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The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass (DS)
by MikeBridges88
Another beauty from the Zelda franchise.
A direct sequal to The Wind Waker, Phantom Hourglass continues Link's journey across the great sea. On board Tetra's (Princess Zelda's) ship, the crew go on a quest to find new lands. However, their ship gets attacked by The Ghost Ship and Tetra is kidnapped. Link, knocked unconscious ... by the kerfuffle, wakes up on a beach (a la, Link's Awakening) and a familiar voice wakes him from his dazedness. The voice is identical to Navi, but it's not so my hopes were dashed pretty epically - when will that fairy return? (for people not in the know, Navi's your little guide in Ocarina of Time and most of us Zelda-istas want her back).
On this land, the fairy takes Link to Oshus, a man with a huge head and staff who gives you a little bit of back story of what's going on but not much - he gives you the information in drips. Link asks around the island about the Ghost Ship and finds that there's strange goings on in The Temple of The Ocean King.
In here, when you are not on specific areas, the temple drains your life. And it is here where you meet Linebeck who owns a boat. You save him and Oshus enters the temple and tells Linebeck to help Link. This is where Link gets the Phantom Hourglass; an hourglass that contains Sand Time which allows you to run through the Ocean King's temple without coughing it - that's until the sand runs out - it take sunlight to restore it's energy.
The game carries on in that Zelda adventure way - exploring caves, running overground collecting items etcetera. Control ways it took a little getting used to - sword fighting with the stylus can be slightly hectic. Also, it is awkward swapping between items in time without getting hit by an enemy. Mid-fight, if you need something, you have to hit the items tab bottom right, then choose your item in the list that comes out, then click the circle in the top right corner, which now contains a picture of the item you've chosen, then the weapon is selected and ready to use. I've gotten quick doing this, but I still take a hit in some heavy battles.
My other qualm is the hourglass time mechanic when inside the Temple of The Ocean King. Time limits are pretty much over in modern gaming so it was pretty stressful being kept to a time limit. Hungover playing is really not recommended if inside the Temple. I had 10seconds left at one point and just managed to escape on time with what I needed: my heart almost exploded.
Who says games are engaging?
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Lego Star Wars: The Complete Saga (DS)
by lizbsn
This game is absolutely FANTASTIC! I absolutely love it, and it is something you can just keep playing without getting bored.
Basically, it covers all six movies and allows you to play through each one, with five levels covering each movie. The first time you play each level, you are playing as the actual characters in this ... part of the movie, but after you have passed the level you can play using "free play" - you pick one character and the rest are automatically chosen, but they always give you a good selection - you always get someone small who can fit into small places (an ewok or Anakin Skywalker), usually both a Jedi and a Sith, a bounty hunter, and a normal person with a gun, among others.
As you play through the levels you have to try to collect certain things - each level has ten lego canisters which unlock a special aircraft when you have all ten, and a red lego brick with a special power, among other things. You can also unlock characters to use in free play - people you meet along the way. You can then buy these characters using little bits of lego you collect along the way. It is impossible to collect everything until you are in free play mode, as there are certain places only small characters can go, or places that require a double jump to get to (which only Jedis and Siths can do). The only levels that don't have free play are those done in an aircraft.
The music is good (obviously, being based on the soundtrack), the characters look absolutely adorable in lego (particularly Darth Vader!), and the graphics are great. The levels are quite long and satisfying and, with trying to get everything on free play, this game will keep you going for a long time. Also, you get to use the force, which is so much fun!
It's quite an easy game to play, but also very satisying. Highly recommended for all ages!
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Lego Batman: The Videogame (DS)
by DavyMichelle
Lego Batman cost us only £10 in store from either Asda or Tesco, and Amazon are selling it for £12 at present. That's not a bad price for a DS game these days. We got it as a game we could play with the grandson, as he likes Lego (a lot) but is a bit young to manage a game like this without assistance. I'd say its age recommendation ... of seven years plus is accurate for both content and ability level.
The game is basically a batman game, only all the characters are played by Lego minifigures (very cute!) and there are lots of little Lego features throughout. For example there are little machines which need building here and there, and you build them by hitting a button and watching your minifig put all the Lego blocks together to create a switch or a box etc. I think a big part of the appeal of this game is the novelty of the Lego actually!
As for the point of the game, well as yet I'm not entirely sure. It's very obvious that we have to keep progressing through the levels, and it's obvious that we have to fight the enemies as we go. But for what ultimate purpose - I have no idea. A clearer main goal would be nice, though at least the mini goal of completing each level keep us going anyway.
The graphics in this game are good, and I like that the Lego parts really do look very much like Lego. Robin and batman are cute little guys really. The sound effects are acceptable, as is the music, though it's nothing particularly special. Likewise the movements and controls are decent, but nothing wonderful.
This is a good game that's well worth a tenner for a Lego or Batman fan, but those who won't appreciate the novelty might not get so much enjoyment out of this. It's a pretty well put together video game but I wouldn't say it's anything overly special. There's definitely some room for improvement.
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