Game Reviews

Settlers of Catan was bought for me for Christmas last year, by my canadian relatives. I am completely addicted, and am eager to own ALL of the expansions to the original game. It is so much fun, and if you're great with strategy, this is the game for you!

I am a big gamer. I could play games everyday all day long, and with Settlers of Catan, you can change your expansions, or buy other games by Mayfair, and still have a ball all day long!

Enjoy!

*trades a grain, an orr, and a sheep for a ... woohoo, a VICTORY point!*

I really enjoyed this game, it was a joy to play with some friends and my brother. I recommend it.

wow this game is totally awsome! i love it so much, its kinda like monopoly like its a game thats drawn out but it doesn't get boring!!! its super fun!!! try it!!

I got this game for my 5 year-old daughter at Christmas, and we are hooked! It's challenging for her, but she gets it; I am so addicted to it that I go to the SET website every day to solve the daily puzzle! (Which, I might add, is excellent for learning how to play the game and for practice.) At the SET Enterprises site, you can also buy a PC version of the game if you prefer this to using cards, as I do.

I gave this three stars for durability only because this is played with cards--like any card game, they can get lost, bent, whatever. I keep this in MY room so the cards don't get lost (and so I can play after my daughter goes to bed)!

This might be too difficult for most young kids (it's perfectly suited to my daughter's learning/thinking style) so beware the frustration factor. However, you can play easier versions as well to start (by using only one color, for example) and progress to the full game for them. TEN stars for educational value--it's a great brain workout!

Anyone who likes puzzle-type games will love this!

I was introduced to this game as a Senior in high school while on a Girl Scout trip to Michigan. We played it every chance we got between planned activities. It gets loud and fast. It wasn't too tricky to learn, just to 'see' the sets.
When I got home it took months to find a toy store that had it, let alone heard of it.
Once I found it I introduced it to my friends and half of them loved it, the other half never wanted to play me again. Most of the people who loved playing it were very math oriented in their thinking. People who are language people seem to have more trouble at first for some reason.
It definately helps develop perception, thinking and pattern recognition skills. Not to mention addictive. I would recomed it for anyone over the age of about 8.

Highly addictive game because there are no turns, just every body whaling away at once. Trying to match up these shapes and colors becomes maddening after awhile. It is quite easy to get lost and see no matches what so ever and all of a sudden your brain will just click and you will be seeing sets everywhere. This is a very simple game to learn and very hard to master. First time players will get frustrated very easily if they are playing with SET veterans. The idea is to match any three cards on the table by having all of the card's characteristics being all the same or all different. Your spatial reasoning will get a real work out as you play through the deck the number of times equal to the number of players. Points are scored for each successful set and points are lost for incorrectly picking a set(which happens alot when everyone is in a hurry to find the next set.). A great great game that is loads of fun but a real mental workout.

Add us to the host of folks who love this puzzle toy. I generally consult Amazon ratings before purchasing new items and any item that has this many positive ratings always catches my attention. And it lives up to the promise. My almost 7 year-old son is ADHD and I was AMAZED at the way this toy captured his attention. I expected him to become quickly frustrated and give up. But after a few successes, he was hooked. I coached him a little bit at first (and then I was hooked too!) and before I knew it, he was solving puzzles by himself and doing a better job than me! He did the first 20 in one sitting. I was amazed as I watched him begin understanding which cars had to be where in order for him to get the red car out, then he started working out his plan to get there. You have to think ahead to be successful and he was doing it!

His persistence and concentration surprised me, so if your child is having any problems sitting and concentrating on a task, don't be afraid of this toy! But, alas, as with many ADHD kids, he's also been tested as gifted, so he's already run through the first 3 levels and is now nearly done with the expert level - solving puzzles that I can't do! I have to wait until he goes to bed to even get a chance to play! There's 40 cards in the first pack. The beginning levels are pretty easy to remember the solutions, but as you go higher in difficulty, you could probably do the puzzles more than once and still be challenged. But do be prepared to buy the 2, 3, and 4 Gift Pack (a great deal for $12 on Amazon)

I LOVE the fact that you store the cards right in the bottom of the tray. However,I wish that they would put a more permanent kind of cover on the tray. Also, you cannot replace the cover when you are in the middle of a puzzle, the cars have to be in the tray in a certain way in order for the cover to fit properly. But those are extremely minor drawbacks considering the hours of entertainment my son and I have gotten.

