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Grand Slam Tennis review

July 2nd, 2009

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Wimbledon’s just about wrapped up here in the UK and as a result there have been a couple of tennis games out recently. One is Virtua Tennis 2009 which I reviewed a fortnight ago, the other is EA’s Grand Slam Tennis which is the first game to use Nintendo’s new Wii Motion Plus controller. Unfortunately Nintendo haven’t sent me one so I’ll have to review the game based on the standard remote and nunchuck. As with previous tennis games on the Wii, if you play with just the remote, the game controls the player so you can concentrate on your swing. Hitting early, on time or a bit late changes the direction of your shot, whilst pressing A or B whilst taking your shot will either do a lob or a drop shot. You can also move to the net or the baseline by tapping up or down on the d-pad.

As you’d expect, you don’t always pull off what you intend when you swing your racket but nevertheless the game is great fun to play thanks to some great presentation.

Play Grand Slam mode and you compete in exhibition matches and all the big tournaments on varying surfaces. As you beat star players you also gain their attributes and slowly increase the stats of your player. And the star players are varied and all drawn in a unique cartoon style which works much better than Virtua Tennis. Andy Murray, Nadal and Federer are there along with the Williams sisters and Maria Sharapova, but also older greats like Natratilova, Pete Sampras, Pat Cash and even John McEnroe. Sharipova’s grunting is even in there along with McEnroe’s outbursts which blare through the remote’s speaker if he drops a particularly bad shot.

A word of warning, the AI players are incredibly good, even on easy, and this game really comes into its own when you play with a friend in the same room or online. Matches can get really tense and there’s enough shot variety to send opponents all over the court before you finally win a point. Online is also very smooth and you can play singles and doubles in ranked or unranked matches. Throw in a calorie counter, some party games and of course the WMP support which I read makes the game even better, and you have probably the best tennis game of the year.

Grand Slam Tennis gets a very good 7 out of 10.

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Tags: Grand Slam Tennis, Wimbledon, sports, tennis, Wii, Wii Motion Plus

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EA Sports Active review

July 2nd, 2009

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Nintendo’s Wii Fit along with its Balance Board was a very popular piece of software, aiming to be a gym in a box complete with a personal trainer and calendar which would keep track of your targets and hopefully motivate you to stay fit at home. To be honest, my balance board is now gathering dust so now it’s time to see if EA Sports Active can get me jumping up and down in front of my TV again.

In the box you get the software, a leg strap which you use to holster your nunchuck during some exercises and a piece of smelly elastic which you tie to two handles to use for resistance exercises. It’s also compatible with the Wii Balance Board to add some extra features into some of the exercises.

When you load up the game you give it your usual stats and then you’re away. You can get straight into separate exercises which tone muscle groups and help with cardio, or you can access the calendar which gives you a 30 day routine which varies day to day to keep you motivated and keep you trim.

Where Wii Fit had some exercises and yoga and lots of mini games that got you fit whilst you had fun, EA Sports Active takes things a little more seriously. Basically, it makes you do the sort of exercises you’d do in an aerobics class and the personal trainer does a good job of keeping you motivated and also gives you advice as it keeps track of what the nunchuck strapped to you leg is doing (which, incidentally, can slide down your thigh if you’re wearing loose-fitting clothing, best to wear short shorts and strap it round your skin). You jog and walk around a running track to warm up and cool down, then do squats, lunges, bicep curls, rowing, boxing, tennis etc to work you upper and lower body.

I prefer this to Wii Fit, however, the game is slightly unbalanced. The resistance band is too stretchy and won’t really work your arms unless you’re very weak, however the lower body and leg workouts are absolute killers. My bottom hurt for two days after first trying the game out!

However, no pain, no gain, as they say. If you’re serious about toning some muscles alone or with a friend if you buy an extra leg band and resistance band, this is probably the best way to go, We’ll see what Wii Fit Plus has to offer in a few months.

EA Sports Active gets a very good 7 out of 10.

Get EA Sports Active now
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Tags: EA Sports Active, sports, Wii, Wii Motion Plus, resistance band, personal trainer, workout, routine, EA Sports Active review

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Alien RPG cancelled

July 2nd, 2009

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If you were still hoping to play the Alien RPG, forget it. Developer Obsidian have now confirmed the game is no longer happening. The good news is, Aliens vs Predator, Aliens: Colonial Marines and the new DS game are definitely on their way.

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Tags: Alien RPG, Obsidian, Aliens vs Predator, Aliens Colonial Marines, Alien DS game

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PSP mobile phone

July 2nd, 2009

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To keep up with Apple, Sony may be implementing cell phone technology into the PSP. Separate to the PSP GO, the new device may not even have the PSP brand but should feature games and movies available on disc and the ability to send SMSs and make calls.

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Related: Sony E3 highlights, PSP Go rumour

Tags: PSP, Sony, Playstation Portable, PSP Cell, PSP mobile

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Free Michael Jackson Thriller Video

July 2nd, 2009

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To mark the death of Michael Jackson, Microsoft are giving away the full 10 minute Thriller video to people in the US over Xbox Live Marketplace. Be quick though, you can only download it between Friday and Sunday this weekend.

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Tags: Michael Jackson, Thriller, Xbox Live, Xbox 360

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Gamesweasel podcast episode 105

June 26th, 2009

Episode 105
On this weeks episode of Gamesweasel we review Indiana Jones and the Staff of Kings and Damnation, take a look at the news about Pro Evolution Soccer 2010, Final Fantasy VII and Uncharted 2: Among Thieves, plus we are giving away an Xbox 360 gaming bundle just for becoming a fan on the official Gamesweasel Facebook page. On the blog this week we’ve got SUDOKU 150 For Challengers, Lux Pain review, Microsoft E3 roundup and how to get free Xbox Live points codes.

Buy
To get hold of any of the games reviewed in this episode you can buy from the Damnation Amazon and Indiana Jones and the Staff of Kings Amazon pages.

Offers
This weeks episode of Gamesweasel is brought to you in association with GoDaddy and offers you discounts on hosting and domain names. Use one of the following Gamesweasel July 2009 GoDaddy codes to save you money - WEASEL1 gets you 10% off domain name purchases and WEASEL2 gets you 20% off orders over $50 or £25. Some restrictions may apply, please see the GoDaddy web site for more details.

Win
We have an Xbox 360 gaming bundle to give away by 13 July 2009, full details of how to enter can be found on our competitions page.

Contact us
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