Tiger Woods PGA Tour 07 XBOX 360
From: Electronic Arts Price: $59.99
While it’s possible to play as Tiger Woods, you’ll probably have even more fun whipping up a rookie duffer with EA’s detailed creation system. The competition is brutal, so training–by competing in excellent mini-games that double as tutorials–is essential. New this year is a True Aiming system, which replaces the too-easy pinpoint control with more realistic results. As a newcomer, the area you aim for is relatively huge–and likely encompasses sand traps, water hazards and other shot-stealing dangers. As a result, each hole brings risks and rewards. Ahead by a few strokes? Play for the middle of the fairway. Behind? It’s time to take chances with longer, riskier shots. The main draw is the PGA tour simulation, featuring 15 of the world’s top players and visits to 12 famed courses. Players and courses are stunning; Tiger Woods looks so real you don’t mind finishing 20 strokes behind him. Online play allows four-player tournaments.
RATING: 4 GHOSTS
Battlefield 2142
PC
From: Electronic Arts
Price: $49.99
The future is cold and full of bullets. This first-person frag fest can be played in single-player mode but is best experienced online, where thousands of frantic enemies (and allies) don futuristic armor and arm themselves with high-tech weaponry. There’s just enough of a plot to get a war started: A new ice age has left the Russian-led Pan Asian Coalition a bit frosted. Seeking warmer climes, they’ve invaded Europe en route to seizing North Africa–and the European Union is fighting back, of course. Now pick a side and drop into the war zone. There are more than a dozen maps populated with up to 64 online combatants. Teams must seize control points on the map, which, along with effective use of assault rifles and grenades, reduces the number of enemies. A new Titan mode offers plenty of glory–gigantic floating ships must be taken down using teamwork and intercontinental ballistic missiles-like rockets.
RATING: 3 GHOSTS
Bully
SONY PS2
Price: $39.99
From: Rockstar Games
It’s easy to feel sorry for Jimmy Hopkins. His mother and her new husband are off for a yearlong honeymoon and have dropped him off at Bullworth’s Academy, a boarding school packed with kids one trial date short of a prison sentence. But Jimmy’s no pushover. Within minutes of walking onto the jaillike campus, he’s tussling with older kids, using his slingshot and making life miserable for anyone to cross his path. The goal? Become the biggest bully on campus. Jimmy protects fat nerds. There’s tons to do–bike races, skateboarding, exchanging gifts with girls for kisses. And, just like a real school, Jimmy must attend classes that play out in short, clever mini-games. For example, English class is a word jumble. Don’t skip chemistry–that’s where Jimmy learns how to make useful firecrackers and stink bombs. Bully is a great, lengthy game.
RATING: 4 GHOSTS
COMING SOON
IN STORES NEXT WEEK
– Eragon
– Medieval II: Total War
– The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess
– WWE Smackdown vs Raw 2007
– Final Fantasy III
