The story is relatively simple, and awfully typical of a Pokémon game. Dark forces are engaging in thievery, and it is up to you to hunt them down and retrieve their ill-gotten gains. Unlike the main series antagonists, Team Rocket and its various clones, it is not Pokémon themselves that the villains are looting this time but Glowdrops, which represents the game’s health-restoring elixir. Its not a particularly compelling story in fairness, which is exacerbated by the fact these glowdrop thefts seem to have no ingame impact. Whenever I go to one of the towns’ various fountains to regain my health there are always enough glowdrops left, regardless on whether there’s just been a big loot or not. The game gives you some cock-and-ball story about how the grateful Pokémon have reserved some especially for me, which might actually be plausible if the glowdrops were finite, but seeing as they’re not just feels like a cop-out.

The gameplay, however, is pretty damn fun it must be said. You move a single Pokémon around using the analogue stick, and fight other critters in real-time using one of two moves. Some of the Pokémon you defeat will lie in a glowing circle, indicating that you can pick them up and add them to your roster, which is how Pokémon are collected in this title. The game’s real-time game play introduces some surprisingly satisfying elements. A good example would be earlier when I used my Darumaka (power : 898. In English : alot!) to poison a much lower level Blitzle, and just stood back and watched as it annihilated its HP.

If you so wish you may switch between Pokémon in your roster at almost any time (except when in the absolute heat of battle) and, as long as you don’t let your Pokémon die you can use as many as you wish. The pace is fast and frantic, and plays like a brilliant cross between Chrono Trigger and Bangai-O. Delightfully all of the current 649 Pokémon feature, so you’ll never tire of having to continually run into the same old monsters while playing this. Its particularly a pleasure when you run into an old favourite among all the frenzy (I must admit I did squee when I came across a Meowth!).

Other fun little inclusions are a 2-player battle and Co-op mode (both of which I have yet to try) and an additional, rather different use of the Streetpass feature. When you achieve a certain amount in game one of your stored Streetpass/Mii Plaza buddies (regardless of whether they’ve played this title of not) will make a visit to your ‘Toy Shop’ and spend a considerable amount of money! Which is a nice addition and comes in pretty useful. There are a few special Pokémon that can also be unlocked in this way…

Boss battles are fun, but do get repetitive. Regardless of which Pokémon is in use (and they vary by size/type/power, you name it) they always always have the same tactic, pivoting around in a circle before unleashing their attack. Its true that the balance between the boss’ power and your own will change each time, which will obviously make your strategy slightly different to each boss. But that doesn’t stop me thinking the developers were slightly lazy…

The graphics look to belong more to a high-end DS game than a 3DS title, but thats actually not a problem. Infact it suits the frantic gameplay to a T. When in play, the Pokécritters themselves all have a neat black border around them, which almost makes the game look like a cartoon. Its presentation is in the 2.5 style found in titles such as Pokémon Black/White. The colours are very vivid and bright, as with virtually every Pokémon title. While these things are all fine there are times when this title really lets itself down graphically, however. One big example is the text used to announce battles, another the cutscenes you come across as you traverse though the game. They both look like they were put together as part of a coursework project by a student learning to use 3D Studio Max. Not really what you’d expect from a full price retail title, especially one from Nintendo.
I really can’t complain too much however. The special effects look good, and great care has clearly been taken to make sure each and every move looks good when executed. Aside from that, and most importantly, the dear Pokémon themselves, all 649 of them, have been reproduced faithfully. As a fan of the franchise this is perhaps the main thing that encouraged me to purchase the game in the first place, and something I must give it praise for.

Upbeat is what you’ll find when it comes to the music. This is what you might expect from the Pokémon series, and it is wholly pleasant, even if its fair to say its nothing special. It has a very electronic 1980s feel to it that goes well with the pace.
Interestingly there’s more variation in the actual battle music then there is when actually travelling through the levels unprovoked, which is in stark contrast to the main series games in the franchise. The variance in battle music is much welcomed, ofcourse, but its a shame that the same tunes are played over and over while in the normal areas of the game, because it really makes things feel quite samey at times. Certainly I would contribute this as a reason why this is a title best played in short bursts, given a rest, then returned to. There’s this one track, used on ‘Silent Forest’, ‘Windy Prarie’ and ‘Bright Beach’ among others… and honestly if I never have to hear it again I will be chuffed. Not that its a bad tune whatsoever, its just been used to death in this title.
The sound effects are great, they really made me smile. From the satisfying ‘smash’ sound made when a Pokémon you’ve just defeated submits to you, to the calming swishy noise made when you’re Audino performs ‘Secret Power’, the sound effects are well done here. I must make those Pokéfans among you aware that, as you may have guessed, the Pokémon still use their Gameboy cries. But it really takes nothing away from the experience at all, and, anyway, for many of us, these bleeps have become as synonymous with the Poképals they represent as any voice acting snippets could hope to.

