1Emulation.Com - Reviews and Rants Get the latest reviews and rants from the 1Emulation message board! http://www.1emulation.com/forums/index.php Fri, 20 Nov 2009 16:22:05 -0600 5 <![CDATA[[11/10/2009] Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2]]> http://www.1emulation.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=31371

Publisher: Tecmo
Developer: Team Ninja
Rating: M
System: Sony PlayStation 3
Players: 1-2 (Online)
Release Date: September 29, 2009

After the release of Ninja Gaiden Black, and Ninja Gaiden Sigma, Team Ninja once again decides to create yet another expansion pack of a game, Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2. It's been released exclusively for the PS3, just like Ninja Gaiden Sigma was, for whatever reason. The same story applies here, about how the Archfiends were sealed away by the Dragons, and now that the Archfiends are after an ancient statue, the Dragon Ninja returns to bestow violence amongst them, nothing too complex. It's a seemingly refined iteration of the original. With the absence of Tomonobu Itagaki, Yosuke Hayashi produced and changed small things in the original as a sign of betrayal. The use of the SIXAXIS controller, is to wiggle the women's over sized breasts from side to side, or any which way.



The story has changed slightly, and three new characters have been included in the story mode, each with a sparse one time mission that only lasts for under 20 minutes. Ayane, is a character taken from the Dead or Alive, and is a Kunoichi, an affiliate of Ryu Hyabusa. Momiji is a female Hayabusa clan member taken from Ninja Gaiden Dragon Sword, originally on the Nintendo DS. Lastly, Rachel, a returning character from the previous installment, a Demon Hunter who is also affiliated with Ryu Hayabusa. The players can be fought with, but their role in the story remains a mystery, even after reading the instruction booklet, or watching the cutscenes, no clear explanation warrants the meaning of the three character's presence, but they do change the pace of the game. Each character has their ups and downs ultimately, for example, one having a heavy weapon but being too slow, or one being very fast but weak, Ryu seems to balance out the two, but experiencing other fighting styles within the Ninja Gaiden universe can be interesting at first participation.



Many things in Ninja Gaiden 2 have been altered for better or for worse. New bosses have been added the majority of them provide hardly any distinction, and do not hold up the usual ferocity of the original bosses. Bosses have been replaced with easy ones, vice versa. For a person who's already completed Ninja Gaiden 2, the new bosses and enemies, should be discovered for nostalgic purposes or for a hunger for something different. A few areas are also skipped, etcetera, no major changes in this case, the alterations will only seem major to a person who's beaten Ninja Gaiden 2 more than once. This game in particular adds two new modes, Chapter Challenge, and Team Mission Mode. Chapter Challenge allows a player to replay an individual chapter, on any difficulty they choose, to set record, and Team Mission Mode provides a new Co-op capability that allows two players online to play along side each other within a plethora of different objectives.



There are so many different missions under one difficulty setting, all four characters can be chosen from, as well as the weapon desired, Ninpo desired, and costume desired. In the mode itself, if one player dies, the other player can revive the knockouted player infinite amount of times until their health gives in. If a player is unconscious for too long, or is hit while on the ground, he or she will die permanently and the mission will be failed. Local two player being exempt from the game is a disappointment. Other than the two modes mentioned there isn't much to do, unless the new difficultly settings provide further amusement. The game's overall difficultly has been toned down by around 20%, meaning that the game is on a lower level of arduousness, or "Master Ninja". For any person who's aware, Ninja Gaiden's difficulty has never been a push over, and in this game not much has changed. Any difficultly level over Warrior, can easily frustrate a player, or any mission beyond the difficultly of Warrior can do the same. The level of gore has been toned down slightly, which seems pointless because the rating is still mature.



No longer will limbs been seen scattered across the ground, the enemy's limbs shatter into purple soul mist, and evaporates. The question is why the game couldn't have just been a patch or DLC, or if it was just an attempt to get Ninja Gaiden on the PS3 once again. The combat requires precision and patience. You no longer are required to pay to upgrade weapons, it's free, but one weapon can be upgraded one shop at a time to provide balance, and certain weapons can't be leveled past a certain level until you accel further throughout the game. The combat in Ninja Gaiden still hasn't gotten old, but what has gotten old are the remakes of the games, I would go in depth about the combat itself but there's not much to say since it's exactly the same, matching Ninja Gaiden 2 in every way. The graphics look no better, or worse, no matter what major gaming site says, there's hardly any difference, not that it even mattered from the start. There has been little nick knacks tacked on to Ninja Gaiden 2 to make Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2.

It's the equivalent to giving a beautiful women makeup that wouldn't either hurt or enhance her appearance or make her look better. Unless a Ninja Gaiden 3 is released soon, there's no real reason to purchase such a game, you'll be better off renting. Not much replayability is present, once all of the missions are completed, then what, the same applies to the main storyline, once all of the difficulty settings have been proceeded, nothing lies except the pressing of the power button on the PlayStation 3 game system. Ninja Gaiden 2 itself is a good game, but the Sigma version, with a price tag of a full game while only adding in a morsel of difference is a bit absurd. Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2 itself isn't horrendous, but it's only asinine that more wasn't added if the game was being sold at full price.

Verdict: 7.5]]> Wed, 11 Nov 2009 00:09:21 -0600 http://www.1emulation.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=31371 <![CDATA[[09/11/09] Borderlands - PC -]]> http://www.1emulation.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=31365


Let’s get the basic crap out of the way first – It’s a first person shooter but I don’t think I need to tell you that considering we are a gaming forum, the game starts up quite impressively even though the splash screens for the PC are quite long paced – we have a great introduction and it sets the tone for the game from then on in – you get to choose between 4 characters and because this is my review I will name them thusly: A ninja – A woman – A medium sized looking guy – and a brick. All with individual skills – I picked the big guy known as brick and his special skill is smashing stuff up with his fists. I’ve not played around with any of the other characters yet.



Once you have done that your greeted by a claptrap a tiny robot that scoots around on one wheel and has (at first) quite a lot of charm – this little douche bag introduces you to the game world and the basics of controls so for a FPS that will involve crouching, shooting, and jumping over a log and running. I’m always happy to get an immediate refresher on the basics of an FPS just in case I forget or panic when I’m greeted by an area where I have to jump to get to the next bit.
The added element to this FPS is that it is a slight RPG hybrid with a good amount of stats on the weapons. If you love numbers and adding up all the pros and cons of a weapon then this should slap your ass and tickle your tits in that department. There are a few weapon classes (and hundreds of guns) such as sniper, smg, shotgun, rifle, and handgun. No surprises there then.

