Netflix, and it's impact on a naysayer

Now I'm a believer....

For years I fended them off with excuses, “Takes too long to download”, “I don’t like watching films on my laptop”, “It’s illegal you know” and various other pleas all intended to shut them up and stop them trying to tempt me with their fancy new means of film watching. What could I say? I was a traditionalist and despite the extra costs involved I still enjoyed the now seemingly archaic practise of going into my local retail or rental store and perusing the shelves before paying cold, hard cash for a physical copy of whatever film I fancied viewing. Oh how they laughed as they watched films not even out in the cinemas yet while I steadfastly refused to join them in their deviant ways. I may have been out of pocket but I was on the right side of the law and when the whole thing came crashing down and all their homes were being infiltrated by the FBI I’d have the last laugh.

I’m not sure why but I’ve never taken to the idea of downloading movies for free on the internet. My above excuses were only applicable to an extent. As broadband speeds in Ireland became fast enough to download even the biggest of files in a matter of minutes my first excuse was rendered utterly obsolete. I don’t like watching films on my laptop though, that much is true. “You can hook it up to your TV or put them on a USB stick”, I was told before muttering something about ‘too many wires’ and skulking back to my DVD collection to pick out an old favourite. As for the legality issue?! Half the stuff I watch online is probably illegal anyway so I couldn’t lay claim to being any kind of law abiding citizen that was for sure.

Other issues such as picture quality, virus threats and the simple fact that I liked to pick and choose what I wanted to watch rather than cold heartedly pinpoint a target before downloading it in a clinical manner all played their part in ensuring that I never once felt like joining all those law breakers and was content to live in a relatively bygone age. However as the recession hit and lavish spending in local stores became a thing of the past so I felt my choices becoming constricted. Whereas at one time I would have had no issue forking out a tenner, and sometimes more, on a film I now baulked at retail prices and the few purchases I did make invariably came from online stores. Although I was still reluctant to fully embrace the digital age I was at least making an effort.

Vowing to no longer pay the exorbitant prices offered by high street stores I found myself turning to other avenues. Having a digital video recorder in the comfort of your own home is a tremendous luxury and I trawled the TV listings ensuring that any film that may be of even the slightest interest was recorded and stored for my viewing pleasure at a later date. This was all well and good but save for a few interesting indie flicks on Film Four and the occasional gem on the terrestrial channels I was left with pickings of a decidedly slim variety. The other option was of course the rental store and trawling through the foreign cinema section was, and still is, a pleasure that I’m always happy to avail of. But again the cost element was proving increasingly prohibitive. New releases for €5? You’re having a laugh! Two new releases for a tenner and we’ll throw in a carton of popcorn? Sure what would I want with yeer shitty popcorn when I have mountains of goodies from Dealz waiting for me at home.

So this was my state of affairs. A film lover in no man’s land, neither here nor there. And then Netflix arrived. Seeming from nowhere and with very little fanfare. Casually scanning the list of new apps on my XBOX, of which there seemed to be one every day, I came across the blood red logo with Netflix emblazoned in white. *adopts tone of Victorian detective unveiling a new, exciting clue* “What could this be”?  I wondered to nobody in particular. “Net? Hmmm, methinks this relates to the internet. Flix? Could it be movie or film related?” I pondered no more and downloaded the app using my super fast Irish broadband. Arriving at the welcome screen I was asked if I’d like to begin my 30 day free trial. God you’re a bit forward aren’t you? I hardly even know you!! I quickly backed out of this eager provider of flix but vowed to return once I’d found out a bit more about it.

Further inspection revealed all sorts of interesting details about this mysterious newcomer. Apparently it provided the opportunity to stream movies through your XBOX, and in High Definition no less! I felt the first quiver of excitement. There was no limit on the amount of content you watched. Another quiver, this time more pressing. After your free trial was over it was only 5.99 per month to avail of the service. Gimme a pen, where do I sign up!! My enthusiasm was dampened somewhat by grumblings over the array of films and tv shows available to watch. I checked it for myself and found a few grumbles emitting themselves despite my best intentions. Maybe this wasn’t for me after all. Time to return to the rental store then. But wait! You can access the American Netflix I was informed, and by jove they were right. A few simple settings changes (was this legal? I cared not) on my XBOX and away I went.

The choice on offer still couldn’t compare with the sheer volume of options offered by the file sharing sites, or the rental and retail stores for that matter , but here I was getting the best of both worlds and not only was it legal it was also free, at least for now anyway. I joyfully flicked through the genres cooing gently to myself as I went and wondered how I was going to watch all of the stuff on offer in whatever free time I had. After a solid hour of deliberation and playing around with all the features I watched my first ever film using the internet as means of consumption. That it was a low budget Norwegian fantasy/horror entitled ‘TrollHunter’ is irrelevant, I was now watching movies in the manner of a modern day man and by some strange quirk it actually felt good. But not only was I a convert I now wished to bring new followers to this shiny new chapel. I texted friends and relatives asking them if they’d used this new means of movie watching and urged them to get right on it. Netflix had created the perfect storm and I was determined to ride each and every one of its waves.

