Issue 18 by PhonicaMagUK

the mobile phone and gaming magazine www.phonicamagazine.co.uk

Volume 2

Issue2

phonica magazine uk

WHAT’S INSIDE VOLUME 2 ISSUE 2 2011

REVIEWS

NEWS Nokia E7 Sony Ericsson arc on Three Duke Nukem Forever Combat Arms get to get an upgrade Everquest II – Des ny of Velious

6 7 8 9 10

PREVIEWS MotorStorm: Apocalypse Homefront Gray Ma er

12 14 16

18 20 22 24 26 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 36 38 40 42 44 46 48

Sony Ericsson Spiro Sony Ericsson Cedar Brothers in Arms 2: Global Front Modern Combat: Black Pegasus Eternal Legacy APPLE APP REVIEWS o Pac-Man (Lite) o Ragan News o Save S ckly o Musée du Louvre o Geared Dead Space 2 Li le Big Planet 2 Castlevania: Lords of Shadow Goldeneye 007 Tron: Evolu on Epic mickey Create New Carnival Games

THE GUIDE 52

Mobile Phones

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EDITOR IN CHIEF Kevin Leonce

EDITORIAL ASSISTANT Elena Biagi

GAMING EDITOR Sco Tierney

CONTRIBUTORS Rob Hobson Paul Park Penelope Phillips

CREATIVE SERVICES & DESIGN Sco Tierney www.sco - erney.com

PUBLIC RELATIONS Ashka Thacker

EDITORIAL editorial@phonicamagazine.co.uk

ENQUIRIES info@phonicamagazine.co.uk

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WWW.PHONICAMAGAZINE.CO.UK Become a Fan of Phonica Magazine UK on Facebook & Twi er Phonica Magazine ÂŠ All material in this publica on is covered by copyright. All rights reserved. No part of this publica on may be reproduced, stored in any retrieval system or transmi ed in any form electronic, mechanical, photocopying or otherwise, in whole or part without wri en permission of the publisher or the copyright owner. Please note that whilst every care has been taken to ensure that all the data in this publica on is accurate at the me of going to print, the publisher cannot accept responsibility for any errors or omissions, whether caused by negligence or otherwise, or for any loss, however caused, occasioned to any person by reliance on it; and hereby disclaims any liability for it. Opera ons and some features are network dependent; please refer to your network provider for full details.

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EDITOR’S LETTER 2011…THE YEAR OF? The New Year has faded, and by this stage so has many of our resolu ons. (Par cularly my resolve to hit the gym instead of hours of Modern Warfare gameplay on a daily basis….a er work of course!) And the race is on. Our smart phones are ge ng smarter, according to some, our consoles are more interac ve and the Cuper no guys are geared to be in the spotlight yet another year in succession. I guess somethings haven’t changed! One place for sure we’d see lots of changes will be at the Mobile World Congress, as we all await the tech goodies that are rumoured to be on show. Don’t worry we’d be sure to let you know about the good stuff. In the mean me we’ve decided to bring you a few hot off the press reviews to de you over ll our next issue. So here it is, keeping you in touch with what’s hot, what’s not and definitely what’s snot. Enjoy reading,

Your Editor in Chief

Kevin Leonce

phonica magazine uk

NEWS

ALL-IN-ONE BUSINESS SMARTPHONE, THE NOKIA E7 IS OUT IN STORES The highly an cipated Nokia E7 arrived in stores in select markets in February, with broader availability building up quickly in several markets. With its l ng 4 inch ClearBlack display, full QWERTY keyboard and a fast access to a wide variety of apps directly on the homescreen, the Nokia E7 is the key to having a successful day in or out of the oﬃce. Importantly, the device supports business applica ons from leading enterprise technology partners including Microso and IBM.

Addi onally, a wide range of entertainment and social services available on the Nokia E7 make it the perfect oﬀ-duty companion, and the Ovi Store oﬀers a wealth of apps such as Bloomberg, Angry Birds and Sports Tracker.

For business users the Nokia E7 provides direct, secure and real- me access to email, calendar, contacts, tasks and the corporate directory through Microso Exchange servers, as well as Oﬃce Communicator Mobile, developed by Microso for Nokia smartphones, which brings presence and corporate instant messaging.

The new arrival oﬀers drive or walk naviga on in 80 countries. The latest commercial version of Ovi Maps, available immediately via Ovi Store or Ovi Suite, adds visibility to subways, trams and trains, real- me traﬃc, safety alerts, visibility to parking and petrol sta ons, speed limit warnings, and improved search and loca on sharing capabili es.

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“IMPORTANTLY, THE DEVICE SUPPORTS BUSINESS APPLICATIONS FROM LEADING ENTERPRISE TECHNOLOGY PARTNERS INCLUDING MICROSOFT AND IBM.”

NEWS SONY ERICSSON XPERIA ARC COMING SOON ON THREE. Three will be ranging the Sony Ericsson Arc from April. At just 8.7mm thin, it’s one of the slimmest mobile phones on the market, but the Arc’s pe te frame masks a big technology oﬀering. The Reality Display with Mobile BRAVIA engine supports the 4.2” touchscreen for clearer and crisper pictures, while Google’s Android 2.3 (Gingerbread) is at its heart.

“THE HD VIDEO RECORDING CAPABILITY IS PARTICULARLY IMPRESSIVE WITH ITS EXMOR R SENSOR AND OTHER MULTIMEDIA FEATURES - SUCH AS A FACE DETECTION FEATURE - ALLOWING YOU TO TAKE, WATCH AND SHARE HIGH QUALITY MOVIES.” Sylvia Chind Head of Branded Devices said, “The Sony Ericsson Arc is a great addi on to Three’s range of smartphones. The HD Video recording capability is par cularly impressive with its Exmor R sensor and other mul media features - such as a face detec on feature - allowing you to take, watch and share high quality movies. And our award winning 3G network will ensure Three customers enjoy the mobile internet experience at its best.” Three has advised informa on on pricing and availability will be announced soon.

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NEWS

DUKE NUKEM FOREVER... FINALLY DATED! THE DUKE LOOKS SET TO LAND IN MAY THIS YEAR…PROBABLY Probably the single most-an cipated, most-waited for sequel in gaming history, the cigar-chewing, shade-wearing brute of a man called Duke Nukem is to ﬁnally grace our TVs and monitors once more. A legendary hero on a completely diﬀerent level to the more recent challengers to the throne, Duke Nukem is one of the most iconic characters created in the gaming genre. With no respect, poli cally incorrect to an acute degree and oozing machoness, no other game hero has saved Earth and its hordes of chicks in cooler style. Crude, brutally honest, drunk half the me – gamers from the nine es will have fond memories of yelling profanity along with Duke as they mowed down hordes of aliens, and now many will be able to relive them in the brand new tle Duke Nukem Forever.

“2K GAMES AND GEARBOX SOFTWARE HAVE COME UP WITH THE GOODS AFTER 13 LONG YEARS OF WAITING.”

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When not reducing the popula on of the alien invaders, players will be able to interact with their surroundings, doing things typically Duke-ish – li ing weights, shoo ng hoops, drawing messages on walls and ogling women – and be the defini on of bad-ass. Bringing his unique blend of over-the-top weapons, explosions by the gallon, weird looking aliens to humiliate in one way or another, and of course, the ladies that swoon at the sight of the King, 2K Games and Gearbox So ware have come up with the goods a er 13 long years of wai ng, and have dated the release of Duke Nukem Forever for May 3, 2011, on the Xbox 360, PS3 and Windows PC. Sufficient me to prac ce the now legendary phrase, “I’m here to kick ass and chew gum, and I’m all ou a gum.” ED. It should be noted, before we all get overly excited, that Duke Nukem Forever (for all you racing fans, you know what DNF stands for – did not finish) has flirted with a release before, and although this is the closest it’s been to an official launch, stranger things have happened in this tale of lawsuits, re-writes, studio closures and never ending delays. Paul Park

NEWS

COMBAT ARMS TO INTRODUCE AN ACHIEVEMENTS & MESSENGER SERVICE PLAYERS CAN NOW SHARE THEIR SECRET PLANS, IN SECRET. Nexon America, the developers and publishers of the increasingly popular F2P shooter Combat Arms, have been working hard under the bonnet and have come up with two (rather well-known) introduc ons for their game – the Achievement system, familiar with many gamers around the industry, and the long-awaited Messenger system.

The second change in-store for players is the Messenger display, enabling players to exchange messages without the risk of being caught by enemy spies in chat channels, lobbies, and games, stealing precious and some mes invaluable tac cal informa on. Clans in par cular have been wai ng for this change for some me, with large-scale clan ba les a prominent feature of the game, and the intercep on of messages have proved to be increasingly and excessively inﬂuen al in the tac cal planning and co-ordina on during such skirmishes.

A purely cosme c change, Achievements will award medals upon the comple on of various objec ves, such as killing a number of enemies with each weapon in the game, or capturing a certain number of ﬂags. Providing another method of standing out from the rest, Nexon America hopes that the newly implemented system will enhance the enjoyment of the fast-paced gameplay.

“CLANS IN PARTICULAR HAVE BEEN WAITING FOR THIS CHANGE FOR SOME TIME.” These changes are accompanied by the expected addi on of new weapons to the item store, with the sniper rifles TRG-21 and TRG-SE making their debut. Bought with gear points (GP), these new weapons will soon be finding ac on (and targets) on the ba lefields of Combat Arms. Paul Park

phonica magazine uk

NEWS

EVERQUEST II – DESTINY OF VELIOUS AVAILABLE FOR PREORDER NEW EXPANSION TO BE RELEASED AS YOU READ THIS One of the biggest and most popular MMOs to date, Everquest II con nues its storyline with the new expansion, “Des ny of Velious”. An all-in-one pack of pre y extreme propor ons, new players are given the chance to jump in right at the deep end with 7 massive expansions, 3 adventure packs and the original game in a huge compila on pack. phonica magazine magazine uk uk 10 phonica

With the story of the expansion set as a cataclysmic turn of events following the draining of power from the legendary Swords of Des ny, Soulﬁre and the Qeynos Claymore, a prophecy called Age’s End is set in mo on as adventurers travel to the con nent of Velious, looking to restore the power of the weapons and save Norrath. Succeed, and glory awaits. Fail, and the annihila on of Norrath is only the beginning.

