rexwrexwrecks
I have not played any of the previous Call of Duty games, nor have I, in fact, played any other war-based games. So when I popped it in and started playing it, the first thing I felt was a little frustrated at the presence of so many enemies. I'm much more used to a linear style of play, where you storm room after room, you're alone, and you take on the enemies that come at you.
Call of Duty 4 is a different experience altogether, when compared to the stereotypical FPS. For one thing, you'll rely a lot more on your team-mates. You CANNOT take on everyone by yourself.
The single-player story is very immersive. It captivates you, and is told in a style that really grabs you and keeps you hooked, especially in one scene where a lead character dies. I would rather not post a spoiler...you just have to play it to know it.
However, it must be said that the game is rather short. In spite of this, it covers a lot of ground, with different missions and gameplay. For one thing, you cannot use only one style of shooting throughout the game. One level requires you to get close to tanks to plant C4 on them, another entire level revolves around sniping in a ghillie suit (this particular mission seemed to me to stretch the bounds of acceptable reality, but it was probably one of the more challenging and fun missions), shooting targets from a gunship/helicopter. Either the game really is short, or it just leaves you begging for a LOT more action.
Bottom line: PLAY THIS GAME, at least so that you can tell your grandchildren before you die that you played this game through.
PS: Don't forget to play the bonus mission after the credits...be patient. Let the credits roll through entirely, which is followed by a bonus mission.
Call of Duty 4 is a different experience altogether, when compared to the stereotypical FPS. For one thing, you'll rely a lot more on your team-mates. You CANNOT take on everyone by yourself.
The single-player story is very immersive. It captivates you, and is told in a style that really grabs you and keeps you hooked, especially in one scene where a lead character dies. I would rather not post a spoiler...you just have to play it to know it.
However, it must be said that the game is rather short. In spite of this, it covers a lot of ground, with different missions and gameplay. For one thing, you cannot use only one style of shooting throughout the game. One level requires you to get close to tanks to plant C4 on them, another entire level revolves around sniping in a ghillie suit (this particular mission seemed to me to stretch the bounds of acceptable reality, but it was probably one of the more challenging and fun missions), shooting targets from a gunship/helicopter. Either the game really is short, or it just leaves you begging for a LOT more action.
Bottom line: PLAY THIS GAME, at least so that you can tell your grandchildren before you die that you played this game through.
PS: Don't forget to play the bonus mission after the credits...be patient. Let the credits roll through entirely, which is followed by a bonus mission.
CoD 6: Modern Warfare 2 is a worthy successor to the outstanding CoD 4 (Modern Warfare). Here's a quick single-player review:
Combat mechanics are more or less the same. There are a lot more guns this time around, and plenty of them are lying around on the ground when you cut down your enemies, or they cut down your friends. The combat is satisfying because the weapons feel right. They're powerful enough, whether used by you or on you, and they sound perfect too. A major departure from CoD 4 is that the environments seem a little more restrictive, forcing you to follow a linear path and occasionally have close quarter battles in cramped environments.
The sound effects are great, as usual. The sounds of battle are immersive and highly detailed, with metallic ricochets of bullets ringing in your ears. The weapons, as I said earlier, sound right too, but I do miss the slightly muted metallic ding of the weapons of CoD 4. They're much louder this time around. Voice over is good too, but almost all the voices are stereotypical of machismo -- deep, gruff and grovelly voices. Once again, this is contrast to the range of voices that we heard in CoD 4.
Infinity Ward's roped in music director Hans Zimmer for the background score, and he does not disappoint. If you're watched movies like The Dark Knight and Inception, you will know that this man is a genius at building up tension and then keeping it up. There is hardly any section of the game that is without music, and it does NOT disappoint. In fact, I would say that the background score is one of the highlights of the game and it is the reason why you get sucked in to the game and find it difficult to take yourself away from the action before the mission is done.
Graphics are satisfactory. They will NOT blow you away, but they get the job done. Most environments are there primarily for utlity rather than for beauty. You will NOT have the urge to stop and look around, which is a good thing. However, some of the environments are awe-inspiring, particularly the war zone that Washington DC becomes after an EMP attack.
Finally, the story. This game is less of a game and more of an interactive movie. The loading sequences are peppered with eloquent monologues. The in-game mini-cutscenes are dramatic and occasionally over-the-top. Even the background story borders on the unrealistic, with all its twists and turns, and seems to be just a bit ridiculous. As the story progresses, it moves away from modern warfare and into some kind of personal vendetta. However, all of this doesn't really matter because the cinematic feel of the game is fantastic and one cannot deny its style.
The game is not perfect, by any means, but it's a solid package. If you liked Modern Warfare, this is a game you will have to play, and my prediction is that you will wait eagerly for the next instalment in the series. Modern Warfare 2 is a short game (though not as short as its predecessor), but it's got a lot of meat stuffed into a small package. Play it.
Combat mechanics are more or less the same. There are a lot more guns this time around, and plenty of them are lying around on the ground when you cut down your enemies, or they cut down your friends. The combat is satisfying because the weapons feel right. They're powerful enough, whether used by you or on you, and they sound perfect too. A major departure from CoD 4 is that the environments seem a little more restrictive, forcing you to follow a linear path and occasionally have close quarter battles in cramped environments.
The sound effects are great, as usual. The sounds of battle are immersive and highly detailed, with metallic ricochets of bullets ringing in your ears. The weapons, as I said earlier, sound right too, but I do miss the slightly muted metallic ding of the weapons of CoD 4. They're much louder this time around. Voice over is good too, but almost all the voices are stereotypical of machismo -- deep, gruff and grovelly voices. Once again, this is contrast to the range of voices that we heard in CoD 4.
Infinity Ward's roped in music director Hans Zimmer for the background score, and he does not disappoint. If you're watched movies like The Dark Knight and Inception, you will know that this man is a genius at building up tension and then keeping it up. There is hardly any section of the game that is without music, and it does NOT disappoint. In fact, I would say that the background score is one of the highlights of the game and it is the reason why you get sucked in to the game and find it difficult to take yourself away from the action before the mission is done.
Graphics are satisfactory. They will NOT blow you away, but they get the job done. Most environments are there primarily for utlity rather than for beauty. You will NOT have the urge to stop and look around, which is a good thing. However, some of the environments are awe-inspiring, particularly the war zone that Washington DC becomes after an EMP attack.