So in conclusion, I think this review may have portrayed this title in a more negative light than it deserves. Its just that it has some glaring flaws that really needed to be addressed for this to be a fair review. But, overall, they don’t take away from this title’s solidity as much as I feel I may have portrayed them to have done, so allow me to redress that balance here.
I decided to buy Super Pokémon Rumble because I was so impressed by its gameplay at Eurogamer. I have honestly not regretted that decision for a second. Thus far I only have 3 games for my 3DS : Street Fighter 4, Mario Kart 7 and Super Pokémon Rumble. And I love them all equally. That sentence alone should make a fair few of you (especially 3DS owners) appreciate just what a special title this is.

Despite appearances this is no rehash (although it is clearly rushed in places). Its the most complete Pokémon Rumble title to date, and hopefully the second in what proves to be a long and prosperous series, because, let me tell those Pokéfans out there among you, playing Pokémon in realtime is AMAZING. Super Pokémon Rumble will send an army of Pokémon flying at you, and you -will- defeat them, either one by one or multiple at a time with the right moves. And it just feels amazing.
Yes there are a multitude of improvements that could be made. But that doesn’t distract from that fact that this is one of the finest Pokémon titles out there at the moment. I’d even go so far as to say its my joint favourite Pokémon spin-off game ever, the other being the legendary N64 romp Pokémon Snap. I really hope those 3DS-owning Pokéfans among you are not planning on letting this title pass you by. For any of you that have it : I’d be happy to exchange Friend Codes for a 2 player co-op game =]

PROS

+ Top-notch gameplay. Chrono Trigger meets Bangai-O
+ All 649 Pokémon that have currently appeared at some point pop up here
+ The graphics don’t push the envelope, but still generally work very well!
+ Music and sound effects are generally pleasant

CONS

-Crap Story
-Boss Battles are repetitive
-Few major graphical niggles

6/10 – Don’t regret purchasing this title for a second, an absolute joy for Pokémaniacs. But the amount of flaws and lack of originality sadly mean I cannot, of a sound mind, rate it any higher (despite wanting to!).

~HelenBaby

My first console was the NES. It was a hand-me-down from my brother, and I played it to death. It didn’t take long before I started collecting consoles for my self and I have, as of now, owned a total of 12 consoles. 7 of these have been Nintendo-made (typical female!) and 4 have been portable. I’m big on portable gaming, as you may have guessed seeing as every article I’ve written to date has either covered an iPhone or DS release!

I’ve played many hundreds of titles during the past 20 odd years, everything from ‘Beavis & Butthead’ on the Megadrive to Bioshock on the 360. My favourite games have got to be Zelda : Twilight Princess, Sonic 2, Grand Theft Auto : Chinatown Wars, Animal Crossing : Wild World and the mighty Shenmué. As much as I love console gaming I’ve dabbled a little with PC games, with my biggest time-sinks here being the Sims 2 and World of Warcraft. That said I only ever managed to get to level 31 in WoW. Hey, what? My character was a priest, they happen to be a bitch to raise you know =P

The franchise that has really defined me as a gamer, and kept me coming back to the world of gaming over the years, is Sonic the Hedgehog. Too much love for that speedy blue critter… I’ve played over 40 Sonic titles, have attended every Summer of Sonic convention to date (highly recommended) and even run my own small meet-up group for fans called SonicLondon (you can find us on Facebook). Besides being a huge fan of Sonic in particular, I’m also a big fan of Sega in general, and also love the N!ghts, Fantasy Zone and Bayonetta series’, as well as, of course, the aforementioned Shenmué.

