Blah, James blah. Electronic Arts’ latest Bond game may finally put you in the very shoes of Sean Connery — oft-hailed as the best Bond of all — but much like Sir Sean’s unenthusiastic in-game line-delivery, “From Russia With Love” is tepid. It plays fast and loose with the plot of the movie, and it delivers basic shooting sequences.
The hoary game trick of trotting out exploding barrels for enemies to stand next to in firefights is employed yet again. In fact, the entire game just feels too easy.
There are a handful of set pieces that thrill, such as a boat chase and a jetpack shootout around Big Ben. And the gadgets aren’t too shabby, either — the Q-Copter is a clever tool that enables extra recon. But these moments are too few and far between.
FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE
(star)(star)
Publisher: EA
Platform: PS2/XB/GC
Genre: Action
Rating: Teen
`Battlefront II’ re-creates the chaos
There is indeed some treading of water in “Battlefront II,” as similar scenes unfold again, such as the Wookie home world of Kashyyyk and the ice planet Hoth. But developer Pandemic has padded out the planet selection with fan-favorite locations, such as the Death Star and the interior of Leia’s blockade runner from the beginning of “A New Hope.” The appearance of pivotal characters such as Leia, Vader and Yoda also juice the game. “Battlefront II” also welcomes elements from the final movie from the prequel trilogy, such as Mustafar, the lava planet where Anakin Skywalker was defeated by Obi-Wan Kenobi.
Battle scenes are frantic, with dozens of soldiers on the screen at a time, giving the player no shortage of targets to shoot and things to get shot by. It also adds engaging multiplayer games, such as capture the flag, for a variety of game-play options.
STAR WARS BATTLEFRONT II
(star)(star)(star)
Publisher: LucasArts
Genre: Action/Strategy
Platform: PS2/XB
Rating: Teen
`Path of Neo’ could revive interest in `Matrix’
Finally donning the shades of Thomas Anderson-cum-Neo inside the Matrix — where cool powers such as the ability to slow time and do kung fu are available — is a real treat. Eschewing the painful dialogue sequences from the sequels, players can concentrate on the cool set pieces, such as fighting off the swarm of Agent Smiths in the “burly brawl” of “Matrix Reloaded.” With just a flick of the stick, gamers can fire up bullet time to slow enemy movements, roll into their midst, and crank the speed back up to normal in time to start busting out some serious kicks.
“The Path of Neo” is slightly hobbled by visuals. The texture work is a little rough, and the animations are somewhat herky-jerky, even though they do re-create some of Neo’s best moves from the movies. The game was directed by the Wachowski Brothers, and as an incentive to play the entire game, the men have rewritten the ending of the trilogy. Whether that will entice gamers to lay down $50 and swallow the red pill again remains to be seen.
THE MATRIX: PATH OF NEO
(star)(star)(star)
Publisher: Atari
Platform: PS2/XB
Genre: Action
Rating: Mature
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KEY FOR GAMING PLATFORMS
PS2 Playstation 2
GC GameCube
XB Xbox
GBA Game Boy Advance