Finally, the story. This game is less of a game and more of an interactive movie. The loading sequences are peppered with eloquent monologues. The in-game mini-cutscenes are dramatic and occasionally over-the-top. Even the background story borders on the unrealistic, with all its twists and turns, and seems to be just a bit ridiculous. As the story progresses, it moves away from modern warfare and into some kind of personal vendetta. However, all of this doesn't really matter because the cinematic feel of the game is fantastic and one cannot deny its style.
The game is not perfect, by any means, but it's a solid package. If you liked Modern Warfare, this is a game you will have to play, and my prediction is that you will wait eagerly for the next instalment in the series. Modern Warfare 2 is a short game (though not as short as its predecessor), but it's got a lot of meat stuffed into a small package. Play it.
2009
HAWX appears to try to blend realism and arcade gaming within a single game. But does it really succeed? A short review to find out:
The combat component is a fair amount of fun. It's very satisfying to get a lock on an enemy aircraft and then watch as your missiles blow it to smithereens in mid-air in a very satisfying explosion. The graphics are really good, and if you get to fly through the black smoke that moments ago was an enemy plane, well, that's just a lot more fun. The negative is that locking on to the most ideal target is a pain in the ass. It's not as intuitive as one would have liked. It's not fair to expect that the AI would select the best target that's right in front of you. Yet, multiple times, while I feel like there's an obvious target in front of me, I hit the change target button to find that the computer's locked on to something else, and those brief milli-seconds of confusion will cause you to miss your target, forcing you to fly around a second time.
The AI also fails in directing you to the most important targets. So you get to hear on the radio that a certain "bogey" is high priority, but in some missions, there are so many enemy aircraft (or ground units) in the fray that it becomes difficult trying to figure out which ones is high priority. This is especially annoying when you have to escort certain slower and less armed aircraft (such as bombers or carriers), and the oncoming wall of enemies gets so high that you just don't realise that an enemy aircraft has slipped through and is attacking your bomber. Oh, and it's not a major help that the wingmen do not branch out and attack very effectively, even if you ask them to. The "Assistance Off" feature allows camera to pan out to an external view, letting you see your plane (and your target) from the sky. It can be fun when you get the hang of it, albeit quite simplistic. Just my opinion, though, but I felt that the simplicity was for the better.
The missions are quite varied, some requiring low altitude flying, others requiring precision flying to avoid enemy radar zones. Almost no mission goes according to plan, and just when you thought you had completed it, something new will happen and will require further action from you. There's a storyline in the background that, to be fair, does a good job of giving you a reason to fly from one mission to the next. But with the lack of character models, with nothing to really bring a "human" element into the picture, it kind of falls flat and you just want to hit the "Continue" button to start the mission already. For those who are interested, the storyline involves Private Military Corporations (PMC), which are supposedly the future or armed forces.
Graphics are good, to put it succinctly. Watching your plane's wings change as you change speed or altitude is fun and the third-person view is satisfying in that it allows you to see the machine you're flying.
All in all, HAWX is a good game that does a good job of balancing arcade style gaming with some elements of realism, but its biggest failing is that it's just not immersive enough. The missions, at least initially, can be quite slow (before a sudden ratcheting up of pressure and offensive), and the storyline is bland without a character to relate to it. After a couple of missions, I just felt like taking a break.
The combat component is a fair amount of fun. It's very satisfying to get a lock on an enemy aircraft and then watch as your missiles blow it to smithereens in mid-air in a very satisfying explosion. The graphics are really good, and if you get to fly through the black smoke that moments ago was an enemy plane, well, that's just a lot more fun. The negative is that locking on to the most ideal target is a pain in the ass. It's not as intuitive as one would have liked. It's not fair to expect that the AI would select the best target that's right in front of you. Yet, multiple times, while I feel like there's an obvious target in front of me, I hit the change target button to find that the computer's locked on to something else, and those brief milli-seconds of confusion will cause you to miss your target, forcing you to fly around a second time.
The AI also fails in directing you to the most important targets. So you get to hear on the radio that a certain "bogey" is high priority, but in some missions, there are so many enemy aircraft (or ground units) in the fray that it becomes difficult trying to figure out which ones is high priority. This is especially annoying when you have to escort certain slower and less armed aircraft (such as bombers or carriers), and the oncoming wall of enemies gets so high that you just don't realise that an enemy aircraft has slipped through and is attacking your bomber. Oh, and it's not a major help that the wingmen do not branch out and attack very effectively, even if you ask them to. The "Assistance Off" feature allows camera to pan out to an external view, letting you see your plane (and your target) from the sky. It can be fun when you get the hang of it, albeit quite simplistic. Just my opinion, though, but I felt that the simplicity was for the better.
The missions are quite varied, some requiring low altitude flying, others requiring precision flying to avoid enemy radar zones. Almost no mission goes according to plan, and just when you thought you had completed it, something new will happen and will require further action from you. There's a storyline in the background that, to be fair, does a good job of giving you a reason to fly from one mission to the next. But with the lack of character models, with nothing to really bring a "human" element into the picture, it kind of falls flat and you just want to hit the "Continue" button to start the mission already. For those who are interested, the storyline involves Private Military Corporations (PMC), which are supposedly the future or armed forces.
Graphics are good, to put it succinctly. Watching your plane's wings change as you change speed or altitude is fun and the third-person view is satisfying in that it allows you to see the machine you're flying.
All in all, HAWX is a good game that does a good job of balancing arcade style gaming with some elements of realism, but its biggest failing is that it's just not immersive enough. The missions, at least initially, can be quite slow (before a sudden ratcheting up of pressure and offensive), and the storyline is bland without a character to relate to it. After a couple of missions, I just felt like taking a break.
Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands is an attempt to return to what is undoubtedly one of the greatest platforming videogame trilogies of all time – Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time trilogy. It is supposedly set in the interval between the first game of that series and the second (The Sands of Time and Warrior Within, respectively), a period between the transition of the prince as the naive young man of game 1 and the weathered, rough-edged, taunt-spewing maniac of game 2.
The story itself is very familiar and nothing very adventurous at all. You arrive in your brother's kingdom, only to find it under attack by unknown enemy invaders. As usual, the you are sworn to protect some magical power which the invaders want. As a last resort, your brother, King Malik, sets free that which he was supposed to protect – the Army of Solomon, comprised mainly of sand warriors that spread to every place where sand exists. Hint hint See the 'sands' connection yet? Now it's up to you to stop the army because it takes over (and destroys) the whole world. So as I said, nothing new, nothing truly engaging, but it gives you a reason to go from Point A to Point B.