I always enjoyed writing in school, and this was enriched by my A-levels, which were all Humanties-based. My degree in particular, being in History (from the School of Oriental & African Studies) really developed me as a writer. It was totally essay-based, so it became necessary that I was able to communicate arguments clearly and concisely if I wanted to achieve a decent grade.

For about a year after finishing Uni I faffed about a lot, and didn’t do any writing at all. At first it was nice to have a rest, the workload at University could get quite stressful. But I came to miss it. So when the chance to contribute to PlusXP came up I jumped on it ; here was the opportunity to not only start writing again but to make the subject of my endeavours my lifelong and much-loved hobby : video games!

I’m still somewhat of a n00b to writing articles as a journalist as opposed to a historian, but I’m learning all the time, and am always happy to listen to any constructive criticism readers have about how I express myself. I want to be the best gaming journalist I can be, so please don’t hesitate with the comments.

Aside from that I’m just bloody glad to be here at PlusXP.com. It feels so exciting to be a part of a truly blossoming site, ever-increasingly as it is expanding its claws and growing in relevance on the online gaming scene. I want to be a part of that and contribute to its growth. And, trust me readers, as far as PlusXP goes the best is very much yet to come, so watch this space

-HelenBaby

Previously thought lost to the world, it has finally been edited and uploaded into the greatest compilation of awesome to punch you in the face and impregnate you simultaneously.

That’s right. Even if you’re a man.

You’re now carrying a baby of awesome that’s going to burst out of your chest like in Alien.

What can you do about it, you ask? Well, maybe if you watch this video and tell all your friends about it, it might delay off the inevitable, and at best assimilate the awesome into your system into manageable chunks.

Don’t worry, it won’t cause anything like that cringeworthy section in Spiderman 3 where he gets that fringe and starts walking around like a dick…

…But it may cause spontaneous sunglasses.

Think you’re prepared? You’re not even close enough to being prepared enough for…

Iain and Ed’s Eurogamer Expo Adventures!

WARNING: Use of bad language in this video, you have been warned.

Filming and editing by Iain aka Pix3lboy (of Gaminglives fame)
Also featuring Garvaos, Guitargirl24, That Bloke In The Beanie, Kat (of Gaminglives), Mark Boss, Rupert Loman (Creator of Eurogamer), Tom Champion (Eurogamer Expo Creator) and Dragonforce.

Thanks for watching, and hope you enjoyed!

A New Year means a new start, and ever since the Inside Look studio had been overrun by a zombie horde (after Jokesound’s interview with Bill from Left 4 Dead) the studio had been undergoing a refurbishment of sorts. Basically, a big clean up and getting chunks of zombie out of the air conditioning system.

Finally, the Studio was clean enough to start the Inside Look once more and I was on my way. I had been planning the Rebirth of Inside Look for a while; I had been exchanging lots e-mails to get this one guest, and finally I managed to get him down to the studio. I was very excited and I wanted the whole Plus XP team there to witness the revival of something quite beautiful.

Inside Look was back, and I managed to score an interview with Master Chief.

I walked up to the studio door trying to contain my excitement. I opened the door and was greeted by Leon, and only Leon.

“Hey man.” I smiled “Where’s everyone else?”

A look of disappointment ran across Leon’s face.

“Don’t get mad, But no one else is here.”

“What? Why?”

“Well GuitarGirl ‘s off playing the Rock Band show of her life, Beanie rolled a D-10 on the way here and can’t get past the hobo blocking his way, and Jokesound….”

Leon Paused.

“What’s he done now?” I sighed.

“Umm… he is here, but he took Cortana into that broom cupboard over there…” Leon pointed to a cupboard in the backstage area.

I stared vacant for a second, then a confused and disturbed look spread across my face.

“He… he does realise she is an AI, right? I mean….how does he…..? Never mind! Is the MC here?”

“He is, but he demanded that he had some changes made to the set, before I could say anything a load of UNSC work men hit the studio.

“What? Why?”

I pushed past Leon and ran to the set, my mind racing, wondering what the hell was going on. I then walked on set to find a studio kitchen. A UNSC camera man beamed as soon as I walked on set, I was then pushed to centre stage.

“And we are rolling!” the camera man shouted. Then Master Chief emerged from behind the kitchen counter with a large chefs hat  and an apron with the slogan ‘Frag The Chef’ on over his Spartan mark V armour. He then turned his head to look at me.

