Nintendo DS is a great gaming system for kids aged 7 upwards all the way through to adulthood.  Not only is it simple and fun to use but it also has a very large software library that is jam packed full of all their favourite franchises.  It could be the latest TV show or Movie they’re into or even just one of their day to day hobbies.

Now before we go too far we should avoid any confusion by mentioning that there are two different Nintendo DS’ to choose from.  I recommend kids aged between 5 and 9 years old should preferably be given a Nintendo DS Lite because it has fewer features, this will be simpler for them to use.  Now for your older kiddies (10 years onwards) I recommend a Nintendo DSi which has more extensive features including two cameras for photo taking.  Luckily both models also play the same catalogue of games you’ll find on store shelves in the Nintendo DS section so they can trade games with DS Lite owning friends if they wanted without worry.  There is a fantastic range of colours of the DSi available to choose from including:

• Nintendo DSi Matte Black
• Nintendo DSi Bright Pink
• Nintendo DSi Matte Blue
• Nintendo DSi White

Whilst younger gamers are happy with just playing games, the older ones are going to love the new features of the Nintendo DSi.  So whilst they can continue to play almost every standard DS title on a new Nintendo DSi they can also explore their creative sides.  With two cameras, a microphone and an SD Card slot; the Nintendo DSi is like a portable studio in their pocket.  They’ll be able to take photographs of their surroundings and friends and edit them on the fly with a choice of cool special effects.  These can then be transferred to a PC for printing or sharing online.  Music and sound files can be played, recorded and remixed as it plays using the built in software too.  The Nintendo DSi is a perfect system for them because it will fill their thirst for gaming but could also spark some multimedia creativity.  If your kids are Internet Savvy then they’ll also jump at the chance to use the free Internet Browser, upload photos to Facebook on the Nintendo DSi and even buy pocket money priced games from the Nintendo online store which is similar to the way iTunes users can buy games for the iPhone.

• Read our comprehensive Nintendo DSi review
• How to get Facebook on the Nintendo DSi

Nintendo DS games for older children

Here are some gaming recommendations for your older boy and girl – your early teens Nintendo DS gamers:

• Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Sky is the latest in the Pokemon adventures.  This more mature adventure features a lot of exploring rather than just collecting and battling creatures.
• Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games features both of history’s best loved Video Game mascots together in this sporting adventure title.  Mario and Sonic is packed with genuine winter Olympic events to play as well as an intriguing story mode. You can read our Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games for the DS review to find out more.
• The World Ends With You is a side-scrolling adventure beat em up which fuses fast paced action and special moves with interesting music and graphical styles – read our The World Ends With You review for more on this music meets combat game for the Nintendo DS.
• The Legendary Starfy is a popular Japanese Nintendo character who gets his first Western adventure on Nintendo DS.  A unique comic book style platformer that features the world’s most cool Starfish in a sprawling adventure with worlds both underwater and on land.
• Disney’s Wizards of Waverly Place is the game of the hit TV show that is popular with girls across America.  Fans can interact with the legendary Alex Russo by creating spells and other magical activities.
• Lego Indiana Jones 2 continues the block building adventure with this great movie tie in.  Players will play through their favourite Indiana Jones movies with new and alternative retold storylines; they can even build and share levels and join in with a friend for some Coop play. If you’d like to see what the original game looks like we did a video review of Lego Indiana Jones back in June last year.
• Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix was this year’s summer block buster movie and now kids can relive the fun by playing the blockbuster DS game.  They’ll love taking control of Harry and friends and using the DS touchscreen and stylus to cast spells and mix potions. For family buying for true Harry Potter fans we also suggest a look at our Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince DS review.
• The Nintendo Points Card is a great way to treat the kids instead of just giving them money for Christmas.  This way they can buy and download their own low priced games via WiFi through the Nintendo DSi instead of having to save up for weeks for a retail game in a store.

Offers: Visit the Gamesweasel offers page for Godaddy coupon codes codes – watch the GoDaddy promo codes video for more details, use the CSS free shipping coupon code ‘AFGAMEFS’ for orders over $30 and ‘AFGAME15′ to get 15% off orders over $75, use the Squarespace coupon ‘WEASEL’ for 12% off the lifetime of your account.

Christmas is an interesting time for most – it’s pretty-much the one point in the year when everyone insists on big family get-togethers, regardless of how well the family actually gets on. You might be the sort of person who literally yearns for Christmas so you can catch up with all your close family members, or you might be the type for whom the Christmas holiday is more or an ordeal, looked on with the kind of enthusiasm most reserve for visits to the dentist, or filling in a tax return. Whether you embrace the Festive period with the enthusiasm of Tiny Tim however, or feel that actually Scrooge had it spot on before the meddling ghosts showed up, one thing that’s always welcome when you’re ‘confined to quarters’ with all available family members, is some kind of family entertainment.

Now in the ‘olden days’ (back when telephones had wires attaching them to walls, and you could count the number of television channels on the fingers of one hand), family fun would generally have been limited to board games, card games and charades (note to younger readers – ask your parents about the last one).

Now though, with a spot of planning, and some careful purchase of pre-Christmas shopping, your versatile PS3 can actually provide you with myriad ways to amuse the family, be they young or old, and thus assure a stress-free Christmas for all. What follows is Gamesweasel’s recommendations for a fun-filled PlayStation 3 Christmas – get your PS3 Christmas deals in now, before they all sell out.

• Buy a Playstation 3 120 GB from Amazon – $299.99
• Buy a Playstation 3 250 GB from Amazon – $349.99

Singstar

Suitable for: Family members of all ages

Once upon a time karaoke was something that people did in bars. Then in 2004 Sony came up with the idea of Singstar and suddenly those who were too nervous or too self-conscious to belt out their favourite pop hits in front of strangers could do so in the comfort of their own home. With the two Singstar microphones, and loads of Singstar titles now on the market, there’s something to suit just about everyone’s taste (well, except perhaps those who only really like opera music – but I’m sure Singstar: Opera is just around the corner).

Singstar started on the PS2, and is still going strong on the older platform, but next-gen PS3 owners benefit from a few extra tracks on each new release that PS2 owners miss out on. Should you be really into your Singstar, then it’s worth noting that the backwards compatibility of the PS3 also means that owners of the new console can still use the older Singstar games too.

The list of Singstar titles now available is literally too numerous to list all of them here, but particularly recommended would be the most recent release, Singstar: Take That, a compendium of the most popular hits from the well-known boy band; Singstar: Motown, also recently released, and featuring a range of tracks which will keep mum, dad and probably the grandparents happy too; Singstar: Queen, featuring, as the title suggests, the well-known hits of Queen; Singstar: ABBA, one for the ladies; Singstar: Boy Bands vs Girl Bands, something to keep the kids happy when they get bored with Take That; Singstar: Singalong with Disney, something to keep the younger kids amused (and all those ‘big kids’ who’ve watched too many Disney movies); and last but not least, Singstar: Anthems, which contains a selection of those songs that for one reason or another, everybody knows! With so many different styles of music available to keep everyone happy Singstar is one of the top PS3 games for Christmas 2009.

• Buy Singstar Bundle including 2 microphones from Amazon – $56.99
• Buy Singstar ABBA from Amazon – $39.82
• Buy Singstar Pop from Amazon – $17.25
• Buy Singstar Pop 2 from Amazon – $28.89
• Buy Singstar Queen from Amazon – $36.99
• Buy Singstar Singalong with Disney from Amazon – $26.99
• Buy Singstar 80’s from Amazon – $29.82
• Buy Singstar 90’s from Amazon – $26.50

EyePet

Suitable for: Keeping the younger kids quiet while the older relatives are busy

I remember when I was at school, at one point all the kids went crazy for a ‘Virtual Pet’ called a Tamagotchi. Technology back then was fairly limited (at least when it came to toys) so this was simply a small egg-shaped piece of plastic with a monochrome LCD screen, on which a tiny ‘pet’ could be encouraged to grow, and it was the job of the pet’s owner to feed it and play with it via a very basic series of commands. It was ridiculously primitive, but everyone loved it. Quite what kids back then would make of the EyePet is anybody’s guess. Taking the same concept – of a ‘virtual pet’ – and then transforming it into something so far from the original idea as to be practically unrecognisable, Sony offers today’s kids something quite special.

Using the PS3’s EyeToy camera, the EyePet shows you a live image of your room, on TV, then inserts the pet into the room, where you can interact with it. It jumps around the floor, climbs onto your shoulder, lets you pet it, feed it and play with it, and kids are going to absolutely love it.

It worth pointing out that the EyePet isn’t perfect – it’s a little tricky to start with, getting used to trying to touch something that only exists on the TV screen, and the interaction is sometimes a little iffy as you find yourself putting your hand through your pet, but on the whole it’s extremely well-realised, and even adults will find themselves sucked into thinking of the little fellow as real as he bounces around on the screen, responding to ‘almost’ your every move.

EyePet is a reminder that long before Nintendo released a controller that you have to wave around, PlayStation owners were enjoying motion-sensitive, controller-free gameplay through the innovations of the EyeToy camera.

