Hasbro invented a cast of outer-space machinoid characters that can transform into anything imaginable including trucks, sports cars, jets, insects, robot animals, Christ even a robotic T-Rex. How hard is it to make a decent game that capitalizes on such gleeful craziness? Apparently pretty hard for developer Edge of Reality who have taken the reigns after High Moon’s successful stint on the last two Cybertron-centric titles.

Transformers: Rise of the Dark Spark features what starts off as a totally acceptable, standard, Transformers-fare adventure wherein the various Cybertronian tribes including the Autobots and Decepticons are fighting over the latest gadget; the Dark Spark. This sought after item apart from being really dangerous also has the ability to control space and time. This is where things turn bizarre by combining the movie-universe Transformers with the more classic War of Cybertron universe of Transformers resulting in a crossover nobody really wanted.

"The game plays very much like the standard third-person shooter which kind of ruins the awe of being a giant mecha-robot as you feel pretty much like you’re playing as any generic shooter character invented."

The game takes place over 14 different chapters, each featuring a different playable Autobot or Decepticon. The game flings the player between the two warring parties back and forth resulting in confusion over which side you’re actually playing for with only their dialogue or Transformer designs as clues. No matter which side you’re playing as the levels are all the same, boring affair with the usual arena’s full of repeated enemies that need to be destroyed in order to continue.

Sometimes, just to spice it up that extra bit more the player will need to flick 3 switches/levers/terminals to access yet another combat arena because the fun just never ends. Each level feels like an endless slog through unintelligent enemies and repetitive environment designs.

The game plays very much like the standard third-person shooter which kind of ruins the awe of being a giant mecha-robot as you feel pretty much like you’re playing as any generic shooter character invented. The weapons are a decent mix including the expected pistols, heavy pistols, machine guns, gattling guns and even a lightning gun which produces chains of lightning across multiple enemies. Combat is fairly satisfying when cleaving through a pit of insectoid mechs however it doesn’t pack that oomph that’s expected when playing as a freaking Transformer.

The game features an attempt at customization as each weapon is customizable and upgradeable. Terminals throughout the levels will offer the chance to customize loadouts including primary and heavy weapons, the ability to equip T.E.C.H which is the games perk system and other little bonuses. Gunning your way through the levels will unlock prize boxes which contain random selections of weapons, T.E.C.H and characters to play as in the half-arsed multiplayer mode.

"The multiplayer mode included is barely worth the energy spent typing these words as it only contains a wave/horde mode in which you team up with some friends to slog it out against increasing amounts of enemies and use your cash earned to buy upgrades."

Everyone knows that the best part of the Transformers is their ability to, well, you know, transform. Only in this game this ability is mostly pointless and extremely dissatisfying. The controls for the vehicles in the game, which can be transformed into with a click of the right analogue are extremely confusing as they feature not one but two boost buttons. How does that make sense? Flying around as a fighter jet is fun for about 30 seconds then gets frustrating when you immediately get shot out of the sky by over-powered drones that appear from nowhere.

The multiplayer mode included is barely worth the energy spent typing these words as it only contains a wave/horde mode in which you team up with some friends to slog it out against increasing amounts of enemies and use your cash earned to buy upgrades. Rise of the Dark Spark could have easily included a coop feature throughout the campaign as AI allies regularly join the fight however this is noticeably absent.

The visuals suffer with texture pop-ins which often look flat and dull. The Transformers themselves look decent, often with animated moving parts. Long loading times between the levels also ruin the experience.

Overall the latest Transformers outing lacks the fun and excitement that should come with playing as warring, oversized robots.

This game was reviewed on the PlayStation 3.

I was given the choice to name myself, the driver, along with choosing a photo to match (apparently I have a moustache now) following that I had to choose my co driver and manager. Neither affects the gameplay in any way except for a change of name in the textual dialogue. After this I was rushed to a visually striking menu with rally cars tearing up the tracks in the background.

