Toca Race Driver 3 Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)There are not many racing games for the Mac so when a new one arrives hopes are high.
Overall this has been very entertaining. Modern race cars, rally cars, dirt racers, and a few "classics" can keep you at the controls for way too long.
The game runs decently on my three year old i-Mac but there are some glitches. A few of the track/car combinations stutter badly on my machine, rendering them useless.
Purists will gripe over some of the grids; when were there ever 12 W-196 Benzes in one race? Nevertheless there's much to enjoy with authentic sounds and handling characteristics.
The front engine, straight eight Benz sounds real and powerslides like it should. The designers did a good job getting the various cars to feel and sound right.
The tracks appear very authentic. When I watch real racing on the Speed Channel I often have a deja vu experience. Monza and Spa are my favorites.
Mac users might want to investigate "Total Immersion Racing" as well. It does not have quite the variety of Toca 3 but has run absolutely glitch free on my computer.

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DTM Race Driver 3 - The Ultimate Racing Simulator Review

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(More customer reviews)I just got this game and it came from overseas. Originally from Sweden and then from California to here. It was new in the package. Here's what Wiki says "TOCA Race Driver 3 (also known as DTM Race Driver 3 in Germany and V8 Supercars 3 in Australia)".
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EDIT: I have to edit this review and I have to say that after trying to work with this game for several days. it's back up for sale. The AI cars follow the racing line almost perfectly, until they crash you. When they crash, they right themselves and continue. When they touch you, you go flying off the track. That's not proper at all. The only way to play, is to get out in front of all of them and remain in front for the whole race, because if any one of them gets close to you, they will crash you and no matter your lead, in the final lap, they will catch up to you. That's just not racing and it's just not a good simulator either. Learining to drive "in race traffic" is one of the most important fundamentals, but with an AI like this, it's absolutely impossible. Also, the only way to unlock the other types of racing is to complete a professional circuit and you'd better be perfect to get near that. I really do not like Codemaster games.
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Besides, I don't like the idea of Codemasters charging for cheats/mods they developed themselves, just to get MORE money out of people....... That's just plain wrong..... Just like that online racing where you have to buy cars and that's wrong too....

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Final Fantasy XIV Review

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(More customer reviews)Going to get the strong points out of the way first. Graphics and music. As far as I can tell, that's about it. The cut scenes and story are nice, but they make up such a tiny fraction of the game they're barely worth mentioning.
As for the bad... it's pretty much every thing else.
UI/controls - This has been beaten to death, but I want to hit it one more time. Quite simply the worst UI for any PC game in the past decade. UO and EQ1 were leaps and bounds ahead of FFXIV in terms of the interface. There is no drag/drop, clicking rarely does anything, limited keymapping, and everything is buried behind several menus.
Combat - Sluggish and consists 90%+ of hitting 1111111. Threat is extremely broken in groups, ie you can get aggro for casting 1 spell even if you don't jump in until the mob is half dead. There aren't any special mobs or mechanics to deal with. You just stand there punching each other in the face until somebody dies. It's like Rockem Sockem robots online. Although the music kinda works against the combat because you're rocking out to a pretty hardcore battle theme while fighting tiny rodents and insects well into your 30's.
The world - The cities are actually really well done, albeit inconvenient. Once you get outside though you find a barren, empty world. There are essentially some random mobs thrown around and aetherite camps where you can activate guild leves. The few actual buildings and settlements are not functioning. They have NPC's who don't do anything and all the doors are locked. There aren't any really dungeons, unless you count being underground as in a dungeon. It's just the same mobs as everywhere else but now underground.
Economy - Sweet zombie jesus, this is quite possibly the biggest game breaker. The entire game is centered around the crafts based economy. Problem is there is no way to find what you're looking for except running around spamming or searching every retainer in the game one by one. The lack of a search function and mail system are killers. Weapon repairs are also a huge hassle. I've taken to buying multiple of the same weapon because you can only fight for about 2 hours before you have to go back to town and find a crafter to repair your weapon or pay astronomical fees to NPC's later in teh game.
Content - Content? Simply not there. The closest you'll come are guild leves which are essentially bare bones "Kill 6 of these things" dailies on a 36 hour timer. The story is interesting but you can only do the one for your city state and SE stated that you can't do the other 2 without creating a new character which would require an insane amount of time. Just watch it on YouTube. To compound the story problem the missions are relatively short, requiring you to do little more than run from cut scene to cut scene. There are no epic battles and all the mission mobs are tuned to be killed by crafters whos only take is Throw Rock which deals 1 damage.
Overall - It's no where near ready. Having played other MMO's in their beta phases I would have guessed that this game is still in alpha. Maybe in half a year to a year it may be fun but right now it is simply an exercise in frustration and what looks to be the longest grind to nothing since Lineage.