It’s early days yet though and I’m determined not to get carried away. I’ve been told that access to the American Netflix only lasts for seven days before us unfortunate souls are consigned to the less attractive European model. What then? I don’t know how good or bad the European version is but I’ll certainly be willing to give it a try for at least the remainder of my trial run. Aside from the movies on offer there are countless TV shows in which to immerse yourself with the possibility of watching an entire series via the Netflix app. Documentaries also feature for those moments when you wish to be entertained and educated at the same time. When you couple Netflix with Muzu, the recently added music app, it seems only a matter of time before Microsoft’s claims about gaming consoles being ‘entertainment hubs’ capable of servicing all our needs comes to fruition.

On a wider scale the arrival of Netflix, and the ease at which even the most cynical of people can be converted, looks set to drive another nail firmly into the coffin of the local retail store. I for one will decry the demise of physical shops where you can walk in and while away the hours browsing to your heart’s content. But when HMV up their special offer on DVDs and CDs from two for €12 to two to €14 like they did at the turn of the year it’s hard to feel any sympathy for them. Sadly it’s only a matter of time before the last remaining stores disappear from our streets altogether as more and more people figure out that there’s cheaper and more importantly easier ways to acquire their goods. Because no matter how much you try and resist change it will eventually find a way of burrowing into your psyche and revising your opinion no matter how deep-set. Take it from me I should know.  

Too old to game?

A perhaps unnecessary introspective...

The advent of any birthday in a man's life is a time for reflection and appraisal. You scrutinise your features in the mirror and after much deliberation announce yourself satisfied with what lies in front of you, physically you may not be the sleek, toned whippersnapper of a few years ago but for someone in their early thirties you're in good nick and for that you must be grateful. Having assessed your mortal being you move onto matters of a more spiritual nature and find that although you harbour an ever burgeoning miserable side and an unerring tendency to daydream about being a ninja you are in actual fact blossoming into something resembling an adult which is a source of cautious pride to you.

However despite all of this self congratulation you still in a lot of ways feel, and behave, like that 15 year old self who spent his days mired in a state of aroused confusion. Football is still one of the most important things in your life and defeat for your team of choice will find you descending into the depths of despair despite your earlier proclamation that 'there's more important things in life than football nowadays'. You still watch television shows solely for the purpose of perving on a much lusted after harlot (yes Countdown) and secretly wish for the return of Gladiators: The Milf Edition starring Jet and Lightning. All of these things can be excused as boys just being boys and we mask our guilt by telling women that 'they just don't understand', however one pastime which many have partaken in since childhood and continue to do so is something which some might be a tad embarrassed to admit and others hide it from not only lady friends but also their peers. This of course gaming, or to give it it's correct title videogaming.

Like many children who grew up in the eighties I took to the relatively new phenomenon of home videogaming as if it were my birthright and cut my teeth on the Commodore 64, immediately instilling in me a fascination with bright colours and rapidly moving objects which remains to this day. Whether I realised it or not the seed had been sown and those early dalliances with the likes of Dizzy and Paperboy were just the beginning of a pastime which would continue to enthrall and enrage me right through to the present day and will most likely do so for a good few years yet.

Even the arrival of adolescence and the twin temptations of girls and alcohol failed to douse my passion for gaming and whilst the cool kids were clumsily fumbling in each other's pants and quaffing cheap vodka I was to be found indoors pondering why the Shinobi were so intent on revenge. When I did finally get my act together and realised that booze, mind bending drugs and the company of women with no morals combined to make for a terrific night's entertainment gaming still maintained it's position of importance. Whether it was challenging similarly disengaged individuals to games of FIFA 98 RTWC at late night parties or stumbling home as the sun came up and deciding that the Playstation was going on and Sephiroth was going to cower before me in fear and awe gaming was still as important to me as ever and the superior hardware on offer only strengthened my resolve.

It was around this time that I first became aware of the fact that sitting indoors with a joypad in your hand was not exactly the ideal way to impress members of the opposite sex. Suddenly this pastime which had offered me solace and joy throughout my life was now a source of shame, I recoiled in horror at the mere thought of being labelled a nerd and lowered my tone when discussing games in public for fear of being outed. Where once gaming had been the innocent pastime of a blissfully unaware child it was now an activity likely to see me branded with any number of less than flattering adjectives. But still I carried on, entering my twenties with as much enthusiasm and gusto as before and sneering at those who questioned my decision to fork out the equivalent of a third world country's debt to get my hands on a Playstation 2. I had by now unwittingly become an adult gamer and with it had entered an entirely new demographic, instead of being viewed with derision and pity it was now considered quirky and almost endearing to be gaming at my age.

However despite revelling in my new role as an endearing, quirky twentysomething gaming was threatening to sabotage much more important aspects of my life than my mere social status. Whilst my peers were busy attaining degrees and building for the future my only concern was building my Master League team in PES...........

One morning whilst driving to work in his Prius a particularly annoying executive at Nintendo had a moment of inspiration, as this idea took shape in his mind he turned up the volume on his car stereo so that The Eagle's greatest hits could be heard by all those in the mid morning rush hour traffic, nothing got his juices flowing like Don Henley's dulcet tones. Arriving at Nintendo's HQ he bounded up the stairs two at a time and rushed to the office of his much feared and usually avoided boss, upon entering the room and seeing his superior engaged in a clearly important phone call he stood as patiently as he could until he could bear it no more and ripped the receiver from the hands of the startled and soon to be incandescent CEO. But before great vengeance rained upon this gutsy interloper he began a spiel which would save him from the most severe of tongue lashings and change the face of videogaming forever, “So imagine right, Mommy, Daddy, Auntie, Grandparents and the kids all gaming together. How it works is we make these little nunchuks which you have to wave around and...........................

