Post by Lieutenant Fatman on Nov 21, 2012 13:16:25 GMT
I thought it would be useful for anyone having a get together with some friends, and planning to play lots of games, to have various reviews of party games, and a view of how well they will work for a number of players. I hope this proves useful. I will start with seven mini reviews and plan to add more in the future.
Cubixx HD
Multiplayer is split screen? Yes
Number of players able to participate simultaneously? 7
Now here is a unique party game that everyone should have at least tried. You can play 7 player spilt screen and here's the great part, it's co-op! Yes you all work together in an attempt to get as far as possible, cutting out parts of the cube and trying to stay alive. Very refreshing to be able to work with your mates rather than punching or shooting them in the face, etc. It's not easy though, generally you only get one life, not only do you need to try and avoid more and more hazards as you get further but you have to watch out for your friends.
It's always embarrissing to cut out a chunk of the cube and realise your friend was in there, you just knocked them out! This happens a lot, there's so much going on, it's difficult to keep track of everything, especially in later levels. It's also down to you to try and stay safe and out of your friends' way. If you see them making a difficult cut, try to steer clear. This takes some serious team work and is very addictive, trying to continously improve the teams overall score. Everyone learns new tactics and play styles as they go along. Another good point is you can jump straight into this game without having played before.
We tested this with 5 players for a couple of hours, the screen being split 5 ways on a big television was not an issue.
Recommended? Yes!
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Bomberman ULTRA
Multiplayer is split screen? No
Number of players able to participate simultaneously? 7
There have been many Bomberman games over the years, and this is one of the best I have played, 7 players can blast to their hearts content, all on the same screen, with plenty of fun powerups to choose from. There are a few different modes available where you can paint parts of the screen your colour by blasting them, but most of the time you are likely to opt for classic mode which is a last man standing affair. I would recommend turning super revenge on, as it gives people the opportunity to get back into the game until the last minute and stops people sitting there bored if they are taken out early on.
For those unfamiliar with bomberman it's all about trying to get lots of good powerups, and avoiding any blasts from both other players and your own bombs.
Yes you can kill yourself by mistake, many people do. And of course it's all about ultimately trying to take out your opponents, one blast is all it takes, there are no health bars here. If you are fortunate enough to pick up powers ups such as kick bomb or the glove, you can escape from some tricky situations, so it's worth trying to equip yourself with the best stuff. But decent powerups do not gurantee victory, so don't get cheeky.
You can jump straight in on this game, the only things that require unlocking are various costumes, they are not essential but can make things even more hilarious. What's nice is costumes can be unlocked in multiplayer.
Recommended? Yes!
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LittleBigPlanet Karting
Multiplayer is split screen? Yes
Number of players able to participate simultaneously? 4
So one of Paystation's biggest icons take on karting, the excellent LittleBigPlanet that so many of us love. But how well does it work in local multiplayer at a party?
Well here's the thing, if there is no save data on the PS3 being used, one person must first get through the tutorial, and once that is complete campaign levels must be completed with a maximum of two players before the same race can be played on with four players. And of course if it's your copy and you're playing on your friend's PS3, you have no online pass, so no playing on the online courses made by others.
It's a fun game though despite these problems, and with so many people having enjoyed the original LBP, it's nice the way this game reminds you of all the good times that were had on that by using the original soundtracks and level design. But of course none of us had any idea what powerups we had when we picked them up, so there was little in the way of tactical playing and several people complained that the karts moved far too slowly. We wondered if this was due to higher speeds being unlocked later in the campaign, but only having played for approximately an hour we never found out. Looks like a fun game for online and solo but for a party, I wouldn't put it top of the list unless you have a save with a lot of content unlocked.
Recommended? Depends on if there is saved data, and if all players are LBP fans.
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Call of Duty, Black Ops LAN game.
Multiplayer is split screen? Yes, two per television.