The last Prince of Persia game released in 2008 was accused of being too easy. Well, that's definitely not the case here. The difficulty level gradually builds up, with some of the later levels requiring very precise timing and sharp reflexes, and you will have to use time reversal quite liberally. However, unlike the original Sands of Time game, the platforming difficulty is not based so much on timing as it is on the complexity of the actions. As you progress through the game, you will earn the ability to freeze water and use it to swing yourself up and about. You will also earn the ability to solidify certain regions of the environment while the others disappear. As the game progresses towards the last few levels, you will have to hit the right button in mid-jump, which may require quite a bit of concentration. It can also be a little frustrating when you hit a number of platforming actions correctly and then get to one of the final jumps only to hit the wrong button and fail. However, the game doesn't let this become too big an issue by providing you with plenty of solid regions to rest and observe the surroundings and figure out your next move in peace.
Combat once again returns to the one-vs-many mode, and you will be required to take on a number of opponents at once. There is a little variety in the kind of foes you will encounter, and there will be some formidable opponents that will require being attacked in some particular ways. However, let it be said that the combat, though much better than Sands of Time, is nowhere near as spectacular as the free combat style of Warrior Within or The Two Thrones, or even Prince of Persia (2008). There are barely any combos that you can string together, you only fight with one weapon, your sword which receives a power boost towards the end, and you cannot perform too many acrobatics while in combat. However, the game does give you some magical powers which you can equip by earning enough experience points by killing enemies. These do have a noticeable effect on your combat, and include powers such as equipping yourself with stone armour or raising a whirlwind to blow your enemies away and disorient them. Powers can also be used to increase the amount of damage your sword does, as well as to increase your maximum health, increase the number of energy slots you have and increase the duration of time reversal or the duration of time for which you can keep water frozen.
After having a constant ally in Elika in the previous game, this one feels a little lonely. Sure, there is the mystical Razia who guides you every now and then, but the Prince's character, which I should remind you is the one between Sands of Time and Warrior Within, is at his best when he can run off some smart, witty sarcastic comments in dialogue. Otherwise, the prince is generally kinda quiet, making the appropriate combat noises and talking to himself every now and then. While we're on the topic of voicing, I must say that I could not pick any flaws with the voice-overs. The prince, his brother Malik and Razia have all been voiced perfectly. The music, though, is a bit of a let-down. It's either too soft or not inspiring enough.
The game's finale, really, is its high point. The epic final boss battle is tremendous, requiring good platforming skills and quick thinking. It's far from your start slash and dash, and it's really quite fun when it's over to just sit back and take in the intensity. I was quite disappointed with the final cutscene though, which I felt failed to tie up a few loose ends. However, as I always do, I waited for the credits to end, and sure enough, after the credits, another cutscene tied things up. I only wish it was BEFORE the credits.
All in all, Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands is a solid platformer that you should definitely play if you're a fan of the Prince of Persia series at all. Don't expect it to be as good as its predecessors in many ways, but in many other ways, it sure is, offering new challenges and interesting attempts and introducing fresh gameplay styles.
The story itself is very familiar and nothing very adventurous at all. You arrive in your brother's kingdom, only to find it under attack by unknown enemy invaders. As usual, the you are sworn to protect some magical power which the invaders want. As a last resort, your brother, King Malik, sets free that which he was supposed to protect – the Army of Solomon, comprised mainly of sand warriors that spread to every place where sand exists. Hint hint See the 'sands' connection yet? Now it's up to you to stop the army because it takes over (and destroys) the whole world. So as I said, nothing new, nothing truly engaging, but it gives you a reason to go from Point A to Point B.
The last Prince of Persia game released in 2008 was accused of being too easy. Well, that's definitely not the case here. The difficulty level gradually builds up, with some of the later levels requiring very precise timing and sharp reflexes, and you will have to use time reversal quite liberally. However, unlike the original Sands of Time game, the platforming difficulty is not based so much on timing as it is on the complexity of the actions. As you progress through the game, you will earn the ability to freeze water and use it to swing yourself up and about. You will also earn the ability to solidify certain regions of the environment while the others disappear. As the game progresses towards the last few levels, you will have to hit the right button in mid-jump, which may require quite a bit of concentration. It can also be a little frustrating when you hit a number of platforming actions correctly and then get to one of the final jumps only to hit the wrong button and fail. However, the game doesn't let this become too big an issue by providing you with plenty of solid regions to rest and observe the surroundings and figure out your next move in peace.
Combat once again returns to the one-vs-many mode, and you will be required to take on a number of opponents at once. There is a little variety in the kind of foes you will encounter, and there will be some formidable opponents that will require being attacked in some particular ways. However, let it be said that the combat, though much better than Sands of Time, is nowhere near as spectacular as the free combat style of Warrior Within or The Two Thrones, or even Prince of Persia (2008). There are barely any combos that you can string together, you only fight with one weapon, your sword which receives a power boost towards the end, and you cannot perform too many acrobatics while in combat. However, the game does give you some magical powers which you can equip by earning enough experience points by killing enemies. These do have a noticeable effect on your combat, and include powers such as equipping yourself with stone armour or raising a whirlwind to blow your enemies away and disorient them. Powers can also be used to increase the amount of damage your sword does, as well as to increase your maximum health, increase the number of energy slots you have and increase the duration of time reversal or the duration of time for which you can keep water frozen.
After having a constant ally in Elika in the previous game, this one feels a little lonely. Sure, there is the mystical Razia who guides you every now and then, but the Prince's character, which I should remind you is the one between Sands of Time and Warrior Within, is at his best when he can run off some smart, witty sarcastic comments in dialogue. Otherwise, the prince is generally kinda quiet, making the appropriate combat noises and talking to himself every now and then. While we're on the topic of voicing, I must say that I could not pick any flaws with the voice-overs. The prince, his brother Malik and Razia have all been voiced perfectly. The music, though, is a bit of a let-down. It's either too soft or not inspiring enough.
The game's finale, really, is its high point. The epic final boss battle is tremendous, requiring good platforming skills and quick thinking. It's far from your start slash and dash, and it's really quite fun when it's over to just sit back and take in the intensity. I was quite disappointed with the final cutscene though, which I felt failed to tie up a few loose ends. However, as I always do, I waited for the credits to end, and sure enough, after the credits, another cutscene tied things up. I only wish it was BEFORE the credits.
All in all, Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands is a solid platformer that you should definitely play if you're a fan of the Prince of Persia series at all. Don't expect it to be as good as its predecessors in many ways, but in many other ways, it sure is, offering new challenges and interesting attempts and introducing fresh gameplay styles.
