@BT Sub Sport News:Review
Tony Hawk: Proving Ground
(Xbox 360, PS3, Wii)
Rating: 3/5
TONY HAWK is not just a pro skater – he’s a brand name that, since the time of the original PlayStation in 1999, has provided skaters with an excuse to pick up a controller.
The 10th incarnation of Tony Hawk is called Proving Ground. As the name suggests, the game is a large, open world in which walls, rails, ramps, and almost anything including cars can be incorporated into tricks. A career mode allows gamers to become a skating superstar, a renegade who reconfigures the game environment to perform daring tricks, or a purist skater who skates anywhere at any time with contempt for authority.
The version we played was for the Xbox 360, and the graphics were similar to the previous Tony Hawk title, Project Eight.
In fact, so was the gameplay, and here in lies the problem with Proving Ground. Sure, the gameplay is fine, and the tricks are fun. But by comparison to previous titles as far back as Tony Hawk 2, it offers very little that seasoned Tony Hawk gamers will find new, refreshing or exciting.
The game also features online modes, scoreboards, and E-Talk’s favourite – the Nail the Trick feature, ccessed during a large bout of air-time by pressing the two analogue stick buttons simultaneously. The game slows down a la bullet-time in The Matrix and the camera zooms in to the skater’s feet. You then use the two sticks to manipulate the skateboard and create custom tricks.
Again, the feature was a key part of Project Eight, and disappointingly it remains the only sniff of innovation in Proving Ground.
While those new to the series will invest a few hours into the game, fans will experience an unfortunate case of deja vu, and may want to hire it before buying it.
@BT Sub Sport News:Preview
Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock
(Xbox 360, PS3, PS2, Wii)
JUST days before the official release of Guitar Hero III, E-Talk has been strumming away on the Nintendo Wii version of the game to prepare for a full review next week.
The game picks up on the popularity of its two predecessors, in which the player uses a guitar-shaped game controller with fret buttons and a strummer to play the songs on the disc. It is essentially a rhythm game.
Guitar Hero III is best described as air guitar evolved, allowing those either with or without musical instrument knowledge to pick up and play their favourite tunes like rock stars. It’s shaping up to be the best game of the series yet, with over 70 rock tracks, most of them the actual master recordings by original artists.
The promise of online play will introduce a new level of competition to the series, allowing seasoned Guitar Hero gamers the chance to play against the best virtual-guitarists from around the world.
Guitar Hero III is due for release on Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Playstation 2, and Nintendo Wii on 7 November.
