Lair Review

By Dan Whitehead Published 5 October, 2007

Drags on. And on. And on.

Version tested: PlayStation 3

Upon its American release, back in August, Sony's anticipated flappy dragon epic Lair received the sort of critical reception best described as a "drubbing". Much was said about the decision to use the Sixaxis motion sensor for control, with no option for traditional analogue stick control, and most of what was said was very bad indeed. Sony retaliated by sending out a "reviewers guide" to unimpressed journalists, explaining how to review the game, while Factor 5's Julian Eggebrecht rather patronisingly implored them to "open your mind and hands for something very different!"

Know this much: the slightly wonky control scheme is actually the least of Lair's problems.

It is, sadly, the sort of game that encapsulates all that is wrong with console transition periods, that development limbo where Next Gen and Last Gen overlap. It's a game full of ugly gameplay lurking behind pretty cutscenes, where visual showboating fails to mask gruesome design decisions. It's all mouth and no trousers, a clumsy and shallow experience that desperately tries to position itself at the start of a console's life as the Future Of Gaming. It is, ironically, much like Dragon's Lair - another slender gaming experience that relied on visual impact to distract from its hollow centre.

'Lair' Screenshot 1

This sea serpent looks impressive, but acts like every other end of level boss ever. Find the pattern, repeat until dead.

For all of Eggebrecht's evangelism, Lair is emphatically not "something very different". It's just another uninspired aerial combat game, in which the only innovation comes in the form of motion sensing control. If you've played Ace Combat, Panzer Dragoon or Crimson Skies then there's little here that you haven't seen before. Heck, it's almost identical in concept and intent to Thanatos, the sorely underrated ZX Spectrum game from Durell that did the giant flying dragon thing far better over twenty years ago: chewed-up enemies, sea serpents and all.

Lair's storyline follows Rohn, a dragon riding knight, the fighter pilot equivalent of his painfully generic fantasy world. There's a kingdom torn asunder by civil war, scheming politicians and reams of leaden purple prose that make the Star Wars prequels look like havens of naturalistic dialogue. The design and soundtrack, meanwhile, shamelessly strive for the sweeping majesty of Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings trilogy without ever achieving the same level of emotional honesty or cultural verisimilitude. Unless you're the sort of person who eagerly buys pewter statues of trolls and dutifully reads books called The Moonsword of Gragarth: Volume XI of the Blood Riders of Ferax Saga, there's not a single element of the game's universe that will feel fresh or enticing. As your involvement in this lurid yarn is simply to fly around in between great gobs of exposition it's a real act of will to remain engaged with the lumbering plot.

'Lair' Screenshot 2

Look at the rows of soldier mannequins in the background. Where's the sport in ripping such blank foes to shreds?

Once you're in the air, and contrary to popular opinion, the basic controls are actually fairly intuitive. Banking left and right feels fluid and, while it admittedly takes a while to be able to navigate with accuracy, the spread of tutorials gives you plenty of opportunity to practice. Less successful are the 180 turn and forward thrust moves. To immediately reverse direction, an upwards jolt on the controller is required. Shoving the joypad forwards produces a burst of speed. At least, that's the theory. These moves actually highlight the shortcomings of the Sixaxis as a motion sensing device, often requiring several attempts before the game reads your movement and responds in kind. That it sometimes misreads one for the other can be hugely irritating, sending you barrelling onwards when you needed to go the other way.

Even so, it's not unworkable by any means, just a little fudgy and counter-intuitive. What it utterly fails to do, though, is justify the change in control. The game doesn't benefit in any appreciable way from the motion sensing, nor does it make the game more immersive. If anything, the opposite is true. The lightweight plastic of the Sixaxis doesn't sell the feeling of a monstrous beast at your command and jolting the controller up and down to perform simple functions simply serves to remind you that you're waggling a joypad to move a dragon on your telly. You're more focussed on what your hands are doing than what's on screen.

'Lair' Screenshot 3

These flying mantas are the basis for some truly wretched escort missions. If they take too much damage, they explode like bombs.

Still, the feeling you get as you swoop your leathery mount around the epic HD scenery is undeniably impressive first time out. Unfortunately, you're not in the game to go sightseeing and combat is where the game's real weakness lies. Battling airborne foes requires you to lock on to them, as a white halo appears around enemies in your sights (you have no on-screen reticule or any control over which enemy the game highlights) and R1 then fixes them in your baleful glare. A jab of the Square button sends a fireball their way (a homing fireball, apparently) while Circle sends your dragon hurtling towards them for some close-up scrapping. For weaker foes, this alone is enough to kill them and as they fall you can move the camera around to lock on to other nearby targets to rack up combo kills, pinballing through a flock of dragons.

Often, however, you'll end up stuck with what are essentially mini-games to beat your foe depending on what direction you attacked from. Sometimes it's a rudimentary beat-em-up, as both dragons lunge at each other with their talons or shoot point blank jets of flame. There's an awkward delay between pressing a button and the attack animation, while graphically it's not even clear if the blows are landing. Regardless, health bars go down and eventually your enemy drops from the sky.

Worse are the times when you find yourself flying alongside an enemy, and must use the joypad to stay level with them while violent lurches to the left or right are used to ram them into submission. As with the 180 turn, it's a move that the controller struggles to consistently recognise and the combat feels random and intangible as a result. Finally, you may end up leaping from your dragon to clobber the enemy pilot yourself. In these instances, it's really just a glorified Quick Time Event, as you follow the on-screen cues to trigger the attack sequence. Fail to "move the left stick" in time and you magically reappear on your dragon and keep flying.

So, essentially, the dragon combat in a game that hinges on the core concept of dragon combat is an unappealing mixture of button mashing, button matching and imprecise joypad shaking. It's both tediously simplistic and needlessly fiddly at the same time. It is, as Kristan would surely say, an enormous faff. Fighting on the ground is even less edifying, a simplified version of melee games like Samurai Warriors in which you steer your dragon around like a tank (using the analogue stick for control, all of a sudden) in an attempt to destroy the required number of stiffly animated soldiers. Just landing is a chore, as sometimes your dragon simply hovers without touching down, and the camera flails like a fish once tethered to the ground.

'Lair' Screenshot 4

You can unlock new dragons to ride but, for a game which relies so much on these beasts, they're a drab and characterless bunch.

Worse, the game funnels you into situations that seem to actively highlight the shortcomings of the game engine. An early mission requires you to assault a fortress by shooting out the spotlights, before flying inside to extinguish four signal fires. Not only is the camera horribly incapable of coping with the enclosed environment - often giving you glimpses inside solid objects or even the hollowed-out polygons of your dragon - but the objective itself reeks of lazy game design. The four signal fires have canopies hanging over them, which you must dislodge to snuff them out. You breathe fire on the ropes. Nothing. You swipe them with your claws. They don't even move and even pass through your body as you fly at them. Finally, you realise you can lock-on to these static objects and zoom in for the attack. Only then do they become tangible, and only then do your strikes have any effect. Once the canopy is dropped you're crudely blasted back outside and have to face down another wave of enemies, and blast another spotlight, before you can get back inside and tackle the next fire. It's fussy, nonsensical and old-fashioned "repeat the pattern" game design and this out-dated approach recurs again and again throughout the game during both regular combat and boss battles.

'Lair' Screenshot 5

And if you look over there, you can see the ghost of Tolkien. And, ooh, he's waving a lawsuit!

But at least Lair has its looks, right? It's a game you can use to show off your overdraft-busting flatscreen? Well, not quite. For a game that has been heralded as the poster child for the glory of the 1080p PS3 experience, Lair is pretty grisly once you look past the glittery exterior. The frame rate bounces up and down like Oprah's calorie intake, while the immediate wow factor of the graphics is shortlived. The sensation of flying above an epic battle is somewhat undermined when you notice that the soldiers are all standing in neat lines, all repeating the same frames of animation and using the same character models. The undulating water effects are beautiful up close, but from high in the sky the ocean becomes a patchwork of squares, all looping the same waves. Dry land has the opposite problem. Soaring near the clouds, the terrain below looks rich and detailed but when the game asks you to swoop down to earth, textures begin clumsily popping in as you stutter over them. Urk.

'Lair' Screenshot 6

Onward, Draco! Onward to Aldi, and cheap biscuits for all!