“Umm, errr…” I stuttered,  I then composed myself.

“Welcome to Plus XP’s Inside Look, and today I am joined by John 117, aka Master Chief, on what seems to be a new look studio. Welcome Chief!”

“Thank you for having me, Before I start I must stress the fact that I don’t reply to Master Chief any more. I am now known as Master Chef! The intergalactic Gourmet King!”

“Ummmmm…..”

“Before I begin, I would like to thank you for inviting me to your studio, Today I will be creating some of the most intergalactic delicacies from Reach and far distant covenant planets.”

“I never realised you were a Chef, Chief.”

“Not much is known about me to be honest, anyway on with the cookery!”
Master Chef then walked up to the fridge behind him, opened it and then grabbed a punnet of blueberries.

“I used to make these for the UNSC troops back when we were taking down the Halo rings, a very simple recipe that takes only five to ten minutes.”
He took the blueberries and then tipped them onto the work surface, he then disappeared behind the kitchen counter and then emerged with a cauldron of neon green liquid. He then grabbed a syringe from his back pocket.

“Your armour has pockets?”

“Of course! Where else do you think I put my bubble shields, my grenades, my ammo, my halo ring snow globes and everything else when I save the world?!”
He then dipped the syringe into the green liquid and sucked some of it up.

“Now for those of you watching at home, I am now taking the weapons grade plutonium and injecting it into these Blueberries. “

“Why are you doing that, Chef?”

“All will become clear, soon. After injecting place in the fridge for 10 minutes to cool.”
Master Chef then walked up to the fridge placed his blue berries in there and took out another punnet, he then walked back to the counter and tipped the punnet out.

“Here is what I made earlier, and as you can see we now have some fully functional Plasma Grenades. Note that you must use extremely ripe blue berries for the perfect amount of stickiness when using them.”

“I had no idea, and there was me thinking they were a covenant creation.”

“Nope UNSC speciality, it’s just the covenant have riper blue berries.”

“I see.”

“Next I will show you how to make Needler ammo. First get a fresh porcupine. Now, the porcupines we need are very special, as they can be only found rummaging round in the bins of cocktail clubs.”

“Sorry?”

Master Chef then brought out a porcupine with needles were fluorescent pink in colour.
“How the heck did its needles get so pink!?” I exclaimed.

“They’re fed on a healthy diet of cocktails and alco-pops. Also, it has been subjected to long stints of 80’s disco cheese.”

“…..Right”

“So what you do is pluck the needles from the porcupine as he is still alive… It’s ok, he wont feel it… 90 percent of the time they have the appropriate Bee Gees song stuck in their small brain… and then we throw the needles into the Plutonium and leave to simmer on a high heat for 20 to 30 minutes.”

“Again, why do the covenant use these not the UNSC?”

“Covenant have better parties and cocktails. Next I will show….”
Master Chef was cut off mid-sentence by Jokesound, whom at that moment decided to run across the studio floor in nothing but his boxers with his trousers round his ankles shouting.
“THEY ARE HERE! OH GOD THEY ARE HERE!!!!! Also, high-five, anyone?”

My hand smacked my forehead. “Sorry Master Chef, he is always….”
I was interrupted by a beam of green plasma that shot from one side of the studio to the other. Then a Hunter growled and barged its way through the set door.

Master Chef slammed his hands on the counter in anger, he then turned his head towards the hunter. Slowly ripping his hat off his head, then he marched to the oven behind him, ripping open the door and dragging out a freshly cooked roast turkey. He slammed it down on the counter, put his hand up it and then pulled out an energy sword handle. With a flick of his wrist the energy sword sprang to life.

Leon, GuitarGirl, and Beanie ran onto the set. Leon was armed with a gunblade, and GuitarGirl was armed with an axe shaped guitar. Beanie then decided to roll some dice on the counter. A sad look came across his face, and he then got a wooden spoon from the  kitchen drawer.

Jokesound came running in with 2 gravity hammers; one engraved with ‘Ban!’ and the other ‘Reinstate!’. He then passed me my trusted ban-hammer.
“Where did you get that from?”

“Oh, so they can have gunblades and axe-guitars and you raise an eyebrow at me having this? Not cool, man.”

“It’s more… The Hammer’s kind of my thing, you know? Where did you get yours from, anyway?”

