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Xbox 360 Roundup Review
Xbox 360 Review by Dan Whitehead
Page 1
Lost Planet Extreme Conditions: Colonies Edition
- Publisher: Capcom
- Developer: Capcom
In hindsight, it's fairly obvious that Lost Planet benefited from being one of the first titles on the 360. Launching in that early adopter period, when players are eager to get their hands on anything for their new toy, can turn even a rather bland and forgettable third-person shooter into something resembling a blockbuster triple-A title.
At least for the game's platinum budget re-release Capcom has dug deep into its virtual pockets and come up with a rejigged package that offers more features for less money. Whatever the merits of the game in question, in this era of premium priced DLC, it's hard to be too down on that sort of thinking.
So what extras have been added? Most notable are a slew of new game modes, for both single-player and online amusement. Score Attack mode is a lot like The Club, in that you keep shooting monsters and scenery, trying to increase your score multiplier. Multiplayer benefits from the rather fun Akrid Hunter mode, in which randomly selected players spawn as alien monsters and get to stomp about slaughtering puny humans.
There's even a first-person mode, which is pretty awful. Changing the viewpoint of a game designed for third-person play doesn't make it an FPS. You also get a bunch of smaller extra features, such as new multiplayer maps, ten new weapons and additional characters. Alone, none of this material is enough to justify another purchase, but the cumulative effect is quietly impressive - in terms of quantity if nothing else.
Shoot the alien monsters and slurp up their blood. It's made from Lucozade, you see.
Unfortunately, at the heart of all this generosity is a game that hasn't aged particularly well. Lost Planet is a decent enough blaster, and well suited to its new price point, but it's nothing worth dashing out to buy. The pace is achingly slow, and it relies far too heavily on repetitive battles against waves of identical monsters that slow the game down even further. Controls are stiff, and your gun-toting character - with a mysterious past! - is never as agile as you'd like him to be. The new Unlimited Mode beefs up both the firepower and speed, but it's a shame that such gameplay tweaks come in the form of an unlockable bonus rather than as improvements to the core game itself. It's also worth noting that your old save file won't be compatible with this version.
For those who've been curious about this not-bad game, this edition makes for an affordable way to see it at its best and enjoy some extra stuff to boot. For those who already own it, the value is less apparent. There are new Achievements, and lots of new things to tinker with, but not a lot of incentive to plod through the campaign missions again or start over ranking up your multiplayer stats.
7/10
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Comments: 1-26 of 26 in total
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repairmanjack
14/08/08 @ 07:49
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The only thing I need to know about Lost Planet Colonies is if the new servers are busy enough to warrant purchasing this game or if the hardcore players (of which there are many) have stuck with the original?
Also, how many new weapons/maps for the online game, which is really what most people play it for.
Edited 1 times,
most recently on 14/08/08 @ 08:49
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muscleblade
14/08/08 @ 08:33
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@repairmanjack
I think its 21 maps. And many hardcore fans of the origininal should have bought this and play it a lot. I Bought Unreal 3 instead though. Even though Unreal 3 is good i think i bought the wrong game tbh. Dont have time for Colonies now. |
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@repairmanjack,
i told you all that stuff in the lost planet colonies thread. ^_^ http://www.eurogamer.net/forum_thread_po... its fair to rate the game at 7 tho, but i'm a little biased, i would have said an 8 or 9 (just for the Akrid Hunter mode) |
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I've always had an interest Nascar/Stockcar racing, was hard to watch it here though until the introduction of torrents, and in the last year SkySports showing the races. I really enjoy it. It's definitely a skill in it's own right (Montya has had limited success only) and pretty interesting, and the pit stops are the best of any motorsport.