• Buy EyePet – game only from Amazon – $39.99
• Buy EyePet Bundle including camera from Amazon – $56.99
• Buy Playstation 3 Eye from Amazon – $29.99

Buzz!

Suitable for: Family members of all ages

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As they’d done with karaoke, Sony took the concept of gameshows and brought in into people’s homes. Under the beady eye of sharp-tongued virtual host ‘Buzz’ (voiced by Jason Donovan) between two and eight players compete in a variety of different rounds to show whose knowledge is best. The basic game usually comes with four buzzers, so those with big families might need to shell out for an extra set to play with up to eight, but it’s worth it when the whole family is clustered round the TV, buzzer in hand, trying to out-Buzz everyone else.

Again a Playstation game which started on PS2, Buzz really came into its own on Playstation 3 where the addition of wireless buzzers and better graphics and sound made things that much more fun. Most recently, Buzz! Quiz World was released for the Playstation 3, but also available is Buzz! Quiz TV and Buzz! Brain Of The UK. In addition to the quiz options there are a variety of games available aimed at younger gamers who perhaps aren’t quite coordinated enough yet to manage a proper controller. Buzz! Junior Monster Rumble was popular on PS2, and should now be available for download for PS3 from the PlayStation Store.

• Buy Buzz! Quiz World – game only from Amazon – $36.99
• Buy Buzz! Quiz World bundle with 4 wireless buzzers from Amazon – $59.99
• Buy Buzz! Quiz TV bundle with 4 wireless buzzers from Amazon – $59.99
• Read and watch our Buzz! Quiz TV review

Guitar Hero, Band Hero and Rock Band

Suitable for: All but the youngest family members, and those with zero coordination

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Always wanted to be in a rock band but haven’t got any musical talent? Well now you can be, with your PS3. A game series that started on PS2, Guitar Hero kicked things off with its unique ‘guitar controller’ which allowed musically untalented music fans everywhere to ‘rock out’ in the style of their favourite guitar heroes (hence the name) and then Rock Band took things to the next level by adding more instruments and a vocalist to the mix – cue many drunken post-pub ‘band sessions’ for those who could afford all the kit.

The concept is simple: you hold the dedicated controller, and use the fret buttons (or the drums in the case of the drum kit) to create the notes as they race towards you on the screen. Hit the buttons at the correct time and the tune continues, hit them at the wrong time, and that part of the track, be it lead guitar, bass guitar or drums, stops until the next note appears. A virtual crowd cheers or boos your efforts on the screen, and good performances are rewarded with new tracks to tackle and other bonuses while lousy performances earn you insults and leave you with your ‘Rock God’ reputation in tatters.

An idea that started with the awesome Guitar Hero, ‘Band Hero’ is the most recent release for the PS3, and one with a rocking track list which should offer something for most family members to try.

The Beatles: Rock Band, meanwhile, is a must-have for those fans of the Fab Four with the cash to afford the complete kit, and family get-togethers are probably one of the only times when you’re going to have enough people available for an entire band. If you can’t quite stretch to the newest games, then it’s well worth taking a look at some of the older Guitar Hero titles which are still available (Guitar Hero 5 has not been out long and for more tracks it’s worth checking out Guitar Hero III and Guitar Hero World Tour). Even if your cash can’t stretch to enough instruments for an entire band, it’s well worth just trying a version of the game with the guitar only, as strumming along to your favourite rock tracks is great fun, and can be almost as much fun to watch – get your uncoordinated uncle to have a go at it on after lunch on Boxing Day and you’ll see what I mean.

• Buy Guitar Hero 3 Legends of Rock from Amazon – $39.99
• Buy Guitar Hero World Tour from Amazon – $39.92
• Buy Guitar Hero 5 from Amazon – $56.99
• Buy Guitar Hero Aerosmith from Amazon – $15.99
• Buy Band Hero from Amazon – $59.99
• Buy Rock Band from Amazon – $17.95
• Buy Rock Band 2 from Amazon – $99.00
• Buy Beatles Rock Band from Amazon – $49.96
• Read and watch our reviews of Guitar Hero 2, Guitar Hero 3 Legends of Rock, Guitar Hero World Tour, Guitar Hero 5 and Guitar Hero Aerosmith
• Read and watch our reviews of Rock Band, Rock Band 2 and Beatles Rock Band
• Offers: Use our Gamesweasel December 2009 Godaddy coupon to save money on web domains and hosting – watch our GoDaddy discounts video for more details, use the CSS free shipping coupon code ‘AFGAMEFS’ for orders over $30 and ‘AFGAME15′ to get 15% off orders over $75, use the Squarespace coupon code ‘WEASEL’ to get 12% off for the lifetime of your account.

Sadly before my review of Family Game Night has hardly begun, I already have a complaint. It contains just four (yes 4) games. Battleship, Connect 4, Bob It and Operation are all digitally created here for your portable playing pleasure; so will the transfer from the real world to the virtual world suit these classic games? Whilst none of these games made my favourite list I have still enjoyed many a game of Connect 4 and Battleships during my youth; it must be said though that Operation and Bob It have never had the pleasure of my playtime, until now.

I’m sure most of you will have played some or all of these classic games in the past so I won’t spend too much time introducing them to you.

• Battleship is a strategic two player naval war game. Both players secretly position 5 differently sized warships on a large grid which represents the sea. Players then take it in turns to fire a missile to one square in that grid. If they’re very lucky they’ll hit one of their opponent’s ships and can then plan a strategy to sink that ship. More often than not a player will miss and fire a missile ‘harmlessly’ into the sea.
• Connect 4 is of course the simple game we all know and love where your job is to match four of your coloured Chips in a row before the other player. Players take it in turns to place their coin into a vertical grid either to build up a row themselves or try and block their foe.
• Bob It is the most unusual addition to the game because it is in fact a toy as opposed to a board game. It’s a musical toy that asks the player to perform actions on the device (such as pushing a button or twisting a handle) at an ever increasing speed until the player mucks up and does the wrong thing.
• Operation of course is the kids favourite title where players have to remove an awkwardly shaped piece from a game board with tweezers. What makes it fun is the game board is shaped in the form of a hospital patient. Once again players take it turns to remove a piece from his body without catching it on the side and setting off the buzzer, or killing him I suppose.

So how do the games transfer from the physical world to the DS? Well in my opinion it’s a bit 50/50 because I only like two of the games. Connect 4 and Battleship feel absolutely natural on the touchscreen; be it tapping on a grid coordinate to send your missile towards an enemy ship or placing your yellow chip right in the way of an upcoming row of 4 red chips. On the other hand Bob It feels a bit out of place with it getting you to pretend to twist a crank or shout into the DS microphone. Operation on the other hand has been revamped a bit from the original game and actually puts you inside the body with obstructions such as mobile phones stuck inside the guy’s body. The principle is still the same but it feels much more like a Wario Ware mini game that has been dragged out a bit too far.

Now even the craziest of board game fans may feel a little short changed by this display of contents; thankfully EA have out a bit more effort into the production with some neat extras. Firstly you can choose the difficulty of the cpu opponent (if you’re playing on your own) from Normal to Expert. Secondly each game has at least one extra play mode which can at times veer things away from the rules of the original. For example you can play Connect 4 with SuperChips; here you’ll have a much more exciting game against the clock as well as having special powered chips which can affect the gameplay in interesting ways. These include a bomb which will blow up the surrounding chips, a newton chip which pushes the bottom most chip in that column out of the board and a basic but lovely double score chip. Oh and not to forget in this mode you can connect more than 4 chips in a row with successive combos, great!

Aside from all this the most fun you’ll have in Family Game Night on DS is with another player, you can either take it turns on the same DS or if you have another you can share the game using Single Card Download Play or Experience the full game in multiplayer if you own two copies of the game.

Presentationally the game is pretty sweet, all of the games are pretty faithfully recreated in look and feel and the addition of Mr Potato Head of Toy Story fame as host rounds things off nicely. Whilst I didn’t like two of the games I know it’s all down to personal choice so there isn’t anything that negative to say about the game apart from the stingy offering of just four titles.

Hasbro Family Game Night does exactly what it says on the box. It’s a fun recreation of four of their most popular games on the DS and scores a decent 7 out of 10.

Get Hasbro Family Game Night now
New: Buy Hasbro Family Game Night from Amazon.com
Rental: Rent Hasbro Family Game Night – free rental trial from Gamefly.com
Offers: Use our December 2009 Godaddy.com promo code to save money on web hosting and domains – watch the godaddy discount coupon video for more details, using the CCS discount code valid for December 2009 ‘AFGAMEFS’ will get you free shipping with any order over $30 and ‘AFGAME15′ will get you 15% off any order over $75, using the December 2009 Squarespace discount code ‘WEASEL’ at checkout will get you 12% off the lifetime of your account.

Related: Rubiks World Review for Wii, Rubiks Puzzle World for DS

Tags: Hasbro Family Game Night, Party, Hasbro, EA, Nintendo, DS, Battleship, Connect 4, Bob It, Operation

First up instead of family party based like its Wii relative, Mario and Sonic at the Winter Olympics on DS is more of a story single player based affair. I suppose the fact that most people take their DS consoles all around the show and play on the go (unlike me) it makes sense for it to be a more solo experience. That isn’t to say there is no multiplayer fun; there is. It is just more of an addition rather than the whole premise and I’ll come to it later on. Mario and Sonic at the Winter Olympic games is split into three distinct modes; adventure, single player and multiplayer. Adventure is the bulk of the game so let’s start there.

