“Players can expect linear plot progression with expertly crafted dialogue”

The year 2033 really doesn’t sound as far away as it should now that humanity’s survived the Noughties. According to 4A Games, there will be another 23 years of relative peace before downfall of mankind due to massive nuclear war.

It’s a setting gamers have seen plenty of times before but this definitely isn’t your average first-person shooter, as it’s a very atmospheric and polished experience. Comparisons with the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. series are inevitable due to the dev team being almost exclusively made up of formerly GSC Gameworld staffers, but with a new setting of Russia and no sign of any RPG progression, this is an entirely different experience.

Based on a novel by Dmitry Glukhovski, players can expect linear plot progression with expertly crafted dialogue and a gradually escalating story. The game begins in one of Moscow’s oldest safe havens, Exhibition underground station, which has been home to dozens of malnourished and scared survivors for over 30 years. Nobody dares go above ground due to the threat of mutants and other survivors. Gamers assume the role of Arytom, a young station dweller who has recently learned of an impending mutant menace which has the power to wipe out the remnants of mankind. He, meaning you, needs to leave the safe confines of Exhibition in order to warn other people of the danger. The story continues in earnest, but as you would expect, all doesn’t go according to plan…

While walking around decrepit station the sense of desperation hangs thickly in the air as you see survivors discussing the political impact of their plight, occasional muttering drunkards and children playing with dilapidated and broken toys.

Metro 2033’s pulpy origins are obvious, and gamers will relish exploring areas which are full of character. The game’s many stations function as stop-off points where you can purchase new ammo, additional weapons and supplies.

Venturing out of the station is easily equitable to stepping out of Vault 101 in Fallout 3, it’s just as dramatic and empowering. The feeling that your presence isn’t wanted is accentuated by the need to wear a special suit to protect yourself from the environment.

Players will need to make sure there’s enough for the entire journey, otherwise Arytom will become slower, breath harder and eventually capitulate to the hostile atmosphere.

Some may be disappointed with a linear single-player shooter without multiplayer in 2033, but after our short time in Metro 2033, we were gagging for more. The intriguing setting mixed with the sort of detail only a novel can provide culminates in a desperate, scary and fulfilling experience. It tickled areas we always wanted the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. franchise to with great character design, atmosphere and a layer of believability.

We convinced that Metro 2033 is sure to be one of the most intelligent and thought-provoking first-person shooter you’ll play this year.

“The action is relentless right up until the campaign’s thrilling conclusion”

The disappointing sighs from the legions of PC-playing Battlefield fans was practically audible when EA declared that Battlefield: Bad Company would be a console exclusive. Two years on, with the promise that Bad Company 2 wouldn’t just be a console port but built specifically for PC, that enthusiasm had been rejuvenated somewhat. Finally, we all get to judge whether DICE has managed to create a game that lives up to the quality of previous Battlefield titles.

The campaign storyline picks up from the last game, where ‘B’ Company’s four AWOL squadmasters marched off into the sunset (Three Kings-style) with a barrow-load of gold. Here, it’s a more serious tale that follows the four troops on a run-of-the-mill intelligence gathering exercise in Alaska, where they discover that the Russian are building a weapon big enough to take out the US. In typical first-person shooter style, you come up against stiff opposition on your hunt for those involved as you travel across a variety of impressively detailed locations in North and South America, taking in snow-capped mountains, jungles, villages, deserts and urban environments, causing bedlam with your array of weapons and vehicles.

The impressively produced yet totally over-indulgent cut-scenes, full of the tongue-in-cheek humor and brash Americanisms, give some meaning to the missions ahead, but in reality the storyline pales into insignificance the further you progress as you get swallowed up by some of the finest FPS gameplay that we’ve played this side of Call of Duty 4. The mesmerizing mix of dramatic scripted sequences and aggressive gameplay makes Bad Company 2 the powerhouse that it is, while the combination of fast-paced action and varied gameplay – in addition to some top-notch audio and visuals – sucks you into the unfolding drama with some style.