Face it, World At War had a LOT to live up to, especially after the path-breaking Modern Warfare. Does it live up to it? Well, almost...and that's quite an achievement in itself.
World At War is set during World War II, so the level of technology is just right. The guns are louder and not quite as accurate as in Modern Warfare, but I reckon that's how it should be in the 1940s. The mechanics remain the same, but somehow the graphics (and environment) are dirtier, gritter, definitely not slick. Again, I reckon this fits right in with the 1940s theme.
The storyline is very basic. You follow the stories of 2 soldiers, one from the American forces and another from the Russian side, who cheats death again and again...so many times that it almost borders on ridiculous sometimes. There's really not much to write home about the storyline. There's one point worth mentioning though. Remember those classic interactive cutscenes from Modern Warfare that were simply breath-taking and immersed you so completely in the story and just made you sit back and say "Wow"? Well, don't expect any of those here. What I really liked, though, is how the story is presented. The loading scenes are peppered with videos and cutscenes. It's all well done, really.
That being said, there will be plenty of moments that will make you say "Duuuuuuude!!". The massive scale of the battle, the explosions and the splattering blood are great. Sound effects and visual effects are spot on.
Combat is a lot like in Modern Warfare, but like I said, far less slick. You have to get used to the weapons, and be prepared to spam a lot more than you did in MW. No longer can you raise your scope, aim at a head and get the shot on target right away. The enemy AI is good enough, what you'd expect from a good quality shooter. The frenzy of the onrushing attack of the Japanese Banzai warrior will up the tempo suddenly, with enemies rising out of the grass to dart at you from every side.
There's not too much in terms of variety here, if you do not count the weaponry and the change in the faction you're fighting with/against. There's a couple of airborne missions (no, you don't fly, you just man the guns). There's also one mission in which you control a tank, but it doesn't break the pace. In fact, there's a lot to be done to ensure that your vehicle makes it to the next checkpoint in one piece.
All in all, though, a great game that almost lives up to its famous predecessor. There may not be as many special moments or highlights packed into this game, but it's got its basics right, and offers some solid action. Not to be missed.
PS: It would be prudent to wait until the credits are done...there's a little "bonus" game there. Enjoy.
World At War is set during World War II, so the level of technology is just right. The guns are louder and not quite as accurate as in Modern Warfare, but I reckon that's how it should be in the 1940s. The mechanics remain the same, but somehow the graphics (and environment) are dirtier, gritter, definitely not slick. Again, I reckon this fits right in with the 1940s theme.
The storyline is very basic. You follow the stories of 2 soldiers, one from the American forces and another from the Russian side, who cheats death again and again...so many times that it almost borders on ridiculous sometimes. There's really not much to write home about the storyline. There's one point worth mentioning though. Remember those classic interactive cutscenes from Modern Warfare that were simply breath-taking and immersed you so completely in the story and just made you sit back and say "Wow"? Well, don't expect any of those here. What I really liked, though, is how the story is presented. The loading scenes are peppered with videos and cutscenes. It's all well done, really.
That being said, there will be plenty of moments that will make you say "Duuuuuuude!!". The massive scale of the battle, the explosions and the splattering blood are great. Sound effects and visual effects are spot on.
Combat is a lot like in Modern Warfare, but like I said, far less slick. You have to get used to the weapons, and be prepared to spam a lot more than you did in MW. No longer can you raise your scope, aim at a head and get the shot on target right away. The enemy AI is good enough, what you'd expect from a good quality shooter. The frenzy of the onrushing attack of the Japanese Banzai warrior will up the tempo suddenly, with enemies rising out of the grass to dart at you from every side.
There's not too much in terms of variety here, if you do not count the weaponry and the change in the faction you're fighting with/against. There's a couple of airborne missions (no, you don't fly, you just man the guns). There's also one mission in which you control a tank, but it doesn't break the pace. In fact, there's a lot to be done to ensure that your vehicle makes it to the next checkpoint in one piece.
All in all, though, a great game that almost lives up to its famous predecessor. There may not be as many special moments or highlights packed into this game, but it's got its basics right, and offers some solid action. Not to be missed.
PS: It would be prudent to wait until the credits are done...there's a little "bonus" game there. Enjoy.
The Sands of Time started this Prince of Persia trilogy with exquisite, undeniable charm, with gameplay that was as fun as it was unique. However, many people felt that it lacked severely where combat was concerned, as it had a very repetitive, button-mashing approach to combat. The length of the single-player mission was also a bit on the short side. The second part of the trilogy, Warrior Within, set out to right those apparent wrongs. Combat was definitely a lot more engaging, and had a lot more to offer, what with the ability to hold two weapons and use them efficiently with the help of combos. A rather small playable environment was on offer, but all the backtracking (which ultimately ended up being quite a bit annoying at times) helped in making the game that much longer. There were also voices of dissent regarding the new meaner, rougher, battle-scarred Prince, and the use of hard rock music.
The Two Thrones, therefore, was probably designed trying to incorporate the best of both games. The real question is, does it manage to live up to what it set out to be?
Undeniably, the game regains some of its lost charm from the Sands of Time. The Prince is now voiced by the same person who voiced him in The Sands of Time. Well, a part of him anyway. In order to include the meaner Prince from Warrior Within, a darker Prince is unveiled here, supposedly a split personality of our Prince Charming. And guess who voices him? The same voice-actor from The Warrior Within. Does it work? Yes, it does, sometimes, especially when the Dark Prince whispers witty little comments during the Prince's conversations with Farah.
Speaking of Farah, guess who's back? Farah! (You saw that coming, didn't you?) And she's not the only thing to have made a comeback from The Sands of Time. This time, too, the game progresses in the form of story-telling, a tale being told by Kaileena. While the voice acting in the game is generally of a superlative quality, the voice-over for Kaileena, I felt was terrible, especially when you pause. It's almost as if the story-teller is not interested in telling you the story at all. "I can wait, I have all the time in the world" delivered in the sleepiest, sorriest voice you've heard doesn't really make you feel like you oughta jump right back into the action. That puts Sands of Time at least one point ahead of The Two Thrones. While we're on the topic of comparing the two, let it also be known that the chemistry between the Prince and Farah in SOT was what made that game so much fun for me, but the chemistry here appears to fall short. It feels like their lives have already been scripted, and they're just acting them out for us, rather than the spontaneous, gradual shift in feelings that appears in SOT.
