Out of all the sports to come out of America, basketball is probably one of my favorites, I don’t know why, maybe it’s because it is fast and frantic or maybe it’s just because I understand the rules, either way it is for this reason that I am happy to see NBA 08 from Sony finally hit the UK.

NBA 08 like Motorstorm (I bet you never thought you’d here these two games compared), makes use of the Sixaxis in a very unique way, this due to the new Free6 control system which allows you to control your players with the motions you make. Tilting your controller performs a defensive move which puts your players hands up to prevent a basket or tilting it the other way will put your players hands down, therefore enabling you to blocks passes etc, however that is not all as you can also perform moves such as jukes, crossovers and spins with similar movements. The motion controls aren’t restricted to defense as you can also use them offensively by utilizing them to shield the ball, or by rolling the control you can even dribble the ball between your legs. All of the moves I have mentioned can be tricky to pull off but if done correctly the effects are pretty good.

There are some other quite good ideas added in as features this year, pressing L1 acts as your key control, this lets you assign a set player as your go to guy, so whenever you are stuck and can’t get by the defenders pressing L1 and the corresponding button will then allow you to utilize this selected player to get by defenders, get baskets easier and maybe even pull off the odd alley oop.

Unfortunately there are a few issues with the new game, the player AI doesn’t seem to be as good as It should be, they will run down the clock when they are losing instead of shooting, they will also take defensive stances again offensive players most of the time instead of running with them and trying to get the ball as the play gets closer to their basket, it’s all quite odd and something it seems, that could have been quite easily amended.

Another new feature included in this years game is the Upside Progression System, this allows you to collect points by completing set goals, there are roughly 90 different tasks throughout each of the six game modes (Exhibition, Season, Playoffs, Online, NBA Replay and Mini-Games), completing a goal will result in you getting rewards such as trophies, new balls, etc as well as experience points that help improve your level which in turn helps you open up new levels of gameplay such as access to classic jerseys, new intro sequences etc. There is certainly plenty to unlock so should this be the sort of thing you look for in a game, you will be very happy.

The experience points you earn in a game can also be spent another way though, by creating your own player. At the beginning of the game you can create a player of your choice and the creation system is pretty sound, there are certainly plenty of options as far as looks, build and stats are concerned, however it’ s once you build up your experience points that this feature really comes into it’s own. By using your points you can improve his stats and also kit him out anyway you like, this is a great part of the game.

The different game modes included in NBA 08 really add some good variety, NBA Replay allows you to re-enact the great performances of the previous NBA season, which is a great idea. There are also some mini games just to add to the value, there are quite a few to get through including favorites such as 3 point shoot and own the court. Other game modes include season, playoffs and of course online.

Graphically it is hard to fault NBA 08, it really looks fantastic in all it’s Full HD glory, the players have a good likeness to their real life counterparts and the way the crowd react to play really helps add to the authenticity. The sound is also spot on, the fans sound wonderful and the commentary keeps up with the game well, which can’t be said for all sports games.

NBA 08 is a great basketball game, sure it has some glaring faults in the gameplay that really should have been addressed and for this reason we have been a bit less generous with our score, however if you can forgive these issues then you will be hard pushed to find a better looking sports game anywhere else on your PS3.

Overall Rating: 8/10

We have been waiting a while for the highly anticipated and PS3 timed exclusive, Unreal Tournament III to arrive in the UK and now it is finally here, but the question is, does this first person shooter helps our next gen console reach new heights or is this game just another dumbed down PC port?

The Unreal series has been with the PC for a long time now, each version squeezing power from even the highest spec of PC’s. Occasionally an Unreal game will transfer to the console market, and whilst fun, you never really get the feel of the PC original in looks and online capability. Thankfully, the PS3 has changed all of this. The Playstation Network handles the online part really well, and the PS3 churns out amazing looking characters and arenas without breaking a sweat.

Unreal Tournament 3 is mostly an online game so if you don’t have internet connection think twice about getting this title. There is a single player campaign, but this is really a training ground for people new to the series and to also get to grips with the many game types available.

Online is where this baby shines, the lobby is very easy to navigate, showing ping times so you can choose the best for your area, click on this and your away.

The pace of UT3 is very fast, requiring cat like reflexes just to stay alive. This is usually the point where console first person shooters fall as the speed does not filter well onto a control pad. Epic however have done a fine job of making the sixaxis work on this title, you even have the option to play with mouse and keyboard and see what all of the fuss is about, word of warning though, even with all of the options to alter target sight and the like, the mouse does not feel 100% compared to the sixaxis, so here is hoping for a patch through the Playstation Network in the future.