Bad Company 2 is a bombardment on your senses, delivering a symphony of sounds and a visual spectacle of destruction that has a Crysis-like feel to it. Smoke billows in the air from spent grenades, buildings crumble under the weight of a well-placed RPG, tanks thunder through militia outposts toppling trees in their path, while wood splinters and cover spots crumble leaving you open to attack. There are some wonderfully poignant and contrasting moments throughout the 13 missions. One minute you’ll be creeping through some exquisite scenery where tranquil sounds, such as birds chattering and wind blowing gently through the trees, lures you into a false sense of security, and then suddenly the peace is crudely broken by the powerful sounds of war. Machine-guns chatter, explosions thud in the distant, while the whirring blades of helicopters and the unmistakable whizz of bullets create an aggressive sound that compliments the graphics, set-pieces and wide-spread destruction. There’s no doubt about it, this is an intense and enthralling single-player campaign.

The destructible environments aren’t just a visual spectacle either, but have a real impact on the gameplay and give you the freedom to use them to your tactical advantage. You can gain the upper-hand by changing the battlefield ahead by perhaps bringing a whole building crumbling to the ground so that it can’t be used for cover. You can even make pathways through areas that look inaccessible, which opens up the battlefield and gives you even more choice. Bad Company 2 doesn’t feel as linear as the likes of Modern Warfare 2, as there’s plenty of freedom and choice in battle. There’s a good variety of missions too: assault, defend, capture, sniping, driving, rail-shooter sequences, plus a few surprises along the way. Weapons handle well, the vehicles are a joy to drive and enemy soldiers react intelligently to the action, providing a real challenge by consistently bombarding you with pressure. The action is relentless right up until the campaign’s thrilling conclusion.

The good news carries on over to the multiplayer mode, which is really where Bad Company 2’s longevity and extra value for money lies. It’s all about customization, freedom and choice. The eight maps on offer, and the two downloadable ones – Laguna Alta and Nelson Bay – offer such a wide range of tactical opportunities. The open ground of the Atacama Desert is perfect for large-scale armored battles, whereas the woodlands of Laguna Alta give snipers elevated spots from which to stalk their prey. The expansive range of kit variations and weapon customization opportunities once again give you an endless amount of choice, and the finely tuned vehicles handle like a dream. This is Battlefield as we know it, but bigger better and badder, with more choice than ever. With brilliantly designed multiplayer maps, excellent weapon and vehicle choice, and the promise that DICE will support the modding community, we can be confident that the online component will shine for a long time to come.

When you put both components together – the compelling single-player campaign and solid multiplayer action – you’ve got one hell of an explosive package. Battlefield Bad Company 2 offers war on the grandest of scales, the likes of which we rarely see.

Rating: 9.0

“SupCom 2 will make you feel like you can take on the world with units to spare.”

It would appear that the actor Nolan North gets everywhere nowadays. Not content with starring in practically every major game under the sun last year, he’s back again voicing a key character in one of the three story-based campaigns in Supreme Commander 2. It isn’t that there’s anything wrong with the American voice actor, it’s just he’s too damn likeable! A cocky statement here, a perfectly delivered pun there and more importantly than anything else, he’s in Gas Powered Games title. Games which are usually geared towards the hardcore gamer that you need a GF Fermi graphics card just to look at screenshots, or at least that used to be the case.

Gameplay once again features the same base-building shenanigans you’d expect from an RTS, with units gaining experience, metal to be harvested, energy to be collected and researched to be, um, researched. Everything is built either using the MCU (Mobile Command Unit), a giant robot where your commander resides, or by helpful engineers that won’t build as fast but are expendable. Battles will end when an enemy’s MCU is destroyed, culminating in a powerful nuclear explosion. The core dynamic hasn’t changes but everything has gone through a dynamic and every worthwhile transformation.

Graphically, this title has an entirely different style to its predecessor. Shrinking the dull greys and browns, SupCom 2 is over-brimming with electric blue and enough hot-rod red to start a Fifties revival. The engine has been optimized for any system from the past two years, and even with almost 600 units on screen at once, the framerate dip is hardly noticeable.

The plot has also been given a badly needed tune-up as well, featuring the same factions from the original – UEF, Cybran Nation and the Aeon Illuminate. This is where Square-Enix’s feedback has factored into the game’s production the most, as real attempts are made to try and engage gamers in this interesting sci-fi universe, with some predictable yet enjoyable characterization which rarely breaks the anime staples of betrayal, faction politics and self-sacrifice. The cut-scenes themselves resemble more Eastern traditions though, but the fact that most of the time you’re listening to commanders in giant robots only further accentuates that ‘Gundam’ feel.