The guns come thick and fast – you will be constantly weighing up your options with the weapons you find, does it do more damage? Is the rate of fire to slow? But this shotgun holds 12 rounds and that one only hols 6 but is three points power fuller? Is this scoped or not? Its good fun and I can tell now if I should pick up a gun or leave it on the floor for the skags to chew on. I rarely pick something up keeping it in mind to sell as the shops don’t really sell anything that out performs what you find in the general game world, the shops don’t really do much for you other than to get a few upgrades early on and health packs which are never quite enough to full up your characters health, you have to fiddle around with health one set does it quick the other does it slow. And you do have a limited amount of slots for equipment and your backpack but eventually you do get upgrades to help you out in this department.



The action has a great a pace and balance to it, You will love getting into fights with the various enemies in the game and they do sometimes die in funny ways – I shot a midget with an smg the midget burned and caught on fire leaving some of his head and POP off it went – oh I’m setting him on fire with an element weapon some guns have electric/fire/acid add on but no big deal, but worth mentioning.

Combat is fun – and it’s what gives the game its presence especially as the levels go up, you get to level out your character as you go adding new skills or faster reload damages or crazy shit like “When you kill an enemy you will have 10% damage increase for ten seconds” I normally find myself rattling enemies of with a shotgun to the face – it seems to down them the best.

There is a good variation of enemies human and bugs alike. Some are just tougher variations such as – Bandit – will become Badass bandit! – Same with the bugs and the skags, the skags of which you will fight a lot of early on.
And I have to say that you will fight bosses in this game which makes for a refreshing change as most FPS shooters can’t pull this off they are varied and can be tough to kill – and every time you fight a boss you get a lovely splash screen of the guy in mention its little touches like that that can make a big difference to a game.
Overall combat is solid but occasionally (And only mildly) irritating as you yell “WTF HOW DID I DIE? I HAD FULL SHIELD BITCH!” (Oh yeah better mention you buy and upgrade your shields as you go) mostly you will enjoy getting into fights or dealing with pesky bird things that try and swoop on your face out of no place. Fighting the bugs makes for linier gaming but fighting the bandits more than makes up for it.



There are plenty of missions and graphical difference as you go – I love how the game is cell shaded and it gives it that look – everything is solid in the graphic department (although I did experience tearing and strange twitching of my screen position) it’s a sandy affair with chunks of colour thrown in and certain points. I like the graphical style. It pleases me like a professional blowjob.

Around the game world you will loot boxes, toilets, washing machines, mailboxes and a whole host of other shit I cant be bothered to write about here – in them you will find Money, ammo, weapons and nades. Looting is part of the fun but when you see another bunch of lockers lined up for you kind of start to go “Hmmm poopy!”
Overall this game is a HIGH quality title I only wish there were more cut scenes like the brilliant start up intro to help immerse me even more, the only downsides really are the lack of character interaction, occasional irritating fights with bugs (there shit they just flop at you there could be 30 at a time and they would still not chin you) and an odd feeling of staleness in the game.

Any true core gamer will have this sucker on his or her shelf.
This game gets a big thumbs up from me.

Oh and you can drive cars that fire rockets and they also do turbo.

Emsley.]]> Mon, 09 Nov 2009 11:25:52 -0600 http://www.1emulation.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=31365 Understand http://www.1emulation.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=31216 Sun, 04 Oct 2009 18:26:00 -0500 http://www.1emulation.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=31216 <![CDATA[[10/2/2009] Batman Arkham Asylum – PC –]]> http://www.1emulation.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=31203
The first time this game caught my eye was some place on gamespot looking back I did not even click it up or give it much thought to be honest it probably went down in my brain as “lol a batman game, gay!” I don’t think there has every really been what you would call a killer super hero game in all the time I have been into video games – Until now.

Game premise: You’re Batdude – that’s right you have the belt, the batarangs, the cape, and the kick ass moves, but I could not find the “shark repellent” any place I looked.

By now I’m pretty sure you know the storey to the game – Bats captures joker – Bats takes Joker to the Arkham Asylum in other words Gotham city’s Looney bin for the criminally insane, which just happens to house nearly all the douche bags batman has beat up over the years – cue the jokers surprise, he brakes free and locks down the asylum and you are the guest of honour! Put on your cape – dim the lights – and get ready for an immersive gaming experience – right from the word go you know this is going to be something different.
I love creative games – and this sucker is packed to the rafters with the stuff! It integrates a LOT of characters into teh game seamlessly , namely from the DC-batman comic universe How naive did I feel to know that I have missed out on such a lush fully created world? Well not anymore! You may remember in one of the major films roles a character called the riddler played by Jim carrey? No well fuck you. Anyway the riddler has been up to his old tricks again and scattered around the Arkhum asylum are riddles these can be broken down thusly:
Basic riddler trophies: These are scattered throughout the environment in air vents – hidden behind destructive walls,( You use detective mode I’ll get on to this a bit later) and say maybe like Metroid you need some equipment to reach one of the trophies – but you will have to wait until you get the gear to be able to reach it.

Riddles: You walk in a room and a riddle will spring up at the top of the screen such as “Sometimes I go poopy! What am I?” This will require you to find a unique item in this made up instance I will use detective mode to scan a toilet and the riddle in that room will be solved. This is a lot of fun – the objects are always a nice little Easter eggs that can be found with enough will power - all in all this adds to the games charm and it’s a lot of fun finding them – its nice to see such effort put into a game.

Aligning a question mark: While in detective mode you will sometimes see the curly bit of a question mark without the dot underneath it, it is then up to you to get a better vantage point then align the curl and the dot up so you can scan it and complete the riddle.

Shitty Arkham asylum history slabs: It’s a spider on a bit of concrete, after scanning a voice (which always starts of like he’s got chronic asthma or something) tells you the history of the Asylum and why it was built. This is good stuff if you’re really into the batman universe.
Other: You find patient interview tapes scattered around – they are interesting to listen to - and give you a deeper insight to the characters and to why they are like they are. Great stuff.

The riddlers stuff basically boils down to a lot of fun, making the game environment completely immersive, if you knew nothing about batman and its world after playing this game you will, the riddler taunts you for solving “easy” riddles and when you complete a tough one he gets pissed off, a nice little touch to really get you “solving.”

Combat: This is really done well you really feel like one mean bastard when fighting enemies in the game – you can have anything between one to 15 guys trying to kick the crap out of you in one room, no problem for the batman – before the enemies is about to crack you with a pipe he just ripped off the wall (they pick shit up and rag stuff of walls to smack you up side of the head) you get a blue light above the guys head – this is your cue the press right click and “counter” the attack – ninja batman blocks – rips the pipe from his hand and slams him in to the ground – then he just switches to another enemie and kicks the shit out of him too. This is all done with a few mouse clicks – sure there are other moves like take downs ( they end up on the floor and you smash their skull into the floor or just ground and pound them) it’s very satisfying to fight a room full of assholes and totally pawn them up. It’s cinematic and fun, I’m halfway through the game but still catch myself shouting “BOOM MOTHERFUCKER!” On a finishing move.