Ever stuck in gridlock? Think you know the easiest way out? Then you are ready to take the challenge of Binary Arts' Rush Hour Game. Beware escaping gridlock is not as easy at it seems.

The directions are simple; setup the game board using the forty game cards, arranged from beginners' skill level to the expert. Move the cars and trucks out of the way and get you red car off the board.

The game is made to have you thinking, and planning strategy is a key to winning. I found myself playing for hours and the more I played the more fun I had. Also since storage is easy this game travels well.

For those rainy days, those family night outings or when friends drop over, you can't go wrong with this game. About the only thing Binary Arts needs now is a thinking game involving aircraft.

Many of the reviews posted so far say, in one way or another, "I bought this for a kid, but I love it, too." I'm not ashamed to say that I'm neither a parent nor a teacher and that I bought this for myself. (I did buy another set for my sister's kids when I saw how great it was.) I've always liked Binary Arts products, and this did not disappoint. What I especially like, and why I think it's valuable educationally, is that it forces you to identify the root causes of the problem and to map out intermediate goals on your way to a solution. If you like this kind of thinking, you'll enjoy this game.

As others have noted, the packaging is not great because it makes it a little too easy to lose pieces. That accounts for my 4 stars for "durability."

This game takes the already great game of Uno and makes it into an even better game for the whole family. I like this better than regular Uno because the card despinser adds an extra twist because you don't know if you are going to get 1 card or 10 cards. I think this is a GREAT game for the family!!!

I heard that this game was really fun and great so I was excited to try it but I live alone and it's not so fun to play by yourself. It was funny when the cards shot out of the machine but if there was a reverse card I had to just play again the same as I would have anyway and when I got the exchange hands card I couldn't really do that either. So as you can see it's a better game for people who have lots of friends. I bet then it would be pretty good. I am so lonely.

This is a great and fun twist to the original UNO game (very similar to crazy 8's). There are a couple of new cards, like trade hands, but the main difference is a shooter. Sometimes if you press the button, nothing happens, and others cards fly out (about 1 / 3 times). Any number may fly out, but generally between 2 and 5. You press the button when someone plays the right card, you forget to call UNO, etc. This is a good family game for people of all ages and I recommend it especially for UNO lovers.

If you ever played Legend of Zelda: Links Awakening, you'll remember alot of the items in this game. Pleanty of puzzle solving, problem solving and fun make this game worth getting. It stands on it's own a great game BUT if you get the Orical of Seasons it becomes better because with both games you can have a wider variety of weapons, items and characters. When you beat this game you'll get a code that you enter into the "Seasons" game and you can pick up where you left off and try to complete that game as well. You can play Seasons or Ages first, the order doesn't matter. One thing to keep in mind, because the game depends on colors (red,blue money and ore) you can only play it on the Gameboy Color system. Graphics and sound are good and effort put into the game is great.

Warning: This review may be a bit biased due to the fact it is being written buy someone who has played and beaten ALL the Zelda games. For the gameboy colour system, there are only 2 series of good, quality games. They would be The Legend of Zelda and PokÉMon. If you own a GBC, it would be foolish not to buy this game, unless you are young (5-8) or are very bad at solving puzzles of anykind. I would recommend buying both The Legend Of Zelda: Oracle Of Seasons and The Legend Of Zelda: Oracle of Ages because besides both the games being of excellent quality, there is an interesting feature: After beating one game, you can transfer your character to the other game using a special password. The play time of both the games should range (depending on the skill of the player and weather or not they do all the subquests and explore) from 8-16+ hours. The Zelda series has earned its reputation as a immersive and fun series of games. It can be played if you are a medium-skilled gamer or a hard core gamer. Buy it. A word of advice: Zelda games are no fun if you use a strategy guide or website.

