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Video Game Reviews
By ANDRE JACKSON, TRAVIS HARRIS, ANDERS SCHERBERGER, CHRIS HUMBURG and CONNOR AVE UFC: Throwdown
UFC: Throwdown is a poor excuse for a fighting game. It's supposed to be a mixed martial arts-action fighter game that has all the UFC superstars that you would see on TV, but it doesn't make good. Its graphics and interface looks like something from the Super Nintendo Entertainment System game console. In other words, it's awful. There are more than 25 UFC fighters, for which there is no competition. Beating the game in 20 minutes is easy. The only feature that makes this game worth playing is an eight-player tournament mode that pits you against your friends in put-up-or-shut-up fighting. The sound is horrible and highly annoying because it repeats itself over and over again. The game play is pretty bad, too, and controlling your man can get frustrating at times. You have to be a die-hard UFC fan to have an interest in this game. Obviously, I'm not one of them. Grade: D- -- ANDRE JACKSON, Times correspondent UFC: Throwdown
UFC: Throwdown is boring. There are 28 fighters to choose from. After you pick your fighter, you fight the computer. It is so easy to beat, it's not funny. After something like three fights I was already sick of it. There's a healthy dose of blood splatter. When you punch and kick, it's everywhere. You can even get your opponent on the floor and beat the heck out of him. This is one of those games you could like but end up hating. The graphics are like any other two-player fighting game, and it's difficult to control the fighter. The sound is pretty good though. Even though I don't really like this game, I like the beat downs. And if you like games like this, be my guest and play it. But I wouldn't waste my time with it. Grade: D Star Wars: The Clone Wars
There's another Star Wars going on. Star Wars: The Clone Wars is a combination of all of the Star Wars games but is based on Episode 2. And there is a lot of fighting. You fight multiple enemies in fighter ships, tanks, runner bikes, hovercrafts. Through the whole game, you're helping or saving someone. It sounds easy, but it's not, because the enemies just keep coming and coming. Your mission is to find the enemy drop ship and shoot it down. What I liked most about this game is that you get to do everything like in the movie. And the graphics are so good that it's almost like watching a movie. The sound is in Dolby Surround. I like everything about this game, which looks as if LucasArts worked on it for a long time. Grade: A Phantasy Star Online Episode I & II
Yes, people, it's back! If you've played Phantasy Star on Dreamcast, Phantasy Star Online Episode I & II for the GameCube is better. The story finds Ragol in trouble again, so it's time for -- guess what? -- more fighting. In this role-playing game, you move around the area fighting the enemy. Your allies are fighting by themselves, so you don't have to worry about controlling them. And if you have a modem or a high-speed Internet connection, you can play online. That means paying to play -- but be forewarned: you can't pause the game, which could be bad if your mom calls you to do something. The only way out is to let yourself die. Other than that, I can't find anything wrong with this game. The graphics are off the wall, and the Dolby surround sound is amazing. If you have a stereo, hook it up and it will have everything shaking. Grade: A -- TRAVIS HARRIS, Times correspondent The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
I love The Lord of the Rings books. And the movie was entertaining. But this game is a big disappointment. Fighting as Frodo is completely boring and repetitive, considering all you can do is throw rocks and hit enemies with a big stick. Later in the game, you also can play as Strider, a ranger and heir to the throne of mankind, or Gandolf, the wizard. You use actual combat for Strider and magic for Gandolf, which is more entertaining, but still not very much fun. The game also drags on and on. It feels like the developers tried to suck every last drop of game play out of a book that was a horrible idea for a game in the first place. There are quests that are so stupid, pointless and not in the book that I was throwing the controller in exasperation. In the first level alone, in Hobbiton, the home of Frodo and other hobbits, I found myself fixing mills, selling a house, avoiding Dark Riders and even fixing a weather vane. Another problem with this game is the camera. To find your way around, you have to control the camera yourself, while trying to keep it from being caught on a tree or something like that. The only thing saving this game is how fun it is to explore some of the cities, towns and other landscapes described in the book. Also, since this game is based on the book, not the movie (another Lord of the Rings game based on the movie is coming out soon), you are able to compare how the game's developers and the movie's producer envisioned the land of Middle-Earth. If you are a hard-core Lord of the Rings fan, it might generate some enjoyment. If not, you may want to avoid it. The game feels rushed and unfinished. Grade: D Ty the Tasmanian Tiger
For one of the first games for the Xbox platform, Ty the Tasmanian Tiger is one of the best I've played. It has good graphics, an inventive weapons system and a great camera. Also, it's probably the only game I've ever played that takes place in Australia. Mention Australia, and you think of boomerangs. So, of course, that is your weapon. You get double boomerangs, using them to throw at multiple enemies and glide while in the air. You can get different types of boomerangs (or 'rangs as they're called in the game) that have different powers. For example, there are flamerangs, which can melt ice, aquarangs, which can be thrown underwater, and more. Also, the camera system works very well. You almost never have to turn it yourself or worry about the view getting caught on a protruding object. But, the targeting system isn't very usable. All it does is lock the camera on the enemy, not lock on so you throw your 'rang at them. So, you can't run one way and throw another, which can get sort of annoying. All around, this game is great. Grade: A Turok: Evolution