So now all of a sudden it was okay to game? Could this be right? But I didn't want to game with my Mother, or any of my Aunts for that matter, so what would become of me? From being the hobby of the friendless and the socially inept gaming had now, finally, reached the masses and boy was it annoying. Every second advert displayed bumbling middle aged men jousting with demented silver haired pensioners as the clearly joyous kids whooped and hollered in the background, this was just not on. Now when you told the matronly lady in HR that your hobbies included gaming she shrieked with delight and proceeded to bore you with tales of epic Wii Tennis encounters between her and her ever so dull family. You attempted to correct her and explain that you played 'proper games' and not 'that Wii Sports shite' but in the end just walked away as she detailed her serving motion right there in the middle of the office. What do I do now I pondered? I certainly didn't want to be grouped with this cretin when classing myself as a gamer but luckily for me salvation was at hand and a new moniker was to be acquired almost as quickly as all those Wii's began gathering dust.

I'd never really considered myself hardcore at anything and the mention of that phrase brought nothing but sordid images involving chains and screaming nuns to my mind. But now it appeared that I was finally hardcore at something as those of us who eschewed the option to jump around our living rooms like buffoons were classed as 'hardcore gamers'. Gaming had achieved a public acceptance that perhaps most of us secretly wished it never had, we somehow enjoyed our status as being slightly odd and took sadistic pleasure in the looks we received from loved ones when telling them 'yes I will be buying that new console and I'm getting it on launch day too'.

In spite of the ever expanding gaming market and this newly found acceptance I sometimes find myself wondering if it's healthy to be thirty two years old and spend hours designing the shorts of my eponymous boxer in Fight Night Champion. A quick look at those that consider themselves 'celebrity gamers' reveals that the likes of Vin Diesel, Seth Rogen and Cameron Diaz like to waste hours on end with their consoles so why can't I. In a strange juxtaposition I've reached a point in my life when I wonder whether I should be 'getting my act together' and 'making something of myself' precisely at the time when it's never been more acceptable to game. I will of course continue to play games with that same sense of wonder and awe still alive and well just as it was all of those years ago, but already I've noticed that where once gaming always took precedence it has now begun to slide ever further down in my list of priorities. No matter what happens I will always find time for this hobby I love but in a funny kind of way I can't help but yearn for those days when not a shining sun nor a willing wench could drag me away from my console and all that mattered was the virtual world in front of me whilst the real world was nothing but a distraction.

SAVE THE CHILDREN

CRAZED TEEN GOES ON KILLING SPREE: VIDEO GAMES TO BLAME!!!!!!

BOY RAPES GIRL AFTER PLAYING VIDEO GAME NASTY!!!!

THE END IS NIGH AS DEVELOPER ANNOUNCES SEX SCENE IN GAME!!!

...................................You know it's a slow news week when you see headlines like this appear in some of the more kneejerk media outlets that we're misfortunate enough to be exposed to, is it really any wonder that parents are left wondering about the effects of modern day games on their children when it's reported on in such a manner. For some unknown reason there still appears to be a large proportion of the British media that seem intent on continually deriding the industry and no amount of balanced arguments and logical debates will sway them. As far as they're concerned any game with even a smidgen of violence is likely to turn the most mild mannered, pleasant child into a raging homicidal lunatic within minutes of playing it.

The worst thing about this outright hostility towards the gaming industry is that it's by no means a new thing, it seems that every couple of years the powers that be get together and decide to condemn whichever forthcoming title that they deem to be in bad taste and on more than one occasion this condemnation has resulted in games being banned in some countries most notably with the 'highly controversial' Manhunt in 2004. And yet countless films with some of the most jaw dropping, gory, gratuitous violence commited to celluloid have been released in this time frame with barely a whimper of complaint to be heard from anyone.

So why is it that games seem to bear the brunt of the media outrage time and time again? One obvious factor is that to the uninitiated, gaming is still seen as a child's hobby, so when games are released with objective content the outcry can be heard far and wide. What a lot of people don't realise is that these games are not intended for their eleven year old son and the 18 certificate on the corner of the box is supposed to be adhered to by responsible parents. But one foray into the mosh pit that is GTA IV online will tell you that the majority of people that reside there are anything but 18. Surely it is up to the parents of the children playing these games to monitor what their beloved is getting up to on a nightly basis rather than the developers being forced to tone down their content for fear of corrupting the minds of the little people expected to run things in the years to come.

It's almost like parenting by proxy as time and time again developers find themselves being stifled by regulations that in essence shouldn't really exist. For example when a film with an 18 certificate is released you'll never see a parent visiting their local cinema with two pre-pubescent children in tow, and even if they did there's no way they would be permitted to view said film. Yet the same parents will happily purchase a copy of the latest console release with barely a cursory glance at the rating certificate, somebody needs to be told a few home truths and it's certainly not the people making the games that's for sure.

Even if we take into account the slipshod parenting skills of these uneducated folk, is it not selling our children short by assuming that they don't possess the intelligence to decipher whether their actions in a video game would be most likely frowned upon were they to repeat them in a real life scenario? The kids of today are more street wise and worldly than any of the generations that came before them and are exposed to life's harsher elements at an age when most of us were still playing kiss chase round the school playground. You could argue that video games should be included in these harsher elements which I refer to but leaving that aside for a moment the sheer volume of questionable media sources that children have access to these days means that whether we like it or not they're growing up a helluva lot faster than their predecessors.