Moving on, let's compare TTT (wow, that looks like a 3-headed pi...completely irrelevant, of course, so let's return to the review) with Warrior Within (WW). Combat, in my opinion, is a little more fun in WW, especially because your primary weapon is always some type of badass sword. Your primary weapon in TTT is the revamped dagger of time. However, every time you have to do battle as the Dark Prince, your secondary weapon becomes the daggertail-a chain that is attached to the Prince's left arm. Combo moves involving the dark prince and his daggertail are particularly satisfying, especially when you see a perfectly pulled off combo getting rid of 4 enemies at once. RAWR! Sadly, your life meter keeps decreasing when you play as the Dark Prince, and you'll have to keep collecting sand (either by killing, or by crashing pots and other articles that might have sand in them) to replenish lost life.
TTT also introduces "stealth kill", which lets you quickly and silently kill enemies without having to engage them in free-form combat. These basically involve hitting the secondary attack button at just the right moment, so while they may not be particularly challenging, they do provide some cinematic moments. Boss battles, too, are a lot more fun, and require more thought than the "block-block-ATTACK-block-ATTACK-block-block-block" approach. They mostly involve the use of the previously mentioned stealth kill, although it might take you a little while to figure out how exactly you need to approach a particular boss.
The sometimes very frustrating Dahaka chase sequences are gone, to be replaced by a couple of sections of chariot races. These are unlike the Dahaka sequences though, for you just have to guide your chariot along without hitting into walls. The handling is not perfect, but it shouldn't be too much of a problem, particularly for those who might have played any driving games at all.
Before I begin the conclusion, let me write one more paragraph about the characterization. I believe SOT to be one of the finest games as far as storyline and characterization are concerned. The Prince himself was an extremely likeable character, not too preachy, and just the right mix of pride and naivety. WW turned him into an angry, violent fighting machine. While TTT tries to return the prince to his SOT charm, it doesn't quite work. The sarcasm certainly is classy here, but the prince comes across as being just a little bit dull, a little bit less than heroic here, perhaps thanks to Kaileena's dull recital of the story. The idea behind trying to show his progression from being the naive young prince of SOT to the more mature one at the end of TTT is laudable, but doesn't completely succeed in making him so very likeable. Farah, too, is not nearly as likeable or attractive as she was in SOT. Kaileena, dressed a little more like the Empress of Time this time around, has a shorter role to play, so apart from the bit about her voice-acting being a shoddy job, there's nothing more to add.
And so we reach the conclusion. As I said, The Two Thrones set out to bring the best of its fore-runners into a single game. Did it succeed? To some extent, it has succeeded in doing so, but the rough edge was better in Warrior Within, and the charm was definitely a few notches higher in The Sands of Time. What you get is a game that tries real hard, and almost makes it. Rest assured that all ends well with the Prince, and while the closing cutscene is nowhere near as good as the one at the end of either of the two previous games, it provides a closure in the form of the circle of life (I refuse to divulge any more). I strongly suggest playing this game through, just to wrap up one of the most fun platformer game trilogies of all time.
The Two Thrones, therefore, was probably designed trying to incorporate the best of both games. The real question is, does it manage to live up to what it set out to be?
Undeniably, the game regains some of its lost charm from the Sands of Time. The Prince is now voiced by the same person who voiced him in The Sands of Time. Well, a part of him anyway. In order to include the meaner Prince from Warrior Within, a darker Prince is unveiled here, supposedly a split personality of our Prince Charming. And guess who voices him? The same voice-actor from The Warrior Within. Does it work? Yes, it does, sometimes, especially when the Dark Prince whispers witty little comments during the Prince's conversations with Farah.
Speaking of Farah, guess who's back? Farah! (You saw that coming, didn't you?) And she's not the only thing to have made a comeback from The Sands of Time. This time, too, the game progresses in the form of story-telling, a tale being told by Kaileena. While the voice acting in the game is generally of a superlative quality, the voice-over for Kaileena, I felt was terrible, especially when you pause. It's almost as if the story-teller is not interested in telling you the story at all. "I can wait, I have all the time in the world" delivered in the sleepiest, sorriest voice you've heard doesn't really make you feel like you oughta jump right back into the action. That puts Sands of Time at least one point ahead of The Two Thrones. While we're on the topic of comparing the two, let it also be known that the chemistry between the Prince and Farah in SOT was what made that game so much fun for me, but the chemistry here appears to fall short. It feels like their lives have already been scripted, and they're just acting them out for us, rather than the spontaneous, gradual shift in feelings that appears in SOT.
Moving on, let's compare TTT (wow, that looks like a 3-headed pi...completely irrelevant, of course, so let's return to the review) with Warrior Within (WW). Combat, in my opinion, is a little more fun in WW, especially because your primary weapon is always some type of badass sword. Your primary weapon in TTT is the revamped dagger of time. However, every time you have to do battle as the Dark Prince, your secondary weapon becomes the daggertail-a chain that is attached to the Prince's left arm. Combo moves involving the dark prince and his daggertail are particularly satisfying, especially when you see a perfectly pulled off combo getting rid of 4 enemies at once. RAWR! Sadly, your life meter keeps decreasing when you play as the Dark Prince, and you'll have to keep collecting sand (either by killing, or by crashing pots and other articles that might have sand in them) to replenish lost life.
TTT also introduces "stealth kill", which lets you quickly and silently kill enemies without having to engage them in free-form combat. These basically involve hitting the secondary attack button at just the right moment, so while they may not be particularly challenging, they do provide some cinematic moments. Boss battles, too, are a lot more fun, and require more thought than the "block-block-ATTACK-block-ATTACK-block-block-block" approach. They mostly involve the use of the previously mentioned stealth kill, although it might take you a little while to figure out how exactly you need to approach a particular boss.
The sometimes very frustrating Dahaka chase sequences are gone, to be replaced by a couple of sections of chariot races. These are unlike the Dahaka sequences though, for you just have to guide your chariot along without hitting into walls. The handling is not perfect, but it shouldn't be too much of a problem, particularly for those who might have played any driving games at all.
Before I begin the conclusion, let me write one more paragraph about the characterization. I believe SOT to be one of the finest games as far as storyline and characterization are concerned. The Prince himself was an extremely likeable character, not too preachy, and just the right mix of pride and naivety. WW turned him into an angry, violent fighting machine. While TTT tries to return the prince to his SOT charm, it doesn't quite work. The sarcasm certainly is classy here, but the prince comes across as being just a little bit dull, a little bit less than heroic here, perhaps thanks to Kaileena's dull recital of the story. The idea behind trying to show his progression from being the naive young prince of SOT to the more mature one at the end of TTT is laudable, but doesn't completely succeed in making him so very likeable. Farah, too, is not nearly as likeable or attractive as she was in SOT. Kaileena, dressed a little more like the Empress of Time this time around, has a shorter role to play, so apart from the bit about her voice-acting being a shoddy job, there's nothing more to add.
