Welcome back to the ‘Grid’ – the digital frontier where clusters of information travelling through computers take the form of sky-running ships and’ light’ motorcycles. Circuits are the freeways and programmes exist as the populace of this fantastic digital world.
In 1982 the first ever human managed to enter the Grid – Arcade owner Kevin Flynn (Jeff Bridges) crossed into the computer and fought for his life with the help of a rebel security programme ‘TRON’ (Bruce Boxleitner). Now almost 30 years later Sam Flynn (Garrett Hedlund), the son of Kevin is drawn into the Grid – where he aims to try and rescue his father. But things have changed in the digital realm, a rogue computer version of Flynn named ‘Clu’ has taken control and is running a dystopian state. Indeed it is he who has actually drawn Sam into his world with a view of using him to break out into our ‘real’ world and take over…
The original film TRON is widely remembered for being an innovative if cheesy sci-fi that set a new threshold for special effects and introduced the notion of gladiator battling with discs of light or fighting to the death (or de-resolution) on light-cycles which wove walls of light behind them. TRON: Legacy has its work cut out to up the effects ante again in this post AVATAR and Matrix cinematic world but amazingly the makers have managed to deliver something bold, unique and mesmerizingly new.
From the moment you see the stunning Quorra (Olivia Wilde) replete in a fetishist rubber combat suit pulsing with neon glow strips – who wouldn’t look out of place in one of the Matrix films – you know that you’re witnessing something very very cool. Everything has been seriously visually upgraded - TRON: Legacy is to the original TRON what the PlayStation 3 is to the ZX Spectrum. And that’s a good thing because whilst TRON: Legacy is awesomely flash, it is very hollow when it comes to the storyline. If you’re looking for anything meaningful of resonating this isn’t the movie for you.
Basically TRON: Legacy re- treads much of the same ‘battle to escape the Grid’ plot of the first film – just with different baddies (including a now evil TRON!?). But that doesn’t really matter when you’re caught up in the frantic battles, eye-melting visuals and pounding sonic soundtrack from Daft Punk (who also cameo).
TRON: Legacy succeeds in dragging the geek friendly franchise into the 21st Century – it’s a wild ride for sci-fi fans but probably won’t be remembered as fondly as the original.
Darkmatters rating: öööööööö (8 head tripping visual overloads out of 10)
The PS3 is about to witness the birth of the ultimate warrior… As the Kung Fu Panda might say: “He’s so deadly, in fact, that his enemies go blind from over-exposure to pure awesomeness!”
Here’s an extraordinary idea… How about a console game where you are the controller? No joypads and not even a glowing MOVE controller? Why didn’t anybody think of this before?
Kung Fu LIVE is pure motion gaming awesomeness – the talented guys at Virtual Air Guitar Company have done something amazing utilising the PS Eye to kick the ass of Kinect and create the most fun you’ll have leaping around in front of your TV this year.
Prepare to put yourself inside a comic book scrolling beat-em-up – your real life kicks and punches are mapped to your on screen character. And here’s the best bit… The on screen character is you!?
OK so you’ll need some space to play this sucker – I’m talking about a good 7x9ft if possible (which it wasn’t in my lounge but I still managed it effectively with a bit of tinkering). You’ll also need to make sure that you stand out from the background and be sure to have good stable lighting conditions. Finally there is some calibrating to do – setting up your positions etc… It takes a couple of minutes but it really is worth it as when it all clicks Kung Fu LIVE is a megaton uppercut to the pleasure cortex which will leave you dizzy and reeling with satisfaction.
The main ‘campaign’ sees you playing through several comic book chapters, each of which has you posing for ‘action’ shots at the start, these shots then appear in comic book pages and they can be saved to your PS3 hard drive for viewing pleasure.
The PS Eye does an admirable job of tracking your kicks, punches and movements – which ramp up to pulling off special moves such as shooting lightening out of your hands and causing earthquakes with your ground pound slam. You can rack up some excellent combos and bring all sorts of devastation to your various enemies – which range from ink blob monsters through to henchmen and end of level bosses.
There is a fun multiplayer element too where you can fight up to four of your pals (who use DualShocks to control their ninja baddies). It’s a wild blast and it works a treat, even if there are occasions when the motion capture doesn’t pick up every little movement.
Finally there is a ‘Mayhem Designer’ option where you can design your own levels and pick which enemies you battle and for how long etc. Oh and I almost forgot to mention the tasty ‘use your own weapon’ bit where you can incorporate household objects into the mayhem – I found that my son’s lightsaber forged a fearsome weapon and looked excellent on screen!
Is Kung Fu LIVE perfect? No, it does have the occasional issue but overall it delivers something really really special – the chance to live out a superhero dream on your own TV in your own comic book… As Kick Ass said: “A**holes, laying into one guy while everybody else watches? And you wanna know what's wrong with me? Yeah, I'd rather die... so bring it on!!”
The future of gaming starts here and you don’t need to drop over a hundred bucks for the privilege…
Darkmatters rating: öööööööö (8 kung fu kicks out of 10)
An ‘Open House’ is a house which is for sale and is open for inspection or tour by interested parties. But what if a psycho serial killer took the opportunity to sneak in while your house was being shown to prospective buyers? What if when the estate agent left, you were at the mercy of your unwanted new occupants?