Stealth: Why run in fists flying a batarangs swooping guys in the nuts? In some cases the bad dudes have machine guns, rifles, sniper rifles etc – and batman does not like bullets – he is kinda bullet proof but like me and you getting pummelled with a full clip from an AK47 can really put a crimp on your day – so this is where you become ninja batman. In detective mode you can see enemies through walls – which ones have guns and which ones don’t – You can swoop out of a dark corner of a room and ram your boot in to their head – you can hang from gargoyles and swoop down and tie an enemy up and hang him buy his feet (this will get all the other guys attention so be sure to swoop off to another spot) wherever your stealthing , or just brawling – combat is brilliantly done, it’s a lot of fun, and you do feel good when you clear a room full of guys with machine guns and not get spotted once. As the game progresses it naturally becomes more difficult – rooms become tighter – and brawling becomes more intense with guys upgrading with knifes and stun rods... It has an excellent learning curve.

Boss fights: I won’t give anything away – but will say it feels old school when you do fight a boss. I’m only 60% complete and can only remember a handful of fights with boss characters. I have read that you can miss fights with bosses and they can feel like missed opportunities – not too sure haven’t really had many “big” fights yet. Although the ones I have been involved in do appear inventive and would expect the same from later bosses.
Getting around the game world: As easy as cherry pie – grapple hooks – ripping of ventilation covers, navigating a tricky section – just good all round solid stuff.

Ok I’m going to rap this up now, Batman Arkham asylum is a fantastic game – it keeps surprising you every step of the way – all I have wrote above is just scratching the surface of the game – there is enough here for the hardcore and new comer a like – buy and play this game like your life depends on it – its lovingly crafted and JAM packed with ideas – I could describe how great this game is for at least another hour but won’t. If you don’t get this game I think you are gay.

Emsley.]]> Fri, 02 Oct 2009 03:24:57 -0500 http://www.1emulation.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=31203 <![CDATA[[09/22/2009] Forbidden Siren 2]]> http://www.1emulation.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=31136 Platform: PlayStation 2 (PAL)
Developer: Sony computer Entertainment
Publisher Sony Computer Entertainment
60Hz Option: No
Release Date: August 4, 2006



Forbidden Siren (simply Siren in Japan) is a surprisingly little-known survival horror series that was released for the PS2 around 2003. The first game's story is told though number of playable characters, and at the center of it all is a rural town of Hanuda. hanuda has a darker side, which basically amount to carrying out some ancient ceremony. The ceremony turned the rivers blood-red and many villagers undead, called Shibito. The Shibito aren't your garden variety zombies either; they can be quite cunning and intelligent, relentless, and above all else, they can't be killed; they go down - and re-animate sometime later.

What made Siren stand out from the rest of the survival horror genre was any given player character's ability to "Sightjack" other people, including the malevolent Shibito. This gave the game its strategic aspect as you needed to rely on the Sightjacking ability to know where each Shibito would patrol and make your way through whatever mission was at hand.

The Sightjacking ability made Forbidden Siren akin to Metal Gear Solid; the game promoted avoiding confrontation instad of fighting the enemies head on. The people in the Siren world are regular people with limited offensive options. This constant relying on stealth also made the game very difficult. It didn't take too long for the game to throw you a mission where you needed to make it to the other side of town, while several Shibitos patrol the streets as well as on rooftops armed with hunting rifles. To add insult to injury, the player would often be accompanied by someone else - getting that someone killed meant a Game Over. Clearing levels was often a trial and erro deal, and the game made sure clearing a mission felt like winning the lottery. This difficulty curve was noted by most reviewers at the time, and many gamers (myself included) found the game to be frustratingly difficult.

In the year 2006 Sony released a proper sequel, Forbidden Siren 2. Perhaps partly because of the backlash that the first game received, the sequel never saw a US release, just native Japanese and PAL one. It kind sucks for Americans becsause Forbidden Siren 2 addresses a number issues that plagued the first game, and while the gameplay hasn't changed much, there are still a lot of tweaks and improvements.

Story
Forbidden Siren 2 takes a similar approach to its predecessor and pits a group of survivors on Yajima Island during a blood-red tsunami and a similarly crimson tidal wave that sweeps over the island shortly after. As you might expect from the small summary from the first game, this even once again turn the islanders into the Shibito, with the signature bleeding from they eyes, ears and mouth. Likewise, in true japanese horror tale fashion, ancient rituals, deities and some concept of Hell play a key role in the storyline.



Graphics
Forbidden Siren 2 uses a rather novel concept of creating player model textures from photographs that have been taken from 8 different angles. This creates very life-life characters. The overall presentation has also been kicked up a notch with cleaner and more detailed textures and animation. Forbidden Siren certainly isn't an ugly duckling by any means. The lonely flashlight pierces darkness and fog quite nicely, although you won't see many dynamic shadows ala Silent Hill or Fatal Frame.

Gameplay
Like in the previous game, the basic gist of things is the ability to Sightjack the enemy. The vision has to be tuned similar to an analog TV and then you can bind that view to one of the face buttons. Sightjacking is used to see through the eyes of Shibito in the area, whether that be for just studying its patrol route, see the weapon it carries or find out some code or clue based on what the Shibito is currently looking at. While sightjacking, you can also hear the Shibito muttering to themselves, which is eerie as hell, and you can also hear their thoughts, or critical clues (rather disjointed and creepy as they are).

The Sightjacking has also been beefed up a little by introducing spexcial abilities for certain player characters. A woman named Ikuko can control the Shibito she sightjacks, and Akiko can reveal psychic impressions in certain areas, just to name a few. Combat was also made a little less cumbersome with you getting to choose whether you want to stay hidden or get up close and personal. There are also more weapons to choose from and melee attack options have been expanded somewhat. There are still time when you have to excort someone, but in Siren 2, the commands you can issue to the other person have been streamlined a bit, and work better (be it for better AI or something else, I'm not sure). The Shibito have been diversified to serve the story better and now there are the Yamibito and the Yamirei, new enemies that make the Shibito pale in coparison. The Yamirei especially, are more or less like sentient darkness, that disperses and stops attacking when light hits them.



The game still revolves around missions and a timetable of sorts that spans across a few days. After clearing a mission with one characer the next mission will very likely be in a completely different timeslot with a completely different character. After a while, you might stumble on a mission that takes place immediately after some other mission you completed a while a go. Many missions are very straightforward (Reach a certain spot) while giving you an option to sidetrack a bit looking for certain items that both unravel the story in their own way and maybe open an alternate path with a different objective in that mission. The characters you have to use during the missions is also something to look out for, since their abilities differ quite a bit from each other, i.e soldiers can easily gun down a mob of Shibitos while a small child have very little choice but to run and hide. In a one particularly atmospheric mission early in the game, you control a young man that is almost completely blind, and having to rely on Sightjacking his own dog. Now, sightjacking an animal introduces new hurdles since you are still controlling a blind person, yet you see through the eyes of his dog - effectively screwing up your sense of direction.

