I can confidently tell you that Hot Shots Golf: Open Tee 2 is not only a worthy successor to the portable powerhouse but an outing that passes the original in just about every way possible -- although not by leaps and bounds.
If you're just joining us, Hot Shots is the series that's been putting goofy characters and items on the links since the PSone days. Open Tee 2 continues the tradition with 24 playable characters; 12 courses; and more than 300 different options for clothing, hairstyles, clubs, and more. However, the title isn't content to just give you a few more options -- Open Tee 2 adds a 16-player online mode, clothing/item boosts, and a brand-new way to unlock content.
Golfing in Hot Shots is both simple and complex. In the beginning, it'll seem like the game is played completely with the X button. You'll tap the button to start a colored swing bar rising beneath your golfer of choice, tap it again when you've decided how much oomph to put into the shot, and tap it one last time to stop the colored meter in the pink impact zone. The tapping complete, you player will knock the ball towards the spinning, 3D triangle that acts as your crosshairs -- wind and your own flubs on the impact meter will influence how close you get to that mark.
Of course, there's a lot more to hitting that mark than you might think. Left and right on the D-Pad will adjust you character's shot left or right, while the L and R buttons will switch between your clubs and thus how far the ball can go. If you need an extra boost of power, you can tap square to make use of one of your power swings, and once unlocked, you can tap triangle in the impact sweet zone for more juice or circle for less. Obviously you'll need to be paying attention to the rolling hills, sand traps, and water hazards when you're aiming for the fairway, but once you get on the green, you'll need to watch dotted lines that let you know which way the ground is slopping and at what kind of angle.
So, yeah. Your goal is to go from two measly characters to unlocking all 12 new golfers -- folks such as the raven-haired beauty Alice and grandmother Frau Ada -- and maxing out each of their Loyalty meters. Along the way, you'll be able to make the team members fat or skinny, add glasses, and unlock a whole set of friends. See, in addition to the newbies, Open Tee 2 features the entire cast of the original game. However, rather than unlocking them like you're unlocking the new characters, you'll need to find the vets on the course. There are all sorts of hidden accessories and items on the field of play along with the original dozen. You'll be playing, see a sparkle in the distance, and then have to zoom in with the camera to receive the gift or person. My Santa beard came in an out of bounds section, Rio fell out of a tree, and I found Shu facedown next to the green.
Friday, December 18, 2009
Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII achieves a striking balance of old and new, and juggles fan service with pure role-playing satisfaction. It's striking how these elements have been shaped into such an appealing and emotionally affecting prequel. There are some new characters and plenty of fan favorites too, such as Cloud, Tifa, and Aerith. However, the characters you're most likely to empathize with are unlikely ones, including protagonist Zack, and Sephiroth, who is complex, troubled, and even sometimes likable. The way their personal stories weave in and out of each other--and set the stage for the events in Final Fantasy VII--makes Crisis Core not just the finest role-playing experience available on the PSP, but also one of the best Japanese RPGs in years.
Add Game Tag Print Email Facebook Digg Tweet Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII ReviewCrisis Core is an exciting and poignant journey that every fan of role-playing games should take.
The Video Review Kevin VanOrd reviews Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII.
Watch It
Watch HD 520p The GoodIncredible and poignant story, starring a likable and complex hero Every aspect of the production design, from cutscenes to voice acting, is utterly amazing The DMW is a weird but fun way of leveling up Enjoyable and addictive combat . The BadCombat is on the easy side Player has no control over limit breaks and leveling . Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII achieves a striking balance of old and new, and juggles fan service with pure role-playing satisfaction. It's striking how these elements have been shaped into such an appealing and emotionally affecting prequel. There are some new characters and plenty of fan favorites too, such as Cloud, Tifa, and Aerith. However, the characters you're most likely to empathize with are unlikely ones, including protagonist Zack, and Sephiroth, who is complex, troubled, and even sometimes likable. The way their personal stories weave in and out of each other--and set the stage for the events in Final Fantasy VII--makes Crisis Core not just the finest role-playing experience available on the PSP, but also one of the best Japanese RPGs in years.
Zack's journey is one of the franchise's most memorable.
Zack isn't new to the franchise, but he was a mere flashback in Final Fantasy VII, which may not make him seem like the best choice of leading man for a prequel to one of the best RPGs ever created. Yet he's as interesting as any Square Enix star, and transcends the usual spiky-haired heroism and teenage angst with an uncommon maturity that develops as the game continues. Revealing almost any plot point could be a spoiler; the Gaia world is rich with mythology and complex character motivation. What's important is how the characters interact, change, and grow. Scenes between Zack and Cloud are both effortless and poignant, and stem directly out of Zack's most impressive character traits: trust and loyalty. As each plot thread twists together and the game reaches its inevitable conclusion, your heart will soften and you may shed a few tears. Crisis Core tells a memorable and exciting tale, but more importantly, it makes you care about its characters, even if you are new to the lore. The game's final scenes are amazing and heartfelt, and one sequence in particular that brilliantly mingles gameplay with narrative is one of the most incredible and moving moments in role-playing history.