Number of players able to participate simultaneously? 4 with two televisions
Ah, remember the good old days when you would link two PSones up and play games on two televisions with a mate? No? Oh, er, never mind. Anyway, it's probably fair to say you're decided on what you think of Call of Duty so I won't get into how good or bad it is as a game generally. Link two PS3s together with a LAN cable, have two televisions, and you can do 4 player split screen team deathmatch. This means you can have more screen space and you don't have to worry about people noticing they're lined up in a sniper scope or being sneaked up on, etc. Just remember, when setting up, one player has to set up the game and start it. Only then, when they're on the map can the other PS3 find the game and join, not before. Unfortunately some of the more popular recent additions are absent when playing LAN, such as Gun Game, and One bullet in the Chamber. It's still a good blast though.
Please keep in mind that playing over a LAN line incredibly does NOT eliminate all lag. Usually games appear to be fairly smooth, but every minute or so, players appear to teleport, yes it is that bad, and people do die due to lag. This does not destroy the experience but it could be a lot better. Keep in mind if you have more televisions, more PS3s, etc and want more people for a LAN game you'll need a special hub as well to get it working.
Recommended? If you love COD, and don't mind some lag here and there, then it's worth go.
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When Vikings Attack!
Multiplayer is split screen? No
Number of players able to participate simultaneously? 4
This one is great fun, and is one of the most accessible games around, it's very easy to pick up and play, and having the full four players make things really manic. From an isometric view each player gets a group of people that runs around picking up objects that they throw at the opposing players. If your opponent is unable to dodge or catch the object, they'll lose a number of their people or sometimes be wiped out altogether, last player standing wins the round. There are three different game modes but most will simply opt for the standard one. First player to survive three times wins. Some stages have other hazards players need to watch out which generally consists of traffic, this can easily take players out in one swoop and is easily forgotten when you're carefully watching your opponents.
This is advertised as being able to mix things up by having some players using Vitas and some on the PS3, we tried to set this up for ages, but dissapointingly it refused to work. It would have been interesting to try this out but for parties you can have all four players on one screen anyway so it's not really an issue. Rounds are all one minute long so if there are more than four of you, it's one where you can pass the controller around quite a bit.
Recommended? Yes.
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Supersonic Acrobatic Rocket-Powered Battle-Cars
Multiplayer is split screen? Yes
Number of players able to participate simultaneously? 4
With a name like that it has to be a pretty amazing game right? Well yes, it is, although it's only really going to work well if you have the full four players, less than that and you'd be better off leaving it, as this is all about teams of two versus two. Basically this is football with rocket powered cars, cars that can do jumps and flips, and wow is it a lot of fun. It takes a few games to start getting the hang of this but it is well worth it. If you get into it, it will easily give you hours of fun. As you become more skilled you can try various types of flips with the assitance of rocket fuel to get some seriously explosive goals, but you will need a bit of luck to pull something like that off. Expect the other team to be constantly on the defence.
There are some nice little touches such as action replays, so if you manage to score an incredible goal, everyone is going to see exactly how it took place in slow motion. And of course if a own goal was accidentally scored, get ready for a lot of laughter from your friends. There's a bit of variety of the pitches that can be played on to keep things interesting and with matches only lasting about five minutes it's easy enough to pass pads around after each game.
Recommended? Yes!!
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Mortal Kombat
Multiplayer is split screen? No
Number of players able to participate simultaneously? 4
It's a two versus two tag team fighter, and as fighters go, I would class it as being one of the easiest ones to pick up and play. Having said that it obviosuly helps a lot if you are familiar with fighting games or with Mortal Kombat itself. Kombos are genrally short and easy to remember, as are special moves. Both teams have a super bar that builds up as they fight, this can be used to do special tags, suped up special moves, you can counter your way out of your opponents kombos with it, or lastly with a full bar, pressing L2 and R2 together will unleash a powerful character specific move, just hope your opponent isn't blocking. Some characters are different though such as Cage who has a special super counter and Jax who has a super grab.
It's not quite as deep as other fighters but the fact that it's easier to pick up than most makes it well worth considering. That's erm, assuming everyone present is over 18 years old of course.. because you know, there's a lot of blood and stuff.
