by norm stovall normstovall@gmail.com
For Nintendo DS
Contra 4 is finally here, and its gonna kick some asses and take some names. As a true sequel to the side-scrolling NES and arcade games that launched the series into fame, Contra 4 stays true to the formula and is as challenging as ever. Of course, the infamous Konami code will give you some help this time around, but don’t expect me to give it to you. If you don’t have it memorized, its just too bad for you. But let me reiterate- this game is HARD. Not hard like “Man, all these levels are gonna take a long time to play through”, but more like “OH MY GOD IF I DIE FROM ANOTHER STUPID RANDOM THING I’M GONNA BASH A HOLE IN THE WALL.” But even in light of this, it’s a great game that really teaches you classic gaming skills such as pattern recognition and reaction timing.
As far as the atmosphere of the game, the colors are vivid, the action is constant, and your characters are total badasses who are obviously on some futuristic steroids of some kind. Which is cool, because when you are hitching a ride by hanging on a rocket launching itself into space while shooting at bad guys, you pretty much aren’t taking any crap from anybody. The weapons and controls are mostly the same as they were in the originals, so that is good news. The dual-screen play is great and although sometimes it’s a little difficult to watch the top while playing on the bottom, the game is still fun. With plenty of unlockables such as older games in the series like Super C and Probotector, Contra 4 is the perfect thing for nostalgic gamers in need of an adrenaline rush on the go.
For Xbox 360 and PS3
Assassin’s Creed is one of those games that I personally refer to as a masterpiece. Though the game starts a little slow, the amount of detail given to the storyline, the characters, and the environments is staggering, and it all comes together to form an amazing narrative that is just as inspiring to look at as it is to play through. The opening screen provides a disclaimer that people from many faiths and schools have contributed to making the game, which pretty much set the tone for the storyline right off the bat. Most of the game takes place in 3 key cities during the third crusade, a period of religious strife between Christians and Muslims. You’ll travel to Damascus, Acre and Jerusalem in the game, and all of these places look amazingly accurate for the time period. As an assassin, it is your character’s goal to eliminate key figures in history that were destined to cause great suffering. While the line between who is guilty and who is innocent is almost always blurred, the reasoning behind your character’s actions is always given with great detail. Though the game does give you the chance to make some moral decisions along the way, the storyline always progresses in a deliberate, linear way that doesn’t confuse. Though your character’s actions can be flawed and his imperfections are apparent right from the beginning, he is easy enough to like, and playing through the game is an interesting and entertaining experience because of him.
The controls of Assassin’s Creed are much like Ubisoft’s Prince of Persia, in that your character can move gracefully and with great agility when he needs to. The key element of gameplay here is not really stealth as much as it is blending in, but the game makes this pretty simple to do, and once you get the hang of sneaking and blending in with crowds of people you can really have a lot of fun with it. When you walk in the game, you are given the option to gently push through the crowds, hold your head down and walk slowly as a scholar (your characters clothing mimics this group of people), or run recklessly to your destination. Interacting with people is great fun, and people usually react to you in a realistic way, with dialogue that matches their physical reactions. When it comes to bad guys, the combat in the game is pretty straightforward, and not extremely complicated. In addition to sneaking around to eliminate enemies and fighting, you are also given the opportunity to do things such as eavesdrop, pickpocket important documents, scale amazingly tall buildings, and go horseback riding. It may sound a bit random on paper, but everything works well in context, and when you put the terrific gameplay together with the awesome story, you really do get a great end product.
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