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Embark on the myriad journeys of an epic in FINAL FANTASY XIV, the revolutionary MMORPG from Square Enix. As denizens of the new and visually stunning realm of Eorzea, players will actively engage in compelling storylines narrated through high-definition, real-time events featuring the players' own highly personalized and versatile characters. While exploring even the farthest reaches of this magnificent world, adventurers are given the freedom to entirely alter their gameplay experience by simply swapping out equipment, and realize objectives with or without the aid of others. The entire experience is crafted to accommodate the widest variety of play styles—from the lone mercenary with only moments a day to spare, to the legion of comrades campaigning for days on end, and every combination in between. Join players from around the world in an adventure of infinite possibilities.

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Transformers: War for Cybertron Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)I am a long time transformers fan and thought all the other transformer games were horrible so I was really skeptical and expecting to be disappointed. Only played it a few hours but so far I absolutely love it! I'm so glad they finally made a decent game that does the Transformers universe justice.
Being able to transform instantly at any time to utilize different abilities is a lot of fun in both campaign and multi-player modes. The four different classes, weapon choices, abilities and transformations add a great deal of depth and strategy. I love the design of the Characters and world, I've always been a big fan of the futuristic look of Cybertron and find it a lot more exciting than the old school normal vehicles on Earth. It's also nice to experience a prequel to the animated series.
It uses the Unreal 3 Engine so it looks great and runs smooth even on my system which is a couple years old (but still over the minimum requirements). NOTE: For some reason I can't run it unless I switch my desktop resolution lower than 1920x1200 even though it is listed as a supported resolution. There was no error or explanation, the game just disappeared after the loading screen. I had to figure it out trial and error.
I only have a few minor complaints. I would like to be able to play solo Campaign without the helpers just so I can do my own thing or at least be able to tell them what to do. I would love to be able to switch to 1st person perspective at any time not just with the scientist's rifle. I would love more character appearance customization options for multi-player, other than picking a chassis (not many options without unlocking more?) you can only change 2 colors! I still love the game though.
I still need to play it longer for a final verdict but with the depth and variety of the multi-player modes it should offer endless hours of fun.
I did not notice any obtrusive DRM. It just requires that you enter the code on the back of the instruction book while installing and that you have the disc inserted when you play, that seems to be it. I even uninstalled and re-installed it with no issues.

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Become the Ultimate Weapon, Fight to the End. Experience the legendary battle between the Autobots™ and Decepticons™ before their exodus to Earth in the untold story of the civil war for their home planet, Cybertron™. Two distinct and intertwined campaigns chronicle the Autobots' heroism in the face of total annihilation and the Decepticons' unquenchable thirst for power. Play both campaigns in team-based online co-op, or go head-to-head in several online multiplayer game modes. Battle as your favorite Transformer™ characters in the war that spawned one of the most brutal conflicts of all time. Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC Determine the fate of the Transformers in the war that started it all. Wield an arsenal of lethal, high-tech weaponry and change form from robot to vehicle at any time as you battle through the living, metallic world of Cybertron. Distinct AUTOBOT and DECEPTICON campaigns take you from AUTOBOT and DECEPTICON cities, to the Energon core of Cybertron, to the outer reaches of the orbital debris while pitting brother against brother and friend against foe. Experience OPTIMUS' rise to greatness and MEGATRON'S thirst for destruction. The balance of power between AUTOBOTS and DECEPTICONS is in your hands. Gameplay Transformers: War for Cybertron is a 3rd person high-action Shooter that allows you to become the ultimate weapon. Change form from Robot to Vehicle at any time and attack you enemies from any angle. Drive, fly, shoot and fight your way through two distinct campaigns alone or with up to 2 other friends in online Co-op or go head to head and wage war online with a deep multiplayer game. Key Game Features
Two Distinct Campaigns One Epic Story
Play both the AUTOBOTS and DECEPTICONS campaigns
Battle as your favorite Transformers character in this 3rd Person High Action Shooter

Wage War Online
Deep multiplayer game modes thrust you into a global battle

3 — Player Drop-in/Drop-out Online Co-op
Team up with your friends and fight through epic campaigns

Change Form from Robot to Vehicle at any time
Instantly convert from robot to car, jet, tank or truck mode and attack your enemies from any angle