If you were to dig even further into the myriad of problematic issues facing children today it wouldn't be long before you were pondering the dual threats of drugs and underage sex with more and more cases of addicted youths and underage mums being reported on a daily basis, and yet despite all this damning evidence the media would still have us believe that gaming is responsible for all the worlds ails. It all begs the question, was Jack the Ripper a gamer? I think not. What I mean by that is that the world has always spawned maniacal killers from as far back as one would care to remember and even the most civilised societies will produce wrong uns' no matter how sanitised the world they inhabit is. The question of nature versus nurture is one for another day but there's a strong case for the argument that the likes of mass murderers, sadistic torturers and all those other charming folk are born, rather than created by the enviroment they reside in.

Moving away from the whole violence in video games debate another major concern amongst the patrons of the non gaming community is that by gaming all day our children are not only allowing their bodies to rot but also their minds. Now when it comes to the argument that sitting in all day gaming is detrimental to a childs physical health then I couldn't agree more. As I write this article the time is approximately 7.30pm on a fine summers evening and all I can hear coming through my window is the occasional burst of song from a bird and the steady hum of traffic from afar, but what I can't hear no matter how hard I strain my ears is the familiar thwack of a football or the excited screams of children engaging in one of the various games that involve running at full pelt in whatever direction they like. Obesity amongst children is increasing at an alarming rate and there can be no doubt that gaming, whilst not entirely to blame, has to shoulder some of the responsibilty. 

But once more I'm afraid that it has to come back to the parents, I appreciate that it's a lot easier for a concerned mother to have her pride and joy cooped up indoors where she knows he or she is safe from the all to real dangers that confront kids on a daily basis and I can also understand just how hard it must be to practically force an apathetic teen to 'go out and play' when all they want to do is continue their killstreak on Halo, but allowing a child to game for hours on end day in day out is in the long run going to have a serious impact on that childs health as any spell of inactivity is prone to do. Despite the fact that the Nintendo Wii is generally derided by any serious gamer the Japanese giant has to be commended for attempting to address this problem by introducing games where the focus is on staying active whilst still retaining the fun element of gaming, the fact that this is a marketing ploy that is manna from heaven is, in this case, beside the point.

When it comes to the issue of whether excessive gaming can have a detrimental effect on a childs mental wellbeing then the waters become slightly more muddied. As I've stated already marathon gaming sessions spent slumped in a chair will always greatly increase the chances of a child obtaining a physique far removed from the characters they usually contorl on the screen but what kind of effects does this prolonged exposure to gaming have on someones mind. It's been proven beyond any shadow of a doubt that gaming greatly improves a persons hand eye coordination and that much can never be disputed but what effect does staring at a screen full of vivid colours and flashing lights for hours on end really have on the brain.

David James famously blamed gaming for his inept performances in Liverpool's goal during the 90's but given the fact that he's continued to make goalkeeping howlers throughout his career I think we can safely say that his regular cock ups have little or nothing to do with his extra curricular activities. We're forever being forewarned about the dangers of photosensitive epilepsy and due to the amount of cases of this condition being linked to videogames all developers are now legally bound to include a warning of the dangers of PSE in every release. But PSE apart I don't think there is any great risk of long term damage from partaking in epic nights of gaming from time to time, in fact I'd say that the difference between staring at a PC screen and a console game is negligible. Yet if you complained about your child being subjected to hours of staring at a PC in their school you'd be quickly dismissed with the retort 'Yes but that's educational'!! Which brings me to my next point.

For so long games have been dismissed as the most shallow of the arts with little or nothing to be gleaned from them. However as major advances have been made in the industry so the subject matter has strayed from the usual derivative type of game and onto more dare I say it educational topics. Games like Assassin's Creed 2 give the player a chance to immerse themselves in 15^th century Italy and whether they realise it or not learn all about the buildings and architecture of that time not to mention getting the chance to befriend Leonardo de Vinci (wherein you discover his 'tendencies' which I for one was hitherto unaware of). Then of course there is the spate of games which focus on brain training and increasing your mental agility in one way or another, as things stand these type of games have limited appeal given their quite basic structure and despite tentative efforts to incorporate this type of element into more visceral titles it still in my opinion remains an untapped market. 

The ideal scenario would be to somehow make a game which enables you to merge the physical and mental stimulation hinted at by some current gen titles and produce a title which in essence gave the player ample opportunity to exercise their body and mind whilst somehow retaining a level of complexity and depth which would assuage the hardcore gamer. When you consider this almost impossible balancing act faced by games developers these days is it really too much to ask for that they not be blamed for turning children into bloodthirsty savages aswell.

CRACKDOWN 2 REVIEW XBOX360

You know the feeling, we all get it. You've had a particularly stressful day at work, your head is absolutely pounding, your feet are aching and all you want to do is tune in, turn on and drop out. So you order a takeaway crack open the first beer of the night and flop down in your favourite chair. But as a dedicated gamer how do you amuse yourself when in this vegatative state of mind, something mentally taxing is clearly out of the question and and anything that involves hair trigger reflexes and uber competitiveness is only gonna add to that headache of yours. So what's the solution? Ideally you want a game that's easily accessible and low on complexity whilst still retaining a modicum of fun and addictive gameplay. Well the solution is here ladies and gentlemen and it goes by the name of Crackdown 2.

