SPYRO: SHADOW LEGACY REVIEW

NDS exclusive.

Spyro: Shadow Legacy is a platformer published by Sierra Entertainment and developed by Amaze for the Nintendo DS.

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SLY 3: HONOR AMONG THIEVES (2005) REVIEW

I went in expecting more stealth platforming, but ended up with pirate sea battles.

PS2 exclusive.

Sly 3: Honor among Thieves is a stealth platformer published by Sony and developed by Sucker Punch for the Playstation 2, Playstation 3 and Vita.

GAMEPLAY

With the ability of hindsight I think it's worth mentioning just how innovative this game and the two before it were. The climbing mechanics, stealth system, parachute, sailing and more were features that were way ahead of their time and appeared in other franchises later.

As per the other second game, all three main characters are fine; with Sly still the most fun to play as, I actually thought Bentley was improved in this game, as his levels sometimes felt even more fun than Sly’s a couple of times. The Guru is a one dimensional bore of a character, who has two moves, that’s it. You can’t attack, sneak, only turn into something or use mind control. Why did they bother with him? Why not just give one of three main characters that ability?

I thought the RC tank part from the 2nd game was bad, but somehow the Dimitri levels are almost on par with them. I almost got repetitive strain injury playing the boss you have to fight with him. The grappling hook to the RC helicopter is far worse than the abilities that it had in the second game, it’s a bit of a mess in the first level you play with it, as it can’t aim correctly. The Panda King is a pointless addition that wasn’t needed, not to mention how he is brought in at the end of episode four, yet never really appears in the next two.

STORY

A regression from the heights that the second reached, with a less intricate story and many questionable segments, I don’t have the fingers to count how many times I asked myself why some parts were necessary.

In fact, let’s point some out. Why was the Panda King needed? Bentley was the brains and the demolition expert in the second, why not just expand his role a little bit? Dimitri was in because they needed a diver, for some reason that wasn’t foreseen, Bentley is a turtle and Murray is a hippo, neither of them could do it? Penelope’s original skill was also something the Cooper Gang already had, but her skills as a mechanic made it more justifiable, not that they knew that beforehand.

The problem is that all the levels just felt forced really, that they needed a story to go alongside the game. In the end there were about eight playable characters, it would have been much better to just expand on Sly, Murray and Bentley’s skills. All the other characters really felt so pointless too, as the gang had already beaten Dimitri and the Panda King before, why would they need their skills anyway? I know you're not supposed to take they story very seriously but Band of Thieves had a delightfully good one and this one failed to follow up with that quality.

GRAPHICS

The same as the first and second game really.

SOUND

Voice actors and SFX are all good and the music is fine.

VALUE FOR MONEY

Reintroduction of the master thief Challenges are a poor choice as an attempt to add length to the game, which is considerably shorter than the first two.

OVERALL

Sly 3 is still a good game at heart, but it really feels as if so many marks have been missed with this game. I found myself getting so frustrated with it at times, something I rarely, if ever, felt about the previous two. There are some interesting ideas thrown in, such as the ship combat, or the fighter plane, and there are even fewer turret sections. The game fails in other places though, such as all the additions to the Cooper Gang and regression of the story.

IMPERIAL GLORY REVIEW

PC version reviewed.

Imperial Glory is a strategy game published by Eidos Interactive and developed by Pyro Studios for the PC.

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STAR WARS: EPISODE III - REVENGE OF THE SITH REVIEW

PS2 and NDS versions reviewed.

Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith is an action game published by LucasArts and developed by The Collective for the Playstation 2, Xbox, Game Boy Advance and Nintendo DS.

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NINTENDOGS

NDS exclusive.

Nintendogs is a simulation game published and developed by Nintendo for the Nintendo DS.

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PSYCHONAUTS

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 version.

Psychonauts is a game published by  Majesco Entertainment and developed by Double Fine for the Playstation 2, Xbox and PC.

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LEGO STAR WARS: THE VIDEO GAME

PS2 version reviewed.

Lego Star Wars: The Video Game is an action adventure game published by LucasArts and developed by Traveller's Tales for the Playstation 2, Xbox, Gamecube, Game Boy Advance and PC.

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