Editorial: Sports Video Games

You can not ignore the importance of sport games in the video game world. They are a huge deal, and are constantly getting better, which is one of the reasons that they have had such a huge impact on the world of video games. I am a huge fan of sports video games, especially when they are done right, which leads me to the question: Which sports have made the best transition into a video game?

To me the best type of sports game available is baseball. While it is true that baseball is my favorite sport, that is not why I say it's the best. It's the best because they have managed to capture all of the different aspects of the game. From hitting a home run, to getting caught in a run down, it's all there. Every year the game seems to get closer to true simulation, with the player models getting better, as well as the animations. I am not saying that any baseball video game that has been made has been perfect, but they seem to be the closest to perfect available. Now I understand that some people might argue that football is the best sports video game that is currently available. While it is the most popular, it does not simulate the actual sport as well as baseball. There are too many glitches, animations can be lacking, challenges are all luck, and it can be too easy. Now, this isn't to say I don't like football video games. I find them to be very fun. In fact, I am looking forward to the release of Madden '08.

Now on the the fun part - the worst. After thinking about this for awhile, and considering many different types, I remembered wrestling. To me this is rock bottom when it comes to sports video games. These game were never incredibly popular, nor good. The most popular ones were probably the WWE games on the N64, and they were never "sold out" popular. The best games graphically are obviously the most recent games, which I don't know the names of, and I won't bother to look them up. However to me the biggest problem with wrestling video games is the terrible simulation, because of the lack of moves. Think about, there are only so many button combos that you can do on any given controller before it gets tedious. On top of that, there are way more moves in real life then available in the games. I just don't see why anybody outside of hard-core wrestling fans would buy anything from this particular genre.

There are a few other loose ends to tie up. For example - soccer video games. I can't really tell much about them because I rarely ever play them, but from what I understand they manage to do a pretty good job of simulating a real game. Another one is golf - this is probably the most realistic sim out there, but unfortunately it is very unpopular. Last but not least is basketball. Basketball games are certainly getting better and more realistic as time goes on, but they have yet to achieve anything great. Speaking of on the rise - that is something that is true about most sports video games. Ever since the creation of true 3D video games, sports games are always improving, and are becoming more popular due to their realism. Sports video games are something you can't ignore, and something you have probably taken part in over your life. The future of sports video games is looking up, and I can't wait to see what can be done on the new systems - especially the Wii.

Editorial: Dan

Review: Diddy Kong Racing DS (DS)

Graphics- 8/10
Sound- 9.5/10
Gameplay- 9/10
Replay Value- 8/10
Overall- 8.5/10

I was in need of a new DS game, so I went hunting. I remembered Diddy Kong Racing DS, so I purchased it. This is another game you can chalk up as a great N64 remake.

I guess I should start out by saying that I am very much in the minority when it comes to this games. It seems like everyone who touches this game hates it. It could be that I was way too excited to the Rare logo on a Nintendo game for the first time in way too long or it could be that I want to like this game, because I liked the original for the N64. Anyways, whatever the reason is, I like the game. People have complained about the graphics and more specifically, the textures. I have noticed this - but I only see this when I am looking for a problem, and that is not how I should review a game. In other words, when you aren't looking for any problems, odds are you won't see any. Enough about the graphics, lets get right down to the gameplay - and boy is there a lot of it. The racing aspect of this game has remained great, and nothing really has to be said, because almost nothing has changed (read what I said here.) The only change is to the start of the race, more specifically the way you boost at the beginning. If you are in a car, you spin a wheel on the touch screen, if you are in a plane you spin a propeller, and if you are in a hovercraft you blow into the microphone. To say the least, this is a very compelling idea, unfortunately, spinning the wheel is so hard, spinning the propeller is to easy, and blowing is way way to easy (oops...). However, this is a very minor detail. As long as we are talking about the cars, I might as well tell you one of the new features that I like about this game. That is the newly added unlockable features, which includes car upgrades. Are you as excited as I was? Well... probably not, but anyways, my excitement didn't last long because, it turns out upgrading is too easy, and makes the game too easy. If you keep losing a race, just upgrade your top speed, and you will win. "But, wait," you say, "I don't have enough coins to upgrade!" (you collect coins during races.) Well then, you just go back to the first races, the way too easy races, and you collect lots of coins. The other things that you can unlock include a design-a-course race, which I was disappointed in, mainly due to its lack of depth.