NEWS

“NEW PLAYERS ARE GIVEN 7 MASSIVE EXPANSIONS, 3 ADVENTURE PACKS AND THE ORIGINAL GAME IN A HUGE COMPILATION PACK.” Transported to the Great Wastes of Velious, cavernous dungeons, fearsome monsters and glorious loot await the intrepid explorer, while players will finally be able to experience EQ2 from the skies as flying mounts are finally introduced into the ever-growing franchise. Among the incredible list of features that have been thrown into the mix by Sony Online Entertainment the company behind the MMO beast - are the following:

•

10 new dungeons for players to explore, clear and plunder

•

4 new Heritage quests to complete with friends for excep onal items

•

Upwards of 300 new quests, 1000 new items, 30 new creature types + more worth of content

•

A sprawling, contested dungeon to ﬁght over

Furthermore, Collector’s Edi on players will receive even more bonuses in the form of a unique in-game pet, a Cryoman c Armor crate, various house items, and a Stormfeather Brood Guardian look for their new ﬂying mounts. Paul Park

phonica magazine uk

PREVIEWS

MOTORSTORM: APOCALYPSE

PUBLISHERS: SONY DEVELOPERS: EVOLUTION STUDIOS FORMAT: PS3 GENRE: RACING AVAILABLE: 16TH MARCH 2011

OUT OF THE JUNGLE AND INTO THE CITY

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PREVIEWS I love the MotorStorm series. Not only are these excessive off-road racers packed with fran c excitement, spontaneous racing and thrilling scenery, but the whole franchise has its tongue wedged firmly in its cheek, and is far be er for it. There’s no funnier sight in videogame racing than seeing a rag-doll motorbike rider flying through the air, bouncing of a rock and then going under the wheels of a monster truck…and then another…and then another. It’s da popcorn gaming at its best, stripped of any intelligence, reality or needless integrity. But, as we await the release of the fourth instalment in the franchise, MotorStorm: Apocalypse, we are slightly concerned at the new path Evolu on Studios have chosen to take with their slaps ck racer. It seems as if, against good reason, Apocalypse will be more “story driven”… For MotorStorm: Apocalypse, Evolu on Studios have le the rugged nature of the great outdoors behind, and instead, have set-up base in the apocalyp c urban area, The City. That’s not to say that the tracks will be anything less than flaky, though, as from what we’ve peeked, The City looks to be a truly explosive venue for a series of races. There are tumbling skyscrapers, overflowing sewers, burning high streets, inner city rioters and exploding mayhem, to name just a smidge of the carnage that unfolds: in a way (apart from sounding like a quiet Friday night in Ha ield), the whole se ng looks and plays similar to last year’s one trick pony, Split/Second: Velocity, with Apocalypse serving up the same style of epic set pieces - the sight of a Jumbo Jet side-swiping the track is impressive to say the least. With Apocalypse bringing a new landscape to the fore, which will feature more tarmac-based surfaces, there is a new selec on of vehicle classes to choose from. As expected, the stalwarts of the series – motorbikes, rally cars, monster trucks - are s ll present, but now there are also supercars, superbikes, hot hatches, muscle cars and choppers, which for the first me can now be upgraded. There’s also an improvement to the boost system, which can now be cooled during jumps, as well as trips through water.

If there is one thing the MotorStorm series has lacked, rightly or wrongly, it’s a decent narra ve. In the previous tles, you just bounced from race to race, picking up the necessary wins and unlocking the next; but in Apocalypse, there’s an actual plot to follow. During the events of the three day racing fes val, you’ll play as three different drivers: “The Rookie”, “The Survivor”, and “The Big Dog”. With each driver offering a differing level of difficulty, you’ll have to play each race through their eyes as the catastrophic events of the story unfold. You’ll also have to contend with the ac ons of two riotous gangs, who will try to impede your race by figh ng on the track, stealing other cars, or even demolishing sec ons of The City.

“WE DO HAVE ONE CONCERN THOUGH: ALTHOUGH WE LIKE THE IDEA OF THE RACES BEING BONDED TOGETHER TO FORM A CONSISTENT PLOT, WE DON’T WANT APOCALYPSE TO TAKE ITSELF TOO SERIOUSLY, NEGLECTING ITS TRADEMARK DAFT ACTION FOR A SENTIMENTAL, UNNECESSARY STORY.” MotorStorm: Apocalypse looks mighty to say the least, with the same excellent mix of eccentric racing and vivid visuals we’ve come to expect from the series. We do have one concern though: although we like the idea of the races being bonded together to form a consistent plot, we don’t want Apocalypse to take itself too seriously, neglec ng its trademark da ac on for a sen mental, unnecessary story. Hopefully this won’t be the case, as MotorStorm: Apocalypse could be the racer of 2011. It’ll be the brashest, whatever happens! Sco Tierney

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PREVIEWS HOMEFRONT PUBLISHER: THQ DEVELOPER: KAOS STUDIOS PLATFORM: PS3, XBOX 360, PC GENRE: FIRST-PERSON SHOOTER (FPS) AVAILABLE: MARCH 2011

DOES THIS FPS HAVE WHAT IT TAKES? Call of Duty: Black Ops. Medal of Honor. Ba lefield 2: Bad Company. Three great tles that developers are faced with when they’ve tried to break into the FPS market in recent mes. Can Homefront, developed by Kaos Studios, do what few have achieved and emerge from the shadow of these games? Russians rebels. Afghan insurgents. Terrorists. All a similar thread that es the above three tles together. So how about Homefront and its Unified Korean Army? Homefront certainly piqued the interest of many with its showing at E3 2010, with a terrifyingly realis c trailer that portrayed the rise of North Korea from 2010 to 2025, beginning with the actual event of the sinking of the Cheonan, a South Korean warship, in its own territorial waters. Grainy clips of Hillary Clinton, various news broadcasts and a narrator reeling off events that occur in the following years – growth of North Korean arms produc on, the death of Kim Jong-Il in 2012, the annexa on of North and South Koreas to form the Greater Korean Republic – and ending in 2025 with the launching of a “communica ons satellite” into space. America, meanwhile, is forced into recalling overseas troops to maintain stability at home amid rising tensions due to fuel prices rocke ng and an economy freefall. Then the innocent satellite ini ates an electromagne c pulse to wipe out the en re American power grid. Cue the invasion of America by the Korean Army, cu ng swathes through the sca ered US military.

A chilling story, right? A en on to detail has been given a real pedestal in Homefront and players can expect to see things both mundane and out-of-the-ordinary during the ac on. Small things such as household items being used as makeshi tools and NPCs going about their day-to-day life are mixed in with weapons such as white phosphorus looking like the real deal, literally burning through your enemies as they scream in horror and ﬂap uselessly at the glaring white ﬁre.

“ATTENTION TO DETAIL HAS BEEN GIVEN A REAL PEDESTAL IN HOMEFRONT AND PLAYERS CAN EXPECT TO SEE THINGS BOTH MUNDANE AND OUT-OF-THE-ORDINARY DURING THE ACTION.” Mul player will be one of the bigger features, with vehicle combat available on top of features such as perks, loadouts, killstreaks and ranking up. Players will be able to accrue “ba le-points” a er successfully comple ng objec ves during a match and can spend them on buying temporary weapons, items and vehicles – the assault chopper a popular choice for many. Not much informa on has been released regarding the singleplayer campaign, but with a very well ﬂeshed out story, we can expect Kaos Studios to deliver a solid campaign, hopefully longer than any of the Call of Duty ones.The resistance begins in March this year. Paul Park

phonica magazine uk

PREVIEWS

GRAY MATTER PUBLISHERS: DTP ENTERTAINMENT DEVELOPERS: WIZARBOX FORMAT: XBOX 360, PC GENRE: POINT AND CLICK ADVENTURE AVAILABLE: 25TH FEBRUARY 2011

THE TIMELESS MAGIC OF POINT AND CLICK Who remembers the Gabriel Knight trilogy? To be honest, it took a fair bit of YouTube-based memory jogging for me as well, as even in its pomp, Sierra’s point and click master class wasn’t exactly well known. But, for those who were -and s ll are - fans of this excellent series, nothing else will do…I say nothing else, as this new adventure, created by the same team behind Gabriel Knight – most notably writer Jane Jensen and composer Robert Holmes - may be just the adventure they’ve been wai ng for. Gray Ma er tells the tale of Samantha Evere , a pre y young magician and street performer. One night, while travelling around Oxford on her motorbike, she breaks down in a rainy rural area, and has to take shelter in a nearby mansion; the eerily tled Dread Hill. There she meets Professor David Styles, a rather un-nerving neurobiologist, who asks her to put together a team of six students so he can perform an experiment on them. From then on, Sam starts to unravel a series of haun ng truths, which lead her into some seriously dark and dangerous territories.