As you’d expect from the title you take control of Mario and Sonic; however it’s not all about Speed Skating and gold medals here. If you’d have thought something as giant and complex as the Winter Olympic Games could go without a hitch then you’re a dummy because if you think about it just for a moment then you’d realise that there is just so much that can go wrong. In this instance though what goes wrong isn’t quite what you or I would have expected. Rather than the typical type of things like Olympic Athletes being struck down by food poisoning or being suspected of drug misuse, in Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Games things are much worse. Who else but the evil Dr Eggman and Bowser have decided to cause trouble. Instead of kidnapping Princesses or Stealing Chaos Emeralds; this time the nasty duo have concocted a more devious plan. They have kidnapped the special Snow Spirits that create the snow for the Olympic Villages; without them here almost all of the events will be impossible. After all you can’t Ski on grass can you?

So Mario and Sonic jump at the opportunity to save the day and are more than ready to take on the challenge. From here you take control of the two heroes as you explore a series of over world maps taking part in Mission Challenges (Olympic Events) against friends and foes. Every time you win a challenge against a friend such as: Tails, Peach, Knuckles and Donkey Kong. They join your roster and they then become available to compete in the next missions. Each character has differing attributes which may or may not make them suitable for a particular sport. Also every completed event sees you win a magic crystal that the Snow Spirits require to create snow and melt ice; you require five such crystals to unlock the next area. Whilst for the most part you’ll just be walking around looking for the next mission there are a couple of other things to do.

Hidden around if you search well enough are some little extra goodies; firstly you can find extra lives which will come in handy for the harder events, secondly there are scrolls that give you background information on the game characters, and thirdly, you will come across maple leaves which provide insight into actual true facts about the Olympics. As you can probably tell this is a just a fairly loose story mode aimed to make playing through each of the events a little more interesting than just picking one from a list. In a similar fashion to the Nintendo Wii version there are eight Dream Events which are a fun addition; these are similar to the traditional Olympic Games but spice things up with things like Rockets attached to your Skis. Whilst I’d agree all this makes things a bit more exciting I was however a bit disappointed by the quite awfully written dialogue. All of the characters you encounter along the way speak like cartoon characters aimed at Nursery school children, and as a semi-mature 27 year old I was a bit grumped out by being made to feel like a kid in what should be a universal feeling game.

So if you’re tired of adventure you can head into playing the games in a more linear single player experience aimed primarily at beating your best scores or into a triad of party games:-

• Bingo Bash is a basic mini game that gets you to match symbols on a card that correspond to those drawn from a random ball machine, of course on its own that would be dull but surprise balls await which can see you having to take part in a quick Olympic Event against the other players.
• Lucky Spin is another randomizer game which puts the four players up against an Event chosen by starting and stopping a wheel with each of the playable events painted on it. There are some items which switch things up a little but it’s still just a random game machine.
• Wild Card sees you compete in random events once more but this time you collect trading cards. The idea is simple; be the first to get 4 matching cards. What makes this exciting is you need to trade your cards with another player to get a full set; this of course gives them the opportunity to beat you to the punch.

Of course a game like this wouldn’t be much fun on your own and luckily there are some multiplayer options; what I’m sad to report is that you will require two or more Nintendo DS consoles to use the Wireless Single Card or Multi Card download play modes. There is no way to play together on one DS unless you count taking turns in the single player games. If you’ve got a friend with a DS you will no doubt have some fun because playing with a friend is always much more fun than playing with CPU bots.

Overall I did enjoy Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Winter games for DS; it’s a nice looking title and actually pushes the graphical capabilities of the system more than its bigger Wii brother does. All of the games are very fun to play and you can control most of them via the stylus very easily; a few do require DPad and Button controls and they’re fine too. Because this version seems aimed at younger gamers for no real apparent reason, it does mean that it is much easier than I’d like; having a selectable difficulty mode for advanced players would have been a nice option. But in the end it’s still fun to play through regardless of its simplicity.

A title from Sega and Nintendo combined isn’t likely to ever be of poor quality and once again they come up trumps with a quality title. By no means is it perfect but in a world of very rushed shovelware it’s nice to see that a game like this isn’t just rushed out to earn a quick buck when so many other license games are. A solid but slightly lacking 6 out of 10.

Get Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games for the DS now
New: Buy Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games for the DS from Amazon.com
Rental: Rent Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games for the DS – free rental trial from Gamefly.com
Offers: Use our December 2009 Godaddy coupons to save money on hosting and web domains – watch our GoDaddy coupon code video for more details, using the December 2009 CCS coupon code valid for December 2009 ‘AFGAME15′ gets you 15% off orders over $75 and ‘AFGAMEFS’ will get you free shipping on orders over $30, use our December 2009 Square Space coupon code ‘WEASEL’ at the checkout to get 12% off the lifetime of your account.

Related: video review of Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games, Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games Wii version review

Tags: Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games for the DS, Nintendo DS, Sega, Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games, DS version, DS, Mario, Sonic, Olympic Winter Games, Party, Olympics

Episode 124
This week on Gamesweasel we play Tekken 6 and Motorstorm Arctic Edge, look at the news about Playstation 3, Modern Warfare 2 and Bioshock 2, plus you get the chance to win 5 copies of World of Goo for the PC. On the blog this week we have the latest Grand Theft Auto 4 cheat codes, how to get free Microsoft points codes, a list of the most popular Nintendo Wii games for Christmas and a guide to using the Wii Guitar Hero controller with Rock Band.

• Playstation 3 movies on demand release date
• Activision launches ratings awareness campaign
• Bioshock 2 trailer
• Tekken 6 review
• Win World of Goo for the PC
• Motorstorm Arctic Edge review
• Charles Martinet interview review

Buy
To buy any of the games reviewed in this episode you can buy from the Motorstorm Arctic Edge Amazon and Tekken 6 Amazon pages.

Offers
This episode of Gamesweasel is brought to you with GoDaddy and offers you fantastic discounts on hosting and domain names. Use one of the following December 2009 GoDaddy coupons to save you money – ‘WEASEL7′ gets you 10% off domain name purchases ‘WEASEL8′ gets you 20% off orders over $57 or £35 and ‘WEASEL9′ gets you 30% off .COM domains. For a limited time only ‘WEASEL20H’ gets you 20% off web hosting and ‘WEASELSSL’ gets you 12.99 SSL certificates. Some restrictions may apply, watch the GoDaddy codes video and read the GoDaddy website for more details.

Gamesweasel is also brought to you with Squarespace, using the Squarespace discount code valid for December 2009 ‘WEASEL’ at checkout will get you 12% off the lifetime of your account.

We are also brought to you in association with CCS.com, use the CCS coupon ‘AFGAME15′ to get 15% off orders over $75 and ‘AFGAMEFS’ to get free shipping on orders over $30.

Win
There are 5 copies of World of Goo for the PC up for grabs, if you’d like to win then see our competitions page by 7 December 2009.

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Screenshots

Tekken and Soul Calibur have always been my fighting games of choice. I even liked Mortal Kombat over Street Fighter in the past so go figure what that says about me. Anyway, Tekken 6 has hit the next-gen systems so does it deliver all that you’d expect?

Well, if you want a fighting game which you can pick up and play but also master if you put the effort in with a massive roster of characters to play as then I guess that’s a yes. If you want a fantastic campaign mode to play through as well then forget it because it’s rather bad.

In the story mode you play as a character called Lars who’s so tough he can punch people from the other side of a wall. You break into a corporation and then rescue a girl called Alisa who’s actually a robot. It’s more confusing than an episode of Lost and unfortunately the Tekken controls don’t translate to a run around and hit things mechanic. Combat feels clunky in this mode and it’s just no fun – however you may feel compelled to trudge through it as it’s the quickest way to earn currency for tarting up your characters and for unlocking new characters and locations.

The main modes you’ll be playing are the online and offline modes. Online modes can pair you up with anyone in the world for a quick scrap online and offline modes comprise of arcade mode, ghost battles, time trials, survival and my favourite, team battle. You can play these against the CPU or against a friend in the same room.

When it comes to looks, the pre-rendered animations are gorgeous as you’d expect but the graphics don’t quite beat those of the recent Soul Calibur. They’ve also been clever by keeping the Japanese voices in the campaign mode and using subtitles to stop things sounding silly.

When it comes to characters there are all the ones you’d expect plus new ones in there, including a massive dragon-type thing called Azazel. This thing is massive and it’s really tough to see what’s going on when you fight it as it almost fills the whole screen!

I’ve been playing Tekken 6 on the Xbox 360 and I can’t help thinking it will play better on the PS3 simply because the controller’s d-pad is better. If you have both machines, get it for the PS3. Tekken 6 gets a very good 7 out of 10.

