Final Fantasy XI: Treasures of Aht Urghan

Platform: PC, PlayStation 2, Xbox 360
Publisher: Square-Enix
Review Type: Looky
Version: Screenshot


If I actually had an Xbox 360, I'd probably be giving Final Fantasy XI another shot. I still consider the game deeply flawed when compared to World of Warcraft. But Blizzard's MMO can't hold a candle to the sheer class of Square-Enix's character design.

So here's how this expansion works. But the new game for the Xbox 360 and you get the works; the new expansion as well as Rise of the Zilart and Chains of Promathea. PC and PlayStation 2 players have to snag The Treasures of Aht Urghan disc to enjoy the new areas and jobs (Blue Mage and Corsair).

Perhaps the most underappreciated aspect of Final Fantasy XI is that players across all consoles and countries can play together and communicate -- a feature that would go a long way to mend World of Warcraft's cross-cultural relations.

Final Fantasy XI for the Xbox 360 and The Treasures of Aht Urghan expansion both launch on April 18th.

25 to Life

Platform: PlayStation 2
Publisher: Eidos
Review Type: Touchy
Version: Retail

You can usually tell a game is going to be crap when the second level is a stealth level. As Freeze, a gangster trying to "get out of the game" I'm told to sneak into my apartment, which is surrounded by cops and rival gangsters. The strange thing is, that it's much easier to kill every single hood and flatfoot between me and my crib. Then the game throws another of gaming's cardinal sins at you -- the escort mission. Now I'm detective Lester Williams and I've got a rookie to keep alive while raiding a gang for drugs stolen from the police department evidence locker. As usual, my escort is good for nothing except for the occasional creepy glimpse of his head from the inside out thanks to a camera glitch. And yet despite these pain-in-the-ass game cliches, I find a certain satisfaction to the gunplay in 25 to Life. This isn't a run and gun game. As Freeze, Williams and the game's third character, Mexican gangster Shaun Calderon, I find myself spending most of my time crouched in a defensive position, slowly leaning out of cover to take pot shots at my enemies.

My initial urge was to compare 25 to Life with The Wire, a television show that explores both sides of urban crime. But holding a game like 25 to Life up to the same dramatic yardstick as The Wire is like looking for character development in Digital Playground's XXX feature Pirates.

Instead I'm seeing the action in 25 to Life in the same light of the deliberate gunplay in Christopher McQuarrie's The Way of the Gun. Yet still, The Way of the Gun's nihilistic leads had better reason to take fire than the characters in 25 to Life. In the flick there was an unborn baby to protect. 25 to Life is a shallow action game, with little concern for motivation, nuance, realism. I mean, since when do cops count head shots as they clear armed gangters from a nightclub?

On second thought, I really would rather not know.

Mad Tracks

Platform: PC, Xbox 360
Publisher: Load Inc.
Review Type: Touchy
Version: Demo


If I was an indie game developer I'd be very excited about Xbox Live Arcade right about now. With low budget titles like Hexic and Geometry Wars doing bang up business through the Xbox 360's downloadable game service there's a huge opportunity for the little guy to make good -- and just when we all thought that the exorbitant budgets of next generation titles were going to price out smaller developers.

Mad Tracks is a suite of mini-games revolving friction racers -- those toy cars that you pull back and let go to race. Gameplay doesn't really incorporate the idea of having to jerk your vehicle back before gaining momentum. Instead, you've got a spring meter that runs out if you accellerate for too long. There's a bit of combat involved. Power ups grant you weapons, like missiles and oil slicks, as well as replenishing some of your spring meter.

As a single player game, Mad Tracks is fairly light weight. But I can see certain mini-games, like Foosball being something to do while shooting the shit with friends on Xbox live.


The full version of Mad Tracks is due out for PC in February and via Xbox Live Arcade in March. Download the PC demo here.

The Godfather

Platform: PlayStation 2, PC, Xbox, Xbox360
Publisher: EA
Review Type: Looky
Version: Screen Shot


Sharp eyes at The Gaming Age Forum (namely poster MassiveAttack) spotted this hilarious new screen shot from EA's forthcoming The Godfather game. Looks like more of the same, right? Check out the tire on the car in the right background.

This gaffe underlines one of the main reasons I started Looky Touchy in the first place. As an entertainment medium that trades in visual spendor, there's no shortage of ugly, ill-concieved and downright lazy visuals plaguing video games. It constantly surprises me how poorly composed most promotional screen shots are. There's a whole slew of people who make a living culling good shots from the bad for wire services, image archives and photography studios. The video game industry would do well to hire more of them.