If the game were inspiring and absorbing in either narrative or gameplay then such technical hiccups would be unfortunate - Oblivion, for example, features plenty of egregious visual blemishes yet still sucks you in for the long haul - but Lair has precious little to offer beyond its initial short-lived "Ooh!" factor. There are just fourteen missions, and repetition soon becomes a problem. Protect these things! Destroy those! More enemy dragons are approaching! Everything comes in pre-determined waves, like Space Invaders without the lo-fi charm, while the gameplay is constantly interrupted for more cutscenes showing the arrival of new enemies or the destruction of scenery. Rather than being seamlessly woven into the action, these scenes are awkward intrusions full of juddering recycled animation. For all its free-roaming appearances, you're still hemmed into an invisible sphere, unable to travel too far from the battle in any direction. The whole experience, from bottom to top, is clunky and deeply disappointing.

Lair, sadly, is a classic example of the apocryphal polished turd. Strip away the HD bluster and the game beneath is little more than a basic PS2 shooter with a makeover. The derided motion sensing controls can be grasped with just a little patience but the game simply doesn't offer anything to justify even that small investment. Even with the controls mastered, even with the numerous technical flaws ignored, the game remains shallow and repetitive, devoid of drama and reliant on sound and fury to disguise the fact that at its heart is a rather shoddily constructed collection of hoary old clichés.

4 / 10

Read the Eurogamer.net scoring policy
Picture of Dan.

About Dan Whitehead

Dan has been writing for Eurogamer since 2006 and specialises in RPGs, shooters and games for children. His bestest game ever is Julian Gollop's Chaos.

Read more articles from Dan by visiting the Dan Whitehead archive page.

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Comments (198) Latest comment 4 years ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • smoothpete #1 4 years ago

    To be expected really.

  • slave23d #2 4 years ago

    well, so erm... another reason to buy a ps3 goes up in smoke. doesnt look good either. apart from the dragon. erm, which flies and plays like a leather x wing
    Edited by 2 at 05/10/07 @ 07:37

  • NotSoSlim #3 4 years ago

    Anyone suprised.

    Wheres the 360 fanboys jumping on the bandwagon?

    Factor 5 suck. Roll on 26th October onwards

  • numptyboymatt #4 4 years ago

    I WAS considering getting this as I love anything that involves dragons, but if you HAVE to use the motion sensing, then its a no no no for me. Also, it sounds a tad rubbish.

  • Genji #5 4 years ago

    more like liar OH YEAH

  • smoothpete #6 4 years ago

    Egregious is my word of the day

  • Twinkle #7 4 years ago

    Unless you're the sort of person who eagerly buys pewter statues of trolls and dutifully reads books called The Moonsword of Gragarth: Volume XI of the Blood Riders of Ferax Saga...

    \o/

    /buys Lair

  • mojo_x #8 4 years ago

    So it's as good as Halo then?

  • lambtron #9 4 years ago

    "Onward, Draco! Onward to Aldi, and cheap biscuits for all!"

    haha.
    Edited by 1 at 05/10/07 @ 07:48

  • Talha #10 4 years ago

    Ouch. It seems Sony didn't do a decent enough job with their reviewer's guide!

  • Genji #11 4 years ago

    "How to give Lair 10/10 - a handy guide"

    Obviously, the reviewers didn't read it properly.

  • Les #12 4 years ago

    "Even with the controls mastered, even with the numerous technical flaws ignored, the game remains shallow and repetitive, devoid of drama and reliant on sound and fury to disguise the fact that at its heart is a rather shoddily constructed collection of hoary old clichés."

    Like all the other next gen games that for some reason don't get slammed as much... The game is quite good IMO, offers something that you can't get elsewhere: gigantic scale air and ground battles and the motion controls add to the experience. It's definitely a step up from the Rogue Squadron series rather than just an HD upgrade.

  • LeD #13 4 years ago

    4 seems a little bit generous. Reads like a 1/10 game.

  • Kill_Crazy #14 4 years ago

    Didn`t think it was too bad. Every one of my mates that has played has liked it.

    This, however is going to get ugly.

  • bauhaus #15 4 years ago

    oh dear

  • Xerx3s #16 4 years ago

    Not as good as Halo 3 then. Or 2. Or 1.

  • peteb #17 4 years ago

    So, half as good as Gears then?

    (i thought i'd join in)

  • NewYork #18 4 years ago

    Sorry but this is clearly more of a 9/10, possibly a strict 8/10, but never a 4.

    Like most reviewers, you probably gave it a quick go and thought the controls were rubbish. If you worked at it a bit, you might find that it's actually a lot of fun navigating your unwieldy dragon, and the gameplay underneath is tight and absorbing.

  • TripSkyway #19 4 years ago

    Sounds a bit duff, what does "verisimilitude" mean?

  • Verwandlung #20 4 years ago

    Is there a reason to buy a Ps3?

  • themerlin13 #21 4 years ago

    "Lair, sadly, is a classic example of the apocryphal polished turd"

    LOL Quality. Wonder if that will be the review caption that every game has to have stuck on the front case! LOL

  • Nithron #22 4 years ago

    The dragon's head looks like it was ripped right out of that 90's Godzilla remake.

  • Garulon #23 4 years ago

    "The game is quite good IMO, offers something that you can't get elsewhere: gigantic scale air and ground battles and the motion controls add to the experience"

    PS3 fanboi loves Lair shocker!

  • Triggerhappytel #24 4 years ago

    There's still 75 users who want this game.

  • siro #25 4 years ago

    Would have been a better tag line if slightly altered: Dragons drag on. And on. And on.

  • b0bb1ns #26 4 years ago

    'verisimilitude' means something that looks true/real/correct

  • Guv #27 4 years ago

    *goes back to playing Panzer Dragoon Orta*

  • TripSkyway #28 4 years ago

    @bobbins
    Thanks.
    Edited by 1 at 05/10/07 @ 08:26

  • Darren #29 4 years ago

    It's hard to argue with the review or the score because it's typical of what every other review has said about the game. Personally I don't find it that bad - I found the controls mostly fine - but there again I wouldn't be foolish to call it a classic either. It could and should have been so much better; the framerate, for example, is pretty awful for a 720p game and even worst at 1080p. I'd give it a 6 I think; it gets an extra mark for the cool factor of flying around a huge dragon!

  • Trane #30 4 years ago

    "So, half as good as Gears then?"

    And/or Mysims I guess.

  • dr_swin #31 4 years ago

    very funny the merlin13 - I liked that a lot.

  • dr_swin #32 4 years ago

    i seem to remember it was pretty high up the most wanted list as well.

  • Scimarad #33 4 years ago

    "Know this much: the slightly wonky control scheme is actually the least of Lair's problems."

    Yep! That's the Lair I played rather than the one everybody keeps describing in the comments thread. You were extremely unfair about one thing, though: How dare you compare this steaming pile draco-shite to the wonderful Thanatos.

    /dons rose tinted specs

  • Pablo2k5 #34 4 years ago

    Is there any point to owning a PS3?

  • Scimarad #35 4 years ago

    @ Pablo

    Yes, plenty - Lair most certainly isn't one of them.

  • Gojira #36 4 years ago

    @ Trip SkyWay

    b0bb1ns was clearly making a point about the reviewer trying to sound clever, but in fact sounding like an faux intellectual idiot who doesn't know the meaning of the words he's throwing around when he's trying to impress people with his big vocabulary.

    Dan Whitehead (and Trip) ftl.

  • Carlo #37 4 years ago

    I f***ing knew it!

  • krudster #38 4 years ago

    You know, expanding your vocabulary now and then isn't actually a bad thing. It takes about 1 second to copy the word in question and another second to paste it into google. I'm not sure where all this inverted snobbery comes from.

  • deepmenace #39 4 years ago

    worse than genji?

    you guys need to get some perspective. nice "trendy" review.

    btw, famitsu gave this 34/40. a fairly reliable publication far removed from western influence. interesting yes?

    if you're a ps3 owner who's is curious then do yourself a huge favour and give this a go. it has flaws but it is playable, often breathtaking and, tbh, if it was analog stick controlled it'd be boring.
    Edited by 1 at 05/10/07 @ 08:47

  • 3william56 #40 4 years ago

    "cultural verisimilitude"
    Ooohh - look who got a thesaurus for his birthday.

    Pity this has been so badly messed up. There's a great game in there somewhere screaming and kicking to get out. Maybe if someone's daft enough to fund a sequel, it'll be worthy of the concept. This, on the other hand, is worthy of a movie cash in -would have made a perfect Eragon game.

  • Scimarad #41 4 years ago

    "if you're a ps3 owner who's is curious then do yourself a huge favour and give this a go. it has flaws but it is playable, often breathtaking and, tbh, if it was analog stick controlled it'd be boring."