Sure, Shibitos are patrolling the streets, but a blind man and his dog must make it out of the house they're in to an exit leding away from the town.

Controls, AI, and Difficulty
The controls have been improved a lot since the first game. You can finally run while crouching and you do longer need to bring up the action menu to do the most basic actions, like opening a door. The action menu is still used to instruct any other people you might have with you during the mission. The AI is also improved, with the Shibito being faster and more aggressive.Then the difficulty... I've read that some people urge one to forget that the first game ever existed and enjoy the second one. I can understand where they are coming from, since the difficulty curve has been dropped considerably in Forbidden Siren 2. It's not that Siren 2 would be a walk in the park, no, but the difficulty eases itself int to the game in a much more tolerable manner.

Sound, music and voice acting
Forbidden Siren 2 wouldn't be nearly as good of a survival horror game if it weren't for its soundtrack to create the mood. The music in the game is extremely effective and creepy, like it should be. The titular Siren plays a role in the game by alerting the player to a Shibito that is already too close for comfort, although being a Shibito that has yet to locate the player.I can't say the same about the voice acting, which is yet again (same thing happened with the original game), the worst aspect of the entire game. Let me rephrase that: the The English voice acting is the worst aspect of Forbidden Siren 2. The voices seem unnatural coming from the mouths of clearly japanese people. To add insult to injury, most of the English voice actors are strikingly British. Strike three: It's just plain horrible.

Cringeworthy. Bleeding-from-the-ears cringeworthy.

Someone over at Sony's European publishing arm seems to have had a half a brain and listened to the complaints generated by the first game, so Sony opted to give us a choice between the original Japanese and Bleeding-From-the-Ears Cringeworthy British™. Let's just say that the difference is like night and day.



Summary
Forbidden Siren 2 is an excellent sequel to a game that was marred by plodding pacing thanks to almost complete reliance on stealth and grueling difficulty. Forbidden Siren 2 fixes a lot of things and and above all, is more easily approachable and playable. The atmosphere works very well, and Sightjacking that was an innovative concept in the first game has been improved and expanded in this sequel. The game's definitely for people who like to experiece surivival horror from a new angle and have don't hate spending some time in levels just to plot their next move. I would recommend this game to those who hated the first with a passion, though it's worth noting that this type of gameplay doesn't suit everyone - especially those who can't stand stealth and/or seemingly unsurmountable odds stacked against them.

Note to self: Erase all memories of the English voice acting.

A retelling of the first game, SIREN: Blood Curse is also available as a PlayStation 3 exclusive. Hardcore Gaming 101 also has a comprehensive review of the series, though a warning is in order: The articles over at HCG101 contain some pretty heavy spoilers.

Pros:

+Sightjacking
+The graphics are really something to see
+Scary and unsettling, not to mention gory
+The timetable is rather unique way drive the game forward
+Many playable characters that truly different from one another
+Convincing atmosphere
+An option to switch to a japanese voice track
+A cast made of seemingly ordinary and dull japanese people. Surprisingly fresh.

Cons:

-It might take a good deal of time just to clear a "simple" mission
-The infamous difficulty raises its ugly head sometimes, so trial and error gameplay is still an issue somewhat
-Escort missions, although this can be a double-edged sword, so to speak
-Bleeding-From-the-Ears Cringeworthy British™ dubbing.
-Will not ease the hate generated by the first game for some people.


Story: 9
Graphics: 9
Gameplay: 8
Sound/Music: 10
Controls: 9
Difficulty: 7 (this number represents how tolerable the difficulty of the game is, regardless of how easy or hard the game is)
Feel: 10

Total: 8.8]]> Tue, 22 Sep 2009 15:10:51 -0500 http://www.1emulation.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=31136 <![CDATA[[8/26/2009] JOYTRON XConverter360 (PS2->XBOX 360 Controller Converter) Review]]> http://www.1emulation.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=30983

Product: JOYTRON XConverter 360 (PS2->XB360 Controller Converter)
Review Author: GameCop
Product Website: http://www.joytron.co.kr/goods/view.asp?g_code=CD007-00377
Price: $23 USD

[ To purchase the XConverter360, private message "laugh" at Shoryuken.com Forums ]

Product Supplier: Laugh
--> View other products he sells!

- Introduction -

The XConverter360 is an innovative and new converter sold in Korea for fans of Playstation 2 controllers and arcade sticks that would like to see them playable on the XBOX 360. Made possible by the user "laugh" at the popular fighting game fan website, Shoryuken, he sells them each for $23 USD. When I saw his original post in their popular Converter Compatibility Thread, I immediately contacted him to be one of the first to review the converter.

First off, many fighting game fans like myself have been looking for a way to use our dusty PS2 (Hori anyone?) arcade sticks on the 360. The XConverter360 also allows you to hook up your PS2 controllers to the PC, while being recognized as a wired XBOX 360 Gamepad, which is great for emulators and whatnot. Now, with the release of Marvel Vs. Capcom 2 and King of Fighters XII this summer, the XBOX 360 gamepad will no longer suffice for professional gamers. The popular Mad Catz Street Fighter IV Tournament Edition arcade stick may be a great solution, but is very expensive for gamers who have already paid over a $100 for an arcade stick made for another gaming console. This is when the JOYTRON XConverter360 for $23 USD becomes an affordable and cheap solution if you previously purchased a Playstation 2 arcade stick.

- Opening the Box -


"Laugh" sent me the converter via EMS shipping, which, surprisingly, I recieved in only 3 days. He offers both EMS and Air Mail shipping, depending on your preference. The converter was packaged very securely with plenty of plastic bubble wrap encapsulating the converter box. The retail box itself has the hole puncture at the top to be hanged at Korean gaming shops for purchase. "Laugh" is one of the first to market the popular PS2->PS3 inPin converter internationally. The PS2->PS3 inPin has been a godsend for fighting game fans, as it has no input lag. You can purchase the inPin converter from him as well by the aforementioned method. I would also like to bring to attention that there may be other PS2->XBOX 360 controller converters on the market, but they may have input lag. Therefore, I also will be focusing on lag testing the XConverter360 in this review.



I found the box of the converter itself quite interesting as it has a picture of an arcade stick on the side, which tells the buyer that it was advertised to work with arcade sticks as well. I found that as something crucial to notice (also found in the instruction manual), as no one goes to a Burrito Restaurant for hamburgers. You go there for the Burritos because that's what they advertise and you know that is what they're good at making. Maybe it's a lame analogy, but the point is that it definitely gave me strong expectations that it would work well with my PS2 arcade stick. In the instruction manual, it also shows pictures of it working with the PS2 gamepad (of course) as well as the PS2 racing wheel. The PS2 racing wheel was a surprise, since you can probably find them on sale for a much cheaper price than an XBOX 360 racing wheel. Unfortunately, this review does not cover testing for the PS2 racing wheel, as I simply do not own one, and that most buyers are purchasing this product for fighting games. Overall, if the XConverter 360 meets our expectations in this review, then it could certainly save us a lot of money.

