Tangled Web

Seeing as how this is the first of our bargain bin reviews, I will explain a little bit about the concept first. The main idea is to purchase a game found in the bargain bin from a local game shop. Some times these games are chosen at random, other titles may just happen to catch our eye. These bins are usually filled with four year old Madden games or Barbie Unicorn Express, but occasionally there may be a hidden gem in there. Our goal is to play through the shovelware and find that gem and present it to you.

The rating system is also a bit skewed. Considering we set the price limit of these games to be at $10 we will be grading them appropriately. If I paid the full $60 for a game I would have certain expectations and since I am only paying $10, I have lowered them significantly. Now, lets get on with it, shall we?

Mobile Suit Gundam: Federation vs Zeon is a mouthful. It is also a game based on the popular (in Japan) Mobile Suit Gundam franchise. In the series there are two forces, Earth Federation and Zeon, that are at war for some reason. These two forces fight each other with their giant robots called Mobile Suits or Gundams. That is pretty much all I know, but when giant robots wielding laser swords (lightsabers) fight to the death, what else do you need to know?

The ‘Campaign’ mode of this game takes place in a variety of missions. You have a map and there are locations on the map. Selecting one of these locations will allow you to attempt that mission. In the time I played there were a few different mission types ranging from kill stuff, to kill stuff while preventing said stuff from killing your stuff and to boss-type battles. I was actually surprised at some of the different missions as well as the different terrains. I fought in mountainous regions, city-scapes, islands (underwater too!), and deserts.

The controls were by far the most distressing part of this game. To give credit, this game is over 8 years old and it was probably more acceptable at the time, but the right analog stick was not utilized in this game at all. Being a fan of third person action games I have become used to spinning the camera around my character in order to turn around or to check out my environments. Unfortunately, you are stuck with the default behind the back view on this game, which can become frustrating if there are several enemies attacking you.

The targeting system in this game lives and dies by the auto lock-on feature. If an enemy appears in your view, great you’re locked on, but switching between enemies can be painful. The rest of the gameplay involves shooting the enemies you are targeting with a variety of weapons that includes machine guns, lasers, missile launchers etc. You also have melee weapons like lightsabers or lazer-axes, which are spotty at best. Finally, you can jump around the environments with the limited use boosters that are on your back or feet. Once your boosters run out it will recharge once you are back on the ground.

All in all, if you are living 8 years in the past, a mobile suit fan, and also a fan of all things Japan this game is probably the hotness. It is hard to recommend this game now, but if you got $5 and happen to enjoy robot explosions, you may want to give it a try. It is worth noting that I played this game for about an hour and a half and have not yet tried out the multiplayer aspects of it.

3/5 nades

My wallet is crying.  It is unusually empty as it always seems to be at this time of year, but this year it seems to be worse than usual.  There are a lot of great games coming out in the next few months.  We have already seen a couple of great releases like Halo: ODST and Uncharted 2: Among Thieves.  Here is a list of games coming out before the end of the year that I am interested in:

Demon Souls

Modern Warfare 2

Ratchet & Clank Future:  Tools of Destruction

Left 4 Dead 2

Dragon Age: Origins

Tekken 6

Borderlands

FIFA 10

Assassins Creed 2
Phew!  Thats $540 and those are the games that I just thought of off the top of my head!

So far I have only been able to play ODST for about three hours total.  I have played about 2 hours of Campaign and only an hour or so of Firefight.  I must say that Firefight had me wanting more.  Lots more.  The non stop action and random nature of the gameplay makes every game unique and exciting.

On the campaign side, the initial drop sequence was really cool.  I like the solo adventure feel of running around in an enemy occupied city.  I haven’t played much except for the first flashback sequence and gotten a bit of a taste of New Mombassa.

Can’t wait to play some more ODST!  Check back early next week for a full review

The Tokyo Game Show is this weekend.  So far the only major news has been a $50 price drop on the price of the Wii.  So for the 43 people that have yet to pick up a Wii, theres a little extra incentive for you.

There was also some delicious The Last Guardian news in the form of a new trailer.  Check it out below:

Stay tuned for any other major announcements!

Part 1 of 2!  Check out their other awesome videos here:  http://www.youtube.com/user/SeakittenCollective

Halo 3: ODST comes out later this week.  I am immensely excited for this title and can not wait to sink my teeth into it.  This time Bungie takes you out of the role of the super soldier, Master Chief, and into the role of an ODST soldier known as the rookie.   They are also introducing a new multiplayer mode