Until the day when companies like EA cease to inadvertantly expose their shoddy products by their own hands (the kids refer to this act as "self-ownage") we're in for some fun. It's my intention to sniff these stinkers out.

Let's savor these chuckles while we can, though, because all signs point to EA selling this game by the truckloads.

DS Lite

Manufacturer: Nintendo
Review Type: Looky
Version: Promo Shots


Pretty much every gaming site on the planet is abuzz with the redesign of the Nintendo DS. This sleeker, Revolution-styled version of the handheld is going for the high-end electronics look that the PSP sports.

My biggest gripe with the original design had less to do with looks than with the controls. The d-pad feels cramped and isn't suitable for many 3D platforming games, like say the console's best selling game Super Mario 64 DS. I've griped about this before, but even a game like Super Mario Kart DS kills my thumb after even short amounts of play.

So, while I'm impressed with the sleek, new lines that the DS Lite draws, I'm remaining sceptical until I actually touch the machine. I'm guessing that will be in May.

The DS Lite will be released in Japan in March

State of Emergency 2

Platform: PlayStation 2
Publisher: SouthPeak Interactive
Review Type: Touchy
Version: Preview Code


Half the fun of Rockstar's riot sim State of Emergency was that it was a brawler. The game recreated the viceral thrill of chucking a garbage can through a plate glass window ala Mookie from Do the Right Thing. Malalov coctails were chucked. Storefronts were blasted apart with bazooka fire. Faces were stomped into the ground. Sure, the game was no work of art, but as an update of the frenetic ultra-violence found in arcade classics like Smash TV and Alien Syndrome, the game worked.

This sequel, developed by DC Studios, breaks away from its roots and anchors the game in the been-there-done that of 3rd-person shooting. Nothing brings a massacre down a notch like a sniper rifle or a "lean" move that requires you to carefully place your character against a corner before peeking out to fire from cover.

State of Emergency 2 latches onto the one aspect of its predecessor that really didn't matter -- it's story. For Rockstar, their pseudo-futuristic setting in which a fascist state rules over the public was just an excuse to make the game's anti-social behavior a little more acceptable. The unspoken reality is that we all secretly want a chance to torch a Starbucks -- revolution or no. State of Emergency 2 seems to take the story to heart, setting up the team of anarchists up as a crack squad of freedom fighters on a mission to recsue their compadres from prison.

State of Emergency 2 promises a deadly aresenal of weapons as well as a fleet of massively destructive vehicles. If I make it past the game's tedious opening jailbreak sequence and discover a delicious nougat center underneath this game's lackluster candy coating, you'll be the first to know.

Read my impressions of the original State of Emergency in the Robotstreetgang Archives.

Star Trek: Tactical Assault

Platform: Nintendo DS, PSP
Manufacturer: Bethesda Softworks
Review Type: Looky
Version: Screen Shot


Bethesda Softworks just announced that they've nabbed the Star Trek license and have two games currently in development based on the franchise. Star Trek: Tactical Assault is a real-time strategy game coming out on both Nintendo DS and PSP. From the looks of this screen shot, they look to be struggling with the 3D look of the game. Notice the Federation ship preparing to recreate Kirk's famous "Kobayashi Space Mushroom Maru" maneuver. I'd prefer a more stylized take on the spaceships. I'd also prefer a turn-based game, but beggars can't be choosers, right?

Bethesda's other Trek game is Star Trek: Legacy for the Xbox 360. The next-gen game will span the entire timeline of the Star Trek universe, while Star Trek: Tactical Assault will take place during the time of the original series.

Late to the Party: God of War

Platform: PlayStation 2
Manufacturer: SCEA
Review Type: Touchy
Version: Retail

God of War found its way onto quite a few "Best of 2005" lists. I, for some reason, dismissed the game after playing the demo disc. Sure, the Hydra battle was well staged, but the game felt, essentially, like a polished update of Rygar. Not only that, but the protagonist, Krato, with his chained-on blades and war paint seemed to flow with a bit too much rage for my taste. Do all video game anti-heroes need to be so emo? If and when they make a movie out of God of War, I'm betting that they hire a professional wrestler to play him.

