• Tag Archives PS2

  • Dead Or Alive 2: Hardcore (PlayStation 2)

    Posted on by Azrael Comment

    Dead or Alive 2 Hardcore is an enhanced version of Dead or Alive 2. I’ve never really cared much for these half versions. Either include what you want in the game at the outset or make enough improvements for a true sequel. Don’t charge me full price for what is essentially an expansion. And this game really does not even provide enough improvements or additions to be labeled as an expansion.

    Anyway, Dead or Alive 2 Hardcore retains the same basic game modes of the original. These include Story Mode, Time Attack, Survival, Tag Battle, and Sparring. They didn’t even bother to update the character roster which is a bit disappointing. Basically, the most important change is probably the slightly upgraded graphics that include improvements to the character models and environments.

    Of course, it doesn’t stop there. You get incredible new content like unlockable costumes! Honestly, I’m not really sure what the point of this release was other than fanservice and to extract more money out of all the suckers…I mean TRUE fans of the series.

    I have nothing against the Dead or Alive series as a whole. They are all pretty solid 3D fighting games. But to make an entire additional game release for which the biggest obvious change is more costumes seems a bit absurd. Again, don’t get me wrong. There isn’t anything wrong with the game, especially if you are a fighting game fan. It’s just that to me it does not offer enough of an upgrade over DOA2 to justify a full-priced game. Maybe I’m just not Hardcore enough…

    Dead or Alive 2 was released for several platforms including the Dreamcast, PlayStation 2 (but only in Japan) and of course there was the original arcade release. Dead or Alive 2: Hardcore was only released for the PS2. If you have a PS2 and want to give this game a try, I would bypass the original DOA2 and just get this one for the few slight improvements it offers. It did get positive reviews after all. If you already have DOA2 on any platform then there really isn’t a good reason to get this one unless you are an obsessive collector which I would fully understand. And if you like this half-assed excuse for a sequel, then you’ll love Dead or Alive 2 Millennium…


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  • Spy Fiction (PlayStation 2)

    Posted on by Azrael Comment

    Some video game platforms have so many games released for them that it is easy for there to be a huge number of games that you have never even heard of. Some of them are even good. the PlayStation 2 was definitely one such system. It was on the shelves seemingly forever. In North America alone there were somewhere in the neighborhood of 1,850 games released for that system. A multitude of others were released exclusively in other regions (mostly Japan). So if you’ve never heard of this one, it wouldn’t be at all surprising.

    The game I am talking about is ‘Spy Fiction’ from Sammy Studios. This is a ‘stealth’ game inspired by games like Metal Gear Solid 2. The plot revolves around investigating a pharmaceutical company that is suspected of developing biological weapons. Threats are made, allegations investigated, plot twists occur, etc. Anyway, the story, while not unimportant, really takes a back seat to the game play in a game like this.

    Speaking of game play, this game has many of the attributes you would expect of a stealth/action game. Sometimes you may need to go in with guns blazing but often your job involves getting somewhere undetected. One relatively unique aspect of this game is the ability to disguise yourself as other characters.

    So why is this game not more well known and why didn’t this game do better commercially? I guess there were a few reasons. There really wasn’t a significant marketing campaign for this game so people were probably not even aware of it early on. Reviews were somewhat mixed which probably didn’t help its case. It is by no means a bad game. It’s just not as good as some of the games it tries to emulate. Metal Gear Solid 2 had been released a few years earlier in 2001 whereas Spy Fiction was released in 2004. Other higher profile stealth games had come along in between. With so many games available for the PS2 it was very easy for it to get lost in the shuffle.

    Having said that, if you are a fan of the genre and were looking for more games like Metal Gear Solid 2 (for instance), then I would think this is one you would want to try. Unfortunately, being a relatively obscure game means there really isn’t an option for playing it other than an original copy on a PS2. Or you can try in out via emulation. However, there are no re-releases to speak of or sequels for that matter.


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  • Electronic Gaming Monthly (August 2002)

    Posted on by Azrael Comment

    Source: Electronic Gaming Monthly – August 2002

    Electronic Gaming Monthly was perhaps the most popular and certain one of the longest lasting video game magazines in the U.S. The first issue came out in the late 1980s and it continued publication into the 2000s. The August 2002 issue includes:

    Features

    • Miyamoto’s Angels – Referring to Nintendo’s popular franchises Metroid, Mario and Zelda. This article previews the new games coming soon in those franchises to the GameCube and Game Boy Advance including Super Mario Sunshine (GameCube), Yoshi’s Island: Super Mario Advance 3 (GBA), Metroid Prime (GameCube), Metroid Fusion (Game Boy Advance), Legend of Zelda (GameCube), and Zelda GBA.
    • The First GameCube and Xbox RPGs – Morrowind for the Xbox (but honestly, your better off playing it on a PC) and Lost Kingdoms for the GameCube are a couple of the first major RPGs for those platforms.
    • Grand Theft Auto Copycats – A look at some games that are, shall we say, influenced significantly by Grand Theft Auto, including The Getaway and True Crime: Streets of L.A., both for the PS2.

