DS Reviews by DESULAZOR

DS Reviews by DESULAZOR

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Contra 4

[Jan. 24th, 2008|10:12 am]

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Current Mood

sleepy

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Contra 4 is a side-scrolling shooting game that goes back to roots from the arcade and earlier Nintendo systems. You play as one of four men to defend the world's last hope of survival. You're sent to prevent an alien induced Armageddon before it's too late. Yes, the story isn't going to win any awards but you're in for a surprise.

The graphics on Contra 4 clearly state that 2D gaming isn't dead yet. The visuals aren't groundbreaking. They are still sprite based but the coloring is vivid to give you that feeling of nostalgia (if you're old enough to remember those days). They still have pseudo-3D stages which I can't really tell if they're even using the DS's hardware to their advantage. Bosses still look terrifying as ever. The bullets look bright and colorful. Certain enemies look incredibly gruesome which can give the feeling of, “Maybe I should avoid them”. Most bosses take up both of the screens which will make most people say “Oh god, I'm gonna die…” Both the bottom and the top screen display the action of the game which gives it a larger than life feeling. The problem I have with this is the gap in between the two screens. It's a little hard to judge what can come from either screen.

The sound is completely old school with some quality upgrades. Contra fans will recognize remixed versions of music from other Contra games. Each stage music gives the appropriate background music. The sound only stutters in Stage 2 when transitioning from the Laboratory to the Waterfall. The guns sound like they were stolen from your local Toys ‘R Us. The voice acting is very limited. Each character sounds the same. They all have the same catch phrases: “Take 'em out” “Let's party!” “Locked and loaded!” They also all have the same death scream.

This is one of the most difficult games I've played in a long time. It maintains the same feel from the original series (not talking about spin-offs). You run, shoot, and jump just like the previous Contra games. Yes, that's the difficult part. Although Arcade Mode offers three difficulty settings, it is almost unforgiving with its level of difficulty. It uses the life and credit system seen in many arcade games. Even at the beginning of the game, it pretty much taunts you. You may find yourself wondering how people get passed it. The only answer is, hours of trial and error. You'll find yourself dying enough times to contemplate smashing your DS, eating the game card, piss on the remains, and yell the word “fuck” enough to frighten neighbors within a 400 yard radius. Paying attention to both screens is also a challenge of its own because most deaths can be attributed to ignorance of a particular screen. As I mentioned earlier about transitioning from two screens, is a bit of a pain which adds to the already difficult game. There's an awesome grappling hook thing to easily transition from the bottom to the top screen which can also give you the option of taking different paths. If you have the patience of a saint and are able to beat this game, you'll be treated to a Challenge Mode which will give you nifty unlockables, like the NES Contra games (Contra and Super C) and playable character Probotector (which is something only the Europeans would know). Don't think you're awesome because you beat Easy Mode because it won't even let you see the ending (let alone let you play the last stage) but it is a good way to familiarize yourself with the frustrating and unforgiving world of Contra. Challenge Mode really vamps up the replayablilty after you've finished playing Arcade Mode. It has 40 difficult challenges to play if you're feeling up to toning up your skills. Although the game allows you to choose from a few different characters, they all play the same way. It really makes no difference whether you play as Lance, Mad Dog, or Probotector, they all play the same way. I find that only slightly annoying because I think it would've been cool to see each character have their own unique abilities. You can also play this game with your friends using Multi-Card play cooperatively in arcade mode. Contra 4 also has a pretty cool Museum which gives you the history of every Contra game available. There is no touch screen based gameplay. The only touch screen capabilities are found within the main menu. Quite frankly, I'm not sure how the Contra series would utilize touch screen gameplay.

Contra 4 is a game for enthusiasts of hardcore gaming. Contra fans will know what to expect from a good Contra game. The difficulty level of the game may turn some casual gamers off. Those who are looking for a challenge or looking to relive the wonders of 2D gaming, Contra 4 is where it's at. If you have the attention span of a squirrel, this game isn't for you. This is the first Contra game in a long time that has done the series some justice. Not for the easily intimidated.

Grades
Graphics: B
Sound: B
Controls: A
Gameplay: A
Overall: B

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Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare

[Jan. 17th, 2008|04:29 am]

[	Current Mood	\|	hungry	]
[	Current Music	\|	Decapitated - Spheres of Madness	]

First and foremost, let before you read this review, I have not played Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare on the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, or the PC. I don't have the systems to support it. I will not make any comparisons from the console version to the DS version. Anyways, Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare is first-person shooter taking place within the modern day timeline. I also must say, I'm rather glad that it strayed away from the World War II genre. Every mission within this game takes place within our current time period with situations between the Middle East and Russia. You play the American Armed Forces or the British Special Forces (depending on the mission) to stop terrorists from executing plan of unleashing weapons of mass destruction.