And so we reach the conclusion. As I said, The Two Thrones set out to bring the best of its fore-runners into a single game. Did it succeed? To some extent, it has succeeded in doing so, but the rough edge was better in Warrior Within, and the charm was definitely a few notches higher in The Sands of Time. What you get is a game that tries real hard, and almost makes it. Rest assured that all ends well with the Prince, and while the closing cutscene is nowhere near as good as the one at the end of either of the two previous games, it provides a closure in the form of the circle of life (I refuse to divulge any more). I strongly suggest playing this game through, just to wrap up one of the most fun platformer game trilogies of all time.
Half Life 2 : Episode Two starts exactly where Episode One Left off, with Alyx and Gordon escaping by train when the citadel explodes right behind them. As with Episode One, you start off a little woozy, looking for Alyx, weapon-less except for the gravity gun Alyx gives you.
For the next few minutes, you're at it with no other weapon but the gravity gun, and this can be either fun and challenging, or a little frustrating, depending on how you look at it. As far as I'm concerned, I loved the beginning of Half Life 2, where Combine soldiers fell easily with the ordinary Pistol. Oh well, anyway, you'll lay your hands on weapons soon enough.
Eventually, you're introduced to one of the cooler new enemies of the game-the Hunter, which makes an impressive, although slightly scary entry. The story here makes you run around with a Votigaunt, which makes an interesting ally and quite powerful ally, very different from the human allies who fought proudly by your side in Episode One. You'll be glad to know that Freeman retains the respect of his peers, including the Votigaunts, who have more speech this time around. This would probably be a good time to mention that the voice acting is really good, which is pretty much on par for a Half Life game, but the Votigaunts really take the cake in this episode.
Apart from the hunter, you're also introduced to another new enemy-the acid-spewing ant-lion. Yes, they're much more challenging than your average ant-lions, but in terms of acid-spewing ability, ye olde black head-crab, which jumps out of dark corners at you every now and then, still does more damage to you.
While we're on the topic of new characters, allow me to introduce you to Dr. Magnusson, another one of Eli Vance and Dr. Kliener's colleagues at Black Mesa. Quite a character! Not really as likeable as Eli or Kliener, of course, but an interesting contrast that adds to the array of very life-like characters in the Half Life galaxy. Did I mention "life-like"? Then I should probably also mention that Episode Two takes facial expressions ever further along than Episode One did, and the level of attention paid to detail is really amazing. Alyx gets a couple of cuts and bruises on her face after the game begins, and continues to sport them right until the very ... er ... interesting (for lack of a better word) ending.
The ending...well, what can one say about the ending? Like the last two games, this one leaves you with some questions answered, not all, mind you. There's a plot twist at the end, which I won't give away.
I've been saving the best part for last. The very last major battle Freeman will fight will be an all-out war against a horde of Striders, guided by Hunters. Luckily, this time, you have at your disposal, Magnusson devices. Basically, sticky bombs. Use your gravity gun to shoot them at the Strider, where they get stuck. Then use any conventional weapon to blow them up, bringing the strider down quickly.
I think I forgot to mention one more thing worth mentioning-a really cool car, which looks like a jalopy, but as you'll find out, looks can be very deceptive. Oh, and there's no Barney, surprisingly. I thought he was an important enough character to necessitate bringing back at least for a guest appearance, but I guess not. Hmm...
Conclusion: If you're a fan of the Half Life series, you're going to have to get this anyway. Despite its short length, it might be of some consolation that the game is intense throughout, with excellent environments to explore and admire thrown in here and there. Have fun!
For the next few minutes, you're at it with no other weapon but the gravity gun, and this can be either fun and challenging, or a little frustrating, depending on how you look at it. As far as I'm concerned, I loved the beginning of Half Life 2, where Combine soldiers fell easily with the ordinary Pistol. Oh well, anyway, you'll lay your hands on weapons soon enough.
Eventually, you're introduced to one of the cooler new enemies of the game-the Hunter, which makes an impressive, although slightly scary entry. The story here makes you run around with a Votigaunt, which makes an interesting ally and quite powerful ally, very different from the human allies who fought proudly by your side in Episode One. You'll be glad to know that Freeman retains the respect of his peers, including the Votigaunts, who have more speech this time around. This would probably be a good time to mention that the voice acting is really good, which is pretty much on par for a Half Life game, but the Votigaunts really take the cake in this episode.
Apart from the hunter, you're also introduced to another new enemy-the acid-spewing ant-lion. Yes, they're much more challenging than your average ant-lions, but in terms of acid-spewing ability, ye olde black head-crab, which jumps out of dark corners at you every now and then, still does more damage to you.
While we're on the topic of new characters, allow me to introduce you to Dr. Magnusson, another one of Eli Vance and Dr. Kliener's colleagues at Black Mesa. Quite a character! Not really as likeable as Eli or Kliener, of course, but an interesting contrast that adds to the array of very life-like characters in the Half Life galaxy. Did I mention "life-like"? Then I should probably also mention that Episode Two takes facial expressions ever further along than Episode One did, and the level of attention paid to detail is really amazing. Alyx gets a couple of cuts and bruises on her face after the game begins, and continues to sport them right until the very ... er ... interesting (for lack of a better word) ending.
The ending...well, what can one say about the ending? Like the last two games, this one leaves you with some questions answered, not all, mind you. There's a plot twist at the end, which I won't give away.
I've been saving the best part for last. The very last major battle Freeman will fight will be an all-out war against a horde of Striders, guided by Hunters. Luckily, this time, you have at your disposal, Magnusson devices. Basically, sticky bombs. Use your gravity gun to shoot them at the Strider, where they get stuck. Then use any conventional weapon to blow them up, bringing the strider down quickly.
I think I forgot to mention one more thing worth mentioning-a really cool car, which looks like a jalopy, but as you'll find out, looks can be very deceptive. Oh, and there's no Barney, surprisingly. I thought he was an important enough character to necessitate bringing back at least for a guest appearance, but I guess not. Hmm...
Conclusion: If you're a fan of the Half Life series, you're going to have to get this anyway. Despite its short length, it might be of some consolation that the game is intense throughout, with excellent environments to explore and admire thrown in here and there. Have fun!
