IT also adds some new fighters, some from clone wars, and some from EU. Like new imperial droid tie fighters. And E-wings. Only problem with this mod is, well they didnt include maps for it. Especially space maps. Super Star Destroyers on here are huge. I mean big. So big they cant movve around 99% of the maps that are there already. Simply because they are too big. Then they get stuck, especially if you spawn them somewhere in a certain position. It gets annoying. Because then the computer cant kill it till it gets its own big ship, and by that time it ignores it so you just have a drain on your unit count. Other than that though i would like to see Eclipse-class Super Star Destroyers in the game. They've got everything else. Also maybe doing something like making this compatable with Forces of Corruption with two new factions: Old Republic and Seperatists. Reason being is, well a curiosity one. forces of Corruption allows you to see how many fighters are destroyed wethere you built them or they were spawned free. Empires at War does not. Which makes me sad becasue everytime i see ive killed 100 squadrons of X-wings or TIE-bombers, i smile, laugh, and roll around. (For those of you who dont know, Empire at War: Fores of Corruption is the expansion to Empire at War).

If you're wondering why i havnt reviewed other mods, like Project Reality and such. Its because ive played this mods on sngleplayer. And ill only review the ones fit for singleplayer on here. Reason being is I can test out 99% of everything on there. Instead of being stuck and base raped or cant find a vehicle because a vehicle hog took it or whatever.


Special Behind the Scenes Review! ok well bnot really. But i'm going to add other reviews besides just gaming (and more than just PC gaming) too. Like movies and completed tv series and electronics or what have you. Even restaurants.

[VashTheStampede]

I actually tried the Demo, and while it was good, it didnt really hold me. Honestly the biggest reason to play it is just because of the massive starcraft-like battles you'd have and the fact that its War40k. But to be honest it got repetative. Not to mention there are alot of upgrades and its a Macro RTS that requires alot of Micro skill. Which doesnt work as well as you think. Example: Dreadnaughts. You have little different guns that you have to upgrade on each little dreadnaught you make. Same with infantry squads. Its not a good idea to be honest, i mean in the middle of a big battle you cant upgrade everywhere.

So ill give the Demo 5/10 only because its a Demo and its War40k. Any other game that would try to combine Micro and Macro like that would get a 3. The graphics helped too. Because i can tell they were way up there way back when it was new.

Mind you to people who think what i said is stupid (because i looked at it too again), about the micro and macro combination.
Its my own personal experiance i am reviewing this for. I have trouble with Micromanagement in RTS, so i wont favor any games with that (like warcraft 3). I am learning though. The primary focus of this thread is to get others to put in their two cents on games theyve played, maybe compare their ratings with others, to help people choose games right for them as well as entertainment value in the reviews themselves. I wish i had a bunch of people who sat around reviewing some games on a forum before i go out to buy some. I have maybe 20 games i will play throughout the year, and about three times as many as i dont play at all. I still have Diplomacy in my desk drawer i only played once 10 years ago or whatever. Wish i didnt spend 50 dollars on it.

[VashTheStampede]

Star wars thread review time!

Star Wars Battlefront 1: 4 out of 10

Its so so, after playing both battlefront 1 and 2, i can say 1 has its moments. On hoth the speeders are easier to control to fly around the AT-ATs, so you dont end up crashing. Other than little stuff like that the only saving grace for this game is star wars itself. Bugs, glitches, awkward looking battles. You can get an accurate feel of the stormtrooper effect.

Star Wars battlefront 2: 6 out of 10

Improve ments over some of the little things that ruined the first game. Space battles are included (but not endor or coruscant or the death star, figures). Hoth is in there, with a few map changes and more manueverable speeders, but those are also very difficult to fly. Heroes add a new level. Pretty much you gotta kill to stay alive if you're a hero. Which promotes bettering yourself at the game, which doesnt take much. There's only two levels of bot skill, Normal and Elite. Which seems dumb, because they're both the same. Also includes Episode 3 vehicles, like the Arc-130, V-wing, and of course, Eta-2. Which would be anakin's and obi-wan's jedi interceptor. Oh and tri-fighters and vulture droids etc. There are alot of maps and mods that fix what wasnt included. Gameplay still feels awkward and the whole stormtrooper effect feel is still there. Though i guess it wouldnt be star wars if it didnt have battles without any cover.

Star Wars Rogue Squadron 3: Rebel Strike 9 out of 10

All and all a decent star wars game. No complains except that if they remade Rogue Squadron 2 with the better graphics and textures, i wouldnt of minded. But this is a good star wars game for gamecube. And if anyone wants a good recent one that looks amazing, get it. Pretty cheap now a days. This is a short review because i dont have complaints, and i need to go.