The graphics are both a hit and miss. The visuals themselves are quite impressive. The environment matches the theme of the game's setting. Character models aren't bad either. The only issue I have with the character model is it takes a while to eventually run into a different type of enemy. It seems like you're taking out clones of the same enemy as if one mother decided to give birth to hundreds of terrorists with the exact same trait. I guess I can't complain about it that much. There are almost no issues with collision detection. Issues that do pop up every now and then are frame rate issues. Sometimes during intensive firefights, you get an issue of stuttering for a bit. The screen will create a thin black line then eventually will fix itself. It's a very minor issue that pops up at different times but it isn't game breaking. The top screen is where all the action takes place. The bottom screen contains the map and weaponry, bomb disarmament, and terminal hacking.

The sound quality of the game actually took me by surprise. The music gives the game an epic feeling as every other war title should have. You can almost feel the danger when you hear a gunfight taking place. I was especially impressed by the amount of voice acting within the game. The American soldiers are spot on with their voice acting. Your allies actually give you locations of your enemies when they're in sight. The terrorists also have their share of voice acting as well. It's not intelligent. Different terrorists will eventually same the same thing, sometimes even at the same time. They also speak perfect English. The British Special Forces sound like blaring stereotypes. They also give you useful info but I can't help but think it sounds forced. With allied voice acting, there's little repetition. With enemy voice acting, there's quite a bit of repetition. Regardless of the complaints that I've stated, it still impresses me to know that the limitations of the DS won't hinder developers to start using voice acting in handheld titles.

Call of Duty 4 would play as you'd expect an FPS to play on a DS. You use the stylus to aim, select weapons, and reload. The controls have some minor issues. It's a little uncomfortable to hold the DS while playing the game. You hold it with one hand and with your other hand, you hold the stylus. That may not sound bad, but you're playing an action game like that. It takes a bit of getting used to. The touch screen can be kind of sketchy. You have to double tap the screen to get into precision aiming. No, that's not a complaint. Here's the complaint: a lot of the times, if you keep your stylus on the touch screen, it'll automatically go into precision aiming. It's not as easy getting yourself out of it. Double tapping it is not always recognized which can make firefights a bit of a hassle. That's one of the bigger complaints of this game. You can also use the touch screen (when the time arises) to disarm bombs and hack terminals. Disarming bombs is a fairly simple task of tracing one end of the wire to the other. Hacking terminals is more of a puzzle. You touch little pipe type things into different directions to lead them to 4 dots simultaneously to give you a code unlock a door. The rest of the touch screen is aiming. Aiming is what you need to be really good at to play this game. Enemies have a hard time dying when you regularly shoot at them. A lot of the times, it takes a full clip of ammo to kill an enemy without using precision aiming. So most of the time, you'll be using precision aiming (mainly because touch screen's awkward sense of sensitivity) to eliminate enemy threats. Another complaint I have about this game is that your allies will give you enemy locations but will let you do all the dirty work. The Call of Duty franchise was known for its uses of teamwork and intelligent AI except when it's not developed by Infinity Ward. On the rare occasion, they'll attempt to help out. Most of the time, they end up getting themselves killed or sometimes, they'll even throw a grenade at the wall they're standing right next to and won't bother to move. The enemy AI on the other hand will shoot at you as soon you happen to show up almost before you know they're there. That's where it ends. They stay right where they're as soon as you leave to recover. They won't chase after you unless you're in their sites. Yes, there's are quite a bit of complaints here but the single player campaign was pretty fun. It was an engaging experience. The replayability is minimal. The only other thing you can do after you beat the campaign is a wireless multiplayer game that could be done using multi-card or single card play. Or if you're feeling gutsy, go after the game in other difficulties. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare should've had Nintendo Wi-Fi support. That game really would've done well online. That would kick up its replay factor.

The game wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. It could've been a lot worse. The gameplay was fun but sometimes strange. The controls are manageable but sketchy. The graphics are nice with a couple of moments of frame rate issues. The sound design exceeded many expectations. The game should've had online play. Otherwise, it's worth a rental. Also, don't pick up this game if you're expecting the console/PC version in bite size form. It's a different experience.

Grades
Graphics: B
Sound: A
Controls: C
Gameplay: B
Overall: C

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Resident Evil: Deadly Silence

[Jan. 16th, 2008|04:01 am]

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Current Mood

awake

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Now I'm going from a children's game to a game intended for the mature audience. A survival horror game to be exact (which is a rarity for the portable systems). Resident Evil: Deadly Silence is a remake of the original Resident Evil for the original PlayStation 1. I really shouldn't say remake, it's really more of a port with some DS exclusive features. You, either Jill Valentine or Chris Redfield, a member of S.T.A.R.S. were sent to investigate a mysterious phenomenon on the way to a mountain trail. You investigate a mansion to found out the truth behind these reported attacks on victims who were eaten.