Ruffiansp to one of the surprise hits of the first wave of 360 games begins with the most perfunctory of tutorials before you're plunged straight into the sprawling metropolis that is Pacific City. Your mission there is almost secondary as the plotline in Crackdown 2 is shallow to say the least, as a member of the Agency you're tasked with stopping the dual threats of The Cell and the Freaks. The Cell are a rebel group of civilians who's main purpose in life seems to be making your life as difficult as possible at every available opportunity, the Freaks on the other hand seem to have an aversion to sunlight and a blatant disregard for their curfew as they only come out after midnight and generally make a nuisance of themselves by roaming the streets and wailing incoherently at anyone stupid enough to make nice with them. The main thrust of the plot is to get the Agency generators, which power Project Suburst, back online. Project Sunburst is a huge solar powered bomb which the Agency have concocted in an attempt to elimate the Freaks who while away their days in their underground lairs completely oblivious to the heinous fate which awaits them. Unfortunately these generators are defended by members of The Cell and before getting them back online you must eliminate these most stubborn of foes, for each three generators that you revive there is an underground beacon which must also be reactivated and doing this involves holding off an ever increasing volume of Freaks as the beacon fully charges before detonating and destroying everything in its path, yourself excluded obviously. Aside from the increasingly annoying Agent guardian who insists on commentating on your every move,and the occasional audio log which fills in parts of the ten years between this title and it's predecessor,there is little involvement in what you're doing and like I said previously the plot is in many ways secondary when it comes to Crackdown 2.

Once you have landed in Pacific City you are free to do as you wish and in much the manner of a child let loose in Disneyland the results are predictably chaotic. There's no such thing as gradually allowing the player to familiarise themelves with their environment as from the off you are bombarded by all in sundry and find yourself running for cover just to catch your breath. But catching your breath is,I'm afraid,not really an option as the pace of the game is unrelenting and after a while you get used to being in a state of perpetual motion. Whether it be malicious Cell members unnecessarily making your day a misery,or ambling Freaks throwing haymakers at you,there's never even a momentary respite and for those with borderline attention deficit disorder this will make for the gaming experience which you've always dreamed of. Aside from getting the aformentioned Agency generators back online there is a variety of other tasks and travails for you to get your teeth into, both The Cell and the Freaks have strongholds dotted around the city and if you so wish you can make it your business to reclaim these strongholds by calling in an aerial assault and holding off the irked incumbents whilst you wait for support. These missions are rather basic and seeing as they have no real effect on the outcome of the main storyline it's entirely optional as to whether you pursue them. There is also races of either the four wheeled or the two footed type available which can be entered by simply waiting at the start line and going on the b of the bang.

Of course one of the main selling points of the Crackdown series is that the character you control is no ordinary man, in a world where carnage is king it would be grossly unfair to go in outgunned as well as being outnumbered so thankfully you have a few extra abilities to help you on your way. In the beginning, as with most things in life, you are in essence a puny weakling and you can expect to have the bitter taste of defeat in your mouth quite often during the earlier stage of your time in Pacific City. But,as I'm sure most of you are aware, your time as the schoolyard victim doesn't last all that long due to the fact that during each and every second of your existence your Agent is gradually becoming more powerful and proficient in each of the key elements needed to survive in Crackdown 2, these being Agility, Driving, Firearms, Strength and Explosives. You can level up these abilites either by engaging in the relevant activities or by the collecting the many, many, many, many orbs dotted around the city. There is so many orbs and collectibles of all shapes and sizes that it will mean that only the most die hard of gamers will manage to accrue them all, new to Crackdown 2 are the Renegade Orbs which, like true renegades, will attempt to escape your clutches at every opportunity and need to be chased down whether by foot or in a vehicle. As you progress through the game you also unlock more vehicles and weaponry allowing you to create more and more elaborate scenes of mayhem and destruction if you so wish. In a funny way Ruffian have created a game where at first sight it seems like the world is your oyster and you can as you wish,when in reality the true depths and excellence of Pacific City can only be fully experienced with an Agent who has served his time and is ready to hand out some serious payback.

A big factor in any modern day game is it's online play and in particular the co-op modes available to players, co-op is becoming more and more important when deciding what games to purchase and Ruffian have come up trumps with Crackdown 2. Four player co-op mode allows you to play through the campaign mode as normal although only the host player will see his mission progress, but the inclusion of Online Orbs means that there's still motivation to play cooperatively even if you're not furthering your own cause.

This titlethout it's flaws and one issue that began to grate on an all too regular basis was the difficulty in negotiating your way through some of the enviroments late at night, when basked in the midday sun Pacific City is a joy to behold but once the stars come out it becomes a place full of mysterious stubborn walls and confusing layouts, this can also be said of the Freaks lairs and woe betide anyone who falls to the bottom of one of these lairs as getting back to the top requires the patience and navigating skills of General Patton! The repetitive nature of the missions is something which can't go unmentioned also and you can't help thinking that with a bit more creativity and thought the world which Ruffian have created could have been utitilised to much greater effect.

