Issue 6 by PhonicaMagUK

the mobile phone and gaming magazine

Issue 6

phonica magazine uk

WHAT’S INSIDE VOLUME 1 ISSUE 6 2009

PREVIEWS

NEWS O2 More Nokia joins forces with new Alliance Iris lands Orange retail account Orange launches Applica on Shop Danny Glover stars in Orange Gold Spot Di Spiers to Chair Orange Award 2010 Orange reveals top me to chat Microso monitors players on Xbox Console prices s ll high for Christmas Mythos back in development FIFA 10 EA Sports Visa Card Medal of Honour in Afghanistan

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FEATURES MOORE’S LAW Are manufacturers and developing maximising on advancing technology for consoles?

YULESHOCK: WHAT TO PLAY THIS CHRISTMAS A review of some games to play with family and friends this fes ve season.

PLATFORM GAMES: A HISTORY OF SIMPLER TIMES A trip down memory lane, in simpler mes.

FORGOTTEN GEMS: PSYCHONAUTS Not quite Xavier’s school for the gi ed, but s ll a psychic gem.

Starcra II: The Wings of Liberty Mass Eﬀect 2

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VIEWS Sony Ericsson W396, W995, C903 New Super Mario Bros Wii A Boy and His Blob The Saboteur Avatar: The Game Aion: Tower of Eternity Machinarium Tropico 3 King’s Bounty: Armored Princess Lego Rockband Fairytale Fights Rogue Warrior Gimme5Games: Finger Frenzy World, Balloon Headed Boy, Phantom Mansion

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COMPETITION Win a copy of New Super Mario Bros Wii

THE GUIDE Games: Phonica’s 20 Recommended Pla ormers Mobile Phones

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EDITOR IN CHIEF Kevin Leonce

GAMING EDITOR Sco Tierney

CONTRIBUTING EDITOR Peter Gray

CONTRIBUTORS Rob Hobson Ian Duncan Paul Park Charles Thompson

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

EDITORIAL editorial@phonicamagazine.co.uk

ENQUIRIES info@phonicamagazine.co.uk

ADVERTISING adver sing@phonicamagazine.co.uk

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 HAPPY HOLIDAYS Order the ham and turkey online….check. A empt to buy and decorate Christmas tree….check. Sort presents…..ammmm raincheck. The bells are jingling, kids (young and old alike) are being extra nice, fearful any naughty behavior can lead to Santa (who happens to be their Dad stuﬀed in a Santa suit) not leaving any presents. But hey, the fes ve holiday season is a me to make others happy. This issue we have stuﬀed as much goodies as we could, spreading the joy of great deals, swell reviews on what games to get for Christmas Day and ones to keep all to yourself! Be careful of your conduct if you’ve got an Xbox Live. Microso has adopted a no tolerance policy for those who exploit and a empt to abuse the glitches found in games, with consequences unthinkable for gamers….not to men on embarrassing. One can only an cipate the smiles and excitement on Christmas morning, the smell of ham and turkey as a soultry perfume, while you unwrap those Christmas presents. From all of us at Phonica Magazine, Merry Christmas! Enjoy reading. Your Editor in Chief

Kevin Leonce kevin@phonicamagazine.co.uk

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NEWS O2 MORE REPRESENTS KEY MILESTONE IN MOBILE ADVERTISING GROWTH O2 MEDIA LAUNCHES FIRST OF A NEW RANGE OF PRODUCTS FOR ADVERTISERS TO PINPOINT TARGET AUDIENCES O2 Media recently announced the launch of O2 More, a first-of-its-kind scheme in the mobile industry, which will unleash the true poten al of mobile adver sing for brands. O2 More takes mobile adver sing beyond the banner, delivering highly personalized campaigns for adver sers and giving O2 customers access to a wide range of exclusive and relevant offers from over 50 leading brands at launch. O2 More is an opt-in programme for O2 customers, which matches preference informa on they give to O2 with data O2 holds on those customers, such as phone usage, loca on etc. For instance, if a customer says that they are interested in sports and O2 knows they roamed in Switzerland over the winter, a deal on a skiing holiday could be offered to that customer through O2 More. No other marke ng channel can match O2 more for the ability to target brand communica ons on such an individual basis. At launch, offers will include discounts from high street retailers and restaurants, special holiday offers and trials of new services or informa on about forthcoming launches. Over 50 brands have already signed up to the scheme, including Adidas, Cadbury, Interflora and Blockbuster. In the coming months, O2 More will con nue to evolve with new products and services launching which allow adver sers to reach consumers in an efficient and relevant way. Localised solu ons are included in the plans. h p://www.o2.co.uk

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“OVER 50 BRANDS HAVE ALREADY SIGNED UP TO THE SCHEME, INCLUDING ADIDAS, CADBURY, INTERFLORA AND BLOCKBUSTER; WITH MORE TO FOLLOW IN THE COMING MONTHS,”

NEWS NOKIA JOINS FORCES WITH NEW ALLIANCE TO ESTABLISH MOBILE SERVICES JOINT VENTURE IN CHINA

Nokia today has joined forces with New Alliance, an investment company which is part of the Shanghai Alliance Investment Ltd, to form a 50/50 joint venture company designed to oﬀer a range of mobile services in China and support the local developer ecosystem. The joint venture company will be called Nokia Alliance Internet Services Company Limited. According to Niklas Savander, Execu ve Vice President of Services for Nokia, “China is the world’s largest mobile and internet market. As Nokia is entering the services business in China, establishing this joint venture is a natural step to help us bring locally relevant mobile services to Chinese consumers. “

“JOINING FORCES WITH NEW ALLIANCE GIVES US THE RIGHT PLATFORM AND EXPERTISE TO OFFER A SUITE OF SELECTED NOKIA OVI SERVICES.” Mr. Qu Liefeng from New Alliance said, “We are delighted to form this venture with Nokia. Given our wealth of local knowledge and experience, we believe that we are well placed to help develop the next level of mobile content and services in China.” The joint venture will open for business in January 2010 and involve approximately 80 people. www.nokia.com

“Joining forces with New Alliance gives us the right pla orm and exper se to oﬀer a suite of selected Nokia Ovi services - as well as work with local content developers to help bring their applica ons to market,” Mr. Savander said.

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NEWS IRIS LANDS ORANGE RETAIL ACCOUNT 2 YR CONTRACT WILL COVER ALL RETAIL MARKETING FOR ORANGE STORES AND PARTNER RETAILERS

“WE’VE GROWN UP IN TELECOMS RETAIL, SO WE UNDERSTAND WHAT’S IMPORTANT ABOUT CHANNEL MARKETING AND THE VALUE OF STRONG, INTEGRATED RETAIL CAMPAIGNS.”

Orange has conﬁrmed that iris has been appointed to handle all of Orange’s retail’s sales promo on and marke ng requirements for the UK, following a 3-month compe ve pitch against a number of other undisclosed agencies. The win will see iris launch a number of major retail marke ng campaigns over the next two years as part of standalone and integrated campaigns, which will also involve experien al and instore ac vity within Orange stores and that of its partners. Spencer McHugh, brand director at Orange UK, said: “A er an extremely compe ve pitching process, we are delighted to have chosen iris to be our sole agency for our retail marke ng ac vi es. They showed a real understanding of the telecoms and youth market and delivered some excellent work during the pitch process and we are excited to see more.” Steve Bell, CEO of iris London, said: “We’re really looking forward to working with Orange on this much sought-a er account and ge ng our teeth into bringing their retail estate in line with their brand values. We’ve grown up in telecoms retail, so we understand what’s important about channel marke ng and the value of strong, integrated retail campaigns.” Orange’s other agencies, which include Fallon, Chemistry, MEC, Proximity, Poke and AKQA, will be unaﬀected by this appointment. www.orange.co.uk

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NEWS ORANGE LAUNCHES APPLICATION SHOP CUSTOMERS NOW HAVE CLICK-AND-GO ACCESS TO THOUSANDS OF APPLICATIONS, SERVICES AND GAMES “One-click” access to useful services, informa on and entertainment across a wide range of mobile devices and pla orms, all on one Orange bill. First available on over one million phones in UK and France, Orange will roll-out App Shop to millions more customers in 2010; Developers get cross-pla orm access to more customers globally and a faster route to market. Orange reinforced its commitment to bring mobile mul media services to everyone today with the launch of the Orange App Shop. Soon to be available in just one-click from the homescreen, the new Orange App Shop will give millions of customers simple, direct access and improved search and browsing to over 5,000 applica ons, games, ringtones and wallpapers. Throughout 2010, Orange will con nue to innovate, working with developers and content providers to rapidly expand its App Shop catalogue, with thousands of new applica ons that customers can use in everyday life, on any device. The mul -pla orm ‘one-stop-shop’, available on a wide range of handsets, includes services such as Orange TV, Orange Games and Orange Maps alongside an expanding catalogue of premium mobile applica ons from leading content providers and third-party applica on developers. Anything in the shop can be downloaded and purchased on one Orange mobile bill, so customers do not need to pre-register and use their personal credit cards. The service ensures that customers see and use applica ons that are fully tested and suitable for their device, making it a simple and straigh orward experience.

Yves Tyrode, EVP of Orange Technocentre says, “We are giving customers a tailor-made shop window on the mobile that makes it easier to discover, download, use and manage content. Whether it’s a Smartphone user, or someone using a simpler device, we know the demand for content is there – it’s just about ge ng that experience right. That is why we want to give everyone with a phone in their hand the easiest access to personal content, on the most suitable device and tariﬀ, to help them take the parts of the mobile Internet that they know and love, everywhere they go.”

“WHETHER IT’S A SMARTPHONE USER, OR SOMEONE USING A SIMPLER DEVICE, WE KNOW THE DEMAND FOR CONTENT IS THERE – IT’S JUST ABOUT GETTING THAT EXPERIENCE RIGHT.” The service is already available, ini ally providing the Orange App Shop ‘over-the-air’ to more than one million customers in France and the UK. A video of the Orange Applica on Shop can be viewed at www.orange-innova on.tv and further informa on on Orange Partner is at: h p://www.orangepartner.com

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NEWS

DANNY GLOVER STARS IN ORANGE GOLD SPOT Orange today announces that Danny Glover will star in the latest Orange Gold Spot advert in cinemas across the UK which started from 11th December. In the final Goldspot in the 2009 series, Danny Glover plays the leading role in the spoof ac on blockbuster ‘Dial Hard’ created by the fic ous Orange Film Studios that create remakes of Hollywood classics. In the Gold Spot, Danny Glover is in disbelief a er a film screening and asks what happened to his original script about a “janitor uncovering corporate corrup on.” It soon becomes clear that his film has been radically edited, without his knowledge in post-produc on and completely renamed with typical Orange Film Studio finesse. The movie is a comedic parody of the first ‘Die Hard’ film, although the plot has been altered to have a mobile theme: villains take hostages in a skyscraper and block out the city’s phone lines but the heroes unsurprisingly come to the rescue and rewire the building so it becomes a “hotline to the cops”. The clip also contains references to ‘Lethal Weapon’, the movie which established Glover as a much-loved ac on hero. Glover uses his famous catch-phrase: “I’m too old for this” when asked to perform an ac on stunt to arrive into the press junket to launch the film.

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By starring in an Orange Gold Spot, created by Fallon, Glover is joining an elite club of Hollywood stars who have entertained UK cinema audiences in the mobile ads. Other recent stars to have featured in the latest Goldspot series include Sigourney Weaver and Juliet Lewis.

“GLOVER USES HIS CATCH-PHRASE: “I’M TOO OLD FOR THIS” WHEN ASKED TO PERFORM AN ACTION STUNT TO ARRIVE INTO THE PRESS JUNKET TO LAUNCH THE FILM.” Spencer McHugh, Brand Director for Orange UK says: “The Goldspot has become part of the cinema going experience in recent years and this iconic adver sing con nues to be enjoyed by millions of ﬁlm goers contribu ng to us being the No1 brand associated with ﬁlm.” Orange has held the pres gious 65 second slot or ‘Gold Spot’ since 2000, and this latest advert is the 24th in the series.

