Well we did have to open our big mouths didn’t we?

After a number of PS3 owners reported problems with the 2.40 firmware download  locking up their PS3s, Sony moved yesterday afternoon & removed the update from their servers for further testing.

Here at Sweet Flag, we managed to get the firmware download & report to have no problems with it at all. The XMB ran smoothly while playing through the review copy of Battlefield: Bad Company all last night, so as Sony mentions; it looks to be a problem for a limited few.

Sony also state that they have had no reported problems from customers that have had their PS3 perform a successful firmware update.

How has the update effected your PS3?

Codemasters jave just informed us here at Sweet Flag that they have extended their UK’s worst boss competition until the 25th July.

The competition entry requires you to spill the beans on your very own worst boss by emailing it to worst.boss@codemasters.com. The entries are placed on the competition website for all to read!

The winner will receive a PS3 & a copy of Codemasters recently released Overlord:Raising Hell title(Ed ~ we will be reviewing Overlord very soon).

Bourne is now a huge franchise, originating from books written by Robert Ludlum developing onto a series of movies starring Matt Damon. The latest addition to the franchise is High Moon Studios’ The Bourne Conspiracy, starring a more handsome version of Jason Bourne! The game is supposed to set a high bar for franchise following titles, fixing the common issues of repetitive gameplay, poor visuals & stories that make no attempt to captivate gamers.

Is this game really what it’s cracked up to be? Keep reading to find out.

From the first time you use a takedown to the last time you crack someone’s nose, Bourne will have you begging for more. The gameplay really does a fantastic job of captivating you with its trademark quick time events, unlike other titles that profusely overuse them. Usually these can be found to be tirelessly repetitive in other games, however with Jason Bourne using literally everything from a pen to a tombstone to kill his enemy, this never gets tiresome. When your enemies are unfortunate enough to get into a fist fight with you, the game really makes the whole thing simple, dangerous & seamless. There are 3 buttons you use when in a fight (4 when you’re in a multiple takedown sequence) making it all very easy to understand, especially when creating combo attacks to take your enemy down a lot quicker.

The big part of the fight sequences are little things, namely takedowns, where you have to build up some adrenaline by getting attacks in on your opponent, then once you hit the takedown button you will literally utilise your surrounding environments to the max, sending enemies hurtling into radiators or stabbing them with a ballpoint pen. The Bourne Conspiracy’s takedowns really are what make the quick time events immersive and fresh every time, which as you play through the game you will see a lot of variation.

Jason Bourne, The Man, The Myth, The Legend.

When you’re not making your enemies eat fist, the chances are you’ll be giving them a large serving of hot lead. Using a gun in the Bourne Conspiracy is nearly as entertaining as hand to hand combat, mainly because High Moon Studios have also added a Takedown mechanic so you can get some quick headshots in during sticky situations. It practically works the same as the hand to hand takedowns, hitting the takedown button once enough adrenaline has been acquired and then, BOOM headshot! The Bourne Conspiracy has the usual array of weapons, consisting of shotguns, pistols & assault rifles, having a few different models for each weapon classification, which is more than enough for the stages in the gameplay that require the use of guns.

A game with fantastic gameplay elements like this certainly needs to have impressive visuals to deliver a satisfying package. The Bourne Conspiracy has a large amount of eye candy and a fair few destructible objects which compliment the heavy duty gunfights perfectly. The textures, shadows, lighting and models really work together to make this game more than visually pleasing. Occasionally you may find a piece of the environment that you’ve seen to be destructible in other parts of the game that can’t be destroyed, but these tend not to affect the initial gameplay. This game certainly has visuals that compete with the A³ titles that you can find on store shelves today.

There’s also a break dancing feature in the Bourne Conspiracy!

Let’s move onto the games story.

The game is based before and during the first movie, The Bourne Identity, and also fills in a lot of blanks that the movie had during the periods of Jason’s flashbacks. The story has a good amount of suspense and depth to it in order to make it interesting and captivating. Bourne certainly has his fair share of big bad guys to defeat during this game, all of them coming from either the books or the movies, which really adds a great level of detail which will excite the hardcore Bourne fans. The game does stay very true to the stories originally told by Robert Ludlum, which makes it a real treat to play out in a video game.

This game was originally slated to just be another franchise follower, predicted to be repetitive and ugly; therefore making it undesirable to most gamers who have heard these rumours. Now I’ve experienced everything The Bourne Conspiracy has to offer, the game has set a new benchmark for every single game releasing this year. High Moon Studios have captured the Bourne essence perfectly and adapted it into a video game that really makes you believe you’re Jason Bourne, Bravo High Moon, Bravo. The game quite literally has it all, ranging from fantastic visuals to a immersive array of gameplay mechanics and an even more captivating story than the movies, making this a true modern day masterpiece. If you haven’t already, I strongly suggest you go out and buy this game now because if you don’t, you’ll be missing out on one hell of a game.