2008
Prince of Persia has been one of those games I've been waiting to play since I saw the trailers and watched the video review on Gamespot. Actually, it's been a game I've been waiting eagerly to play since I heard of it as a successor to the Sands of Time trilogy I've written about so many times. It's hard not to get excited about a new Prince of Persia game, especially if you loved the previous trilogy as much as I did. I realize this review is really late, considering the game was released in December, 2008.
For most of this review, I'm going to compare aspects of Prince of Persia with The Sands of Time game released in 2003. This is primarily because The Sands of Time has, for me, defined what Prince of Persia is all about, or should be all about. However, I will also try to judge this game on its own merits, seeing as how it's a completely new project not based on The Sands of Time trilogy.
Let's start off with the basics-the story. It's a simple enough plot. The unnamed 'Prince' is a common tomb-raider, a thief, who loses his donkey with a full load of treasure in a desert storm. Out of nowhere, a running Elika stumbles into his path, and the story begins. Elika is a Princess whose father has let loose Ahriman, an evil God bent on releasing corruption and darkness onto the world. It's up to Elika, with the Prince's help of course, to contain Ahriman and save the world. The problem is that the finer details of the plot just don't tie up, and there is an inherent inconsistency in the story and the characters that attempt to tie it up. For instance, the Prince is portrayed as generally self-centred, mistrusting and a bit of a loner who would not go out of his way to help others. Yet, for some reason, he embarks on this long, treacherous journey with a mysterious lady with magical powers. It leaves me questioning why he would do anything for her. There's also no major development in the relationship that the characters share, and the attachment the Prince develops for Elika towards the end of the game seems contrived, somehow. The story, when compared with The Sands of Time, leaves a bit to be desired. It doesn't hold up to scrutiny, and the ending doesn't quite leave you wanting more. A perfect ending to a game should leave you wanting more and yet somehow satisfied in revelling in the glory of the game. This is a feeling I've felt at the end of most of the truly great games, but not here.
The story, however, is just one small part of a game. Gameplay is a lot more important, of course. Prince of Persia's gameplay can be very roughly divided into categories-platforming and combat. The platforming is solid and aesthetically pleasing. The Prince is more acrobatic than ever before and many new moves have been introduced, such as the ability to crawl on ceilings. The controls are simple and very forgiving, making the game easier than I would have imagined. There are barely any timed sequences like there were in the previous games, which takes away a fair amount of challenge from the game. Combat is interesting and fights are always against a single opponent only. This makes battles intense and generally quite long-lasting. It may take a while to get accustomed to the combat, but once you do, it's fun to watch the Prince pull together complex combos in tandem with Elika, whose attacks are controlled by the player as well. However, because the fights are generally quite similar, it leads to the possibility of players developing a strong preference for a certain combo or two, which can make combat sequences seem remarkably repetitive and mundane. Also, the Prince never dies, never in combat and never while platforming. For every mistimed jump or overshot ledge, Elika saves you. Everytime a foe is about to deliver a fatal blow during combat, Elika saves you. Combine this aspect with the not very challenging platforming, and you have a game that, in my opinion, is far too easy. While it's fine to have a game that embraces new players, I would have liked a bit more of a challenge. A few deaths before finishing the game would have been welcome too.
The Prince of Persia series is also known for incorporating a number of puzzles into the game. While this game continues that tradition, I personally felt that the difficulty level of the puzzles was also not too high, since I could solve most of the puzzles in a matter of minutes, if not seconds. And when I say "most of the puzzles", it may sound like there're a lot, but really, there aren't too many. The boss battles, which were quite innovative and challenging in the last POP game (The Two Thrones), are not quite as innovative here. They consist of the same kind of combat that you would have been engaged in throughout the game, so there's barely anything special about them. Each boss battle is broken into parts, probably to give the player a bit of relief to break up what could end up being very long fights, but each part is identical, unlike the boss battles from TTT that required platforming and timed silent kills to emerge victorious.
The music and ambient sounds of the game are not bad, but not spectacular either. The theme fits in very well and the atmosphere during the menus is a tribute to Elika, who steals the spotlight for majority of the game. In fact, it feels like this game is more of Elika's story and the Prince just happens to be a side-kick. The voice acting for Elika is great, but the same can't be said for the Prince, who speaks in a very thick American accent and happens to pass comments that are occasionally not very witty, and very frequently, typical of smartass American quips. It's clichéd and gets old pretty fast.
However, let not my negative comments deter you from playing this game. If you are a fan of the Prince of Persia series or even if you just want to play a good platforming game, then you shouldn't miss out on this game. The graphics and atmosphere are magical and fun to behold. The Prince's movements and animation are smooth, and Elika is brilliant, proving to be a wonderful companion, always available for support but not once getting in your way. The Prince of Persia is a game that somewhat falls short of the promise showed during the trailers, but it's still a pretty good game nonetheless. Go play!
For most of this review, I'm going to compare aspects of Prince of Persia with The Sands of Time game released in 2003. This is primarily because The Sands of Time has, for me, defined what Prince of Persia is all about, or should be all about. However, I will also try to judge this game on its own merits, seeing as how it's a completely new project not based on The Sands of Time trilogy.
Let's start off with the basics-the story. It's a simple enough plot. The unnamed 'Prince' is a common tomb-raider, a thief, who loses his donkey with a full load of treasure in a desert storm. Out of nowhere, a running Elika stumbles into his path, and the story begins. Elika is a Princess whose father has let loose Ahriman, an evil God bent on releasing corruption and darkness onto the world. It's up to Elika, with the Prince's help of course, to contain Ahriman and save the world. The problem is that the finer details of the plot just don't tie up, and there is an inherent inconsistency in the story and the characters that attempt to tie it up. For instance, the Prince is portrayed as generally self-centred, mistrusting and a bit of a loner who would not go out of his way to help others. Yet, for some reason, he embarks on this long, treacherous journey with a mysterious lady with magical powers. It leaves me questioning why he would do anything for her. There's also no major development in the relationship that the characters share, and the attachment the Prince develops for Elika towards the end of the game seems contrived, somehow. The story, when compared with The Sands of Time, leaves a bit to be desired. It doesn't hold up to scrutiny, and the ending doesn't quite leave you wanting more. A perfect ending to a game should leave you wanting more and yet somehow satisfied in revelling in the glory of the game. This is a feeling I've felt at the end of most of the truly great games, but not here.