The central concept behind Gray Ma er is magic, and thus, Sam will have to use a lot of the tricks she knows and learns to progress through the game. Sure, there’ll s ll be the classic point and click stuff, such as puzzle solving, word games and the likes, but it’s the magic that really intrigues. For instance, if Sam needed to obtain an item, she could use her sleight of hand abili es, and through a sequence of correct ac ons, “trick” the items away from the holder. During certain sec ons of the game, you’ll also be able to play as Professor Styles, which could add another level of depth to Gray Ma er. Gray Ma er’s art style looks superb, with a delicate mix of well lit environments and superbly rendered character anima ons. That said, the cut-scenes are not up to the same standard, and although they are perfectly pre y to look at, their odd comic book style feels at odds with the rich realism of the gameplay. Gray Ma er has been on sale outside of the UK for a while now, most notably in Germany, but we should be able to get our clicking fingers on it very soon, with both the PC and Xbox 360 incarna ons due out at this me (there are as yet no plans for a Wii version). If the reviews for its European counterpart are anything to go by, Gray Ma er could be a peach of a tle, and something a li le different for 2011. Sco Tierney

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REVIEWS

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SONY ERICSSON SPIRO CHEAP TUNES ARE THE STAPLE OF THIS PINT-SIZED BUDGET HANDSET The Sony Walkman. When you hear those words, you immediately think of the classic casse e player than revolu onised personal music. The Walkman is an icon, the granddaddy of every descended iPod and MP3 player that is currently on the market, and Sony are ll producing products under the symbolic Walkman banner. But, it’s fair to say that these electrical trinkets are now firmly in the shadow of the all conquering iPhone; the interac ve Walkman of today. So, 31 years a er music truly became personal, the next mobile phone to proudly carry the Walkman flag into ba le is the Sony Ericsson Spiro… The Sony Ericsson Spiro is a budget slider, built to provide a sensible portal for your music, your calls, and at a stretch, a spot of social networking. At around £40 out the box or £10 per month on contact, it’s pre y good value, as the FM radio, 2.2 inch screen, camera, MP3 playback and sturdy build quality will suggest. It’s not the most elegant mobile we’ve ever clamped our eyes on, but it is cute nonetheless. It’s also available in black, pink and green, so there’s a colour scheme for the serious, the sexy and everyone in-between. The Spiro is all about the music, and every effort has gone into making it the best mini-jukebox a pi ance can buy. The Spiro s ll uses the reassuring familiar naviga on system that Sony have been harnessing for well over ten years, but to be honest it’s perfect for this phone, as are the music priori sed bu ons that adorn the Spiro’s face. It would have been nice to have seen some form of in-line remote, but the 3.5 jack at least allows you to use your own top-spec headphones, rather than the des na on-bins that are included. The sound quality is also top notch – both crisp and warm – and Sony’s Track ID system of iden fying tracks a er only a few seconds is handy if a li le contrived. Downloading tracks directly to your phone is an issue through, as the Spiro’s web package is pre y poor to say the least.

As you’d expect with a phone governed by a budget, there are a few shortcomings. The camera is pre y poor even at this price; some of the bu ons par cularly the volume se ngs - are ﬁddly to use; the 5MB in-built memory is a joke, and the lack of Wi-Fi and 3G is a real hindrance. That said, this is s ll a budget phone of real quality, so it’s not all doom and gloom…just don’t forget to add the price of a decent SD memory card onto your bill!

“THE SOUND QUALITY IS ALSO TOP NOTCH – BOTH CRISP AND WARM – AND SONY’S TRACK ID SYSTEM OF IDENTIFYING TRACKS AFTER ONLY A FEW SECONDS IS HANDY IF A LITTLE CONTRIVED.”

The Sony Ericsson Spiro is a lovely li le mobile, which despite its obvious shortcomings and technical frail es, is s ll a decent companion for the music-on-the-move lover. It’s never going to be able to compete with the top dogs, such as the iPhones or the HTCs, but it’s good at what it does. It’s not going to change the world, and it’s deﬁantly no Walkman, but it can at least wear that iconic tag with pride, and that’s all you can ask for under £40. Sco Tierney

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REVIEWS SONY ERICSSON CEDAR SAVE THE WORLD, AND A FEW QUID Oh no, oh please God no…the GreenHeart range is back; Sony’s a empts at saving the planet by occasionally changing the weave of the cardboard they package their least popular phones in. OK, that’s a tad unfair, as despite the crassness of their sen ments, Sony are at least trying to help the environment with these nature hugging range of handsets. Why they can’t make every one of their phones eco-friendly is ma er for another me, but for now, let’s take a look at this latest tree saver: the Sony Ericsson Cedar. Following on from the Elm and the Hazel, the Cedar is another GreenHeart mobile that does enough for the money, while helping out mother earth. It’s not overﬂowing with goodies, but for a £15 per month contract or £120 straight up, it’s pre y impressive value when you consider the stats. You get a sweet 2.2 inch screen; a 2MP camera, Bluetooth, 3G, smart features for accessing both your Twi er and Facebook accounts; a 3.5mm headphone jack, impressive interac on in the menus, and a generous 280MB of in-built memory. You also get recyclable packaging…as if we care.

“THE FUN MENUS, FACEBOOK SYSTEM, WEB BROWSING AND GENERAL EXCELLENCE OF THE OTHER FEATURES ARE GOOD ENOUGH TO RECOMMEND THIS PHONE.”

To be brutal, the Cedar is one underwhelming handset to look at. There’s nothing wrong with its sleek propor ons, its meaty bu ons of its shiny rear jacket, but my word, is it dull! There’s just nothing of any interest that excites .If we were going to be cruel we’d say it looked like a lump of grayish soap, which in a way isn’t far from the case, as due to it’s smooth, curvaceous exterior, the Cedar has the tendency to slip from your grasp. Sony aren’t renowned for producing sexy mobiles, and with the Cedar, they’ve excelled in mediocrity. On a posi ve note, though, the Cedar is agreeably pleasant to use. As we’ve said, the naviga on op ons are a doddle to work with, and although this is no HTC, the spunky anima ons that accompany texts and incoming calls are a nice addi on. The Facebook client is also a pleasure to use, making updates and uploading photos simple yet detailed. The Twi er counterpart is a bit of a pain, as connec vity is o en disrup ve and twitchy, but all in all it’s acceptable, especially when you consider the constraints of the Cedar’s opera ng system and ny screen. There are a few challenges with the Cedar, which mainly involve the camera and some of the widgets. The 2.2MP camera is choked without a LED flash, low on overall quality, and as it’s located on the rear, it makes video calling a complicated process. For the money, the Sony Ericsson Cedar is OK, and nothing more. It’s about as exci ng to look at as a rained-off fireworks show, and some of the features are overly complicated and o en frustra ng. But, the fun menus, Facebook system, web browsing and general excellence of the other features are good enough to recommend this phone. To be honest, if it wasn’t part of the preten ous GreenHeart brand, we’d probably have a lot more me for the Cedar, but if green is your thing, and you count the sheets of toilet paper you use, this may well be your dream phone. Kudos to Sony Ericsson! Sco Tierney

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BROTHERS IN ARMS 2: GLOBAL FRONT DEVELOPER: GAMELOFT PLATFORM: iPHONE, iPOD TOUCH, PALM PRE GENRE: ACTION & ADVENTURE AVAILABLE: NOW

ACTION, DRAMA AND ADRENALINE WITH A SIDE DISH OF FLAMETHROWER..YUM!!!

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REVIEWS

I’m not really one for World War games as whenever I play them, I leave with a pointless simmering anger. This is due to the fact I’m a bad loser and I die on average 3 mes a minute. The difference here is I loved the game, I just also happened to keep dying. Yes at the beginning it’s slightly yucky and preachy, “Back home in Missouri, I used to believe in a lot of things. But war doesn’t just kill men, some mes it kills the things you believe in too” speech. But as soon as that’s over, you get launched into a full scale Pacific beach invasion, grenades exploding, hails of bullets, and you mission into gear as you’re legging it across the beach. My ini al reac on was to mash my thumb on the crouch bu on and try not to get shot. Thankfully I don’t, as is it’s pre y full on from the get go: there’s flamethrowers to BBQ enemies with, bazukas to fire at tanks, planes to fly, the full Monty. I very much approve of the weapons they’ve spread out for you, and the landscapes you’re playing on are colourful and detailed, with loca ons like the Pacific coast, Tunisia and Northern Africa to sink your teeth into. One thing that did bug me slightly though, was unlike games such as Halo you can’t explore the background as much as I’d like, but if Halo was available in the App Store then it would probably be the same deal…touché.

“THERE’S FLAMETHROWERS TO BBQ ENEMIES WITH, BAZUKAS TO FIRE AT TANKS, PLANES TO FLY, THE FULL MONTY. I VERY MUCH APPROVE OF THE WEAPONS THEY’VE SPREAD OUT FOR YOU, TO.” The beginning ‘Prologue’ mission is one big taste of what the game has to oﬀer: awesome loca ons, albeit with a slight downer of a storyline, but with awesome weapons and some intense, genius gameplay, there isn’t much here not to love.

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REVIEWS

MODERN COMBAT: BLACK PEGASUS DEVELOPER: GAMELOFT PLATFORM: iPHONE & iPOD TOUCH GENRE: ACTION & ADVENTURE AVAILABLE: NOW

MOBILE MODERN WARFARE AT ITS MOST EPIC It was the ‘Black Hawk Down’-esque opening sequence that peaked my interest: Middle Eastern slum, helicopter being shot down a er you get thrown out of it, watching in horror as you watch it explode sort of thing. The usual.

And then there’s the music. Usually, unless it’s something overly quirky and cute, or it’s an actual soundtrack, I ﬁnd music on games bland and mutable, but Black Pegasus oﬀers up a punchy, heart pounding accompaniment complete with techno drumbeats and drama c strings to keep your nerves on alert.

Gameplay starts with your character being rescued from interroga on, and sure enough there are soon hordes of gunshots going off, a cheeky grenade here and there, your team mate yelling at you for some background noise, etc. It’s ever-so good, teetering on awesome, and what I especially love about it is the mul player func on: if you’re bored in the library or sat on the train, you can connect to thousands of players, using either local Wi-Fi or online to join far flung comrades in the art of war. As with any online leaderboard there are always some hard nuts around to pick off the weak, and a er a pi ful display of my skills, I admi ed defeat. I need prac ce sure, but with the dusty urban layout, yes it’s some mes deceiving, but it’s always graphically awesome to play through, and with weapons like sniper rifles, pistols, knives and grenades to have a go with, it does not disappoint on the ac on front either.

“GAMEPLAY STARTS WITH YOUR CHARACTER BEING RESCUED FROM INTERROGATION, AND SURE ENOUGH THERE ARE SOON HORDES OF GUNSHOTS GOING OFF, A CHEEKY GRENADE HERE AND THERE, YOUR TEAMMATE YELLING AT YOU FOR SOME BACKGROUND NOISE, ETC.”