One thing I absolutely despise about alot of Gameboy games, anymore, is how you have to buy them in twos just to be able to finish them. Such is the case with Legend of Zelda:Oracle of Ages & Oracle Seasons. Originally planned as a trilogy, this two-part adventure is exceptionally good which is why I highly recommend that you add them to your collection.
It all begins in Oracle of Ages. Veran(The Sorceress of Shadows) kidnaps Nayru(The Oracle of Ages). Because Link feels directly responsible for her kidnapping(as you find out while playing the game), he sets out to find her and save her. With the Harp of Ages, he travels between the past and present meeting familiar faces (some of which you'll recognize from Ocarina of Time)in his effort to make things right. That's when the storyline deepens and the fun truly begins. Rest assured, though, he's not alone in this one. Along the way, he enlists the help of Moosh, Dimitri, and Ricky.
Out of two games, in my opinion- this is the harder game of the two...but the most rewarding. I think Capcom did an outstanding job with their first effort in the Zelda series and I hope Nintendo continue to let them develop future installments for the Gameboy and the Gameboy Advance.
Again, I highly recommend you add these games to your collection. They're awesome.

Skies of Arcadia is one of the first next-generation console RPGs. However, outside of a graphical upgrade, Skies conforms to many traditional RPG conventions. But while this game doesn't really offer any new innovations, its execution of tried-and-true gameplay mechanics is nearly flawless.

Let me first just cover my one main complaint of the game - random battles. By no means is this problem unique to Skies. This is a problem that has long plagued console RPGs in general. In my opinion, random encounters are just a cheap trick to extend the life of the game. Some RPGs, like Chrono Cross, have already gone away from this. I think the rest should follow suit. The problem with Skies is that random battles happen far too frequently...as often as every five to ten seconds. This gets really annoying really quickly, especially since a battle on average takes a couple minutes to complete. The good news is that the game is really paced quite well and you will not have to spend extra time fighting random battles to level up your characters.

So what is good about Skies? A lot. Like almost all RPGs out there, the basic premise is that your ragtag group of characters are the unlikely heroes in a quest to save the world from total destruction. The characters exhibit the cute, childish quality prevalent in many Japanese-designed RPGs, but are never sickeningly so. The personalities are optimistic, but the story line has tragic moments as well. And while the basic flow of the plot is predictable, there is just enough suspense and mystery in the details, compelling you to find out more.

One of the themes of the game is exploration, and I eagerly anticipated discovering a new environment to explore. The locations are rich and diverse. Among other places, you will explore jungle villages, underground labyrinths, Asian-styled temples, and even a futuristic spaceship. All of the environments are beautifully designed and despite the variety, all make sense given the context of the Skies' world and story. The game engine is fully 3D and is gorgeous. No more 3D characters superimposed on 2D backgrounds, which I feel really improves the immersion of the game. All the cutscenes use the 3D engine as well and are well executed.

Battles follow the traditional turn-based RPG style. You decide what your characters are going to do in the current round and they go and do it. One nuance is a party spirit pool. Spirit points are used to perform special attacks or cast spells. Having everyone draw from one unified pool adds a little more to the strategy of each round. Another little nuance is that party members don't stay still while waiting for their turn to act. They will move around and engage enemies (not actually causing or taking any damage). The movements are fairly random and can both help and hinder the avoidance of enemy attacks.

Skies has a second mode of combat for encounters between airships. It is also turn-based and strongly tactical. Each turn is divided into four slots which are planned at the start of each round. A danger meter gives some indication as to potential enemy activity. In this mode as well, the airships move about between slots. The movements are not entirely random, but not entirely predictable as well and do impact the success of attacks and defenses. I found this randomness to add a sense of tension to each round. It definitely made me pay more attention to strategy...watching the danger meter, choosing to concentrate or spread out attacks, etc.

Overall, Skies of Arcadia is a fantastic game. It does not break new ground, instead sticking with traditional gameplay mechanics. But what it does, it does exceptionally well - interesting characters and story, beautiful environments, engaging combat mechanics, etc. I highly recommend this game for seasoned console RPGers or for those people just getting into console RPGs...Skies of Arcadia is among the best the genre has to offer.