In the retail box, you will find the converter wrapped in plastic bubble wrap with a handy instruction manual. The instruction manual is truly unreadable if you can't read Korean, but it is good for seeing the button mapping tables to discover what buttons on the PS2 controller will act as on a XBOX 360 controller. You can find the tables on the back of the retail box as well.

- Product Specifications -


QUOTE (JOYTRON)
[ Features ]
- Compatible with PS2 joypad and joystick (switch 1)
- Compatible with PS2 racing wheel (switch 2)
- Switch to use joypad or racing wheel
- Perfect button layout for stick and wheel
- Vibration support
- Channel Display 4 LED
- Equipped with Guide button
- Compatible with PC (needed MS PC driver), vibration support


[ Notice ]
- For use this product at Xbox360 console, you need original Xbox360 usb wired pad
- You can download MS PC driver at MS homepage


- Product Build -

I was quite satisfied with the product build of the XConverter 360. It feels very high quality and almost as if it was made by Microsoft. JOYTRON did a great job in designing the product so it would blend well with the motif of the XBOX 360 (white). My only complaint has been the short USB cable on the XConverter360, which made it difficult for me to hook it up to my XBOX 360 in my elevated entertainment stand.

You can't really set the converter on top of the 360 since the converter is very light weight. The only good place is on the floor, which may be difficult depending on your home set up. Perhaps a good solution would be to use sticky velcro to keep it stuck on top of the 360. In the picture above, I sat the converter and Madcatz XBOX 360 Wired Gamepad on a chair, so I could hook it up.

One thing I haven't mentioned is that the XConverter360 needs a wired XBOX 360 gamepad in order to work. For our tests, we purchased a cheap Madcatz XBOX 360 Wired Controller to successfully do the job. I've heard you can also use a Guitar Hero XBOX 360 Wired Guitar as well. You can also find the official XBOX 360 wired controllers sold for cheap on eBay. The XConverter360 has 4 red LED's to indicate which player it is set to (player 1, 2, 3, 4). It's more of an aesthetic feature, as the connected XBOX 360 Wired Controller indicates also what player it is set to when hooked up to the XConverter360.

Disappointingly, we noticed that the XConverter360 has no slot for an XBOX 360 headset. We tried hooking up the headset to the connected Wired XBOX 360 headset, but as expected, it did not work, and the XBOX 360 acted as if no headset was plugged in. The reason why we expected it is that the connected wired XBOX 360 controller (used as a bypass for the PS2 controller to work) is not functional when hooked up to the XConverter360. Only the connected PS2 controller is!

- GamePlay -
A little simple math equation ...
( OR )
+ =
So finally, we are at the gameplay section of this review. I'm guessing the people at Shoryuken forums reading this review immediately scrolled down to this section because this is what matters the most, right?

The way it works is you plug in your PS2 gamepad, arcade stick, or racing wheel and also an XBOX 360 Wired Gamepad (official or unofficial) into the XConverter 360. You then plug in the USB cable connected to the XConverter360 into one of the USB slots on your XBOX 360. Unfortunately, you can't use an XBOX 360 Play & Charge Kit to plug in your wireless controller into the converter, as it will not work. Again, the XBOX 360 Wired Gamepad is no longer functional once plugged into the XConverter360. The only sign that the controller is connected are the lit up green indicator lights around the XBOX 360 logo button.

The XConverter360 has a guide button and a 1-2 switch on the unit itself. The guide button functions as the XBOX 360 logo button on your XBOX 360 gamepad. The 1-2 switch is to set the converter to work on either the PS2 gamepad or arcade stick (switch 1) or the PS2 racing wheel (switch 2).

When we first hooked up our official PS2 gamepad, we were pleased to find that the analog button acts as the guide button after you press it once. We tested the PS2 gamepad with Marvel Vs. Capcom 2, Street Fighter 4, and the Batman Arkham Asylum Demo. We experienced absolutely no lag, much to our delight, and both the left and right analog sticks worked perfectly.



When setting the controls for the game you want to play, it's imperative you look at the button mapping table on either the retail box or in the instruction manual. This tells you what XBOX 360 buttons the PS2 buttons are assigned to. The top table show on the box and instruction manual is for switch 1 (PS2 gamepad or arcade stick) and the bottom table is for switch 2 (PS2 racing wheel). We have a picture of the table shown above in case you threw away both.



Now, for the moment you've all been waiting for... testing the XConverter360 with a PS2 arcade stick! In our tests, we used the Hori Real Arcade Pro 2: SA, which we fully reviewed last year. The PS2 arcade stick worked perfectly without lag while playing and executing various combo's and maneuvers in Street Fighter 4, Marvel vs. Capcom 2, and Super Street Fighter II: HD Remix. The turbo switches on our arcade stick functioned well enough. We were asked during the review process if pressing Start+Select at the same time acts as the guide button. Unfortunately, there are no button presses you can use on the arcade stick so it acts as the guide button. The only way is to simply press the guide button on the converter.



The XConverter360 also works on the PC if you want to use it on emulated fighting games, Street Fighter 4, etc. If you use Windows XP SP2 or greater, the drivers should automatically recognize as a wired XBOX 360 gamepad when you plug in the XConverter360. Just make sure you don't plug the Wired XBOX 360 controller into the XConverter360 as well. Otherwise the XConverter360 won't work when hooked up to the PC. So it's PS2 Controller -> XConverter360 -> PC. That's it! You can find the Windows XP 32bit driver here.



I tried a few games, such as Street Fighter Alpha 2 (pictured above), and again, it worked perfectly without any lag. It's amazing how well the XConverter360 works and it's a pleasure to know you're getting a product with such great compatibility. You can see how the buttons were recognized on "Map Game Inputs" box in the Final Burn Alpha emulator. There are so many converters out on the market that can only get half the job done or have a lot of compatibility, but a ton of lag. It's very apparent that JOYTRON tested their product extensively. Now you can use your PS2 arcade stick with apps such as GGPO, which allow you to play emulated games online with people around the world via the PC. The possibilities are endless.

- Notes / Suggestions -
The are only two issues we have had with the XConverter360. First is that sometimes it doesn't boot properly when you turn on the XBOX 360. Occasionaly when we turned on the XBOX 360, the XConverter360 would not turn at all (red LED lights off), or it would turn on with the glowing lights, but neither the connected PS2 or wired XBOX 360 controller would function. The only solution we found for the problem is to turn off the XBOX 360 and pull out USB cable for the XConverter360 from the 360 and then put it back in.

