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Resident Evil……..5… That familiar opening quickly reminded me the very first Resident Evil or Bio Hazard. After waiting for a week after the Xbox 360 users got their hands on the demo, we PS3 users finally got to try out this long awaited and hyped up survival horror game which is scheduled to be released on March 13th for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.

I got a chance to play one of the two levels included in the demo, Shanty Town (the other one is Public Assembly) and I’m sure we have seen a lot of trailers from these two levels from GameTrailers.com. This level is pretty simple, you explore buildings along the way and you don’t have to wait long before you encounter your very first zombie from RE5, or rather a group of zombies. Just like Resident Evil 4, you play this game through a locked third person view, meaning you cannot rotate and see your face. One thing I really need to get used to and I really dislike is the fact that you cannot move while you are in the middle of a gun fight. I know the developers have made the zombies move really slow to compensate for that but this really makes the game unrealistic. If the style is more towards the Dead Space style then I think this game is perfect, even if that means they have to reprogram the AIs to move in a more realistic way.

That is pretty much my only rant for this game. The characters, the zombies, the buildings (both inside and out) and the lighting are very detailed. The game runs on 720p max for those wondering if it will run on full 1080p HD.

Now for the game play, again beside the controls, I really love the online/offline co-op features. Even the demo offers the Shanty Town online co-op or split screen on a single PS3. After dying from the infamous chainsaw dude’s bloody chainsaw I decided to try out the online co-op. The experience was simply different, in a VERY positive way. Although my human partner could have been a little smarter when I kept on requesting for the rifle ammo which he doesn’t need at all and he kept on giving me handgun ammo. The fact that you can give your inventory to your co-op partner as well as using healing item on each other makes the game even more enjoyable because now the two are really playing as a team. So finally he figured out I needed RIFLE ammo and we proceeded to fight the chainsaw dude, I knew without the rifle ammos we pretty much wouldn’t stand a chance. In the end, the rifle ammo saved the day and chainsaw dude was no more.

Resident Evil 5 is definitely a must-buy for those hardcore survival horror fans, the online and offline co-op features make this game worth the 59.99 we will be paying for. But given Killzone 2 is coming out 2 weeks before Resident Evil 5, I think I might have to pass for now, at least until the end of this year or unless Killzone 2 turns out to be a disaster which I highly doubt. This shouldn’t be a problem for Xbox 360 users though unless they happen to have the PS3 as well!

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Silent Hill: Homecoming was somewhat disappointing mainly because of its outdated graphics. I know it is not sufficient to judge a game solely based on game play. Although new elements were added to the game such as new combat system and new item/weapon navigations. And I was not happy with the new navigations by the way because you can waste your healing item, mainly the serum which heals you completely, by accidentally move your L3 button and have it selected without even knowing. The game play was kind of expected and I was really hoping for graphics that are next-gen. Ok, enough ranting and time to move on.

Dead Space generated a lot, and I mean A LOT of hype with all the animated trailers, comics and game trailers. Does this game live up to all the hype generated? I would, with no doubt say YES.

  

Story and controls
The story is about a repair ship which crash landed on a large mining ship called ISHIMURA. And as you can imagine, all the horror begins here and almost right away. Some of the controls are rather different from say, Call of Duty, like in order to run, you need to press L3 (move) and L2. The new controls might take a while to get used to but nothing major. If you have been keeping up with your first/third person shooting skills, the aiming should not be a problem either. Again make sure you aim the hands and legs and not the body unless you want to waste ammo. You can also treat your gun as a melee weapon at close range as well as pressing L2 for some foot stamping.

  

Game play and graphics
Dead Space uses a new and innovative user interface for accessing your items, weapons, map and missions etc. Its actually a holographic screen that is projected right in front of you in real time. So for example, you can have the map up and move around at the same time. So far I though, I can’t feel the “survival” part of this game because you get lots of ammo and healing items, I’ve picked up so many that I have to put them in the safe. (I’m playing on normal not easy by the way) Finally, safe points are in many places so I don’t really have to worry about having to restart from far back.

Speaking of which, there is also a store which you can buy healing items, upgrade your suit, called the Rig which increases the amount of items you can store as you go, new weapons, power nodes which are for upgrading your Rig’s max health(which is your health) and your weapons’ damage, ammo capacities etc. Weapon upgrades using the power nodes are performed by accessing another system called Upgrade Bench.

There is also something called Stasis, similar to the “Force” in Star Wars, in which you can manipulate objects by slowing them down or throwing them etc. Nothing new but you need them to solve some of the puzzles as you progerss through the game. And if you ever get stuck, simply press the R3 and a thin line will appear to show you which way you are suppose to go next based on your mission.