Unit design is completely off the map with Chris Taylor’s wacky brilliance to be seen everywhere. Even after playing for a considerable amount of hours, many gamers won’t have sampled anywhere near the mind-boggling 27 different experimental units spread across air, sea, land and even buildings. Each of these delightful devils is massive and completely dominates the battlefield. Most of them have a crucial weakness though, such as lacking air defenses or mobility, but when in action they look absolutely spectacular.

There are 21 different maps on offer, set across different terrain and with equally different setups. Nine of which can accommodate four players, with five maps suitable for six players. Then the scale goes down, with only one map playable for three and eight players respectively. It’s unfortunate that there aren’t more choices for the maximum multiplayer count, as it would appease some of the fans of the original’s overly exuberant map design.

Across land, sea and air, each of the game’s factions have appropriate hardware to protect themselves and properly attack. Where Supreme Commander 2 forces you to divert your specialization is when it comes to research. As you build research facilities or find caches across the map, research points are earned to be spent on five different specializations – ACU, land, sea, air and building. There are minor advantages such as gaining an extra 10% health or increasing regen speed, and these will set you back three points, but the real bonuses, such as new units, electronic shields and additional cannons, cost around nine. It’s worth waiting for the bigger bonuses but sometimes it’s best to consolidate than go for the big win.

Supreme Commander 2 was always going to be a big event on the RTS calendar. Some of the hardcore staples may have been sacrificed but the experience is so much more sleeker and enjoyable than the original. Maps may have gotten significantly smaller, but the gameplay is much tighter as a result.

Every RTS should empower gamers and SupCom 2 will make you feel like you can take on the world with units to spare.

Most sequels just give gamers more of the same; Gas Powered Games have proven it doesn’t have to be that way. A fantastic improvement on the original in every aspect.

Rating: 9.0

“Each choice you make helps dictate which one of the 21 endings you’ll see”

There’s no greater word to describe Acquire’s latest feudal Japan-‘em-up than ‘peculiar’. It’s a title full of conflicting values as modern game design collides with antiquated traditionalism; as the whiff of liberty offered by the game’s sandbox structure clashes with its ever-present threat of a sudden game over. It’s a game whose pause screens – filled as they are with equipment loadouts, inventory menus and statuses – allude to a deeper RPG experience than the light third-person hack-and-slash quest-fest WotS3 actually is. It’s distinctly Eastern – and given the subject matter, appropriately so – but with a subtle Western vibe at the same time. Which gives this fascinating culture shock a certain appeal.

Way of the Samurai 3 tells the story of a nameless samurai during Japan’s Sengoku Period, where a handful of clans are fighting for authority over the fictional land of Amana. Amana’s a fully openworld filled with various districts to explore, people to meet and jobs to undertake, and though relatively smaller than your average sandbox, each area is filled to the brim with life, from farmers tending their crops and shopkeepers touting their wares, to young maidens being hassled by rogues.

But while that may provoke images of a rural GTA-lite, closer comparisons to WotS3’s structure should (surprisingly be drawn to Quantic Dream’s Heavy Rain and Mass Effect. You see, WotS3 is all about choice, and deciding which places to visit, which faction to side with and when and where to unsheathe your sword is entirely down to you. Much to our surprise, you can do the latter whenever and wherever you like (including within the game’s cut-scenes), and each decision you make can have far-reaching consequences from the very get go, each subtly helping dictate which one of the 21 endings you’re likely to see.

The system comes into play immediately, exampled perfectly by us raising our sword to wanderers offering to heal our wounds during the game’s opening cut-scene, leading to them scarpering and our lone warrior left fending for himself. Unfamiliar with our surroundings, we stumble into a nearby town where we unwittingly challenge someone to a duel. We die – no surprise given the game’s lack of of tutorials or control familiarization – and, after a curious ‘game completion time’ screen, are plunged back to the main menu. Take two.