NEWS

DI SPEIRS TO CHAIR ORANGE AWARD FOR NEW WRITERS 2010 ORANGE AWARD FOR NEW WRITERS SHORTLIST: 14 APRIL 2010 AWARDS CEREMONY: 9 JUNE 2010 Launched in 2005 in partnership with Arts Council England, the Orange Award for New Writers celebrates poten al and emerging female literary talent throughout the world. This year’s judging panel has been confirmed as: Di Speirs (Chair), Editor - Readings, BBC Radio 4 Rachel Cooke, Writer and Columnist at The Observer Bernardine Evaristo, Novelist, cri c and winner of the 2009 Orange Prize Youth Panel award for Blonde Roots Di Speirs commented: “Discovering, suppor ng and celebra ng debut work by women has always been important to me, so I am really delighted to be chairing this year’s Orange Award for New Writers, a prize which offers an unrivalled opportunity to reward and salute the talented new writers that we’ll be reading in years to come.” In partnership with Orange, Arts Council England is commi ed to providing a £10,000 bursary award for the winner of the Orange Award for New Writers. By offering a bursary to a novelist or short story writer for her first publica on, the Arts Council is able to support the professional development of a writer at a crucial stage in her career

Commen ng on the Orange Award for New Writers, Stuart Jackson, Director of Corporate Communica ons at Orange, said: “Orange is commi ed to encouraging new talent in all our arts sponsorships and we are very pleased to welcome such an outstanding panel of judges for this important prize.”

“ARTS COUNCIL ENGLAND IS COMMITTED TO A £10,000 BURSARY AWARD FOR THE WINNER.” All ﬁrst works of ﬁc on - including novels, short story collec ons and novellas, wri en by women of any age or na onality and published as a book in the UK between 1 April 2009 and 31 March 2010 - are eligible. The emphasis of the award is on emerging talent and the evidence of future poten al. Books can be entered for both the Orange Prize for Fic on and the Orange Award for New Writers in any given year. Judges will be looking for writers who demonstrate excellence, originality and accessibility. For further informa on, please contact: Naomi Li at M&C Saatchi: Tel: 0207 544 3687 Email: naomi.li@mcsaatchi.com

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NEWS

ORANGE REVEALS THAT TOP TIME TO CHAT IS 4.30PM ON A FRIDAY Orange has revealed that the favourite me for Brits to pick up the phone during the week is 4:30pm every day, peaking on Friday with nearly six million people deciding this is the best me to chat. This data was captured over a four week period from 9th- 29th October 2009 across the Orange network. Whether it is to wrap up the week’s work ac vi es and ensure all tasks are completed before the weekend, or to arrange a post-work drink, Orange customers are making sure they keep in touch. According to behavourial expert, Judi James, the mobile network is at its busiest and peaks at the end of the week as this is when that ‘Friday feeling’ kicks in. “Friday is the transi onal day of the week in terms of behaviour and communica on. It’s when we’re at our most extrovert and communica ve, finishing off our workload as effec vely as possible but s ll buzzing with adrenaline-powered energy in an cipa on of the weekend,” she said. “It’s also the me of the pure hunter/gatherer mentality, where we either celebrate the ‘kill’ in terms of boas ng about achievements of the job and sharing the news of our successes, or commisera ng about any difficul es experienced at work during the week,” she con nued.

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Taking a look at the ﬂip side, Orange also found that the quietest day for calls during the working week is Tuesday. Throughout the rest of the week, call volumes gradually increased every day before culmina ng at their busiest point on Friday a ernoon, sugges ng that workers become more produc ve as the week progresses. However, 4:30pm over the weekend and especially on Sunday is the me when the fewest calls are made. “This is the me that we’re most likely to be ‘nes ng’ and savouring the a er-eﬀects of the ‘hunt’ in exactly the same way any other animal would do a er a feast,” said Judi. “This creates a small sociability gap where we prefer to either communicate via non-verbal skills like touch or even to sleep to re-charge the ba eries. Pete Marsden, Vice President of IT and Networks at Orange, commented: “We keep a close eye on our network to make sure we have capacity to enable customers to make calls when they want to. It’s interes ng what the call volumes can tell us about the life of our customers in the UK. Despite the growing 24/7 culture, we can see that the tradi ons of Friday nights on the town and chilling out on a Sunday are s ll very much alive and well.” www.orange.co.uk

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REVIEWS SONY ERICSSON W395, W995 & C903 WE PUT THREE OF SONY’S FINEST HANDSETS UNDER THE MICROSCOPE, AND SEE WHAT’S WHAT. Here at Phonica, we’ve got a love/hate rela onship with Sony’s mobiles. On one hand, we love their build, quality, func onality and features. But on the other hand, we ﬁnd their design and style to be dull, and hugely underwhelming. So, when we received this Sony Ericsson trio, we weren’t hoping for anything but the usual dreary yet clinical experience. And to a certain extent, we were right. Let’s take a quick background check on each of these handsets. Both the W395 and W995 are predominantly music and movie based, with all their features focused in the direc on of on-thego entertainment. The C903 is aimed at the market that likes to have a camera on them at all mes, while s ll having enough gizmos to entertain and delight. They each serve a purpose, albeit to a diﬀering degree of success.

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REVIEWS

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REVIEWS

Style wise, it the same old Sony design; sleek but dull. When all three are laid out together, you’d be hard pushed to tell them apart. Each is a copy of the other, and although they’re not ugly (not by a long way) they just feel a bit cold. There’s no soul, no thrust, no wackiness about them; they’re just dour lumps or grey plas c. Also, the sliding keypad they all incorporate is a pain to use. It’s a nice piece of design, but the keys are a bit too small, and when you try to open and close the phone, you’ll inadvertently select the menu op on.

Other features and stats worth no ng; the W395 can only take up to 4GB, which is frustra ng if you have a lot of music, but it does come with a 1GB card. Also on the W395, it has the longest standby me at 480hrs, but it has the shortest talk me, at only 8hrs (weird). But in general, the W995 is the winner in all the categories, as it just does more, or be er, than the other two.

“WHEN ALL THREE ARE LAID OUT TOGETHER, YOU’D BE HARD PUSHED TO TELL THEM APART. THEY’RE ALL VERY NICE PHONES, BUT, AT THE END OF THE DAY, THEY’RE JUST SO, DULL.” Features wise, it depends what you’re looking for. The W396 is by far the best for music, as it’s got a great selec on of play features, and it’s the only one of the three to have two big speaks built into the back (don’t listen to your music on them in public though, as I’ll ﬁnd you!). If it’s a camera you want, then surprisingly you shouldn’t go for the C903. Although its primary func on is the art of photo taking, and it does do this very well, it only has a 5.0MP camera. It’s a good camera, but when you compare it to the W995’s 8.1MP version, it looks hugely inferior. Also, the W995 has some superb (but basic) photo edi ng tools that trump the C903’s, big me. If it’s video you’re a er, then again the W995 is the pick of the bunch. Its 2.5inch screen is a cracker, with crisp, sharp, precise colours and contrast in all condi ons. Also, the W995 comes with a pair of a achable speakers, so you can watch your videos and online TV anywhere, with clear sound (again, don’t, as I will ﬁnd you). Both the W395 and C903 have excellent screens, though, so they’re all very good in this respect.

So, to sum up, which should you choose? Well, on paper the W995 is the easy winner. Although it’s a bit more expensive than the other two, it is a much be er phone. It does everything you’d need, it has the best features, it’s got a be er camera than C903 and its got a music player which is arguably just as good as the W395; there should be no contest. But, and I don’t want to go all Jeremy Clarkson on this, it’s not as simple as that. To be totally honest, even if you were to put a gun to our heads and tell us to pick our favourite, we probably couldn’t. Even if you always rooted for the underdog, and decided to choose the W395, which is probably the best looking (it’s a bit funkier), you s ll couldn’t be absolutely sure. They’re all very nice phones, but, at the end of the day, they’re just so, dull. Sco Tierney

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COMPETITION

WIN A COPY OF NEW SUPER MARIO BROS.Wii IN THIS ISSUE ONE LUCKY READER WOULD WIN A COPY OF NEW SUPER MARIO BROS. Wii

THIS GAME COULD BE YOURS! ENTER FOR YOUR CHANCE TO WIN! COMPETITION RULES Join our group on Facebook; search for Phonica Magazine UK. Follow Us on Twi er: @PhonicaMagUK. Email your full name, address, email and mobile contact, along with your Twi er username to phonicacompe ons@ phonicamagazine.co.uk. One entry per person

TERMS AND CONDITIONS (1)The prize is one copy of New Super Mario Bros (2) No cash or other prize alterna ves are offered. (3) All entries must be received no later than 11th December 2009. The winner would be no fied within 7 days of this date and would be published in the following issue. (4) The Editor’s decision is final. (5) Compe on open to UK residents only, except employees of Phonica Magazine UK.

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CONGRATULATIONS TO NATHAN G WHO WON A COPY OF CALL OF DUTY: MODERN WARFARE 2 ON XBOX 360!

NEWS

BE A GOOD BOY IF YOU WANT TO PLAY ON XBOX LIVE MICROSOFT MULLS HIRING ALAN SUGAR TO TELL PLAYERS “YOU’RE BANNED” Microso is being careful to clamp down on any kind of non-sanc oned behaviour on Xbox Live. A rela vely minor exploit in Call of Duty 2: Modern Warfare – known as the Javelin Exploit - allowing you to detonate a grenade on death has been receiving a lot of a en on. If Microso catches players using the exploit they face a ban of 24 hours minimum and up to two-weeks on Xbox Live. That’s a ban from the whole network not just MW2. The exploit also aﬀects the PS3 version of the game but Sony have publicly announced that they will not be banning players for using the exploit. Developer Inﬁnity Ward are working on a patch so this par cular issue will probably fade away but the bigger issue of how Microso control access to their online network will remain. Microso holds unprecedented power over users of their service and in November it was reported that 1 million users had been permanently banned for using modded consoles to play pirate versions of MW2.

The terms of use for Xbox live explicitly state: “In using the Service, you may not: use or distribute unauthorized cheats, macros, or scripts; or exploit a bug, or make an unauthorized modiﬁca on, to any so ware or data to gain unfair advantage in a game, contest, or promo on.” Not many gamers would argue that chea ng brings anything to the experience of playing but the punishment meted out to cheaters is a bit more complicated, especially in the grey area of glitches. Microso is eﬀec vely absolving itself, or rather game developers, from any responsibility for ironing out bugs in so ware. The DRM on PC games debate has largely been se led a er the debacle of Spore and other EA tles but it looks like it will only intensify on the Xbox as Microso con nues to assert its right to enforce its policies on Xbox Live. Ian Duncan

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NEWS CHRISTMAS PRICES ON THE UP BETTER HOPE SANTA’S GOT DEEP POCKETS BECAUSE CHRISTMAS CONSOLE PRICES REMAIN HIGH Remember back in September when news started emerging about Christmas console pricing? It was a pre y bleak picture. Nintendo announced that the weak pound meant they would not be oﬀering a £50 price cut on the Wii like they were in the rest of the world.

XBOX 360 ELITE 120GB

Unfortunately, in the ﬁnal few weeks before Christmas no price war has opened up between the major retailers and pre y much everyone is toeing the line. The best places to buy are s ll major online retailers like Amazon and Play.

XBOX 360 ARCADE

The PS3 remains the most expensive console by some margin but Sony are trying to remind consumers that it has a blu-ray player by oﬀering bundles including games and movies. If you want to save money on a new console you s ll have some op ons. There’s always the rough and tumble world of eBay where you might save a bit if you’re up to bidding vigilantly. Alterna vely, Both Xbox 360 and PS3 come in a “lite” version with a smaller hard disk. The Xbox 360 Arcade has only minimal onboard storage but is around £50 the full-featured Elite. Similarly, a PS3 Slim with a 120GB hard drive is about the same amount cheaper than the 250GB model. The other thing is to consider what games you’re desperately to play on Christmas morning. If you can live without the newest releases you can pick up a stand-alone console and invest the money you save in budget classics instead. To really save you me we’ve scoured the net and found some deals we think will get you a li le bit more bang for your buck. Ian Duncan

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From Amazon for £194.77 with two games including your pick of Dragon Age: Origins, Borderlands, Le 4 Dead 2, Fifa 10 and others. From Game.co.uk for £199.99 including Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 and Forza 3. From Play.com for £138.99 for just the console.