Skies of Arcadia is not the world's most complex RPG, but it is just plain fun. The turn-based battle system is pretty typical of an RPG, though it has some nice twists. On top of the token attack, guard, magic, and item commans, the battle interface also has the Super Move option. These moves require spirit points, which your characters gain after every turn of battle. Also, in order to use super moves, you will have to find rare moonberries, and "spend" them on new super moves. One cool thing about the random battles in this game is that the enemies will actually drop some really usefulor rare items. Instead of dropping a health kit, you often end up with a nice ring, or some armor. Another interesting feature is the ability to change the color of your weapon. As you progress through the game you will have access to six different types of magic. The color of your weapon will reflect which type you are using. Changing the colors will cause the amount of damage on certain enemies to vary, and will also allow you to learn new magic spells. Say, your sword is red. This means that it is fire based. You will do a lot of damage to creatures that are vulnerable to fire, and all of the magic you learn will be on the fire chain. If your partner uses yellow(lightning), you will also gain points towards yellow magic, just not as rapidly as red. If no one in your party has a certain color, you will learn no magic of that type. This may sound complex, but it is very simple once you see it in action. This magic system does not allow for the great customization of the materia system in Final Fantasy 7, but it ultimately does not detract from the fun of the game. One of the best features of Skies of Arcadia is the ship battles/travel. You take the role of an air pirate, and on top of your main quest, there are dozens of landmarks scattered throughout the game which you can discover. But beware, there are rival discoverers who will try to find them as well. If they find them, you will not be able to sell the information for very much money. This feature is entirely seperate of the main story, but is a lot of fun. My one gripe with the discoveries is that the random battles in the sky can get really annoying while you're searching. The ship battles are a lot of fun. They are a lot different from the character battles in that there's more strategy involved, and they are usually much more difficult. Another unique feature of this game is the Swashbuckler rating. You will often be prompted to make choices on your course of action. If you take the brave way, you will hear a jingle and your rating will increase. Eventually your title will change based on your decisions. A bad title would be "Vyse The Ninny" while a good one would be "Vyse the Legend." While this may seem unimportant, people will actually call you by your title, and it will affect the way they talk to you. It's the little quirks like this that really immerse the gamer into this journey. The storyline in SoA is pretty traditional of an RPG, but it is very well presented, and the setting is extremely innovative. Though the main story may be traditional, there are plenty of plot twists and there is enough character development to really get the player interested. This game is like a really long interactive movie that you never really want to put down. It feels very cinematic. For example, when the important enemies appear, the daunting music sounds, and their title pops up as they pace around their battleships. Overall, Skies of Arcadia is a great game, which will satisfy almost all RPG fans and even video gamers in general. The only real annoying aspect of this title is the frequency of random battles in the sky. However, the rest of the game is so good, it makes this flaw really seem insignificant.

I have ejoyed this game from the moment I put it in my Dreamcast to the second I completed it some 90 hours later (yes I am slow). The Graphics are somewhat dated and blocky but they're good enough and in the long run are not that important anyway. Skies is just plain fun, it keeps you wanting more with interesting characters and a well executed story line. I recomend this to anyone and if you don't own a dreamcast GET ONE or buy the gamecube version, either works and I doubt you'll be disappointed!

When I started playing with N64, I think I was 7, but I bought WCW World Tour, and while it was all good and all, it was missing SOMETHING.

Enter WCW/nWo Revenge. The game definately puts World Tour to shame. And if you guys know WWF Warzone, you can see that Bret Hart is in this game. Apart from the theme music(Horrible), no cage and no Triple threat, this game is still the best.

THQ could've made this game better. They could've:
*Added cage and triple threat(More Game modes)

*Put in Thunder, Uncensored, Spring Stampede, Slamboree, Great American Bash, Road Wild, Fall Brawl and World War 3 as well (Arenas).

*Replaced the other 2 factions (DOA and another one I can't remember), and it's wrestlers with more wrestlers, like Norman Smiley, The Cat, Johnny Swinger, Villano V, Silver King, Wrath and Ric Flair(More Wrestlers).

*Made the career a little more like Wrestlemania 2000, where you had some storylines and stuff. (Better career).

*Make the edit-a-wrestler like No Mercy's edit-a-wrestler, as well as create new wrestlers. (Better edit-a-wrestler.)

Apart from that, it's the best WCW game EVER, although Thunder was close. Well, that's that. GET Revenge, and you won't rgret it. Also get WWF Wrestlemania 2000... if you can.

"Revenge is just too sweet!!!" The game is almost perfect except for the sound is very weak. The entrance music is bad and the no commentary isn't good at all. The gameplay is a lot of fun. I could play the game for 24 hours straight if I had the chance. My favorite modes are the 40 man Battle Royal and the Championship modes. I like playing for the tag team belts with my friend. The controls are easy to learn. It took me about 10 minutes to figure out the moves after browsing through the guide book. The options are cool to mess around with. Overall I give Revenge a 5 for its cool gameplay, the sweet costume edit, and the neat options. I personally do not own Revenge because I don't have an N64 only a playstation. I have played it at my friends houses though and it is awesome!!!