“Let’s just say she didn’t say no to me entering her Halo! Hell yeah! High five!”
Jokesound waited for a high-five that never came.

“Fine then, another time! We need to reinstate these people!”

“You mean… Ban!”

“…Rebanstate?”

“You do realise you can’t keep that reinstate-hammer, right?”
Jokesound pouted and started whimpering like a lost puppy.

“……Jokesound.”
He then started waving his hand like a Puppy asking for food.

“We’ll talk about this later…” I sighed.
Then more covenant forces starting swarming the studio.

“Uh, Rob? I kind of didn’t use anything with her… Will I be alright?”

“Oh, Ed. You have so much to learn. If we get out of this alive, I’ll get the diagrams out again.”
Of course, while the constant mental battle with him was far from over, a newer, more imminent battle was just approaching.

“The studio was just refurbished too…”

I was already waiting for him when they walked in from a hard day’s work. As they entered, I made sure to jump out and shout surprise as loud as I could. Waking up a couple of hours later with a sore head, I awoke to find Rob (Garvaos) and GuitarGirl standing over me.
“For the last time Rob, we can’t harvest his kidneys, it’s just not a good way to treat the writers!”
“If they were so vital, why does he have more than one?”
Noticing I’d woken up by this point, they dropped the argument and made sure I was okay.
“Why does my head hurt so much?”
“That’s my bad, Ed. I didn’t expect to find you having broken into my home again and I may have hit you with my Gravity Hammer replica.”
I turned to GuitarGirl and asked if he had shouted “Ban!” when he did it. She shook her head until Rob put the hammer back on its stand and then nodded enthusiastically when he wasn’t looking.
“What’s GuitarGirl doing here?”
“I needed someone to debate the merits of stealing your kidneys with”
“You couldn’t harvest my organs anyway, they have an unbreakable five-game contract with Lucasarts”
“That’s from Escape from Monkey Island, and they don’t.”
“How appropriate. You fight like a cow.”
“How did you get in anyway? I replaced all the locks after that last incident…”
“Window” I shrugged.
“We’ll have a conversation on boundaries and how you need to understand and respect them later, Ed.” GuitarGirl began. “For now, we did ask you to stay with Rob for the weekend to help cover this year’s Eurogamer Expo, so it’s all okay. I think. Just don’t break into his home again. Please.”
“There are literally no reasons I can begin to never do that again.”
“That’s great Ed. I don’t think I made myself clear. Do it again, and I will show you the business end of a boomer.”
They took my confused silence as a guarantee and then made their way over to my stuff. After a pause in which I debated to myself whether the business end was the puke or the poop end, Rob broke the silence.
“Ed, there’s like three suitcases here. Why?”
“Preparation, obviously. Wanna be prepared for the weekend”
“But there’s no need for any of this. Ever.”
“There’s plenty of need!”
“Okay, then why do you need this?” Rob asked, getting out my umbrella.
“My kevlar-reinforced umbrella? You asked me to cover a Bullet-Storm…”
“That’s great, but you don’t need this for that.”
“Well, there’s also going to be Heavy Rain…”
After groaning, he put it down and rummaged through the suitcase again.
“What about these?” He asked, producing some machinery with miniature guns attached.
“Three Gears of War.”
Pausing before putting them back, he groaned and then produced a giant clock.
“A giant clock.”
“A giant clock!”
“I’m really going to regret asking this, but why a giant clock?”
“Threefold. Firstly, in case the Raving Rabbits: Travel In Time. Secondly, Professor Layton and the Lost Future. It won’t be lost any more when he has a clock!”
“That was only two.”
“Oh, timekeeping, of course. How else are we going to make sure we attend the developer sessions on time?”
“Okay, before we continue, is everything in this suitcase going to be a Carrot-Top styled prop-related pun?”
“Yes.”
“Even the kitchen sink you deemed to be fit to bring?”
“For my metaphor about how the routine, like the water in the sink was starting to circle the drain…”
“You remember how I fired you for all those puns before?”
“Not particularly.”
“Well, let’s move on collectively from them and focus on how awesome this year’s Eurogamer Expo is.”
We did. It was fun. Sadly, and eventually, ground rules were given to me for the weekend.
“What do you mean I’m not allowed to don a faux-gentlemen accent during the videos?”
“Rules are rules, Ed. That means no top hats or monocles either.”
“If I had any, I’d be so annoyed at you guys right now…”
“Similarly, no gaming-related one liners on the ladies, no harassing anyone with the excuse of “I’m a videogame journalist, the rules don’t apply to me!”, and another equally important rule…”
“No setting anyone on fire?”
“Ed, that should be a given by now.” GuitarGirl interrupted, making sure to confiscate my matches.
“Painting plasmids onto our arms was always going to be a risky idea as soon as we let him pick Incinerate!, if I’m going to be honest.” Rob sighed.