    I'm really pleased at least some people are enjoying it but please don't try and persuade people to buy it! If you are curious about Lair FFS try before you buy...

  • paul_haine #42 4 years ago

    Game gets bad review - Eurogamer gets told off for being trendy/following the crowd.

    Game gets good review - Eurogamer gets told off for falling for the hype.

  • gamerbunny #43 4 years ago

    Oh dear....

  • Pike #44 4 years ago

    btw, famitsu gave this 34/40. a fairly reliable publication...

    Lol!

  • Dizzy #45 4 years ago

    4? Phew.. I expected EG to murder this.. but a 4? Game reminds me of those early CD gagmes... well at least it fill a Bluray disk!

    Can I say it? Nobody has ; )

    TEH R3AL NEXT GEN! ;)

    I think the lesson Sony learned is that you should not hype your games until you are sure they are actually good. If this was an 8 game with solid gameplay I am sure a lot of people would have been happy and impressed.
    Edited by 2 at 05/10/07 @ 09:02

  • DUFFMAN5 #46 4 years ago

    .........another one bites the dust, reasons to own a ps3 that is. If I were Sony I would be doing everthing to get MGS and GT out NOW. Just makes me love my 360 that much more.

  • Scimarad #47 4 years ago

    "You know, expanding your vocabulary now and then isn't actually a bad thing. It takes about 1 second to copy the word in question and another second to paste it into google. I'm not sure where all this inverted snobbery comes from."

    While I fully agree with what you are saying, some reviewers take it to the extreme by spouting paragraph after paragraph of flowery nonsense and don't end up saying anything much at all. Edge certainly used to do that a lot and came across with a superior "Let's all get together and laugh at the stupid little game" attitude. I can think of one contributor to EG who is sometimes guilty of this but I not pointing any fingers - Especially as I appear to be alone in being infuriated by it;-)

    Er, this wasn't one of THOSE reviews though - I thought it was informative and to the point.

  • BM #48 4 years ago

    Where the fuck is Draco with my cheap biscuits?

  • jiveguy #49 4 years ago

    @paul_haine

    And thats why they should give all games an 8...or possibly a "harsh" 7. Then no-one would complain. But in the end the people who want a game will get it no matter what the review scores are. And people who were saying a game will be great or those who think it will be a bit challenged in the verisimilitudeness department will always find it hard to back down from that position if they are wrong. One thing I wouldn't like to see here is EG doing reviews by committee then we really will end up with a slew of 7/10s each week. And that would just be nightmarish and possibly a real hit to the ad revenue if fan boys don't get upset.

    I've said too much.
    Edited by 1 at 05/10/07 @ 09:05

  • FlamingCarrot #50 4 years ago

    No chance of A Turrican revival then?

  • Mullet94 #51 4 years ago

    You lot crack me up at times, so there is no bad games on the 360? Hour of Victory or Two Worlds just to mention a couple. Every console has bad games that's the fault of the software companies not the console.

  • DUFFMAN5 #52 4 years ago

    Re some of the reviews of the review, I'm sorry, sir. I'm anus-peptic, phrasmotic, even compunctious to have
    caused you such pericombobulation.

  • DanWhitehead #53 4 years ago

    Duffman, that's antidisestablishmentarianism of the worst kind and you know it.

  • DUFFMAN5 #54 4 years ago

    Dan.....bugger!

  • DjFlex52 #55 4 years ago

    "You lot crack me up at times, so there is no bad games on the 360? Hour of Victory or Two Worlds just to mention a couple. Every console has bad games that's the fault of the software companies not the console."

    You crack me up....HoV and Two Worlds were NEVER hyped like Lair was.
    You want more bad 360 games? Add Vampire Rain and Bomberman: Act Zero to the list.

    Feel better now?

  • Scimarad #56 4 years ago

    Whatever angle I look at it from I can't imagine why anyone would want to give Lair anymore than 5/10. Maybe it is much improved in standard definition as that would help with performance - That still wouldn't take care of all the gameplay issues. Personally I don't think it warrants anymore than a 3 or a 4 and I LIKED the music.

    I can see how a game like Folklore could split opinion as it doesn't have any real technical issues (apart from a pause after closing the menu) that would get in the way. Still, some people find it utterly boring while some people really enjoy it leading to wildly varying opinions.

    Lair, however; I can't see how anyone can get past all the flaws and still rate it above a 5.
    Edited by 2 at 05/10/07 @ 09:14

  • DonnieDarko333 #57 4 years ago

    I have this game and the reviews have been way too harsh on it! It's not amazing, but i have no trouble flying the dragon, the graphics are exceptional and the levels are pretty frantic, i would give it at least 7/10.

    Everyone has different opinions though, so....

  • Razz #58 4 years ago

    JulianEkbertlol

  • kissthestick #59 4 years ago

    holy shit @ the trolling

  • SBfistfun #60 4 years ago

    Wow olny 400+ quid to play this.

    "next gen" my arse

  • Eighthours #61 4 years ago

    The thing that amused me was when Eggybreath talked about how Lair was so much more than a Rogue Squadron knock-off, when there are missions in the game that require you to tow-cable AT-ATs... er... I mean, put ropes around elephants.

  • Razz #62 4 years ago

    I'm so glad I didn't waste my monies ona PS£.

  • Steroyd #63 4 years ago

    I think this should be a 5, so we can LOL at Factor 5

  • neuroniky #64 4 years ago

    My compliments on recalling Thanatos. The first thing I did remember when reading the concept of Lair was Dragonstrike (which was an amazing game, btw), but I never heard of that Spectrum game. Have to give it a go tonight.

  • SeesThroughAll #65 4 years ago

    Surprinsingly enough, the Japanese LOVE Lair.

    Famitsu even gave it a 34/40!

    The world must be coming to an end...
    Edited by 2 at 05/10/07 @ 09:36

  • the_tellurian #66 4 years ago

    Best thing about Lair is definetly the soundtrack, which is among the best pieces of music written for a video game I've encountered, up there with Metal Gear Solid and Shadow of the Colossus. If you can forgive the composers blatantly "ripping off" Basil Poleduris Conan and John Williams Star Wars scores, which is in fact a totally awesome combination...
    Sadly it seems it's the only thing worth remembering.

  • Big-Swiss #67 4 years ago

    I'll do this the same way like Conan and HS, I'll wait for Price drops, but I will for sure give this a go, I just can't imagine such a advertised game to be so shitty......................maybe not woth 100 CHF, but for 60-70 CHF it could be a must game for every game collection since it has this rare Dragen Midevil thing going.
    I mean hey, just because you can't handle a freaking sony controler doesen't mean a game is shit;-))))

  • Turambar #68 4 years ago

    Meh, at the end of the day its just the reviewers opinion.

  • Razz #69 4 years ago

    And many others. HA! I went there! :p
    Edited by 2 at 05/10/07 @ 09:29

  • afghan_jones #70 4 years ago

    ouch. well there it is.

    Another game to be crossed off the "Possible Reasons to Fork Out for a PS3" list.

    Thats a list looking mighty slim these days. Haze, LBP and singstar are about the only things left that oculd possibly tempt me.

    Seriously, how do you fuck up a game based around massive fighting dragons? It ought to be amazing!

  • DanWhitehead #71 4 years ago

    Here's the mighty Thanatos in action: http://www .youtube.com/watch?v=VruAncI6XzA

  • Steroyd #72 4 years ago

    Holy shit at the PS3 price trolling.

  • pyrat6 #73 4 years ago

    /meanwhile .... back on countdown ..

    "apocryphal polished turd"

    Apocryphal ? proverbial surely

  • nickthegun #74 4 years ago

    So its ok for a reviewer to criticise the motion sensing controls if its not a Wii game?

    You people and your double standards SICKEN ME!

  • bushwod #75 4 years ago

    I'm actually starting to feel sorry for the PS3. Where are the killer aps?

  • SeesThroughAll #76 4 years ago

    Seriously, just look at a release schedule, mate. I am sure you will find good PS3 games coming out till christmas.

  • smoothpete #77 4 years ago

    My friend in Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch agrees with the review. He says the challenges lack honorificabilitudinitatibus.

    But all this floccinaucinihilipilification about the PS3 has reached levels of disproportionableness.

  • Hog-lumps #78 4 years ago

    So its ok for a reviewer to criticise the motion sensing controls if its not a Wii game?

    You people and your double standards SICKEN ME!

    What double standards? o_O

    \Points nickthegun at 'red steel' and 'resident evil 4' wii reviews

  • Les #79 4 years ago

    "Lair, however; I can't see how anyone can get past all the flaws and still rate it above a 5."