Crackdown 2 is one of those games that it's impossible to dislike but at the same one you could never truly love with all your heart, a bit like the ever willing girl down at your local it's a lot of fun to be with but once you're away from it it rarely occupies your mind. There's an inordinate amount of enjoyment to be had in just visiting Pacific City and I lost count of the amount of occasions whereby I sat down 'just for a half an hour' and found myself still there two hours later having totally deviated from, and nigh on completely forgotten about, my original intentions. But as I progressed through the game I found myself becoming less and less interested in what was unfolding before and I fear that the absence of any real storyline and character development may make this a soulless experience for some, like someone once said 'it's not what's happening that's important but who it's happening to'. It's one real saving grace is the cooperative mode and that alone makes this a title worth purchasing if you can convince three friends to do the same, the level of pure unadulterated fun to be had in co-op is such that I can virtually every sandbox game including it in future releases for fear of being shunned by gamers eager to tear things up with their mates. I think many of us are going to be left feeling slightly disappointed by Crackdown 2 as, for a sequel, it hasn't really pushed the boat out that far and seems to be a risk free venture, but thoughts of that nature were the last thing on my mind as I unashamedly rampaged from one end of Pacific City to the other all the while cackling like a manical loon. The perfect way to forget about the misery of your 9 to 5 I'm sure you'd all agree.  7/10

20 of gaming's biggest cliches

20 Gaming Cliches

Oil Barrels

Surely the most obvious gaming cliche of them all, but with good reason as even in this day and age developers resort to the old tried and trusted explodable oil barrels to help the gamer negotiate their way through a particularly enemy laden area. What's in these barrels is anybodies guess but I can only assume it's oil, and given the price of that these days it really is setting a bad example to any future entrepeneur by treating such a valuable commodity with this level of disdain.

Air Vents

I can honestly say that I don't know one person that has ever attempted something as downright reckless as travelling through a building via it's air ventilation system, and I know some fairly shady characters by the way. Surely if it's such an easy way to get to your destination undetected and unhindered then companies should be looking at making them narrower so that humans can no longer fit in them and thus render the likes of Solid Snake, and various others, useless.

JRPG casts

Moody lead with a dark secret, check. Wisecracking sidekick with a penchant for the ladies, check. Wistful female lead with a heart of gold, check. Sassy female with heaving bosoms and tattoos aplenty, check. Gentle giant more loyal than a labrador, check. Whiny, annoying, nauseating, teeth clenchingly irritating kid that you hope and pray gets killed off but never does, check.

Short term memory loss

You've commited a crime, quick run for the hills, steal a car, hide behind a bush...just do whatever it takes to get the law enforcement officers off your back and do it fast. Phew, panic over I seem to have lost them, oh no there's one over there! But wait, despite the fact that I just ran over a granny and toppled a school bus over a bridge killing all in sundry, this friendly policeman doesn't seem to be paying me any attention whatsoever, sure I may aswell steal this car from the parking lot and go on another rampage.

Buxom Babes

Let's face it lads, we all like to leer at the awesome cleavage and ever so tight buns of the female forms represented in games today and we've always been that way. Anyway that says otherwise is a liar simple as that. Yes we all know they're not real, and that we're incredibly sad for even admiring what is essentially a few pixallated images, but nontheless when Lara Croft is shimmying her way across a dangerous ravine, or Chun Li is pulling off yet another perfect Lightning Kick, we can't help but sit and stare and wish real women were like this.

He's dead.......oh wait

So you've battled your way through score of enemies and traversed terrain in various inclement weathers to face the big bad boss and the pinnacle of the game. But just two minutes later he's face down on the floor and you're left thinking 'Is this it? Surely this ca....' Don't be so stupid!!! Now the real battle commences and the slight tinge of disappointment you felt in ending the game so easily is replaced by sheer terror as you realise just how unprepared you are for the terror about to be reigned upon you. This style of ending works well first time around but when you're attempting it for the umpteenth time the effect tends to be lessened somewhat.

Back of the grid

Maybe more of a bug bear than a cliche but why must we always start at the back of the grid in every racing title ever?!? Are we to automatically assume that because the AI of the other drivers is so poor we'll have no problem charging through the field anyway and therefore that will be the only enjoyment we will garner from the race? As far as I'm concerned pre race qualifying should be introduced for all but the most arcadey of racers so that I don't have to suffer the indignity of viewing nothing but other car's exhaust pipes at the start of every race.

Main characters with crap names

If the world was ending today and someone told you that a fellow by the name of Gordon Freeman was coming to save the day would you be sufficiently placated? Obviously seeing as we're gamers we would rest easy as we know that Gordon Freeman is amazing and would get us out of any pickle but what of the rest of humanity? It's hardly a name that conjures up images of an alpha male riding in on horseback with an army of tanks behind him is it, the same goes for Marcus Fenix or Isaac Clarke or even Chris Redfield for that matter. Now Sam Fisher on the other hand, that's a president's name in my opinion.

Unquestioning grunts

In a world where freedom of choice is everything and the anti war machine is in full swing on a constant basis is it not odd that there hasn't been at least one occasion during a big budger shooter where some of the enemy soldiers have just paused for a second and thought 'Y'know what lads, what are we actually doing here? I ain't got no quarrel with no US of A', and with that just down tools, leaving you with a free and easy route to the next level. This needs to happen to maintain a level of authenticity in gaming.