The amount of content shoehorned onto the Blu ray disc really shows value for money and great production considering this is mainly an online game. There are loads of maps to play through, each varying in size from close quarters to huge open areas. These are played through various locations like caverns, space ships, temples and ruined city streets. The graphical look of the game is also stunning, going with characters that look a bit like those from Gears of War, these gorillas of men will run around dirty looking streets trying to kill each other without even a thought of slowdown. Some of the newer additions to the Unreal series take on a more biomechanical feel. The Necris vehicles look like living/mechanical modes of destruction and are great fun to use; the Death walker and Viper Hoverbike are both worth a mention. There are also classic modes of travel included like the Jeep with huge blades that can cut down enemies, very brutal indeed. If heavy transport is not your thing then you can always use your hoverboard to travel around. Though this sounds full of 80’s cheese, this is executed really well, and there are points, especially on the larger maps where this item is indispensable.

As with all online games, there are the usual batch of modes to play, deathmatch, team deathmatch, duel and capture the flag make welcome returns, but Epic have also added two new types, and hopefully they will be around for a while, these are Warfare and Vehicle Capture the Flag. Warfare really make for great team battles, its up to the team to capture a node point, once captured you will need to defend from the enemies but also send out troops to capture new areas as the more you gain the better weapons and vehicles are available to use, giving you the upper hand.

If you ever get bored with the basic setting on each map, you have a load of options which you can with, like one shot kills or setting a handicap for the newer, less battle hardened players.

Unreal Tournament 3 is a great benchmark for all other online console shooters; it does everything to the highest possible standard and never drops the ball. It has all of the qualities a top notch PC title will have, but without the high price of the newest possible graphics card to enjoy it. The only area the PS3 loses out to the PC is in the modding where gamers will submit their own maps, but I am sure Epic will give us some updates in the future to improve this side of things. So if you are craving for a frag fest, this is definitely the game for you.

Overall Rating: 9/10

The PSP really seems to be coming of age this year, there has been some fantastic titles and there a load more to come. One of the games we have been most excited about is Patapon, which is a rhythmic/action game from the makers of the excellent Loco Roco.

Patapon sees you take control of a tribe know as the Hatapon whose mission it is to force the evil Zigatons from their land, these little warriors are controlled by The Almighty (you) and can only be commanded by the beat of their war drum, which you as the Almighty control. Now this may all sound very strange but once you are playing the game it all makes perfect sense.

At the beginning of the game it is explained that The Almighty had left the Patapon and this is the reason that the evil Zigatons had taken over the land, however since he is now back it is time for the Patapon to retake the land and this is where you come in. The game has a very unique approach to teaching you how to play, over the course of the levels you will come across the different powers that have been lost to The Almighty since he had been gone along with the different drums which are used to motivate the Patapons, each time you find a new drum you will then be taught the rhythm and what effect this will have on your troops. Since each drum is assigned to one of the face buttons, getting the rhythm correct is fairly easy, for example to attack you will press circle, circle, square, circle which will then cause the Patapon to chant Pon, Pon, Pata, Pon before attacking the enemy in their path, there are numerous moves like this that you will acquire, from simple maneuvers such as marching to others like defense.

To get the Patapon to respond to you, keeping in time is essential, for example should you use the attack move mentioned above you will have to wait until the Patapon have chanted and then immediately make your next move, all while keeping in rhythm (although you are guided by the four beat count which lights up around the edge of the screen), however if you do get a bit carried away and beat the drum out of rhythm or over the top of the Patapon’s chanting then you will fail to motivate them which can cause the enemy to get a few strikes in. If you manage to stay in rhythm long enough you will then activate fever mode, this makes your fighters stronger and faster which in turn helps you cause more damage when attacking, however should you stray out of rhythm your Patapons will return to their normal state.

Although you only start the game with a certain type of Patapon it won’t be long before you acquire different types of fighters, there include the Tatepon, Yaripon, Yumipon, Kipapon, Megapon and Dekapon. The first Patapon you will come across are the Tatepon, these warriors are your frontline of attack and tend to use a shield and battle axe, there are followed by the Yaripon and Yumipon who use projectile weapons, the others are acquired slightly later in the game, but we will leave their skills for you to find out, we don’t want to spoil all of the surprises after all.

When you begin a mission you are required to choose up to three squads to take with you, once this is done you are then able to equip them with any new weapons or armour which you have found during the previous levels, this all helps add a bit of strategy to the game as you will need to decide what troops and equipment best suit the level you are about to tackle. As you progress through levels you will acquire ka-Ching (which is the currency used to buy new units or resurrect lost troops) as well as weapons, equipment, meat to feed your people and more, anything you do find though will not be much use until you return home to Patapolis.

Some of the enemies you will come across during the levels are extremely powerful and often dwarf your little Patapons, so it is essential that you make sure you resurrect any troops that die and also buy the most powerful units available, as well as choosing the right guys for the job obviously.