This time we accept wanderers’ help and are transported to Takatane Village, home to one of the game’s three clans. But once again we find ourselves swiftly dumped, thrust into an area we don’t particularly want to be in and even less so understand. We’re unsure of our objective, or even if there is one; wandering around, approaching as many people as possible and hoping for something to trigger. We even continue on to the next town, hoping for just a hint as to what we’re supposed to be doing. No dice. After almost 30 minutes of aimless wandering, we decide we must have missed something and head back to Takatane. Finally we’re offered a glimmer of hope as we bump into an old lady who has a job for us. ‘Please find my underwear’, she asks. We turn the game off in disgust. You could argue that we’re playing it wrong, but then how are you supposed to play a game like WotS3, given the level of freedom offered to the player? There seems to be a complete lack of direction, the idea of creating your story perhaps going one step too far, failing to offer any sort of waypointing or hints as to where to go next whatsoever. Instead, progression appears to boil down to stumbling into the right place at the right time, and even then it seems to be hit and miss. Even the save points, which we eventually realized to be an NPC, are failed to be marked appropriately as such, while the lack of a map on the HUD meant that we were constantly flicking back and forth between the pause screen to work out where exactly we were supposed to be going.

Of course, even if your experience goes somewhat more successfully than ours – and good for you if so – you’ll have to put up with WotS3’s graphical incompetency, which is something perhaps acceptable at the time of the game’s Japanese release 14 months ago, but less so now. It’s an ugly collection of stiff animation, poor texture work and draw distances, and there’s a certain ‘lat-gen’ vibe to the whole thing.

But much to WotS3’s credit, even after the ludicrous old woman’s knickers escapade, we tried again, eager to be sucked into the world of Amana (in case you’re wondering we did eventually find her underwear, before they somehow got stolen from us by a raven). It’s a game of acquired taste, that you can’t deny, but, if nothing more, one whose sense of freedom and individuality should keep you coming back for more.

“Sumo Digital has done a wonderful job at capturing the spirit of the SEGA universe”

Sonic & SEGA All-Stars Racing isn’t a Mario Kart beater. It isn’t even as good as Naughty Dog’s Crash Team Racing or our particular PS1 kart racing fave, Speed Freaks. But then, to be honest, you never expected it to be, right?

So what is it? Well, it’s a SEGA lover’s dream, a collection of stunningly rendered environments, characters and blue skies from the length and breadth of the SEGA universe. It’s homage to some of the greatest characters in the industry with a sense of charm often lost in today’s ‘gritty’ gaming. Quite frankly, it’s a bit of a laugh.

Just like 2008’s Superstars Tennis, then? Well, almost. As well as a standard Grand Prix mode (to start off with there are five tournaments available, each home to four unique courses, with further events unlocking as you go on), All-Stars Racing features a Missions mode similar to that seen in Superstars Tennis, featuring a variety of tasks including drift challenges and ring collection as well as more traditional modes like time trials and eliminators across 64 separate events.

But similarly to that game, All-Stars Racing also has its fair share of faults. Firstly, the framerate is as predictable as a moose on crack, largely sitting at 30fps but frequently flittering between 60fps and early teens depending on what’s occurring on screen – a shame, given the rest of the game’s visual flair, as the sudden slowdown tarnishes the warmth of Seaside Hill and the gloriously stylized urbanicity of Jet Set Radio’s Tokyo-To.

Which ultimately, besides the reunion of Sonic and co., is the highlight of All-Star Racing. The tracks, though never reaching the dizzy heights of Bowser’s Castle or Rainbow Road, are each wonderfully crafted, thoroughly imaginative nostalgia-fests, each full of their own sense of charm and personality. From the twisty-turny roof-racing chaos of Samba De Amigo’s Jump Parade to Sonic’s Pinball Highway, developer Sumo Digital has done a wonderful job at capturing the spirit of the SEGA universe. That authenticity stretches to all of the racers too, each fantastically animated and with their own bespoke special move, making All-Stars Racing enough to force any SEGA fan into a fit of excitement – so long as they can withstand the stupidity OTT announcer, who regularly spits out ridiculous phrases like. “Sonic wins and what a guy he is!“ and “Where did you guys learn to drive? A FARM?!” Very annoying.