To be fair, we were collectively asking for it.

“Then what?” I asked, reading through the nigh-fifty or so things on the list. “Don’t fall in love with a girl and have to defeat her seven evil exes to win her heart?”
“Actually, that’s allowed.”
“Oh, then what is the final one, don’t kidnap the place and hold it hostage in return for loads of free gaming stuff and to keep the expo alive forever?”
“…Try not to do that if you can… I was actually going to say ‘Have fun’!”
“…Laaaaaaaaaaaaaame. Right, time to sleep. We have a long weekend ahead of us! Someone bring my suitcases into your bedroom so that I may sleep in there!”
Rob glared. “Ed, you’re not sleeping in my room.”
“Too late, I’m already in there! Sleeping!”
“Ed, there’s way too many clothes in here for a weekend…”
“Oh yeah, I decided I’m staying with you for the extended future. It’ll be great, we’ll stay up late, playing manly games, and in the morning, you’re making waffles!”
GuitarGirl and Rob paused and looked at each other.
“GuitarGirl?”
“Yes, Rob?”
“Get the hammer.”
“Do you have to shout ‘Ban!’ this time?”
“Only if I have to shout it everytime. Which I do. It’s my Banhammer.”
GuitarGirl shook her head, sighed, and grabbed Rob’s hammer off the wall again.

For more information on this weekend’s Eurogamer Expo, check out http://expo.eurogamer.net/ and to find out what to expect, check out Rob’s latest post: http://www.plusxp.com/2010/09/what-the-expect-at-the-eurogamer-expo/

I am pleased to announce that our lucky winner is: Mike Waters

Congratulations Mike! We hope you enjoy the Expo!

If you didn’t win tickets this time then don’t worry, you can still buy tickets for Friday or Sunday at the official Eurogamer Expo website. The team at plusxp.com will also be there giving you full coverage of this years event so keep reading for all of the latest Eurogamer news.

Many thanks to Tom Champion and the team at Eurogamer for making this competition possible.

Until next time,

24

x

Turns out Mario has a new favorite website, check out the video it see what it is

Looks like Plus XP has a pretty stable fan base now.

Garv

ORIGINAL POST: Why Bother With A Title?

Hardcore Gamer - Noun

1. A person who thinks they are the best gamer in the world and has the ego to go with it – Also see Fan Boy and Halo Cannon fodder.

That description up there is what I think the definition of a Hardcore Gamer is, I have heard this term been used in all manner of conversations, whether it was back in secondary school when I was about 12/13 arguing with my class mate about who was a hardcore gamer out of the both of us (because of course there can only be one) or over hearing people stating that they are this magnificent gaming being in conversations in video game stores.

"My Dad's better that your Dad!" "Oh Yeah!? Well My Gamerscore Is Better Than Your GamerScore!"

There have been countless characteristics for what is classed as a Hardcore gamer. Back in secondary school, a Hardcore gamer was someone who had spent at least 24 hours straight on a game, or someone who had 100% completed Final Fantasy VII or even someone who had more than about 10 games in their game collection because they are spoilt little rich kids. Then when you get older, the people who class themselves as hardcore gamers are Fan boys, the secondary school kids still who are now boasting about there Gamerscore/Trophy collection over the interweb because they bought Avatar: The Burning Earth and got 1000 points for playing it for 5 seconds (side note: If you want to learn more about what I think about Gamerscores in general, check out my latest submission on Gaming Lives.) Or crazed FPS gamers who go absolutely ape over the microphone when you beat them in a match.