Anyways something that I loved in the original was the music, it was awesome, and thank god it wasn't changed for this game. Hot Top Volcano still has the same somewhat stereotypical music. Another thing I loved in the original was the elephant's extremely stereotypical Indian voice, but unfortunately, this did not return (it's not hard to figure out why.) Something else that I have yet to mention is the Wi-Fi, and for the most part it works fine, it's nothing special. It does add more to the game though. In the end, I still spend a lot of time with this game, and I don't care what everyone else says. If you read my original review, you can understand why I like the remake. Is my review possibly biased? Well get used to this, it's a good game.

Pros: Upgrades, Music the same, Much like the original.
Cons: Loss of stereotypical Indian voice, Design a course, Upgrades.

Review: Dan

Editorial: Idiocy in the World of Today's Courtroom

Recently, a new lawsuit was filed against Sony for the use of a Cell that can do synchronized parallel processing with shared memory. Of course, this is referring to the technology used within the Playstation 3. But why is this lawsuit different? One word: idiocy.

Here are the facts: The company suing is International Parallel Processing, who got the rights for the patent way back in 1991; which begs the question; why did they wait so long to tell Sony the Cell was patented. The technology and the use of it in the Playstation 3 was made public very loudly during the development of the system. Secondly, International Parallel Processing hasn't actually said how this hurts them as it seems they haven't done anything with said technology in the last 16 years. Lastly, not only has International Parallel Processing asked for Sony to pay the damages which haven't at all been specified, they've also asked that all Sony products using the technology be destroyed; that means all Playstation 3 systems.

Although I wouldn't believe that the destruction of millions of Playstation 3 systems will be forced on Sony, we have to realise that this claim is ridiculous. The game industry is huge, rich, and advanced; yet it is still weak to attention loving politicians and greedy companies. International Parallel Processing has the right to defend it's patent, but asking for such a large scale destruction of a major console is an obvious move of hostility towards the easily targeted game industry.

Editorial: Vedran

Review: Super Stardust HD (PS3)

Graphics- 9/10
Sound- 8/10
Gameplay- 9/10
Replay Value- 7/10
Overall- 8/10

Super Stardust HD is not the first game in the dual-joystick genre, but it's probably the best on the PS3. It features crisp visuals, a nice soundtrack, and a fun co-op feature. For only $8, this game is one of the best available from the Playstation Store.

In Super Stardust HD, you take control of a spaceship that orbits a planet on a grid. Your goal is to protect the world from the asteroids that are hurdling towards it. Once they reach the planet, they circle it on the grid, leaving you to destroy them before they destroy you. Because the planet is, of course, a sphere, the playing field is a sphere. The concept is pretty simple, and the game is easy to get into and start playing. However, there are three different types of weapons that you have, each for a specific type of asteroid. For example, the rock crusher does more damage to rocks than the gold melter does, but not as much damage to gold. This gameplay element makes the game more fun, but also more challenging. Also, at the center of the asteroids are power-ups that give you an extra life, make your weapons stronger, or give you a shield. You will often find yourself frantically switching weapons, trying to avoid getting hit, and trying to collect power-ups at the same time. There are several planets to defend, each with five stages of varying difficulty, that end with a boss fight. There is also an online leaderboard, so you can see how you compare with others.

The multiplayer comes in the form of co-op, but its offline only. Both players play on the same screen and have independent controls. However, if one player moves too far away from the other, the other player gets dragged along with. But it is to the players' advantage to stick close together, as it boosts the weapons power. The planets aren't very detailed, but the asteroids and the explosions are very nicely rendered. The asteroids blow up into oddly-shaped pieces, and the weapons create some flashy explosions. The soundtrack and sound effects of the game are nothing special, but the sci-fi theme fits the game incredibly well. If you have played plenty of games like this one before, then Super Stardust HD might be a pass, even though it's a solid game. If you are new to the genre, then this game is an excellent place to start.

Pros: Nice presentation, good value for price, co-op.
Cons: Limited replay value, not the first in genre.

Review: Eric