Nintendo Exclusive Features Transformers™: War for Cybertron™ Autobots™ & Transformers™: War for Cybertron™ Decepticons™ - Available only on the DS
Get both the AUTOBOTS and DECEPTICONS games to unlock all 30 characters, 11 exclusive to the DS
Change form from Robot to Vehicle at any time
Battle your friends in multiplayer and win their Transformers characters
Transformers™: Cybertron™ Adventures - Available only on the Wii™
Battle as the AUTOBOTS and DECEPTICONS through two unique campaigns
Original Missions designed exclusively for the Wii tell the untold story of Cybertron
Team up with a friend in two player co-op to dominate the battlefield
HASBRO and its logo, TRANSFORMERS and all related characters are trademarks of Hasbro and are used with permission. © 2010 Hasbro. All rights reserved. Game © 2010 Activision Publishing, Inc. Activision is a registered trademark of Activision Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved. ."PlayStation" and the "PS" Family logo are registered trademarks and "PS3" is a trademark of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. The PlayStation Network Logo is a service mark of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. Microsoft, Xbox, Xbox 360, Xbox LIVE, and the Xbox logos are trademarks of the Microsoft group of companies and are used under license from Microsoft. Wii and Nintendo DS are trademarks of Nintendo. © 2006 Nintendo. PC DVD ROM logo © and TM IEMA 2004. All other trademarks and trade names are the property of their respective owners.

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DC Universe Online Review

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(More customer reviews)I wasn't a beta tester, and I'm not a MMORPG (massively multiplayer online role playing game) expert.
When I play a game, it comes down to how much fun I had playing. The graphics, the music, the controls are all a part of that, but ultimately, it comes down to the experience.
In the case of DCU Online, it becomes very repetitive very quickly. Nearly every mission is "beat up generic bad guys before beating up iconic bad guys." This isn't necessarily a bad thing if the fighting is fun (which it is, at first). But even with the unlocked skill sets that allow for more complex combos and flashier moves, the lack of variety in the fights eventually takes a toll, and it becomes a chore.
Also, while the interface is usable but clunky, my main gripe is that it makes it difficult to team up with other players. The reason I choose to play MMORPGs to begin with is because I enjoy playing with others (or seeing others run around when I want to go solo: it makes the in-game world seem lively). In DCU Online, it seems that I'm only able to team up with people in the immediate vicinity, and am only able to communicate with people who are on my (hero or villain) side. As such, the game feels surprisingly dead at times.
Don't get me wrong. I appreciate the fight mechanics of this game (for anyone who's played Batman: Arkham Asylum (great game, highly recommended), it's similar: melee attack, distance attack, block, and a variety of special skills 1-8). I appreciate the fact that the game is updated nearly ever week with improvements. I appreciate the thoughtful, intricate level design (the developers must have hired architects from detail in the two in-game cities). I appreciate the fact that they got Mark Hamill and Kevin Conway to do the voices. The music could be better, the graphics are nice to look at, and I don't mind paying $15 a month to continue playing provided that a game is really fun.
But DCU online starts off strong and within 10 hours (a very short amount of time for MMORPGs) becomes routine. If it was possible, I'd like to have rented this game.
On the collectors edition: you're paying more for a plastic statue, an in-game item (a mini joker blimp or mini batmobile that hovers by your character's shoulder and shoots at your target), a small sized comic, and a poster. I'm on the fence as to whether these things are worth an extra $30. -------
Update: 2/3/2011
After 20+ more hours of play, I'm sticking to my original 3 star rating: the missions are nearly identical, but there is player vs. player (PVP) either in the arenas or in selected servers to vary things up a bit. For the PVP arenas, however, there is often a wait before you're able to enter and the time you spend waiting seems to be random (from as little as 5 minutes to over an hour).
Also, the interface isn't the most user friendly. You can make a group with people by typing: "/invite" and their name, just as you could privately message people with "/tell". It's functional, but I would have preferred to do these same things by selecting people off a server list.

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Enter the world of your favorite DC Comics' superheroes and villains in DC Universe Online. Get ready to experience the high-energy action that encapsulates this fabled world, and become engrossed in thrilling battles with or against famed heroes and villains, including Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman and The Joker.

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Pro-Pinball: The Web Review

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(More customer reviews)The Web is probably my favorite of the ProPinball Series. The graphics and sound are ideal. I never get tired of this one.

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You are a cyberbiker in the near future. High above the Earth in her space station sits the evil ruler of The Web, the Dark Queen. You must battle through numerous missions and tasks to earn the chance to defeat her in the Ultimate Showdown.
On your way to the Showdown you will do battle in The Web itself (in a fast-paced 3-D video mode). You'll also have to find a way to destroy the space station in Space Station Frenzy (a three-ball mode) and master combo shots in Combo Mania (a special high-scoring round).
Only when you have completed five special tasks will the Ultimate Showdown (an incredible six-ball frenzy) be ready for you.... Will you be ready for it?

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