This is the chilling premise for the nasty schlock-em-up ‘Open House’ from first time director Andrew ‘brother of Anna’ Paquin. Think minimalist horror in the vein of ‘Funny Games’ as viewers join the heinous David (Brian Geraghty) and Lila (Tricia Helfer) who take over the home of Alice (Rachel Blanchard).
David takes a bit of a shine to Alice though and so instead of chopping her to pulp – which is the fate of many other characters – she ends up being chained in the crawlspace and kept as a sort of pet. Although Alice’s being alive has to be kept a secret from the homicidal Lila because she wants to be the only woman in David’s life…
"David struggled to get people to watch him playing his Xbox Kinect"
Open House brings limited serial killer thrills with a few graphic knife murders which tip it into horror territory. Most of what happens you’ll see coming a mile off and whilst the cast do their best with the material - Anna Paquin pops up to support her director brother but she gets the chop pretty quick...
Of the killers, Lila is the more interesting - a hard-hearted killer babe who lures unsuspecting males to their death with her hot body. Overall there isn’t anything here that horror fans haven’t seen many times before in one guise of another and you’ll probably have forgotten this seconds after the credits role.
So no classic but watchable for some cheap n nasty thrills if that's what turns you on!?
Darkmatters rating: ööööö (5 psycho house-nabbers out of 10)
The Chronicles of Narnia: Voyage of the Dawn Treader (PG)
Dir. Michael Apted
Reviewed by Matt Adcock
“You have returned for a reason. Your adventure begins now...”
All aboard the fabled ‘Dawn Treader’ – the mighty battleship
captained by the valiant King Caspian (Ben Barnes) for a trip back to
Narnia. Following on a few years after Prince Caspian, Voyage of the Dawn
Treader sees the younger Pevensie children, Edmund (Skandar Keynes) and
Lucy (Georgie Henley) transported back to the magical realm along with
their sniveling cousin Eustace Scrubb (Will Poulter).
Narnia is under threat again but this time not from an evil king intent on
battle or the wicked White Witch (although she does make a fun cameo
appearance). The danger this time is that a strange evil green mist is
devouring the populace – so the young heroes must confront various
challenges in order to retrieve seven magical swords and free the kingdom
again.
With invisible giants (who might not be all they seem), vicious slave
traders and a climactic battle between a massive scary sea-serpent against
a golden dragon – there is plenty of action on offer. Lucy and Edmond
each have their characters tested as they face the temptations of being a
‘real man / real king’ – for weedy Edmond and of being ‘gorgeous
like her older sister’ – for buck toothed Lucy (who looks a lot like 'Mater' from Cars at times).
These trials add an extra dimension to the battling “for Narnia” and the not so hidden faith allegories which are present and correct as in the two previous films.
C.S Lewis’s imaginative third book is brought to impressive big screen
life, keeping up the high production values and slick special effects
heavy drama. The plot has been chopped and changed to make it all flow a
bit more easily and there are far more action scenes (which may not please
purist fans of the original text) but the end result is a rousing Narnian
romp that keeps the series rolling along nicely.
The character of Eustace adds some dry comedy to the mix whilst Caspian
reprises his requisite ‘hunky heart throb’ role. Talking mouse
Reepicheep (voiced by Simon Pegg, replacing Eddie Izzard) returns, as does
the mighty God-Lion Aslan (still voiced by Liam Neeson).
The Narnia films offer quality child friendly fantasies which pack enough
thought provoking deeper messages to set them apart from the mass of brain
shrivelingly bad festive kiddie flicks. Voyage of the Dawn Treader is a
journey worth taking, although not necessarily in 3D which adds very
little except to the cost of viewing.
Darkmatters rating: ööööööö (7 nice fantasy voyages out of 10)
StarHawk - the unofficially named sequel to WarHawk might just be hitting the UK in February if a post over at the mighty SIXTH AXIS (who got it from this source) is to be believed.
Darkmatters loves WarHawk - it has been one of the most played PS3 games in our household for years so the very possibility of playing a massive, multi-player space war made to the same gorgeously playable standards is a very exciting thought - even if the 04 Feb '11 date proves to be a fake, and please note that the artwork above is completely speculative...
Seems that 2011 is going to be a monster year for PS3 owners - Mass Effect 2 (finally), then exclusives like: Killzone 3, Little Big Planet 2, The Agency, DC Universe Online, The Last Guardian, SOCOM 4, Resistance 3 and Twisted Metal to name but a few...
Back in the days of PS1 they used to say "Do not underestimate the power of PlayStation" - might be time to dust off that slogan again as with over 4 million MOVE controllers already out the door and funky 'Kung-Fu Live'which teaches the Kinect a thing or two about how to make a satisfying controller free game - without the Kinect! (review this week).
There has never been a better time to pick up a PS3!
People say that I’m the smoothest Buzz-tard in town – and yes, when Buzz! is in the house, I’ll make your PS3 rock you up a quizz-tastic good time.
