Games reviews

Super Smash Bros. Brawl, Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rift, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, Kung Fu Panda, Beijing 2008

Competition! Who’s the best brawler of them all? The next super-charged generation of battles hits the Nintendo Wii with Super Smash Bros. Brawl! Jam packed with 35 characters including old favourites Mario, Zelda and Sonic, single player and multiple battle modes as well as online battles for the first time - get ready to rumble your way to the top of the brawling pile! (see review below) To celebrate the launch of the game, Nintendo is giving away 5 copies of the Super Smash Bros. Brawl game. All you have to do to win is write to us at flipside@flipside.org.uk, by 3rd September 2008, and we’ll pick the lucky winner out of a hat. Let the battle commence!!!!!

Super Smash Bros. Brawl [Rating: *****]
Nintendo, £49.99 | Wii, Out now | Rating: 12+
 
Manic and mad; that’s what we love about the Super Smash Bros experience. The latest in the series lets you go into battle using your own choice of Wii controllers from Wii-mote and Nunchuck to the Classic controller, and gives you a wider choice of levels and characters to choose from.

Still in essence the same, the aim of ‘Brawl is to survive. A fanboy’s dream, the game is overflowing with characters and levels gamers will love from all Nintendo consoles. You simply pick your favourite, choose your arena and then leap, fight and grab anything to hand to push your competitors’ damage meters so high that when you smash them, they’ll fly off the screen, losing a life in the process.

That’s it; ‘Brawl is simply a beat-em-up, but it’s so much fun that it’s addictive. Even better, Nintendo has added more features than ever before, allowing you to create your own levels and choose a huge number of settings to create the kind of battle you want (which pick-ups, how many lives, special features like becoming a giant etc). You can also play through a side-scrolling platform and fighting story mode, in either solo or co-op form, which is top.

A crazy gaming experience like no other, this is the must buy beat-em-up. Get your friends round and prepare for a Super Smash Brawl!

Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rift [Rating: *****]
Square Enix, £29.99 | DS, Out now | Rating: 12+

It’s been a long time coming, but the second FF Tactics offering is definitely worth the wait. Set in Ivalice, the world we already know from FFXII, the original ‘Tactics and also Vagrant Story, you play as Luso, a small boy who gets sucked into the world when he opens an old mysterious book.

Befriended by a clan, Luso’s aim is to find a way home, which is done by filling the book with the tales of his escapades. Taking quests and following rumours, your clan enters turn-based tactical battlefields where you take control of its members. With mages, warriors, thieves and archers etc at your command, you can summon mighty creatures and use your tactical skills to win the fight. Judges appear at the beginning of each battle setting down laws to adhere to. Stick to the law and gain bonuses and items, fight dirty and you lose the privileges he bestows.

With victory comes fame, and you earn reputation for your clan which means levelling up and new items and weapons to upgrade to. You can even compete with rival clans to claim territory! With over 300 quests this is a chunky DS title making it value for money as you’ll love every second you play.

Guitar Hero: Aerosmith [Rating: ***]
Activision | £34.99 on Wii, £29.99 on DS and PS2, £19.99 on PC, Out now | Rating: 12+

Put down the air guitar, its time to rock out with your Gibson controller in this latest Guitar Hero game.

Simply put its more of the Guitar Hero flavour we know and love but to a new tune – the tunes of super-hairy-glam rockers Aerosmith that is! Still great fun to get this rhythm game right by strumming/hitting the buttons in time with the music, its learning curve is fair making it a laugh to play, but we felt let down by the lack of top tunes.

Before every Aerosmith gig you have to play two covers as a support band, and even when you get to the big rock gods, you have to play for quite a while before you’ll recognise any of the songs yourself!

This game is more a niche product than its predecessors, aimed more at fans of classic rock than the tastes of today’s average gamer. Even so, it’s a blast to play, but maybe the games that came before had more variety.

Kung Fu Panda [Rating: ***]
Activision | £39.99 on Wii, X360, PS3, £29.99 on PS2, DS, £19.99 on PC, Out now | Rating: PG

The movie looks great, but here you can actually become Po the Panda and the legendary Furious Five Kung Fu masters. Very accessible with different difficulty settings, you follow the story of the movie and beyond, as you embark on your epic adventure to become the Dragon Warrior and defeat the bad.

But it’s not just about the ‘Fu; this game involves collecting, platform fun and combat. Progress through battles to learn new skills such as the Panda Quake, Stumble and Iron Belly Blast then collect the coins scattered through the levels to upgrade them to become truly kick-ass.

Easy for everyone to get into, fans of the movie will love being part of the game. Throw in lots of unlockable multiplayer games involving puzzles and fighting and this is a nice little package for you and – dare we say it - your family to play.

Beijing 2008 [Rating: ***]
Sega | £49.99 on PS3, X360, £29.99 on PC, Out now | Rating: 3+

The Official Video Game of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games, this game features a good selection of the sports on offer, with 35 events to master. Adding to the competitive aspect, this is the first Olympics game to offer a fully online experience allowing you to play in live and ranked matches with your friends as well as via system link or just playing solo with your own machine.

Alongside the gorgeously realistic HD graphics, this is the game’s biggest plus, as the gameplay, although in-depth, isn’t the greatest fun. Reminiscent of the classic button bashers like Track and Field which are known for destroying many a joystick, today’s console controllers don’t seem best designed for frantic stick wiggling and alternating button bashing. It’s fun for a while, but then the lactic acid build up will leave the muscles in your hands and wrists aching, big time!

Still for sports fans and the competitive amongst you, Beijing 2008 lets you become more involved with this summer’s sports experience by competing in many of the official venues. These range from the famous Beijing National Stadium dubbed the ‘Bird Nest’ to the National Aquatics Center also known as the ‘Water Cube’. Enjoyable in short bursts and great for leaderboard lovers, this game’s a tougher challenge than you might expect.