From PCWorld for £149.99 with Lego Batman and Pure

“IF YOU CAN LIVE WITHOUT THE NEWEST RELEASES YOU CAN PICK UP A STAND-ALONE CONSOLE AND INVEST THE MONEY YOU SAVE IN BUDGET CLASSICS.” PS3 SLIM 250GB Play.com: £299.99 incl. COD:MW2, X-Men Origins: Wolverine and Batman: The Dark Knight movies on Blu-Ray

PS3 SLIM 120GB From Amazon for £249.69 with one game including your pick of Dragon Age: Origins, Borderlands, Fifa 10 and Need For Speed: Shi .

NINTENDO WII Amazon: £199.99 incl. Wii Sports, Wii Sports Resort, including Mario Kart, Avatar, Fifa 10 and others.

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NEWS MYTHOS BACK IN DEVELOPMENT HANBITSOFT’S MMO EPIC FINALLY SEES THE LIGHT OF DAY A er its beta shutdown back in 2008 leaving many fans upset, HanbitSo worked with the parent company T3 Entertainment in order to oversee the con nued development of Mythos. With the game now in closed beta tes ng in South Korea, Redbana unveiled plans to introduce North America into the mix, with closed beta tes ng scheduled soon for the con nent. First introduced by Flagship Studios Sea le, a subsidiary of Flagship Studios that was composed primarily of ex-Blizzard developers who oversaw the success and popularity of the Diablo series, Mythos looked to be on the road to release a er rumors of a open beta in mid-2008. However, financial hardship resulted in the dissolu on of the parent company and many of the developers were laid off, with the main bulk of the developing staff eventually ending up as Runic Games and working on the ac on RPG Torchlight. Two years in the pipeline, the scuppered closed beta phase meant that many fans of the MMO genre were disappointed, but development con nued under HanbitSo who acquired the intellectual property. This allowed T3 to oversee the game’s progress, with HanbitSo releasing a message on its website in May 2009 sta ng that the development of Mythos would con nue under the guidance of T3 Entertainment. Redbana, the US development and publishing wing of T3, announced plans this month to introduce a closed beta tes ng phase into the North American market.With the website up and running at www.mythos.com, there is already a teaser trailer uploaded and with never-seenbefore content that visitors can browse through. A “dev’s calendar” provides news of upcoming announcements, while fans can subscribe to the Mythos newsle er to receive up-to-date news regarding the upcoming closed beta. Paul Park

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NEWS

FIFA 10 BREAKS ONLINE RECORD FIFA 10 SETTING NEW ONLINE RECORDS FOR GAMES PLAYED; ULTIMATE TEAM EXPANSION PACK PLANNED FOR 2010 EA have released plans to develop an expansion pack dubbed Ul mate Team for FIFA 10 players, “FIFA 10 BECAME THE FASTEST SELLING SPORTS while numbers of FIFA 10 online games played on both the Xbox 360 and the PS3 are se ng VIDEO GAME IN THE new records. WORLD WITH 1.7 MILLION SALES IN Having sold more than 4.5 million games since launch, FIFA 10 became the fastest selling sports video game ITS FIRST WEEK.” in the world with 1.7 million sales in its ﬁrst week of launch in Europe alone. Achieving an average of 3 million online games a day since release and with over 117 million online games played, FIFA 10 is quickly becoming an incredible online presence in the gaming world. Along with these unprecedented numbers, EA announced plans to release a FIFA 10 expansion pack named Ul mate Team in the new year, with the new pack bringing more depth to the original game mode ﬁrst introduced in FIFA 10. Already providing online players a chance to create, manage and perfect their Ul mate team, the new expansion is looking to add more content and players into the fray.

“FIFA 10 Ul mate Team adds a lot more authen city to a unique game that will update with new challenges and content over me,” said Producer Paul Hossack. “We now have over 7,000 players from 27 leagues available, from which gamers will cra one or mul ple squads to show their mastery of the revamped, more realis c chemistry system, and compete in tournaments with exci ng requirements and rewards. On top of that, we’ll release new tournaments and other updates regularly to keep the experience fresh and exci ng.” Paul Park

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NEWS EA SPORTS RELEASE NEW VISA CARD THE EA SPORTS DEBITSMART VISA PREPAID CARD IS AVAILABLE TO US SHOPPERS AND SPORTS FANS

“CONSUMERS USE THE CARD WHILE MAKING THEIR EVERYDAY PURCHASES AND ARE REWARDED WITH EA SPORTS VIDEOGAMES.”

Have you ever wanted to own a Visa card that rewards you with points that can be redeemed on EA Sports products? No, we haven’t either; but EA have released one anyway. The EA Sports DebitSmart Visa Prepaid Card (catchy tle) will be usable with 70,000 online retailers, and 26,000 high street stores in the US. At present, there are no plans for the card to make its way across the pond, but only me will tell. Todd Sitrin, VP of global marke ng at EA SPORTS, had this to say on the new card: “The EA Sports DebitSmart Visa Prepaid Card is a great opportunity for us to oﬀer our community of loyal customers a new way to purchase and save on their favourite EA Sports game tles,” “Consumers use the card while making their everyday purchases and are rewarded with EA Sports videogames. This program is a perfect marriage of encouraging responsible spending while providing a unique reward program.” In other news regarding EA Sports, following Tiger Woods’ recent problems, EA Sports have assured Woods and fans of the Golf gaming franchise that they will be s cking by the troubled star. In a recent interview with GamesIndustry.biz, EA said that its rela onship with the golfer remains “unchanged”. “Our strong rela onship with Tiger for more than a decade remains unchanged,” read a statement. “We respect Tiger’s privacy, we wish him a fast recovery and we look forward to seeing him back on the golf course.” Sco Tierney

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NEWS MEDAL OF HONOUR TO BE REINVENTED IN AFGHANISTAN BACK TO THE DRAWING BOARD FOR EA, AS MEDAL OF HONOUR STARTS FROM SCRATCH EA’s Medal of Honour series has been vastly overshadowed by Ac vsion’s Call of Duty series. Although the Medal of Honour games have been excellent, with notable highlights being Airborne and Vanguard, they’ve just never had that extra punch that the COD games have thrived and survived on. Add to this the fact that the MOH series has never le the trenches of the Second World War, while COD has set oﬀ for modern-pastures new, EA’s series looked to have faded away. But EA have announced that the next MOH game, simply tled, Medal of Honour (that won’t confuses anyone!) will be brought up to date, as the series leaps forward into the current war in Afghanistan. The series is going to be totally re-invented, with the new se ng at the forefront of the game’s revitalisa on. In a recent interview with MCV, the game’s execu ve producer Greg Goodrich stated:

“When we ﬁrst set out to reinvent Medal of Honor, we wanted to stay true to its roots of authen city and respect for the soldier but bring it into today’s war. The Tier 1 Operator is the most disciplined, deliberate and prepared warrior on the ba leﬁeld. He is a living, breathing, precision instrument of war. We are honoured to have the rare opportunity to work closely with these men to create a game that shares their experience.”

“WITH MEDAL OF HONOR, WE WANTED TO STAY TRUE TO ITS ROOTS OF AUTHENTICITY AND RESPECT FOR THE SOLDIER.” EALA’s VP and GM Sean Decker added: “EA has always been an advocate for telling the soldiers’ story. The new Medal of Honor follows that tradi on. We felt it was important to tell the story of today’s war and today’s elite soldiers via today’s most relevant medium – videogames. We are so proud to bring together two powerhouse development teams to make this game a reality; EA Los Angeles and EA DICE. Medal of Honor promises to be an unforge able entry in the modern shooter genre.” Whether Medal of Honour can topple the mighty Modern Warfare 2, or even compete with it, is yet to be seen, but we’ll soon ﬁnd out when it’s released early 2010, on PC, Xbox 360 and PS3. Sco Tierney

phonica magazine uk

PREVIEW STARCRAFT II: THE WINGS OF LIBERTY PUBLISHER: ACTIVISION BLIZZARD DEVELOPER: BLIZZARD ENTERTAINMENT PLATFORM: PC AVAILABLE: TBA

THE STARCRAFT SERIES LOOKS TO HAVE PRODUCED ANOTHER CLASSIC As far as strategy games go, Starcra is one of the biggest names around. Having announced its development back in 2007 at the Worldwide Invita onal in South Korea, fans have been wai ng on the edge of their seats for news regarding one of the most an cipated games in recent history. Being released in 3 parts due to each campaign’s immense size and depth, Wings of Liberty is the ﬁrst instalment in the upcoming RTS. It follows the Terran storyline of Jim Raynor, with the cheerful and happy-go-lucky a tude that we became used to in Starcra and its expansion Brood War replaced by a bi er, cynical demeanour a er years of war and lost loves. Jim is trying to lead a band of rebels against the now all-encompassing Terran Dominion but keeps failing to make a las ng eﬀect. Instead, he takes on the role of a treasure hunter, gathering ar facts for his rather mysterious employers, ba ling various fac ons of Terrans alongside the constant threat of the Zerg swarm and the Protoss fana cs. With the whole campaign interface and approach revamped since its prequel, Starcra II has you poin ng and clicking a lot outside of ba les, allowing you to roam around the spaceship with smooth anima ons and graphics that are very pleasing. Various features are available to you while moving around – places such as the Armory allow you to buy unit researches and upgrades as the campaign goes along its path, while you are able to access news feeds via the can na.

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However, that is where all the adventury bits stop. Start up a mission and you are instantly engulfed in the bubble of concentra on that proper, tradi onal strategy games immerse you in. Throw up bunkers to house your marines next to a strategic bo leneck; pump out SCVs to harvest more Vespene gas for your war chest; launch forays into hos le territory to scout out poten al base expansion spots – everything that we loved in Starcra 1 is back.

“IT LOOKS LIKE BLIZZARD HAVE NOT HELD BACK WITH STARCRAFT II AND THERE WILL BE MILLIONS OF FANS ACROSS THE WORLD WAITING FOR THE RELEASE DATE.” The graphics look superb, something that is pre y much expected for a game that has spent quite a fair bit of me in development (not to men on millions of dollars), with anima ons clean and crisp. Fireﬁghts look incredibly intense but at the same me you can see almost every detail. It looks like Blizzard have not held back in any way in the development of Starcra II and there will be millions of fans across the world wai ng for the release date of the ﬁrst instalment in the sequel’s 3 chapters. Paul Park

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PREVIEW MASS EFFECT 2 PUBLISHER: ELECTRONIC ARTS DEVELOPER: BIOWARE FORMAT: PC, XBOX 360 AVAILABLE: Q1 2010

SCI-FI RPG GETS A LOT MORE THAN A FACELIFT AS IT RETURNS IN JANUARY The great thing about RPG sequels is they can o en succeed - Terminator 2-like - in being be er than the original. The story and the characters develop; the player feels a pang of excitement at returning to a much loved universe; graphics and gameplay are improved. For these reasons, there’s a lot to be excited about with the upcoming release of Mass Effect 2. Mass Effect was probably the biggest sci-fi RPGs of recent years and the sequel will finally be with us on January 26 next year. Players will once again take on the role of interplanetary hero Commander John Sheppard as he fights to save the universe from a new threat working with Cerberus, an organisa on commi ed to the survival of the human race at any cost.

“BIOWARE HAVE SHOWN IMPROVEMENTS IN PRETTY MUCH EVERY ASPECT OF THE GAME.” The sequel will integrate with the original and if you keep your saved games, choices you made in the ﬁrst game will have an impact in this installment. This appears to be important to Bioware’s concep on of the series, which they have long asserted will be a trilogy. The aim is for the three games to ﬁt together in a single story arc but with each game also being strong enough to stand alone in its own right.