Get Tekken 6 now
New: Buy Tekken 6 from Amazon.com
Rental: Rent Tekken 6 – free rental trial from Gamefly.com
Offers: Use our Godaddy promo code for December 2009 to save money on web hosting and domains – watch the GoDaddy coupon code video for more details, using the December 2009 CCS coupon code valid for December 2009 ‘AFGAME15′ gets you 15% off orders over $75 and ‘AFGAMEFS’ will get you free shipping on orders over $30, use our December 2009 Square Space coupon code ‘WEASEL’ at the checkout to get 12% off the lifetime of your account.

Related: Street Fighter review, Soul Calibur review, Youtube Tekken 6 review

Tags: Tekken 6, Tekken, Namco, Bandai, Xbox 360, PS3, Playstation 3

I’ve never really been into the Motorstorm games which is odd as I much prefer fantasy racing over the more technical simulation games of say Gran Turismo or Project Gotham. I guess it’s because I’d just rather be playing an FPS or something. However, on the PSP it feels different and worthwhile because I don’t necessarily have to be sitting at home while I’m playing it. Motorstorm Arctic Edge takes the high-octane racing to some rocky, snowy mountains and once again you get to race bikes, snowmobiles, quads, trucks and cars over the terrain. Of course, your choice of vehicle means you have to choose your path carefully. You can take to the high ground and thin tracks on a bike or trudge through the deep snow in a truck and barge everyone out of the way in the process.

Festival mode has over 100 races for you to compete in. Some are just first past the post races, others give you bonus points for staying in the lead for a set amount of time or have you go through a series of checkpoints and try to finish with the most time on the clock as it constantly ticks down. The action’s fast and you can now cool down your boost meter by going over water and snow to prevent you from blowing up if you keep it activated for too long. There are only 8 vehicles on the track at once to keep things moving at a fast pace and the game is definitely easier than its console cousins.

The soundtrack is also great with the likes of Pendulum, Prodigy and Queens of the Stone Age providing some tunes you’ll definitely know and maybe like as much as I do. And once you’ve had your fill of the single player mode you can take the game online and play in Wreckreation mode where you can do time trials against developer ghost data or data you’ve downloaded and experiment with tracks and vehicles in free play.

Despite not being as pretty as the console versions, this is definitely my favourite Motorstorm game as the game style fits the PSP perfectly. It gets a very good 7 out of 10.

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Related: Pure review, Project Gotham review, Motorstorm Arctic Edge review

Tags: Motorstorm Arctic Edge, racing, Motorstorm: Arctic Edge, PSP, Motorstorm, PS2, Arctic Edge, Sony, driving

Buy Bioshock 2 now
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Related: Bioshock review, Top 5 games of 2009

Tags: Bioshock 2, trailer

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Related: Activision ratings awareness site

Tags: Activision, ratings, videos

Buy a Playstation 3 now
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Related: Netflix on the Xbox 360, Sky TV on the Xbox 360

Tags: Playstation 3, movies on demand, release date

Episode 123
On this weeks episode of Gamesweasel we review Up and Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games, take a look at the headlines behind Xbox 360, Nintendo Wii and Nintendo DS, plus you get the chance to win 5 copies of Alvin and the Chipmunks The Squeakwel on the Wii. On the blog this week we have a rundown of Wii games for children, a Charles Martinet interview, a rundown of some of the Wii games for hardcore gamers and some PS3 Christmas games ready for the holiday season.

• Sky on the Xbox 360
• Wii 2
• Nintendo DS free 3G Internet
• Up review
• Win Alvin and the Chipmunks The Squeakwel on the Wii
• Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games review
• James Cameron Avatar interview review

Buy
If you like any of the games reviewed on this show you can buy from the Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games Amazon and Up Amazon pages.

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If you’d like to win Alvin and the Chipmunks The Squeakwel on the Wii then check out our competitions page before 30 November 2009.

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Mario and Sonic’s Olympic Games game if you know what I mean sold like the proverbial hot cakes. Not only did it tap into the spirit of the Olympics but it also brought together two gaming greats as they competed along with their friends and enemies over track and field events – see what we thought of that back in our Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Games review. Now they’re back competing over snow and ice but does the game get a chilly reception?

Well, the good news is that this game improves on the last one. You’ll notice straight away that all the events are unlocked from the start which is great news in terms of accessibility. The controls are also tighter and seem less random but this does mean that sometimes gameplay can be a bit too simplistic.

Events vary from figure skating and speed skating to ice hockey, curling and of course racing events as you hurtle down slopes and tunnels on skis, snowboards or even in bobsleighs. Of course, this one’s aimed very much at party play for the casual gamer so expect this to appeal more to non-gamers than the hardcore.

Once again, Sega have tried to implement gestures that fit as closely to the real thing. When curling you ‘brush’ the stone towards the target just like in the real game and when speed skating you thrust your arms to-and-fro to get your speed up. You can even use the Wii balance Board if you have one to distribute your weight left and right in the slalom or lie face down on the floor when doing the skeleton. You’ll need some space in your lounge to do this and it may prove just a little bit too much effort for your Nan, best she just uses the remote then.

On a negative note, it’s a shame there isn’t any Wii Motion plus support. Sega say it’s because they want the game to appeal to as many Wii owners as possible and that’s fair enough, but it would be nice to also support the thousands of gamers who’ve got the peripheral and can only currently use it on a couple of titles.

This game isn’t aimed at the likes of me but I know that families who own a Wii just for party games and the like will enjoy this one. It’s not my cup of tea but if you’re in the casual games camp then you’ll be pleased to know I’m giving it a very good 7 out of 10.

Get Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games now
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Offers: Use our Godaddy coupon codes for November 2009 to save money on hosting and web domains – watch our GoDaddy coupon video for more details, using the CCS discount code valid for November 2009 ‘AFGAMEFS’ will get you free shipping with any order over $30 and ‘AFGAME15′ will get you 15% off any order over $75, use our November 2009 Square Space coupon code ‘WEASEL’ at the checkout to get 12% off the lifetime of your account.

Related: Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Games review, Beijing Olympics video game review, Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games review

Tags: Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games, Wii, Mario and Sonic, Olympic Winter Games, Mario, Sonic, vancouver, DS, Nintendo, Winter Olympics

I had my first experience of 3D cinema the other day when I watched Up. Once my eyes had adjusted I was initially impressed but then I sort of got used to it. It’s the same with videogames. Next-gen machines come out and everyone goes ‘whooo’ but then the bar has to constantly be raised in order to impress. It’s a pity then that not only does Up have average graphics, but it’s also a very average platform game that’s of little interest to me.

You mainly play the game as Carl and Russell as you move round the 3D platform levels attached to your floating house. Similar to the Lego games, you can play with a friend and must work together to get round the environment. For example, Russell can shimmy along ledges and use Kevin the bird to reach new heights, while Carl can use his cane to climb up ledges and keep wasps and spiders away with the screeching of his faulty hearing aid. In single player mode you hit a button so switch between them which sometimes works and can sometimes be frustrating when the AI takes over and moves characters precisely where you don’t want them.

Most of the time you’re just platforming and collecting coins and artefacts as you go. Combat is extremely limited to swinging your cane at things or picking up items to use against the inhabitants of the forest. Occasionally you also get a boss fight but the action throughout is all rather slow and cumbersome. What do you expect from controlling a geriatric and a boy scout?

To break things up a bit you can also take to the skies and literally dogfight with the talking dogs. For some reason this is also the first thing you do in the game which is odd as it’s set in a scene right near the end of the movie.

Young children may enjoy playing as the characters from the film but this doesn’t offer anything for the older gamer. It’s an average platform game so it gets an average score of 5 out of 10.

Get Up now and get Up
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Related: G Force review, Wii Christmas party games, Youtube Up review

Tags: Up, Up, disney, pixar, THQ, platformer, Xbox 360, Wii, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 2, PSP, DS, Mac OS X, Windows, Single player, 2 player, co-op, multiplayer, Youtube Up review

Buy a Nintendo DS now
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Related: Nintendo DSi review, Nintendo DS Lite Limited Edition

Tags: Nintendo DS, 3G, Internet

Buy a Nintendo Wii now
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Related: Wii hardcore games, Nintendo Wii buyers guide

Tags: Wii 2

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Related: iPlayer for the PS3, Xbox 360 Netflix access

Tags: Sky, TV, Xbox 360, PS3, Playstation 3

Charles Martinet recently joined us for a chat and explains what it’s like to be the voice behind the oldest and most recognisable video game character of all time – Mario. He’s also behind a whole host of other Nintendo characters who’ll be appearing in the forthcoming New Super Mario Bros for the Wii which we’ll be reviewing soon, make sure you order your copy in time for holiday season for what’s sure to be a Christmas hit for all the family.

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Related: Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Games review, Mario Kart review

Tags: Mario, Charles Martinet, New Super Mario Bros, interview, Wii, Nintendo, DS

Top Wii games for children

Any one of the following titles should be great fun on Christmas Day and beyond, we’ve linked each kids game for the Wii to Amazon.com to help you find the best deal:-

• Wii Sports Resort Special Edition is the fantastic sequel to the original Wii Sports title which comes with a new twist. This time you can become even more immersed in the experience because it comes bundled with Two MotionPlus units which provide a more lifelike motion control experience.
• Active Life Outdoor Challenge brings all the fun of playing outside on Christmas Day without having to go out into the cold weather and risk catching Swine Flu.