    It definitely is flawed but I enjoy playing it: I'm only halfway through but I've played all missions several times after I'd completed them. The game could be a bit harder though: I've completed all missions on first try so far.

    But it's definitely a lot better than the terrible Oblivion that's been refered to in the review. This is actually a game.

  • TripSkyway #80 4 years ago

    "@ Trip SkyWay

    b0bb1ns was clearly making a point about the reviewer trying to sound clever, but in fact sounding like an faux intellectual idiot who doesn't know the meaning of the words he's throwing around when he's trying to impress people with his big vocabulary.

    Dan Whitehead (and Trip) ftl."

    I asked what it meant a few posts up from b0bb1ns post, and he kindly answered for me.
    Edited by 1 at 05/10/07 @ 09:51

  • nickthegun #81 4 years ago

    \Points nickthegun at 'red steel' and 'resident evil 4' wii reviews

    /points Hog-Lumps at the internets worth of whiny 'OMGTHEREVIEWERISWRONG' posts in those review threads
    //which is the point I was making

  • tonynibbles #82 4 years ago

    Another game to be crossed off the "Possible Reasons to Fork Out for a PS3" list.

    This game was never on that list. Though there are plenty others.

  • smoothpete #83 4 years ago

    lol, better than Oblivion? Chinny reckon

  • monkie_king #84 4 years ago

    @deepmenace: "tbh, if it was analog stick controlled it'd be boring".

    So you think that if they'd given it a non-broken control system, it should have scored even lower?

    "75 users want this game" ... to be buried in the desert.

    @tonynibbles: lots of PS3 exclusives there that have received high review scores, then. Oh, wait.
    Edited by 1 at 05/10/07 @ 09:58

  • Hog-lumps #85 4 years ago

    @ nickthegun

    Ah, okay. It was sarcasm - I get it now....

  • alpha-0ne #86 4 years ago

    Theres a bit of a pattern here with PS3 games they look good graphically but are very very shallow underneath a bit like the original killzone on PS2

  • space_ace #87 4 years ago

    looks like the old cryo fmv games

  • Razz #88 4 years ago

    Lair
    HUH?
    What is it good for?
    ABSOLUTELY NOTHING!
    Say it again!

  • JediMasterMalik #89 4 years ago

    Hardly unexpected after they had to send out reviewing guides and julian was sent to the front lines to defend the game at every opportunity.

  • Les #90 4 years ago

    "lol, better than Oblivion? Chinny reckon"

    Yeah, never played a worse game. It's incredibly ugly: It has the worst art direction of any game, ever. Animation is a laugh. The 3rd person camera is so terrible, they'd better not bottered. The game engine is clearly not up to the task, with a sluggish framerate, scenery popping into view, slain enemies floating in the air. There are 1000s of things to do but none of them is worth doing. And worst of all, leveling up is completely pointless as the enemies level up with you (though it might also be a blessing in disguise as I've never encountered a game with worse grinding required to level up).

    It's the worst game I've played since that Bruce Willis movie game on the C64.

  • Bigglesworth #91 4 years ago

    I really wanna see the 'reviewing guide'; EG, can you publish it?

  • tonynibbles #92 4 years ago

    WarHawk, MotorStorm, Super Stadust HD, fl0w, GTHD, LocoRoco Cocoreccho, Folklore - All high scorers.
    Eye of Judgement, Ratchet & Clank, Uncharted, Unreal Tournament III, SingStar, Haze, MotorStorm Dirty Weekend, Time Crisis 4 and WipEout HD - all enough to keep me happy this side of christmas.
    And that's just the big exclusive titles. Plenty more on the multiformat side thank you very much...

  • smoothpete #93 4 years ago

    Here's a link to scans of the guide

    linky

  • gogobaka #94 4 years ago

    Haha, there's always some great games around the corner for PS3 owners to get excited about, and then when they turn out to be rubbish, there's another batch of games around corner, etc.

    When are you going to realise that for whatever reason the PS3 just isn't capable of turning out a AAA exclusive, and that your multiplatform titles will be inferior to the 360 verson.

  • J.C #95 4 years ago

    Julian go and beg nintendo for another chance, they might take you guys back. maybe a brand new rouge leader game, will help mend your ripped to fucking shreds reputation.

  • Razz #96 4 years ago

    I really wanna see the 'reviewing guide'; EG, can you publish it?

    Errrr... The Lair review guide is right here

  • Ace_McCloud #97 4 years ago

    "WarHawk, MotorStorm, Super Stadust HD, fl0w, GTHD, LocoRoco Cocoreccho, Folklore - All high scorers.
    Eye of Judgement, Ratchet & Clank, Uncharted, Unreal Tournament III, SingStar, Haze, MotorStorm Dirty Weekend, Time Crisis 4 and WipEout HD - all enough to keep me happy this side of christmas.
    And that's just the big exclusive titles. Plenty more on the multiformat side thank you very much... "

    Really? You're selection of games makes me a sad Panda.

  • Razz #98 4 years ago

    headbog:

    :D

    I believe he's talking about Lair.
    Edited by 1 at 05/10/07 @ 10:17

  • monkie_king #99 4 years ago

    @tonynibbles: read gogobaka's comment (EDIT: but ignore the trolling part). My point was that all of those titles are an unknown quantity at the moment-you can't buy a console based on the hope that every game will live up to its hype. I hope all of those games do turn out to be great-that would go some way toward persuading me to pick up a PS3 (well, not Eye of Judgement).

    After all, two months ago you'd have had Lair on your list of fantastic upcoming PS3 exclusives.
    Edited by 1 at 05/10/07 @ 10:20

  • DanWhitehead #100 4 years ago

    a brand new rouge leader game

    I agree. We need more mascara-based gaming.

  • deaner #101 4 years ago

    Not sure how the review can comment on 'hoary old clichés' in a videogame review.

    I can't think of many games which aren't! Including certain top-rated flagships FPS titles...

    Not a good game, but not a great review either!

  • monkie_king #102 4 years ago

    headbog, sure -- GT5 is likely to be pretty awesome too. But they're both months and months away - may as well wait until they actually come out rather than pre-emptorily buying the console and having nothing worth playing in the meanwhile, I reckon.

    Should benefit from some heavy price cuts on the hardware by then, too.

  • Kenshin001 #103 4 years ago

    I'll probably still get it though. Blue Dragon got 5/10 on EG yet lots of people seem to think it was good. Lair's got mixed reviews from people who have played it while I think many reviewers have jumped on the bandwagon, especially the issues with motion control. The game got decent scores on Famitsu. I'm not expecting anything magical, just something different to the run of the mill shooters, racers and RPGs.

    Goodness, I just noticed the usual infestation of trolls in this comments section. For people who don't own the console and will never play the game they seem hysterical about it.
    Edited by 1 at 05/10/07 @ 10:32

  • X201 #104 4 years ago

    My Spectrum is better than your Comodeodore
    :p


  • Eighthours #105 4 years ago

    This game was never on that (possible reasons to fork out for a PS3)list.

    Revisionist history much?

  • Bigglesworth #106 4 years ago

    Cheers smoothpete, I'd managed to miss that.

    As I suspected then, once again this is a whole lot of drama about nothing. The guide is nothing but a controls sheet and a wodge of "making of" marketing bumf, hardly the slap in the face to journalistic integrity its been made out to be... *facepalm*

  • MENTAL1ST Verified Senior Software Engineer, Picsel UK Ltd. #107 4 years ago

    "Eye of Judgement"

    You're kidding surely? Are you 9 years old? I don't understand how any self-respecting adult would want to play a game that involved waving CCG cards under a table mounted camera so they could see monsters sitting on their hands on a TV.

  • DanWhitehead #108 4 years ago

    Not sure how the review can comment on 'hoary old clichés' in a videogame review.

    I can't think of many games which aren't! Including certain top-rated flagships FPS titles...

    It's true that games are hardly a haven of fresh thinking, but it all depends what is done with the cliches. Lair features gameplay ideas that went out of fashion ten years ago, with the horribly designed and artificial watchtower level being just one glaring example. If this were the only complaint I leveled at the game you'd have a point, but its rote mechanics are just one in a series of creative fumbles.

  • Big-Swiss #109 4 years ago

    @Nick

    I'm the guy who makes the faults in here!

    now! not know! we are know now!

    the only guy pissing is you, you tard!
    Edited by 1 at 05/10/07 @ 10:43

  • DanWhitehead #110 4 years ago

    The guide is nothing but a controls sheet and a wodge of "making of" marketing bumf, hardly the slap in the face to journalistic integrity its been made out to be...