If you have a PS2, PSP or PS3, you’ve probably played a Buzz! game, and if you haven’t – you really should have because they are superb examples of quizzes with their own Buzz! buzzers to play with. The latest title, Buzz! The Ultimate Music Quiz, jumps into the era of the PlayStation Move controls on PS3 and is (if you’re slow on the uptake - a quiz video game about music!?).
Buzz! The Ultimate Music Quiz is now looking better than ever and the genius inclusion of support for PlayStation Move makes this the best Buzz! game yet. Everything is sparkly scrubbed up and generally improved – from the looks of the characters (Buzz himself – still Jason Donovan – looks less like a mutant cartoon and more like a proper host), whilst he studio glistens in high definition glory. Players can now photo and map their own face onto their Buzz! character, a bit like TV Superstars and record a custom buzzer sound which brings you closer to the action. You can still use the excellent custom questions made and uploaded by other players.
Basic gameplay sees any number (well up to four if you want to be picky) of players battling through quiz rounds such ‘Fastest Finger’ etc. New to the music quiz is ‘Twisted Tunes’ which is brilliant addition in the vein of a club singer distortion which you need to identify. Throw in some cool bursts of music videos and a decent range of questions either on wide topics like ‘No.1 Hits’ or more specialist topics like ‘Lady Gaga’.
"this is where you get to put your face on your players"
Bringing the PlayStation Move brings four bespoke rounds where you’ll use the controller to pick / smash answers, stab incorrect answers, pick up and slide answers to a bin or – my favourite - shoot the correct answer. It works really well and adds a new dimension to the whole Buzz! experience.
Buzz! The Ultimate Music Quiz takes what was already a great game and adds even more functionality and ‘bang’ for your buck. This is going to be the quiz you need this festive Season and music / trivia lovers will be well served with this slick and engaging game! Get your Move on and play this sucker!
Overall: Darkmatters rating: öööööööö (8 music 'moves' out of 10)
PDC World Championship Darts: Pro Tour (PS3 – Move controller compatible)
Developed by O-Games / Redoubt
Reviewed by Matt Adcock
As legendary darts commentator Sid Waddell once said: “The atmosphere is a cross between the Munich Beer Festival and the Coliseum when the Christians were on the menu.” Yes it’s PDC World Championship Darts: Pro Tour being played using the PlayStation Move motion control technology and it’s getting a bit tense…
I’m stepping up at the Oche, my PlayStation Move held like a ‘dart’, I aim at the treble twenty – I need this then double 17 to finish – there is an audible hush from the crowd (well my two sons and cat) as I let fly…
"Only the best looking men step up to the Oche"
PDC World Championship Darts: Pro Tour on PlayStation 3 is the nearest thing you’ll get to actually picking up some darts and throwing them towards a dartboard… The game is uncanny in accurately capturing your gestures and measures your throw – which means two things:
1. If you’re cack at darts in real life – you’ll be hopeless at it virtually
and
2. It’s a brilliant laugh when played against friends and family for bragging rights.
I’m told that professional darts players have a preferred land angle to their dart, which allows them to plan their shots to the board to allow the maximum possible room on the board for that third dart into the Treble Twenty zone – alas that doesn’t apply so much to me as I scored one 180 hand in all my review games!? You see PDC World Championship Darts: Pro Tour isn’t for noobs or the hand / eye uncoordinated (me). This game brings such a whole new level of realism to the PS3 that you almost expect to catch the whiff of beer and large men with moustaches coming from your sleek black games machine. Graphically – this is amazing, the glamorous dart venues such as Bolton are brought to high definition life whilst the facial hair and worry lines of the competitors are meticulously rendered. The darts themselves and the target board are crisp and detailed.
If the motion control of the Move is highlighting your weakness then you can still play with the trusty DualShock which uses a Tiger Woods style control stick back / forward flick that works nicely but doesn’t feel as ‘real’ as the Move.
PDC World Championship Darts: Pro Tour features international superstars like Phil ‘The Power’ Taylor, Raymond van Barneveld, James Wade, Mervyn King, Simon Whitlock and Jelle Klaasen – all packing detailed character models. You’d be right if you thought that this really is the definitive darts game for fans of the sport.
O-Games has also brought online 1-on-1 matches to the PlayStation 3, as well as PDC World Championship Darts: Pro Tour featuring a raft of downloadable content support on PSN: including new players, events and darting accessories.
"Leave it woman, I've got some darts to play!"
If darts is your thing you might want to check out how PDC World Championship Darts: Pro Tour is teaming up with PDC darts referee Russ Bray in a Facebook search for the public’s own interpretation of Bray’s famous ‘180!’ catchphrase. Entrants are encouraged to film a short video of themselves saying ‘180!’, and then share it with the official PDC World Championship Darts: Pro Tour community by uploading the video to the official Facebook page at www.facebook.com/pdcworldchampionshipdartsprotour to win some prizes.
It takes a little practice but you’ll be taking part in tournaments, including the Grand Slam of Darts, a new fixture in the PDC events calendar in no time. The atmosphere is enhanced with the commentary from TV’s ‘Voice of Darts’ Sid Waddell and John Gwynne; top level match referees, Bruce Spendley and Russ Bray; and Master of Ceremonies, John McDonald.
Basically – if you want darts action without the actual darts – this should be your next purchase – I’ll see you online!