"The gentleman flagging the start of the race next to my car looked something similar to a blurry Slenderman-esque figure. The mannequin like spectators lifelessly flailed their block limbs around in a lackluster attempt to ramp up the now rapidly draining excitement."

After a short audio introduction the options laid out in front of me. I chose to immediately delve into the ‘Quick Stage’ option and have a blast at racing through one of the random tracks I was assigned. After a fairly lengthy load time helped by the option of reading through various interesting facts on the sport I was dropped straight into a timed race through a track in Spain featuring tight, winding tarmac roads. Immediately something was off, the gentleman flagging the start of the race next to my car looked something similar to a blurry Slenderman-esque figure. The mannequin like spectators lifelessly flailed their block limbs around in a lackluster attempt to ramp up the now rapidly draining excitement.

Obviously it’s not all about graphics and presentation these days when it comes to getting enjoyment out of a game, just look at Minecraft to support that. But when it comes to a racing simulator that aims to throw you into the driver’s seat we expect a certain level of polish to the cars and to the environment. This is not the case with WRC 4. The environments are often drab and flat with muddy textures which are often still rendering as you whip past them in your speedy Ford. The cars themselves have had more attention than the environments but still look like assets ripped from a late Playstation 2 game.

The thrill of a rally game comes with blistering through the sudden curves and turns in the track with a trail of dust and burnt rubber in your wake. Luckily, developers Milestone have done a great job with the handling of the cars in WRC 4. It’s a challenge to master the perfect corner yet extremely satisfying when achieved, using the right amount of break and acceleration. The sense of speed is greatly conveyed with motion blur and feels thrilling yet dangerous as you careen down narrow paths.

"There’s nothing inspired about anything in WRC 4, it’s all very by the numbers. A touch of visual flair and a few more inspired design choices would have took this game a lot further."

In career mode we have the standard affair for racing games, a story in which you are placed as a rookie driver working up the ranks. Unlike previous installments the process of working from rookie and being offered WRC2 contracts has been reduced meaning you’re moved up the ranks faster at the start of the career. This may annoy hardcore rally fans that feel the process has been diluted and simplified however it’s a much more newcomer friendly way of encouraging progress.

The races in WRC 4 are timed therefore you’re never racing against a physical AI opponent. However their difficulty can be fully customized from difficulty level 1 up to 10, 10 requiring perfect runs of every level with every single corner mastered to even match their times. This allows WRC 4 to be both newbie friendly as well as challenging even the most hardcore of rally fans.

While the game may look visually terrible it certainly plays decent. With that said there’s nothing inspired about anything in WRC 4, it’s all very by the numbers. A touch of visual flair and a few more inspired design choices would have took this game a lot further.

This game was reviewed on the Xbox 360.

"Diablo III is a truly satisfying gaming experience in which the player really gets a sense of progression with their character which after hours of play transforms into a deadly weapon of mass destruction."

Diablo III for consoles is still the exact same divisive installment of the series that it’s proven to be on the PC bar a few unwanted features such as the Auction House left out for good measure. Every piece of content in the PC version is complete on consoles including all major updates since the original version’s release. What we’re getting here is the pure essence and experience of Diablo III.

Diablo III is a truly satisfying gaming experience in which the player really gets a sense of progression with their character which after hours of play transforms into a deadly weapon of mass destruction. Starting off as either one of the 5 classes available; Barbarian, Witch Doctor, Wizard, Monk or Demon Hunter you’re immediately tasked with the effort of fending off the evil hordes of hell that have besieged the familiar town of New Tristram.

"Combat wise, Diablo III has made the leap over to consoles with aplomb. The intense battles and quick-thinking tactical decisions that need to be made on the fly in order to triumph over your enemies work extremely well with a gamepad."

The key gameplay element with Diablo is a the plethora of Loot that is dropped with the inevitable slaughter of the endless enemies this world has to offer. Loot can be anything from a new piece of armour, money, magical items and weapons. All of these build and continue to develop your character into a walking arsenal. There are no skill trees to navigate through in Diablo III, all progression feels natural and controllable as the player ultimately has the decisions of which loot to use and how to craft their character through their journey.