What a game! This game takes the action packed World Championship Wrestling programs to your Nintendo 64! The game features TV, US, Tag, and World Title Tournaments and INCREDIBLE control! Unlike WWF Warzone, There are no codes to memorize to do a finisher, It's real easy! And the character likenesses are incredible! Some of the characters are Hollywood Hogan Giant Brian Adams w/ Vincent Scott Hall w/ Dusty Rhodes Scott "Flash" Norton Eric Bischoff w/ Miss Elizabeth Big Poppa Pump, Scott Steiner Curt Hennig w/ Rick Rude Kevin Nash Sting Lex Luger Macho Man Randy Savage w/ Miss ELizabeth Konan Raven Lodi Sick Boy Riggs Reese Kidman Roddy Piper Diamond Dallas Page w/ Kimberly Goldberg Bret "Hitman" Hart Chris Benoit Rick Steiner Fit Finley Booker T Saturn Disco Inferno Jim Neidhart British Bulldog Glacier Meng w Jimmy Hart Van Hammer Kanyon/Mortis Yugi Nagata w/ Sonny Ohno Larry Zbysko Barberian La Parka Stevie Ray Chris Jericho Eddy Guerrero Psychosis Rey Mysterio Jr Dean Malenko Juvintud Guerrera Chavo Guerrero Jr Ultimo Dragon Alex Wright

As wella s several "fake" wrestlers that have similar moves to Ric Flair, The Rock, Taz, and more.

Greatest wrestling game I've ever played. A combination of good graphics and GREAT gameplay make it that. until WCW/nWo Mania comes out, which will feature alot of this as well as a Cage match and create your own, and the abillity to fight in the parking lots!, This will be the best game. Attitude can't hold a candle!

Enjoy it! And like Hollywood Hogan said "Revenge is ust too sweeet!"

Let me start off by saying this: Castlevania. You may heard
of it lately. Symphony of the night( SOTN )has been heralded as the best of the series, and why not agree? The smooth 16 bit graphics give a clean atmosphere for Alucard(the main character)
to traverse. The castle itself is huge, giving you plenty of
time to find all of the items and relics.

The sound in SOTN is supperb. The voice acting is decent, and the
sound effects for weapons, monsters, and spells give sound a
10/10. The music in SOTN is amazing. Normally(with the exceptions of Square-Enix games), I throw in a CD on my CD player
and listen to Metallica or something, but the seamless intergration of orchestrated music and electric guitars leave a
musical masterpiece. Music gets a 10/10

The story in SOTN is not a direct continuation of games before it, but it reintroduces older characters. Alucard, who is Dracula's son, sets out to kill his father to end the vampire bloodline.

The graphics in this game is amazing. It uses the original SNES-eque graphics PLUS 3D only the PSOne can bring.(well, in that day in age at least) 10/10

Alucard grows stronger with each enemy killed. The Level Up system in SOTN is similar to an RPG. The more EXP Alucard gets, the sooner he levels up. With a max level of 99, Alucard can grow into a demonic force of nature! He can equip weapons and armor you find around the castle. They also bring back the subweapons everyone remembers from the originals, like Throwing Daggers and The Time Stopwatch.

All in all, I find Castlevania Symphony of the Night to be one of the greatest games of our time. I strongly recommend it to people who are fans of RPGs or Action Sidescrolling.

TOTAL SCORE 10/10

when I was a wee lad, I played board games, collect four, hungry hippo, monopoly. They were fun diversions, I was later amazed by the prospect of playing game like pac man, dig dug, ect in arcades, (yah I know I'm old). I remember the simple days... and It makes my mind wobble how complex, and utterly craptastic, videogames have become today... I've been a gamer pretty much all my life. So I know how sometimes It's best too keep a game simple, and fun rather then just ruin it by making it too complex.

Castlevania manages too find a perfect balance between the simple and complex. It mixes the old run, jump, smack a monster medusa head, gameplay with street fighter like spells, and wait until you see some of these bosses... some are admittedly lame, others will put your gaming skills too the test. But It's best feature is the awesome design of the castle... and how the developers placed the power ups.