Anyway, I gave the game a second chance and discovered the game has much more to offer. Namely boobies. Lots and lots of boobies. That and some well thought out puzzles. So, here's my revised take on God of War. The game perfects the Rygar formula, flashes more titties than a sorority girl at Mardi Gras and, right when you're dazed by the sight of chest flash, throws a puzzle or two at you. Couldn't they have figured beer somewhere into the equasion?

Recommended.

Ape Escape 3

Platform: PlayStation 2
Manufacturer: SCEA
Review Type: Looky
Version: Screen Shots/Video

There's a reason why Nintendo has long resisted hiring actors to voice their characters; voice acting in video games sucks. Sure, occasionally a Psychonauts pulls off a miracle, but most of the time you get the kind of stilted and breathless dialog of games like Ape Escape 3. One could argue, I suppose, that the afternoon anime sound sorta suits the game, considering its cartoony look and feel.

It's a shame because Ape Escape 3 is a more-than solid game -- the culmination of two generations of dual-analog platforming. The apes throw a wide variety of puzzles, combat and platforming at the wall and almost every offering sticks. But its the sense of humor that drives the game. Face it, monkeys are funny. The game's first scene requires breaking up a marriage ceremony by catching the ape bride and ape groom. If a panicked monkey in a wedding dress doesn't make you chuckle, you're beyond help.

With simian parodies of Metal Gear Solid, House of the Dead, spaghetti westerns and a wide variety of other pop culture tropes, the opportunities for gags are plenty. I can't help but wonder, though, how many laughs were mauled by lazy localization. Ape Escape 3's premise is that mischievous apes have taken over the world's television stations and are broadcasting a brain-numbing schedule that turns viewers into catatonic couch potatoes. As it stands, Ape Escape 3 isn't much different than the in-game cathode-ray fodder it lampoons.

The Godfather

Platform: PC
Manufacturer: EA
Review Type: Looky
Version: Screen Shot


Is it any wonder that Francis Ford Coppola is a little ticked? Film critic Pauline Kael once said that The Godfather II has "never really been matched, I think, for emotional substance." And then EA comes along with their take on the epic story of the Corleone family. Press "Space" to Extort. Fans of great '70s cinema got the good news recently that the beleagured publisher Majesco have cancelled their ill advised video game adaptation of Taxi Driver. Sadly, it's probably gonna take something along the lines of a horse's head to get EA back away from this one.

Eyeshield 21

Platform: Nintendo DS
Manufacturer: Nintendo
Review Type: Looky
Version: Screen Shots/Video

Add Eyeshield 21 to the list of cool Japanese games we probably won't see localized in the states. Considering the fact that EA has a stranglehold on the NFL liscence, it would probably be wise of Nintendo to offer a non-Madden football alternative on their handheld. Question is: are American's ready for a cell-shaded RPG-style, manga-based football game? I'd say, "yes."

Neo2046 of the Gaming Age Forums was kind enough to point out a couple of flash demos from the game's official site that detail how Eyeshield 21's touchscreen gameplay will work:

Team introduction.
Gameplay introduction.

Japanese site.

A PSP version of the game is also in the works from Konami.

Syphon Filter: Dark Mirror

Platform: PSP
Manufacturer: SCEA
Review Type: Touchy
Version: Demo Disc


Gabe Logan, the gravelly voiced operative of Syphon Filter: Dark Mirror, is one of those one-man army types. Only, he doesn't really work alone. He's got two chicks that help him out. Lian, Logan's ground support, looks awfully young and cute to be a super-secret agent. At first glance I sorta pegged her for UCLA communications major. But what do I know about black goverment ops? Anyway, the demo disc follows Gabe and company on a mission to stop a para-military group from destroying an oil refinery on the Alaskan pipeline. How this group discovered the plant's secret "blow up" switch is a mystery. It's Logan's job to go in, kill the bastards and flick the switch back to the "don't blow up" setting.

Besides being painfully self-serious there's very little to bitch about in this workman-like demo disc's two levels. You point your gun, pull the trigger and your foul-mouthed enemies die in a dramatic display of rag doll physics. I say foul-mouthed because on several occasions the pinko refinery haters called Lian a "bitch." How'd they know that Lian was Tri-Delt? The mystery deepens.