Overall: Darkmatters rating: ööööööö (7 top flight moves out of 10)
We are getting reports that a NASA probe carrying alien samples from Europa has crashed somewhere over Mexico… It seems that the resulting infection has led to massive squid like creatures running rampant – destroying everything in their path, leaving half the country needing to be quarantined. So by the looks of it, all that ‘We come in peace’ talk was complete rubbish.
Monsters sees a young couple having to make the hazardous trek through the alien infested ‘Infected Zone’, risking their lives to try and get back to the US after becoming stranded in South America. Photo-journalist Andrew Kaulder (Scoot McNairy) makes a living getting shots of the aliens and the death and devastation they cause. He gets lumbered with having to babysit his boss’s daughter - engaged American tourist Sam Wynden (Whitney Able) and escort her safely back to the US border… But as she’s a blonde hottie, he starts to develop feelings for her, as is only natural when at any moment you could be eaten by giant extra-terrestrials.
Director Gareth Edwards makes his debut with this cool indie sci-fi creature feature which delivers not only the freaky sci-fi ‘Monsters’ of the title but also an impressive human emotional payload. On the surface Monsters sounds a lot like the recent ‘Skyline’ – a film made on a shoestring budget by film makers who have cut their teeth in special effects development. Both films deliver on the effects but where Skyline failed with weak plot and hammy acting, Monsters delivers by sucking you in with believable characters and a compelling story of likeable people, falling for each other whilst in peril.
McNairy and Able make a cute, believable couple (which isn’t so surprising when you realise that they were dating whilst making the film and are now married). The ‘Monsters’ are fascinating too – even though we rarely get to see too much of them apart from a few key attacks and bold alien mating sequence.
The atmosphere of sustained menace makes up for the slow pace, Monsters is a film to savour and the not so hidden subtext about the US heavy handed attitude to the aliens adds plenty to ponder after the end credits.
"Whitney Able models the latest fashion!?"
Monsters could well gate crash many sci-fi fans top ten films of the year and proves that creativity can win over budget restrictions. After the spectacular but overblown AVATAR, Monsters is a refreshing alternative that gets inside your head and wreaks some pleasing destruction. Recommend viewing.
UNSEEN DELETED SCENE:
The alien monsters from Monsters are rounded up and pitted against the mutant alien beasties from Skyline - for a 'winner takes all' smackdown...
Out of a potential 5 you have to go with a Darkmatters:
Gamers have different needs, some have to be shooting stuff (see Call of Duty or Killzone), others aren’t happy unless they’re burning along at over 200mph (see Darkmatters' Gran Turismo 5 review)… Then there are those who feel the need to dance and they can ‘Just Dance’ on the Wii, fling some controller less moves on ‘Dance Central’ on the Xbox and now get their groove on with SingStar Dance on the mighty PS3 - thanks to Sony’s excellent ‘Move’ controller.
Yep ever since the dance mat powered games hit the PS2 there has been an appetite for dance-related gaming, but up until now none of the offerings have successfully combined AAA karaoke with the ability to get jiggy in front of your console…
SingStar Dance changes all this and follows in the ‘we’ve got a fantastic product so let’s expand it’ thinking of SingStar Guitar by putting a Move controller in your hand and letting you dance your ass off, either while singing at the same time, just watching the original music video (with added dancing characters on the side for you to copy) or get down with your friends or family singing along to the words…
"Now you can 'pull a Britney'"
As the name suggests, singing is still the main business here and for the nice price of under £15 SingStar Dance (providing you’re already packing a Move controller - sold separately) and the new addition is the ability to score points by pulling off some moves. The singing is still absolutely boss, there isn’t a singing game that can hold a candle to SingStar – especially with its awesome SingStore that puts thousands of original song videos at your download finger tips in seconds, plus the brilliant chance to check out other players videos and vote on them – so things like the famous ‘dancing Wookie’ can get to number one in the chart!? There are other SingStar niceties like voice control of menus (which came before any of the competition did this) and quality wireless mics.
SingStar Dance keeps the mechanics nice and easy to follow – the video and lyrics play as always but now on the right hand side funky dancers appear which you have to mimic. The moves go from wiggles, waves, twists and all manner of variations – some easier than others. Of course you can see yourself performing instead of the original video if you fancy and if you do the Move controller even sparkles like a firework erm ‘sparkler’ when you play watching yourself dance with the PS Eye. You score points for how well you perform and it can be very satisfying to nail a perfect set of combos – especially if you’re attempting to sing at the same time!
Everything is very nicely presented, the menus are a dream to navigate (which makes this a much easier game to use in the party setting than the fiddly Kinect dance games) and you can even take requests and download the selected track (for a small price) so you’re not limited to the selection on the disc. There is also the option to watch back and edit the video of your dancing efforts before unleashing your amazing moves online for the wider community to vote on…
The track listing on the disc is diverse and includes Bye Bye Bye from N Sync, Shut Up by Black Eyed Peas, That’s the Way (I Like It) by KC & The Sunshine Band and more recent hits like Poker Face from Lady Gaga, or Don’t Cha from The Pussycat Dolls.