From preview videos, the tone of the game looks darker than the original. The visuals are moodier and the teaser voiceovers seem to emphasise violence and conflict. The Asari Jus car was unveiled in the first week of December and it looks like she will be an engine of destruc on. Bioware are promising improvements in pre y much every aspect of the game. Your personal spaceship, the Normandy, will be equipped to help you explore planets that are the se ng of the game’s sidequests. Combat will be more fluid and the enemy AI will be improved. Interes ngly, you’ll now have to secure the loyalty of your team-mates. This will be a welcome addi on! In the original, Sheppard had a good-evil mechanic but the NPC squadmates would happily go along with almost any decision he made. The high produc on values of the original also look like they will be carried over. It was recently announced that the game will be published on two DVDs – which might annoy Xbox 360 owners – and has recommended specs of 15GB of hard disk space. The graphics have been given an update so things are looking nicer than ever. Thankfully, apart from the hard disk requirement, there hasn’t been a comparable jump in minimum specs. Following the release of Dragon Age: Origins, Bioware is on a role, and Mass Effect 2 is shaping up to be very exci ng indeed. Ian Duncan

phonica magazine uk

FEATURE

MOORE’S LAW IS THERE NOW A BOTTLENECK IN MOORE’S LAW? Just over ten years ago Intel launched the low-end budget processor we all know as the Celeron. At this me the chip was a basic version of the companies ﬂagship processor the Pen um II. Clocked at what today seems a sluggish 266MHz and manufactured on a 250nm process, the chip proved the ideal solu on for entry level compu ng and sold well for use in a variety of applica ons. Move forward ten years and the current Celeron, s ll aimed at budget desk and laptop PC’s has two processing cores, is running at 2.2 GHz and is built around a 65nm process. This is the best way of demonstra ng the real prophecy u ered from Intel’s co-founder, Gordon E. Moore’s lips in 1965 with his statement that: -

‘THE NUMBER OF TRANSISTORS PLACED ON AN INTEGRATED CIRCUIT DOUBLES ROUGHLY EVERY TWO YEARS’ At the centre of this statement is the fact that compu ng power grows exponen ally and has done so uninterrupted since the 70’s. Industry experts have forecasted that this trend is set to con nue for many years to come, but it does beg one big ques on, can the developers of so ware in all forms, fully u lise this future processing power, and actually keep up with the development of hardware?

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“CELL AND MULTI-COR OF COMPUTING AS LO THE ARCHITECTURE AN As the current crop of tles have shown us, there seems to be more than enough power in the X-Box 360, PS-3 and even the Wii if game developers use it wisely. From the humble x86 architecture of the early 386 and 486 based PC’s, to today’s consoles with mul -core and Cell Processors, the power that developers have to u lise has never been so great. The new genera on of mul -cored Cell Processor’s are not designed as general purpose chips. They are designed to use a specialised parallel processing approach, originally favoured by graphics chipmakers like ATI and NVIDIA. The main processing elements work in Synergy together to execute threads in parallel being heavily op mised for the single precision ﬂoa ng point computa on used in gaming, much like high end dedicated PC graphics cards. The ﬁrst major commercial applica on of Cell was in Sony’s PS3, which is made up of one 3.2GHz PowerPC-based “Power Processing Element” (PPE) and six accessible Synergis c Processing Elements (SPEs). A seventh runs in a special mode and is dedicated to aspects of the OS and security, and an eighth is a spare to improve produc on yields. Because of the complexity of the Cell architecture, the PS3 has been cri cised by developers across the industry as hard to program for, and even Sony’s CEO Kaz Hirai was quoted as saying: -

FEATURE

RE ARE THE WAY FORWARD IN ALL FIELDS ONG AS DEVELOPERS FULLY UNDERSTAND ND USE IT TO THE FULL.” “We don’t provide the ‘easy to program for’ console that (developers) want, because ‘easy to program for’ means that anybody will be able to take advantage of pre y much what the hardware can do, so then the ques on is, what do you do for the rest of the nine-and-a-half years?” “So it’s a kind of--I wouldn’t say a double-edged sword--but it’s hard to program for,” Hirai con nued, “and a lot of people see the nega ves of it, but if you flip that around, it means the hardware has a lot more to offer.” It’s fine having ground breaking processor technology powering your console, but if developers don’t know how to get the most out of it what’s the point? Microso ’s 3.2 GHz PowerPC Tri-Core Xenon approach certainly packs a punch in the processing power department, with tles such as Assassin’s Creed 2 and Modern warfare 2 showing there’s much more scope le on the pla orm. To ensure con nued development of cu ng edge so ware, Microso released an en rely new X-Box 360 development kit this year. The hardware contained twice as much memory as the original but everything else was to retail spec. With the older Dev Kit programmers had to work within the limited constraints of the 512Mb of onboard memory running both the game, debugging and op misa on tools simultaneously. This new kit will be available alongside the older version and is intended for AAA game development.

Now at least they can take the technology right to its theore cal limits and in the process give the X-Box 360 a longer life cycle and help recoup some of Microso ’s losses since it’s launch. Most manufacturers seem to work on a ﬁve-year cycle for their consoles, and it may be that Microso wants to buck the trend and prolong the 360’s replacement. With the upcoming X-Box 360 Natal mo on-sensing peripheral launching next year with a 5 million-unit ini al shipment forecast, It seems that those predic ng a new console in 2010 may be disappointed. However, with Sony saying it will launch its rival LED-controller-based system next spring, possibly six-months before Microso the success and take-up of the Natal technology on the 360 could be one factor in how quickly Microso will want to develop their new console. Natal was rumoured to be part of the consoles basic specs. Whatever happens, Moore’s Law hasn’t so much slowed down but taken a lateral approach to processing power. Cell and Mul -Core are the way forward in all ﬁelds of compu ng as long as developers fully understand the architecture and use it to the full. Peter Gray

phonica magazine uk

FEATURE

YULESHOCK:

WHAT TO PLAY THIS CHRISTMAS NEED TO BRING SOME LIFE TO YOUR CHRISTMAS PARTY? THESE GAMES SHOULD BRING IN THE FESTIVE CHEER! Isn’t Christmas magical? The lights. The frost. The bi er rows and recrimina ons, feeding oﬀ each other and bloa ng out with too much turkey, then exploding in a bilious fes ve spray of meaningless violence. I love it. Just in case your Jesus day isn’t quite the spectacle you hope for, though, you may need this: Phonica’s jolly holly picks for a perfect gaming Christmas.

FIFA MANAGER 10 (PC) Not Championship Manager or Football Manager, but… the other one. In fact, you could go for any of the increasingly-complex spreadsheet fests and have a darn good few days. As long as you’re alright with emerging a er a hard-fought away draw with Blackburn only to discover it’s the 4th of January.

BUZZ: QUIZ WORLD (PS3) Not many of us can sit through an en re Buzz game without feeling that uncontrollable urge to thro le the Buzz avatar hos ng the whole thing. Will test your feelings of goodwill to the limit. S ll, there’s hours of decent backstabbing fun here.

DJ HERO (X360) Nothing says Christmas like developing RSI trying to keep up with DJ Yoda’s breaks and beats. If the “Mistletoe and Wine” has you chewing your own ﬁngers oﬀ, take solace in this deeply addic ve scratch ‘em-up.

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FEATURE ASSASSIN’S CREED 2 (PS3, X360)

UNCHARTED 2: AMONG THIEVES (PS3)

People tend to forget that Our Lord Jesus lived in a dark, dangerous, uncertain me. So celebrate his birth by stabbing large platoons of henchmen in the face with a variety of exo c Renaissance weaponry.

Just buy it. It’s bleeding brilliant, and comes guaranteed to give you more adrenaline for your money than every single ﬁlm featured on ITV’s Christmas schedule. Rob Hobson

LEFT 4 DEAD 2 (X360, PC) What do you mean, zombies aren’t Christmassy? Anyway, it’s the spirit of coopera on we’re a er here. It’s the perfect way to bond, to form deep and las ng rela onships or breathe new life into a lapsed acquaintance. Bags I get the chainsaw.

phonica magazine uk

FEATURE PLATFORM GAMES: A HISTORY OF SIMPLER TIMES CAN GAMING’S BIGGEST GENRE STILL LEAP FROM PLATFORM TO PLATFORM?

Regardless of your age, chances are the ﬁrst game you ever played was a pla ormer. A pla ormer’s simple design, logical dynamics and easy-to-pick-up gameplay made it the perfect ‘ﬁrst’ game, and although it’s fallen of its mighty perch over the past 10 years, it’s s ll an immensely popular genre. So, let’s jump from classic tle to classic tle, and chart the rise, fall and rise of the mighty pla ormer, while assessing if the genre s ll has what it takes in the modern age.

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The first true pla ormer, or at least as we see the genre today, was the classic 1981 tle, Donkey Kong. Its simple premise of dodging barrels and climbing ladders, all the while trying to reach the top and give that evil monkey a good hiding, was a huge hit for 80s gamers, and set the template for all pla ormers that followed. It was also the first game to feature pla orm icon, Mario; although at this stage he was called the rather unappealing, Jumpman. Mario made his first ‘proper’ appearance in 1985, in the phenomenal NES tle, Super Mario Bros. This you could say was the dawn of the pla ormer.

FEATURE Super Mario Bros, and the two sequels that followed in 1986 and 1987, were slices of video-gaming nirvana. Their ght, complex and epic side-scrolling levels were like nothing that had been seen before, and they are s ll a pleasure to play now. Even today, when video-gaming is a far bigger business and market than it was in the mid eigh es, Super Mario Bros is s ll the biggest selling video game of all me. We’ll come back to Mario and Nintendo shortly, but first we must look at the game(s) that arrived shortly a er, following Sega’s reac on to Nintendo’s success. Desperate to create a game and mascot that could rival Nintendo, Sega came up with Sonic the Hedgehog, and arguably the pla ormer’s finest hour was born. The original Sonic game was excellent, and a major step forward for the genre, but the sequel, Sonic 2, was a totally different breed. Sonic 2 took everything that was great about pla ormers, and cranked the speed up, big me. Even today, Sonic 2 is blindingly fast to play, as you leap from pla orm to pla orm at lightning pace, collec ng rings and slapping baddies. There’s an argument to be made that Sonic 2 is the greatest pla ormer, if not game, of all me, but that’s for another day.

“THE NUMBER ONE ALL TIME BEST SELLING GAMES ON THE NES, SNES, MEGADRIVE, N64 AND DREAMCAST, ARE ALL PLATFORMERS.” Sonic 2 was a peak for the 2D pla orm genre, but by 1995, players were growing red of 2D, as the future lay in 3D graphics. Although two of the genres best games were produced that year, Earthworm Jim and Rayman (the la er going on to become one of the best selling Playsta on games of all me) 2D was seen to have had its day. But thankfully, pla ormers stayed alive, and in 1996, newly equipped with a 3D top hat and tails, they were back. In 1996, with the Playsta on and N64 being the main players on the consoles market, Crash Bandicoot arrived on the Playsta on, and the seminal Super Mario 64 exploded onto the N64.