The second is that we were unable to get vibration feedback working on the PS2 gamepad when hooked up to the XBOX 360 with the XConverter360. We are currently in contact with "laugh" to figure out the reason. Once we do, we will immediately update the review. For most though, this is not a real issue, as most people are purchasing the XConverter360 to use arcade sticks, for which vibration feedback is not applicable.
UPDATE: I spoke to "laugh" and this seems to be an isolated issue with my converter. The vibration feedback appears to work for everyone else. I'm going to try testing it again with an official XBOX 360 wired controller, instead of the Madcatz controller, and see if it fixes the issue.

NOTE: We did have the instruction manual partially translated and that you should always first plug in the XBOX 360 wired gamepad and PS2 controller, then connect the converter to the console, and lastly turn on the console. The last part is something most controller converter manufacturers frequently warn about!

Finally, we wish the product had XBOX 360 headset support. Perhaps in the future?

- Conclusion -

Price: 10.0
The price of this product is phenomenally inexpensive. It will save you time and money than buying a full fledged wireless XBOX 360 Arcade Stick when you already have one for the PS2.

Quality: 8.5
The product feels of utmost high quality. It feels sturdy and certainly doesn't feel cheap for the price. It's a little bothersome why it sometimes doesn't boot properly when connected to the XBOX 360. We didn't experience the issue when the XConverter360 was hooked up to the PC. It really is just random. Sometimes it'll work 10 times in a row and then fickle during boot the 11th time. But hey, when it works, it works excellently! You can't find anything better on the market today.

Compatibility: 10
It's compatible with the XBOX 360 and PC. You can also hook up the converter with a PS2 gamepad, arcade stick, and racing wheel. This is exceptional! Not to mention, we were unable to detect any input lag.

Design: 9.0
The design is great as it blends perfectly with the original XBOX 360 design, but probably not with the XBOX 360 elite.

Features: 8.0
Besides being just a controller converter, we hoped it had XBOX 360 headset support. A lot of games like Street Fighter 4, MvC2, which are booming with foul mouth talkers who can't back it up with a good match need a good vocal retort. Also, we're a little worried as to why we couldn't get vibration feedback working. We may increase this score once we find out how to get it properly responding on our PS2 gamepad. UPDATE (again): It appears that this is an isolated issue for us only and vibration feedback works for everyone else. We're still testing our Xconverter360 to figure out why it doesn't work for us. We shall update this review again when we have an answer!

# Final Rating (rounded) #



Thanks to megaman_zer0, iq_132, and Lord_Snow for proofreading the review!]]> Wed, 26 Aug 2009 05:28:12 -0500 http://www.1emulation.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=30983 <![CDATA[[07/29/09] Kings Of Fighters XII]]> http://www.1emulation.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=30843 SNK(Playmore)
Xbox360, PS3, Arcade


So the new Kof is out and I actually got it right when it arrived at stores. So we start out with the basics, the title is on its 12th installment (by number at least) and it may as well have started back to one because it's nearly a completely new game. However one would argue after doing a game so many times one must change some things and I agree but well... lets just say most of their experiments didn't turn out so well, but somehow it doesn't take away from it being fun, or maybe i'm just too dedicated to kof. A LOT has changed since the last 2d kof game. Its basically a completely NEW system (not addons to the old system).


So let's start off with da baddie/goodie list...
Cons:
-No Storyline
Simple Arcade, Trial, VS and online which seems to be the main focus when the playmore team were making it.

-No preset teams
Some teams are missing their third player so no teams are setup, which means you're kinda missing that bundle pack that you always get in the other games but then again, when playing others they rarely pick all three people on da same team.

-Nearly every character aside from the "main" ones have 4 or 5 moves taken away. ex:Clark on has ONE grab! WTF!

-About 95% of the roster have only one DM, and the same DM but a more damaging one that looks exactly the same.

-Most of your fav chars look like they went through steroids or decided to starve themselves.

-Roster is a sausage fest, only 3 girls (no mai).

-Grabs have near no proximity, so your slow huggers are harder to use against fast fighters.

-English is HORRIBLE

-Got a system kinda like the ultra system on SFIV that even if you get smacked around, u can come back through ur weakness.

-ITs a lil Slower than your previous versions.(then again maybe its just the heavy chars who r slower.)

-it says 6 players but it's actually 1on1 in a room up to 6 people so the other 4 people will have to wait for 6 rnds to finish instead of leaving and making their own room. Even the interview with the designer he was kinda speechless as far as when he was asked "Well the room is still basically 1on1 then right?" The guy shook his head and kinda swayed the question away.

Pros:
-Normal 360 pad actually works better on here.

-Pretty new look

-Leona's new outfit is kinda sexy (i got a thing for chick tanktops.....weird)

-First online play (although I could easily go 2k2/98 on mame)

-Its still addictive

It looked like they spent so much time on da graphics that they got tired half way, because if each char setup as detailed as Ash's, then each character would have a lot to bring to the da table. But powerhouse chars like Ralf, have only 2 moves which is something i'm not too used to. Even the drunken guy, has basically no moves that involve drunken movements. The moves he does in "drunken state?" are da same moves he can do normally so its like|????/ Overall I still catch myself wasting a few hours so i still find it entertaining, but I don't recommend switching back and forth with ur previous games or you'll become more critical of what was missing from the older ones. The only thing that can salvage this more is dlc characters. But for a grappler like me, it seems our kind got screwed....Raiden....sigh....
Also the fire affects r trash that really don't blend into the game. Ash's green fire and thunder affects work well but anything dealing with explosions or fire looks like it a copy and paste from a real one and spat into the game.
Oh and that this real annoying stage where you're at this cult and people are bowing down but they're screaming and moaning which is very loud and very annoying. The backgrounds are crappy, its just looping animations and when you win or lose the animation speeds up really fast which just looks disgustingly lazy. Gameplay is kinda weird since if u being rushed, is nearly hard to counter a person mashing lp's and lk's, luckily the counter system once master will put an end to mashers. The ultra counter system i spoke basically allows u to unleash a series of combos and then lets u finish with a super or special or u can just finish it anyway u want. This gives grapplers a lil help since throws excluding raidens have NO RANGE. Timing and priority will have be relearned cuz even the uppers aren't as uber as they were so don't expect that to save u when waking up every time.

Sound- 2[nice and loud but the bgm sucks horribly, awful dubbing EX: LOUND WAN! WEADY....WIGHT! ]
Graphics- 5[Well Of course the graphics are awesome for 2D]
Gameplay- 3[good fighting game but kof veterans may be angered...many times.]
Controls- 5[No need for another pad, reg controller should do just fine, or arcade stick dat game!]