As far as the presentation goes, Patapon is one of the most unique and funs games around, each little character seems to have a personality of their own and the style in which the game is presented just makes you want to love it even more. The same can be said for the sound which, (thanks to the rhythmic chanting of the Patapon), sticks in your head for a very long time, be warned though you may just find yourself chanting Pata, Pata, Pata, Pon while going through your daily routines.

While there are a few issues such as no pause option during gameplay or the fact that the game doesn’t always tell you when you need to return to a previous mission, the fact remains that Patapon is probably one of the best games the PSP has ever seen, the gameplay (including the little minigames you will encounter, which are fantastic) is just so unique and original that you can’t help but love it, I can do nothing but highly recommend this game to everyone who owns a PSP, buy it today and it may just bring you a little happiness.

Overall Rating: 9.4/10

The Club is a brand new shooter from the makers of the Project Gotham Racing series, Bizarre Creations. This isn’t your traditional shooter, in fact it feels more like shooting ducks at the fair and seeing if you can win a prize, therefore it will not be for everyone, but it does have some redeeming features.

The game sees you take control of one of the eight characters, at the beginning of each level you are given a challenge which generally ranges from finding an exit to staying alive, the main purpose of the game however is to kill as many enemies as possible and rack up a high score. There are quite a few ways to improve your score throughout the game, though none more so than by keeping a combo going throughout the entire level.

Combos are made by killing as many enemies as possible before the combo bar goes down, each time you kill an enemy you will receive a score depending on the style of kill etc, for each enemy you kill, the combo bar at the top of the screen will increase, however should you go a while without killing someone, then you will lose the combo, meaning that your score will not reach the heights you would like it to.

Another way to a good score is to use some style, head shots for example will get you more points as will getting kills from distance, killing from around a corner or killing with the last bullet in your clip, there are quite a few combination you can use, all which will be discovered once you are used to playing the game.

Since each level can be revisited and the layouts/enemy spawn points don’t really change, the best way to play the game is to play through each level again and again until you perfect them, however this repetitiveness is good a reason why this game may not be for everyone.

At the end of each level you will be given a score, which compares you to the other club members, get the highest score in each round and at the end of the league you will become the champion.

One of the more positive aspects of the game is the sheer amount of weapons that are available, weapons are usually acquired from either fallen enemies or from pickup locations which are spread throughout the levels and range from pistols, shotguns, sub machine guns and assault rifles, to sniper rifles and heavier weapons such as rocket launchers and a minigun, obviously they all have their advantages and disadvantages when it comes to scoring big combos, I guess it just depends on which style of weapons you are more comfortable with.

As far as multiplayer goes, The Club serves up 8 different game modes, these range from free for all games such as score matches, kill matches and hunter matches to team games such as team siege, team skullshots, team capture, team kill match and team fox hunt, all of these matches are self explanatory and work quite well, although they do miss the depth of other online games such as (dare we say it) Call of Duty 4.

Graphically The Club does not disappoint, the characters are well animated and there is generally no glitches in the frame rate, the only part of the presentation that does let the game down is a lack of any dialogue or story, and although that isn’t really the point of this game, it just makes it all feel that little bit shallow.

The Club is certainly not a game that will be for everyone, if you have ever played Project Gotham Racing and liked to show off and earn loads of Kudos, then perhaps you are the type of person that will like this, however if you like a game with a good story and lots of depth then it is probably best to avoid The Club, because you won’t find that here.

Overall Rating: 8/10

With all the controversy surrounding gaming recently, such as ELSPA agreeing with the Tories that kids need to get out more, it occurred to me that gaming doesn’t really feel as sociable as it used to. When I was young I would look forward to every Saturday evening as this was the time when me and all my friends would gather to play the latest game on our Sega Megadrives and later on our Sony PlayStation’s thanks to a wonderful in-game setting called cooperative play, how times have changed.

It seems to me that developers no longer care for such an addition to their games, rather than include the ability to play on the same console as your friends developers seem to be going down the path of only including co-op play via services such as Xbox Live and the Playstation Network, there are obviously some exceptions to this rule such as FIFA, PES and Singstar etc but the majority of games these days, Call of Duty 4 being a big example, seem to be forgetting to include the ability to play alongside your friends while being in the same room.

 
uncharted, great game, no co-op

Developers will argue that by excluding co-op mode they are then able to put more time into the main game and this may be a valid point, however I for one would rather have the choice. Playing games over the internet against friends and strangers is the norm these days and don’t get me wrong, I think it is great fun, however there is nothing quite like playing against a friend when they are in the same room to bring out that competitive streak.

So I say to developers, when making a game please don’t forget to add co-op play for people like me who like to have friends around to play the latest games and have a few beers, gaming should be about being sociable, that’s the way it has always been and to take that away now would be a great shame.