Even though both Silent Hill:Homecoming and Dead Space are survival horror, the former doesn’t really make you jump like Dead Space does. Being a survival horror fan for so many years, I’m pretty used to all the scare moments but I was constantly on my toes while playing Dead Space and got a few jumps actually. And finally this game supports the Trophy Collection.

First thing first, I’m sure everyone would want to know about this, YES the game supports 1080p high definition video output. Strangely it defaults to 720p similar to Call of Duty 4. It will only output to 720p unless you explicitly set your console, in my case PlayStation 3 to only output 1080p. And speaking of graphics, it is VERY graphical with tons of blood and body parts all over walls, floors, windows and anywhere you can imagine.

  

Also just to mention there’s no online multiplayer component, it would be even better if there was but with this game, it doesn’t really matter because the single player is just that exciting. And besides, I’m not sure how you can design the multiplayer side based on the story, hmm maybe there could be two races, the humans and those mutated humans? Just a thought.

  

  

Sound
Sound effects are top notch as well, you can hear random screams, objects banging onto other objects. One thing I dislike and makes this game a little bit less difficult and cuts some of the suspense is every time before monsters start coming at you, you will know because you will hear some “horror” noise. So whenever you hear it, you can pretty much expect to ready your limb cutting gun. But like I said before, I still managed to get a few scare from my 2 hours of play time.

  

Final Verdict
Is this game worth the $59.99? I would definitely think so, at least I didn’t regret buying this game like I did with Silent Hill: Homecoming. For those looking for a sci-fi + survival horror and those that are into limb cutting, then Dead Space will be the game.

There may be a part 2 if I find anything that’s worth mentioning

9/10

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Silent Hill 2 was the first SH series I played for the Sony PlayStation 2. And to be honest, I didn’t like it, back then I was childish and I stopped playing after an hour or so just because of the crappy graphics. Childish huh? I thought so too.

When Silent Hill 3 came out, again for the PS2, my impression of the series went a complete 360. Partly because I grew up a bit more and partly because both the game play as well as the graphics were improved. I actually beat the game three times just to unlock costumes and the mighty light saber! Then came Silent Hill 4: The Room in 2004 and it was another hit. I can’t really say the graphics were improved much over SH3 but the game play was certainly different because you were basically stuck in your own “room” and the alternate world.

 

Finally, Silent Hill: Homecoming or somtimes I call it Silent Hill 5, is the first Silent Hill game to be released for the next-gen consoles. Is Silent Hill:Homecoming really a homecoming? Or is it a shortcoming?

 

Story and controls
You will be fighting through this hellish Silent Hill with by controlling a solider who is searching for his brother. At least this time your character has been trained to fight! One great feature added is the option to dodge and then perform a counter attack as well as “trading” your health for stronger attacks. Combo and charged attacks stay as is as from Silent Hill: Origin for the Sony PlayStation Portable. Again the radio and your ever-lasting flash light will help you fight your way through. Your radio will emit static noises when threats are close by and your flash light, well light your way obviously! And just like the previous series, you are always fighting between the real world and the alternate, more horrified world. The controls are somewhat different from the previous series which takes sometime to get used to, one obvious difference is the way to access your weapons/items menus. I accidentally wasted a healing item when I was meant to go into attack mode. The combat controls are aslo slightly different if I remember correctly, sorry its been a while since I played SH4. Overall nothing anyone cannot handle.

 

You start out in one of the common places in the SH series – the Hospital. I was really excited because I got to “reunite” with the sexy but deadly nurses! You get to fight your very first one as soon as you pick up your combat knife. There are now two buttons for two modes of attacks which you can chain/combo. One mode is the normal attack and the other is the heavy attack which can be charged to perform even heavier blows. I also think the character’s movement could have been a bit more agile, it feels a bit slow when navigating around.

 

Game play and graphics
You will continue to fight creatures that look horrible and terririfying most of the times just like previous series. But the good old nurses are sexier than ever! To be honest, the graphics is worse than what I was expecting, I was trying to compare with Metal Gear Solid 4. Maybe that’s not comparing apple to apple but the graphics don’t convince me of next-gen graphics. But the water actually looks pretty good though, and I’m only talking about when standing still because there are no splashes or ripples when walking/running through. There are many scenes that are just too bloody and gory for me to show them on my blog because I know not everyone can tolerate this kind of horror. I apologize for not being able to take pictures of when fighting enemies because they are just so quick and often fighting in tight spaces. And I did get a few scare here and there from my 2 hour play. The best one was when I was back home, one of the doors suddenly closed on its own which was totally unexpected when the environment was so peaceful. Ok no more spoilers!