Not sure how the math supposed to work with overall score but 1 to 5.
Game Score - 4

Overall this baby is a solid deal for your fighting game collection. Even with da many cons i stated i still love (how weird) and I recommend it, but just remember, forget everything u learned from da previous ones because it's time to relearn everything! Also there is already speak of Mai and K' coming out for dlc. So yay! Also visit the Official site u can see many other chars grayed out behind the main kofxii chars such as Chang, Maxima, Krauser and Mary. But those could be just random pics so these are just rumours! So go out and buy it and set up a match with me and my huggers!

Kings of Fighters Xii received Shoma's Sexy Approval! thumbsup.gif
]]> Wed, 29 Jul 2009 13:24:31 -0500 http://www.1emulation.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=30843 Some Video Reviews http://www.1emulation.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=30464
http://bootlem.gametrailers.com/gamepad/index.php]]> Sat, 09 May 2009 21:55:42 -0500 http://www.1emulation.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=30464 <![CDATA[[05/02/09] Madcatz SFIV Fightstick, Tournament Edition.]]> http://www.1emulation.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=30415 System: Xbox 360 (also available for PS3)
Emulators: should work with any emulator that accepts a usb controller. I have tested it with GGPO.

######################################
QUOTE
The official Street Fighter IV FightStick Tournament Edition controller was designed for fighting game fans to recreate the quality, gameplay and precision found in arcades. Using the exact Sanwa joystick and 30mm buttons found in official Street Fighter IV arcade machines, along with realistic spacing and an eight-button layout, the Street Fighter IV FightStick Tournament Edition brings the true arcade experience right into your home. With separate turbo settings for each button and the best components, prepare yourself for hours of competition, no quarters necessary.


For anyone who is seriously into fighting games, an arcade joystick is the holy grail of control types. And it's only natural to want to get as close to the arcade experience as possible while at home. since the console's launch fighting game fans have been stuck with the original controller, or the Hori EX2 and it's multiple rebrandings. the EX2 is passable but really sub-par with out extensive difficult modifications. There is also the Hori HRAP EX but that has been notoriously hard to get a hold of, requiring it to be imported.

Madcatz has changed all that with it's street fighter IV line of sticks and pads. The Tournament Edition is the top end of this line. the Cadillac of retail arcade sticks, and you will pay top end price. $150usd is the retail. but sticks have been going for much more on the secondary markets like ebay and Amazon. Madcatz has stated they are working hard to get retail stocks up but so far any new stock is snapped up within minutes. Before the TE was released the only way to get arcade quality at home was to build your own stick.

The first thing you will notice about the TE after removing it from its beautiful boxing is the size. it is huge. this may be a turn off to some, but I find the size allows my hands to rest on the stick and buttons as they would on an arcade cabinet. on the Hori EX2 my hands would rest on the edges with the outer part of my hands hanging off the case completely. the TE is spacious and heavy enough to feel very solid when playing roughly. The TE is made from what most consider the best arcade parts available, Sanwa. It is also built with moddability in mind, all connections are quick disconnect, so there is no soldering required if you want to change anything, or a button goes out.


as the picture shows, the TE control panel is well layed out and easy to work with. the entire panel lifts away from the housing to reveal the stick, buttons, and all the quick disconnects. all the wiring is tidy and there is plenty of wire on each button to rearrange them if you wanted. the joystick 5 pin connection must be removed to get the panel all the way out of the housing.
the Sanwa buttons are ultra sensitive. The 8 buttons are arranged in such a way that you can play American straight layout or the more popular curved Japanese layout. the top and bottom rows mimic the classic SNK 4 button layout. All buttons are Sanwa snap in style buttons with quick disconnects for easy modding. replaceable with 30mm Sanwa and Seimitsu snap in buttons. Happ buttons will not fit in the TE.
The Sanwa JLF Joystick feels very solid. with a light tension and quick return to center. The stick it self comes with a Square gate, some don't like the feel of a square gate (me included) An octagonal gate is easy to install for a more American feel. the stick is also very easy to replace if you like Seimitsu. unfortunately Happ/iL sticks will not fit in the TE.
Together the sensitive buttons and joystick require some getting used to for players used to the more rugged feel of American arcades fitted with Happ controls. but once the trial period is over, pulling complex movements and advanced combos becomes much easier. The learning curve will be much steeper for those who grew up on console pads and have never had arcade experience.

Other features include turbo functions for all buttons, a panel lock out and a small compartment to store the cord when not in use. the Turbo function works as expected. press the turbo button and what ever button you want turbo. you can set any combination of buttons to 2 different settings of turbo. the panel lock out is handy to insure you don't hit the turbo or guide buttons during vigorous play, unfortunately the lockout doesn't disable the start or back buttons. these buttons are pretty much out of the way on the back of the sticks housing but I could see them getting bumped at some point, pausing the games at an inappropriate time. The cord compartment is really to small for the cord. Since getting the cord out of the compartment during the unpacking of the stick I have not been able to get it back in there. It's unfortunate the stick is not wireless, (the PS3 version is wireless I believe) due to Microsoft not allowing 3rd party controllers to be wireless. But the cord is very long so it isn't a huge problem.

######################################

Overall anyone who is serious about fighting games and has money to burn would do well to check out the Madcatz SFIV fightstick, TE. The complaints are few and minor. (not wireless, the stupid cord compartment, no room for Happ sticks.) The playability over a control pad is stellar. The Build Quality is far above previous Madcatz standards.

I give the Madcatz TE Fightstick 9 out of 10 hadokens.]]> Sat, 02 May 2009 05:40:24 -0500 http://www.1emulation.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=30415 <![CDATA[[03/28/2009] Assassin's Creed]]> http://www.1emulation.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=30148

Developer: Ubisoft Montreal
Publisher: Ubisoft
Platform: PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Microsoft Windows
Release Date: (NA) November 14, 2007
ESRB: M
Media : Blu-ray Disc, DVD-DL, Download

The plot is somewhat complex, please visit Wikipedia for further clarification.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assassin%27s_Creed#Plot

From first glimpse of the screenshots and game cover, you wouldn't expect that the character all over the advertisements for the game is actually only a mere memory and an ancestral construct of Desmond Miles, a typical bartender who is oblivious to his lineage. A select few times in the game, you will be able to wander around the laboratory as modern-day muck up of Altair. You are only able to walk while outside of the Animus, considering that all of the central gameplay takes place in Desmond's time in the Animus device.



The game Assassin's Creed bases itself on extremely conspicuously recurring but enjoying gameplay elements. The game is a sand-box action adventure experience where only a handful of actions can be committed. Basically as Altair the Assassin, your duty will be to follow the orders of Hassan-i Sabbah, over and over without lead. His orders are for the most part non-negotiable. After a major plot point in the beginning all of your weapons and abilities are taken away from you, as a temporary demotion. So by the end of the game, you will eventually have had already gained everything you lost in the start of the story.