SingStar is the household name for music gaming on the PlayStation platforms and perhaps the ultimate ‘party game’. By Adding Dance to the mix it feels that Singstar evolves into a ‘must have’ for anyone who’s ever sung along to a track and wondered what they’d look like getting down to it too… The party season this Christmas is going to be fun!
Overall: Darkmatters rating: öööööööö (8 smooth moves out of 10)
Attention travellers we are sorry to announce that the train on platform 3 is unmanned, out of control and carrying a dangerous payload of highly explosive chemicals. We apologise for any inconvenience this might cause but hey, let’s look on the bright side, it makes for awesome cinema!!
Nobody does macho action films quite like Tony ‘Top Gun’ Scott and Unstoppable sees the high velocity loving director let loose with a massive train set, backed up with helicopters, cop cars and explosions – lots of explosions… Denzel Washington brings his class to the lead role of Frank – a world weary engineer tasked with training newbie conductor Will (Chris ‘Kirk from Star Trek’ Pine) who is having women trouble.
These two decent chaps get caught up in this "inspired by true events" tale where an unmanned runaway train is out of control in southern Pennsylvania and threatening to derail in a highly populated area – killing thousands.
The simple ‘men versus machine’ plot serves the film well and allows for lots of macho posturing as the train bosses fret over how much their stocks will be hit if the train crashes while the heroic dynamic duo frantically try and bring the beast of the train under control.
It couldn’t be more formulaic but Scott knows how to build up the suspense and uses his whizz bang filming style to frame the speeding unmanned locomotive 777 as some kind of evil entity hungry for destruction.
"The chance would be a fine thing - given the delays facing UK commuters at the moment"
Train control room operator Connie (Rosario Dawson) is on hand to fret as the runaway train finds itself on a head to head course with various hazards including a trainload of innocent schoolchildren… You couldn’t make this stuff up… The supporting cast include Frank’s two unfeasibly attractive daughters who happen to work in ‘Hooters’ which gives them an excuse to spend the whole film in hot pants and tight t-shirts whilst looking concerned at the news coverage of their brave dad. Not to be outdone though Will has a smokin’ hot blonde wife who’s unhappy with him do to his suspecting her of infidelity – although maybe his ‘day-saving’ actions might win her round?
Unstoppable sure is stupid and shallow but it is also, unbelievably, the most fun you’re likely to have in the cinema this autumn. With dialogue like: “This is Will Coalson your conductor speaking, we are gonna run this bitch down.”
All aboard for a pleasingly edge of your seat white knuckle ride - book your tickets ASAP and hold on tight!
UNSEEN DELETED SCENE:
The Road Train from 'Road Train' turns up and goes head to head with the 777 from Unstoppable in the ultimate game of 'chicken' not realising that there's no way the 777 can turn off the tracks!? It gets very messy!
Darkmatters rating: öööööööö (8 unstoppable sex machines out of 10)
You see the corner closing rapidly as the scenery blurs past at blinding speed. You take your foot off the throttle and slam on the brakes. The G-Force from the deceleration immediately dominates your senses – the tyres scream out as if in pain as they battle for grip on the road surface. You’ve picked your racing line and aim for the sweet spot of the corner – the point where centrifugal and cornering forces reach their equilibrium – where all there is left is pure acceleration… This is the essence of Gran Turismo 5, this is the ‘Real Driving Simulator’…
OK so GT5 is finally here. Over five years of painstaking development time, delayed so often that it made grown men weep with anticipation as the hype reached proportions that made Halo look ‘meh’. Having sold over 56 million units worldwide, the award-winning Gran Turismo franchise is regarded as the best and most authentic driving simulator ever created due to its true-to-life graphics, authentic physics technology and design. Since the inception of the Gran Turismo franchise, famed creator Kazunori Yamauchi and Polyphony Digital have pretty much revolutionised the racing category as we know it today. GT games bring the most realistic driving simulation you can find on a console and give a unique medium for automotive manufacturers to showcase their products. So, with much pressure comes much responsibility for Polyphony Digital to deliver the ultimate racing sim and with so many preorders expectation is running at an all-time high…
And now we have it so is it any good?
I can still remember the first time I played Gran Turismo – on my brother in-law’s original PlayStation circa 1997. I had a Sega Saturn and was mid-way through telling him how much better Daytona USA was than anything on the Sony machine when he loaded it up. In the next few hours everything changed… I loved it, but then my first word was ‘car’ – not ‘mum’ or ‘dad’ but ‘car’!?
When Gran Turismo made the jump to PS2, I was there straight away and likewise I was at the midnight launch of Gran Turismo 5 where I won a Signature Edition of the game – the omens were good!
"yeah - that's my copy..."
First things first then, Gran Turismo 5 is an astonishing achievement – (un)charting new territories in visual wonder, the new ‘premium’ cars are shiny models that could make even the most car adverse person drool in awe. Taking these babies for a spin through some of the greatest cities in the world is an experience which will flood you with auto-endorphins as streetlights or sunlight (depending on the time of day) reflect off the polished sheen of your automobile. Alas not all the 1000+ cars are built to this level of jaw-dropping detail. There are many ‘ported’ cars from GT4 and you can add more from the PSP version – these cars are ok but stand out miles compared to the premium ones in terms of graphical fidelity.