The game's stunning cutscenes have an immeasurable effect on the emotionally resonant story. There is a harmonious mix of prerendered cinematics and in-engine cutscenes, and both were created with precision. Dramatic camera angles frame Crisis Core's greatest moments, from earth-shaking soliloquies to the quiet pauses Zack and Aerith share. There is a standout scene in which Sephiroth comes into deep focus using a cinematography technique familiar to Alfred Hitchcock fans. This kind of range is rare in cutscenes, even in RPGs, yet it's never forced or overdone here. The quality is further enhanced by incredible voice acting. Past Final Fantasies have sometimes suffered from awkward English voice-overs, but each actor here delivers the right degree of emotion at the right time, which in turn gives weight to the story. As Zack matures, you can hear the newfound confidence replace his adolescent arrogance; when Angeal tells Zack that he's just a little more important than his sword, you can hear a subtle grin in his deep, commanding baritone.
If you enjoyed Final Fantasy VII, this kind of attention to detail won't come as a surprise. However, you may be startled at how the combat works. Crisis Core is an action RPG. Granted, it does have many of the same elements as FFVII: materia, limit breaks, and so on. However, it plays nothing like its inspiration, which may irritate some fans. This doesn't make it better or worse, but it does make it different, and once you get used to it, it's a lot of fun. Battles are almost exclusively random, with the exception of those that end your side missions (more on those later). When combat begins, you are limited to a contained area, but you can move freely within it. To target an enemy, you simply face in its direction, and to attack, you hit X. It's not quite real-time, but rather a series of quick turns that give you a smidgen of time in-between to select a different spell or attack. You can switch among different options and spells on the fly using the shoulder buttons. If you're familiar with the Tales series (Tales of the Abyss, and so on), you'll have a rough idea of how the combat works in Crisis Core.)
Add Game Tag Print Email Facebook Digg Tweet Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII ReviewCrisis Core is an exciting and poignant journey that every fan of role-playing games should take.
The Video Review Kevin VanOrd reviews Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII.
Watch It
Watch HD 520p The GoodIncredible and poignant story, starring a likable and complex hero Every aspect of the production design, from cutscenes to voice acting, is utterly amazing The DMW is a weird but fun way of leveling up Enjoyable and addictive combat . The BadCombat is on the easy side Player has no control over limit breaks and leveling . Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII achieves a striking balance of old and new, and juggles fan service with pure role-playing satisfaction. It's striking how these elements have been shaped into such an appealing and emotionally affecting prequel. There are some new characters and plenty of fan favorites too, such as Cloud, Tifa, and Aerith. However, the characters you're most likely to empathize with are unlikely ones, including protagonist Zack, and Sephiroth, who is complex, troubled, and even sometimes likable. The way their personal stories weave in and out of each other--and set the stage for the events in Final Fantasy VII--makes Crisis Core not just the finest role-playing experience available on the PSP, but also one of the best Japanese RPGs in years.
Zack's journey is one of the franchise's most memorable.
Zack isn't new to the franchise, but he was a mere flashback in Final Fantasy VII, which may not make him seem like the best choice of leading man for a prequel to one of the best RPGs ever created. Yet he's as interesting as any Square Enix star, and transcends the usual spiky-haired heroism and teenage angst with an uncommon maturity that develops as the game continues. Revealing almost any plot point could be a spoiler; the Gaia world is rich with mythology and complex character motivation. What's important is how the characters interact, change, and grow. Scenes between Zack and Cloud are both effortless and poignant, and stem directly out of Zack's most impressive character traits: trust and loyalty. As each plot thread twists together and the game reaches its inevitable conclusion, your heart will soften and you may shed a few tears. Crisis Core tells a memorable and exciting tale, but more importantly, it makes you care about its characters, even if you are new to the lore. The game's final scenes are amazing and heartfelt, and one sequence in particular that brilliantly mingles gameplay with narrative is one of the most incredible and moving moments in role-playing history.
The game's stunning cutscenes have an immeasurable effect on the emotionally resonant story. There is a harmonious mix of prerendered cinematics and in-engine cutscenes, and both were created with precision. Dramatic camera angles frame Crisis Core's greatest moments, from earth-shaking soliloquies to the quiet pauses Zack and Aerith share. There is a standout scene in which Sephiroth comes into deep focus using a cinematography technique familiar to Alfred Hitchcock fans. This kind of range is rare in cutscenes, even in RPGs, yet it's never forced or overdone here. The quality is further enhanced by incredible voice acting. Past Final Fantasies have sometimes suffered from awkward English voice-overs, but each actor here delivers the right degree of emotion at the right time, which in turn gives weight to the story. As Zack matures, you can hear the newfound confidence replace his adolescent arrogance; when Angeal tells Zack that he's just a little more important than his sword, you can hear a subtle grin in his deep, commanding baritone.
If you enjoyed Final Fantasy VII, this kind of attention to detail won't come as a surprise. However, you may be startled at how the combat works. Crisis Core is an action RPG. Granted, it does have many of the same elements as FFVII: materia, limit breaks, and so on. However, it plays nothing like its inspiration, which may irritate some fans. This doesn't make it better or worse, but it does make it different, and once you get used to it, it's a lot of fun. Battles are almost exclusively random, with the exception of those that end your side missions (more on those later). When combat begins, you are limited to a contained area, but you can move freely within it. To target an enemy, you simply face in its direction, and to attack, you hit X. It's not quite real-time, but rather a series of quick turns that give you a smidgen of time in-between to select a different spell or attack. You can switch among different options and spells on the fly using the shoulder buttons. If you're familiar with the Tales series (Tales of the Abyss, and so on), you'll have a rough idea of how the combat works in Crisis Core.)
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