Super metroid has been called one of the... if not THE... most well designed game of all time. The bosses were big and frightening. the map was desgined with the powerups placed in just such a way that when you found one powerup... It gave you the ability too enter an previously unreachable area, There's a certain rewarding thrill behind playing a game with this design, and the developers are either fans of that design, are worked on super metroid themselves. Cuz It not only follows that formula, but builds upon it in every way.

when you first start the game... there will be all sorts of paths for you too follow... but apparently the archtect of castlevania is a sick joker, cuz even with your supernatural powers, you just can't seem too reach these paths. But alter in the game... after alot of adventuring, fighting, and finding all sorts of goodies, you will either find what you need too reach that unreachable platform, or wind up on the other side of it through you journeys. and rest assured it's a fun trip.

The powerups are all cool and fun too use, my fave is the mist spell. that lets your charachter turn into a fog. your enemies can't touch you when your transformed, so you can just pass through them, and attack thier backs. others, like changing into a bat, wolf, or being able too super jump, or wear armor that breaks spikes, are all fun too use that has too be played too truly understand.

And as for the story... Well, It won't win a oscar, but It's pretty cool. The last belmont kicks the stuffing outta drac in the beginning of the game, then after four years of friday night poker games, and having a wench in every town... he disappears. And wouldn't ya know it... about the same time, that fun haunted house that we all know and love as castlevania reappears out of the mist. Richters sis, maria, puts 2 and 2 together; goes too find him. (Apparently he owes her money or something :P.) The half human son of dracula, whos supposed too be locked in an eternal sleep, wakes up after 400 years. after going too the nearest tailor too get some hip clothes and a much needed bath, he heads out for castlevania as well. Sword in hand and ready too kick booty... of course that's just the opening... the rest of the story is pretty decent. I liked how death and allucard had somewhat of a repore. death seemed at first reluctant too fight him, even gave him a chance too go back... but when allucard refuses too renounce his quest of patricide... the whuppin begins. moments like these, and many others like It give some more depth too the world of castlevania.

I could go on and on... this is a game that has a simple premise... but manages too weave in so many complex elements, all fun, yet never loses the simplicity. Games were meant too be simple. a fun distraction from the hectic pace of life. The video gaming industry has grown into such a massive beast over the past few years. It's no longer a niche hobby. and such there is a high financial demand for innovation. But sometimes innovation comes at the cost of fun. Castlevania SOTN manages too retain the simplicity of the old days.... while having innovations up the kazoo. That's why so many people have scuh strong feelings for it today. I would reccommend this too anyone that likes videogames, or wants too start playing them. Solid snake is cool and all, but Allucard Just has more style. if they ever making a fighting game centred around the coolest video game charachter ever... expect too see these two in the finals.

Of course thats just my opinon. I could be wrong. :P

For the best Castlevania game ever, purchase "Symphony of the night", for it's OUTSTANDING soundtrack, it's story and it's excellent battle-system. A guaranteed winner for any lover of action/adventure/rpg games.

Having played the DW2, I couldn't wait for the sequel. I bought this game months ago and played with my friend most of the time in co-op mode. DW3 basically obsoletes the prequel such that it has everything its predecessor had and a whole lot more. The game boasts a myriad of 41 characters while the other game had a mere 28. The storyline is more focused this time around which also caused me to buy the novel (get the 4-volume set if you're planning to buy it since its complete and doesn't leave any plotholes. You can also see my review there). Everything about this game is great from the gameplay, graphics, music, and storyline. One caveat, the english voice acting in the cutscenes are hysterically bad in tandem with the out of sync movement of the lips. One cutscene, I remember has Sun Jian saying: "So you want to fight me?" And his mouth stays open...Anyway, if you played the previous game, definitely pick this one up since there's so much more to do. It'll take you no less than 40 hours to get all the weapons (it took me close to 100 hours to get all the weapons and secrets for every character!). You might even want to read the novel after playing this game. A must buy for every PS2 owner.

If you have played Dynasty Warriors 2, then you have a basic idea of what this game is about. Choose one of the famous generals from the Three Kingdoms era, and fight your way to total supremacy. Every character has its own animations and fighting style, as well as special attacks and combinations, to use against the countless enemy warriors you will encounter.