The story, however, is just one small part of a game. Gameplay is a lot more important, of course. Prince of Persia's gameplay can be very roughly divided into categories-platforming and combat. The platforming is solid and aesthetically pleasing. The Prince is more acrobatic than ever before and many new moves have been introduced, such as the ability to crawl on ceilings. The controls are simple and very forgiving, making the game easier than I would have imagined. There are barely any timed sequences like there were in the previous games, which takes away a fair amount of challenge from the game. Combat is interesting and fights are always against a single opponent only. This makes battles intense and generally quite long-lasting. It may take a while to get accustomed to the combat, but once you do, it's fun to watch the Prince pull together complex combos in tandem with Elika, whose attacks are controlled by the player as well. However, because the fights are generally quite similar, it leads to the possibility of players developing a strong preference for a certain combo or two, which can make combat sequences seem remarkably repetitive and mundane. Also, the Prince never dies, never in combat and never while platforming. For every mistimed jump or overshot ledge, Elika saves you. Everytime a foe is about to deliver a fatal blow during combat, Elika saves you. Combine this aspect with the not very challenging platforming, and you have a game that, in my opinion, is far too easy. While it's fine to have a game that embraces new players, I would have liked a bit more of a challenge. A few deaths before finishing the game would have been welcome too.
The Prince of Persia series is also known for incorporating a number of puzzles into the game. While this game continues that tradition, I personally felt that the difficulty level of the puzzles was also not too high, since I could solve most of the puzzles in a matter of minutes, if not seconds. And when I say "most of the puzzles", it may sound like there're a lot, but really, there aren't too many. The boss battles, which were quite innovative and challenging in the last POP game (The Two Thrones), are not quite as innovative here. They consist of the same kind of combat that you would have been engaged in throughout the game, so there's barely anything special about them. Each boss battle is broken into parts, probably to give the player a bit of relief to break up what could end up being very long fights, but each part is identical, unlike the boss battles from TTT that required platforming and timed silent kills to emerge victorious.
The music and ambient sounds of the game are not bad, but not spectacular either. The theme fits in very well and the atmosphere during the menus is a tribute to Elika, who steals the spotlight for majority of the game. In fact, it feels like this game is more of Elika's story and the Prince just happens to be a side-kick. The voice acting for Elika is great, but the same can't be said for the Prince, who speaks in a very thick American accent and happens to pass comments that are occasionally not very witty, and very frequently, typical of smartass American quips. It's clichéd and gets old pretty fast.
However, let not my negative comments deter you from playing this game. If you are a fan of the Prince of Persia series or even if you just want to play a good platforming game, then you shouldn't miss out on this game. The graphics and atmosphere are magical and fun to behold. The Prince's movements and animation are smooth, and Elika is brilliant, proving to be a wonderful companion, always available for support but not once getting in your way. The Prince of Persia is a game that somewhat falls short of the promise showed during the trailers, but it's still a pretty good game nonetheless. Go play!
Basically, FM-12 is the same old immersive, addictive simulation game that you've been playing for years. Only, it's got a few new tweaks and the match engine has been refined a bit.
The new contracts system lets you lock certain aspects you think are non-negotiable. For example, locking the weekly wages of a player may result in his agent asking for exorbitant appearance bonus. It's a mildly interesting feature, but it helps keep your budget under control. That being said, there's still naught you can do about negotiating contracts with your staff.
Tone has been added to player interaction. It makes a minor difference and you'll have to play around with tone to figure out which tone your team best reacts to. The game never fully explains and I think it's all a matter of trial and error more than anything else to get the tone right. Player interactions could help improve your relationship with your players and result in you being in their favoured personnel list.
Staff interactions, however, are rudimentary. There's nothing you can do to improve your relationship with your staff, and this is quite annoying. Similarly, there's very little you can do to prevent other teams from poaching your best coaches except perhaps try to offer them a new contract and hope they stay. However, training players for preferred moves now happens through coach interactions, and it helps because the player cannot refuse to learn a new move.
CORE GAMEPLAY -- Remains the same, pretty much. You can now ask your team to familiarise itself with up to 3 tactics, which probably helps for home/away/difficult games. You set your tactics and play, and if you've got good players playing in the right positions and with the right tactics, you'll probably do well. That being said, the game's biggest problem, right from the beginning of the series to now, is that it's a game based on probability. Except possibly for some bugs or glitches, if you've won too many games on the trot, you will probably lose the next one. It happens. Sometimes, it just feels contrived. And though it may count as cheating, when you quit the game before restarting it and play through the match again with completely different tactics, you will still end up seeing the same result most of the times. It just gives you a feeling that it's all been scripted on the whole, and all you're doing is filling in the details.
SUMMARY -- All in all, FM-12 remains a good football manager simulation, probably the best there is. If you've been playing FM all along, there's no reason to stop now. And let's face it, if you've been a fan of the FM series, you're not going to stop playing. Just go along for the ride. It's a fun one.
The new contracts system lets you lock certain aspects you think are non-negotiable. For example, locking the weekly wages of a player may result in his agent asking for exorbitant appearance bonus. It's a mildly interesting feature, but it helps keep your budget under control. That being said, there's still naught you can do about negotiating contracts with your staff.
Tone has been added to player interaction. It makes a minor difference and you'll have to play around with tone to figure out which tone your team best reacts to. The game never fully explains and I think it's all a matter of trial and error more than anything else to get the tone right. Player interactions could help improve your relationship with your players and result in you being in their favoured personnel list.
Staff interactions, however, are rudimentary. There's nothing you can do to improve your relationship with your staff, and this is quite annoying. Similarly, there's very little you can do to prevent other teams from poaching your best coaches except perhaps try to offer them a new contract and hope they stay. However, training players for preferred moves now happens through coach interactions, and it helps because the player cannot refuse to learn a new move.
CORE GAMEPLAY -- Remains the same, pretty much. You can now ask your team to familiarise itself with up to 3 tactics, which probably helps for home/away/difficult games. You set your tactics and play, and if you've got good players playing in the right positions and with the right tactics, you'll probably do well. That being said, the game's biggest problem, right from the beginning of the series to now, is that it's a game based on probability. Except possibly for some bugs or glitches, if you've won too many games on the trot, you will probably lose the next one. It happens. Sometimes, it just feels contrived. And though it may count as cheating, when you quit the game before restarting it and play through the match again with completely different tactics, you will still end up seeing the same result most of the times. It just gives you a feeling that it's all been scripted on the whole, and all you're doing is filling in the details.
SUMMARY -- All in all, FM-12 remains a good football manager simulation, probably the best there is. If you've been playing FM all along, there's no reason to stop now. And let's face it, if you've been a fan of the FM series, you're not going to stop playing. Just go along for the ride. It's a fun one.