    Just to clarify, the reviewers guide was sent to US journalists. As far as I know, Eurogamer did not receive one. And the problem with the guide is that it was only sent to journalists after they'd reviewed the game and scored it badly, implying that they didn't know how to play it.

  • Les #111 4 years ago

    "I'm not expecting anything magical, just something different to the run of the mill shooters, racers and RPGs."

    That you'll get.

    "Not a good game, but not a great review either!"

    It's his honest opinion (I assume), so quite hard to fault that. Main motivation for the poor score is poor (but partly addressed in a comment). Like I said earlier, if an HD upgrade of an old game format doesn't cut it, than there's no 'next gen' game that should be awarded a score above a 4. Lair sure has its faults and isn't a great departure from the Rogue Squadron series (though with a completely different feel thanks to the motion controls) but its not like this game category is as crowded as FPS, racing games, or whatever.
    Edited by 1 at 05/10/07 @ 10:47

  • DanWhitehead #112 4 years ago

    It didn't get a 4 because it's an HD upgrade of an old game format. It got 4 because I found it to be charmless, poorly designed, repetitive and very little fun to play.

  • krudster #113 4 years ago

    No, we didn't get the Lair reviewer's guide. As far as I know, only EA sends these sorts of things out, and in those instances they're actually very useful.

  • tonynibbles #114 4 years ago

    Eye of Judgement is a concept I've not ever seen before (apart from in Star Wars) - I'm terrbily sorry, please please forgive me for being interested in something truly new.

    After all, two months ago you'd have had Lair on your list of fantastic upcoming PS3 exclusives.

    Oh please - Lair was certainly never on my list. All the screenshots and gameplay videos from day one had 'this is going to be pants' written all over them. Besides, those who don't have a PS3 are probably reading more of the hype than those with the console, who are genuinely looking out for which games will be good on the horizon.

    My point was that all of those titles are an unknown quantity at the moment-you can't buy a console based on the hope that every game will live up to its hype.

    Not quite. I've played the Uncharted demo, loved it. Played the Ratchet and Clank demo and loved that too. SingStar has shining first reviews.
    The others - sure, they could bomb. Eye of Judgement is the dodgiest, the others are 'expected' to do well. Of course - time will tell. Those are just the exclusive games that I personally am looking forward to.
    Edited by 1 at 05/10/07 @ 10:54

  • pinchofsalt #115 4 years ago


    I was looking forward to a graphical update to Drakan.
    Damn them.

  • MENTAL1ST Verified Senior Software Engineer, Picsel UK Ltd. #116 4 years ago

    "The game doesn't benefit in any appreciable way from the motion sensing, nor does it make the game more immersive."

    That's starting to become quite a common refrain in this console generation. Apart from Wii Sports, Wario Ware and other minigame compilations, all this motion-sensing stuff has had a bit of a drubbing.

    Edit: (ooh hark at me picking up on vocabulary from the review)
    Edited by 1 at 05/10/07 @ 10:56

  • Les #117 4 years ago

    "All the screenshots and gameplay videos from day one had 'this is going to be pants' written all over them."

    The videos were terrible, except for the 'day one' one TBH... ;)

  • zuljin #118 4 years ago

    DanWhitehead
    "I agree. We need more mascara-based gaming."
    Reposted because its hilarious...

    As for the "review guide", there is nothing wrong with that. I just had a look at it, and its basically just an expanded manual. Theres a foreword by Julian, then about 10 pages on how to play, then theres about another 10 pages on art direction.

    Bogstandard manual.

  • monkie_king #119 4 years ago

    @tony - fair play, then, in terms of being convinced by the demos, I'll concede that point.

    Not letting you get away with counting a karaoke game as a AAA killer title though. We're gamers not 16-year-old girls! ;-)

    I should point out that I'm really not partisan - the non-handhelds I have include PS1, N64, Yaroze, DC, GC, PS2, XBox, and Wii. I'm also likely to buy a 360 or a PS3 this side of Christmas. The 360 has a solid catalogue of games right now, and an excellent online component (including the XBLA goodness). The PS3 mostly has a bunch of broken promises.

    I'm sure I'll end up with both a couple of years down the line (price isn't an issue, just finding enough hours in the day to use them). But if I want a console to enjoy over the next 6 to 12 months, I'm really not finding much to recommend a PS3 at the moment.

    Although I'm willing to be convinced.

  • gogobaka #120 4 years ago

    I'm sure some of the upcoming games for the PS3 will turn out to be decent games, but the PS3 doesn't need that, it needs AAA titles that people will actually want to runout and buy. Look at Heavenly Sword, it was a decent game, got decent reviews, and it's had absolutely bugger all impact on the PS3.

    And I honestly cannot see Drakes, Ratchet, and Haze having any more impact.

  • zooms #121 4 years ago

    Jam tomorrow.

  • megastar #122 4 years ago

    nickM40A3: "I laugh at all the PS3 fans who this time two months ago said this game was going to piss all over 360 games

    where are you know bitches? that's right crying over your dead console"


    what are you like 12 years old?

  • 2ombie #123 4 years ago

    being an owner of both 360 and ps3, this comment is for the 360 fanboys who are posting, ok so u love a console that starts off with the cheap core option but also an option to buy a premium with wait for it a hard drive(something that the xbox 1 already had), hey wait lets buy an elite cos of the bigger hard drive but wait what about the people who already own a 360? 120quid for a bigger hard drive u say bill gates? ok so what happens if it breaks and lets be honest fanboys who still has a launch console (36% failure rate) and then have to wait for 25 days for MS to send a refurb 360 and extend the warranty to 3 years cos it might look bad if they did a product recall. honestly people if you a fan of gaming you should admire any quality game that comes out on any console....(remember im not talking about Lair in particular here,lol).

  • T4RG4 #124 4 years ago

    Erm ok ^

    Everyone should have known this would suck dragon balls from the videos!

  • bonker #125 4 years ago

    "Lair: the game the XBOX 360 couldn't do".

    Edge magazine Xmas 06

  • mattigan #126 4 years ago

    AAA???

    oh dear

  • Dizzy #127 4 years ago

    >remember im not talking about Lair in particular here,lol).

    Indeed.. join the ignore list.

  • mash the x button #128 4 years ago

    Fantastic news! The ps3 is dead and I'll be able to pick one up for £49.99 down Woolies anytime soon. Been waiting for Sony to reduce the price, make it so!!!!
    And if Lair is lurking in the 50p bargain bin I'll have one too please.
    Edited by 1 at 05/10/07 @ 11:56

  • lennon #129 4 years ago

    @Dizzy. I thought you were being harsh until i read the whole post :)

    Another game that I wont be getting although I do agree with whoever it was that said about EG's Blue Dragon score which I throughly enjoyed.

    Bring on R&C thats what I am waiting for.

  • admir #130 4 years ago

    famitsu gave it 34/40. i read it at ps3fanboy.com. i have to say i liked the game not the greatest game of all time but at least its not an FPS.

  • lambtron #131 4 years ago

    "Lair: the game the XBOX 360 couldn't do".

    Edge magazine Xmas 06

    Haha - more like the game it didn't WANT to do ;)

  • absolutezero #132 4 years ago

    It says something that Drakengard is more fun than this.

  • Tasan #133 4 years ago

    Shit the PS3 is a sinking ship, lets squeeze this turd out quickly so we can get back to making franchised Nintendo games and make some money.

    We picked the wrong platform boys it's time to BAIL OUT!

  • megastar #134 4 years ago

    theres a shocking number of retards posting in here

    its like a who's who of retardation


    "Fantastic news! The ps3 is dead"

    I mean really - what a prat!

  • Slikz #135 4 years ago

    (In Nelsons Voice) - HA HA

  • Slikz #136 4 years ago

    (In Nelsons Voice) - HA HA

  • mash the x button #137 4 years ago

    @MEGASTAR
    As far as I'm aware I'm neither a retard or a prat ;)
    Irony, get it? Obviously not.
    I'll get a ps3 when Sony reduce the price, then I can make up my own mind whether it is as hopeless as all the x trolls suggest.

  • Yaz #138 4 years ago

    There's nothing like a great game, and Lair is nothing like a great game. ;)

    Of all the hyped PS3 games, this was the one which consistantly failed to impress me, especially in terms of gameplay.

    Still, at least some gamers enjoyed it.