First and foremost, let me say that I've never seen live action cut scenes acted out so bad, that the coloring of the actual video has dropped in quality. Even though I'm insinuating that terrible acting has made the video quality drop from the original PS1 version but I must say, the video quality over from the cut scenes have dramatically dropped. Sure, I know the DS has the video quality as a YouTube video, but that's just ridiculous. I feel as if they added more pixels because they're ashamed of the original live acting. That's not the only problem I have with the graphics. The backgrounds of the actual game were discolored. I've never seen walls that attempt to look as if it's trying to hide something. Apart from that, the character models of both people and creatures alike are fine. The blood is pixel filled, but that's to be expected. There is a rare moment of slow down when you enter a certain room in the game but other than that, the gameplay is smooth. The transition from area to area is also smoothed out compared to the PS1 version, but the camera is still a hassle to deal with. The lighting is also out of character. The rooms are way too bright to give it a foreboding feeling. Then again, with the DS hardware in question, it'd make the game incredibly difficult to see. The top screen consists of the map along with your status color. The top screen will flash if you've taken damage and will not go away until you've healed yourself. That kind of distraction can make the map harder to look at. The bottom screen is where the gameplay takes place.

The sound is both a hit and miss. The atmospheric background music or silence with each particular room is spot on. It'll give you a sense of emotion correspondent to the music. The guns don't sound like toys. The enemies do sound convincing (yes, even the zombies). I cannot say the same, however, to the voice acting. The voice acting is just plain horrible. For this remake/port, they did not even bother to re-voice the characters or retranslate the dialogue. So if you're going to ask, yes, they still have, “It might be handy if you, the master of unlocking, take it with you.” The dialogue for the most part is laughable. If you do your own little retranslation, the story isn't too bad. Otherwise, it's outright ridiculous. Although, it is still impressive that the DS can handle this much dialogue, even if it is terrible.

The gameplay is still classic Resident Evil. You have to hold down a button to run. You have to hold down a button to aim. You have to aim to shoot. The controls are clunky as you'd expect from a classic Resident Evil game. The camera doesn't help with that either. More often than not, you'll find yourself running head on into an enemy. Aiming is shotty at best. Running feels strange. It's almost impossible to run into a straight line especially with the constantly changing camera angles which can also make it difficult to fight enemies. The Ink Ribbon system is the dumbest save system I've ever encountered for any type of game. If you didn't know, the Ink Ribbon system is what the Resident Evil series used for saving up until Resident Evil 4. I don't like the idea of have a limited amount of Ink Ribbons when I really need to save. That's the biggest complaint I have for this game. I'm glad that Resident Evil 4 has gotten rid of it. For the Resident Evil: Deadly Silence, they've added a bit of DS exclusives. They have Classic Mode and Rebirth Mode. Classic Mode is the original Resident Evil as if from the PS1 itself with the only touch screen capability is the inventory menu screen and looking at files. Rebirth Mode is pretty much the same thing but with more touch screen capabilities. The only time you have to use the touch screen is when you get into sudden knife fights or solve puzzles. The knife fight sequence is when you walk through a door and suddenly you're now in first person perspective. The knife fights consist of stroking or tapping the screen with your stylus to slash or stab enemies. It's not perfect. Slashing feel like a delayed reaction so timing can be a pain but for the most part, it's manageable. Also, the puzzles in Rebirth Mode are on the touch screen as well. They're either slide to move or draw lines. Overall, Rebirth Mode was a better experience. An unlockable mini-game called Master of Knifing (I see what they did there) is available after completing the game. Master of Knifing consists of the knife fights that were described earlier where the objective is to survive and get the highest score. There's also multi-card play where you and a friend who both have the game can play competitively or cooperatively. This, I haven't played because I've yet to find a friend who owns a copy of this game. Actually, I did have a friend who owned this game but he sold it (along with his DS (due to financial issues). Replayability is limited to those who want to get different ending and those want to better their score in Master of Knifing.

How did the survival-horror game managed on the DS? Fairly average. The scares were cheap, the gameplay feels dated, and the overall experience was mediocre. I wasn't impressed but I wasn't disappointed either. I'm not sure how other people would manage because not many things scare me anymore (save for the Silent Hill series). I'd recommend picking up this game if: A) you're a die hard fan of the Resident Evil series and you need it in your collection, B) you've never experienced the first game of the franchise (which I fell under because when the game first came out on the PS1, I was way too afraid to play it), C) looking for a decent survival-horror game on the go, D)you want a dosage of portable violence and gore, E) you have absolutely nothing else to play. It's a nice departure to relive a classic, but if you truly want to relive it with more satisfying results, either get the remake (not port) of Resident Evil on the GameCube or get Resident Evil: The Umbrella Chronicles on the Wii. They're not portable but they're worth a look. I'm also saying I'd welcome the idea of porting Resident Evil 2 and 3 to the DS as well. Just don't price it over 30 bucks.

Grades
Graphics: C
Sound: C
Controls: D
Gameplay: C
Overall: C

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