The decision to bring an offline mode to consoles cuts out all those nasty DRM issues Diablo suffered on the PC and ushers in welcome additions of LAN capability and up to four players offline. This truly harkens back to the days of old where we’d once sit on a couch surrounded by pizza boxes slogging through dungeons with our friends in multiplayer.

Combat wise, Diablo III has made the leap over to consoles with aplomb. The intense battles and quick-thinking tactical decisions that need to be made on the fly in order to triumph over your enemies work extremely well with a gamepad. The six abilities for your character are mapped to the face buttons with the analogue stick controlling the direction of the attack. Diablo has a generous auto-aim feature, which does come in handy when you find yourself quickly outnumbered and needing to pick of a few enemies to make an escape.

While graphically the game won’t leave any jaws dropped the art design and sheer beauty of the environments you will find yourself in certainly will. There is no doubt that despite the rough animations and the odd dodgy texture or two Diablo III is still a great looking game.

Diablo III has made the perfect jump to consoles and whilst lacking the ability to create or access any mods it is certainly the best and more distilled version of a fantastically epic game.

This game was reviewed on the PlayStation 3.

When the opening CGI cinematic plays and we’re introduced to the overwrought and frankly, embarrassing sci-fi story which is preceded by one of the most desperate attempts at a ‘hardcore shooter’ title screen I have ever seen, I knew this was not going to be a fun experience. Scourge, in one word is generic. Not one original idea or concept pervades throughout the whole torturous six hour campaign in which you explore barren, brown wastelands in the overly bulky boots of Echo squad.

The team of bland meatheads are dispatched on a mission to retrieve a mad scientist from an evil corporation’s island headquarter base as well as discover the mystery between a meteorite landing and the strange substance which fuels their suits and powers.

"Not one original idea or concept pervades throughout the whole torturous six hour campaign in which you explore barren, brown wastelands in the overly bulky boots of Echo squad."

Every cliché from the 90’s sci fi drivel C-movies seems to have been pilfered and shoved into this hackneyed story in any which way it fits. Echo Squad is the latest in the meathead war mercenary character clichés with slight twists such as ‘ooh, look at this one, he has strange scars, mysterious spooky eyes and a slightly whispy voice.’

This must be ‘Shade’ the mystery of the team. We get to pick from four of these slight variations of what is essentially the same character to play as through the campaign. Each of the squad mates, supposedly, has different skills and abilities. None of these were showcased and used inventively when playing through the campaign as another character. It’s bad enough subjecting yourself to the experience of playing this through once, let alone again albeit with a different skin.

As a 3^rd person, cover shooter we could at least expect a fairly fun shooting mechanic and some satisfying guns to play around with for an hour or so right? Well, no. Not quite. The whole combat mechanics in Scourge feel off with no feedback from guns, you may as well be firing water pistols at these Storm Trooper-esque enemies.

"The enemies will constantly saunter into a hailstorm of bullets from yourself and your squad as if they’re invincible, only to be shot down two seconds later. "

Each gun is wildly inaccurate as each shot sends the weapon flying upwards with recoil after the first round meaning it’s incredibly hard to land a single shot. You know something’s not right when you’re not even getting any enjoyment out of squeezing off a headshot from long range.

The AI in Scourge is simply atrocious. The enemies will constantly saunter into a hailstorm of bullets from yourself and your squad as if they’re invincible, only to be shot down two seconds later. Your squad mates are no better. Other than being capable of obeying the simplest of ‘go here’ commands issued by the right bumper and face buttons, they are pretty much useless. I was downed in the middle of a ‘wait here and fight wave after wave of the same enemy whilst the timer counts down’ mission and the squad continued to ignore me whilst my soldier remained swaying on their knees.