• The Beatles Rock Band Special Value Edition gives you a guitar, drums and microphone ready for some 1960’s loving Christmas fun. If you’ve never played a music game before then this Wii title is the best introduction – watch our comprehensive review of The Beatles Rock Band and see just how good this game will be at bridging the generation gap this Christmas when it has 5 year olds and granma singing along to some of the best hits from the fab 4.
• American Idol fans will no doubt love this Karaoke Special Edition American Idol Encore 2 game with free microphone, it features 40 well known pop songs spanning from the 70’s to some tunes of today.

• Diva Girls Ice Skating features all the pretty elements of Ice Skating with none of the broken ankles and expensive Ice Skates.
• Petz Dogz 2 will keep any children’s puppy wanting urges at bay for a little longer, and it doesn’t poop on your carpet. A dog is for life, not just for Christmas – Dogz for the Wii sits neatly in the DVD shelf all year round and works out around $1000 cheaper.

• Mario Kart Wii with Wii Wheel dispells the myth that motor racing isn’t all about Nascar or Indianapolis 500 you know, the whole family can enjoy kart racing here. Tons of fun Nintendo characters and themed tracks allow all to compete on the same level due to its clever item distribution system which could see Grandpa beating the kids to the finish line. The game comes with a free steering wheel too, extra official Nintendo Wii Wheels can be purchased separately for $9.99 if your family prefer the addon controller that comes free with the game.
• Wii Fit Plus is a great tool for a healthy family who want to keep track of their fitness as a group. Being able to see everyone’s fitness progress is a great way for family bonding and can be good encouragement for all to stick to the happy lifestyle you want to lead.

Offers: Use our December 2009 Godaddy coupons to save money on hosting and web domains – watch the GoDaddy coupon codes video for more details, use the CCS coupon code ‘AFGAME15′ to get 15% off orders over $75 and ‘AFGAMEFS’ to get free shipping on orders over $30, use the Squarespace coupon code ‘WEASEL’ to get 12% off for the lifetime of your account.

Episode 122
This week on Gamesweasel we review Uncharted 2 Among Thieves and Pro Evolution Soccer 2010, take a look at the news about Modern Warfare 2, Black Wii and , plus you get the chance to win 4 t-shirts from Dark Bunny Tees. On Gamesweasel.com this week we have a review of Tales of Monkey Island Episode 4, a rundown of the top 10 Wii hardcore games, a second opinion of Uncharted 2 Among Thieves and a look at the best Wii games for girls.

• Uncharted 2 Among Thieves review
• Win T-shirts from Dark Bunny Tees
• Pro Evolution Soccer 2010 review
• Splinter Cell Conviction review

Buy
To play any of the games reviewed in this episode you can buy from the Pro Evolution Soccer 2010 Amazon and Uncharted 2 Among Thieves 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 November 2009 GoDaddy discount codes to save you money – ‘WEASEL7′ gets you 10% off domain name purchases, ‘WEASEL8′ gets you 20% off orders over $57 or £35 and ‘WEASEL9′ gets you 30% off .COM domains. For a limited time only ‘WEASEL20H’ gets you 20% off web hosting and ‘WEASELSSL’ gets you 12.99 SSL certificates. Some restrictions may apply, watch the GoDaddy coupon codes video and read the GoDaddy web site for more details.

Gamesweasel is also brought to you with Squarespace.com, using the November 2009 Squarespace discount code ‘WEASEL’ at checkout will get you 12% off the lifetime of your account.

We are also brought to you in association with CCS.com, using the November 2009 CCS discount code ‘AFGAMEFS’ will get you free shipping on orders over $30 and ‘AFGAME15′ for 15% off orders over $75.

Win
We have 4 T-shirts from Dark Bunny Tees to give away by 23 November 2009, full details of how to enter can be found on our competitions page.

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Last year’s Pro Evo was a big disappointment, so much so that I didn’t play it once after I finished reviewing it. FIFA was my footy game of choice last year so what can Pro Evo do this time to win my affections once again?

The first thing you’ll notice before you get into the actual game is the way the stats are displayed. Gone is the graphical representation and numbers up to 100 are back. So far, at least for me, so good. Presentation, at least in terms of player looks has taken a big leap too. Liverpool’s my team and players such as Gerrard, Torres and even Kuyt and Carragher look great. They look less ‘waxy’ than the FIFA games and far more photo-realistic. Player animations are a bit hit and miss though. Standard running and walking still looks a bit awkward but some of the animations when players poke out a toe to score a goal or fall over to get a cross in are sublime.

Like FIFA, Pro Evo also has full 360’ movement but the game still feels a lot more like an arcade game and therefore it’s easier to try to follow a set strategy for getting balls into the penalty area and score. It’s also worth upping the difficulty because I’ve been banging goals in against the AI left right and centre.

The Champions League is back and this time it’s a lot slicker and you can also take part in that, and the new Europa League in the Master League mode. You also have the ability to play as an individual but to be honest this feels like a blatant copy of what FIFA introduced a couple of years back (and since then of course, EA have expanded on it with Game Face and the like).

Commentary’s still a sore point and not much better than last year, and some of the chants from the fans are once again non-authentic and off-putting.

If you’re a fan of one of the licensed teams it won’t really bother you that the game’s not fully licensed, however, if you support a team that’s not in there you can always edit your own teams if you’ve got enough time in the edit mode.

Sorry Konami but despite a good effort, FIFA 10 is still very much in the lead. If you want a footy game where it’s easier to score that feels more immediate, I would definitely recommend this over last year’s effort. PES 2010 gets a very good 7 out of 10.

Get Pro Evolution Soccer 2010 now
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Related: FIFA 10, Pro Evolution Soccer 2010 lineup, Pro Evolution Soccer 2010 review

Tags: Pro Evolution Soccer 2010, Xbox 360, Playstation 3, PC, PES 2010, PES 10, FIFA 10

The original Uncharted took me by surprise as I’d never heard of it when I put it in my PS3 and absolutely loved it from the moment I started playing. It goes without saying I’ve been looking forward to this sequel and a couple of years on it’s bigger and better than the last game.

This time, Nathan Drake’s on the search for Marco Polo’s treasure. Of course this leads him on a journey around the world with a few twists and turns in the storyline and of course some very different locales to visit. There are jungles, underground caverns, cities and snowy mountains to explore and the gameplay’s very much a mix of platforming and third-person shooting.

Climbing and jumping is somewhere in between Tomb Raider and InFamous. Nathan won’t usually jump into oblivion even if you try to tell him to and he can now hang and shoot at the same time and use riot shields to walk towards enemies and stay in cover. There’s also a new stealthy way to play which you’re shown how to use when you break into a museum. You can choose to take people out from behind without alerting anyone and can even get into fisticuffs and have a good face to face scrap.

There are also some fantastic set-pieces in the game too. Fighting a gunship, battling on top of a train and jumping from jeep to jeep during a car chase all spring to mind and the set-pieces and action blend seamlessly into each other to create something akin to taking part in your very own action movie. The story’s also well told and the voice acting and camera direction isn’t quite up to the standards of the Metal Gear games but they’re pretty close.

And once you complete the game you can go back into the chapters and try to find all the hidden treasure and play the game with tweaks you can buy including infinite ammo, one shot kills etc. There’s also multiplayer in there for good measure so the game should keep on giving for a bit even after you’ve finished the 10 hour story mode.

The game’s not perfect – there was a moment during the final boss fight when it glitched on me and there are some frustrating ‘instant death’ moments and difficulty spikes. Still, if you want to be taken on adventure that’s far more fun than any Indiana Jones movie, you need this game. Uncharted 2 gets 9 out of 10.

Get Uncharted 2 Among Thieves now
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Related: Uncharted Drakes Fortune review, Uncharted 2 wins best of E3, Youtube Uncharted 2 Among Thieves review

Tags: Uncharted 2 Among Thieves, Uncharted 2, Among Thieves, Playstation 3, Uncharted, Uncharted 2 Among Thieves review

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Related: Best Wii games for hardcore gamers, Christmas Wii buyers guide

Tags: Nintendo Wii, Black, Wii Remote, Wii Motion Plus, Wii Nunchuck, Wii Sports games

Buy Modern Warfare 2 now
New: Buy Modern Warfare 2 from Amazon.com
Offers: Use our November 2009 Godaddy coupons to save money on hosting and web domains – watch our GoDaddy coupons video for more details, use the CCS coupon ‘AFGAME15′ to get 15% off orders over $75 and ‘AFGAMEFS’ to get free shipping on orders over $30, use the Squarespace coupon code ‘WEASEL’ to get 12% off for the lifetime of your account.

Related: Modern Warfare 2 release date, Call of Duty 4 Modern Warfare review

Tags: Modern Warfare 2, single player, petition, Infinity Ward

Tales of Monkey Island Episode 4; The Trial and Execution of Guybrush Threepwood sees the Marquis De Sade finally get his hands back on Guybrush only to be robbed of his prize specimen by a baying mob. They want Guybrush to answer for crimes he’s supposedly committed and simply drag him off to the local courthouse to face trial and punishment. To say much more could easily spoil what is probably the most intriguing episode in this Pentology so far.