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Overall, this game truly has me hooked: it’s visually engaging, simple to get the hang of, and it has an actual storyline to get involved in, an inclusion which is greatly appreciated.

phonica phonica magazine magazine uk uk

ETERNAL LEGACY DEVELOPER: GAMELOFT PLATFORM: iPHONE & iPOD TOUCH GENRE: ACTION & ADVENTURE AVAILABLE: NOW

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REVIEWS RPG BRETHEN UNITE! Rounding off the Gamelo triad is Eternal Legacy: a sparkly, addic ve RPG that plays even be er than it looks. And it looks darn good. At first its gli ering display distracted me, but I soon found myself asking why this all felt so familiar. And it struck me: this is more or less Final Fantasy. The characters look remarkably similar, with ‘Astrian’ looking not unlike a certain ‘Cloud’ we all know, and the ba le play is nowhere near as graphically stunning as FF, but it is the same system to play through. By no means do these similari es detract from Legacy; the fact it resembles Final Fantasy can only serve to help it amongst RPG fans of the world, looking for something epic to play on their iPhone, but at mes it puts me in a state of deja vu, right when I should be properly ge ng into it. The joy of a new game is dampened by its familiar looks, yet comforted by it at the same me....it confused me to begin with, but if you s ck with it and learn to just accept the resemblance, then it would be amazingly foolish of you to not play this game. It plays smoothly, with clearly iden fied tabs to hit at the right mes, has a typical plotline involving evil guys with weird names and magical crystals, and all the strange enemies to ba le against you could expect to encounter between the teleporta on docks in the clouds (Wind Dogs and Wisps to name but a few).

“IF YOU STICK WITH IT AND LEARN TO JUST ACCEPT THE RESEMBLANCE, THEN IT WOULD BE AMAZINGLY FOOLISH OF YOU TO NOT PLAY THIS GAME.” RPG’s in general can either be extremely amazing, or just a bit of a bore (*censored by my Editor*), but for an RPG in the mobile app store, this deﬁnitely goes on the top of my list, familiar warts and all.

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REVIEWS

APPLE APP REVIEWS:

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PAC-MAN (LITE) CATEGORY: GAMES UPDATED: 16 DECEMBER 2010 VERSION: 2.2.0 SIZE: 4.1 MB DEVELOPER: NAMCO NETWORKS AMERICA No ma er how old you are, there has to be something wrong with your soul if you don’t have love for Pac-Man. Seriously. Perhaps it’s because I love retro games (Atari for Life), or because I’m easily amused by cartoon ghosts and bright colours, but to get to the point, now you can play it on your I-Device of choice, it’s even more epic than ever before. The set up is exactly the same as the Old-School version which is a massive bonus, because there’s nothing worse than seeing your favourite childhood game turned modern/ruined: you remember the TMNT ﬁasco….*shudder* …. The magic that comes with the simple yet awesome look of the game is exactly the same, so that’s an automa c high 5 in my book.

This is my personal opinion here, but I used to loathe those old joys ck game sta ons: some git would either have put his gum inside the joys ck to make it…well, s ck, or there would be some malfunc on just as you were about to high score that badboy and it would reboot on you. A day’s work gone to the dogs. I ﬁnd swiping my ﬁnger across my iPod much less problema c and ul mately, easier. This new way of manipula ng the man of Pac doesn’t take anything from the game, infact I reckon it adds to it even. When you were a kid, sure it was fun ge ng all worked up with your mates, cursing those tricky li le ghosts as they got you for the 100th me. It’s not so fun however to relive that same experience on your own, and on the Underground. Not fun at all. Swipe for life baby. Pac-Man Rules.

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REVIEWS RAGAN NEWS. CATEGORY: NEWS RELEASED: 25TH JUN 2010 VERSION: 1.0 SIZE: 1.3 MB DEVELOPER: LAWRENCE RAGAN COMMUNICATIONS I am a culture vulture. No point in denying it at this point in my life, and there’s nothing I enjoy more than social culture trends, social media and the latest technological info bursts. We all know the pain of buying a newspaper, si ng down on the sta on pla orm to read a par cularly interes ng ar cle, and then having the wind rip it from you like an a en on seeking child. It’s embarrassing and it sucks, but you don’t have to feel that way ever again. Not with the Ragan News iPod Applica on, covering Internal Communica ons, Public Rela ons and Marke ng and Social Media! *cue cheesy gameshow host grin*

“IT’S STYLISH APPEARANCE AND EASE OF USE MAKES IT APPEALING.” All jokes aside though, it’s genuinely one of the best apps I’ve found yet on the App Store. That’s a very personal thing to say, because someone could say ‘hold up, that’s bull! Angry Birds is blatantly the best app there is.’ And if you’re a gamer then hell yeah, it’s the bomb, but if you’re like me and are more interested in an app that’s going to give you the latest news about new social networking sites, blog entries from CEO’s of some of the world’s leading techno-companies, public rela on’s snippets that can make you laugh or just shake your head in shame, then this is THE app to download. It’s stylish appearance and ease of use makes it appealing on one hand, and on the other, the inclusion of live tweets from some of the most important people in the communica ons bizz, and videos if that wasn’t enough for you all, makes it the one stop app for all your culture vulture cravings. Simply put its downright genius.

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SAVE STICKLY CATEGORY: GAMES RELEASED: 16 DECEMBER 2010 VERSION: 1.0 SIZE: 12.9 MB DEVELOPER: UNIQUE APPS I love this game. Like apps I’ve reviewed before, this is a fall down game, but to my happiness it involves a person not a ball that you control. Meet S ckly: the s ck figure hero that you control with either your will for good, or for evil. Previous fall down games I’ve played have been basic to say the least. I’m not saying that’s a bad thing, because some mes simple is best, but with dear ol’ S ckly here you have the joy of some added features. There are bonus balls that float mid air offering to stop the moving screen (which helps a lot in my case), speed up S ckly, and to make things even more interes ng, the pla orms which S ckly moves across change colour depending on how fast the screen’s moving. When you get to purple you know your me is almost up…..or perhaps that’s just me. Either way, the inclusion of these small, but greatly appreciated, extra features puts this app at the top of the fall-down genre for me.

“MEET STICKLY: THE STICK FIGURE HERO.” I don’t know if it’s my love of pla orm games in general, or if I somehow become a ached to S ckly during our brief mes together, but I always feel bad when I lose. Probably due to the blood splat that occurs when S ckly bites it because I’m just too slow…..

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REVIEWS

MUSÉE DU LOUVRE CATEGORY: EDUCATION UPDATED: 03 MARCH 2010 VERSION: 1.1 SIZE: 95.3 MB DEVELOPER: MUSÉE DU LOUVRE Here’s a li le factoid for you: Did you know that the Galerie d’Apollon in the Louvre, was destroyed by ﬁre in 1661 and rebuilt by the architect Le Vau? That the decora on on the ceiling, started by Charles Le Brun, evokes the course of the sun as a tribute to the Sun King, Louis XIV? No? Neither did I, but the App sure helps me sound smart. In fact I’ve never been to the Louvre, as much as I’d like to. This app gives me all the in’s and out’s of the historic French palace/museum, and even gives you a small tour around the grounds, telling you about the most famous pain ngs and portraits along the way. There’s works by Van Gogh (of course), Ingres, David, Goya, Rembrandt, to name but a few.

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You can read informa on about the pain ngs themselves, zoom in for a closer look, which I’m pre y sure you can’t do in the actual museum. It even tells you all the technicali es about the pain ngs, such as oil on canvas, the dimensions of the canvas, etc, and where it’s located in the museum. The app is elegant, easy to maneuver and really interes ng. I’m a big art buﬀ, so this cks all the boxes for me, but even if you’re not, there’s no end to the amazing visuals it oﬀers. Genuinely a sa sfying app to have.

“YOU CAN READ INFORMATION ABOUT THE PAINTINGS, AND ZOOM IN FOR A CLOSER LOOK.”

REVIEWS GEARED CATEGORY: GAMES UPDATED: 11 JANUARY 2011 VERSION: 1.75 SIZE: 6.8 MB DEVELOPER: BRYAN MITCHELL This app is an engineer’s wet dream. It’s pre y cool for everyone else as well to be frank, it’s kept me amused and I have an English degree….logic is not my thing and this app requires it. All you le brainers out there should get on this quick sharp, because it’s rare that I enjoy a game quite as much as I do this, without it having something arty or it being simple to understand. The design is reminiscent of an inventors sketch pad and I quite like that: it gives it a diﬀerent approach to some of the other apps out there who are all about the graphics and colour spectrum.

“THIS APP MAKES YOU THINK, AND SOMETIMES IT MAKES YOUR BRAIN HURT.” This app makes you think, and some mes it makes your brain hurt, but when you get the right combina on of cogs to get the whole machine working, you feel a bit like Einstein without the silly hair, unless you too have silly hair. On top of that, there are over 100 levels to get your teeth into so there’s no need to panic when you ﬁnish it, because you’ll likely thank the heavens and do a li le dance when you do. I myself am on level 59. I’ve been on level 59 for 2 weeks now. I’m beginning to think that the le side of my brain has collapsed due to exhaus on.

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REVIEWS DEAD SPACE 2 PUBLISHERS: ELECTRONIC ARTS DEVELOPERS: VISCERAL GAMES FORMAT: XBOX 360, PS3, PC GENRE: SURVIVAL HORROR / THIRD-PERSON SHOOTER

DARK MATTER... Isaac Clarke is not what you’d call a reliable narrator. When last we saw him, he was escaping the cataclysm of the alien marker while the hallucina on of his dead girlfriend sat quietly in the cockpit next to him. Her influence, or the echo if it is in Isaac’s tortured psyche, haunts this polished sequel from Visceral. If you loved Dead Space, you’ll feel immediately at home. Although Isaac, who now comes with a human face and func oning vocal cords, has to nego ate the first few minutes of the game unarmed, you’ll soon find your digital fingers curled comfortably around that most dis nc ve of standard handguns, the plasma cu er. For those who might be new to the series, the plasma cu er exemplifies the game’s approach to carnage. If you’ve honed your headshot skills to the point where you walk past strangers in the street envisaging the effects of a hydroshock round on their squishy brainpan, you’ll have some skills to relearn. Dead Space is about dismemberment: the Necromorphs are far happier being shot in the head than they are having their spindly limbs blasted off. Isaac’s now on space sta on The Sprawl - I wonder if that scritching sound I can hear is William Gibson’s legal team preparing a writ - giving Visceral another chance to herd us through kilometres of claustrophobic corridor and into regular set pieces. To accompany the plasma cu er, and the cornucopia of other weaponry you’ll amass as the game progresses, you’ll get the reassuring support of your telekinesis skill and the indispensible stasis field. Ammo is doled out regularly but with restraint, so you really need to choose your shots and make the most of the projec le opportuni es that telekinesis gives you.