But looks aren’t everything and even the most eye-popping visuals can’t make up for shoddy gameplay. Fortunately Gran Turismo 5 keeps the ‘tried and tested’ gameplay that has served the series so well up until now and upgrades the wealth of options to a point unmatched by any other console racing title.
Hungry to jump into a performance care straight away? Head for the ‘Arcade mode’ which is ready and waiting to entertain. If however you’re keen to work through the fabled GT Career - which is like a car based RPG - then you’ll get to earn your licences, build up cash and experience points through racing to unlock / buy better cars.
The GT5 physics engine is crazy realistic, there is a real feeling that each car is handling as you’d expect it to in real life which is much more noticeable than in the arcade flavoured games such as Need for Speed where each car is basically just either a faster or slower model with essentially very similar handling.
So it looks great and plays beautifully (and is a dream if you invest in a decent steering wheel controller) but there are some tasty new elements added this time too. First up is car damage – a feature never before allowed in the world of Gran Turismo due to real world manufacturers not really wanted people seeing their cars mangled in such explicit detail. GT5 brings the damage, which is great on the premium cars and not even really noticeable on the standard ones. It may affect your driving style though when you see the prices of repairs after a heavy bout of paint trading with opponents!?
The online portion has been upgraded – and although the servers are struggling at the moment with the Call of Duty levels of people trying to get onto them – the racing in multiplayer sessions is fun. Sixteen people can race against each other and there are multiple options for setting up your own challenges etc. Speaking of setting up your own things – GT5 has a track builder which allows you design your own course and then race them.
Another ‘oohhh that’s nice’ feature is using the PS Eye camera to play with ‘head tracking’ which lets you look around when using the cockpit view… And if that wasn’t enough there is also the option to play in stunning 3D – I got to play a rally stage in 3D at Sony Betarooms Event and it really does add something special to the driving experience (although not special enough for my wife to countenance us upgrading to a 3D TV at home!?).
The feeling of burning around the Top Gear Test Track one minute, then drafting behind your opponent in a tense NASCAR showdown the next before going on to rain drenched F1 race is amazing. As is the satisfaction of tuning and building up your own garage of cars, photographing them and re-watching your spectacular saved films of your greatest victories…
Is Gran Turismo 5 perfect? Not quite – there have been many reviewers out there getting hung up on ‘odd looking shadows’ or moaning about the standard cars… But to be critical of Gran Turismo 5’s small issues is to miss the overall point, kind of like refusing to go out with a supermodel because she has odd toenail…
GT5 is an awesome game, it stands head and shoulders above any other racing game on the market and should be top of every car / racing game fan’s Christmas list.
Overall: Darkmatters rating: öööööööööö (10 car porn experiences out of 10)
"If GT5 was a girl - it would probably be Amber Heard!"
Hold on to your wizarding hats mudbloods - young Mr Potter is back in this first part of cinematic finale of the much loved magical series. It’s been a long journey towards the final showdown between Harry ‘the boy who lived’ Potter and his evil nemesis Lord ‘he who must not be named’ Voldermort, but any fans looking for closure will have to tune in again next year. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows part one is a bridging film that sees Harry (Daniel Radcliffe), Ron (Rupert Grint) and Hermione (Emma Watson) running about trying to find the seven Horcruxes - enchanted objects containing parts of Voldemort's soul. But that’s not all, although is it just me or is two and half hours just to find one Horcrux a bit excessive?, there are also the ‘Deathly Hallows’ — another set of magical objects to be found too.
"always time for a magical quick snog"
The Deathly Hallows are made up of The Elder Wand - the most powerful wand ever made, The Resurrection Stone – which can bring loved ones back from the dead and The Cloak of Invisibility (which Harry had in earlier films). Together, these items are the Deathly Hallows and are rumoured to make one ‘master of death’ – and so are integral to the plot even though they really haven’t been mentioned much up until now...
Anyway, while the audience grow old waiting for the final battle, here we get to tread water in the classy company of John Hurt, Alan Rickman, Ralph Fiennes, Brendan Gleeson, David Thewlis, Michael Gambon, Helena Bonham Carter, Imelda Staunton, Jason Isaacs and Bill Nighy…
Director David Yates (whose been making the Potter films since ‘Order of the Phoenix’) does an ok job with this tale which will be incomprehensible to newcomers but will please those who hold Harry and his magical adventures dear. It feels a little odd to not have the action centered around Hogwarts but at least a whizz bang high speed chase at the beginning of the film and a character death towards the end mean that there are a couple of memorable scenes.
"Harry, Ron, I feel bad for the viewers hoping to see the battle!?"
Screenwriter Steve Kloves keeps the general feel Twilight–esq gloomy while the friendship of the main trio is believably tested (anyone who has spent more than a week together in a tent will probably relate even if there weren’t being hunted by Death Eaters).The visual effects are mostly excellent too – so The Deathly Hallows part one feels like a good looking but deeply unnecessary exercise in spinning out the story and making loads of cash from the faithful viewers. It’s certainly much better than the weak Half-Blood Prince, but hopefully this is a mere taster as to what the final film will deliver next year when the battle really kicks off and we get to wish a bittersweet farewell to Harry and his chums.