To be honest I don’t see a point in having a title such as Hardcore Gamer. To me it seems like something you would give yourself if you were seriously egotistical about gaming. How many of us out there these days truly think we deserve the title of hardcore gamer. To be honest if I ever were to give that title to anyone, I would have to start sifting through the Guinness World Records Gamer’s Edition to even see someone who is worthy of such a title. But to be honest if you enjoy video games, then would you need a title because at the end of the day your still doing something you enjoy. Who really cares if your good or crap? Sure it may annoy you slightly if you spawn into a Multi-player death match in Modern warfare 2 and suddenly get snipped before you can take your first step, but these things happen.

Let's Consult The Professionals On This Matter

Do I see myself as a Hardcore Gamer? … Nah, I see myself as a person who enjoys games.

Hardcore Gamer - Noun

2. A mythical being that has been said to have divine gaming power, if such a being exists, he/she maybe in the Guinness book or world records gaming edition.

- Garv

The original Plus XP Banner, gotta love generic pixel text

Anyway as I was rooting through the backlog of posts I came across this quite frankly embarrassing review for Mirrors Edge I did, so Sit back and relax while you read this quite awful post.

NOTE: I left the spelling mistakes in just to give you the full experience.

***

For me the First perspective in games is one of my favourites. From a young age I was playing First person shooters with my dad on the pc. So I have grown up with and experienced my fair share of first person games.

Mirrors Edge takes the first person perspective to a new level in gaming. A first person platformer I think is an awesome concept, this game has taken the concept and made it into an exciting and fresh gaming experience.

The second you set your eyes on the flawless city landscape your breath is taken away. The metropolis you are going to be running through looks flawless and clean. The use of bright colours and slight visual effects when you are running makes the visual side of this game a fresh new and breath taking experience. Dice have nailed the visuals in this game. So if you have a nasty fear of heights, be warned.

For me the First perspective in games is one of my favourites. From a young age I was playing First person shooters with my dad on the pc. So I have grown up with and experienced my fair share of first person games.

Mirrors Edge takes the first person perspective to a new level in gaming. A first person platformer I think is an awesome concept, this game has taken the concept and made it into an exciting and fresh gaming experience.

The second you set your eyes on the flawless city landscape your breath is taken away. The metropolis you are going to be running through looks flawless and clean. The use of bright colours and slight visual effects when you are running makes the visual side of this game a fresh new and breath taking experience. Dice have nailed the visuals in this game. So if you have a nasty fear of heights, be warned.

The game play it self is straight forward with the use of only four buttons. One for jumping/high movement, one for crouching/low movements one for interacting with switches etc and the all important attack button (and of course not to mention the analogue sticks for movement and looking). This straight forward control system is good for anybody to pick up and play, but the real skill is when it comes to the timing of your movements and keeping the flow of play going.

If you have not experienced vertigo, then play mirrors edge.

The game plays well, once you have the momentum going you feel unstoppable but it doesn’t last long and is stopped by either not knowing where to go next or an enemy with a gun hailing you with bullets. Which can be frustrating, many times I have had to start a section again because I have been over run by the enemy, or have had to take the trial and error approach when it came down to figuring out where to go next. But with all that said by the time you want to go through the game again (and believe me you will) you will have a greater chance of getting your momentum going and experiencing the true feel of the game.

The use of weapons in the game is fairly spaced and simple, which is good because this is no way by any means a shooting game but the inclusion of guns do help when you want to get out of sticky situations.

The story is simple and solid, you do feel compassion for the main character. But what this game does lack is good cut scenes. The cut scenes are cartoon based and feel very out of place with the graphical genius of the game play. The cut scenes and the game play don’t merge together well. But don’t let that change your mind because what the game lacks in cut scenes it makes up for in game play.

The online race and time trial modes are a great way for you to show off your moves and keep the game flowing well. With you racing against the clock it brings a great element to the game when you are done with the campaign mode.

So to sum up. Mirrors edge combines plat forming and the first person perspective well, making a great gaming experience. Even though the enemies feel cheap from time to time and the cut scenes aren’t that hot. It is defiantly worth playing.

Score: 7.5 out of 10

***

Wow back in the days when I used to give scores to games. I look back at this and think, I have come quite a way away from what I once was doing. This was only about a year or so ago and since then, myself, the staff and the site has come along way.

Basically this is my long-winded way of saying, everyone’s doing great on the site and I wouldn’t give it up for the world.

Garv.

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