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You won’t be short of stuff to shoot at, though. The ski ering, fleshy Necromorphs are as disturbing as ever, and as you move into the game’s later stages, you’ll find yourself dealing with several types of nasty at once. Quick tac cal thinking and adjus ng your strategy on the fly is a must.

“THIS IS EVOLUTION - AND SOMETIMES NOT EVEN THAT RATHER THAN REVOLUTION.” There’s a huge amount to admire here, even if you do want to be a churl and complain about the game’s fundamentally linear path. It certainly does shepherd you from alpha-moment to alpha-moment, with creepily quiet sec ons in between to heighten the contrast. The immersion’s fantas c, helped by the ingenious use of Isaac’s suit as your HUD... health displayed along your spine, ammo counter holo’d over the sights of your gun. The economic structure of the ﬁrst game is also s ll here, with money used to buy weapons, armour, ammo and health, and all-too-rare nodes to upgrade your toys. This is evolu on - and some mes not even that - rather than revolu on. We’ve talked previously in these pages about the “more of the same” eﬀect - Fallout New Vegas, I’m looking at you - and the cash-money power of the sequel. But when the suspense is this expertly cra ed, the sights and sound this crisp, the ac on this sa sfying and the shocks this jol ng, who cares? Rob Hobson

PRESENTATION: 19/20 STORY: 18/20 CONTROLS: 17/20 GAMEPLAY: 18/20 DURABILITY: 18/20

OVERALL

90/100

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REVIEWS

BACK IN SACK

The pla orming mechanics - no, they’re s ll not in the Super Mario league of precision - remain iden cal. For those of us who love and relish the challenge of a good pla ormer, there’s s ll a few moments of frustra on to be had. As with the ﬁrst game, you have 3 levels of “depth” - near, middle and far - to compliment the standard sidescrolling layout. The precision with which your Sackboy jumps and stops is well short of the on-a-sixpence perfec on of Nintendo’s best eﬀorts, but is s ll a pre y agreeable set of input and response. When you die, you’ll usually be able to blame yourself rather than the developer.

Anyone who’s read and enjoyed Cory Doctorow’s Makers should feel right at home with Li le Big Planet 2. There’s a sort of joyful ebullience about this game that carries directly on from its predecessor: the homespun, lo-ﬁ look; the cheerful visual jokes; even the warm, comfor ng Stephen Fry voiceover that, sta s cians prove, can leave you feeling 18% cleverer and 44% more reassured as you nego ate the opening levels.

But the levels themselves... well, it’s here that Media Molecule shows off the knowhow it’s honed in 2008’s game. You already know that the art direc on is wonderfully odd and beau fully cra ed, but the range of challenge is much broader here, with new tools and playthings introduced gently and sensibly, and the nicely judged difficulty curve layering challenges that can o en feel tricky, but never insurmountable. Frankly, I’d cheerfully give it to my girlfriend and then leave her to it, confident in the game’s ability to handhold you without s cking a fish hook through your tongue and dragging you through it.

LITTLE BIG PLANET 2 PUBLISHERS: SONY DEVELOPERS: MEDIA MOLECULE FORMAT: PS3 GENRE: PLATFORMER

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“YOU CAN’T HELP BUT FEEL THAT THIS IS ABOUT AS GOOD AS IT’S GOING TO GET FOR THE BUDDING GAME DESIGNER ON THIS GEN OF CONSOLES. IF YOU LOVE THE IDEA OF MODDING BUT FIND THE PC PLAYGROUND A LITTLE INTIMIDATING, THIS IS ABSOLUTELY DESIGNED FOR YOU..“ But it’s the mod / design tools that comprise the real revolu on here, and MM’s thinking and execu on is, on occasion, awe-inspiring. I gave up on building my own level pre y early into the last game, conten ng myself with exploring the work of others. This me round, things are enriched and simplified, if that’s possible, giving you more space to play and think and far more powerful tools to do it with. Making your own levels is actually a joy, not a trial, and although the user-generated stuff already shows a fair amount of dross, you can’t help but feel that this is about as good as it’s going to get for the budding game designer on this gen of consoles. If you love the idea of modding but find the PC playground a li le in mida ng, this is absolutely designed for you.

All things considered, LBP2 is a towering achievement, not least because it does what it does with a healthy dose of irony, self-awareness, and irrepressible fun. If a more feelgood PS3 game comes out this year, with more technical nous and polish layered over and under it, I’ll eat my sack hat. Rob Hobson

PRESENTATION: 19/20 STORY: 15/20 CONTROLS: 17/20 GAMEPLAY: 18/20 DURABILITY: 19/20

OVERALL

87/100 phonica magazine uk

REVIEWS CASTLEVANIA: LORDS OF SHADOW PUBLISHERS: KONAMI DEVELOPERS: MERCURYSTEAM, KOJIMA PRODUCTIONS FORMAT: XBOX 360, PS3 GENRE: ACTION ADVENTURE

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THE CLASSIC CASTLEVANIA SERIES TAKES A GOOD HARD LOOK AT ITSELF, AND RETURNS WITH A FRESH FACE The Castlevania series has been around since the middle 80s, with no fewer than 37 tles being released under its mighty fantasy-bashing banner. It’s an icon of gaming, the granddaddy of vampire killing, producing some of the greatest adventure tles of all me; but recently, the series has been star ng to show it’s age, and despite s ll providing entertainment for the hardcore fans, it’s been losing a war with the cri cs. What was needed was a freshen-up; a reboot; a kick up its fantas cal backside, and Castlevania: Lords of Shadow is the perfect size twelve to deliver such a boo ng.

The gameplay is very much kill-pla orm-kill-pla ormboss-kill-pla orm…it’s very enjoyable, and thanks to the upgradeable moves and combo addi ons, always a decent challenge, but Lord of Shadow isn’t exactly packed with innova on, and a er a while, this blatant lack of variety can become a wee bit resome. But, that’s not to say Lord of Shadow is empty, as the campaign is reassuringly massive, and as you gain more abili es and strength you can revisit the early stages and unlock previously inaccessible sec ons (two DLC packs - Reverie and Resurrec on, and Resurrec on – will also be available shortly). It’s a fun game to play, just don’t expect anything you haven’t seen before, and expect to see and re-see what you have seen before…if you see what I mean?

Castlevania: Lords of Shadow is a completely fresh start for the series, producing a new protagonist, a new se ng, and bringing a totally new ambiance to proceedings. Gabriel Belmont (voiced by Robert Carlyle) is a holy knight, searching for an answer to why the land has been plagued with supernatural nas es such as goblins, werewolves and other such unpleasants. Believing that God has lost faith in the people of this historical post-crusades me, Gabriel sets out to ﬁnd help, all the while trying to come to terms with the murder of his beloved wife. It’s a well considered and, although by the numbers, a smartly scripted plot, that takes us on a trip around some stunning landscapes and into ba le with some truly in mida ng creatures. Sir Patrick Stewart also turns up to narrate proceedings, throwing every ounce of his thespian soul into the part.

“CASTLEVANIA IS BACK, BUT NOT AS WE KNOW IT, AND THAT CAN ONLY BE A GOOD THING.”

Graphically, Lords of Shadow is outstanding. Although its art style begs, borrows and steals from the classic “fantasy” style (fair maidens, dark caves, enchanted forests, overgrown ruins, etc) the sheer depth and beauty of the surroundings is staggering. That said, due to Lords of Shadow not featuring a controllable camera, at mes you feel as if you’re wearing a neck brace and blinkers, as the levels ﬂash past, always just out of the corner of your eye.

In the case of Castlevania, Lords of Shadow is exactly what the doctor ordered: it’s a fresh chapter in what was becoming a lame and red franchise. Lord of Shadow is gorgeous to look at, corking to play, enjoyable to revisit and a pleasure to experience. It’s not perfect by any means, and if anything, although it’s a fresh start for the Castlevania series, Lord of Shadows borrows the majority of it’s ideas from other tles (the ba le with the Shadow of the Collossus-style tan being one), but it’s the best Castlevania tle for a good long while. Castlevania is back, but not as we know it, and that can only be a good thing. Sco Tierney

PRESENTATION: 19/20 STORY: 16/20 CONTROLS: 15/20 GAMEPLAY: 15/20 DURABILITY: 16/20

OVERALL

81/100 phonica magazine uk

REVIEWS

GOLDENEYE 007 PUBLISHERS: ACTIVISION DEVELOPERS: EUROCOM, N-SPACE FORMAT: WII, DS GENRE: FIRST-PERSON SHOOTER (FPS)

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REVIEWS BOND IS BACK, BUT WITH A STRANGE CASE OF DÉJÀ VU… For me, Goldeneye on the Nintendo 64 was more than just a game: it was an integral part of my childhood. Looking back, I s ll consider those lazy a ernoons of the late 90s - around my chums’ house, playing deathmatch a er deathmatch un l we could play no more, slugging Lilt and talking tac cs - as some of the happiest of my life. But now, the Goldeneye I loved, the tle I idolised and the game that, in a way, made me the gamer and person I am today, is back. I say back…Goldeneye Wii is more like a bastard son… Goldeneye 007 is a reworked, reimagined, rebranded, re…whatever, it’s a sort of new version of the 1997 N64 classic. Just as last me, the game starts out with Bond (this me around portrayed by current 007 Daniel Craig) and his partner in spy, Alec Trevelyan, infiltra ng a secret weapons plant, with the plan of destroying it and escaping safely. As you probably know, from either the film or the previous game, it doesn’t go well, and Bond barley escapes alive while Alec is “killed”. From then on, Goldeneye Wii follows roughly the same plot as the first, although it deviates and criss-crosses with the past narra ve at almost every turn. It’s a very odd experience indeed, as you bounce from past memories to new set pieces to new plot twists to old levels then and back again, all the while being vigorously shot at by swarms of baddies… it’s peculiar indeed. Before we have a look at what the original Goldeneye was all about, its mul player, it’s worth no ng that this new version has a surprisingly spunky single player campaign. The ac on is non-stop, the environments are impressive recrea ons on the original, and overall the controls – either the Wii Remote, Classic controller of Gamecube controller – are perfectly serviceable. The set pieces are also impressive: a visit to a neon-light nightclub is an eye-catching highlight.