UNSEEN DELETED SCENE:
Hermione gets so fed up with camping with Harry n Ron that she goes off and starts a modelling career in the muggle world... The boys can't believe it when they see her on the front cover of FHM!?
Darkmatters rating: öööööööö (8 magical bits and bobs out of 10)
CHRISTMAS JUST GOT NASTY... Matt Adcock from Darkmatters here to warn you that 'Santa' comes to cinemas DEC. 3rd. You’d better watch out - or at least watch the trailer below!!
Written and Directed by: Jalmari Helander
Certificate: 15
Running Time: 82 minutes
Here's the blurb:
In the depths of Lapland’s Korvatunturi Mountains, 486 metres deep, lies the closest guarded secret of Christmas. The time has come to dig it up.
You better watch out, you better not cry, better not shout, I’m telling you why... Based on the award winning shorts of director Jalmari Helander that have already acquired a cult reputation in the internet, Santa Claus is coming to town in a never-before-seen Christmas fantasy thriller.
He sees you when you're sleeping, he knows when you're awake, he knows if you've been bad or good...
This Christmas everyone will believe in Santa Claus.
Ah can there be anything better than rocking on guitar out to ‘She Sells Sanctuary’ by The Cult – a vocalist beside you giving it their all – people watching, jaws agape at the profound awesomeness that they are witnessing? Well, there’s more where that came from and it’s yours for the bargain price of just over a tenner.
I was a bit skeptical about SingStar Guitar – I mean it’s not like we haven’t got Guitar Hero and Rock Band etc for virtual strumming amusement is it… But SingStar is a quality brand – unmatched in the realm of videogame karaoke and so I gave it a go with an open mind (using my trusty old plastic guitar from Guitar Hero III – in fact it seems pretty friendly with most existing guitar add ons).
First impressions are that SingStar Guitar is a super slick addition to the much loved Sony sing-em-up franchise and for once the first impressions are right… This doesn’t seem to be going after the core Rock Band market, more SingStar Guitar offers a perfect way to add to guitar action to your SingStar system without having to splash too much cash.
The gameplay adds a note path on one side of the screen (or two note paths if you wanna rock with 2 guitars) – whilst the main singing area is as before showing the words over either the officially licenced video or the feed from your PS Eye.
"sing and strum - a perfect combination!"
SingStar Guitar packs 30 songs on the disc and has already started adding ‘Guitar Enhanced’ tracks to the impressive online SingStore which is unrivalled in offering not just additional music tracks for your gaming pleasure but also themes and extras – all seamlessly integrated in the thriving SingStar community. Music choices of note on the disc (in addition to the fantastic Cult track) include: The Love Cats by The Cure, Song 2 by Blur, Ever Fallen In Love With Someone by The Buzzcocks, Kiss With a Fist by Florence and the Machine, I predict a riot by Kaiser Chiefs, Fire by Kasabian, Supermassive Black Hole by Muse, Debaser by The Pixies and Under Pressure by Queen & David Bowie.
You can sing and play guitar if you’re so minded – but will need a mike stand. The real joy however comes from rocking with friends and family. I kicked off a solo burst of Pixies and pretty soon had the whole family singing and playing along (wife on duet vocals, sons on guitars) on ‘Under Pressure’…
Setting up is simple and the load times for each track pleasingly quick. Your performance is scored out of 10,000 points total with players contributing their share. Also you can’t actually ‘fail’ a song which pleased my younger son who gets frustrated with Guitar Hero when he only makes it half way through a track… There are even some new guitar trophies which are pretty easy to nail so you’ll add a bit of kudos to your online PSN profile.
SingStar is the AAA music game to beat and adding guitars to the already winning formula just makes it even better. This is the perfect addition for any PS3 owners (and if you don’t own a PS3 by now – why the hell not!!??) who already has some sort of guitar controller – now if you’ll excuse me I have to shred U2’s Beautiful Day!? Overall: Darkmatters rating: öööööööö (8 powerchord solos out of 10)
Dirs. Colin Strause and Greg Strause (The brothers Strause)
Reviewed by Matt Adcock
“Our first encounter will be our last stand...”
Run for the hills – the alien invasion might just have begun and it looks pretty lovely. There are sparkling blue lights falling from the heavens all across the globe and surprisingly it isn’t even an advertising campaign for Sony’s Blu-Ray packing PS3, no, this is an Independence Day scale invasion of our little planet.
We join the action in Los Angeles where heroic Jarrod (Eric ‘that bloke from 24 who doesn’t make it’ Balfour) and his girlfriend Elaine (Scottie ‘hit US medic show Trauma’ Thompson) are visiting successful pal Terry (Donald ‘Scrubs’ Faison). Their partying is cut short when in the early hours following Terry’s lavish birthday bash ET and his pals gate crash our atmosphere.
Do the invaders (at least some of whom look a lot like the Sentinels from The Matrix) come in peace?
"Earth's last stand might not last that long!?"
In a word ‘no’ – these bad boys are here to harvest our brainstems and those lovely blue beams? They are clever devices which entrance anyone who looks at them and then sucks them up to the waiting spaceships to be processed.
