Console: Microsoft Xbox
TORONTO, Digital Journal – The newest entrant into the console race is a badass. With its 733 MHz processor, 64MB of memory and 10GB hard drive, the Xbox annihilates the competition as far as hardware. If the numbers are lying, though, your eyes won’t — side-by-side comparisons of multi-console games easily prove who’s packing the most polygons.
The built-in hard drive is a powerful beast, reducing loading and scene-transition times, and eliminating the need for memory cards. This allows for more complex, multifarious storylines in games like the Xbox-exclusive Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic — widely considered the game of the year. Plus, being able to upload your own tunes is a pleasant bonus.
Xbox’s standard four ports with extra-long breakaway cords make it the best system for social gaming — its infamous clunky controllers are now long forgotten. Microsoft also provides the best online service, including detailed standings, voice chat, automatic patching (which discourages cheating), free extra levels and wapon upgrades. Some games, like Halo, even support wireless network play. If you’re willing to wait, the next generation should be backwards compatible.
Crimson Skies: High Road to Revenge
When I visited Xbox’s Holiday Showcase at a Toronto nightclub, one highly enthused marketing director told me that Crimson Skies “basically kicks the (expletive) out of anything I’ve ever seen.” Hyperbole aside, this is among the more impressive dogfighting simulators out there, with sprawling environments to buzz around in. Online, this game supports up to 16 different planes that all try to reduce the others to scrap. Smooth graphics, complicated controls that allow true flights of fancy, (expletive)-loads of action and a story mode that includes cash rewards and GTA-style plane-robbing make this a high-flying winner.
Simpsons Hit & Run
If you’ve followed the hype, then you might’ve heard Simpsons Hit & Run described as a pacifistic Grand Theft Auto meeting Crazy Taxi in the Simpsonsverse — which is completely fitting. Finally, fans of the wacky show have a detailed, faithfully drawn rendition of Springfield to run amok in. A series of chucklicious mini-missions, created by Simpsons staff writers and voiced by the real actors, send you swerving through the town’s streets, driving in one of many recognizable cars — or go out on foot, standing and walking like a little Rory Calhoun. Nonstop references to great episodes past will impress even the fussiest of fanatics.
Starsky & Hutch
A fun and inventive title, Starsky & Hutch recreates the ‘70s TV show as a funky cel-shaded cartoon, directed by you. Pursuing baddies in your red Gran Torino is the top priority. But because you have to hold your audience’s attention, you earn points through random acts of chaos: detonating barrels, careening into office buildings, or soaring off ramps. A dumbed-down targeting system lets you pick off felons, power-ups, and police cruisers — although shooting cops curtails your ratings, contrary to all gamer logic. Cool camera trickery, a huge city to explore and narration by Huggy Bear himself make this a highly enjoyable game.
Xbox Music Mixer
This is a neat little invention, exclusive to Xbox. It’s essentially a home karaoke machine, complete with a microphone that jacks into the controller — if you have a guitar or turntables, you can plug and play along, too. The disc includes 15 singalong favourites, but you can download more from Xbox Live or transfer them directly from CDs or a hard drive, and accurately strip the vocals with a built-in equalizer. With XMM’s Rave Mode, you can cut between video sequences, manipulate trippy visualizers, control breakdancers in its 3D club environment and add your own slideshows — definitely a cool party favour.
Console: Sony PlayStation2
The PS2 is a solid system with something for anyone. Of all the consoles, it has arguably the weakest graphics and computing power — although Sony swears by its “Emotion Engine” — but then, it’s the oldest among the contestants.
Its main draw is the huge library of games, both new and ancient. Being completely backwards compatible means you can pop in any of the lo-fi — but still fun — PS1 games whenever you’re feeling nostalgic. Those with a modulated system (which Digital Journal does not endorse) can even play old-school Nintendo and arcade games via emulators. And because it’s by far the most popular system, everyone wants to develop games for it, resulting in a massive collection of great titles in every category. Action, role-playing, sports, music and experimental games are all represented here. The next Grand Theft Auto sequel will come out first for PS2, perhaps reason enough to buy one.
But quantity is not the same as quality, and designers are finding it easier to develop envelope-pushing games for the more powerful systems. Sony’s online service is also fairly underused, laggy and a haven for cheating.
Then again, it also makes a great surround-sound DVD player, with no extra peripherals or remotes required.
Ratchet & Clank 2: Going Commando
The original Ratchet & Clank was a surprise hit, shipping 1.7 million units worldwide. Players appreciated the Sonic-style high-speed adventure that had elements of RPG storylines and over 35 hours of playing time. Though the sequel continues where the last one began, there’s not much of a learning curve; you run around blasting the sprockets out of creative mechanical monsters, sort of like an updated Mega Man. This version has much larger, more detailed levels, supplementary games like gladiator battles and hoverbike racing, tougher enemies with improved AI, and more sophisticated weapons that you can upgrade with experience points. Good times.