Guns never weigh you down

Now I'm no military expert, but I do know enough about weaponry to know that's it not light and that coupled with extensive armour, not to mention rations and ammo, it's gonna be quite heavy and weigh down even the most war hardened soldier. These rules don't apply in the gaming world however as guns are exchanged and equipped without a care in the world and even rocket launchers have been known to pop out of pockets, decimating a enemy stronghold before being placed carefully into a lunchbox for later use.

Weak points in boss fights

When you've finally gotten over the shock of the boss reviving from the dead and becoming more powerful than you could ever have imagined it's time to figure out how to take him down. Hmmm perhaps I should aim for that shiny yellow part which is protuding from his undercarriage, ah yes that seems to be doing the job, how nice of him to earmark it in such a fashion for me. If real people were to be built like this then we'd all have our genitalia permanently on display with a big red marker proclaiming 'Hit Me' daubed across that general area.

Levers

I have never, ever, ever........ever pulled a lever in my whole life. And if I did do so I doubt very much that a drawbridge would lower itself down when I did so.

Everyone can swim/drive/pilot

Before being considered for a role as the lead character in an action adventure type game do all potential candidates go on a crash course wherby they learn how to drive cars, lorries, tanks, speedboats and fire engines and then how to pilot helicopters and aeroplanes before being tasked with swimming the Hudson River in approximately 20 minutes? Some of they may claim to have a background in the Navy/Army/Marines or whatever but what of the average Joe Smoke who becomes thrust into the role of unlikely hero? They must all be ex Krypten Factor Champions or something.

Crates

Okay so I've worked in a few factories in my time and I have seen crates in various store rooms, but I've never attempted to try and manouevre one around the room with my bare hands because that'd be just silly. Sure there's a pallet truck right over there isn't there.

Friendly npc's are never ever anything other than a hindrance

After you. Ok I'll go first. I'll just squeeze through here. Sorry don't mind me. Now I'm starting to get a teeny bit annoyed. Get out of my way......Get out of my f**kin way. What is your problem you stupid w****r can you not understand that when I hold RT and press B it means that you go on ahead, are you f**kin retarded? Ok now I'm just gonna shoot ya............Grrrr I can't even kill you..........My name is Simon Bourke and I hate friendly NPC's.

God's animals have just been put on this earth as target practice for you

Aw will you look at the deer isn't he lovely. BANG. Nice bit of deer meat that'll come in handy later. Whether it's rats in sewers or strangely aggressive birds it appears that each and everyone of God's creatures is fair game in the gaming world, this maybe isn't so much of a cliche given man's total lack of regard for the animal kingdom but just once in my life I'd like to play a game where I get to befriend a bear and no, Kung Fu Panda doesn't count.

Fumbling keepers

One of the first things any aspiring goalkeeper will be taught is to make sure that when parrying the ball, he gets it as far away from his goal area as possible to prevent any onrushing strikers from capatilising on his error. This is not applicable to football simulators however as even the most solid and experienced keepers will happily shovel the most tame of shots right into the path of the greedy strikers allowing them to gobble up the chance and you to cry bitter tears of frustration.

*Please note that this observation is one obtained from playing PES and only PES as I refuse to countenance the possibility of ever playing a FIFA game.*

Well behaved football audiences

I know in the sanitised age of Premier League football that football hooliganism has almost become obselete but you'd still expect the odd chant of 'Does she take it up the a**e' or failing that a drunken interloper bravely venturing onto the pitch to tell Ashley Cole exactly what he thinks about him. But no, they all just file quietly into their seats perhaps stopping to buy a hot dog, before singing a few tired old songs completely out of tune and cheering at the most inopportune of times.

Movie tie ins are dreadful

They just are and they probably always will be. The developers can't be completely blamed when they're usually not given nearly enough time to create these abhorrent monstrosities so all we can do is try and warn children about the dangers of these games. The fact that your child may start to cause a scene in your local games store because he wants the new Toy Story game and not Mass Effect 2 which you've been heartily recommending to him for the last half an hour is besides the point, the kids are just gonna have to learn and we've got to be the ones to teach them.

Everyone speaks English but in a foreign accent

Wouldn't it be great if you went on your holidays to Russia or France or Egypt or Mexico or anywhere for that matter and everyone spoke fluent English. But not only that, they all spoke it in the most generic local accent possible, you'd point and laugh at them as they struggled with words such as insouciant or salubrious before politely tapping them on the shoulder and asking them where the nearest bar was. Ahh bliss.

Lost Odyssey Review XBOX360

In recent times the boundaries of the RPG genre have begun to shift somewhat, with new themes and ideas constantly being implemented its almost impossible to define what a real RPG is nowadays. Where once the staple diet was a mixture of turn based combat, swords and spells we now live in an era where developers attempt to create sci-fi space opera's and post apocalyptic FPS' whilst all the time attempting to stay true to the roots of the RPG. I for one have enjoyed seeing the genre mature and blossom to incorporate new ideas but like all fans of RPG's I'm a stickler for tradition and occasionally yearn for the good ole days.