So, onto the big ques on: is the mul player any good. Well, guess what…it’s superb. OK, it’s not quite up there with the Black Ops and the Halo’s of this genera on, but it is extremely enjoyable, especially when you go all retro and have four of your mates playing via a split screen. You have the op on of playing online with up to eight at a me, which is s ll good fun, but, as with the original, Goldeneye mul player really comes alive with a crowd. The lack of a chat feature is a bit of a bummer, and it should be stressed that the frame rate is an issue when the ac on get busy, but overall, you’ll be hard pushed to ﬁnd a be er party game, even on the Wii.

“AN EXCELLENT SHOOTER AND BY A DISTANCE THE BEST FPS CURRENTLY AVAILABLE ON THE WII.” Without doubt, Goldeneye 007 is the Wii’s best shooter. It’s tremendously well paced, the set pieces are fantas c, there are plenty of weapons (25 in all), it’s visually impressive, and the mul player is a blast both on and oﬄine. Of course, it’s not as good as the original, but it was never going to be. If you’re going to judge Goldeneye 2010 on Goldeneye 1997, then you may as well judge every single FPS by the same margin: that’ll leave an awful lot of “inferior” shooters out in the cold. Take the Wii’s Goldeneye 007 as a one oﬀ, a separate tle, and just enjoy it for what it is; an excellent shooter and by a distance the best FPS currently available on the Wii. It’s not as good as the past, but honestly, nothing ever is. Sco Tierney

PRESENTATION: 16/20 STORY: 17/20 CONTROLS: 16/20 GAMEPLAY: 18/20 DURABILITY: 17/20

OVERALL

85/100

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REVIEWS TRON: EVOLUTION PUBLISHERS: DISNEY INTERACTIVE STUDIOS DEVELOPERS: PROPAGANDA GAMES FORMAT: XBOX 360, PS3, PSP, PC GENRE: ACTION ADVENTURE

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REVIEWS GLOWING ACTION THAT FEELS A LITTLE COLD A film/game e in…yippie! Nothing excites me more than a game with the sole purpose of cashing in on a film’s recent success; fantas c, another lazy tle flops off the conveyer belt and into my un-wan ng lap. The film this game is based on, Tron: Legacy, didn’t exactly set the cinema’s alight, so there’s no reason to expect that this e-in (which is a prequel to the sequel…ehh?) is going to blow us away either. But let’s give it a chance… Tron: Evolu on is a third-person ac on adventure, mixing freestyle pla orming, beat-em-up fis cuffs, occasional racing segments and RPG elements. Set before the events of the new film, but a er those of the original, we see the series’ central protagonist, Kevin Flynn, watching his Tron empire rise and grow. But, when a new set of programs, ISOs (Isomorphic Algorithms, as if you needed telling!) arrive on the scene and start to conflict with the standard programs, things start to go array, and Flynn finds himself in the middle of a CPU civil war. You the player control a faceless character called Anon (short for anonymous), a programme designed to get to the bo om of this warfare and find out who or what is behind the ISO’s ac ons. This lack of character is a bit of shame, as although this lifeless character serves its purpose, it would have been nice to have given a mea er role in which to experience the game. From the start, you’ll be doing a lot of running, a lot of figh ng, and the occasional segment of Light Cycle riding. There’s also the occasional spot of upgrading, where you can buy new weapons, moves and items for the price of a few experience points. None of these excursions really excel, though, with the pla orming elements being overly simple and far too linear, the figh ng being rather dull, and the Cycle sec ons being surprisingly boring. There’s not a huge amount to get excited about, although it should be noted that every part of Tron: Evolu on is superbly produced, making your gaming journey a smooth if rather uneven ul one.

One defining feature of Tron: Evolu on is the visuals, which it has to be said, are divine. The look and feel of the modern day Tron has been perfectly captured, and although the endless stream of blue neon rooms and glowing corridors can get a li le resome a er a few hours, it’s hard not to be blown away by the sheer beauty of Evolu on’s epic cityscapes. The cut-scenes are also superbly put together, and although the majority of Legacy’s actors don’t voice their Evolu on counterparts, the stand-in actors do a fine job nonetheless. Tron: Evolu on is a solid if unspectacular adventure, which never excels but rarely disappoints. Everything about it is just so so; nothing more, nothing less. In a way, Tron: Evolu on is like a perfectly decent piece of electrical equipment: It’s clean, reliable, and it does everything you’d want it to do, but you never really love it. It’s not like a rugged sports car, that despite being nothing but a rus ng frame of flaking paint, seems to have a soul, but rather, Evolu on is soulless; grey; ma paint, lifeless. During one sec on in Tron: Evolu on, you ride a Light Cycle ver cally down the front of an exploding skyscraper, while enemies shoot and chase you, literally, down. That sounds, in theory, enthralling, but in reality, it’s one of the most resome and uneven ul sequences I’ve ever played, largely due to the Cycles handling like concrete trucks on ice. So disappoin ng… Tron: Evolu on is a decent game, and surprisingly, be er than the film it was created to plug, but sadly, it never really takes off, leaving you feeling rather cold. Sco Tierney

PRESENTATION: 18/20 STORY: 13/20 CONTROLS: 13/20 GAMEPLAY: 14/20 DURABILITY: 13/20

OVERALL

71/100 phonica magazine uk

REVIEWS

EPIC MICKEY PUBLISHERS: DISNEY INTERACTIVE STUDIOS DEVELOPERS: JUNCTION POINT STUDIOS FORMAT: WII GENRE: PLATFORMER

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PAINT BY NUMBERS WITH DISNEY’S FIGUREHEAD HERO There’s something really appealing about pain ng in game, as you feel as if you’re doing far more than just simply playing along: you’re crea ng. The best example of this is the excep onal adventure, Okami, which allows you to draw spells onto the screen and quite literally rejuvenate the landscape. So, in this new pla ormer featuring everyone’s favorite mouse called Mickey, is it s ll a thrill to paint with pixels? One night, Mickey Mouse awakes from his midnight slumber and manages to climb through his bedside mirror and into another dimension. There he ﬁnds a wizard, who with the power of his magical brush, paint and thinner, is crea ng a new living and breathing world, on his canvas. Obviously, Mickey can’t help himself, and while mucking around with the wizard’s magical art materials, he inadvertently lets an evil loose on this newly created land, well and truly ruining it. Mickey does what any role model rodent would do, and legs it, but the evil returns years later, passing back through the mirror and dragging Mickey into this world of out of control paint and dastardly evil. That’ll teach him for messing with another man’s brush...

“OVERALL, LIKE ITS UNDERWORKED BRUSH CONCEPT, EPIC MICKEY NEVER REALLY EXCELS OR INSPIRES.” Epic Mickey starts from the moment Mickey lands in The Wasteland (sadly, it’s not that of Fallout 3 – that would have been a much grimmer adventure all together), and while making his escape from a mad scien st’s lab, Mickey learns how to use the power of this new brush - the whole concept of the game. With this brush, you can either spray thinner - which will wash away and remove things - or spray paint, which will add in areas. This skill of giveth / taketh-awayth, can be used on a whole host of objects, such as ﬂoors, cogs, ledges, and even the pesky baddies that inhabit the Wasteland. For instance, if you needed to cross bridge that had been vanished, you can repaint it in, and vise-versa when some baddies are trying follow you.

As you make your way around the Wasterland, helping out the characters you meet and solving the occasional puzzle, you’ll pass through some superbly designed levels. Junc on Point have made fantas c use of the Disney license, throwing in as many nods, winks and references to the classic ﬁlms as is humanly possible. They’ve created a wonderful, magical, cap va ng se ng for a game, and as you look around this inspiring fantasy land, you’ll see...actually, I’ll stop there and correct myself… and as you look around this inspiring fantasy land, you’ll see NOTHING BUT THE BACK OF MICKEY’S EARS! Sorry for that, but the camera in Epic Mickey is appalling, and I do mean appalling. What should be a tool to ease you around the various levels becomes anything but easy, being more of a hindrance than a help as you work against it, ﬁgh ng with it to simply see where you’re going. It’s a joke. To say that Epic Mickey was fun, or at least enjoyable, would be a fair assessment, as it’s a pre y solid adventure. But, it would be unfair to class Epic Mickey as brilliant, or even exci ng, as at its core, it’s a deeply underwhelming pla ormer. Sure, the brush idea is a clever one, and some of the simple 2D sec ons that reference Mickey’s early cartoon days are superb, but the delete/create brush concept is criminally underdeveloped, and crying out to be put to be er use. Even the basic sec ons of pla orming are rudimentary and weary, and the act of ba ling with the ink monsters is incredibly tedious. And don’t get me stated on that camera again! We like Epic Mickey, as it’s a magical revisit of the golden era of Disney and a solid swig of pla orming goodness. But overall, like its underworked brush concept, Epic Mickey never really excels or inspires. Shame, as it could have been a real classic. Sco Tierney

PRESENTATION: 18/20 STORY: 13/20 CONTROLS: 13/20 GAMEPLAY: 14/20 DURABILITY: 13/20

OVERALL

71/100 phonica magazine uk

REVIEWS

CREATE PUBLISHERS: ELECTRONIC ARTS DEVELOPERS: EA BRIGHT LIGHT STUDIOS FORMAT: XBOX 360, PS3, WII, PC GENRE: SANDBOX PUZZLER

CREATION WITHOUT THE SPARK Without a doubt, Lego is the greatest toy of all me. From what is essen ally nothing but a box of mass produced plas c blocks, can become anything from vast castles to minute racers, to a whole fantasy of adventure and imagina on. It’s a wondrous toy, mainly due to it being anything you want it to be; all you need is a li le crea on. So, when a videogame comes a-knocking with the name “Create” slapped on its cover, we can’t wait to quite literally do that; create. So, is Create the gaming equivalent of Lego? Well, no; this stuff ain’t even s ckle bricks! Create is a mix of puzzler and sandbox adorning tool. At the start of each level, you are presented with a blank stage (as in theatre stage), from which you have the opportunity to paint, nker and decorate in whatever way you see fit. One of the early stages is based around the circus, and as you collect points from the 10 mini games on that level, you can add more detail and colour into your own personal crea on: a li le spot of flowers here; some starry wallpaper there; cute s cker up there, etc.