Using these skills you must fight your way around the battlefield helping out where and when your force is in trouble. Fans of Dynasty Warriors 2 will note that there is a nice increase in the number of generals that are playable, as well as a HUGE increase in the number of playable levels.

One of the neatest features of this installment are all the in-battle additions. Fans of this historical period will take heart at some of these mini cinemas. One that comes to mind is the fight between Liu Bei, Guan Yu, Zhang Fei and Lu Bu. If you, as the player, are in the right place during the Battle for Hu Lao Gate, you will see these 4 generals engage. As a fan of this series, as well as the Romance of the Three Kingdoms games, touches like this bring a tear to my eye.

So, if you loved the first one or are looking to get into the series, this game pulls through with hours of button mashing fun. Take out your frustrations by beating up a few hundred soldiers, or even better, a general or ten.

KOEI follows up the super addictive Dynasty Warriors 2 with the aptly named Dynasty Warriors 3. Dynasty Warriors 3 boasts enhanced graphics, heightened artificial intelligence, more characters, greater weapon choices and more stages. This game is more addictive than ever before and is definitely worth your time.

Again, you choose a legendary warrior of China's Three Kingdoms period. The cast is expanded to include a number of other characters. There are also a number of other stages, which just increase the variety of the game. The same basic formula from Dynasty Warriors 2 is present. You basically run around an ancient Chinese battleground and kill enemy soldiers and officers. You cant toy with perfection too much can you? The old stages have been revamped and are, in some cases, radically different then their predecessors.

The graphics are a stepup in Dynasty Warriors 3. While Dynasty Warriors 2 had very good graphics, it had a number of glitches that could be really annoying, such as weaponry going through solid stone when you move. KOEI cut down on these glitches in a major fashion, though truth be told, there are still some present.

This is a fantastic game and is highly addictive. Even the music is awesome, a heavy metal mix that somehow goes so well with brutally killing hundreds of Chinese warriors. Bulk up your favorite warrior and wipe out as many enemies as you can... just wait and see what happens!

This may be one of Rare's last truly great games. It doesn't change much from its predecessor, but it's longer, bigger, and prettier. The boss battles are a lot bigger, and the level designs are still good. One thing about this game that I appreciate is the coherent style expressed throughout the game; the graphics, animation, and silly voices keep you in the game right to the end. Banjo-Kazooie and Banjo-Tooie both need to be in your Nintendo 64 collection.

WOW!!! If you get this that is the only thing you'll be able to say about it. It's totally amazing. Not only is it much better than Zelda, Banjo-Kazooie, Donkey Kong64, but it has much better graphics then all of them combined. The plot is totally cool. These are why tou should this game instead of the games mentioned above:

1. NO ANNOYING TIME LIMIT WITH THE MOON THING 2. CHEAPER/DON'T NEED EXPANSION PACK 3. DON'T NEED TO CHANGE 5 TIMES FOR 25 BANNANAS PER LEVEL 4. 8 LEVELS INSTEAD OF FOUR DUNGEONS, OR KEYS 5. DON'T NEED TO BEAT BOSSES IF YOU DON'T WANT TO 6. LONG GAME PLAY 7. 90 JIGGIES INSTEAD OF 20 MASKS OR 200 BANANNAS OR 100 JIGGIES 8. MUCH BETTER GRAPHICS 9. MULTIPLAYER GAMES (14) INCLUDING SHOOTOUTS, CHALLENGES, AND QUIZ 10.JUST PLAINLY THE BEST GAME IN THE HISTORY OF THE WORLD

So don't waste your money for the others, this is the one and only game you'll ever need.

If you like Banjo-Kazooie or adventure games in general, then this game is definitely for you. It is leagues ahead of Banjo-Kazooie in many areas, including character control, gameplay variety, and overall level of fun. Banjo-Tooie's high quality soundtrack is fun to listen to: the theme music of the overworld subtly changes as you move into different areas. Kazooie keeps the game hilarious with all of her wisecracks and silly insults. And what is really neat for Banjo-Kazooie players is that the story line of Banjo-Tooie links to the original many times throughout the game.

The one downside to this great feast from Rare is the multiplayer. As with Donkey Kong 64, the multiplayer minigames are a bit dull, as if they were just thrown in so the game could be touted as supporting up to four players. But in spite of that, this is a colorful, rewarding adventure that is enjoyable to play, even in comparison to games for Nintendo GameCube.