Recommended? Yes, if most people present like fighting games.
Cubixx HD
Multiplayer is split screen? Yes
Number of players able to participate simultaneously? 7
Now here is a unique party game that everyone should have at least tried. You can play 7 player spilt screen and here's the great part, it's co-op! Yes you all work together in an attempt to get as far as possible, cutting out parts of the cube and trying to stay alive. Very refreshing to be able to work with your mates rather than punching or shooting them in the face, etc. It's not easy though, generally you only get one life, not only do you need to try and avoid more and more hazards as you get further but you have to watch out for your friends.
It's always embarrissing to cut out a chunk of the cube and realise your friend was in there, you just knocked them out! This happens a lot, there's so much going on, it's difficult to keep track of everything, especially in later levels. It's also down to you to try and stay safe and out of your friends' way. If you see them making a difficult cut, try to steer clear. This takes some serious team work and is very addictive, trying to continously improve the teams overall score. Everyone learns new tactics and play styles as they go along. Another good point is you can jump straight into this game without having played before.
We tested this with 5 players for a couple of hours, the screen being split 5 ways on a big television was not an issue.
Recommended? Yes!
-------------------------------------------
Bomberman ULTRA
Multiplayer is split screen? No
Number of players able to participate simultaneously? 7
There have been many Bomberman games over the years, and this is one of the best I have played, 7 players can blast to their hearts content, all on the same screen, with plenty of fun powerups to choose from. There are a few different modes available where you can paint parts of the screen your colour by blasting them, but most of the time you are likely to opt for classic mode which is a last man standing affair. I would recommend turning super revenge on, as it gives people the opportunity to get back into the game until the last minute and stops people sitting there bored if they are taken out early on.
For those unfamiliar with bomberman it's all about trying to get lots of good powerups, and avoiding any blasts from both other players and your own bombs.
Yes you can kill yourself by mistake, many people do. And of course it's all about ultimately trying to take out your opponents, one blast is all it takes, there are no health bars here. If you are fortunate enough to pick up powers ups such as kick bomb or the glove, you can escape from some tricky situations, so it's worth trying to equip yourself with the best stuff. But decent powerups do not gurantee victory, so don't get cheeky.
You can jump straight in on this game, the only things that require unlocking are various costumes, they are not essential but can make things even more hilarious. What's nice is costumes can be unlocked in multiplayer.
Recommended? Yes!
-------------------------------------------
LittleBigPlanet Karting
Multiplayer is split screen? Yes
Number of players able to participate simultaneously? 4
So one of Paystation's biggest icons take on karting, the excellent LittleBigPlanet that so many of us love. But how well does it work in local multiplayer at a party?
Well here's the thing, if there is no save data on the PS3 being used, one person must first get through the tutorial, and once that is complete campaign levels must be completed with a maximum of two players before the same race can be played on with four players. And of course if it's your copy and you're playing on your friend's PS3, you have no online pass, so no playing on the online courses made by others.
It's a fun game though despite these problems, and with so many people having enjoyed the original LBP, it's nice the way this game reminds you of all the good times that were had on that by using the original soundtracks and level design. But of course none of us had any idea what powerups we had when we picked them up, so there was little in the way of tactical playing and several people complained that the karts moved far too slowly. We wondered if this was due to higher speeds being unlocked later in the campaign, but only having played for approximately an hour we never found out. Looks like a fun game for online and solo but for a party, I wouldn't put it top of the list unless you have a save with a lot of content unlocked.
Recommended? Depends on if there is saved data, and if all players are LBP fans.
-------------------------------------------
Call of Duty, Black Ops LAN game.
Multiplayer is split screen? Yes, two per television.
