However it is tough to shake the feeling that this adventure should be experienced on a larger screen. Technically Bloodlines is a spinoff of sorts and is not part of the main Assassin's Creed series. However Ubisoft Montreal is still at the helm and they have done a wonderful job of providing a portable Assassin's Creed experience. Unfortunately, the plot retreads common themes and fails to feel fresh. The good news is that the graphics are superb. As usual, Ubisoft have outdone themselves in the visual department.
Everything from building texture to water rippling feels natural and fluid. It is fortunate that the graphics are stellar because the gameplay falls short of the mark. The awe of exploring an open world environment is not the same experience on a handheld device. This also leads to mishaps with platforming and general gameplay issues that have to do with exploring.
Climbing buildings with precision is now a tedious task. The combat is fun albeit repetitive, though it succeeds in staying true to the Assassin's Creed brand. The satisfaction of beating up on your enemies remains incredibly high. Many have noted that the sound effects have driven players mad after only a few hours of gaming. The combat can be forgiven due to it being on brand with the Assassin's Creed franchise.
However, the recurring audio is extremely unpleasant. The amount of iconic titles that Sony has a hand in producing is truly remarkable. The franchise rose to prominence on the PlayStation 2 thanks to its highly stylized world and unique characters.
The dynamic duo is tasked with exploring planets all while trying to rescue a girl named Luna that has been kidnapped by robots. This time, weapons can be upgraded as players progress through the story. This allows for a considerable amount of strategic planning based on individual fighting styles. There are also some nifty tools that must be utilized to maximize exploration.
These tools are presented in unique fashion. One common pitfall for single player games that rely on the strength of their story is the absence of a challenge.
Luckily, upon completion of the game, the player is asked to embark on the same adventure at a much higher difficulty level. This feature is called Challenge Mode and it is prefect for those who breezed through Size Matters.
It also adds replay value. Final Fantasy VII released in as one of the most legendary video games to ever grace our screens.
This game was developed for the PSP as opposed to being a port from a home console. That has a considerable impact on the quality of this game. Everything from the graphics to the controls is fine tuned to work well on the PSP.
The game definitely looks beautiful from a graphic standpoint. Crisis Core is the quintessential action role playing game. It does not stray too far away from the traditional Final Fantasy mechanics. It does however succeed in introducing new elements. The real time combat system allows players to defeat enemies in distinctive ways. No one battle will feel similar to another, which adds a great sense of variety to the gameplay. The soundtrack is exceptional and combines nostalgia from Final Fantasy VII with some modern tracks that form a wonderful union.
Crisis Core does exhibit minor issues. One of these issues would be the length of the game. Unfortunately, it only lasts about 11 hours, which can seem brisk to some. Grand Theft Auto Vice City was an instant classic when it released back in At the time, the series had been building up steam at an incredible pace.
As the fourth instalment in the franchise Vice City is widely regarded as the game that made the Grand Theft Auto franchise what it is today. Vice City is a fictional city that draws inspiration from Miami. Truthfully, it would have been impossible for Rockstar Games to pick a better location to adapt. Vice City Stories takes place two years prior to Vice City.
In many ways it acts as a prequel to the original. Several of the same characters return as do the cast of voice actors. The series has always been known for its use of Hollywood stars and this game is no different. The story follows brothers Victor and Lance as they aim to build their criminal empire in Vice City. Both featured briefly in the original Vice City so its nice to see this game expand on their origin story.
The open world environment that makes Grand Theft Auto games so unique is back once more. Players can move with freedom at their own pace. Beating the game does not feel like a chore due to this non-guided progression. Debate surrounded the original game due to the glorification of violence, crime and drugs. It also came under fire for its racial profiling. Much of that is still present in Vice City Stories making it strictly for adults.
At the peak of the street racing craze birthed from the immense success of The Fast and Furious movie franchise, Need for Speed was the lead racing video game. As the ninth installment in the Need for Speed franchise, Most Wanted is an incredibly polished racing game. There is a ton of content to delve into.
The story mode is superb and, as the title suggests, the goal is to become the most wanted street racer in the city of Rockport. You can also play online via the PSP to much enjoyment. The online feature is as great as one could expect from a portable online experience. There are some issues regarding connectivity however these are minor concerns in the grand scheme of things. The graphics and car variety combine to provide the best aspects of this game. The roster of luxury cars and exotic streetcars is a blast to dig into.
Most Wanted offers some great customization options. You car will develop in performance and aesthetic as you progress in the game. The graphics are gritty with dark undertones that play well with the theme of street racing.
The controls are also extremely intuitive for a handheld racing game. In fact many believe the handheld version to be superior to the console version due to the controls alone. Unfortunately, the enemy AI in this iteration is highly questionable in their actions. In this case it would be the police department. Once the cops are on your tail it is game over for most. This essentially punishes the player for playing the game properly. As the sixth instalment in the franchise, expectations were naturally high.
