PS3 Fanboy

The game of golf is all about precision, patience, and looking swank in plaid. Unquestionably, this checklist of golfing requirements was on the developers' minds when they started designing Hot Shots Golf: Out of Bounds. If we take those three terms and translate them into the context of videogames, it would sound something like this: precision comes in the form of an intuitive yet complex gameplay; patience describes the progressive difficulty and the game's longevity; and lastly, plaid symbolizes a stylish design. Well okay, plaid isn't that stylish, but you get the point right?

As Hot Shots Golf: Out of Bounds introduces a new style of play, it still is more or less true to its roots. We've enjoyed the game immensely and we've got to clap our hands together for Clap Hanz. Nice shotto!

When we think about games based off movies and television shows, we tend to believe that they're going to turn out bad. It's not unusual to think this way because more often than not these games really do turn out to be a disappointment; however, we had high hopes for Lost: Via Domus as it was a videogame adaptation of television's most brilliantly engaging show. With Lost TV series writer and producer, Damon Lindelof, guest-supervising the content and themes for the game, we thought Lost: Via Domus was going to be a sure-fired hit. Regrettably, that line of thinking couldn't be any more farther from the truth.

As a game, Lost: Via Domus has nothing unique to offer. It's a below average effort, and feels like a watered-down Uncharted clone with puzzles -- minus all the action. Even so, this game wasn't meant for the hardcore gamers, it was meant for Lost fans; in this regard, it only gets worse as the game fails to perform its duty. At first, it felt exciting to be inside the world of Lost; however, by game's end, we realized just how much potential was "lost" in translation from television to videogame that we'd recommend fans just stick to their show.

As soon as you read the subject line, you probably reacted one of two ways: you snorted/coughed/rolled your eyes and may fast-forward to the score, or you thought "oh, cool, they're reviewing Dynasty Warriors 6" and will read this review with interest. That's sort of how the audience is segmented in the Koei universe -- you either enjoy their games or abhor them to the point where you won't even give them a chance (whether or not you ever did is your personal secret). Dynasty Warriors 6 is no exception to this rule.

Koei brought their DW franchise onto the PS3 at long last, boasting several improvements over the previous titles in the series. But can a new level-up system, the ability to swim, climb ladders, and more change the formula up enough to merit calling the game fresh?

Let's get this started with a bang; if you're a fan of video games, then you will absolutely love The Club. And after playing through everything the game had to offer, I was left with one all-important question that I still can't answer, "Why the hell did it take a developer this long to make this game?"

Let's face it, many of today's games try to do so many things at once that they're often their own worst enemy. Thankfully, the guys and gals at Bizarre Creations didn't let themselves get bogged down with superfluous storytelling or any of the other myriad of problems that plague many of today's games.

Instead, they traveled back in time to the Golden Age of gaming when points reigned king and everything else was a mere afterthought. Those were truly the good ol' days because gaming was all about skill then, and that's exactly what you'll need if you plan on being any good at The Club.

Fun under the sun. That's probably the sort of feeling that Electronic Arts aimed at bringing out with FIFA Street 3; however, the game unfortunately doesn't completely deliver that sort of experience. At first glance, FIFA Street 3 faithfully replicates the atmosphere of outdoor street soccer with its bright arenas and upbeat soundtrack, coupled with flashy fast-paced futsal. But underneath the highly stylized appearance, there's a lack of gameplay depth which ultimately cuts down the game's longevity.

This is not to say that the game isn't fun or the gameplay is horrible; in fact the controls are great and matches are refreshingly intense. However, FIFA Street 3 lacks certain elements and game modes that make other soccer games so much fun to play for extended periods of time. The game has got a few things going for itself, but ultimately, for all its pluses there are an equal number of minuses.

Everyday Shooter is one of those titles that popped up out of nowhere a few months ago. Its creator, Jonathan Mak, was the winner of three separate awards during the Independant Games Festival awards at GDC this year. After this he was approached by Sony and asked to develop his winning title, Everyday Shooter, for the PSN. Finally, the game is now available on the American PSN.

To begin with, it's easy to mentally throw Everyday Shooter on top of the ever-growing pile of dual-analogue shooters. The PSN alone already has more than enough with Blast Factor, Super Stardust HD and Nucleus already vying for the title of "best shooty point collector." Everyday Shooter, however, manages to differentiate itself from all the others by introducing new, innovative gameplay mechanics, an incredible score and an intimate, personal experience which is the closest thing I've felt to video games being art.

Sony has recently started up their holiday blitz by releasing three highly anticipated games for the PlayStation 3; Warhawk, Lair, and Heavenly Sword. While Warhawk was released to almost universal praise, Lair was largely met with torches and pitchforks. So where does Heavenly Sword fall? Does it achieve the soaring greatness of Warhawk or is it doomed to languish in the used sales bin at your local videogame store like Lair?