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“DON’T GET ME WRONG, THERE ARE SOME FUN TASKS TO COMPLETE, BUT THEY ARE FAR TOO ONE DIMENSIONAL.” Create is essen ally a collec on of over 100 puzzles, all usually around the theme of ge ng an object from one point to another. Commonly, you’ll have to complete a task in the same vein as ge ng a toy bike from one side of a canyon to the other, manipula ng the various tools at your disposal. So how do you get that bike over such an enormous hole? Well, that’s the ques on Create will o en ask, providing you with such items as fans, rockets, ramps, balloons, tow trucks, and other childish pieces of machinery for you to tackle the problem with. To complete the task, you have to set all the objects in place - a rocket behind the bike and a ramp near the gap – and once you’re happy with the posi oning of your pieces, you set everything in mo on by pressing the play bu on. If your idea doesn’t work, say for instance one rocket isn’t powerful enough, you can reset as you le it, and add, subtract and alter the objects to ensure you succeed. Press play again, and if it works this me, you win!

In theory, Create’s concept sounds like a lot of fun, but actually, it’s pre y resome, as each task is either overly simple or frustra ngly ﬁddly. Don’t get me wrong, there are some fun tasks to complete, and it’s a sa sfying buzz when your carefully created rou ne of balloons and rockets all runs smoothly, but the tasks are far too one dimensional. It should also be noted that for the console versions – the PS3 and Xbox 360 – the user interface is hard work, and anything but a pleasure to use. On the PC, the open menus and selec ons work reasonably well, but with a controller, just like with any strategic game, even the most basic tasks are a chore. Create is a brilliant concept, and although not as charming as it possibly should be, it’s cute nonetheless. But overall, we found it to be a resome, overly linear and rather draining puzzler. As we said, the idea of crea ng your own solu on to the tasks is a brilliant one, but instead of developing fresh and exci ng new solu ons, you feel like you’re just working through a predetermined step by step rou ne, already planned out for you.

If you want to ﬁnd crea ve solu ons to simple puzzles, play the tremendously addi ve Boom Blox on the Wii: if you want to create your own unique world and experiences, play the iconic The Sims: if you want to do both, play the new Li le Big Planet tle. Create is a nice li le puzzler, but ul mately, it doesn’t oﬀer even a shred of what it proposes; crea on. Lego? This is barely Meccano! Sco Tierney

PRESENTATION: 12/20 STORY: 12/20 CONTROLS: 13/20 GAMEPLAY: 12/20 DURABILITY: 13/20

OVERALL

61/100

phonica magazine uk

REVIEWS NEW CARNIVAL GAMES PUBLISHERS: 2K PLAY DEVELOPERS: CAT DADDY GAMES FORMAT: WII, DS GENRE: PARTY GAME One thing that really bugs us regarding New THE CARNIVAL’S BACK IN TOWN Carnival Games, is the fact that the vast percentage of the prizes you win are completely useless. You do ...LET’S NOT STAY TOO LONG. Contrary to the poor scores and nega ve cri cal recep on, we actually quite enjoyed the original Carnival Games on the Wii. OK, the controls were twitchy, the games were pre y resome and overall, it was a cheaply packaged collec on of patchy mini-games; but it was a bit of fun, and a brief chuckle at par es. So, what do we make of this sequel? Is it more of the same? Well…yes, and not a lot else. This me around, we head to a jazzed up carnival, boas ng improved visuals, Mo onPlus capabili es, and a whole host of fresh new games and prizes. It’s the same layout as before: you can create your own character, play along with a few chums, and explore the various avenues of games, collec ng ckets and winning special prizes. There’s nothing new or extraordinary about New Carnival Games, but it’s a bit of fun, nonetheless. New Carnival Games promises 30 new games to enjoy, but as expected, they’re pre y mixed in calibre. Several of these bit-sized distrac ons are a jolly good chuckle, such as the simple-yet-addic ve Ghost House target shooter, and the random Tic Tac Toss. But, the majority of the games are worthy of a single play at best, with the worst – arguably the infuria ngly tough Speed Bingo, and the skill-less Truck Race dice game – being the very essence of lazy developing. That said, most of the games are more enjoyable when played in a group, and if you toss in a few bo les of White Lightning and Special Brew XXX Death To Your Brain Juice, you my friend have a Carnival party to remember…or not.

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have the chance to win items of costume that can be added to your playable character, such as silly hats, novelty masks, and other “hilarious” items of unconven onal clothing, but most of the prizes are image based. A er slugging it out on Hoop Toss for several hours, trying to best that illusive top score and gain party acceptance (ladies love a good hoop tosser), it’s a pre y devasta ng moment when you receive your hard fought prize: a poorly drawn cartoon of a cow wearing a hat. What’s the point? You may as well just have an op on a er every play that says “To burn your ckets and throw all your prizes in the nearest bin, press A” New Carnival Games is an OK collec on of mini games; nothing more, nothing less. It’s a bit of a laugh, a jolly interlude with a party of chums, and if you just take it on its best games, it’s an enjoyable package. New Carnival Games is also an improvement on the original, with more rounded visuals, and the smoother controls that the Mo onPlus, bringing a bit of consistency to proceedings. Overall, if you can get hold of a copy of New Carnival Games for under £10, there are worse ways to spend a wrinkly royal paper face, but don’t expect too much, and certainly don’t expect to be entertained. It may be fun, but New Carnival Games is anything but entertaining. P.S. Oddly, when we were checking the prices for New Carnival Games on Amazon, one of the lists that popped up was “M.E and CFS suﬀers essen al list”…

PRESENTATION: 15/20 STORY: 10/20 CONTROLS: 13/20 GAMEPLAY: 10/20 DURABILITY: 8/20

OVERALL

55/100

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50 phonica magazine uk

phonica magazine uk

THE GUIDE

Nokia 7230

Nokia 6730

Nokia 5530

Nokia E75

Nokia 6210

Size weight Frequency Screen Pixels camera resolu on memory/compa bility bluetooth GPRS WLAN Browser Java Messaging Radio Music downloadable games downloadable ringtones Ba ery talk me - mins (max) Ba ery standy - hours (up to) bluetooth carKit compa ble

98 x 48 x 14.8 mm 100 g Quad-band/3G 240 x 320 3.15 MP 45 MB/microSD Yes/A2DP/microUSB Yes/EDGE Class 32 No Wap/xHTML/HTML Yes SMS/MMS/Email/IM Yes

112 x 46 x 12.6 mm 83 g Quad-band/3G 240 x 320 3.15 MP 48 MB/microSD Yes/A2DP/microUSB Yes/EDGE Class 32 No Wap/xHTML/HTML Yes SMS/MMS/Email Yes

104 x 49 x 13 mm 107 g Quad-band/3G 640 x 360 3.2 MP 70 MB/microSD Yes/A2DP/microUSB Yes/EDGE Class 32/HSDPA Yes Wap/xHTML/HTML Yes SMS/MMS/Email/AMS Yes

111.8 x 50 x 14.4 mm 139 g Quad-band/3G 320 x 240 3.2 MP 50 MB/microSD Yes/A2DP/microUSB Yes/EDGE Class 32/HSDPA Yes Wap/xHTML/HTML Yes SMS/MMS/Email Yes

103 x 49 x 14.9 mm 117 g Tri-band 320 x 240 3.2 MP 120 MB/microSD Yes/A2DP/miniUSB Yes/EDGE Class 32/HSDPA No Wap/xHTML/HTML Yes SMS/MMS/Email Yes

Sony Ericsson Spiro

Sony Ericsson W995

Sony Ericsson W395

Sony Ericsson C903

Sony Ericsson Aino

92 x 48 x 16.75 mm 90 g Dual band 240 x 320 2 MP

97 x 49 x 15 mm 113 g Quad-band/3G 240 x 320 8 MP

97 x 47 x 14.9 mm 96 g Quad-band 176 x 220 2 MP

97 x 49 x 16 mm 96 g Quad-band/3G 240 x 320 5 MP

104 x 50 x 15.5 mm 134 g Quad-band/3G 240 x 420 8.1 MP

MP3/MP4/WAV/WMA

MP3/AAC/AAC+/eAAC/WAV/WMA MP3/AAC/AAC+/eAAC/WAV/WMA

MP3/AAC/WAV/WMA

MP3/WAV/AAC/WMA

Yes MP3 300 370 Yes

Yes Poly/MP3 600 500 Yes

Yes MP3 340 264 Yes

Yes Poly/MP3/AAC 222 244 Yes

Yes Poly/MP3/AAC 294 351 Yes

5 MB/Micro SD

118 MB/Memory S ck Micro

10 MB/Memory S ck Micro

130 MB/Memory S ck Micro

60 MB/microSD

Yes/A2DP/Micro USB Yes/EDGE Class 10 No WAP/HTML Yes SMS/MMS/Email/IM Yes

Yes/A2DP/USB Yes/EDGE Class 10/HSDPA Yes WAP/HTML Yes SMS/MMS/Email/IM Yes

Yes/A2DP/USB Yes/EDGE Class 10 No WAP/xHTML/HTML Yes SMS/MMS Yes

Yes/A2DP/USB Yes/EDGE Class 10/HSDPA No WAP/HTML Yes SMS/MMS/Email/IM Yes

Yes/A2DP/USB Yes/EDGE Class 10/HSDPA Yes WAP/xHTML Yes SMS/MMS/Email/IM Yes

MP3/MP4/AAC+/WAV

Mp3/MP4/AAC

MP3/AAC

Yes MP3 270 475 Yes

Yes Poly/MP3/AAC 420 360 Yes

Yes MP3/AAC 420 480 Yes

Yes MP3/AAC 600 400 Yes

Yes Poly/MP3 270 360 Yes

52 phonica magazine uk

THE GUIDE

Nokia E63

Nokia N97

Nokia 3720 classic

Nokia 5800 Xpress Music

Sony Ericsson Cedar

113 x 59 x 13 mm 126 g Quad-band 320 x 240 2 MP 110 MB/microSD Yes/A2DP/microUSB Yes/EDGE Class 32 Yes Wap/xHTML/HTML Yes SMS/MMS/Email/IM Yes

117.2 x 55.3 x 15.9 mm 150 g Quad-band/3G 640 x 360 5 MP 32 GB/microSD Yes/A2DP/microUSB Yes/EDGE Class 32 Wi-Fi WAP/xHTML/HTML Yes SMS/MMS/Email/IM Yes