While Tom is smashing his way through our review copy of The Bourne Conspiracy, we thought(as a little taster of what is to come in his review) to bring you a video of one of the stars featured in The Bourne Ultimatum movie, talking about his own thoughts on The Bourne Conspiracy game.

Joey Ansah who played Desh Bouksani in the Bourne Ultimatum, a assassin assigned to tracking down Jason Bourne, showcases the ultra realistic fighting engine that is utilised in The Bourne Conspiracy game.

Joey performed all his own stunts in the ‘Ultimatum movie & talks at some length on the fighting styles from the Bourne movies that have inspired the combat moves in the game.

Hit the following link for the pop-out video playback of the feature:

Joey Ansah showcasing the fighting engine in The Bourne Conspiracy

Our thanks go to Anderson Morgan at Games2c.com site for allowing us the use of this video.

EA Sports have announced some shake ups to the next in line in the FIFA franchise. The details should please the football fanatic, as EA have taken on-board players responses.

Andrew Wilson, Vice President & Executive Producer for the franchise states:

“We have listened and responded to gamers and football fans around the world by building customized gameplay experiences for FIFA 09 on each platform. Everyone wants to play a football game that is customized to their system and delivers a unique and enjoyable experience. We understand that and have innovated features, created new modes and designed controls that are tailored to each specific platform.”

Here are some of the finer details to emerge for FIFA 09:

• 250 additions & enhancements to core gameplay have been made.

• New animation technology:More responsive first-time shooting and passing, faster and more controlled dribbling, and improved trapping.

• Be a PRO expanded into Be a PRO: Seasons: You can choose or create a professional player and then develop his skills at a single outfield position over four years with the ultimate goal of becoming a national legend.

• New player momentum physics:Exploits the power of these platform engines, delivers realistic player collisions, authentic jostling for the ball, and more variation in tackling.

• New collision & Shielding system:The new collision detection system with 360 degree coverage enables players to behave according to their physical attributes where player speed, direction and strength determine everything from the severity of the collision to the outcome of possession. Changes to the animation system reward the skillful gamer during one-on-one situations between attackers and defenders. Tuned acceleration attributes enable swifter virtual players to possess quicker first steps and gain advantage in sprints. Plus, four new skill moves—scoop turns, rainbow flicks, heel-to-heel knocks and ball rolls—give you a total of 32 tricks in your arsenal to perform just like Ronaldinho.

• Referee & Linesmen back on the pitch.

Source: EA

It’s taken sometime to arrive but PS3 owners will have something very soon that they can claim is  comparable to the XBOX360 Achievements. Trophies will be a major part of the PS3 Firmware update this Wednesday(2nd July) watch part 2(bottom of page) for a full breakdown on how that works.

Also included in the Firmware update will be the in-game XMB, which Eric Lempel states is supported by most games titles out now. Watch part 1 for the full details.

part 1 of the Firmware 2.40 walkthrough - in-game XMB

The forthcoming title, LittleBigPlanet is just one of the reported future titles that will support Trophies. As explained in part 2 of the walkthrough video, game developers can patch current games to make use of the Trophy system.

The titles that are due a game update to support Trophies are: Super Stardust HD, PAIN and Warhawk.

part 2 of the Firmware 2.40 walkthrough - Trophies

Sony seem to be making these changes now before the serious issue of HOME for PS3 begins to take shape, with general beta testing taking place later this year. Let’s hope the 2.40 Firmware makes a smooth transition on Wednesday.

]]> http://sweetflag.wordpress.com/2008/06/30/ps3-firmware-240-trophies/feed/ dmosbon http://sweetflag.wordpress.com/2008/06/30/competition-update-only-hours-left-to-enter/ http://sweetflag.wordpress.com/2008/06/30/competition-update-only-hours-left-to-enter/#comments Mon, 30 Jun 2008 14:47:51 +0000 dmosbon http://sweetflag.wordpress.com/?p=525

10am(GMT) on Tuesday 1st July, is the cut off time to enter Sweet Flags contests to win games for the PS3 & Wii.

You still have time to enter & there are still chances to win a copy of UEFA Euro 2008(well done Spain!) & Boom Blox.

Have you entered! No…? The clock is ticking..!