SOCOM II: U.S. Navy Seals
If you’re into war games, you’ll probably adore SOCOM II. It’s among the best military simulations ever conceived, next to Canada’s WES system (see Christl Dabu’s piece, next issue). As an elite SEAL commander, you lead a team of drones through 12 risky locations around the globe, putting the hurt on terrorism. It’s incredibly detailed and realistic, employing complex strategic manoeuvres, a wide range of armaments, authentic weather effects, even a headset that recognizes voice commands. Online, you can pit your customized soldier against up to 15 other players.
Jak and Daxter: The Precursor Legacy
The sequel to Naughty Dog’s popular platform title, Precursor Legacy has a decidedly edgier tone. The first Jak and Daxter was a kids’ game in disguise, smuggling some adult sophistication and humour into the mix, while sustaining the classic “run/jump/obliterate” motif. This time around, there’s the expected new vehicles, attacks and weapons to discover, but the unprecedented size of its vibrant 3D world is something to behold. You can literally go anywhere you feel like at any given time, if you think you’ll find some action there. Simple controls and great sound, too — look for Dee Snider as a guest voice talent.
EyeToy: Play
Play made its first North American appearance at E3’s massive gaming convention, to unusually great fanfare. As the initial complement to Sony’s EyeToy — a small camera that sits on your TV letting you interact with images onscreen — Play is not only insanely fun, but presumably healthier than sitting on your ass, wrangling with elaborate gamepads. With 12 mini-games that use your image as the avatar, you can slap ninjas around, juggle UFOs and wash virtual windows by waving your hands, Minority Report-style. And if you have a memory card, you can even record 60 seconds of low-quality video in Video Messaging mode. Booyah!
Console: Nintendo GameCube
Boasting powerful hardware that nearly rivals the Xbox and kicks the PS2’s butt, the ‘Cube is an impressive machine that continues to push its own graphical boundaries, as newer games will demonstrate. But sales have been slumping all year, and with no new system expected until at least 2006 (the competition should have something by 2005), industry savants predict Nintendo will resort to continued price-slashery.
This is good news for Nintendo fans, of which there are still many. The GameCube’s main appeal is its licensing arrangement: Old-school faves like the Metroid, Legend of Zelda and F-Zero franchises are exclusive to this granddaddy of gaming systems. And while Nintendo will never quite shake its family-oriented image, the GameCube is far more adult than the last system — Resident Evil is now strictly GameCube material, as is the unpopular but freakily funtastic Eternal Darkness.
The GameCube is not upgradeable, has no hard drive, a weak online offering and it can’t play DVDs. Some say this makes it inherently obsolete; others appreciate it as a pure, unadulterated gaming vehicle. It comes with four ports, uses the best controllers around (the cordless version rocks) and, most important, a library of fun, colourful, whimsical games.
Soul Caliber 2
The original Soul Caliber was, in my opinion, the greatest fighting game of all time. Its long anticipated sequel is really more of the same, and that’s a good thing. The original was full of ridiculously flashy characters in elaborate costumes, melodramatic music and storylines, exaggeratedly violent (yet bloodless) action, magnificent 3D backgrounds and outlandishly oversized utensils of senseless carnage. The same goes for Soul Caliber 2, only now, there’s new characters, fancier moves, cage matches, improved shadowing and smoother, faster gameplay. It’s a multi-console game, but Nintendo controllers allow for the comfiest button-mashing, plus it includes Zelda’s Link, complete with bombs, boomerang and bow. Wicked.
Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes
Meddling with a classic takes nerve, but GameCube is releasing an exclusive revamped version of 1998’s PlayStation smash with the help of its estimable designer, Hideo Kojima. While the original MGS completely changed the way we look at strategy-based, plot-driven games, its graphics were relatively primitive. This rendition will feature the same suspense-filled action with improved texture, lighting, and character motion effects, as well as striking cinematic cutscenes and an upgraded, professionally narrated soundtrack. As Solid Snake, you must infiltrate an Alaskan terrorist facility, eluding armed sentries by prowling through shadows, impersonating guards, firing tranquilizers and snapping the occasional neck.
Star Wars Rogue Squadron III: Rebel Strike
Factor 5 and LucasArts, authors of the last two Rogue Squadron games, are at it again. X-wing fights, the Battle of Hoth, and other events from the first three flicks are again covered here, but this time you can run around on foot as Luke or Wedge. Drive B-wings, tauntauns, AT-STs and Trojan-Horse TIE fighters, or steer speeder bikes through Endor’s vaporous jungles while razing pesky trees and evading Ewok snares. With HDTV support, five-channel Dolby sound, exceptional lighting and texture mapping, pressure-sensitive controls and dialogue taken from the original movies, it’s one of the most impressive GameCube titles yet.
F-Zero GX
The thing about this game is that it’s fast. Really, freaking, fast. In fact, I fear for the kids who’ll grow up playing it. But if you’d like to give your reflexes a workout, pop yourself a couple Ritalins and let the eyeball scorching begin. Co-developed by Sega, F-Zero GX features four game modes, 20 meandering courses and more than 30 pilots. You can design and upgrade your own vehicles, including cTustom decals, then upload them to the arcade version. The game looks amazing, and the difficulty has increased exponentially — it could take you hours just to pass the first few levels.