While not as good as Halo on almost any level, this first-person shooter is still solid. It is very original, and the surroundings look strikingly alive. The game takes place in a futuristic world that still has dinosaurs. You are an Indian who fell into a dimension warp. Strange, but cool. One thing that makes this game good is the seemingly living environments. Peaceful herbivores, small primates and dangerous raptors roam the forests, pulling you into the world and giving you a sense of reality (although I don't think shooting an enemy in the head and watching blood ooze out while they writhe around on the ground is very realistic). Also, you can chop down trees with your hatchet (or rocket launcher), sending them tumbling to the ground and destroying enemies. Periodically there will be a jet-fighter-type scenario with you riding on the back of a pterodactyl shooting machine guns and rockets at enemies. This game does have some negatives, though. Probably the biggest one is the chore of aiming. It is almost impossible to aim quickly and precisely, forcing you to use the auto-aim (which, unfortunately, is unavailable in the multiplayer modes). The view is too sensitive. You might just want to aim a little to the right, but suddenly you're completely turned around. Also, the guns seem to be too accurate. This is a strange complaint. But when you play the game, it adds to the horrible view by making all the guns hit dead center. This makes close combat hard, because you have to keep adjusting the view while moving. Any first-person shooter enthusiast can tell you that the best close-quarters weapon isn't the most accurate, because you don't have to think, just shoot. Also, the weapons in multiplayer are very uneven, making one character dominate all who oppose him. All in all, this is a good game. The multiplayer isn't the greatest, but the single player can keep you involved for hours. Grade: B+ The Thing
Warning survival-horror game enthusiasts: This is not Resident Evil or anything like it. It controls much differently from any horror game I've played, ditching the static backgrounds and going for a more controllable, more actiony view. Also, there is more shooting and burning than there is screaming, so this isn't your Halloween horrorfest type of game. But it does have a good storyline, unique game play and solid graphics. What makes The Thing unique is its trust-fear interface. The whole premise behind the game (which is based on the 1982 remake of The Thing) is an alien organism that takes over people's bodies and turns them into grotesque monsters. The alien all but wipes out the crew of an Antarctic research station, and your Special Forces team is sent in to investigate. So, in order to get your squad mates and other nonplayable characters to work with you, you have to prove to them that you aren't infected and in imminent danger of becoming a disgusting, lumbering monster. The gory scenes surrounding you also will make your teammates scared, and you will have to comfort them by leading them away from the scary places, giving them bigger guns, and, in extreme cases, adrenaline hypos. This game tries to be scary but ends up not coming close. The scary parts are ruined by bad timing, no element of surprise and some parts that are just unbelievable. For instance, how is it possible to lose a partner in a big snowfield, with nothing in sight for miles, when you're walking side by side? The world may never know. If you put it together, The Thing can be a good, different game. Grade: B -- ANDERS SCHERBERGER, Times correspondent NBA 2K3
NBA 2K3 isn't quite a slam dunk, but it does show off its best qualities and highlights others that are new or improved. NBA 2K3 has a new ESPN style of broadcasting the game and showing player and team stats. The ESPN presentation shows player introductions, the game score and updates from other games. With the new online capabilities, you can play some b-ball with gamers all over the country with a network adapter. And you can download any recent trades that have happened since the release of NBA 2K3. As of last year, the National Basketball Association video games from Sega Sports have had a Street Mode so you can play on the asphalt with your favorite NBA superstars in street clothes. You play two on two, three on three or the regular five on five with players from any team. Of course, NBA 2K3 also has the Season, Playoff and Tournament game play. The graphics in this new edition of the NBA Sega Sports games are great. They even have lifelike beads of sweat on the players as the game progresses. NBA 2K3 is a good game, and it shows a big improvement over last season's NBA video games. This game is for anyone who enjoys sports games, especially basketball. Grade: B -- CHRIS HUMBURG, Times correspondent Yu-Gi-Oh: The Eternal Duelist Soul
This new Yu-Gi-Oh game is so cool I would give up my allowance for a whole year to play it. To win, you must duel people with Monster, Magic and Trap cards. You can even use a real Yu-Gi-Oh card by punching in an eight-digit code (found in the bottom left corner of the card). That transfers the card into the game. The object of the game is to win duels and get new cards to build your deck. The easiest person to duel has the name Tea Gardener, the only girl of the group. The calendar in the game tells you when you can duel someone at random and get new cards. You start on Jan. 1, 2001. If you beat the five people five times you might get a new person to duel. I like this game better than any other game in the whole wide world. My brother Jackson says the GameBoy version of Yu-Gi-Oh is so cool, it's better than the real card game. Good luck, rookie! Grade: A Aggressive Inline
This game is so radical. Pick an inline skater and race against time in arenas and cool tracks. The object is to overcome obstacles and skate to victory as fast as you can. There are bullies that tell you which tracks and arenas you must race. Each bully gives you three arenas and tracks to get your best time. There are 13 different tracks and arenas. There are powerups to boost your speed, how high you can jump and how long you can do tricks on the ground and on bars. There is a grind meter to judge how long you can do stunts on the ground. To boost the grind meter, you must perform air tricks or a combination of ground and air tricks. To practice on new tracks and arenas you must beat the different levels and go to a free skate area, a place where you can practice stunts with no time limit or pressure. My 7-year-old brother Jackson thought the game was cool! Grade: B -- CONNOR AVE, Times correspondent
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