These two classics were the defining 3D pla ormers of the nine es, and by far the best. Super Mario Galaxy was especially praised, as it marked the first me that Mario had gone form 2D to 3D, not only maintaining the standard of the original ou ngs, but improving on them Although they weren’t technically the first 3D pla ormers (1995’s Jumping Flash! can claim that tle) they were by far the best. Other 3D tles such as Banjo Kazooie, Rayman 2 and Donkey Kong 64 also made their mark, along with several others. But sadly Sonic was long dead, as no 3D tle was produced that could live up to the high standards previously set, and like the Dreamcast, he fell by the wayside. Into the 2000s, and a new selec on of 3D pla ormers arrived. Jak and Daxter, Rachet and Clank, the excep onal PyscoNauts (featured in this issue’s Forgo en Gems) and the fantas cally imagina ve Super Mario Galaxy all kept the genre alive. But to an extent, the pla omer, mainly in 2D, was on its last legs. Even though we’ve had three excellent tles this year, with Braid, New Super Mario Bros. and A Boy and His Blob both showing that genre s ll has a lot of life le in it, there’s s ll a horrible realiza on that these could be the last hurrahs of the 2D pla ormer. So, what can we expect in the future? Well, fingers crossed Super Mario Galaxy 2 can live up to the hype, as the Wii looks the most likely console for the pla ormer to survive on. Of course the pla ormer will never go away en rely, as that just doesn’t happen to successful genres (just look at how the point-and-click game is currently making a comeback). But with less developers inves ng in the genre, and the fact that today’s games are aimed towards an older, more ‘mature’ audience, we could see the pla ormer decline further and further. Maybe the 3D incarna ons will con nue, but the good old fashioned side-scrollers look to be fading. But I’ll leave you with this, as a salute to the fine and life-changing work the humble pla ormer has done, and the decline it has suffered since the late 90s. The number one all me best selling games on the NES, SNES, Megadrive, N64 and Dreamcast, are all pla ormers. But there isn’t a single pla orm based tle in the top five for the Playsta on, or the top 10 for the Playsta on 2. Ah well, we’ll always have the memories…. Sco Tierney

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FEATURE FORGOTEN GEMS:

PSYCHONAUTS

PUBLISHER: THQ DEVELOPER: DOUBLE FINE PRODUCTIONS FORMAT: PC, XBOX 360, PS2 RELEASED: 2006

IT WAS ONE OF THE BEST PLATFORMERS OF ALL TIME, YET IT BARELY SOLD HALF A MILLION COPIES. Eccentric game’s designer, Tim Schafer, has always been a hero of mine. His classic tles feature some of my most beloved gaming memories; from the mad and twisted plot of Grin Fandango, to the wacky scenarios of Day of the Tentacle. He was also involved in the wri ng of the first two Monkey Island games, and for that alone he should be immortalized in statue form. But one of his best tles, the barely known 2005 release, Psychonauts, was a massive flop. Why? Psychonauts was the story of a young Psychic cadet, Raz. A er running away from the circus, Raz sneaks into a summer camp that teaches kids how to become Psychonauts. While learning how to hone his mindmel ng powers at this quirky school for the mentally gi ed, he learns that someone is stealing brains. Using the powers he’s been taught by the weird and wonderful tutors, he enters the minds (yes, minds!) of the characters he suspects, and from there the fun really starts! The genius behind Psychonauts’s concept is its superb level design. As a majority of the levels take place in the minds of some truly disturbed and weird characters, the landscape’s design is not governed by any boundaries. In a way, nothing is too unimaginable or off limits, and the levels reflect this. During one superb sec on, you have to pounce your way through the mind of an old Army Sergeant.

As you climb through his subconscious (in this case, a war zone), you have to avoid suppressed memories, jump over pi alls of the forgo en, and dodge unpleasant thoughts, all the while naviga ng the landscape of distant war-torn memories. It’s truly fantas c, and unlike anything that’s been seen before or since. Psychonauts was at heart, a pla ormer, as most of the games excitement and gameplay came from this source. You had to jump from strange pla orms, dodge baddies, collect tokens and defeat big bosses. It could have been dull, as a lot of the aspects of Psychonauts gameplay had been done before. But due to the wonderful charm and spring it possessed, it was a magical and hugely fun experience. But sadly, that didn’t help the sales. Despite Psychonauts receiving massive cri cal acclaim, the sales were appalling. For a game that was praised so highly, it was so disappoin ng that it barely sold 400,000 copies. When you consider that the biggest selling game of 2005, the very average Madden NFL 06, sold over 10 million copies, it puts it into some kind of perspec ve. So, next me you hanker for a slice of honest, charming, eccentric, ﬂamboyant pla orm-based ac on, I beg you to pick up a copy of Psychonauts. Even if you can’t ﬁnd an actual hard copy, it’s available via both XBLA and PSN, all for the price of a large pasty. Buy it, love it, and then tell someone else, and let’s try and make Psychonauts the success it deserves to be. Sco Tierney

phonica magazine uk

REVIEWS

NEW SUPER MARIO BROS. WII PUBLISHER: NINTENDO DEVELOPER: NINTENDO EAD FORMAT: WII, DS AVAILABLE: NOW

LET’S-A-GO… Super Mario Bros. is a tle with heritage that spans at least three genera ons of gamers, it’s the Adidas shell toe of the gaming world, it’s been here since the 80’s and s ll feels as good to wear! But this is where on the Wii the game gets a next-gen twist, quite literally! Its s ll based on a two bu on system, but by l ng the controller you can ac vate and control l ng pla orms and other game elements. Addi onally you can carry obstacles by holding a bu on and shaking the controller, ac vate a spin jump by pressing jump and again shaking at the same me. On-screen prompts help you get aqua nted with this, and as you progress through the levels the correct ac ons will quickly become second nature. phonica magazine magazine uk uk 38 phonica

“SUPER MARIO BROS.WII IS OLD NEW-SKOOL TECHNOLOGY. THE WORLD OF MARIO IN ANY NEW During the game you’ll be looking for three big coins in each level to unlock areas as you progress. Extra lives are easy to ﬁnd, but also easy to lose on tougher areas. Far from being 100% linear, there are mul ple exits in most stages, mini challenges hidden throughout the levels. Once ac vated most ask you to collect eight strategically placed red coins before a mer runs out to gain receive a reward. The new power-ups like the Ice Flower and add even more variety to the gameplay, freezing enemies and turning them into blocks of ice. The new Penguin suit enables walking on ice and faster controlled underwater swimming. Another new suit is ﬁ ed with a propeller and helps when a spin jump is used to keep the player in the air, for hi ng higher ledges and spanning bigger gaps.

REVIEWS

D-SKOOL PLATFORM MESHED TOGETHER WITH E MULTIPLAYER IS INNOVATIVE BUT HASN’T TAKEN THE W DIRECTION. PERHAPS THAT’S JUST THE POINT.” This is a game designed to be played with family or friends, but unless you work together things can get frustra ng. Weapons that normally would aid a single player can if used at the wrong me kill other players. There’s also a pushing eﬀect, where players who run forward can knock the rest of their team oﬀ ledges or obstacle. It’s all about learning strengths and weaknesses and working together to all get through!

To sum up Super Mario Bros.Wii, it’s old-skool pla orm meshed together with new-skool technology. The mul player is innova ve but hasn’t taken the world of Mario in any new direc on. Perhaps that’s just the point, if fans love the games as they are, why change an enjoyable formula? It’s nice to see a game like Super Mario Bros. s ll keeps us gripped to one of the best pla orm franchises of all me. Peter Gray

If you do have enough controllers, playing in a quintet is by far the best way to go, but you have to show restraint and wait for stragglers and learn to share power-up’s. A neat visual feature is that if players are spread out on a level, the whole image zooms out and gives everyone involved a view of the ac on. This leads me to my only cri cism, no online capability! Giving the game an online mul player mode would have added the icing to the cake, and playing with three complete strangers with online chat would have been a lot of fun.

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

OVERALL

94/100 phonica magazine uk

REVIEWS A BOY AND HIS BLOB PUBLISHER: MAJESCO GAMES DEVELOPER: WAYFORWARD TECHNOLOGIES FORMAT: WII, DS AVAILABLE: NOW

IF YOU’VE HAD ENOUGH OF GORY SHOOTERS AND DREARY THRILLERS (FOR THIS YEAR ANYWAY) THEN THIS LITTLE CHARMER COULD BE THE PERFECT ANTIDOTE.

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REVIEWS When I was growing up, my Mum was always complaining about the games I played. “Why would you want to do that?” she’d ask, as I ripped an opponents head off in Mortal Kombat, or gunned down another hooker in Duke Nukem. “Why don’t you play a nice game?” was always her ques on, and a er a whole a ernoon of nagging, I’d finally concede and go back to playing Sonic 2. So this new game, A Boy and His Blob, would be one of the games my Mum would approve of. But luckily, I’d be happy to play it too. A Boy and His Blob was originally released in 1989, via the brain of Pi all! Creator, David Crane. So this new Wii version is , (gulp), re-imagining. To us at Phonica, this is the dir est word in the whole universe, but at least with A Boy and His Blob, the creators have made a fi ng remake.

“A BOY AND HIS BLOB IS LIKE READING THROUGH A CHILDREN’S BOOK; IT’S FUN, COLOURFUL, EXCITING, CHARMING AND BEAUTIFUL.” Set in a cuddly, dream-like world, you play the role of a small boy, who a er discovering the wreckage of a crashed spacecra , ﬁnds a new friend in a li le white blob. Together, these two chums set oﬀ for adventure, as they try and stop the evil black blobs from taking over the world. Luckily, your friendly blob has the uncanny nack of changing into a whole host of useful items, all for the price of a jellybean. So, if you can’t reach a pla orm, give Blob a bean, and he’ll turn into a ladder. Fantas c; I need to buy me some beans! Visually, A Boy and His Blob is beau ful. It has a wonderful hand-drawn style that mixes superb 2D backdrops with cute 3D characters. The soundtrack is also lovely, as it builds the excitement and tension, without becoming overpowering. It’s a pleasure to look at, and a delight to experience.

Gameplay wise, A Boy and His Blob is a bit hit and miss. The majority of the game is pla orm based, with a constant test of puzzles and ac on. It’s a very well balanced mix, and playing through each li le level is a joy. The difficulty is also just about right, as it challenges the player to solve the fiendish puzzles, while s ll keeping it simple enough for younger players. The only problem that is apparent is the pacing, that at mes does drop off and drag. Also, although all the stages are different in style, from the early forests right through to the midnight city sec ons and factories, they are fundamentally the same in design. It’s not a major issue, but there is a sense of déjà vu hovering over every level. Another factor that does frustrate is the controls, which are enabled via the Wii Remote and Nunchuck. To select a bean for Blob to eat, you have to hold down the Z bu on and cycle through a selec on of different beans. This is fine, but the order the beans are placed changes a er nearly every stage, so you constantly have to relearn their order. Also, it s ll frustrates me that this current crop of Wii games aren’t making full use of the Wii mo on controls. At no point in A Boy and His Blob do you have to do anything that couldn’t be done with a standard controller, and although it doesn’t affect the gameplay, it would have been nice to see the Wii actually use the gi s it possess. In a way, playing A Boy and His Blob is like reading through a children’s book; it’s fun, colourful, exci ng, charming, beau ful and just generally life-affirming. Although it may be flawed in a few departments, A Boy and His Blob is a wonderful game that will be loved by gamers of all ages, and if you hanker for a bit of love and charm, A Boy and His Blob should not be missed. Sco Tierney

PRESENTATION: 19/20 STORY: 18/20 CONTROLS: 16/20 GAMEPLAY: 17/20 DURABILITY: 18/20

OVERALL

88/100 phonica magazine uk

REVIEWS THE SABOTEUR PUBLISHER: ELECTRONIC ARTS DEVELOPER: PANDEMIC STUDIOS FORMAT: PC, XBOX 360, PS3 AVAILABLE: NOW

WHETHER IT’S IN MONOCHROME OR COLOUR, THE SABOTEUR CAN’T DISGUISE ITS FAILINGS

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REVIEWS What is it with Hollywood and bad Irish accents? Whenever an Irish character is portrayed in America ﬁlms, TV or games, they just don’t sound right. Instead of the so , subtle tones the Irish accent is actually cra ed in, they use the ‘HO HO, kiss me I’m Irsish’ outlandish comedy-voice that you hear on the Lucky Charms advert. Well guess what, the central character in this new tle, The Saboteur, is Irish; and he’s a er your lucky charms!

Elsewhere though, The Saboteur is a bit hit and miss. Although the gameplay is rela vely mixed in variety, it soon becomes very repe ve, as you soon discover that you’re going through the same mo ons each me out. There’s a variety in how you approach missions, whether it be climbing buildings, racing cars, sneaking in without no ce or charging in guns blazing, but all in all it’s very similar throughout. Also, the controls are quite sloppy when climbing, running and some mes during the driving sec ons. They’re not bad, but shoo ng is very ﬁddly, and some of the cars feel unnervingly vague.

To give you an idea of what The Saboteur is like, you’ll need to imagine a giant mel ng pot (stay with me) with the following games being slowing mixed together; Assassins Creed, GTA4, Commandos, Wolfenstein, Just Cause and Crimson Skies. If you did mix these tles together, pouring the resul ng mixture into some form of game-crea ng mould, you’d end up with The Saboteur; or more likely just a s cky mess.

“WE WERE EXPECTING GRAND THEFT AUTO 4, BUT WITH NAZIS. INSTEAD, WE’VE JUST ENDED UP WITH LITTLE BITS FROM OTHER GAMES.”

The backdrop to The Saboteur is Second World War occupied Paris. Your character, the shamrock-sucking Sean Devlin, is hiding from the Nazi’s, just wai ng to lay down some payback. So, using his various skills as a ﬁghter, lover, driver and climber, you must guide him around Paris, with the inten on of causing as much chaos for the Nazis as possible. Oh, and catching a glance of the odd bobbie.