The combat is dull and repetitive with no original contributions to the mechanics. An attempt to replicate Mass Effect’s biotic powers is poorly made here but they’re so under powered and pointless that they’re not even needed and I forgot about them as quickly as they were introduced.

"This is a blatant attempt to cash in on the success of games that have done this venture a whole lot more successfully."

While it’s important to remember that Scourge was developed with a very small team and limited budget, and it only costs a measly 800 Microsoft Points, there is no excuse for this poor level of polish on a game. The environments look dreadful with muddy textures and overused assets. The character models are laugh-worthy and the voice work is cringe inducing.

This is a blatant attempt to cash in on the success of games that have done this venture a whole lot more successfully. While it might be alright to stick on with your mates if you really have nothing left to do and you’ve exhausted every other option available on a Friday night, just don’t expect it to entertain you for hours. In fact, don’t expect much entertainment at all.

This game was reviewed on the Xbox 360.

I really want to like this game, I really do. It has all the makings of a great little indie title with charming hand-drawn designs, eerily atmospheric soundtrack and a fun, simple story to keep us pacing ahead for the next chapter. However the mechanics of this game simply don’t work.

We’re plonked into the shoes of a mystery astronaut guy complete with overly large bubble helmet, deer eyes and a stumpy figure. The ship he was on has crash landed (hardly Capsized at all) on a strange alien planet and his team of explorers are missing.

"The greatest asset to your inventory is the gravity tether which is effectively a stretchy piece of rope which can be fired and attached to walls and any rock, blockade or enemy in your way."

This leaves us with the task of recruiting all the lesser capable team members and escaping this hellish planet we find ourselves on whilst digging up cool secrets as well. Whilst this all sounds hunky-dory, the part where you actually play the game and come face to face with the almighty terrain and indigenous creatures of the planet is when things start to go a little downhill.

We control our stumpy little action hero through the left analogue stick whilst aiming with the right with a 360 degree radius in which we can point our deadly weapons. This may work fine for the mouse and keyboard combination but when it comes to the controller these controls become finicky and overly complicated.

Our arsenal expands to a variety of weapons found in the darkest corners of the levels from automatic rifles and shotguns to a flamethrower which spurts out blue flames because obviously we’re in space and need cool new effects to constantly remind us of this. The greatest asset to your inventory is the gravity tether which is effectively a stretchy piece of rope which can be fired and attached to walls and any rock, blockade or enemy in your way.

"Capsized gets extremely sadistic in its difficulty spikes halfway through the game and before I know it I’m suffering from multiple, sudden deaths from flesh eating, flying crab-things to getting speared through the crotch from a tribal alien."

This is used to solve physics based puzzles in which you need to navigate the treacherous landscape and using your gravity hook to move items blocking the path and clear the way. Whilst the levels are huge and often sprawl underneath the ground into crazy-big tunnel networks they simply get repetitive and dull very fast. I felt like once I’d seen one dimly lit tunnel I’d seen all 50 ahead of me. The art doesn’t inspire much incentive to carry on exploring this world either as all the assets are reused constantly and the levels all blur into one drab slog.

Capsized gets extremely sadistic in its difficulty spikes halfway through the game and before I know it I’m suffering from multiple, sudden deaths from flesh eating, flying crab-things to getting speared through the crotch from a tribal alien. The action quickly ramps up leaving you skittering all over the place, firing from all angles because you can’t aim at enemies effectively and your health is being constantly depleted by all the damned flying beasties suckling at your overly large head. It’s frustrating and disorientating making it a chore to of explore this quirky environment.

The levels feel huge and labyrinth-like with multiple paths to your goal, whether that’s destroying an alien tech-jammer to finding your misplaced teammates. Every level has a plethora of secrets buried within the network of paths each revealing power-ups to aid you in your journey as well as new firearms, ammo and health so it’s definitely worth having a hunt around to find these rather than ploughing straight on. However with what seems like hundreds of angry alien beasties tearing after you from all sides that’s much easier said than done.