115 x 47 x 15.3 mm 94 g Tri-band 320 x 240 2 MP 20 MB/microSD Yes/A2DP/microUSB Yes/EDGE Class 11 No WAP/xHTML/HTML Yes SMS/MMS/Email Yes

111 x 51.7 x 15.5 mm 109 g Quad-band 640 x 360 3.2 MP 81 MB/microSD Yes/A2DP/microUSB Yes/EDGE Class 32 Yes WAP/xHTML/HTML/WML Yes SMS/MMS/Email/IM Yes

111 x 49 x 15.5 mm 84 g Quad-band/3G 240 x 320 2 MP 280 MB/Micro SD Yes/A2DP/USB Yes/EDGE Class 10/HSDPA No WAP/HTML Yes SMS/MMS/Email/IM Yes

MP3/WAV/AAC/WMA

MP3/AAC/eAAC/eAAC+/WMA

MP3/MP4/eAAC+/WAV

MP3/AAc/AAC+/eAAC+/WMA

Mp3/MP4/AAC

Yes Polyphonic & MP3 660 432 Yes

Yes MP3 570 430 Yes

Yes Poly/MIDI/Real Tone/MP3 420 450 Yes

Yes Poly/MP3 528 406 Yes

Yes MP3 750 420 Yes

Sony Ericsson Yari

Sony Ericsson Naite

Sony Ericsson C901

Sony Ericsson C510

HTC Desire

100 x 48 x 15.7 mm 115 g Quad-band/3G 240 x 320 5 MP

108 x 47 x 12.6 mm 84 g Quad-band 240 x 320 2 MP

105 x 45 x 13 mm 107 g Quad-band 240 x 320 5 MP

107 x 47 x 12.5 mm 92 g Quad-band 240 x 320 3.15 MP

119 x 60 x 11.9 mm 135 g Quad-band/3G 480 x 800 5 MP

60 MB/microSD

100 MB/microSD

120 MB/Memory S ck Micro

100 MB/Memory S ck Micro

ROM:512 MB/RAM:576 MB/microSD

Yes/A2DP/USB Yes/EDGE Class 10 No WAP/xHTML Yes SMS/MMS/Email/IM Yes

Yes/A2DP/USB Yes No WAP/xHTML Yes SMS/MMS/Email/IM Yes

Yes/A2DP/USB Yes/EDGE Class 10 No WAP/xHTML Yes SMS/MMS/Email Yes

Yes/A2DP/microUSB Yes/EDGE Class 10/HSDPA Yes HMTL Yes,via 3rd party SMS/MMS/Email(Push)/IM Yes

MP3/eAAC+/WMA

MP3/MP4/eAAC+/WMA

MP3/eAAC+/WMA

MP3/AAC/MP4

MP3/AAC/MID/M4A/WAV/WMA

Yes Poly/MP3/AAC 600 450 Yes

Yes Poly/MP3/AAC 564 380 Yes

Yes Poly/MP3 570 430 Yes

Yes Poly/MP3/Aac 420 400 Yes

Yes MP3 400 360 Yes

phonica magazine uk

THE GUIDE

Apple iPhone 3G S

Apple iPhone 3G

INQ Chat 3G

BlackBerry 8520

BlackBerry Bold 9000

11.5 x 62.1 x 12.3 mm 135 g Quad-band/3G 480 x 320 3.15 MP 16/32 GB (internal)

11.5 x 62.1 x 12.3 mm 133 g Quad-band/3G 480 x 320 2 MP 8/16 GB (internal)

114.5 x 61 x 12.8 mm 93 g Tri-band/3G 176 x 220 3.2 MP 120MB/Memory S ck Micro

109 x 60 x 13.9 mm 106 g Quad-band 320 x 240 2 MP 256 MB/MicroSD

114 x 66 x 14 mm 133 g Quad-band/3G 480 x 320 2MP 1GB/microSD

Yes/USB

Yes/A2DP/USB

Yes/A2DP/microUSB

Yes/A2DP/USB

Yes/EDGE Yes HTML (Safari) No SMS/Email No

Yes Yes Net Front Yes SMS/MMS/Email No

Yes/EDGE Class 10 Yes HTML Yes SMS/MMS/Email/IM No

Yes/EDGE Wi-Fi HTML (Safari) No SMS/MMS/Email No MP3/MP3 VBR/AAC/WAV

MP3/MP3 VBR/AAC/WAV

AMR/AAC/AAC+/eAAC

MP3/AAC/WMA/AAC+/MP4/WMV MP3/WMA/AAC+

Yes

Poly/MP3

AMR/AAC/AAC+/eAAC/MP3/WAV

Poly/MIDI/MP3

Poly/MP3

720 300 Yes

600 300 Yes

480 170 Yes

270 408 Yes

300 310 Yes

Yes

Samsung B3310

Samsung Jet

LG GD510 Pop

LG GM750

Dell Streak

91 x 54 x 17 mm 101 g Quad-band 240 x 320 2 MP 40 MB/microSD Yes/A2DP/microUSB Yes/EDGE Class 10 No WAP/xHTML Yes SMS/MMS/Email Yes

108 x 53.5 x 11.9 mm 110 g Quad-band/3G 480 x 800 5 MP 2/8 GB (internal)/microSD Yes/microUSB Yes/EDGE Class 12/HSDPA Wi-Fi WAP/Dolphin Yes

97.8 x 49.5 x 11.2 mm 87 g Quad-band 240 x 400 3.15 MP 42 MB RAM/microSD Yes/A2DP/microUSB Yes/EDGE Class 12 No WAP/xHTML/HTML Yes SMS/MMS/Email Yes

109.8 x 53.5 x 12.9 mm 120 g Quad-band 240 x 400 5 MP

152.9 x 79.1 x 10 mm 220 g Quad-band/3G 480 x 800 5 MP

128 MB RAM/256 MB ROM/microSD

16GB/512MB ROM/512MB RAM/microSD

Yes/A2DP/microUSB Yes Yes WAP/xHTML/HTML Yes SMS/MMS/Email/IM Yes

Yes/A2DP/USB Yes/EDGE Class 12/HSDPA Yes HTML Yes SMS/MMS/Email No MP3/WAV/eAAC+/WMA Yes MP3 580 400 Yes

SMS/MMS/Email/Vidoe/MS Exchange

Yes

MP3/MP4

MP3/AAC/AAC+/eAAC+/WMA/AMR

MP3/MP4/WMA

MP3/MPEG4/WAV/eAAC+/WMA

Yes Poly/MP3/WAV 300 380 Yes

Yes Poly/MP3/WAV 492 422 Yes

Yes Poly/MP3 200 360 Yes

Yes Poly/MP3 380 450 Yes

54 phonica magazine uk

THE GUIDE

BlackBerry 8300 Curve

Samsung Galaxy S

Samsung Pixon 12

Samsung S5600V Blade Samsung Genio Touch

107 x 60 x 15.5 mm 111 g Quad-band 320 x 240 2MP 64MB/microSD

122.4 x 64.2 x 9.9 119 g Quad-band/3G 480 x 800 5 MP 8GB/16GB/microSD

108 x 53 x 13.8 mm 120 g 480 x 800 pixels 240 x 320 12 MP 150 MB/microSD

102.8 x 54.8 x 12.9 mm 92 g 240 x 320 pixels 240 x 320 3.15 MP 50 MB/microSD

103 x 56.5 x 12 mm 90 g Quad-band 240 x 320 2 MP 40 MB/microSD

Yes/USB

Yes/A2DP/microUSB

Yes/A2DP/USB

Yes/USB

Yes/EDGE No HTML Yes SMS/MMS/Email/IM No

Yes/EDGE Class 12/HSDPA Yes HTML Yes,via 3rd party SMS/MMS/Email/IM Yes

Yes/EDGE Class 10 No WAP/xHTML/HTML Yes SMS/MMS/Email Yes

Yes/EDGE Class 12 No WAP/xHTML/HTML Yes SMS/MMS/Email Yes

Yes/EDGE Class 10 No WAP/xHTML/HTML Yes SMS/MMS/Email Yes

MP3/AAC/AAC+/eAAC+/WMA

MP3/MP4/eAAC+

MP3/MP4/WMA/eAAC+

MP3/WMA/AAC

MP3/MP4/eAAC+/WMV/WMA

Yes

Poly/MP3

Poly/MP3/WAV

240 408 Yes

803 750 Yes

180 250 Yes

120 250 Yes

480 730 Yes

HTC Desire HD

HTC Magic

HTC Hero

Apple iPhone 4

BlackBerry Torch

123 x 68 x 11.8 mm 164 g Quad-band/3G 480 x 800 8 MP

113 x 55 x 13.7 mm 118.5 g Quad-band 320 x 480 3.15 MP

112 x 56.2 x 14.35 mm 135 g Quad-band/3G 320 x 480 5 MP

111.5 x 58.6 x 9.3 mm 137 g Quad-band/3G 640 x 960 5 MP

111 x 62 x 14.6 mm 161 g Quad-band/3G 360 x 480 5 MP

1.5 GB/Micro SD

288 MB/microSD

16/32 GB (internal)

4GB/MicroSD

Yes/A2DP/Micro USB Yes/EDGE Class 32/HSDPA Yes HTML Yes SMS/MMS/Email/IM Yes MP3/AAC+/WAV/WMA Yes Poly/MP3/Aac 550 420 Yes

Yes/miniUSB Yes/EDGE Class 10 Wi-Fi HTML Yes,via 3rd party SMS/MMS/Email/IM No

Yes/A2DP/miniUSB Yes/EDGE Class 10 Wi-Fi HTML Yes SMS/MMS/Email/IM Yes

Yes/A2DP/USB Yes/EDGE Wi-Fi HTML (Safari) No SMS/MMS/Email No

Yes/A2DP/microUSB Yes/EDGE Class 10 Yes HTML Yes SMS/MMS/Email/IM No

MP3/MP4

MP3/AAC+/WAV/WMA 9

MP3/MP3 VBR/AAC/WAV

MP3/eAAC/WMA/WMV

Yes Poly/MP3/WAV 450 420 Yes

Yes Poly/MP3/WAV 420 750 Yes

Yes MP3 420 300 Yes

Yes MP3 330 430 Yes

phonica magazine uk