“THE SABOTEUR IS HIT AND MISS. AND THE GAMEPLAY IS RELATIVELY MIXED.” The most striking aspect of The Saboteur is the thrilling art direc on, that glides between monochrome black and white, and gorgeous 50s colour. The way the colour is displayed depends on how far you’re into the game. When an area of Paris is under strict Nazi control, it’s black and white; but when you liberate it (or to be more accurate, give the resistance hope) it slowly turns to colour. It’s a startling eﬀect, and although the graphics in general are pre y standard, the style more than makes up for it.

To sum up, The Saboteur is very disappoin ng. From the early screenshots and demos we’d seen, The Saboteur looked highly impressive, and to be honest, we were expec ng (and hoping) for Grand The Auto 4, but with Nazis. Instead, we’ve just ended up with li le bits from other games, all wrapped in a stunning style. It’s an OK game, with some occasional moments of excellence, but overall The Saboteur is a big letdown, and a huge missed opportunity. That list of games we men oned earlier is the key; The Saboteur takes the best bits from all of them, but overall, every single one those games are be er than The Saboteur. S ll, there’s always a da Irish accent to enjoy……to be sure! Sco Tierney

PRESENTATION: 17/20 STORY: 15/20 CONTROLS: 13/20 GAMEPLAY: 13/20 DURABILITY: 13/20

OVERALL

71/100 phonica magazine uk

REVIEWS AVATAR: THE GAME PUBLISHER: UBISOFT DEVELOPER: UBISOFT MONTREAL FORMAT: PS3, XBOX 360, PC, WII, PSP AVAILABLE: NOW

BLASTER LA VISTA I don’t know what James Cameron is like in person, but I think it’s fair to say that his cinema c oeuvre lacks subtlety. This isn’t a cri cism - you don’t watch Terminator 2 for the intricate moral and social subtext – but it does mean that you walk into Avatar with certain preconcep ons. Avatar is, of course, the game inspired by the upcoming cinema c megabuster. If you happen to have missed the trailers, it’s based around a struggle between the human RDA and the blue humanoid gazelle / kangaroo hybrids, the Na’Vi. And in the game, you can choose to play as either. It’s a reasonably early decision and leads to substan ally different gameplay, with the humans ge ng a sort of Colonial Marine standard 3rd-person shooter layout, and the Na’Vi a melee-based leap-from-tree-to-tree type… er… thing. It’s almost irresis ble to men on Borderlands at this point, because Avatar has a similar RPG element to it. You level up, unlocking weapons and various buffs as your bodycount rises. These, in turns, can tweak how you play the game, from all-out war to a slightly stealthier approach. Enough with the mechanics. Given that a reasonable number of people stopped reading the moment it was made clear that this is a game based on a film, it seems only fair to reward the rest of you by saying that this isn’t a bad effort at all. It’s undoubtedly pre y… in fact, there’s a dis nctly Star Wars feel to the lush alien foliage and oddball beasts. Apparently the game’s been in development for over 3 years, making this considerably more of a labour of love than, say, the execrable Terminator game rushed out to coincide with the equally dubious film some months back.

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Having said that, the lushness masks a pre y basic set of game concepts here. When you’re choosing your side, for example, the game’s careful not to present you with a clear good-or-evil layout. There are moral cases for both sides… you’re not simply a bunch of humans intent on rapine and pillage, or a commune of doe-eyed naturists with a handy penchant for triggering explosive vegeta on. But the way the game makes you play out either scenario is fundamentally the same: kill everything you see. As R Lee Ermey once said, God may love the marines for exactly that reason. It’s just that these days I demand a li le more dressing on my moral salad. I’m going to go out on a li le bit of a limb and say that you’ll enjoy Avatar, assuming you’re the sort of person who’d even consider buying it. It’s easy on the eye. It performs well. Playing either side will give you a sa sfying few hours of mayhem. Underneath it, though, I failed to detect any of that moral or social subtext. Perhaps I should have walked past the James Cameron movie and bought the cket for the Werner Herzog instead. Rob Hobson

PRESENTATION: 17/20 STORY: 13/20 CONTROLS: 15/20 GAMEPLAY: 16/20 DURABILITY: 14/20

OVERALL

75/100

phonica magazine uk

REVIEWS AION: TOWER OF ETERNITY PUBLISHER: NCSOFT DEVELOPER: NCSOFT PLATFORM: PC AVAILABLE: NOW

ANOTHER WOW CHALLENGER STEPS UP TO THE PLATE; BUT IS THIS CONTENDER GOING TO BE VICTORIES OR DISMEMBERED? Ever since World of Warcra was released back in 2004 there has not really been any serious compe on to the MMO juggernaut from Blizzard Entertainment. Many have tried and failed. Now, it’s Korea’s turn to lay down the gauntlet with a graphical masterpiece. But does Aion live up to its “WoW killer” tag? There is a lot of added burden when a game is hailed by experts in the MMO industry as a “World of Warcra killer”. Both Age of Conan and Warhammer Online ul mately buckled to the pressure and ended up being nothing more than small-fry in the face of the massively popular World of Warcra , well into its fi h year of increasing success and revenue. However, Aion looked to be the real deal. Incredible graphics, aspects of play that appeal to both sides of the spectrum and more importantly, it was new. Honed and refined by a year’s early release in Korea, with major bugs and flaws ironed out smoothly, Aion hit Europe and the USA riding on a wave of an cipa on from across the world in October 2008. We’re now looking at Aion’s first few months of release. How good is it really?

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“TO BE COMPLETELY HONEST I WOULD BE LYING IF I SAID AION DIDN’T SUFFER BECAUSE OF SOME OF THESE TECHNICAL FLAWS.” First impressions are definitely something that many gamers base their opinions on, and Aion has given pre y much everyone something to drool about. Whether it’s the aspect of huge-scale PvP, new dungeons to explore, or flying with wings (!), Aion has cked all of the major boxes. There’s also no argument that Aion is by far the most aesthe cally pleasing game on the MMO scene as of right now – as expected of a game made in the Far East, the graphics are superb and anima ons are spot on. Spells are absolutely fantas c and more than once I was glued to my screen watching my sorcerer cast fireballs that actually made me sweat a li le.

REVIEWS

Aiming to knock World of Warcra off its lo y perch is no mean feat and Aion took a step in the right direc on with its gameplay. The combat is fluid, intense, and keeps you on your toes. Quest lines are expansive and, unlike many of its oriental brethren, with Aion you can avoid much of the dreaded “grinding” via experience gained from quests. However, even with the early release, there will be problems. Not teething problems either – these could be poten ally game-breaking if le unchecked. By far the biggest complaint amongst gamers such as myself is the quests, or to be more specific, the experience from them. A er level 20 or so, depending on how you approached each zone, you either s ll had a number of quests to go through, or you were officially stuck doing the one thing that the developers aimed to reduce – the oh so horrible grinding. Hours and hours of farming the same enemy over and over in order to gain a level is something that is definitely not welcomed in Europe and the USA and unfortunately Aion has fallen into the same trap that other Korean MMOs have stumbled at.

Another glaring flaw is the imbalance in player vs player combat, especially during flight. The XYZ aspect of flight means that it is incredibly difficult for a player to posi on themselves in order to a ack their opponents – even more so for the melee. If you played a ranged character, you could back off a couple of yards and unleash hell midair but as a melee character, you’re stuck 95% of the me chasing shadows. To be completely honest I would be lying if I said Aion didn’t suffer because of some of these technical flaws. It does, but Aion is s ll a stunning game that we can hopefully expect more of in the next few months. As for now, the balance is s ll in Blizzard’s favour, but they have taken a big bea ng. The warning has been made and Blizzard now has to step their efforts up a notch to fend off contenders of the throne. Paul Park

PRESENTATION: 19/20 STORY: 14/20 CONTROLS: 16/20 GAMEPLAY: 15/20 DURABILITY: 17/20

OVERALL

81/100 phonica magazine uk

REVIEWS MACHINARIUM PUBLISHER: AMANITA DESIGN DEVELOPER: AMANITA DESIGN FORMAT: PC AVAILABLE: NOW

CUTE LITTLE ROBOT WINS HEARTS, MINDS Machinarium is the latest point and click adventure from Czech indie games developer Amanita design. You take on the role of a tenacious li le robot who has been dumped outside his home city – also populated en rely by n men – and must get back inside, defeat the bullies making everyone’s life a misery and rescue his girlfriend. The concept is inspired and the art direc on even more so. The games’ scenes and characters are all hand drawn and feel like a classic children’s illustrated storybook and the feel is very much like that of a Roald Dahl story. The characters don’t speak but have speech bubbles inhabited by animated diagrams that reveal hints to puzzles and develop the plot. It is testament to the script that it’s perfectly clear what’s going on at all mes even though there is no dialogue. Your li le robot and the other robots express feelings with grunts and noises and are surprisingly charisma c. His anima on is a delight and when he falls over or drops from a height it’s hard not to giggle. Like any point and click game the puzzles are the centrepiece. For the most part the puzzles are fairly straigh orward – not necessarily easy but there aren’t many points where the player is le completely stumped. The number of inventory items is very limited so there’s no resor ng to trying every item with every other item un l something ﬁts. For the vast majority of the game’s scenes the solu on is on the screen. This is a lot of fun because you don’t feel like the robot is on an endless scavenger hunt looking for the right items. A lot of puzzles reward crea ve thinking about the objects in the world.

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“LIKE ANY POINT AND CLICK GAME THE PUZZLES ARE THE CENTREPIECE, AND FOR THE MOST PART THE PUZZLES ARE FAIRLY STRAIGHTFORWARD.” The catch is that the robot can only interact with objects within his reach making exploring the environment properly vital in most of the areas. In the mid-sec on of the game, a number of areas become accessible and you need to move between them to solve most of the puzzles. This is by far the most diﬃcult por on of the game but it’s also one of the most enjoyable as you get the chance to explore the city.

REVIEWS

Because it’s a robot city, a lot of the puzzles revolve around repairing broken machines. Some mes this means finding missing pieces and some mes it means solving mini-games. These are well thought out and really add to the main game. You get the chance to play five-in-a-row in a bar and space invaders in an arcade. Some of the mini-games are difficult to solve and one in par cular involving the city’s plumbing is absolutely maddening but they are fun enough not to be a chore. If you do ever get stuck a hint op on reveals what the robot himself thinks about the current situa on. If you ever get really, really stuck, a mini-game can be played and if you win, a book with complete solu ons - illustrated just as beau fully as the rest of the game - will open.

My only cri cism of Machinarium is that it’s quite short. I resorted to a walkthrough at a couple of points and was ﬁnished in about ﬁve hours. It’s a shame but for such a beau ful li le game I’m willing to make allowances and since you can get hold of it for under £15, you should too Ian Park

PRESENTATION: 19/20 STORY: 17/20 CONTROLS: 19/20 GAMEPLAY: 19/20 DURABILITY: 10/20

OVERALL

84/100 phonica magazine uk

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REVIEWS TROPICO 3 PUBLISHER: KALYPSO MEDIA DEVELOPER: HAEMIMONT GAMES FORMAT: PC, XBOX 360 AVAILABLE: NOW

MAN-HANDLE A BANANA REPUBLIC WHILE TOE TAPPING ALONG TO THE LATIN RHYTHM. Very few games can mix elements of highly technical strategy with comic humour. Dungeon Keeper is probably the best example of a successful merger, with its perfect balance of construc on and management, all packaged together in a wrapping of gags and laughter. So, does Tropico 3 manage this feat? In Tropico 3, your job as “El Presidente” is to rule over the residents of your li le banana republic island, and guide them through the early 50s into the 80s. Events that need to be delicately handled crop up regularly, with the Cold War never far away, mass tourism an ever growing development, and the never popular riot always brewing on the horizon. With an extra-large Presidente cigar firmly between your teeth, you must decide how to deal with these issues, all the while trying to keep your Swiss Bank account bulging and your palace in immaculate condi on. Ai curamba! There has been a lot of cri cism of Tropico 3’s tutorial interface, and most of it is rightly jus fied. Right from the get go, you feel as though you’ve been chucked in at the deep end, and although the basic fundamentals are explained to you, you are le to figure out the rest yourself. This is fine in some respect, and it’s a rewarding experience to learn as you go. But, Tropico 3 is such a deep and highly complex game that it would have been nice to have a be er explana on of the gaming parameters.