    Departments

    • Editorial – Looking at trends in video games, both good (adult themes in games) and bad (poor licensed games…but this has almost always been a trend).
    • Letters – Letters from readers about Tony Hawk 4, cel shading, Star Wars games, the Final Fantasy movie, and much more.
    • Press Start – The top news this month includes highlights from E3, and update on the PlayStation 2’s success, Microsoft pushes online gaming with the Xbox and new games like Unreal Championship, Nintendo pushing new games in major franchises but lacks online presence (Phantasy Star Online is the only online game at the time). For the GBA, more games are being released that make use of the GB/GBA link. Get extras in Animal Crossing and Phantasy Star Online.
    • Gossip – Quartermann speculates on rumors including Sonic retiring from Adventure games; Rare to start developing games for multiple systems; Doom III for the Xbox; and more.
    • Previews – A look at tons of upcoming games. For the PlayStation 2: Shinobi, The Two Towers, The Getaway, True Crime, WWE Smackdown!, Dark Cloud 2, Need for Speed Hot Pursuit 2, Zone of the Enders 2, Contra Shattered Soldier, The Sims, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Mega Man X7, Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, James Bond 007 Nightfire, Silent Hill 3, Suikoden III, Wild Arms 3, Breath of Fire, Tenchu 3, Red Faction II, DDRMax Dance Dance Revolution, ATV Offroad Fury 2, War of the Monsters, RTX: Red Rock, DAve Mira BMX XXX, and NCAA Football 2003. For the GameCube: Resident Evil 0, Mario Party 4, Project BG&E, Wario World, Haven, F-Zero, Capcom Vs. SNK, Dungeons & Dragons Heroes, 1080 White Storm, and Aquaman. For the Xbox: Metal Gear Solid 2, Dead to Rights, Panzer Dragoon Orta, Blinx, Ninja Gaiden, Dead or Alive Xtreme Beach Volleyball, The Fellowship of the Ring, Duality, WWE Raw 2, Project Ego, Tao Feng, and Hitman 2. For the Game Boy Advance: Kirby, Contra Advance, Golden Sun The Lost Age, and R-Type III.
    • Review Crew
      • PlayStation 2
        • Aggressive Inline – Like Tony Hawk games but with inline skates.
        • Britney’s Dance Beat – A pretty terrible music based game.
        • Dropship: United Peace Force – A combat vehicle sim in which you not only pilot aircraft but drive ground vehicles as well.
        • Endgame – A light gun game that you probably don’t want.
        • Freekstyle – Kind of like SSX but with dirt bikes in instead of snowboards.
        • Legion: The Legend of Excalibur – A Baldur’s Gate: Dark Alliance like action/RPG that unfortunately does not live up to that comparison.
        • Fire Blade – A 3D combat helicopter arcade game.
        • The Mark of Kri – A 3D action adventure game that earns EGM’s ‘Game of the Month’.
        • MLB Slugfest 20-03 – A baseball game on steroids.
        • MX SuperFly Featuring Ricky Carmichael – A motocross sim with unrealistic physics…but fun to play.
        • Shifters – A not so great action/RPG.
        • Stuntman – A fun game that pits you as stunt car driver. Can be frustrating completing multipart stunts…
        • Sky Gunner – A fun 3D shooter but with some slowdown.
        • Stitch Experiment 626 – A 3D adventure featuring Stitch from Lilo and Stitch. Could have been a better game with better camera tracking.
        • The Way of the Samurai – A 3D fighting/adventure game.
      • Xbox
        • Test Drive – A continuation of the Test Drive series that I started playing on the Commodore 64. This one is comparable to Burnout.
        • Crazy Taxi 3 – A great sequel in a great series.
        • The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind – An excellent RPG from the PC world. The Xbox version is excellent…it’s just that the PC version is better.
        • Totaled! – A demolition derby simulator that even has a career mode.
      • GameCube
        • Bomberman Generation – There have been a great many Bomberman games over the Years. This is one of the better ones.
        • Lost Kingdoms – A new and somewhat unique RPG for the GameCube.
        • WWE Wrestlemania X8 – Fans of WWE and wrestling in general should enjoy this one.
      • Game Boy Advance
        • Guilty Gear X: Advance Addition – A decent portable 2D fighter.
    • Tricks – Infinite grenades in Resident Evil, play as Laura Croft in Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3, several secrets for Jedi Starfighter, increase the size of your stolen-car collection in GTA3, Bonesaw in Spider-Man, strategies and clues for Eternal Darkness, unlock hidden wrestlers and arenas in Wrestlemania X8, plus tons of codes, GameShark codes, and questions answered by the Game Doctor.
    • The Final Word – A look at some of the under the radar games at E3 including Sly Cooper and the Thievius Raccoonus, Robotech: Battlecry, and Super Monkey Ball 2.

    …and more!


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