Skyline was made on a very low budget but somehow the directors (working hard to make amends for their terrible crime against cinema Alien vs Predator: Requiem) deliver some tasty special effects. Alas the rest isn’t up to the visual look of the film, the budget limitations mean that for every impressive alien, the payoff is that we get to spend a lot of time in the same few locations.
So it’s best to just let the visually pleasing and highly destructive alien attacks wash over you. The whole concept is vaguely ‘Cloverfield’ like in that our main characters aren’t the heroes fighting back, these are just average Joes witnessing unprecedented events.
There are certainly some action scenes that will stay with you – pick of the bunch is an excellent fighter plane assault on one of the large alien craft in which you half expect to spot Will Smith leading the plucky squadron.
"Hmmm - seems you've been watching too much X-Factor"
But Skyline isn’t a feel good movie, and the bleakness of our human incapacity to oust the aliens certainly hasn’t gone down well in the US where they simply don’t like to lose to anyone. Maybe the very silly pre-sequel set up will see an upturn in the chances of human survival??
SEEN DELETED SCENE:
The cast of Indepence Day team up with those from Skyline to mount a bigger scale fight back... still doesn't work!!?
Darkmatters rating: ööööööö (7 alien ass kickings out of 10)
Gentlemen START YOUR ENGINES... Gran Turismo® 5 Release Date Confirmed
Matt Adcock
The most highly anticipated racing game will be in your hands by Christmas
Sony Computer Entertainment Europe confirms to Darkmatters: Gran Turismo® 5 will go on sale across the UK from Wednesday 24th November 2010.
“Gran Turismo 5 is an ambitious project, with challenges and complexities which have made it our version of the Apollo Space Programme!” commented Kazunori Yamauchi, President of Polyphony Digital Inc. “When we created the original Gran Turismo back in 1997, we wanted to set a completely new precedent for the racing genre. With the technological leap onto PlayStation 3, our objective with GT5 was to create another great revolution which would not only satisfy our own high expectations, but would meet or even exceed the anticipation of the fans. Satisfying the loyal Gran Turismo followers is at the heart of all of our efforts, which is why it was such a difficult decision to delay the release of the game, and one which we did not take lightly. I can only apologise to everyone for making you wait so long, and I hope that when you try out the wealth of driving experiences available in Gran Turismo 5, you will not be disappointed.”
"nothing can compare to the pure GT5 feeling!!"
In Gran Turismo 5, you can tackle the world’s most famous racetracks, rendered in high definition that is as vivid as the real thing, and get behind the wheels of some of the most legendary cars in motor racing from past to cutting-edge present. Today, the impressive complete list of over 1,000 in-game cars was unveiled, including the Lamborghini Murciélago LP 670-4 SuperVeloce, the Lexus LFA and the McLaren MP4-12C. The full track list was also revealed, which will see players going head to head on famous legacy circuits such as Autumn Ring, Deep Forest Raceway and the Grand Valley Speedway, plus renowned real-life circuits such as Nurburgring and the Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca.
With more than 56 million units shipped worldwide, the award-winning Gran Turismo® franchise for the PlayStation® , PlayStation®2 computer entertainment system, PlayStation®3 and PSP (PlayStation® Portable) is regarded as the best and most authentic driving simulator ever created due to its true-to-life graphics, authentic physics technology and design. Since the inception of the Gran Turismo franchise, famed creator Kazunori Yamauchi and Polyphony Digital Inc. in Japan have revolutionized the racing category as we know it today. His offerings provide the most realistic driving simulation in the industry and a unique medium for automotive manufacturers to showcase their products.
About Sony Computer Entertainment Europe Ltd
Sony Computer Entertainment Europe (SCEE), based in London, is responsible for the distribution, marketing and sales of PlayStation®3, PlayStation®2, PSP™ (PlayStation®Portable) and PlayStation®Network software and hardware in 99 territories across Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Oceania. SCEE also develops, publishes, markets and distributes entertainment software for these formats, and manages the third party licensing programs for the formats in these territories. Since the launch of PlayStation 3 in November 2006, over 38 million units have been sold globally and continue to be sold at a record level. Maintaining its position as one of the most successful consumer electronic products in history, PlayStation 2 has sold over 146.1 million systems worldwide. Since its launch at the end of 2004, over 62.7 million PSPs have been sold globally, highlighting the importance of the portable entertainment market. With the huge increase in interest and accessibility of network applications and network gaming, over 54 million accounts have registered to PlayStation Network, the free-to-access interactive environment, and over 1.1 billion items have been downloaded.
PlayStation, the PlayStation logo are registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. PS3 and PSP are trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. All other trademarks are property of their respective owners.
"the auditions for Piranha 3DD were going well..."
Darkmatters hearts that 'Best Cinema Experience In The World'
Matt Adcock
Carlsberg and Sky 3D treated a London cinema audience to the most incredible experience last week when Kelly Brook made a surprise live appearance.
Cinema-goers at the Clapham Picture House were left stunned when the actress and model appeared through a side-door half-way through an advert to promoting the partnership between Carlsberg and Sky 3D, in which she was featured. The astonished audience applauded in delight as they were served Carlsberg by Kelly, who was wearing a classic 1950’s usherette style red satin outfit.