  • Telepathic.Geometry #139 4 years ago

    Ouch. 4 = teh crap. I guess this is a stand-out example of the risk involved with next gen games with very high visual production values. So much time and focus goes into the graphical fidelity and wow factor that the basic mechanics suffer in a big way. From the review, sounds a bit like they were over ambitious with the graphics too. :/

  • Apologie #140 4 years ago

    Lair is a very peculiar game that won't please everybody..., nontheless, i think if you have a Ps3 (like i do), you really should give it a try because as far as i see there are a big contradiction between official reviews like these, and the feedback we get from people who actually played it.

    I'll rent it first and then make my kind about it.

  • jiveguy #141 4 years ago

    @Egster

    There is nothing eurogamer can do if one platform is lucky enough to get a run of good games while another doesn't.

    Maybe there's a world wide conspiracy among publishers to release poor games on the PS3. This conspiracy is probably run by international bankers and lizard men.

  • Apologie #142 4 years ago

    headbog

    i never said that about Halo3, and now we are discussing other game ok.

  • El_MUERkO #143 4 years ago

    "Onward, Draco! Onward to Aldi, and cheap biscuits for all!"

    mmmm 4

  • Apologie #144 4 years ago

    there are no conspiracy (although i do realise that some reviewers are for some reason harder on Ps3 games than with X360 games).I like to make my own mind and not get biased.

    Ps3 will deliver great games in short time... next month release (Uncharted: Drake's Fortune) is definitely one of them, just relax.

  • Daikon #145 4 years ago

    Ack. Why are they wasting time on games like this when they could be making a new Turrican game...

  • urban #146 4 years ago

    ONE bad review and the 360 fans go wild.

  • tonynibbles #147 4 years ago

    Not letting you get away with counting a karaoke game as a AAA killer title though. We're gamers not 16-year-old girls! ;-)

    No comment ;)

    /loves singstar

  • captainrentboy #148 4 years ago

    It's not so much that it's a bad review, it's just that it's a fucking terrible review for something that was once again hyped to fuck, another one of Sony's supposed big hitters turning out to be shite, and if they aint shite then they're just average(Heavenly Sword).
    Of course the 360 has shit games, there are quite a few infact, but this particular game ending up crap isn't like the 360's Vampire Rain turning out poor, it's almost the same, as say PGR4, getting a critical drubbing everywhere.
    It's almost 8 months down the line now, Sony can't keep saying ''Yeah, well we've got Resistance and Motorstorm''

  • Apologie #149 4 years ago

    zerolight

    you don't have SixAxis in the X360 and you don't have Lair (or even a similar game) on the X360 or any other system except Ps3... it's a compleatly different approach that have it's negative elements and positive ones.
    Concerning it's different from anything you have seen, and plays in an unorthodox way, it's possible for some people to like it (allot), and some to dislike it (allot).
    That's why i'll give it a try.

  • glaeken #150 4 years ago

    People who call Eurogamer biased towards MS really can not have been reading the site for very long.

    I would actually say when a site has been accused of bias towards multiple sides that probably means they are fairly neutral.

    What makes a site turn neutral who can say.

  • DanWhitehead #151 4 years ago

    Concerning it's different from anything you have seen...

    It really isn't. Lair isn't Space Giraffe. It's certainly not attempting anything revolutionary. It's a below average aerial shoot-em-up that uses an unusual (though hardly esoteric) control input. Please don't fall for this "The game is so unique that some people just won't get it" nonsense.

  • Ace_McCloud #152 4 years ago

    "it's possible for some people to like it (allot), and some to dislike it (allot)."

    ...and for some people to mis-use the word "allot" a lot.

  • Pachinko #153 4 years ago

    Unlike Sega Rally, which is just a 1990 driving game with HD-visuals?

    Crap review, crappy arguments.

  • monkie_king #154 4 years ago

    Superb, we've had "rouge squadron", "where are you know?", and "allot" -- all in the space of a single thread!

    Come on guys, let's go for the Gaming Forum Grammar Grand Slam: somebody needs to mis-spell the antonym of "win". I have faith in you, EuroGamers, we can do it!

    /checks post fastidiously for ironic typos.

  • Les #155 4 years ago

    "I suspect that the PS3 owners who claim it's good fall into the PS3 only camp. If your in this camp, suffering gaming hell, then maybe it is worth trying, out of sheer desperation."

    Or maybe it's just a title that they enjoy? Different people, different tastes. I gave a game that everybody seems to hate a try and I liked it (I did enjoy the Rogue squadron games, pretty much the only thing worth playing besides SSBM IMO). I gave a game that everybody loves (Oblivion) a try and I hated it (never played such an uninspired, ugly, broken piece of crap TBH).

    There’s no point arguing that the 360 currently has the bigger game library and every PS3 gamer would want to have that much choice right now. Or even better, have as big and diverse a library of games available for PS3 as PS2 has available right now. However, it takes time to build up that library. But to imply that if you own a PS3, you’re “suffering gaming hell” and therefore would need to buy every crap game that gets released for it, is a bit over the top. It definitely isn’t that bad anymore.

  • Les #156 4 years ago

    "It's certainly not attempting anything revolutionary. It's a below average aerial shoot-em-up that uses an unusual (though hardly esoteric) control input. Please don't fall for this "The game is so unique that some people just won't get it" nonsense."

    Well, you sure didn't get 'it'... ;)

    Maybe it's just me, but I don't know many aerial shoot-em-ups of this scale and include the seemless transition into ground combat as this game does. For me, that adds to the overall experience: a dragon should not be constrained to just flight. Might not be "revolutionary" (please name me one next gen game that is revolutionary) but it's a nice addition to the rogue squadron template.

    And I sure appreciated the motion controls much more than you did. They are more sluggish than analog controls would have been, however given that you're controlling a dragon and not an x-wing they again add to the overall experience IMO.

    It's by no means a perfect game (plenty of technical issues and the frequent cut scenes within the missions are anoying), but IMO at least an enjoyable one.

  • MENTAL1ST Verified Senior Software Engineer, Picsel UK Ltd. #157 4 years ago

    @monkie_king
    /checks post fastidiously for ironic typos.

    Shame you didn't check your username for ironic typos...

  • Slikz #158 4 years ago

    HA HA (in a Nelson voice)

  • monkie_king #159 4 years ago

    monkie see, monkie do.

  • ParanoidZombie #160 4 years ago

    "please name me one next gen game that is revolutionary"

    Bioshock is groundbreaking. Halo 3's movie theater is revolutionary (have you tried it? I mean, come on, it's just fantastic). Dead Rising is a dream come true, Tenchu Z is revolutionary awful. It's not that bad... But what do you mean exactly by "revolutionary"? IMO, the old gen only had a few "revolutionary" games: I'd say GTA3, Ico, Ninja Gaiden, and... ahem... Maybe MGS2, but that's a bit of a stretch: the cutscenes were groundbreaking, but the gameplay was too close to MGS1.

    The future is bright, though: Assassin's Creed should redefine stealth games, and Mass Effect and Alan Wake are coming. LittleBigPlanet should be great, too, but that's not my cup of tea.

  • Les #161 4 years ago

    "Bioshock is groundbreaking. Halo 3's movie theater is revolutionary (have you tried it? I mean, come on, it's just fantastic). Dead Rising is a dream come true, Tenchu Z is revolutionary awful."

    All good games (according to the reviews, except for Tenchu Z of course) but none of them labeled revolutionary. Personally, I don't think reviewers like revolutionary games, no matter what they pretend.

  • messiahtj #162 4 years ago

    Hahahah, dear boyo Dan:

    I just want to say u please see the Famitsu´s score for Lair: Rise from Lair (PS3, Sony): 9, 7, 8, 9 - (33/40)

    What that means??? Not much, just means that u r a little noob talking about playin videogames :p

    You sucks playing Lair and think, "man i have to bash this game just for make look even more stupid and useless than i already am".

  • monkie_king #163 4 years ago

    @messiahtj: whereas you can accomplish exactly the same end with a single comment on EG!

  • some1 #164 4 years ago

    I heard from a friend who works in Sony that this can be played on the PSP - i punched him in the balls as he was obviously lying - there is no way the disc will fit in the psp.

    ChocNut

  • monkie_king #165 4 years ago

    @Les, the Rogue Squadron series itself had ground-based vehicles (AT-STs), and the first Hoth mission on Rogue Leader had you switching from ground-combat in a speeder into an X-wing for flying stuff.

    And let's be honest, that game was pretty bereft of gameplay too, once you stopped wowing at the Cube's graphics.

    So Factor5 really don't seem to be attempting anything groundbreaking here.