Visually, Tropico 3 is very good, with every aspect of your island presented beau fully. With the excellent zooming features, you can pull right out to get a birds-eye view, then zoom right in to the pavement and get a close-up view of your residents. To be honest, highly sophis cated strategy games such as Tropico 3 don’t tend to work on consoles. Looking back, it’s hard to think of a single tle that has successfully ported across to a console. Although Tropico 3 does play well on the Xbox 360, with a smart use of the bu ons and controls available, it s ll just doesn’t feel right. The PC version is where Tropico 3 shines, and although you’ll need a PC with a serious quan ty of grunt to run the graphics, it just feels right on its correct pla orm. To sum up, Tropico 3 is a really good development game, cut from the same cloth a Dungeon Keeper and Sim City. It’s funny, smart, deep and involving, and although it’s got a few start-point problems, once you’re fully up to speed with the details you’ll grow to love Tropico 3. Sco Tierney

PRESENTATION: 17/20 STORY: 15/20 CONTROLS: 16/20 GAMEPLAY: 16/20 DURABILITY: 16/20

OVERALL

82/100 phonica magazine uk

REVIEWS KING’S BOUNTY: ARMORED PRINCESS PUBLISHER: 1C COMPANY DEVELOPER: KATAURI INTERACTIVE PLATFORM: PC AVAILABLE: NOW

TURN-BASED COMBAT, A BIRD’S EYE VIEW, FANTASY CREATURES... IT ALL TAKES YOU BACK TO THE DAYS OF HEROES OF MIGHT AND MAGIC Turn-based games have fallen off the shelves somewhat over the past few years, but King’s Bounty: Armored Princess stands tall against its real- me counterparts with the familiar mix of fantasy, management and adventure that players may have experienced before. The game takes you on a journey accompanying the main character of the story, Princess Amelie, as she makes her way through hos le lands for some vague objec ve – you end up forge ng it while you memorise different combina ons of spells and monsters that you use to defeat your enemies. With its colourful array of graphics and detailed models of your allies and enemies, as well as charming spell effects and anima ons, you quickly get into the rou ne of clicking and pressing bu ons in order to maximise your victories. Keeping your troops alive becomes more and more of a priority as you soon begin to realise that the funds you gain are not enough to fully replace your army. Decisions of life and death become incredibly important – should you sacrifice these archers in order to take out their rather annoying werewolves? More than once I found myself weighing the pros and cons of a poten al decision, trying to look into the future to see how the AI would react to such-and-such moves. However, unlike its other turn-based predecessors, King’s Bounty incorporates much more of the RPG element into the game whilst s ll holding that tac cal brainy aspect that strategy is so well loved for.

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Although much of your me is spent in the ba le screen pouring over the troops, you do spend a fair amount of me wandering the “world view” in a World of Warcra -esque manner – picking up quests, buying new kit, exploring strange places – and the developers have merged these 2 aspects of gaming incredibly smoothly. The small changes that were incorporated in between the tles also cleans up a lot of issues that previous turn-based games suﬀered a lot for – especially the instant telepor ng between places. Having a gaming background in Heroes of Might and Magic 3, I was expec ng more of the same drudgery of backtracking through cleared areas just to reach my town, but was very pleasantly surprised to see I could teleport at will. For a genre that has slipped a li le oﬀ course in recent mes, King’s Bounty puts a good shop window out to poten al gamers. Clean graphics, well-made gameplay, and a change from the oh-so-seriousness of current RTS games makes for a solid tle. Paul Park

PRESENTATION: 14/20 STORY: 14/20 CONTROLS: 16/20 GAMEPLAY: 17/20 DURABILITY: 15/20

OVERALL

76/100

phonica magazine uk

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REVIEWS LEGO ROCK BAND PUBLISHERS: MTV GAMES, WARNER BROS. DEVELOPERS: HARMONIX, TT FUSION FORMAT: PS3, XBOX 360, WII, DS AVAILABLE: NOW

ROCK BAND HITS THE BRICKS. It seems as though, every issue, we’re reviewing another Rock Band or Guitar Hero game. This year alone there have been 14 guitar-based tles, set across every format from the lounge-lashing console to the pocketrocking mobile. Frankly, we’re sick of the sight of them, and although we s ll enjoy the occasional blast on our favourite incarna ons (most notably The Beatles Rock Band), with every new tle we see, our love for the genre grows a li le weaker. But maybe this new version, Lego Rock Band, can salvage the sinking series? Anyone who’s played the excellent Lego pla ormers (Lego Star Wars, Lego Indiana Jones etc) will know what type of humour to expect; a casual mix of silly slap-s ck, bouncy gags and smart parody. Although there’s not as much of this humour in Lego Rock Band as you’d expect, it’s s ll there, and to be honest it’s the only thing that makes this game playable. The rest of the game is just the same old tracks, regurgitated once more with a mix of dull ﬁller. Lego Rock Band’s track list is arguably be er than most, but it’s s ll very hit and miss. Unsurprisingly, Lego Rock Band’s gameplay is made up of the standard Rock Band/Guitar Hero features. There’s quick play, where you can pick any track from the list and play it; and Story Mode, where you build your own band and ride the brick by brick escalator of success. Sadly there’s no ‘Lego based’ features, like build your own Lego stadium or Tour Bus. No, it’s just the same old stuﬀ, but in Lego. Whoop!

Although we like Lego Rock Band, we s ll consider it as just another cash-in oﬀ the back of two successful game series. There are occasional moments that’ll make you chuckle, like seeing a Lego David Bowie doing his trademark 80s dance, or Iggy Pop looking even worse in Lego form than reality. But apart from that, there’s nothing really worth men oning. Only a mere scrap of Lego humour has made it into Lego Rock Band, and the background videos that accompany the gameplay are average. There’s just no charm, no buzz, and no real point to this game.

“ROCK BAND CAN BE SUMMED UP IN THREE WORDS; MILKED TO DEATH.” I was going to sum this review up with a very wi y line about a cash-cow with carpet burns, but frustra ngly The Sun printed the exact same line in their gaming sec on! So I’ll just sum Lego Rock Band (and the Guitar Hero/Rock Band games in general) up in three words; milked to death. Sco Tierney

PRESENTATION: 14/20 STORY: 12/20 CONTROLS: 17/20 GAMEPLAY: 11/20 DURABILITY: 5/20

OVERALL

59/100 phonica magazine uk

REVIEWS FAIRYTALE FIGHTS PUBLISHER: PLAYLOGIC ENTERTAINMENT DEVELOPER: PLAYLOGIC GAME FACTORY FORMAT: PS3, XBOX 360 AVAILABLE: NOW

IT’S THE CUTEST AND CUDDLIEST BLOOD-SOAKED SLASHER YOU’LL EVER PLAY, BUT SADLY IT’S LET DOWN IN NEARLY EVERY DEPARTMENT. Here at Phonica, bad games don’t really annoy us. We’ve played literally truckloads of games, and every me we have to sit through a pixel-based s nker, we just sigh and cast it into the Fires of Mount Doom. But what does send us into a spiral of anger and turmoil, is a rubbish game but should have been brilliant. As soon as we start playing, we see the corrup ng flaw that spoils all the developers hard work, and the fact that we know how they could have simply fixed it makes our blood boil. That’s the case with this li le flawed nugget, Fairytale Fights; a few fixes and it could have been a contender. Fairytale Fights is a cartoony hack and slash adventure, set in the world of children’s fairytales. You get to play as either Li le Red Riding Hood, Snow White, Jack or The Naked Emperor, as they…. well I don’t know actually, because it’s never really explained. But what I do know is that this is a very bloody game; so one thing’s for sure, it’s not for young eyes. As I said at the beginning, Fairytale Fights is hugely flawed, and you’ll no ce this the second you start playing. For some insane reason, there’s no tutorial, you just pick a character, and then you’re le to your own devices as you wander around a strange se lement wondering how to start the game. Once you do start a mission, you’re given ps and the controls as you go, but it would have been nice if we’d been given a li le heads up.

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“WE WANT TO LOVE FAIRYTALE CAN’T, AND TO BE HONEST, IT’ Once the game starts, it’s me to start kicking some fairytale bo om, and this I must say is hugely enjoyable; briefly. You can literally cut chunks out of your vic ms, and beat them into a puddle of their own innards. It’s biblically bloody, and the first me you see your character ‘surf’ across a river of blood, you’ll laugh out loud. But your face will soon turn to stone, as this games’ gameplay is depressingly awful. I haven’t got me to explore every aspect of its failures, so I’ll just list them. The controls are too basic and vague, the level design is lazy, the boss fights are boring, you’ll die every 30 seconds, the difficulty is too up and down, it plays badly, you can’t block a acks properly, collectable gems are a nightmare to pick-up, it’s buggy, it’s repe ve, it’s dated, and worst of all, it’s not that funny.

REVIEWS

E FIGHTS, BUT WE JUST ’S A MESS OF A GAME.” But what really pushes our bu ons about Fairytale Fights, is it’s poten al. If a few problems were cleaned up, and the other areas were polished, it could have been a great game. It’s a terrific concept, and the worlds and characters are beau fully cra ed, but due to its massive flaws all the good points are suffocated. We want to love Fairytale Fights, but we just can’t. To be honest, it’s a mess of a game, and unless you can filter out all the humungous problems (in which case I salute you), you’ll be le frustrated. Hopefully, if they ever make a sequel, they can have another crack at this concept, and produce a game that the idea deserves. But unfortunately, Fairytale Fights is going back were it belongs; into the Fires of Mount Doom. Sco Tierney

PRESENTATION: 12/20 STORY: 12/20 CONTROLS: 7/20 GAMEPLAY: 7/20 DURABILITY: 9/20

OVERALL

46/100 phonica magazine uk

REVIEWS

ROGUE WARRIOR PUBLISHER: BETHESDA SOFTWORKS DEVELOPER: REBELLION DEVELOPMENTS, ZOMBIE STUDIOS FORMAT: PC, PS3, XBOX 360 AVAILABLE: NOW

58 phonica magazine uk

REVIEWS A POTTY-MOUTHED CHARACTER AND GAMEPLAY THAT’LL DRIVE YOU POTTY! Right from the off, it’s blatant that this game hates you. For instance, when asked to select a difficulty, you’re given the normal three choices; easy, medium and hard. But when you usually pick a difficulty, you don’t expect the game to taunt and insult you. Let me explain, as we review this new ballsy offering, Rogue Warrior. Rogue Warrior tells the story of hard-as-nails Navy SEAL, Richard Marcinko, as he goes around North Korea hun ng down some missiles. It’s loosely based on Marcinko’s autobiography, and it involves enough naughty words and casual racism to kill a horse. As Marcinko couldn’t do the voice ac ng for the game (probably to busy bi ng a Zebra to death) Hollywood hard man Mickey Rourke takes on the ‘ac ng’ du es. It’s an ‘interes ng’ performance, but more on that later. As I said, this game hates you, and this unnecessary hatred shows when choosing a difficulty. If you’re like me, and not the best gamer on God’s earth, you’ll pick the easy se ng, and maybe turn it up to medium later on. But in Rogue Warrior, when you pick easy, the game calls you a “worthless wimp”; but in stronger words. So you go for medium, but the game now thinks you’re picking a fight with it, and calls you something even worse! Why’s the game having a go at me? What have I done? Once the game has stopped threatening you, and Mickey Rourke has stopped swearing long enough to catch his breath, the game actually starts. Right off the bat, you’re dropped into a midnight Jungle Army Camp, surrounded by troops. As the opening segment progress, you’re tutored on the controls and weapons. Sadly though, as you try and shoot your first enemy in the back of the skull, it’s at this point you’ll discover how bad the controls are. We played Rogue Warrior on the Xbox 360, but judging by the lagging frame-rate, we might as well have played it on a Spectrum X2. The graphics are so slow and ji ery that there’s notable delay on the controls, which totally ruins any sense of involvement or enjoyment.