It’ll keep you fairly busy too, what with the mission mode and extensive amount of Grand Prix to work your way through and the healthy amount of secret characters to unlock and shortcuts to find. But throughout you’ll always have that niggling feeling that it’s not quite as good as it could have been. The weapons – a mixture of generic bombs, boxing gloves and mega horns – don’t blend into the universe as well as they should and we’d like to have seen some characters switched out for other stronger ones. But nevertheless it remains entertaining, a feeling accelerated by getting three mates together on the couch ‘old-school style’. The original may still be the best, but Sonic & SEGA All-Stars Racing is a brilliant first attempt from Sumo, and the best kart racer on Playstation3.

Rating: 8.2

“FFXIII’s visuals are gobsmackingly beautiful – the CGI is easily the best we’ve ever seen in a game”

When it comes to post-1997 Final Fantasy, there’s a certain acceptance that each iteration has failed (some spectacularly so) to live up to the series’ highpoint, that rather than build upon its legacy, Final Fantasy has simply given up, content with wallowing in the shadow of its former self. So, while the release of this thirteenth Final Fantasy overlapping the thirteenth anniversary of FFVII may be purely coincidental, it’s also the perfect opportunity for Square-Enix to silence its critics. It’s been a long time coming but with the power of PS3 by its side, can FFXIII finally outclass the series’ thirteen-year-old darling?

Ironically, it starts not unlike Final Fantasy VII, aboard a cargo train heading into a green-hued urban area known as Hanged Edge, a zone on the edge of the city of Cocoon torn in a fight between PSICOM soldiers and a rebel alliance. It’s here that we first meet Lightning, a former Cocoon soldier, and co-star Snow, the head of Hanged Edge’s resistance group, whose paths suddenly collide as she attempts to save her sister from the terrorized city.

Hanged Edge is atmospheric if not spectacularly well designed, where identikit single-path highways and railroads funnel us through an introduction to the game’s combat system. There have been some big changes made to Final Fantasy’s combat over the years, of course, and some necessarily so, but FFXIII undoubtedly marks the biggest of them all.

FFXIII’s Active Battle System is very much a continuation of its immediate predecessor’s doing away with random battles and replacing them with visible enemies in the environment, but with one key difference: that control is limited solely to your party leader, rather than every member of your team. It’s a dumbing down of sorts but works remarkably well, with other party members performing actions for themselves, allowing you to focus purely on whichever member is leading your party at the time. It’s much faster as a result, with the ATB gauge letting you string together combinations of moves to unleash simultaneously. For example, Lightning’s opening ATB gauge offers two move slots – a standard attack on a single foe takes one, while her Blitz move, which damages multiple enemies within range of the blow, consumes two. Continuing to attack the same enemy, chain attack gauge, in turn increasing the damage dealt with every blow, and once the bar is filled you’re able to ‘stagger’ your foe, which increases your attack damage significantly. Items, too, are free actions rather than anything requiring a turn, allowing you to use potions to recover your team’s HP, or Phoenix Downs to recover a fallen comrade without expending any of your ATB gauge. And though your allies can fall, if the enemy manages to KO the partly leader, it’s an instant game over – so be sure to keep an eye on that HP bar at all times.

But if this all sounds a bit too confusing for you, rest assured that in practice it really isn’t. The combat system is far more accessible than that of any Final Fantasy previous with the included auto-battle option a life saver to anyone who have been put off by the barrage of options thrown at them in Final Fantasies gone by. FF vets won’t want to touch it with a barge pole, of course – the system reduces combat to nothing more than mashing the X button – but the fact that it’s there shows Square-Enix’s intention of opening Final Fantasy up to the widest spectrum of players possible.

Of course, the most important element of any Final Fantasy title is its story, and with only having played the initial few hours, it’s difficult to comment on too much. What we will say, however, is that the English voiceovers, though far from perfect, are still fairly impressive for a JRPG, and complete with some remarkable lip-synching. You’ll still have to put up with the hammy dialogue, however. The visuals, too, are gobsmackingly beautiful – its environments are striking, and its character models and CGI are easily the best we’ve ever seen in a videogame.

So, it’s a return to form, then? Well, we have to say that the jury’s still out on that one. But however Final Fantasy XIII turns out when it launches next month, it looks like it may be the most refined and most accessible JRPG ever, and certainly the most gorgeous.