Similarly to most gamers of my generation the first dalliance I had with the RPG genre came in the form of the now rightly revered Final Fantasy VII, unquestionably one of the all time great games it heralded a new era for the RPG and some may argue that it has yet to bettered by any of its predecessor's. The man responsible for the creation of the Final Fantasy series, Hironobu Sakaguchi, has since moved on to pastures new with the creation of his own development studio Mistwalker. Since Mistwalker is backed by Microsoft Game Studio's it was only a matter of time before we 360 owners got the chance to once again delve into a world created by the master of the RPG genre, and in 2008 we were rewarded for our patience with the wondrous Lost Odyssey.

Lost Odyssey was billed as a return to the traditional roots of the JRPG and in that aspect it didn't disappoint. With turn based combat, random battles, a world map and an eclectic bunch of main characters it fastidiously copies the blueprint so carefully formulated by its forerunners all those years ago. Some may criticise it for its lack of innovation but when a game is this good such matters can be overlooked, a throwback it may be but harking back to the golden age of RPG's can only be a good thing.

Story wise Lost Odyssey achieves something which very few titles in this day and age manage to do. It not only incorporates the story to a degree that it affects the way the game is actually played, but also gradually draws the gamer in to its narrative with an intriguing tale that truly captures the imagination. The central character in said tale is Kaim Argonar who is an immortal and has lived for a thousand years, Kaim spends his time travelling from place to place working as a mercenary and taking part in the numerous battles and wars that arise in the game universe. Kaim's main cohorts are Seth, a fellow immortal who despite the manly name is actually a woman, and Jansen, who offers some light hearted relief from the musings of Kaim and is arguably one of the most hilarious game characters ever created. Unlike many RPG's, which tend to define an evil force right from the off, the storyline in Lost Odyssey is a far more complex affair with the posts continually being moved and your true enemy only revealing themselves towards the latter end of proceedings. The basic thrust of the plot is the battle for control between rival nations for a source of magic called The Grand Staff with your the affiliations of your merry band of characters changing as the story unfolds. Aside from the main story which is constantly evolving throughout there are plenty of side quests and sub plots to maintain your interest and add to the weighty feel of the game.

As with all games of this type the group of characters in your command increases as you progress along your journey, each new addition brings something new to the table and quite remarkably for an RPG not one of these characters grates on the nerves in the slightest. As mentioned earlier some of the members in your group are immortal, and although they can still be rendered inactive how you utilise them in battle will determine how successful you are. The battles in Lost Odyssey are randomised ( cue collective groans ) but rarely feel irritating or overbearing to the gamer, this is mainly down to the graphical flair allayed to each battle sequence not to mention the enjoyment garnered from destroying even the most miniscule of opposition. Once the battles begin its strictly a turn based affair with plenty of time given to plot the decimation of your foe, combining the relative merits of each character whether they be an expert in swordplay, black magic or white magic is paramount to your success and tactical acumen is required in spades. One unique aspect of the battle system is The Aim Ring, a timed accuracy challenge which when done correctly can utilise some of your equipped items and inflicts various forms of malaise on your enemies. The way your characters level up is also refreshingly different with the immortal ones learning skills from the mortals and then assigning these skills to a limited amount of skill slots, how you manage these slots is pivotal as failure to prepare will have you preparing to fail. When you factor in the mage classes that can only specialise in one type of magic but still use other types in battle it all adds up to an incredibly deep and immersive battle system, it may seem daunting at first but it is easily grasped and will become second nature quite quickly.

Visually Lost Odyssey is a sight to behold with each fantastical setting outdoing the previous one in a world full of lush, colourful environments. There's many moments littered throughout this game that will have your jaw dropping at the sheer beauty of it all, some of them cut scenes admittedly but even the in game material is a cut above the majority of 360 titles. Speaking of the cut scenes there is many dream sequences in Lost Odyssey which can be triggered by the discovery of remnants of the past by the immortal characters, some of these dream sequences are genuinely engrossing and are complete stories within themselves. The main narrative is never intrusive with each cut scene pushing the story along without ever becoming tiresome or dull and the quality of the voice acting makes them entertaining to the last. As stated earlier Jansen is undoubtedly the star turn and even had this most cynical of gamers chortling away to himself on many an occasion, even the pint sized, mandatory kids in your party are relatively endearing with Mack resembling a modern day human version of Scrappy Doo!! The charm and attention to detail of the cut scenes benefit the game as a whole and tie you emotionally to your characters before you know it.

Completing Lost Odyssey is going to take you 40 hours minimum, the action is spread over a mammoth four discs and there's no doubt that this game is quite a life sucker of epic proportions. Once you factor in all the side quests and undiscovered areas your gametime could rise to over 60 hours, but really isn't that what RPG's are all about? A minor criticism I found with Lost Odyssey was the world map, rather than having the freedom to roam about this map as you wish you can only ever hop from town to town therefore negating true exploration of the area. This made it quite difficult to locate some of the hidden places in the world, but then again maybe that was the intention, they wouldn't be much use as hidden areas if they could be easily located now would they? The use of save points was something else that caused occasional annoyance, rather than having the ability to save whenever you wanted you can only do so at the save orbs which needlessly makes an already quite difficult game that much harder.

For me Lost Odyssey is the best RPG currently available on the 360 and I include Mass Effect and Fallout 3 in that estimation. Its shamelessly old school in some ways but at the same time manages to carve out a unique place for itself in gaming lore by being such a well crafted, downright lovable gaming experience. This is one title that I'll always look fondly upon in years to come as I fear RPG's of this type and style are becoming a dying breed in the modern day gaming industry.  9/10