PS2/XB
From: Buena Vista Games
Visuals: Released a year ago in Japan, and it shows.
Audio: Excellent voice work and songs.
Difficulty: Easy
Fun factor: Pick this up at the game shop next to Hot Topic.
Rating:
Tim Burton created a living force with the Goth set with his stop-motion cult hit “The Nightmare Before Christmas.” The twisted story of Jack Skellington’s efforts to hijack Christmas is a charming yarn and excellent source material for a video game. Unfortunately, the designers of this Nightmare seemed so in love with the exquisite art direction and music that they forgot to create a compelling game. Not that the game is bad, per se, but it’s not terribly thrilling. Fans will plow through it just to be Jack Skellington for a few hours, and beat witness to the rebirth of badsack Oogie Boogie–but non-believers may hit the eject button within an hour or so. The action is too repetitive, with Jack whipping hundreds of enemies with his rubbery Soul Robber weapon (and saying “Soul Robber!” over and over). The use of music in the game is superlative, with many of the movie’s best songs used to great effect. The look of the movie is certainly nailed, but the graphics look a little dated. In the end, Nightmare is best left for fans of the movie and maybe rented for younger gamers.
The Warriors
PS2/XB
From: Rockstar Games
Visuals: Decent-looking character models, but not great.
Audio: Superior voice work really sells the over-the-top dialogue.
Difficulty: Moderate
Fun factor: Best for fans of the cult fave film
Rating:
Only Rockstar has the chutzpah to take on this 1979 cult favorite from director Walter Hill, a film beloved second only to “Scarface” in the hip-hop community. It’s the tale of a gang stranded in the middle of enemy territory, far from their Coney Island hangout, hunted for the supposed murder of the savior of the New York gang scene. But Rockstar’s game is mostly a prequel to the events of the movie, allowing gamers to rise up through the ranks as graffiti-artist Remembrandt and see how the Warrior went from a small-time posse to deserving of a seat at NYC’s biggest gangland conference. The game is full of petty thievery, muggings, spray painting and other miscreant activities sure to raise Jack Thompson’s hackles. But the majority of the game is about beating the tar out of rival gang members by any means necessary. The controls are solid and help you get a handle on the larger brawl scenes that are chaotic. But after a few hours, The Warriors starts feeling a little repetitive–steal this, hit him, paint that. Repeat. The graphics are gritty, though at times it seems not for effect, but because nobody bothered much. Better is the dialogue, full of movie-specific slang, expertly delivered by charismatic actors.–levi buchanan is a redeye special contributor.
COMING SOON
In stores next week
– Sid Meier’s Civilization IV
Presell Edition, XP/2000
– Grand Theft
Auto: Liberty City Stories, PSP
– Dance Dance Revolution Mario Mix, GameCube
– Agatha Christie: And Then There Were None, XP/2000/Me/98