Mickey Rourke’s ac ng is poor, but the script he’s obviously reading from is far worse. We’re not oﬀended by swearing, but what we are oﬀended by is lazy, pointless and course language that has no reason to be there. During gameplay, the Marcinko character will o en make a few comments to his unsuspec ng targets, as he creeps up for the kill. But when he asks his vic ms to orally massage his tes cular glands, it’s not funny, wi y, worthwhile or clever; it’s just annoying. Especially when he does it for the twen eth me!

“THE GAME THINKS YOU’RE PICKING A FIGHT; WHY’S THE GAME HAVING A GO AT ME? WHAT HAVE I DONE?” Rogue Warrior, is clearly a game that hates the player. With an average, appalling graphics and frame rate, terrible voice overs and an extremely offensive script this type of game has been done before....and much be er. But mainly, Rogue Warrior falls down because the central character, which you have to play and to a certain extent, be, is unlikeable. It’s not because he’s a tough guy, or the fact that he ‘effs and geoffs’ every other word, but it’s because he has no depth. He’s just a one-man swear machine, and who wants to be that? If Rogue Warrior wants to hate us, that’s fine, as we hate it even more. Sco Tierney

PRESENTATION: 10/20 STORY: 10/20 CONTROLS: 10/20 GAMEPLAY: 8/20 DURABILITY: 9/20

OVERALL

47/100 phonica magazine uk

60 phonica phonica magazine magazine uk uk

REVIEWS GIMME5GAMES –

A REMINDER THAT GAMES DON’T HAVE TO BE SERIOUS All too o en, you ﬁnd yourself immersed in a fantasy world somewhere brandishing a long sword and ﬁgh ng the des of evil that threaten to swamp your peaceful kingdom. Some mes, it’s a breath of fresh air just to enjoy something with no hanging around. Gimme5Games is one of those bas ons of fun that exist purely for entertainment on the Internet. Fun, quirky games that are easy to pick up and easy to put down but leave you with a smile on your face.

Another of these quirky li le games is Balloon Headed Boy. Super Mario fans rejoice – it’s one of those 2D pla orm sidescrollers that has you collec ng things, avoiding traps and comple ng levels. It involves you controlling a balloon headed boy (much like the tle, no messing about) on a quest to... do something? S ll not sure what exactly, but it’s a very welcome step back from intensive gaming into a world of pleasant repe veness with so colours and shapes. Collect these ﬂowers and press up to start ﬂying; avoid these whirring blades that will reduce your life; and in general, simply have a good me.

“SOON YOU’LL END UP EMAILING YOUR ENTIRE CONTACT LIST CHALLENGING THEM TO BEAT YOUR SCORE (MINE WAS 6.269 IF ANYONE WOULD LIKE TO BEAT IT). IT’S AN INCREDIBLY SIMPLE GAME AND HAS AN UNEXPECTED BOON – YOUR TYPING MAY IMPROVE!” One such game is Finger Frenzy World, a ﬂash game that simply measures the speed of your typing in an alphabe cal manner. A to Z in the shortest me possible to a ain the smallest score – it’s surprisingly addic ve as you keep trying to beat your record, memorising where each key is and placing your hand and ﬁngers so that they can reach as many keys as possible. Soon you’ll end up emailing your en re contact list challenging them to beat your score (mine was 6.269 if anyone would like to beat it). It’s an incredibly simple game and has an unexpected boon – your typing may improve!

The last of these games I took a look at is the Phantom Mansion series. A puzzle adventure game primarily involving collec ng keys and unlocking doors, Phantom Mansion is a li le too much of the same to be entertaining. A good throwback to the days of puzzle-bea ng games, but one that won’t be on your favourites list for too long. Paul Park

phonica magazine uk

THE GUIDE

PHONICA’S 20 RECOMMENDED PLATFORMERS SUPER MARIO 64

CRASH BANDICOOT 3: WARPED

BANJO KAZOOIE: NUTS AND BOLTS

(MegaDrive)

(N64)

(PS1)

(Xbox 360)

“Disgus ng toilet humour and a very average game, but if you don’t ﬁnd killing an enemy with a fart, funny, then there’s something wrong with you.”

“Took Mario from the 2D world of old into the 3D world of new; truly excep onal gaming.”

“Personally, I can’t stand the irrita ng li le cre n, but you can’t argue with his games.”

“Not technically a pla ormer, as it employees some very clever engineering aspects, but a pla ormer at heart.”

PRINCE OF PERSIA: WARRIOR WITHIN

BOOGERMAN: A PICK AND FLICK ADVENTURE

(GC, PS2, Xbox, PC)

“Arguably the best Prince of Persia game, and that itself speaks volumes.”

CASTLEVANIA: SYMPHONY OF THE NIGHT

EARTHWORM JIM

SUPER MARIO GALAXY

BRAID

SUPER MARIO BROS. 3

(PS1)

(MD, SNES, GBA, PC)

(Wii)

(PC, XBLA)

(GBA, NES)

“Dark, spooky and incredibly playable; a really enjoyable experience.”

“Earthworm Jim, dededede der deerr, Earthworm Jim, dededede der deerr, earthwo…you know the rest!”

“Packed with ingenuity and inven on; a classic piece of modern gaming.”

“As a game, it is masterfully ﬁendish and intricate, but it’s Braid’s heart that makes it so memorable.”

“It’s s ll an absolute joy to play, and the benchmark for all pla ormers that followed.”

62 phonica magazine uk

THE GUIDE

ROCKET KNIGHT ADVENTURES

PSYCHONAUTS

MEGA MAN

GUNSTAR HEROS

A BOY AND HIS BLOB

(Megadrive)

(PS2, Xbox, PC)

(NES)

(Megadrive)

(Wii, DS)

“Although it looked very basic, this cracking li le tle was actually extremely well developed.”

“Immensely clever and unlike any other game we’ve seen since; a work of pure genius.”

“It’s the ﬁrst game I can remember that let you steal boss powers. Finicky, addic ve, and compelling.”

“More shoo ng than pla orming, but s ll a deﬁning tle that remains playable even today.”

“Wonderfully charming and heart-warming; it just makes you feel good about life.”

NEW SUPER MARIO BROS.WII

SUPER PAPER MARIO

RATCHET AND CLANK 3: UP YOUR ARSENAL

MIRROR’S EDGE

(Wii, DS)

(Wii)

(PS2)

(Xbox 360, PS3, PC)

(Megadrive)

“Very basic and dated, but it’s 2D Mario ac on; what’s not to love?”

“Yet another excellent Mario tle; how does the li le fella do it?”

“Wonderful responsive controls, addic ve upgrading and Insomniac’s sly wit make this a bona ﬁde classic; and its got a funny tle!”

“Argue all you like. We’ll just shout louder. There’s lots wrong with this game, but the art direc on is s ll stunning. And it IS a pla ormer.”

“A one-oﬀ collec on of all the Sonic games is available, but this is by far the best; the best game ever? ”

SONIC 2

phonica magazine uk

THE GUIDE

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

Nokia 6730

Nokia 5530

Nokia E75

Nokia 6210

Nokia E63

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

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

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

MP3/WAV/AAC/WMA

Yes Poly/MP3 600 500 Yes

Yes Poly/MP3/AAC 222 244 Yes

Yes Polyphonic & MP3 660 432 Yes

Yes Poly/MP3/AAC 294 351 Yes

Yes MP3 340 264 Yes

Sony Ericsson Naite

Sony Ericsson C901

Sony Ericsson C510

HTC Magic

HTC Hero

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

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

100 MB/microSD

120 MB/Memory S ck Micro ™

100 MB/Memory S ck Micro ™

288 MB/microSD

288 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/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

MP3/MP4/eAAC+/WMA

MP3/eAAC+/WMA

MP3/AAC/MP4

MP3/MP4

MP3/AAC+/WAV/WMA 9

Yes Poly/MP3/AAC 564 380 Yes

Yes Poly & MP3 570 430 Yes

Yes Poly/MP3/Aac 420 400 Yes

Yes Poly/MP3/WAV 450 420 Yes

Yes Poly/MP3/WAV 420 750 Yes

64 phonica magazine uk

THE GUIDE

Nokia N97

Nokia 3720 classic

Nokia 5800 Xpress Music Sony Ericsson Aino

Sony Ericsson Yari

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

100 x 48 x 15.7 mm 115 g Quad-band/3G 240 x 320 5 MP 60 MB/microSD Yes/A2DP/USB Yes/EDGE Class 10 No Wap/xHTML Yes SMS/MMS/Email/IM Yes

104 x 50 x 15.5 mm 134 g Quad-band/3G 240 x 420 8.1 MP 60 MB/microSD Yes/A2DP/USB Yes/EDGE Class 10/HSDPA Yes WAP/xHTML Yes SMS/MMS/Email/IM Yes

MP3/AAC/eAAC/eAAC+/WMA

MP3/MP4/eAAC+/WMA

MP3/AAc/AAC+/eAAC+/WMA

MP3/AAC

MP3/eAAC+/WMA

Yes MP3 570 430 Yes

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

Yes Polyphonic & MP3 528 406 Yes

Yes Poly/MP3 270 360 Yes

Yes Poly/MP3/AAC 600 450 Yes

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

11.5 x 62.1 x 12.3 mm 133 g Quad-band/3G 480 x 320 2 MP

114.5 x 61 x 12.8 mm 93 g Tri-band/3G 176 x 220 3.2 MP

109 x 60 x 13.9 mm 106 g Quad-band 320 x 240 2 MP

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

16/32 GB (internal)

8/16 GB (internal)

120 MB/Memory S ck Micro ™

256 MB/MicroSD

1GB/microSD

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

Yes/A2DP/USB Yes/EDGE Yes HTML (Safari) No SMS/Email No

Yes/A2DP/USB Yes Yes Net Front Yes SMS/MMS/Email No

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

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

MP3/MP3 VBR/AAC/WAV

AMR/AAC/AAC+/eAAC

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

Yes Poly & MP3 720 300 Yes

Yes Poly & MP3 600 300 Yes

Yes Poly/MIDI/MP3 270 408 Yes

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

480 170 Yes

Yes Poly & MP3 300 310 Yes

phonica magazine uk

THE GUIDE

BlackBerry 8300 Curve Samsung S5600V Blade Samsung Genio Touch

Samsung B3310

Samsung Jet

107 x 60 x 15.5 mm 111 g Quad-band 320 x 240 2MP 64MB/microSD Yes/USB Yes/EDGE No HTML Yes SMS/MMS/Email/IM No

102.8 x 54.8 x 12.9 mm 92 g 240 x 320 pixels 240 x 320 3.15 MP 50 MB/microSD Yes/A2DP/USB Yes/EDGE Class 12 No WAP/xHTML/HTML Yes SMS/MMS/Email Yes

103 x 56.5 x 12 mm 90 g Quad-band 240 x 320 2 MP 40 MB/microSD Yes/USB Yes/EDGE Class 10 No WAP/xHTML/HTML Yes SMS/MMS/Email Yes

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 SMS/MMS/Email/Vidoe/MS Exchange Yes

MP3/AAC/AAC+/eAAC+/WMA

MP3/WMA/AAC

MP3/MP4/eAAC+/WMV/WMA

MP3/MP4

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

Yes Poly & MP3 240 408 Yes

Yes Poly/MP3/WAV 120 250 Yes

Yes Poly/MP3/WAV 480 730 Yes

Yes Poly/MP3/WAV 300 380 Yes

Yes Poly/MP3/WAV 492 422 Yes

Samsung U900

LG GM750

LG BL40 New Chocolate

103.2 x 49.3 x 10.9 mm 81.5 g Quad-band 240 x 320 3.2 MP 80MB/microSD Yes/A2DP/USB Yes/EDGE Class 10 No WAP/xHTML Yes SMS/MMS/EMS/Email Yes

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

128 x 51 x 10.9 mm 129 g Quad-band 345 x 800 5 MP 1.1 GB/microSD Yes/A2DP/microUSB Yes/EDGE Class 10/HSDPA Yes WAP/xHTML/HTML Yes SMS/MMS/EMS/Email/IM Yes

128 MB RAM/256 MB ROM/microSD

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

MP3/MPEG4/AAC/eAAC/WMA

MP3/MPEG4/WAV/eAAC+/WMA

MP3/MP4/WAV/DivX/eAAC

Yes Poly & MP3 210 220 Yes

Yes Poly & MP3 380 450 Yes

Yes Poly & MP3 240 400 Yes