With Super Smash Bros. Brawl which was released earlier in the US, showing a mightily impressive sales return of 120 units per minute in the first week. We hoped our American cousins were correct to make this Nintendo’s fastest ever selling video game in US history. From the evidence of our play through of Super Smash Bros. Brawl, we agree with what America has shown us in way of sales…it’s a gem of a game that needs to added to your Wii’s collection.

So is Super Smash Bros. Brawl all polished & shiny or more a rough type of gem?

Let’s shine a light on the subject for you.

Even in this day & age it can still be a rarity to load up a new game & immediately feel a sense of joy while playing those early minutes without knowing what exactly you should be doing.

Super Smash Bros. Brawl falls right into that category of gaming, making a big messy splash about it in the process. With it’s chaotic fighting action sprawn over the intial 29 arenas(increasing to 41) in the game, you are able to take control of 35 characters from Nintendo’s back catologue of games. Included are a few that are third-party guests to the Nintendo troop, most notably Solid Snake & Sonic the Hedgehog.

The gameplay modes come in four flavours; Solo, Group, Adventure & via the Nintendo Wi-Fi connection. Each have their own trademarks in gameplay with Solo being the only mode that the player ever has to play totally alone.

Adventure mode, titled The Subspace Emissary, contains unique character storylines with well dramatised cut-scenes that contain no dialogue, relying on image & sound to work the plot for each character. This works surprisingly well & actually made me take note of what was happening rather than just looking to pause & skip back to the action.

The Adventure mode action itself takes place in numerous side scrolling platform styled levels that lead to Boss fights, which are OK & mildly amusing. There are opportunities for cooperative multiplayer action within Adventure mode, as more characters can be unlocked during play & added to your team.

while waiting for random opponents - take out your frustrations on a punch bag

Online play via the Nintendo Wi-Fi connection could have been given a little more care, as it requires the Friend Code system to be able to play against other players that you know. As I don’t know anyone with a Wii, I couldn’t choose this option of gameplay & had to plump for Random Player which doesn’t allow player tag names or the character’s 4 taunt system. From what I have seen of it online, Super Smash Bros. Brawl works well & I didn’t experience any really lag in gameplay, just a little maybe, as each level or new game begins.

Chaotic yes, but keep your % damage low or expect a hefty kick!

The levels in Solo play can go by just as quickly as they come. As the % of damage that your foe takes can increase wildly at the early stages, allowing for a quick kick away from the playing platform. This can result in a winning GAME for your character but works best when your opponent has a % damage of at least 100%. All characters have a maximum % damage of 999% excluding the Master Hand(more on him in a minute).

The higher the % the better against your opponent, so that you can knock them from the playing area. The only variation to this mechanic is the final character that you encounter, the Master Hand, who has HP to reduce rather than the normal  % damage. Again this is represented visually.

After completing the run with your chosen character in Solo mode, the title screen rolls with an on-screen target allowing you to shoot each name as it rolls up the screen. Each name hit will deposit Coins for which you can use later in the Coin Launcher.

This brings me nicely onto the Vault.

Trophies & stickers can be collected throughout the game. Stickers being used as handy power-ups for your character in the Subspace Emissary Adventure. Trophies constitute as statues of characters within Nintendo’s gaming history, both stickers & trophies can be shown off to other players over the Wi-Fi connection as snapshots.

The Coin Collector - more Trophies & Stickers to earn

The Coin Launcher is a mini game that allows the player to use the well earned coins collected in games earlier, to obtain more Trophies & Stickers.

The Vault also contains a Stage Builder that will allow the player free reign over creating custom stages to brawl in. These created levels can be shared in numerous ways too, via direct transfer to a Wii Friend or indirectly via loading them onto a SD card.

In conclusion, Super Smash Bros. Brawl is one masterly gaming package. The combat overall(which is a main reason these type of games become popular) feels just right to me & is a dizzy, chaotic affair that takes a little time to work out. Playing one character to another will allow you, in time, to work out what moves work best with each. Super Smash Bros. Brawl may not appeal to the hardened gamer, in it’s approach to combat but it suits the game & it’s character base. To that end Nintendo have kept Super Smash Bros. Brawl pure to it’s roots.

There are not to many hiccups in gameplay along the way either. Everything seems to collide correctly & all the characters seem well balanced. It’s just a shame that online play via Wi-Fi doesn’t match up against the recent Mario Kart’s WFC online mode but that is only a small smudge against Super Smash Bros. Brawl, which I have to say is looking to be one of the Wii’s finest releases so far.

Can you really believe that it’s been 10 years since Diablo first rose from the fiery pit?

What better way to celebrate than for Blizzard to announce the next chapter in the Diablo series, of course that has to be Diablo III!

