Sree's Thoughts on Reviewing Xbox Games
Friday, Jan. 3, 2002

Keeping track of all the video games that come out is not easy. Walk into any store that sells them and you will see row after confusing row of games in various formats and for different machines. Most of the games seem to be shoot-'em-up thrillers, but there are also a variety of car chases and sports titles, in addition to games for actual kids. Turns out the average age of those playing video games is 28.

I have been trying out various Xbox titles since the Microsoft system debuted two falls ago. I have been a fan of its terrific graphics and the quaklity of play, but when it came time to review some of the new titles, I decided to turn to a high schooler better equipped to judge the games than I am. I asked James Devenney, a sophmore at Bloomfield High School, in Bloomfield, NJ, to play a couple of titles and let me know what he thinks. The reviews are below. In future columns, I will ask James and others to contribute again. (A couple of lines about James: He enjoys skateboarding, console and PC gaming, playing guitar and drums, and any kind of electronic device he can get his hands on. He plans on becoming an architect in the near future.) You can contact James at Thereviewman@aol.com.

Review of Whacked - $49.99
http://www.xbox.com/whacked/

The Game: Whacked, released on October 8, 2002, is basically described right on the box: "Game Show Gone Wrong". This phrase definitely holds true throughout gameplay. Whether you choose any of the eight characters, you are set up to play deadly games by the charismatic host, Van Tastic. After a great intro to the game show, you are left to choose what game to compete in. In single player, Game Show Mode, you have three game selections at a time, out of the nine in each stage. This is about where the game show effect dissapears and the danger kicks in.

Scattered around each of the levels is a whole arsenal of weapons and powerups. These useful little tools range from a basic baseball bat to the Yolk-O-Matic, a stylish gun loaded with plenty of raw eggs. As you make your way around the level, you can use these powerups and weapons to accomplish your goal or mission. There are six different types of games: Combat, where you attack other players to release the stars that are needed to win; Grab 'n' Run, where you must grab the trophy and hold it for a certain amount of time before getting "Whacked" by other players; Dodgeball, where you have to eliminate the other players with dodgeballs while they trying to eliminate you; King of the Hill, where the first player to stand on the green patch for the given time wins; Fragfest, where you basically kill each other; and finally Chicken, where you kill chickens and collect their stars. After you beat one of the many games set for you to play in, a short movie clip, or commercial will run, which to me was one of the funniest parts of the game.

The other two parts of this game are multiplayer and battle mode, which are very similar, except multiplayer is played online with the help of the recently released Xbox Live. In Battle mode, you can choose any of the levels and game types and duel with up to four of your friends, that includes you, or just take on other characters by yourself. It is a good battle mode, and the online play really helps this games lasting appeal.

Although to some people, this game may appear good for children of a young age, the rating, TEEN, on the back is definitely deserved. There are a few sexual references, including a half naked character, strong language, and plenty of violence.

Graphics: This game pretty much lives up to Xbox's standards of graphics, but it doesn't exceed them. The graphics are cartoon-like, and do have good smoke and even light effects. Another big plus about this game is that the screen can be packed with action and the gameplay never slows or lags. One problem with this game is that the levels aren't always made to there full extent. The gameplay calls for a small compact level, and this game gives you the perfect size level with some interaction, but there are too many ways to die "accidentally". The characters are all unique and pretty well designed. There should be at least one character that sets some kind of appeal for everybody.

Sound: The sound is probably the best part of the game. The announcer sounds like your everyday game show host, each character has something interesting to say, and the music just fits great with the game. Even the commercials in the game have catchy toons.

Lasting Appeal: The multiplayer aspects save game and make it a good party game.

On a scale of 1-10, with 10 being the highest, James gave Whacked a 6.9.

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Review of Shenmue II - $49.95
http://www.xbox.com/shenmue2/

The Game: Shenmue II picks up exactly where the first one left off. In the original, Ryo (the main character), leaves for Hong Kong, and he is just arriving at the beginning of Shenmue II. It isn't necessary to know the story line of the first game, which would have been a problem for people new to Shenmue. This game is an RPG (Role Playing Game).

You are a young man named Ryo. You are free to roam around Hong Kong while you search for different things, whether its a place, a thing, a person, or even knowledge. This game throws you all over Hong Kong, all while trying to earn money to buy things and pay off debts. The money-making situation was one problem I found with this game. In the first Shenmue, your jobs had something to do with the goals you were trying to accomplish. In Shenmue II, the job has nothing to do with the point of the game, and it is often out of the way. Although this becomes an annoyance, having the freedom to choose your own way to make money is pretty cool.

Like most RPGs, this game isn't for everyone. It is not a very fast moving game, and there is a lot of walking around in search of things. There are, however, many instances where you get the chance to fight or chase people. The fun part of this game is that in many situations, but not all, if you lose, you get no other chance. This can effect the entire path you take in the game.
In the Shenmue games, there are a collection of toys you can buy from machines and carts. One promise was that you could carry your items from the first game to this one, but since the first was on Dreamcast and this one is on the Xbox console, that just isn't possible. This problem was solved by carrying most of the items from the first game to the second one, so that you start out with them. In Shenmue II, there is a whole collection of little toys. There are some people that won't stop until they have them all.

The fighting in this game is also improved from the first. It has freestyle fighting and is overall well constructed, but like any game, it has its flaws. The only big problem I found with the fight scenes was the fact that Ryo wasn't always centered, and the camera angles sometimes got weird. Overall the fighting is good.

Graphics: The graphics of this game are meant to be for Dreamcast, and therefore don't reach the high standards of a normal Xbox games. This doesn't mean the graphics are bad, just not the best. Shenmue II has a lot of content and less slowdown then the first. There is so many different things in this game, it was hard to concentrate on every aspect. You can just wander streets, fight, chase people, work, or even play mini games. Even though the graphics weren't the best, the game is still full of excitement.

Sound: One thing I really do have to say is that the sound in some parts of the game is terrible. The actor doing Ryo's voice needs to pay a visit to Regis Philbin or some other charismatic person. To put it nicely, he sounds like a robot. The only good sound aspect is the well-fitting music.

Lasting appeal: This game lasts a long time, making ti more enjoyable.

On a scale of 1-10, with 10 being the highest, James gave Shenmue II a 9.2.