As an Assassin you wield a one-handed sword, knives that can be thrown, a knife that can be distended from your special swiss-army knife like gauntlet, and your petty fists. So, in-between missions, ninety percent of the time, this is what you will be doing. There is a map that has various icons that indicate which missions are present. There are viewpoints scattered all across different districts of cities. The purpose of these randomly placed viewpoints is to allow you to climb them, and look upon the area or city around it. What this does is, it discovers new missions to complete. So ordinarily your map will be empty until you activate a viewpoint.



Each major story element is in a form of a DNA strand, as a presentation to correlate to the ancestral point of the game. They are separated as Memory Blocks in the Animus device. As a regular modern-day human, you will lye down upon it, and there is a visual hologram that contains several different Memory Blocks. Only so many missions are required to unlock the next Memory Block. Each mission is actually a single strand of the DNA resembling Memory Block, not all strands need to be filled, but that's up to the player and if he or she wishes to complete a Memory Block fully.

Masyaf is your home town, your kin is located there, and basically, no missions take place there. You can however, accept missions from your master, and practice in the tutorial lounge, to ostentatiously display your swordmanship. Masyaf is the central portal to all other cities. Each city has a different district. They are separated by working class, Rich, Poor, and Middle district. You can ride horses easily as a form of transformation in-between different cities. Horses are not allowed inside cities, however.



There are two icons on maps that aren't missions. Scholars, whom of which are a four man group of scholars who slowly stride throughout town. The purpose of these guys is to help you get past guards. You can walk in-between them at their pace, and you can copy their mannerisms to blend in. The second are the Mercenaries. The Mercenaries are a form of citizens that help you escape or face guards. The more citizens you save from guards, the more Mercenary groups that will be around town to help you.

In each Memory Block the process is as follows. Visit the Assassin's Bureau, which is a small room, and there is only one located in each district of each city. In the Bureau, there will be a man to assist you in the mission at hand. Upon encounter, you will witness an in-game cutscene. After this cutscene, missions will be placed across the map. They include; "Save a Citizen", "Viewpoint", "Pickpocket", "Interrogate", "Information", and "Eavesdrop". I'll explain the missions that aren't self explanatory. The "Information" missions are those of which, are comprised of talking to some type of nomad, he will make you do a miscellaneous selfish mission to give you information regarding your task. The missions can range to collecting flags, and silent assassinations. After all of these minor missions are completed, your health capacity will sometimes increase an, your major Assassination mission will be available for you to complete.



All cities are structured the same. They all contain a seemingly infinite amount of guards. You being an Assassin, catches their attention easily. Your synchronization bar contains your health capacity, and your status with the law. A yellow eye indicates that the guards are watching you, a red eye indicates that you have done something wrong, and that the guards have suspected you. Once the guards unfortunately discover your misdemeanor, they chase you until you manage to escape successfully. There are safe hiding spots laid out around the map, and they can only be hid in, if your status indicates color yellow. You have the choice to fight them, which is less of a hassle once you gain the ability to counter attack.

Aside from the relentless always watching guards, the townsfolk are as fairly unlikable. When you climb buildings, which are readily easy, they often make scolding comments about it. Also, you’ll be harassed and chased by needy townsfolk who need money. The climbing system is extraordinary. Nearly anything can be climbed and grasped. You can simply run towards a wall, and Altiar will run up and grasp whatever object is sticking out from the wall. He can scale walls, walk upon skinny foot boards, and can climb just about anything on a wall if it's sticking out in any form or fashion. The speed at which this is done is also realistically animated. He jumps automatically across gaps, and will only lose so much health if he misses a ledge or a platform.

While in the city, you have high and low profile. Low profile actions are “low profile”, which are stealth-like and sly. High profile actions are obvious, abrasive, rude and gruesome. Holding the High profile button while running will make you run even faster. Apply this to everything else, weaponry, and personal gestures. Within crowds, you can hold a button to courteously move people aside without upbraiding them. More actions can be gained as the story progresses. The climbing system is generally the forgiving quality in the game for its exponential repetitive nature. If I said anymore I would be spoiling at this point.

- Repetitive Gameplay
This one is obvious. Throughout the entire game, the same missions are done.

- Saving the Citizen
There is a problem with this mission. Sometimes when trying to save the citizen, he or she runs away from the fight. After you are done killing off the bullying guards you find out that the citizen is nowhere to be found, and if you chase he or she down, you cannot talk to them. So, you'll sometimes end up having to leave the "Save the Citizen" target, and return shorty thereafter when the game decides to re-spawn the victim citizen and guards. Also, for some illogical reason you can even walk towards the guards that are picking on the victim, without targeting them or having your weapon unsheathed, and they will still automatically start fighting. I find it irrational that my synchronization bar tends to turn to a red color, when I'm not even the one that provoked combat.

- Informer
I had a personal debacle with the one informer that shows up each time. He insultingly and sarcastically acknowledges my presence and then demands that I fulfill one of his own selfish missions for two sentences of information that I could generally do without. The flag collecting isn't so bad, but the silent assassinations are just asinine scenarios at times. When tracking down your victims, the guards will for no apparent reason, recognize you, when you haven't even perpetrated anything. You can blend in to avoid attention, but when I do this he walks extremely slow, so I cannot chase a person that I want to kill in blend mode. If I get detected by a guard the mission is automatically disbanded, that's very aggravating and frustrating, this crud is unacceptable.

- Casual Walking
I can't even casually walk around town and see the sights that there are to see without some jackfool guard breathing down my neck because they have no one else to pursue. If I even walk close to a guard, they sometimes get the abrupt desire to kill me just for my existence. It doesn't make sense to me, on account of how guards pursue me and fight me when I'm walking around town, whistling, while singing Beatles tunes.

- Horse Riding
I really never understood this. The game states that in order to get around guards while on horseback, is to, trot slowly. What I am I doing wrong by galloping?

- Retards
I assassinate any retard that decides to push me on sight in the middle of the town. This is heavily irritating. Especially when trying to escape the guards. They push me, and it takes so long for Altiar to recover from his stumble. Then, when you actually kill them the game faults you for doing so, as if they are giving retarded citizens an excuse for their rude behavior.

- Beggars
I also like to assassinate beggars, who get the audacity to chase me and harass me for money that I couldn't give them even if I wanted to. This is even more upbraiding when there are more than two beggars all over your genitalia for money, when you're on a mission or when you are trying to escape from guards.

Assassin’s Creed’s graphics are “good” for it’s time of release. The soundtrack is groundbreaking, also along with the well created glitchy sequence sound effects. The voice acting is well done. Altiar has a surprisingly straightforward personality type, and this is even intensified by the cinema dramatic voice work. Here is yet another warning, the gameplay exuberantly repetitive beyond occasional belief, but the platforming, climbing, swordplay, and acrobatics is what balances that out for the better.

Gameplay: 8.6
Sound: 9
Controls: 9
Presentation: 8

-- 8.5]]> Sat, 28 Mar 2009 21:24:08 -0500 http://www.1emulation.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=30148