What I can say is that this adventure felt a little shorter this time around lasting about four hours, compared to the five to six of the previous episodes. I believe this is because the fifth episode will likely be a longer and more complex affair. I did get seriously stuck at one time and nearly had to resort to searching Google for the answer but as usual; after walking around and trying everything I managed to solve that one really tricky puzzle. Nevertheless Episode 4 features plenty of stomping around the Flotsam Island previously visited in Episode 1; many of the characters that you met before are still there as well as some new ones including the infamous Salesman, Stan from the original Lucas Arts games.

Because it uses the same engine as all of the other episodes, Tales of Monkey Island Episode 4 looks and sounds just as good as the rest; the quality of the dialogue is once again great with many laugh out loud moments. Die-hard fans may spot some more classic references and smile, sweet.

I award yet Another 8 out of 10 for Monkey Island here folks.

Get Tales of Monkey Island Episode 4 now
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Offers: Use our November 2009 Godaddy coupons to save money on hosting and web domains – watch our godaddy discount coupon video for more details, using the November 2009 CCS coupon code valid for November 2009 ‘AFGAME15′ gets you 15% off orders over $75 and ‘AFGAMEFS’ will get you free shipping on orders over $30, use the Squarespace coupon ‘WEASEL’ for 12% off the lifetime of your account.

Related: Tales of Monkey Island Episode 3 review, The Secret Of Monkey Island Special Edition video review

Tags: Tales of Monkey Island Episode 4, Tales of Monkey Island, PC, Wii

I have to confess that I missed out on the original game, Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune, owing to taking a short career break, so the character of Nathan Drake, a charismatic fortune hunter, was new to me, and I didn’t know quite what to expect from the title. What I found was a game which is so immersive, so polished, so addictive and so beautifully programmed that it is very possibly that most sought after of all things: the perfect videogame.

I don’t mean that it’s going to be the best videogame that you EVER play, for if that were the case, well… you’d never ever need to play another game, and there are so many different categories and genres of videogames these days, and such a diverse gaming audience, that there are bound to be those who would prefer to play, for example, a flight sim, or perhaps a racing game. But what Uncharted 2 does, is to promise its audience a specific gaming experience, and then deliver on everything that it promises, with literally ZERO flaws – hence: it’s perfect.

For those who, like me, didn’t play the first Uncharted, this game has a lot in common with Tomb Raider, in that you’re touring the world, exploring ancient civilisations to hunt for clues to ancient priceless artefacts – in this case the ultimate quest is for a mystical gem which promises its possessor no less than world domination. Now I’ve always been a massive (some might say obsessive) fan of Tomb Raider, ever since the first game in the series back on the original PlayStation. I tell you that so that when I say that Uncharted 2 is, for me, the game that Tomb Raider could only ever hope to be, you’ll hopefully realise that I’m not just spitting out empty hyperbole, I’m speaking as someone that quite literally worships the escapades of Miss Croft.

From the moment that Uncharted 2 begins, with you in the role of the rugged hero Nathan Drake, finding yourself hanging from a derailed train which is itself hanging off a cliff on a snowy mountainside, you’re drawn inextricably into an incredibly immersive adventure that I personally found almost impossible to stop playing. In fact if it hadn’t been for the fact of having to feed my recently arrived baby daughter, plus the occasional need to sleep and eat, then I very probably wouldn’t have stopped playing this game till I finished it.

Everything about the game screams obsessive attention to detail – the lavish environments rival anything I’ve ever seen in a videogame title, up to and including the awesome sprawling cityscapes of Grand Theft Auto IV, in fact the GTA IV backdrops looking like a child’s drawings compared to the beautifully created environments in this game. The script – unusually – appears to have actually been written by professional script writers who feel that the narrative (consisting of both seamless cut-sequences and ‘in game’ dialogue) should be entertaining for its own sake, rather than used simply to string the various game sequences together, and the ‘acting’ of the characters, both in terms of voice-acting and physical animation, is of a standard which would put most ‘live’ big-screen Hollywood movie actors to shame. The extremely cinematic feel of the whole thing is further enhanced by genuinely brilliant camerawork which serves the dual purpose of creating appropriate drama and atmosphere, whilst also giving you clues as to what you should be thinking about doing next.

On the subject of what you should be doing next – I remember that I used to complain a long time ago in reviews about games being too ‘linear’. These days though I think I’ve just spent too long wandering the massive digital worlds that videogames can now offer us because when it comes to ‘massive sandbox’-type games, I almost shudder at the thought of trekking for hours through mammoth environments trying to figure out what I need to be doing. Thinking back, I guess I just got too excited about the expanding videogame horizons back then, because now, for me, videogames aren’t necessarily about being ‘free to roam’, they’re about being able to experience a particular adventure, be it driving a race car, fighting off marauding aliens or – as in this case – exploring ancient tombs. So for me, the linearity of Uncharted 2 is set just about right, and I actually like the fact that the action, the puzzles and storyline combine to push me along a specific path. Don’t get me wrong – you still have freedom to roam to a point, and you still need to figure out how to get through the game yourself, but you don’t ever seem to find yourself wandering around aimlessly searching for that one particular hidden switch which gets you to the next stage, the way you do in some lesser action-adventures. This is despite that fact that here, unlike in most other games of this type, the way you climb things, or solve puzzles, doesn’t rely solely on clearly labelled ledges and paths – instead the almost photo-realistic environment is just ‘there’ all around you, and clever lighting and use of the camera gives you hints as to what path to take. And should you get really stuck, the game seems to realise this, and offers you hints, each of which is slightly more pointed than the last to ensure you eventually get where you’re going.

Of course, in a game like this the hero is important, and our hero Nathan Drake has the athleticism of Lara Croft (if not the ‘assets’!) and the wit of James Bond, along with a lot of Bond’s marksmanship skills too. As a result, the levels offer a heady mixture of exploration, puzzle solving and gun battling in more-or-less equal measure, each aspect of which, surprisingly, works extremely well. I was surprised at this, because although I was expecting the adventure side of things to work well, I’ve found in the past that gunplay in third-person games of this type doesn’t always work so well, usually because the control system has been designed around the platform-adventure aspect of the game which doesn’t always lend itself that well to gunfights. In Uncharted 2 however, it all flows together exactly right – one minute you’re clambering around in an ancient temple trying to find the hidden puzzles, the next you’re battling heavily-armed soldiers in all-out warfare, and it all plays… just perfectly.

For those who live their lives online, Uncharted 2 also offers an online multiplayer option, or rather: multiple options. Several different game types exist, including a variety of team deathmatch modes, and also some cooperative adventure modes that allow three players at a time to tackle various levels from the main game. Refreshingly though, the developers don’t have you just playing through exactly the same levels as in story mode, instead they’ve been tweaked and changed with different puzzles inserted and small differences made to the layout which mean that while they might initially look similar, in reality your multiplayer experiences will be completely different to your solo ones.

All the multiplayer modes that I’ve sampled worked extremely well – the team deathmatch modes (limited to five players on five) reminded me a lot of Gears Of War, only actually more fun as you don’t have to rely quite so much on taking cover as you do in that Xbox 360 game. For me though, the three-player online cooperative puzzle maps were far and away the most fun, and – thanks to the variety of ways that you can complete each level and the fact that playing with different teams of people means that everyone tackles them differently – for me these offer endless replay value.

So it’s fair to say that I liked this game, yes? Now sometimes, when you review a game and you want to give it a REALLY good score, you worry that other people who read your review are going to disagree with you, and might feel that the reviewer is being overgenerous. In this case though, I can say without a shadow of a doubt that Uncharted 2: Among Thieves is, for me, THE best game I have played so far this year on any console. I’d even go so far as to say that I think it’s actually the best game I have EVER played on any gaming format… ever, and I’ve played a lot of games over the years! I’ve finished the story mode once, and I’m playing through it all over again already, and I fully expect to be playing through it many more times over the coming months. That’s when I’m not teaming up online for some cooperative adventuring, obviously. Quite simply: this game is perfect. Everything about it is done exactly right, and if developer Naughty Dog isn’t already working on a sequel to it then I will be moving heaven and earth to see that they do. Not because I’ll ever get tired of playing this one you understand, but at some point I’m worried that I might actually wear the game disc out. And as for the score – do you really need to ask? I’m giving it the almost unheard of, once in a blue moon, absolutely spot on ‘Perfect’ 10 out of 10. If you play this game and you fail to find it absolutely, earth-shatteringly, ground-breakingly awesome, then I would say you should sell your PS3 and give up on videogames forever, because in the opinion of this reviewer… there’s something wrong with you. If you don’t have a PS3 on the other hand – this is your reason to buy one.