So what delights do Blizzard allow us to revel in? Here’s what has been announced so far:

• 5 characters to choose from including the showcased Barbarian & Witchdoctor. Both male & female availiable for each class.

• The game will be released simultaneously on the PC & Mac.

• Will be playable over Battle.net as well as a solo element to gameplay.

The Diablo III official site has a wealth of information up already covering the World of Sanctuary, World Map & a Community Site.

No clue yet to a release date for now but be certain we’ll hit you more news soon!

]]> http://sweetflag.wordpress.com/2008/06/28/diablo-iii-lives/feed/ dmosbon http://sweetflag.wordpress.com/2008/06/28/top-spin-3-review/ http://sweetflag.wordpress.com/2008/06/28/top-spin-3-review/#comments Sat, 28 Jun 2008 13:57:22 +0000 Tom Bastable http://sweetflag.wordpress.com/?p=512

Who doesn’t enjoy a good sports game once in a while? They’re great for kicking back with your mates for a head to head game, and even better for racking up some achievement points. Ever since next-generation consoles have launched, the visuals and gameplay get better year after year, setting an even higher bar for themselves. The Top Spin series is a fantastic example of this, hitting the bar every time.

2K Games’ Top Spin 3 is set to be the “Most Realistic Tennis Simulation to date”, which it will definitely have to be in order the raise the bar even higher than its predecessor did. The Top Spin franchise has always set the benchmark for Tennis Simulation games; however will their latest title live up to the part? Let’s see.

The career mode is great fun, offering you 3 different ranks to play through, Junior, Pro & Legend, which are all a lot of fun and will last you a good 20 hours of playtime for a mediocre player. The variation of the stunning courts you play in are extensive.

Unfortunately one of the big downsides to the career is the difficulty balancing. When playing a tournament you have the option of two difficulties, Easy or HaHard, however the game could really do with a Medium difficulty that would provide more of a challenge than the easy difficulty, but less of a challenge than the hardest difficulty. Having an exceedingly hard difficulty or an astonishingly easy difficulty, which gives you little in-game rewards for each tennis game did get a bit frustrating, however once you really get the hang of the game this isn’t an issue.. The rewards for winning matches are also a separate problem in the game, as you get double the amount of in-game money for losing a game to an opponent on hard, than winning to an opponent on the easy difficulty.

An example of one of the courts you can play in on Top Spin 3

I’m personally brand new to the Top Spin take on Tennis Sims’, so it took me a good day to master most of the techniques. The main thing that took me so long to get to grips with was the fact Top spin 3 really does make a huge emphasis on Positioning & Timing, which is something you have to master over time. However the “Top Spin School” does do a good job of teaching you how the new mechanics in Top Spin work, making sure you’re ready to take on your next opponent. Some lessons can be quite hard, but if you keep at it you’ll be hitting those targets in no time at all. The whole learning process adds to the reality of the game and is great fun throughout.

The customisation in the game is pretty phenomenal. With the new Face Sculpting feature you really can make your player look like pretty much anyone! You also have a huge array of body parts you can add to your player, along with an impressive collection of hairstyles and facial hair. One impressive feature that caught my eye though, was that if you name your character after yourself, it picks up your date of birth from your Xbox LIVE account – Now that’s something I’ve never seen before! The new ageing options look great, making your player look genuinely older, also being able to choose your own type of in-game Grunt and celebration animation is also a very cool feature of the Player Creator, making the Top Spin experience feel very personal. The customization in this game is nothing short of brilliant, so I’ll be interested to see what they can add to Top Spin 4 to make the customization even better!

Most sports games that release these days seem to have a somewhat captivating multiplayer attached to it, Top Spin 3 definitely doesn’t break that tradition. It has the same modes as the offline multiplayer, supporting up to 4 players over Xbox Live – utilizing online Doubles matches. The multiplayer is an extremely solid part of the game – adding hell of a lot more playtime onto this game. It’s just as solid as the single player game itself, which will definitely make this game worth your while.

You can see the huge visual improvement from Top Spin 2

Top Spin 3 looks great, period. Character models look like their living counterparts, created characters look like they could be real people you talk to down at the pub. The variation the stunning courts you play in are extensive, however the crowd does let the environment down by looking for too plastic. The only thing the guys at PAM could do to improve the environments would be to make a crowd where each person moves individually, however the crowd is a very minute issue in the game.

Overall, Top Spin 3 is probably the best Tennis Simulation I’ve played, ever. For the mediocre player Achievements in this game are going to be pretty damn hard, as the majority are based upon skill. Top Spin 3 does have its minor imperfections however for a sporting title it really is a Grand slam. Even if you’re not a fan of Tennis, this is a great laugh to play with friends, so go and get it!