Birth by Sleep continues the trend of prequels exclusively made for the PSP. This game is a direct narrative prequel to the original Kingdom Hearts. Luckily, there is enough innovation introduced to the combat system to sidestep any notions of stagnation. There is no denying that the loading screens are painfully slow. Secondly, the dialogue is rather weak. Throughout the play through interactions are few and far between. When the rare portion of dialogue appears the disappointment is palpable.
These are minor letdowns in the grand scheme of things. There is so much to love here, from the stunning vibrant visuals to the endearing original music; Birth by Sleep is one of the best PSP games around. The unique three-character setup is also quite enjoyable.
The ability to control three characters offers distinct gameplay variety. The action-filled gameplay is relentless. The new features such as Focus and Dimension Link add much needed depth and make this game so much more than a typical hack and slash. Ultimately, Birth of Sleep succeeds in creating new Kingdom Hearts fans. Its accessibility as a prequel means that this is the perfect Kingdom Hearts game to discover the beloved franchise.
As with any game not designed for a specific device, concerns arise regarding its quality. First and foremost there are some aspects exclusive to the PSP version.
Kitana and Jax are noteworthy additions seeing as they are franchise favorites. There is also a new playable game mode only available in Unchained.
The mode is titled Endurance and players must last as long as possible against a wave of never ending opponents. Although the presence of an online feature is a welcome component, its quality is rather disappointing. Anyone who plays even a few fights online will notice consistent frame dropping and lag. Stage interaction not only adds another layer to fighting strategy but it also provides some laugh-inducing moments as players lose to the stage as opposed to their enemy.
Performing a fatality remains a highly entertaining way of proving your superiority over your opponent. Developed by Ready at Dawn, the studio that would go on to create PS4 title The Order: , Daxter gave the wisecracking Naughty Dog sidekick his own game to run, jump, and flyswat his way through. See our Daxter review. A portable remake of one of the best tactics games of all time?
Yes, please. The studio was an undersung hero for Sony in this era, and Ghost of Sparta is proof that the developer had serious chops.
While the controls occasionally frustrate, Ghost of Sparta mostly does a great job of translating the button-mashing combos of the console entries to the scaled-down control scheme of the PSP. And it does all that while providing a visually impressive for adventure with graphics roughly on par with the PS2. See our God of War: Ghost of Sparta review. Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars is maybe most significant for bringing the old-school GTA gameplay to a generation of players whose first experience with the satirical open-world series began with 3.
While the PS2 trilogy opted for a third-person perspective that focused more on the human characters than the cars they used to get from A to B, Chinatown Wars resurrected the top-down perspective of the first two games in the series to entertaining results.
And, if a historical RPG sounds a little dry, just know that this variation of Joan of Arc spends her time fighting orc armies. Colorful visuals, a catchy soundtrack, and widely varying levels and objectives made LocoRoco 2 a must-play platformer on PSP. See our LocoRoco 2 review. Before he dazzled us in and out of VR with Tetris Effect, Tetsuya Mizuguchi designed what is possibly the best falling-block puzzle game not named Tetris. However, rather than creating horizontal lines to make blocks disappear, Lumines asks players to make squares of matching colors.
Pair that compellingly playable action with a hypnotic soundtrack and Lumines is an easy way to make hours disappear. Lumines Remastered is available on modern platformers, including Nintendo Switch. See our Lumines review. In this turn-based tactics game, cards control everything. Want to move? You need a card for that. Fire your weapon? Now, this is an oddball entry. The plot follows another spate of killings, though through a very supernatural lens. The major players have to piece together how and why this is happening, and bring an end to it.
Indigo Prophecy is known for its eccentric control scheme the face buttons are almost entirely unused, in favour of motions with the analog sticks , as well as its sprinkling of really quite uncomfortable nudity. A fun time, this is not. Next up, we arrive at what is probably one of the seediest, most half-assed examples of video game nudity in the history of the medium. Different strokes, as they say. The game is, after all, one long series of pretty damn horrific snuff films. The first thing that comes to mind when you think of Manhunt, after all, is probably plastic bag suffocation.
Or chainsaw impalement, or something. If you know the game beyond the headlines, though, you might think something different. As we all know, you never see the Duke without a scantily-clad honey or fifteen in tow. The man was designed as a testament to everything a nineties action hero should be.
Ballachingly bad one-liners, muscles on the muscles on his muscles, guns out the wazzoo, and all the ladies. Throughout the Duke Nukem series, busty babes have always been a recurring motif. Usually of the generic damsels-in-distress variety, sadly, but there they are. One of the naked-est, most controversial, and most patently ridiculous games to ever hit consoles. Think Game and Watch classic Helmet , only with a nude dude in a cowboy hat.
Oh, Kratos. The God of War series has always reveled in its way-over-the-top, brutal combat, and it's totally unapologetic about it. Super gory god-execution scenes not being quite controversial enough, Kratos wants to get in on a little of that famous Ancient Greek promiscuity as well.
Over the course of the series, he manages to bed all kinds of dusky maidens, including goddess of love herself, Aphrodite.
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