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Related: Uncharted Drakes Fortune review, Uncharted 2 release date

Tags: Uncharted 2 Among Thieves, Uncharted 2: Among Thieves, Playstation 3, Uncharted II, Uncharted, Among Thieves, PS3

Top 10 best Wii games for adults

Here are some of the favourite hardcore games for the Wii available from Amazon.com right now. With other core titles such as Metroid Other M, Red Steel 2 and The Grinder coming out in 2010 at the same time Sony and Microsoft are releasing their own casual motion sensing devices. As it’s looking the Wii could be the system of choice for hardcore gamers in 2010, here are a rundown of some of the top 10 best wii games for adults:

• Madworld is one of the most over the top and gory Wii adults only games of all time.  You just know that the Wii boys will love slicing people up with chainsaws and watching blood splatter everywhere – you can find out what we thought of the ultimate Wii hardcore game in our Madworld review where we gave it an excellent 8 out of 10.
• House of the Dead Overkill is an adult wii game from Sega which recently broke the world record for the amount of cuss words in a video game. Combine this with zombies, blood, gore and sexual references and this is a Wii title to make any hardcore Wii gamer take note. We played this back in February 09 and gave it an almost perfect 9 out of 10 – watch our House of the Dead Overkill review and see why.

• Resident Evil comes to Wii once more in the Darkside Chronicles.  Another light gun esque game which uses the Wii Remote’s infra-red capabilities to brind the arcade feel to your home TV.  Play though scenes you know and scenes you don’t from previous Resident Evil games and find out what happened between the parts of the story you already know.
• The Conduit is the Wii’s most popular first person shooter.  It’s full of Aliens, Science Fiction and guns.  It also features some of the best graphics on Wii and a brilliant online battle mode – head to our review of The Conduit to see exactly why we gave it an impressive 7 out of 10.

• Madden NFL 10 is just the ticket for Football fans who want to score touchdowns without having to join a college team.  A perfect game for boys who want to be men, and men who want to be real men – read our full review of Madden NFL 10 where we gave it a very good 7 out of 10.
• Dead Space Extraction was a hit on PS3 and Xbox 360 and this exclusive prequel brings the horror to Wii in this classy on rails arcade style shooter. We recently got our hands on the game and couldn’t put it down, see our Dead Space Extraction review for the Wii where we awarded it an outstanding 8 out of 10.

• Excitebots comes with a free Wii Wheel (just like Mario Kart) and is a more serious stunt filled affair.  It looks like it’s for kids but to actually do well you’ll need to be great at pulling of stunts and big air.
• Muramasa the Demon Blade is a real 1980’s Metroid style old school hack em up featuring sword swishing in abundance and enough collection to keep an OCD sufferer happy.  Oh and and its rock hard too.
• Star Wars The Clone Wars features all of the stuff a Star Wars geek could want, Lightsabers , Star Wars and excellent cell shaded animation.
• New Super Mario Bros for the Wii – the hotly anticipated follow up the the best selling Nintendo DS game of the last few years.  Go back to the original days of Mario before 3D took over the world.  Any half decent gamer should play this game if they want any credibility in 2010 – cutesy but impossibly addictive.

We also recommend the Wii Sports Resort Special Edition – the fantastic sequel to the original Wii Sports title which comes with a new twist.  This time you can become even more immersed in the experience because it comes bundled free with two Wii Motion Plus units which provide a more lifelike motion control experience and can be used on other compatible titles. It may seem casual at first but dedicated players will find many secrets and appreciate many core mechanics to be found.

Hardcore Wii gaming accessories

Hardcore Wii gamers will also love some of the accessories on the market that don’t try to emulate tennis rackets and golf clubs but instead enhance their gaming experience.

• The Quad Remote Charge Station takes away all the hassle of battery changing because it comes with 4 battery packs that will give hours of playtime.  Save money on batteries with this useful and cool looking base station that will charge your Wii Remotes with no hassle, built in LED indicators show when charging is taking place.

• The Wii Classic Controller is compatible for certain games that aren’t quite suited to motion sensing and those purchased via the Wii’s Virtual Console online download service. Also Wii hardcore games such as Super Smash Bros Brawl support the classic controller for the best gameplay.

• A Wii Zapper is a great way to emulate that crossbow / shotgun feel on Wii and it comes with a free Zelda themed Links Crossbow training game. It’s perfect for titles such as Resident Evil, House of the Dead and Dead Space on Wii.

• Owners of Guitar Hero and Rock Band will appreciate the Dual Guitar Holder which keeps those guitar accessories stored neatly in the living room or bedroom. See our recent run-down of Wii guitar accessories for more ideas of what to get fans of Rock Band and Guitar Hero for Christmas.

• We found the official Wii lens cleaner is the best option to fix problem Wii discs when we did a recent rundown of Wii lens cleaning kits – the Wii hardcore game Super Smash Bros Brawl was known to cause problems when playing with certain Wii consoles due to it’s intense disc activity.

• A Wii HD Link Component Cable will allow up to full 480p visuals to those with an HD television set, great for LCD and Plasma screen gamers who want to get the very best visuals the Nintendo Wii can display.

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Episode 121
On this weeks episode of Gamesweasel we review Dead Space Extraction for the Wii and Operation Flashpoint Dragon Rising, plus you get the chance to win 2 copies of The Halo Encyclopaedia. On the blogs this week we have a Bomberman Ultra review for the Playstation 3, a review of Ninja Captains for the Wii, a guide to the best PS3 party games and a Nintendo DS Christmas buyers guide.

• Dead Space Extraction review
• Win The Halo Encyclopaedia
• Operation Flashpoint Dragon Rising review
• Tim Curry interview

Buy
To get hold of any of the games reviewed in this episode you can buy from the Operation Flashpoint Dragon Rising Amazon and Dead Space Extraction Amazon pages.

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There are 2 copies of The Halo Encyclopaedia up for grabs, if you’d like to win then see our competitions page by 16 November 2009.

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Operation Flashpoint Dragon Rising was a revelation back in the day. Sure it was for hardcore gamers on the PC and it didn’t let you off lightly. You’d spend ages crawling on your belly through a wood then get shot in the head. Luckily you had quick save so you could take some of that frustration away. On the consoles of course you get checkpoints which I’ll come to in a second.

In this game the fictional island of Skira is being contested by the Russians and Chinese and you, as an American Fire Team leader, are helping out the Russians. Similar to the last game this is no Call of Duty. Enemy and friendly movement isn’t scripted but left to AI which makes gameplay very different every time you play it but can also lead to frustration when your team mates stand in the open to get fired at or enemies don’t seem to respond when shot at.

There are 12 long campaign missions to fight through and you can also play them co-op with up to three friends for a more realistic experience. There are also some shorter missions to play through in co-op which should extend gameplay further.

Play the game on normal mode and the HUD tells you where enemies roughly are in relation to you and waypoints suggest the best way to go. Of course you can play in hardcore mode where everything is turned off and you’re left to fend for yourself and make your own tactical decisions.

Checkpoints aren’t very well spread out though. You’d expect one after each objective but that’s sometimes not the case and you get sent back a long way if you die from a sudden shot to the head.

Operation Flashpoint Dragon Rising isn’t to everyone’s taste, especially not console gamers. The game would probably get a higher score if I was reviewing it on the PC but I think console gamers may get frustrated too soon. Operation Flashpoint: Dragon Rising gets a very good 7 out of 10.

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Related: Call of Duty , Operation Flashpoint: Dragon Rising developer interview, Operation Flashpoint Dragon Rising review

Tags: Operation Flashpoint Dragon Rising, Operation Flashpoint: Dragon Rising, Xbox 360, PS3, PC, Codemasters, first person shooter

Dead Space was one of my surprise favourite games last year so I’ve been looking forward to Dead Space Extraction on the Wii – a prequel which charts where all the horror on the cracked planet and in the mining vessel the Ishimura began.

It’s an on-rails FPS but before you think this is just like Time Crisis or House of the Dead, let me explain to you why it’s very much not. Extraction has a much more considered approach in that there are times where you don’t shoot anything whilst the atmosphere builds as you’re taken for a ride through the eyes of a number of survivors in different chapters. You crawl up ladders, shuffle across service hatches and even make leaps of faith through zero gravity. The mining equipment from the first game is in use again as you hack limbs off the monsters and you’ve also got access to pistols and pulse rifles. You can also slow down enemies and the world around you at times using stasis and fetch weapons, ammo and items using a sort of sci-fi tractor beam type thing.

There are 10 chapters to play through and as you go, you unlock new challenge mode levels and comic books to watch complete with sound effects and voice acting. It may be short but it really is a new gaming experience for me and something I couldn’t put down until I finished the story mode. There are also choices of paths to take from time to time which may encourage playing through the story again and you can play the game in co-op mode and shoot the Xenomorphs with a friend.

The game’s got the best graphics I’ve seen on the Wii and although the action slows down occasionally when there’s lots on screen, it certainly doesn’t wreck the game. Another small complaint is the crosshair. Info about your guns and a Gears of War-style quick reload system are incorporated into it and as a result it’s rather large, sometimes obscuring what you’re actually trying to shoot. Still, it means there’s no HUD on the screen which all adds to the atmosphere.

If you want a game that really sucks you into the action and gives you the creeps at times, give this a go. You’ll definitely enjoy it.

Dead Space Extraction gets an excellent 8 out of 10.