This game was reviewed on the Xbox 360.

This isn’t something that we learn through cutscenes or an in game bio, we learn details of the character’s personalities as we have them interact with the environment throughout their travels. For example, having the older Brother interact with a harp will see him painfully pluck a few sharp notes whereas the little brother turns up and renders a beautiful melody. This is entirely optional and is there for inquisitive players who want to discover more about the two boys that bring us on their journey.

Brothers follows the two siblings as they journey through a Nordic inspired realm to retrieve a cure for their dying father. It’s a sombre story with heavy themes surrounding death, loss and fear but is handled in a charming way that never becomes overbearing. The journey takes the brothers from a small time village bustling with quirky characters to pitch black forests, deathly mountain-scapes and frozen lakes with dangers lurking beneath. Each new environment constantly astounds with the scale and beauty it beholds, creating a sense of achievement as we navigate each segment.

"The control scheme is deceptively simple however the challenge comes when the puzzles arrive, which usually requires the brothers to split off and handle their own section simultaneously."

Developer Starbreeze has created an innovative way of controlling both characters simultaneously through the twin analogue sticks. The left stick corresponds to the older brother who traditionally remains on the left side of the screen and the right stick controlling the younger brother. The only other buttons used are the triggers each corresponding their respective twin allowing them to interact with the environment in a multitude of ways.

The control scheme is deceptively simple however the challenge comes when the puzzles arrive, which usually requires the brothers to split off and handle their own section simultaneously. There will be times when one brother will hold a dying branch which the other will cling onto for dear life whilst being lifted over death defying cliff edges. This requires certain finger gymnastics as the player controls the two at the same time, ensuring neither falls to certain death.

It’s a fun mechanic and one that you will never truly master as the brothers will often cross over to the wrong side of the screen sending your brain into a puddled mess as to which one you’re moving and in which direction. However it is immensely satisfying when you get it right and see the brothers tackle dangerous situations with finesse.

"Brothers is a relatively short game at around 4-5 hours provided you’ve explored the areas and not just breezed through which is something you wouldn’t want to do with a game like this."

Brothers looks beautiful. Every environment is crafted with love to create an epic sense of scale and awe-inspiring beauty, it’s almost like a painting you’d see in an old house. The camera really helps show off the environment as it constantly flows between shots highlighting the environment the boys find themselves in. A slow pan through a bramble of bushes and upwards to a stunning vista of mountains and lakes is the norm here and ushers in a grand, cinematic feel.

The boys come across many unique characters along their journey from villagers and trolls in love to a mad scientist. Some characters are entirely optional whether you have the brothers interact with them or not. Doing so will reveal more story to the land and some encounters even have surprising emotional context so it’s definitely worth exploring and interacting with everything you come across.

Brothers is a relatively short game at around 4-5 hours provided you’ve explored the areas and not just breezed through which is something you wouldn’t want to do with a game like this. It’s a sombre yet fun story told through character interactions and the endearing gibberish language they speak, allowing us to glean the information from their body language. I became attached to these characters through their journey which paid off at the emotionally charged conclusion.

This game was reviewed on the Xbox 360.

Remember those side scrolling ‘Beat ‘em Ups’ like The Simpsons Arcade Game and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles? Of course you do. They were awesome. Charlie Murder follows the likes of these and their modern takes like Ska Studios previous game The Dishwasher in a good old fashioned side-scrolling brawler. The difference with Charlie Murder is the addition of certain RPG elements all melded well into the death obsessed punk rock aesthetic.

We follow the lead singer of a punk band, Charlie, modestly naming the motley crew Charlie Murder and their ongoing rivalry with Lord Mortimer and his own band of demonic rockers. Each rival band member has a different personality from norse hulking to gothic witch lady and their levels leading up to the inevitable clash with each represents their personas. We get the usual likes of the undead piling onto the screens with weapons like knives, guns, samurai swords and chainsaws all queuing up for a pummelling from any of the band members you choose to play as.