 

There is little to no loading time unless you move from a completely different area or building which is great. I think this game is too dark, maybe its my TV, but I had to adjust the brightness to the max before I could see better. I know this game is meant to be in the dark but it was just too dark I could barely enjoy it before the adjustment. For those who wonder, this game runs only at 720p max.

So far I’ve also found something new which is health boosting item which permanently boosts your health. And once in a while you need to perform some button mashing be it cutting your way through or being attacked by bugs. The bugs are actually annoying I almost got half my health drained because it was so dark (before the brightness adjustment) and I couldn’t see the bug but my health was slowly going down non stop. Aside from the not too impressed graphics, two other thing I dislike, first is the fact that doors that you open will close themselves after a while, why is that? Second, bodies of dead enemeies disappear after a while as well. I like to use them as indicators that I’ve visited the rooms. (yes I’m really bad with directions even with maps)

 

Sound
Sound and music have always been one of the key elements to Silent Hill’s scariness. SH:Homecoming is no different. Within 15 minutes of playing the game, you will hear baby crying somewhere near you, but you will never know where. Though the background sound can be quite a headache in the alternate (nasty) world for some people its not a show stopper, eventually you will get used to it. There are also many music that are actually pleasant to the ears sort of give you a break from all the horror and a peace of mind, at least for a short period of time.

Final Verdict
I highly recommend this game for those that have been following the series. And for MAXIMUM satisfaction, play this game in COMPLETE darkness and ALONE! If you can crank up the volumn, that makes the game even scarier to experience! I think that’s the way survival horror games should be played. This game will most likely not for you if you are not into horror movies/games and get scared very easily (might get heart attacks at times). Although graphics don’t determine if the game is worth playing or not, I still expected them to be next-gen quality which they are not, I mean if Metal Gear Solid 4 could do it, why not Silent Hill? So don’t expect any stunning graphics. And last but not least, I do wish KONAMI can implement online co-op mode to the next series as it would be a great addition/feature to have, assuming there is a next series. Finally, I hope this review helps some of you in deciding if Silent Hill: Homecoming is worth buying or not.

8.0/10

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PlayStation 3 doesn’t have anything good these past two weeks that suited me except Silent Hill: Homecoming will be out at the end of September. After that, there are at least four games that everyone should watch out for since they are pretty hyped up! Hopefully these games will live up to their hype specially Little Big Planet.

Here are the dates for the four games I recommend to watch out for that are coming out in October:

 

Dead Space – 10/14/2008
Far Cry 2 – 10/21/2008
Big Little Planet – 10/21/2008
Fall Out 3 – 10/28/2008

Dead Space, an horror + sci fi combo third person shooter. Sort of like Resident Evil + the movie Event Horizon and with a lot more gore. Basically, in this game, forget about headshots from Counter Strike or Call of Duty. In order to make the bloody monsters stay down is by shooting their limps or their weak spots. Obviously each monster will be dealt with differently. Another new feature that has not been introduced in any of the other third person shooters is fighting in zero gravity where your movement is slower and sound is suppressed. Top becomes the bottom, left can be right under this environment. I am looking forward to hunting those monsters down jumping all over the place in zero gravity.

I also think Dead Space will be a good addition to the horror section for the PS3 until Resident Evil 5 comes out. Unfortunately there is no online component to this game, which is not good in my book. Would be nice if at least co-op play was implemented like Mercenary 2 because playing with others, specially your friends, is much more fun and enjoyable than by yourself…well sometimes.

 

October 21st will be a busy day as Far Cry 2 and Big Little Planet come out on the same day based on EBGames.com. I guess I will test out Big Little Planet first because its really a new type of game where as Far Cry 2, while impressive in both game play and graphics, is still a FPS to me so therefore it can wait. Big Little Planet really looks like a true party game that PlayStation 3 lacks since day 1 where you can play with up to four people on one console and instead of having a split screen, all four will be on the same screen, which is a huge plus. Wii will still dominate the party game section for a while or maybe for as long as the console lives since I think that’s what it really is for. But I’m still glad PS3 is coming out with an exclusive party game.

And finally we have Fall Out 3, another promising game to complete the month of October. So far it looks like Oblivion with improved graphics. Don’t get me wrong, its not necessary a bad thing. I will need to see more game play previews before I can say more for Fallout 3. But so far it really looks promising.