  • Les #166 4 years ago

    @monkie_king

    I didn't say those games didn't include groundbased combat, I said the transition between air and ground is seamless in Lair while it was not in the Rogue games.

    But I agree about the gameplay being basic: they're just 2d arcade shooters translated to nice 3d. But sometimes I feel like playing simple shooters, though Lair has more gameplay in it than the Rogue games.

  • thepiedpiper #167 4 years ago

    I think the reason ps3 games are more critically judged at the moment is purely based upon the kind of arrogance that came out of the sony camp before release and also because of the price of the console. i mean, for the price, i think the reviewers just expect better...

  • thepiedpiper #168 4 years ago

    I think the reason ps3 games are more critically judged at the moment is purely based upon the kind of arrogance that came out of the sony camp before release and also because of the price of the console. i mean, for the price, i think the reviewers just expect better...

  • krokomkiller #169 4 years ago

    There is a lot of Ps3 bashing on these forums.
    And I dont get it! The machine hasn´t been out for a year and besides not having a truly fantastic launchtitle the gameslibrary feels absolutely normal.
    Of course it´s lacking compared to the 360 but too me that seems to be the result of a phenomenal year for the 360 rather then a bad one for the Ps3

  • Nallen #170 4 years ago

    Did you use the word verisimilitude? Yes. Yes, you did.

  • #171 4 years ago

    "This sea serpent looks impressive, but acts like every other end of level boss ever. Find the pattern, repeat until dead."

    With this kind of attitude towards the game it'll get slaughtered for everything. What do they expect, all new inovative gameplay that no one has seen before?

    What about Halo 3? It's the same as Halo 2 with better lighting and somewhat better resolution. What new is there?

    I'm not saying this game is an 9 or 8 even, but giving LAIR a 4 is just ridiculous, non-serious, and plain stupid.

  • admir #172 4 years ago

    i love x360 owners always bashing on the ps3. but at least PS3 owners arent stupid enough to buy a broken system. i think x360 fanboys forgot how long they had to wait to get a decent game on their system and btw. fanboys get a life

    i have to say i like this game its not a great game it has its issues but i enjoyed it.

  • JavaJawaUK #173 4 years ago

    >Sorry but this is clearly more of a 9/10, possibly a strict 8/10, but never a 4.

    >Like most reviewers, you probably gave it a quick go and thought the controls were rubbish. If you worked at it a bit, you might find that it's actually a lot of fun navigating your unwieldy dragon, and the gameplay underneath is tight and absorbing.

    Why do I get the feeling you were probably one of the guys complaining about Halo 3's "perfect" score?

    I've played it round a mates. It's probably a 6 or so - nothing special at all and certainly not a game I'd buy a PS3 for.

  • #174 4 years ago

    Giving Halo 3 a perfect 10 is not as ridiculous as giving Lair a 4 but, but Halo 3 is not a perfect 10.

  • Azazel #175 4 years ago

    Trolls m'lord! 'Fousands of teh stinking blighters!

    Quickly my boy! Fetch the Sword of Flame +1, +3 vs regenerating creatures! We must reach the higher ground!

  • Ryze #176 4 years ago

    Shame.

    /chortle

  • TRUTH #177 4 years ago

    PS3 fanboys thought Resistance:FOM was great fps!...Compared to fps on PC/360 - It sucks BIG TIME!.

    Liar, Heavenly Sword - average at best.

    Oh! if you like dragons and flying; get Panzar Dragoon Otra for the Xbox and play it on the 360 - Classic game.
    Edited by 2 at 05/10/07 @ 17:52

  • The-Bodybuilder #178 4 years ago

    >"btw, famitsu gave this 34/40."

    Didn't famitsu give PDZ a high score?

  • AOFanboi #179 4 years ago

    <em>Panzar Dragoon Otra</em>

    Yeah, good luck finding that.

    LEARN TO SPELL!

    And the "classic" is Panzer Dragoon on the SEGA Saturn. You know, the one that the "remakes and sequels" console - XBox - version builds on?

  • polar #180 4 years ago

    Would have been a better tag line if slightly altered: Dragons drag on. And on. And on.
    No it wouldn't. In fact, it wouldn't be remotely as good imo. It's a good line as it is. Drags on (a description of what it's like to play) is a clever pun on dragons (the subject of the game), maybe you missed that?

  • UncleLou #181 4 years ago

    Console nerds fighting against each other. What a surprise.

  • mrpsb #182 4 years ago

    Reminds me of Drakengard.

  • George-Roper #183 4 years ago

    Well, well.

    Lair on PS3. 4/4.

    Not really looking all that rosy on the Sony front. Is it?

  • GMWPS3 #184 4 years ago

    Forget the reviewers. Try it out for yourself...you might be mightily impressed!

    Here is a review I posted last month (U.S. version of LAIR) on some other forums to help people who thought they shouldn't even rent it let alone buy LAIR.

    I just bought LAIR a week ago and last night was the first time I put it in the PS3. I actually planned on just briefly testing it before putting in Heavenly Sword which I bought at the same time and was more excited to play!

    As soon as I booted up LAIR, I was impressed, very impressed! In fact it made me think that the game site reviewers need to change the way they dish out scores. I rarely get this indescribable feeling of being so content/happy/intrigued by a video game. Going back-in-time to the games I can quickly and honestly remember that made me feel this way were: Gears of War (I know it’s on the other system but I liked it a lot nonetheless), Gran Turismo 1, Metal Gear Solid 1, Golden Eye on the N64, Super Mario Bros, Flashback on the Commodore Amiga, a Star Wars game on the PC that I can’t remember the name but was made around 1996, Need For Speed 1, Colin McRae 1, Castle Wolfenstein, Tekken 2, Tomb Raider, and some others I can’t remember now.

    There is no way I could give this game a 4.6 out of 10. From the little play I had, I was very happy with my decision to buy the game for myself and ignore the so-called expert reviewers!

    I played through the 1st level and 80% of the training missions before calling it a night. I went to bed at 1am and I had to go to work today. Needless to say, I didn’t get a chance to put in Heavenly Sword because I was captivated by LAIR. I will be playing it first for a while so Heavenly Sword will have to wait, not to mention Colin McRae Dirt and GRAW2 which I had also bought (who says the PS3 has no games now?).

    Back to the scoring methods, so far from the 1st level and training missions I’ve done, I would give LAIR the following score using a more detailed scoring method of my own creation:

    Menu presentation: 10/10 – Coolest Menu I’ve seen… probably ever!

    Game play Controls: 8/10 – Could have had an adjuster for fine tuning quicker or slower response times to the motion controls, but still very innovative and good as it is right now.

    Menu Sound: 10/10 - Perfect!

    Game play Sound: 10/10 – Pretty much perfect. New standards are now set!

    Cut scene Sound: 9/10 – Very Nice but there is a slight hesitation or roughish drop in sound when going between cut scenes and the actual game



    Menu Graphics: 10/10 – Perfect!

    Game play Graphics: 9.5/10 – Impressive indeed! The large scale of the environment is awesome! Only in one training session where you have to walk and mount the dragon was the ground texture odd. We’ll have to see what happens later in the game.

    Cut scene Graphics: 9 /10 – Even tidier than the Game play graphics but also has a slight hesitation between cut scene and game.

    Lasting appeal: 8/10 – Still early to tell but I think I would keep playing this just to fly the dragon around and enjoy the scenery.

    Game length: haven't yet finished, just started

    Innovativeness: 10/10 – This definitely sets a new benchmark with the motion controls, musical score and graphical beauty. Plus a big item of interest is the PSP remote control feature!!

    Fun: 9/10 – It was a lot of fun!

    Multiplayer offline: N/A – Don’t believe in giving low score just because it’s not available.

    Multiplayer online: N/A – As above.


    N/A = Not applicable


    AVERAGE TOTAL SCORE: 9.3 out of 10


    Every PS3 player must at the very least give this game a rent. It actually felt like I was playing a next-generation game. It will be interesting to see if I still give it the same scores by the time I have finished playing it.



  • George-Roper #185 4 years ago

    @GMWPS3

    "Forget the reviewers. Try it out for yourself...you might be mightily impressed!

    Here is a review I posted last month (U.S. version of LAIR) on some other forums to help people who thought they shouldn't even rent it let alone buy LAIR.

    I just bought LAIR a week ago and last night was the first time I put it in the PS3. I actually planned on just briefly testing it before putting in Heavenly Sword which I bought at the same time and was more excited to play!