"A phone is also introduced which acts as an on-the-fly menu to access various stats such as defense, strength and speed to which you can then upgrade them through skill points. "

Each band member from Charlie Murder has their own unique powers called Anar-chi which builds up over time and released through the right trigger and a face button. Charlie’s power, being the front man and lead vocalist unleashes a vocal scream that tears through any enemy in its path.

The RPG elements come into play through clothing items that can be bought, upgraded with different dyes which imbue them with new powers and stats and then equipped onto the character which then shows off their new duds. You can also purchase tattoos which upgrade the characters magic (Anar-chi) and various items of jewellery.

A phone is also introduced which acts as an on-the-fly menu to access various stats such as defense, strength and speed to which you can then upgrade them through skill points. The story and tutorials are also progressed through text messages displayed on the phone which is a fun and quirky addition. Players gather followers on a blatant Twitter rip off which acts as their XP in game and can also be accessed through the phone as well as a camera which can scan QR codes spotted throughout the levels to grab new items.

"Aesthetically the game looks like those crude drawings the emo kid used to draw in school on the back of their textbooks."

It’s all very tongue-in-cheek and the messages provided a few laughs. The RPG elements add some strategy to what could be a very standard brawler slog but instead means you can apply some thinking to what you’re about to come up against. One of the problems with this is when playing with friends, up to four of them, seeing multiple phone screens popping up all over the screen and flashing individually quickly makes you want to tear out your eyes.

Aesthetically the game looks like those crude drawings the emo kid used to draw in school on the back of their textbooks. It’s gory, dark, crude and ultimately hilarious.

Charlie Murder is extremely well paced and is a blast to play with friends through drop-in and out coop. The one problem that seems to plague most people and which made me want to give up rock music and settle with Miley Cyrus forever was the awful checkpoint system. Having spent a good amount of time slogging through enemies, tackling big bosses and generally feeling awesome after getting some new clothes and a tattoo, I was killed by a skinny woman on a broom. This sent me back to about twenty minutes worth of gameplay and told me to redo it all over again. Needless to say, it wasn’t fun and broke the pacing of the game.

It’s certainly no deal breaker however and Charlie Murder remains a fun game with some unique twists on the side scrolling, brawler genre. Just be prepared to redo certain sections again. And again.

This game was reviewed on the Xbox 360.

This allows the players to specialise in, say, the ‘Enforcer’ branch meaning they gradually become a walking Terminator or follow the path of the ‘Ghost’ and pull off stealthy escapes. They could even spread out across all four skill sets of Enforcer, Ghost, Technician and Mastermind and personalise their own skills to match the requirements of the mission.

Not only does Payday include unlockable skills through points and cash earned in missions but also a plethora of equipment to aid the process of pulling off the greatest of heists. Equipment includes the standard fare of primary and secondary weapons, multiple body armours but also spreads through to weapon attachments and items to help crack safes.

"One minute you’re throwing diamonds into a duffel bag in a jewellery store and bolting to your escape van. The next you’re charging through a club packed with SWAT teams and cracking the high end safe in the manager’s office. "

In order to be able to purchase and equip these tantalising upgrades however the players need to slog through various low end missions requiring less skill to ‘farm’ cash and level up through the in-game system much like you’d do in an RPG.

It’s a rewarding system that allows progression to be made naturally the more you play but also means you need to choose carefully on what to spend your hard earned (stolen) money on. The more you play and the more money you collect, the bigger and more skilled your character becomes allowing you to pull off more dangerous and rewarding heists. Just be prepared to endure in initial grind in order to start upgrading your skills and equipment.

One minute you’re throwing diamonds into a duffel bag in a jewellery store and bolting to your escape van. The next you’re charging through a club packed with SWAT teams and cracking the high end safe in the manager’s office. It’s pretty exciting, especially when the clock is ticking and the health is dwindling.