But the game is utter pants. It doesn't get anywhere close to Nascar Racing 2003 season, or ARCA Sim Racing. I know it's not supposed to be a sim, which is fair enough. But if it's going to be arcade it needs to be a bit OTT. More large crashes and less caution laps. |
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Why do people cite the Lego games as well-designed childrens games? When a lot of long-time-gaming adults get frustrated by the worst camera in a game ever (even worse than Sonic 360), why would children enjoy repeatedly falling to their death through no fault of their own? I still stand by my claim that Meet The Robinsons is the best licensed kids game ever.
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Dan is right y'know - with Ratatouille and Wall-E Pixar have overseen (surely they had some input/control?) two of the poorest games I have ever played.
Maybe there is some kind of subtext to their quality-control: "hey kids, video-games are bad (take a look at these!!) go and watch movies instead". Played thorugh the Wall-E demo to see if my kids would get on with it. Suffice to say after much foul and abusive language (mine) and a utterly mundane set of levels (the game) it was deleted before they'd had chance to see it. |
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repairmanjack
14/08/08 @ 11:16
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@muscleblade - thanks for that
@DcP...numbers...UK - you did. But I also think it's the job of someone being paid to review the thing to mention it. Is the online community thriving or not? |
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I found Ratatouille perfectly acceptable, although it has to be said I only saw the two first levels. The part where you're escaping from a threat running into the camera may have been broken, but the rest I found sympathetic and charmy.
Furthermore, the fact that the monster trucks in that Monster Jam game don't behave like real trucks is more or less irrelevant. They didn't in Excite Truck either, and that was one of the best games of 2007. So, to my mind, it would have been better if the writer instead chose to go straight to the heart of the matter here: are the mechanics rewarding or not? Example of unnecessary and unfunny text: "These trucks were made for smashing, and that's just what they'll do. But one of these days these trucks are gonna rise up and crush the fragile human bones of the slippery-fingered fool that programmed their handling." Example of what seems to be an argument, but isn't really: "Making matters worse is a bewildering physics model that makes almost any collision potentially disastrous. You can plough through giant iron water towers and trailers loaded with tree trunks and suffer absolutely no negative effect to your speed or direction whatsoever." Question here is: Are those items marked as destructible or not? Whether or not the rules of the game don't adhere to our real world's rules aren't particularly interesting when discussing arcade games. I can see that page 4 gets is point across somewhat successfully, I'd just wish you got to the point and were able to elaborate a bit more on the mechanics and core, instead of "hilariously" proclaiming that something is shit in creative ways. Take your readers seriously. I was interested in this game, and the more in-depth you are about it, the easier is it for me to take you seriously.
Edited 1 times,
most recently on 14/08/08 @ 12:27
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DanWhitehead
14/08/08 @ 12:04
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"Making matters worse is a bewildering physics model that makes almost any collision potentially disastrous. You can plough through giant iron water towers and trailers loaded with tree trunks and suffer absolutely no negative effect to your speed or direction whatsoever."
Question here is: Are those items marked as destructible or not? Whether or not the rules of the game don't adhere to our real world's rules aren't particularly interesting when discussing arcade games. You missed out the rest of that section. The criticism isn't that you can drive through giant items without losing speed, but that you can then be flipped upside down in the air by tiny debris. It's not the realism, it's the consistency. |
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andromeda: Just trying to be constructive.
Edit: Although it may have been overly negative, I'll give you that much. Just frustrated by the way some games seem to be taken less seriously than others, and instead become object to a tiring and boring kind of look-how-bad-it-is-haha-humour.
Edited 1 times,
most recently on 14/08/08 @ 13:43
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Example of unnecessary and unfunny text:
"These trucks were made for smashing, and that's just what they'll do. But one of these days these trucks are gonna rise up and crush the fragile human bones of the slippery-fingered fool that programmed their handling." how is this not funny? i really liked the tongue-in-cheek style of those mini-reviews. |
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convercide
15/08/08 @ 04:01
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Burst Limit is NOT a 7/10.
It's a 4/10 easily. Less playable characters than the Budokai/Tenkaichi series and shitter move sets. |
Comments: 1-26 of 26 in total
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