    As soon as I booted up LAIR, I was impressed, very impressed! In fact it made me think that the game site reviewers need to change the way they dish out scores. I rarely get this indescribable feeling of being so content/happy/intrigued by a video game. Going back-in-time to the games I can quickly and honestly remember that made me feel this way were: Gears of War (I know it’s on the other system but I liked it a lot nonetheless), Gran Turismo 1, Metal Gear Solid 1, Golden Eye on the N64, Super Mario Bros, Flashback on the Commodore Amiga, a Star Wars game on the PC that I can’t remember the name but was made around 1996, Need For Speed 1, Colin McRae 1, Castle Wolfenstein, Tekken 2, Tomb Raider, and some others I can’t remember now.

    There is no way I could give this game a 4.6 out of 10. From the little play I had, I was very happy with my decision to buy the game for myself and ignore the so-called expert reviewers!

    I played through the 1st level and 80% of the training missions before calling it a night. I went to bed at 1am and I had to go to work today. Needless to say, I didn’t get a chance to put in Heavenly Sword because I was captivated by LAIR. I will be playing it first for a while so Heavenly Sword will have to wait, not to mention Colin McRae Dirt and GRAW2 which I had also bought (who says the PS3 has no games now?).

    Back to the scoring methods, so far from the 1st level and training missions I’ve done, I would give LAIR the following score using a more detailed scoring method of my own creation:

    Menu presentation: 10/10 – Coolest Menu I’ve seen… probably ever!

    Game play Controls: 8/10 – Could have had an adjuster for fine tuning quicker or slower response times to the motion controls, but still very innovative and good as it is right now.

    Menu Sound: 10/10 - Perfect!

    Game play Sound: 10/10 – Pretty much perfect. New standards are now set!

    Cut scene Sound: 9/10 – Very Nice but there is a slight hesitation or roughish drop in sound when going between cut scenes and the actual game



    Menu Graphics: 10/10 – Perfect!

    Game play Graphics: 9.5/10 – Impressive indeed! The large scale of the environment is awesome! Only in one training session where you have to walk and mount the dragon was the ground texture odd. We’ll have to see what happens later in the game.

    Cut scene Graphics: 9 /10 – Even tidier than the Game play graphics but also has a slight hesitation between cut scene and game.

    Lasting appeal: 8/10 – Still early to tell but I think I would keep playing this just to fly the dragon around and enjoy the scenery.

    Game length: haven't yet finished, just started

    Innovativeness: 10/10 – This definitely sets a new benchmark with the motion controls, musical score and graphical beauty. Plus a big item of interest is the PSP remote control feature!!

    Fun: 9/10 – It was a lot of fun!

    Multiplayer offline: N/A – Don’t believe in giving low score just because it’s not available.

    Multiplayer online: N/A – As above.


    N/A = Not applicable


    AVERAGE TOTAL SCORE: 9.3 out of 10


    Every PS3 player must at the very least give this game a rent. It actually felt like I was playing a next-generation game. It will be interesting to see if I still give it the same scores by the time I have finished playing it. "

    SONY FANBOI IN SHOCK 'BUY THIS GAME, ITS GREAT' PLEA!

    6 posts. All Sony/PS3 related. Name of GMWPS3.

    Says absolutely everything. As in, fuck off. Please.

  • GMWPS3 #186 4 years ago

    Hey George Roper! I also go by the name GMW360....dumbass!!

  • George-Roper #187 4 years ago

    Hey GMWPS3, I also go by the name of FUCKOFFWITHYOURRIDICULOUS'REVIEW'BEFOREYOUGETLOLLEDAT

    LOL!

  • Hypnopedia #188 4 years ago

    >Menu presentation: 10/10 – Coolest Menu I’ve seen… probably ever!
    >Menu Sound: 10/10 - Perfect!
    >Menu Graphics: 10/10 – Perfect!

    WOW! I've never seen menu's given individual scores before - forget about the rest of the review / game - it's a must buy, the Menu system is surely worth the price of the game and PS3 alone. System seller features RIGHT there. Makes you take the whole review seriously - sounds like the best game- EVER!

    Crushingly, if your game reminiscing is to be believed, you're actually an adult...there is NO hope...

    /jeeeesssuusssss.

  • Apologie #189 4 years ago

    GMWPS3

    i agree with you, and, as i said before, Lair may please a lot of people, my advise is to give it a try... (i will for sure, as soon as the game arrives Europe).

  • Red-Moose #190 4 years ago

    "Even with the controls mastered, even with the numerous technical flaws ignored, the game remains shallow and repetitive, devoid of drama and reliant on sound and fury to disguise the fact that at its heart is a rather shoddily constructed collection of hoary old clichés."

    Is this a new Halo 3 review?

  • DanWhitehead #191 4 years ago

    From the little play I had, I was very happy with my decision to buy the game for myself and ignore the so-called expert reviewers!

    *weeps*

  • Azazel #192 4 years ago

    Drags on (a description of what it's like to play) is a clever pun on dragons

    As used by Firkraag in his note to your character in the Windspear Hills section of Baldur's Gate 2 as a clue.

    ...

    Should I be worried that I can remember these details off the top of my head years later?

  • Martin #193 4 years ago

    Here's my review of commenters reviews of Dan's review of Lair:

    Even though I really don't care much for PS3 games as I'm strugglig to play all the games I have for my 360 I still read reviews of PS3 games in order to be able to keep up with all the new games. Today I read Dan Whitheads review of Lair and the following onslaught of comments.

    Dan didn't like Lair very much which made a lot of anonymous people very upset indeed - prompting them to point out that Dan was wrong. Their way of doing so varied from simple, horribly misspelled one-paragraph insults to well articulated posts.

    There are of course those that take every chance they can to point out how right they have been all along in pointing out that PS3 is a doomed system with nothing but poor games. Mostly in broken english and single-paragraph posts.

    Now, as for creativity I'd like to give the Lair-defenders 4/10 - it's mostly the same old spiel about how innovative the six-axis controller is and how great the game looks and plays. Bonus star to the guy who thought that posting a "review" of a game which he had just started was a good way to convince the non-believers.

    The PS3/Lair-bashers gets 3/10 - nothing even remotely creative here with the same old "LOL - told you so!"

    As for spelling the pro-Lair posters gets 7/10. Les brings up the score here while others do their best to bring it back down. Still, on the whole I'd like to say that it's more understandable than not.

    The anti-PS3/Lair crowd gets a 6/10 in spelling - mostly because there are more of them spouting one-liner nonsense. None the less, some of you are clearly educated people.

    In the fact-checking/proof-gathering department both camps get a 5/10 as they both lazily and off-handedly refer to other sources and reviews - some praising the game, others bashing it. It's basically a tie.

    On the whole I'd like to say that the commenters that doesn't like Dan's review of Lair has a slight upper hand as they seem to form more well-thought out comments but the Lair-defenders has less moronic fanboys ruining their strategy.

    Conclusion: I grew tired of this idea before I managed to follow it through. Thanks for reading/Sorry for wasting your time.
    Edited by 1 at 06/10/07 @ 12:03

  • Penguinzoot #194 4 years ago

    Martin - great review, 9/10. Would have been 10/10 but you dropped a point for the two-liner conclusion, which although spelt correctly was a bit on the brief side ;-)

  • dryden555 #195 4 years ago

    sounds like a whole bunch of folks will get fired because of this game. SONY had high hopes for it as a reason to buy a PS3.

  • bdc #196 4 years ago

    Why do I get the feeling there are people actually employed by Sony here in this comments thread?

  • Lov3 #197 4 years ago

    "Oh! if you like dragons and flying; get Panzar Dragoon Otra for the Xbox and play it on the 360 - Classic game."

    You can't, and they aren't planning to support it in the future. Same with JSRF. I bought the 360 on the assumption that while I was waiting for the new titles I would be able to play these titles, among others. When they didn't work, I sold the machine, although I still have both games in a box under my bed :).

  • Lov3 #198 4 years ago

    And another thing. There are a number of people here who see the hype of the game, and then read of it's failings, and use this to forecast the doom of the console and generally spit on sony. Those people would do well to look up the blue dragon review on this site, which is basically a parallel review of this game. Same hype, same subject (dragons), same tedious gameplay, same cliché ridden plot... nearly the same score (Blue Dragon got a 5)... even the same subtitle in the review (bad Dan!)

    The best thing about this review was the review itself - Dan Whitehead is basically the only reviewer on this site I trust, and his style is in depth and concise. Do more reviews please.

  • Les #199 4 years ago

    "Liar, Heavenly Sword - average at best."

    No, you're a terrible liar, not even close to being average

  • okn #200 4 years ago

    Thanks so much for this! This is exactly what I was looking for

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