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Related: House of the Dead, Time Crisis, Youtube Dead Space Extraction review

Tags: Dead Space Extraction, Dead Space, Extraction, Wii, on rails, shooter, Dead Space: Extraction, horror, EA

I will just mention that the majority of the Bomberman games have featured a single player story campaign as well as the full on battle mode mentioned above; the thing is that most people weren’t really too impressed with these story campaigns and so the last few games have seen it removed completely. Bomberman Ultra for PS3 is no different; there is only battle mode for either offline or online play. Similarly like Bomberman Live on 360 and Bomberman Blast on WiiWare; Bomberman Ultra is a download only title available on the PSN for just a few dollars. So nearly 20 years later there must be something a little bit different to make this version of Bomberman stand out from the crowd of its hefty back catalogue. Indeed one cool new feature is the ability to unlock costumes and create your own cool looking Bomberman avatar; it’s not quite as cool as using Mii’s like Wii game but it’s a nice touch.

Gameplay is pretty much as you’d expect from a Bomberman title; this is a fun and frantic bomb blasting battle with a whole host of pickups which can help or hinder your game. As you destroy the arena blocks, special items such as; Extra bombs to drop and Flame Boosters will appear. These have obvious and useful uses but why stop there when you can travel faster with roller skates and throw bombs with a power glove. With stacks of other items you can develop your own strategy which makes playing random people online even more interesting because their game style might be radically different to yours. One addition I am not too keen on are the Bomb Shelters; these huge view obstructing towers will protect anyone from a bomb blast; my problem is that they obscure too much of the battlefield and attract campers. Depending on the game settings chosen at the start; things like sudden death and the ability to take part after your death via the sidelines can spice things up when the timer is running close to the end and a number of people are still battling away.

Of course there is much more I could mention including the different game modes and different arena’s but the most important thing for me was the online multiplayer for up to 8 people. Sadly the part of the game I was most looking forward to is also the most disappointing. Now offline multiplayer is always a hoot for 4 mates and you’d think online with 8 players should double the fun right? Well yes in theory it should. The problem I found was that hardly anyone else seems to be playing online; if you’re lucky enough to find someone hosting a match it tends to never actually get enough players to start and the host gets bored of waiting and kicks everyone off. You could try hosting your own game but don’t be surprised if you only get a handful of random people to actually play with you, instead you’ll need to convince people on your friends list to buy the game if you really want to have fun with online play.

Bomberman Ultra is an extensive battle experience which delivers solid gameplay but doesn’t really push the boat out. Even though it runs in a super smooth 720p you could be mistaken for thinking this was a 32bit era title; it doesn’t feel like Hudson have really pushed themselves to make a next gen Bomberman quite yet.

Overall then a typical Bomberman game which should fit happily on most PS3 owners game library; if you don’t go expecting anything other than a fun retro Bomberman battle experience you probably won’t be disappointed. A well-deserved but must try harder next time score of; 6 out of 10.

Get Bomberman Ultra now
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Related: Boom Blox Bash Party Review, Bomberman Blast

Tags: Bomberman Ultra, Bomberman, PS3, PSN

Episode 120
This week on Gamesweasel we play Halo 3 ODST and FIFA 10, tell you the news about Assassins Creed 2, InFamous 2 and The Wii Cyberbike, plus you get the chance to win 3 copies of Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games for the Wii and DS. This week we look at a new Wii puzzle game in our Magnetis review, find out more about an educational game for the Wii called Learning with the PooYoos Episode One, we solve the problem of using a Wii Guitar Hero controller with Rock Band and a look at some digimon online games for the Nintendo DS.

• Assassins Creed 3 rumour
• InFamous 2
• Wii bike
• Halo 3 ODST review
• Win Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games for the Wii and DS
• FIFA 10 review
• Red Steel 2 review

Buy
To buy any of the games reviewed in this episode you can buy from the FIFA 10 Amazon and Halo 3 ODST Amazon pages.

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This episode of Gamesweasel is brought to you with GoDaddy and offers you great discounts on hosting and domain names. Use the following November 2009 GoDaddy coupons to save you money – WEASEL7 gets you 10% off domain name purchases, WEASEL8 gets you 20% off orders over $57 or £35 and WEASEL9 gets you 30% off .COM domains. For a limited time only WEASEL20H gets you 20% off web hosting and WEASELSSL gets you 12.99 SSL certificates. Some restrictions may apply, watch the GoDaddy coupon video and read the GoDaddy web site for more details.

Gamesweasel is also brought to you with Squarespace, use our November 2009 Square Space coupon code ‘WEASEL’ at the checkout to get 12% off the lifetime of your account.

We are also brought to you in association with CCS.com, use the CCS coupon ‘AFGAME15′ to get 15% off orders over $75 and ‘AFGAMEFS’ to get free shipping on orders over $30.

Win
For your chance of winning one of 3 copies of Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games for the Wii and DS head over to our competitions page by 9 November 2009.

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Once again it’s time for another EA Sports game with a new number on the end. This time it’s the turn of FIFA. When you first look at the game it doesn’t look much different but you’ll soon realise that they’ve ironed out all the things that made 09 great to make this version excellent.

First of all there’s the 360’ movement, meaning you’re no longer running at 45 degree angles. This makes for a more realistic movement of the players and coupled with the improved ball physics, some truly interesting and freakish goals that are sure to make you shout out or hold your head in your hands.

Manager Mode is the main season mode where you play through a number of seasons and make transfer and squad decisions. Be a Pro mode is back where you play as an individual and now you can make your own Virtual Pro. Using EA’s Game Face technology which is currently broken as I review the game due to high demand, you can put your face right into the game and level them up RPG style in custom games and even in the arena.

Following on from the Adidas Live Season comes Live Season 2.0 where you can download the latest games your club’s played and try to replicate or re-write history. It’s a shame you have to pay for this after a 5 game demo but hardcore fans will find it worth the extra spend. There’s also a set piece creator where you can modify and save set pieces for use in games. Again, only the hardcore will probably go this deep into the game but it’s a nice touch.

As ever, presentation is slick with some great player likenesses and some good ad-libbing from Martin Tyler and Andy Gray. I usually say not to bother getting the new version of an EA Sports game if you’re enjoying last year’s, but once again, FIFA’s come up trumps. Over to you Pro Evo. FIFA 10 gets 9 out of 10, if you know what I mean.

Get FIFA 10 now
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Rental: Rent FIFA 10 – free rental trial from Gamefly.com
Offers: Use our November 2009 Godaddy coupons to save money on hosting and web domains – watch our godaddy discount coupon video for more details, using the November 2009 CCS coupon code valid for November 2009 ‘AFGAME15′ gets you 15% off orders over $75 and ‘AFGAMEFS’ will get you free shipping on orders over $30, use the Squarespace coupon ‘WEASEL’ for 12% off the lifetime of your account.

Related: Fifa 09 review, Pro Evolution Soccer 2009 review, FIFA 10 review

Tags: FIFA 10, FIFA, football, soccer, FIFA Soccer 10, EA Sports, Xbox 360, PS3, Wii, PS2, PSP, DS, PC

I must have something wrong with me because I’ve never rated the Halo games as some of the best FPSs. I think the weapons don’t pack a punch, the aliens can’t be taken seriously and the whole thing leaves me feeling pretty unmoved. However, ODST provides a different proposition as you don’t play Master Chief and in this spin off you play as some of the Troopers who drop down to New Mombasa to try and stop the Covenant.

What I like about this new game is the atmosphere. Dropping out of the ship at the start in one of your pods and landing in an empty rain-soaked city is a memorable gaming moment and as always, the soundtrack to the game is very strong and one of the best things about it. Because you’re a mere mortal you have to collect health packs at stations around the place and you can’t jump as high which makes you feel more vulnerable. You will have to take cover and wait like before though when your stamina drops or you’ll die pretty quickly. Your Trooper’s also equipped with an alternative display which, like in the Batman game, makes objectives, enemies and allies clearer to see and identify.

The campaign should last you only six hours and the game does feel almost like a bonus extension to Halo 3, however it does have a co-op Firefight mode which should keep you busy as you try to survive as long as possible as wave after wave of aliens attack. There’s also a bonus disc containing all 24 Halo 3 multiplayer maps and three brand new maps you haven’t played before so there’s more bang for your buck.

Because I’ve never been a Halo fan this game failed to excite me but if you can’t get enough of the game universe, it’s a worthy addition – it’s a shame it’s a full price title as it really does feel like extra content that should in some way be a bit cheaper. Halo 3: ODST gets 7 out of 10.

Get Halo 3 ODST now
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Offers: Visit the Gamesweasel offers page for November 2009 Godaddy discount codes – watch the GoDaddy promo codes video for more details, using the November 2009 CCS coupon code valid for 2009 ‘AFGAME15′ gets you 15% off orders over $75 and ‘AFGAMEFS’ will get you free shipping on orders over $30, using the November 2009 Squarespace discount code ‘WEASEL’ at checkout will get you 12% off the lifetime of your account.

Related: Halo 3 review, Halo Wars review, Youtube Halo 3 ODST review

Tags: Halo 3 ODST, Halo 3, ODST, Halo, Xbox 360, Microsoft, FPS, Halo 3 ODST review

A new bike peripheral is set to come out for the Nintendo Wii. The Cyberbike will encourage people to get fit using 18 circuits and an array of ‘impossible’ machines. It’s out in January and is sure to end up in the spare room to hang washing on.

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Related: Wii Fit review, The Cyberbike

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