Number of players able to participate simultaneously? 4 with two televisions
Ah, remember the good old days when you would link two PSones up and play games on two televisions with a mate? No? Oh, er, never mind. Anyway, it's probably fair to say you're decided on what you think of Call of Duty so I won't get into how good or bad it is as a game generally. Link two PS3s together with a LAN cable, have two televisions, and you can do 4 player split screen team deathmatch. This means you can have more screen space and you don't have to worry about people noticing they're lined up in a sniper scope or being sneaked up on, etc. Just remember, when setting up, one player has to set up the game and start it. Only then, when they're on the map can the other PS3 find the game and join, not before. Unfortunately some of the more popular recent additions are absent when playing LAN, such as Gun Game, and One bullet in the Chamber. It's still a good blast though.
Please keep in mind that playing over a LAN line incredibly does NOT eliminate all lag. Usually games appear to be fairly smooth, but every minute or so, players appear to teleport, yes it is that bad, and people do die due to lag. This does not destroy the experience but it could be a lot better. Keep in mind if you have more televisions, more PS3s, etc and want more people for a LAN game you'll need a special hub as well to get it working.
Recommended? If you love COD, and don't mind some lag here and there, then it's worth go.
-------------------------------------------
When Vikings Attack!
Multiplayer is split screen? No
Number of players able to participate simultaneously? 4
This one is great fun, and is one of the most accessible games around, it's very easy to pick up and play, and having the full four players make things really manic. From an isometric view each player gets a group of people that runs around picking up objects that they throw at the opposing players. If your opponent is unable to dodge or catch the object, they'll lose a number of their people or sometimes be wiped out altogether, last player standing wins the round. There are three different game modes but most will simply opt for the standard one. First player to survive three times wins. Some stages have other hazards players need to watch out which generally consists of traffic, this can easily take players out in one swoop and is easily forgotten when you're carefully watching your opponents.
This is advertised as being able to mix things up by having some players using Vitas and some on the PS3, we tried to set this up for ages, but dissapointingly it refused to work. It would have been interesting to try this out but for parties you can have all four players on one screen anyway so it's not really an issue. Rounds are all one minute long so if there are more than four of you, it's one where you can pass the controller around quite a bit.
Recommended? Yes.
-------------------------------------------
Supersonic Acrobatic Rocket-Powered Battle-Cars
Multiplayer is split screen? Yes
Number of players able to participate simultaneously? 4
With a name like that it has to be a pretty amazing game right? Well yes, it is, although it's only really going to work well if you have the full four players, less than that and you'd be better off leaving it, as this is all about teams of two versus two. Basically this is football with rocket powered cars, cars that can do jumps and flips, and wow is it a lot of fun. It takes a few games to start getting the hang of this but it is well worth it. If you get into it, it will easily give you hours of fun. As you become more skilled you can try various types of flips with the assitance of rocket fuel to get some seriously explosive goals, but you will need a bit of luck to pull something like that off. Expect the other team to be constantly on the defence.
There are some nice little touches such as action replays, so if you manage to score an incredible goal, everyone is going to see exactly how it took place in slow motion. And of course if a own goal was accidentally scored, get ready for a lot of laughter from your friends. There's a bit of variety of the pitches that can be played on to keep things interesting and with matches only lasting about five minutes it's easy enough to pass pads around after each game.
Recommended? Yes!!
-------------------------------------------
Mortal Kombat
Multiplayer is split screen? No
Number of players able to participate simultaneously? 4
It's a two versus two tag team fighter, and as fighters go, I would class it as being one of the easiest ones to pick up and play. Having said that it obviosuly helps a lot if you are familiar with fighting games or with Mortal Kombat itself. Kombos are genrally short and easy to remember, as are special moves. Both teams have a super bar that builds up as they fight, this can be used to do special tags, suped up special moves, you can counter your way out of your opponents kombos with it, or lastly with a full bar, pressing L2 and R2 together will unleash a powerful character specific move, just hope your opponent isn't blocking. Some characters are different though such as Cage who has a special super counter and Jax who has a super grab.
It's not quite as deep as other fighters but the fact that it's easier to pick up than most makes it well worth considering. That's erm, assuming everyone present is over 18 years old of course.. because you know, there's a lot of blood and stuff.
Recommended? Yes, if most people present like fighting games.