Syphon Filter: Dark Mirror is due in March 2006

Enemy Territory: Quake Wars

Platform: PC
Manufacturer: Activision
Review Type: Looky
Version: Screenshots


Eurogamer just posted a developer's preview with Splash Damage, the team tasked by iD to merge the team-based combat of Wolfenstein: Enemy Territory with the Nine Inch Nails-themed (not really, well sorta) universe of Quake. These screens reveal that taking the series out of cramped, industrial tunnels and alien corridors is both the literal (dig those trees) and metaphorical breath of fresh air the series needed. Could the same-ness of Doom 3, Quake 4 and every other sci-fi-themed FPS clone be making its last circle down the drain? Thanks to this subtle change, this is a game I can get excited about. Too bad I won't be owning a computer capable of actually playing the game for at least another three years.

Watch the trailer here.

Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time

Platform: Nintendo DS
Manufacturer: Nintendo
Review Type: Touchy
Version: Retail

It is possible to make a great Nintendo DS game without ever using any of the handheld's touchscreen functions. Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time makes up for lack of stylus love by fully embracing the two-screen game format. You control four characters, Mario, Luigi, Baby Mario and Baby Luigi. Quite often the pairs split up, the babies do their thing on the top screen while the big brothers work on the lower. Many puzzles require cooperation between characters from both generations to solve.

Console-specific traits aside, Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time brings two tasty deserts to the RPG table. The writing in the game is phenomenal. The Nintendo of America localization team is really second to none when it comes to sharp, funny writing. Even if you don't know the sources of all the in-jokes, the colorful dialogue is a joy to read.

And then there's the battles. Unlike many traditional RPGs, which can be fought on autopilot, Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time gives you something to do during the fight. Bonus damage can be meted out by a carefully timed button press. Assaults can also be avoided by jumping or swinging your hammer at just the right moment. Even cooler are items, like turtle shells, which can be ricoched from Mario, off your enemies head, to Luigi and back again. The longer this triangle of pain can be juggled, the more hurt dealt to foes.

Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time is, like its predecessor Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga, both an outstanding introduction to role playing games for newbies and a cutting edge genre example, with new innovations and twists on old formulas.

Recommended.

Ryu Ga Gotoku

Platform: PS2
Manufacturer: Sega
Review Type: Looky
Version: Trailer


The latest trailer for Sega's Shenmue-esque yakuza adventure uses actors to mimic the feel of films by popular auteurs like Takeshi Kitano and Takashi Miike. The game promises an immersive Shinjuku experience, down to the hostess bars and pachinco parlors. The big problem with the American approach to mob games is their almost single-minded fixation with violence. Sure, organized crime is no bake sale, but the kind of rampages you see in Grand Theft Auto are about as realistic as the outfits in Final Fantasy.

An older trailer for the game displays more of the requisite combat, but also further explores a sort of father/daughter relationship that a good deal of the games drama will spring from. The fact that Smilebit, the same developer responsible for such gems as Jet Set Radio, Panzer Dragoon Orta and Typing of the Dead, is on the job should be a good sign that Ryu Ga Gotoku won't be the abortion that EA's The Godfather is shaping up to be.

Trailer 1
Trailer 2
via Gametrailers.com

Edit: Looks like the trailer does more than emulate Takashi Miike. Kotaku has the scoop that Sega actually hired Miike to direct the spots. According to this press release a DVD of the resulting film will soon be released.

Ape Escape Academy

Platform: PSP
Manufacturer: SCEA
Review Type: Touchy
Version: Preview Code


If a mini game isn't fun, then what the hell is it good for? Ape Escape Academy collects 40 mostly tedious twitch exercises, many of which take more time to load than to play. There's a story mode of sorts, which requires you to climb a ladder from Freshman to Senior year, by beating enough of the contests to win a line on a tic-tac-toe board. Part of Ape Escape Academy's problem is that the games are more difficult than fun. And unlike say, WarioWare, Inc., none of them are funny. That is, unless you get a kick out of bad voice acting and Engrish text. The one thing that Ape Escape Academy has going for it is in the looks department. The multi-colored apes and environments are rendered in a simple, but attractive 3D creating an appealing world that really lights up the PSP screen. But looks aren't everything. I'd rather put a bag over Wario Ware's head , than lie down with Ape Escape Academy again.