The police AI are very competent and work in small to large teams to flank the players and often corner them into submission. They often deploy smoke and stun grenades leaving you scrambling for the nearest exit or cover spot whilst they pour in from the corners.

"Playing with friends over coop is far more rewarding than playing with the AI as you’re able to communicate, plan and coordinate your heist including swapping your inventories around to suit the needs of the team."

There were instances when the enemy AI wouldn’t detect being hit or glitch through a certain object however the game is in beta stages and Overkill have plenty of time to fix these bugs before release. Visually the game looks good with great lighting and level design where certain escape routes are often changed to provide extra challenge to players.

The players access the missions through the Crime.net interface where we’re given a bird’s eye view of the city and various locations in which contracts take place. Each contract has a difficult level and a pay off grade relating to that. They also come with some fun live-action briefing style videos to introduce who the contract is for and the players involved in the heist. It’s a neat addition that injects some personality into a game that could easily tip into the ‘generic team shooter’ category.

Playing with friends over coop is far more rewarding than playing with the AI as you’re able to communicate, plan and coordinate your heist including swapping your inventories around to suit the needs of the team. It’s a much more diverse and involving experience playing with other people rather than faceless bots.

Overall, Payday 2 is shaping up to be a fun and in depth multiplayer experience providing the odd hiccup is ironed out for release.

Payday 2 is out for release on Steam on August 16^th followed by the digital and physical copies for Xbox 360 and Playstation 3.

I won’t lie and say I’ve not been a fan back in the day when their first foray into mobile gaming began.. The gameplay was and still is satisfying and addictive with it’s simple “One-more-go” system where the player must break as much of the castle as possible.

The gameplay with the console release of Angry Birds is exactly the same down to the same levels and visuals albeit with a slight lick of HD paint. That’s not to say this is a bad thing as Angry Birds clearly has a successful formula when it comes to gameplay however translating this to a big screen sat in your front room or bedroom loses the core essence of what made Angry Birds successful. We play Angry Birds and most casual mobile games because we’re bored. They’re designed for convenience in mind so that we can play them in quick short bouts during travelling, waiting in a queue, sunbathing on holiday and so on. Sticking Angry Birds on a console defeats this purpose and puts it up against other console titles that are priced around the same with bigger production values and deeper gameplay experiences.

This leads me onto the biggest question I have with Angry Birds Trilogy; why? On the disc we get a collection of the “Classic” Angry Birds, “Rio” and “Seasons”. Each of these games are split into multiple episodes and further levels in those episodes.

The structure of the game remains exactly the same with the aim of racking up the most points possible by causing as much destruction with as few Birds. These points at the end of each level are converted into stars with a three start maximum. The more stars you collect the more levels and episodes you unlock it’s that simple. The controls work just as well as using a touch screen with the left analogue position the bird on the slingshot, the right stick controlling the camera and the triggers controlling the zoom on the level. It’s a simple control scheme that works. There are other little easter eggs thrown in such as hidden objects unlocking new levels and an extras option on the menu revealing more unlockables like concept artwork and “Bird Biographies”. Why you’d want to know what individual personalities and attributes the birds have is beyond me but it’s there if that’s what you’ve been pondering all these years.

The question however remains. Why would anyone pay £30 for a game which bundles together a package of mobile games that we can get for 69p each totting up to a total of £2.07? It doesn’t really make sense to me but undoubtedly some die-hard Angry Birds fans will lap it up.

This game was reviewed on the Xbox 360.

Pretty heavy stuff for a Disney game, right? Kingdom Hearts proved to be a huge success and from then on we’ve journeyed with Sora, Donald, Goofy and a plethora of other characters that seem to be crawling out the woodwork in this delightful franchise, through a numbered sequel and a good amount of spinoffs and prequels on different handheld consoles.

Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance seems to be the last of these spinoffs and is finally setting the stones for the final conflict in Kingdom Hearts III. Newcomers to the franchise have the chance to catch up on the plots of the previous games through several optional flashback sequences that also act as tutorials. While Keyblade veterans will be left feeling a little baffled at the sudden return to Sora and Riku’s adventure as we haven’t seen them properly since all the way back in Kingdom Hearts II. The story this time continues straight after the second instalment where Sora and Riku need to take “The Mark Of Mastery Exam” set by the wise wizard Yen-Sid (Disney know-it-alls will recognise this guy from the animated short “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice”) to finally become Keyblade Masters. So we’re set off on a journey with Riku and Sora through 7 new worlds that are in a state of “deep sleep” and need to be awakened by Sora and Riku’s keyblades.

New Disney worlds are included this time round such as Les Cite Des Cloches featuring the cast of “The Hunchback of Notre Dame” The Grid is also on the destination list where we revisit the world of Tron among with a few others. The worlds are colourful and wonderfully realised with characters that stay true to their film counterparts as well as sound exactly the same with the help of some great voice acting. However the major gripe I have with these environments in Kingdom Hearts 3D and every other KH game in fact is the fact that they feel a little too empty at times and sometimes don’t necessarily give off the feeling that you’re standing say in the middle of Paris in front of the Notre Dame. The environments are a little too blocky, almost feeling like a stage production at times. That being said the cutscenes simply look like they’ve been ripped straight out of the cartoons and converted into 3D. Seeing Sora interact with my old favourite Disney characters has always been a highlight of this franchise and continues to be to this day.

Gameplay wise many of the Kingdom Hearts staples have remained with a good few new concepts thrown in such as raising a friendly Dream Eater which can take several forms such as a cat like creature. These can be interacted with through the stylus and placed in our world through the AR cards included in the box which is a fun touch. Dream Eaters aren’t just there for play though, they are welcome allies when it comes to fighting the nightmarish hordes of “Nightmare” Dream Eaters. Fighting alongside you in a similar fashion as say Donald and Goofy would in previous titles these little guys will provide a good amount of backup. When their Link meter is filled during combat a devastating combo move between themselves and either Sora or Riku can be launched with dazzling effects on the 3D screen.

Kindgom Hearts 3D also brings the addition of Flowmotion combat which can be activated at any point by simply bounding at an enemy, lamppost or wall or any other pieces of the environment for that matter. It allows free movement between the environment in a spectacular fashion by sliding along poles, dashing through the air amidst sparkles and lights and flying around enemies in a constant combo, unleashing special attacks as you go. This new system is easy to get the hang of and feels completely natural. Dashing around the arena, hacking and slicing, jumping and rolling, while crushing the enemies makes any other KH game’s combat look tiresome and sluggish. It’s a much welcome addition really injects some excitement and variety into a stale combat system.

Finally the Drop system which forces the player to switch between playing as Sora and Riku in their own respective storylines is a clever way to ensure not one side is ignored. Our two heroes are in parallel worlds, which basically means they look the same, however they aren’t connected. They both need to use their keyblades to reunite the two sides of the world they are in. This sounds like a lot of backtracking between two stories right? Well Square Enix has done a nice job in making sure playing through the same environment with either Sora or Riku is never the same. Bosses are switched up and the stories vary drastically.

When the Drop system kicks in the player is left with a short amount of time to finish up their affairs with whatever character they’re playing as before they’re essentially dropped into the other’s story. When you return to that character you’ll be back exactly where you left off. The first time I was “Dropped” I was in the midst of a tense battle with a giant “Nightmare” Dream Eater. Seeing the timer tick down during this battle only served to make it even tenser. The ability to drop before this timer hits is also there should you feel that you’d rather explore Riku’s story at the time being than Sora’s for example. It’s a nice touch that means there’s hardly a dull moment between the two parallel stories.

The 3D is greatly utilised here and simply looks amazing with all the firework-esque effects popping out of the screen. The intro video to the “Dearly Beloved” track in true Kingdom Hearts tradition was visually impressive while the soundtrack still to this day has the same tear-jerking effect as it did 10 years ago.

This game was reviewed on the 3DS.