Contact

Platform: Nintendo DS
Manufacturer: Marvelous Interactive
Review Type: Looky
Version: Screenshots


News have been making the rounds that Contact, a forthcoming RPG for the Nintendo DS, will feature an online component via Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection. I suppose that's a scoop, but for me the big revelation is that Grasshopper, the same team behind the delightfully strange Killer 7, are making the game. By the look of the few screenshots available on the game's website (click the 2nd and fourth navy blue buttons on the right side of the site) it looks like the designers are using stylized sprites to make the best of the handheld's graphical limitations. Let's hope the gameplay experimentation that made Killer 7 one of the most controversial games of 2005 is carried over into the execution of Contact. I'm pretty sure we won't be seeing a repeat of Killer 7's ultra-mature content.

Official Site.
via Kotaku

Best of 2005

1. Resident Evil 4 (Gamecube): I've always felt that the controls for the survival horror genre were broken. The same fixed camera that gives the games a cinematic feel more often than not causes your character to move like a drunken retard. Capcom's long overdue refinement has transformed the game from a sluggish actioner to a quick, violent shooter without losing the creepy atmosphere that defines the series. Easily one of the best games this generation.

2. Shadow of the Colossus (PlayStation 2): It's time for gaming to get artful. People don't usually look for nuance in their video games -- a medium where chainsaws and rocket launchers are the best way to get your point across. But Team Ico, in their elegant and simplistic Shadow of the Colossus have managed to speak quietly even as 100-foot monsters thunder across the countryside.

3. Killer 7 (GameCube): Many hate Killer 7 for boiling down game play mechanics until there's barely any broth left in the soup. The game is stylish, painted with a stark, cel-shaded look. It moves like a survival horror game, but its on rails like a shooter. And the story feels like an anime written by Haruki Murakami and directed by David Lynch. Killer 7 is not a complete success, but it's unlike any game you've ever played. The kind of experimentation in design, control and storytelling that Killer 7 attempts is a vital shot in the arm to gaming. Add this one to the list of games that whose influence will long outlast its life on store shelves.

4. Guitar Hero (PlayStation 2): Music supervision has become a vital part of game design. Sadly, most music games have been lacking in the very same department. Rockstar still rules when it comes to song selection, most likely because they've got money to burn. But Guitar Hero's set list is strong -- a killer selection of quintessential rockers with only a handful of questionable selections.

5. Mario Kart DS (Nintendo DS): Nintendo has stumbled upon the perfect formula for multiplayer racing. The anarchy introduced by the many turtle shells, banana peels and mushrooms strewn around the tracks levels the playing field, making every race anybody's race. It's this democratic philosophy that makes the game fun for everybody to play -- not just the most skilled. Bringing this kind fun online (via Nintendo WFC) was a no-brainer.

6. Lumines (PSP): Part of me wants to pick Meteos over Lumines for this slot. Meteos is a deeper, more innovative game. But Lumines is a triumph of style. Trance inducing music, vibrant colors and a deceptively simple game mechanic generate the same kind of synesthesia that Rez aimed for. Still, sadly, one of the best games for the PSP.

7. Psychonauts (Xbox): The biggest crime of 2005 was the cold shoulder that Psychonauts got from the gaming public. Like Beyond Good and Evil, Pychonauts is a complete package -- a well written, finely tuned gaming experience from beginning to end. Tim Schaeffer's genius comes out in the writing. More than few moments are laugh-out-loud funny thanks to smart jokes delivered by top-notch voice actors. Majesco deserves a spanking for screwing the pooch on this gem.

8. Hot Shots Golf Open Tee (PSP): How does a game with absolutely nothing new to offer wind up on a top 10 list? By doing its job perfectly. The balancing act of strategy and skill demanded by this modest links simulator has kept me playing much longer than I suspected.

9. Osu! Tatakae! Ouendan (Nintendo DS): Watch next year's best of lists for the American version of this oddball title. This Japanese music game about male cheerleaders may be weird, but it's too great not to merit U.S. localization. It's the game's clever use of the DS touchpad that makes it so worthwhile. You tap, trace and swirl the stylus to the rhythm of J-pop. It's that simple. It's also crazy hard.

10. Donkey Kong Jungle Beat (GameCube): The first time I touched Donkey Kong Jungle beat I got that "Nintendo feeling." It's probably just me, but every so often an exceptional game induces in me a sort of transcendent chill -- a sure sign I'm trying something that truly new. The demo was a boxing match between Donkey Kong and a Rhino. The left drum delivered a left punch. The right drum a right. I pummelled my opponent with a barrage of blows then gave him a devastating hook with the clap of my hands. Donkey Kong Jungle Beat is a visceral, entirely new gaming experience. One that far too few people have enjoyed.