TrackMania 2 Canyon

Getting into TrackMania 2 is a simple affair. Solo play consists of 65 tracks, the majority of which are unlocked by obtaining medals. You load up a track, start your engine, and then keep playing until you set a time you're happy with. It's great if you're interested only in score chasing, although it's far from a shallow game. Each track has been expertly designed with the leaderboards in mind. Nailing the perfect racing line to achieve the best time takes practice and experimentation as you figure out how to cut corners and start drifts earlier.

Learning the best routes around stages is never a chore. The majority of tracks last anywhere from 18 to 40 seconds; they're short A-to-B sprints that take you around hairpin bends and over dizzying jumps. Frequently you find yourself driving up walls or drifting vertically around a quarter pipe. These stages are short, but the desire to stay on a given track, chasing the best time you can, is encouraged at every point. Each track offers up a bronze, silver, and gold medal to obtain, as well as an official time to set. These times can be challenged every five minutes, with a timer in the bottom right corner counting down until your next attempt. Setting an official time awards you with skill points based on how well you performed overall and contributes to your online leaderboard ranking.

Racing around the tracks is fun and breezy, thanks in part to the superb handling and easy learning curve when it comes to drifting. There's only one car type, so the focus is on learning the tracks rather than worrying about which vehicle to use. This gives TrackMania 2 Canyon the feel of a puzzle game as much as a racer, and it's great that when a friend beats your time you know that he's driving the same car that you do. Keyboard controls are tight, with subtle manoeuvring and wide drifts being easy to pull off with the arrow keys. Using a gamepad is even better, because the full analogue controls lend themselves well to the game. You frequently make twitch adjustments to your racing line, and either control method is conducive to this.


It takes real skill to crash this well.
Comment on this videoWatch this video in High Def
Trying to set the best time can be frustrating, but usually in a "just one more go" way. A few of the tracks are just plain annoying, though, as some of the longer ones end with a jump or a turn that can easily blindside you. But the immediacy of restarting (hit a button and you're instantly back on the starting grid) makes even the most irritating tracks seem reasonable. Less fun are the lap races, which occur every fifth track. These five-lap affairs are decent enough, but if you're going for gold, then they can feel like a bit of a slog when you mess up towards the end of the fifth lap. The variety and length of the A-to-B tracks make them far more entertaining.

There are no physical opponents on the track. You can choose a ghost to race against from either the preset AI ghosts, your own favourite replay, or the replay of someone on your buddies list who has set a better official time than you. Usually there are three vehicles on the track: you, the ghost you chose to race against, and the ghost of your last attempt. Multiplayer is similar, in that while you can see other cars, they take the form of ghosts. The main mode is Time Attack, in which you and various opponents race on a series of tracks, with five minutes to set the best time you can. It serves as a fun competition as well as a learning tool, being able to see the racing line that a car ahead of you is taking without having to worry about overtaking it yourself. There are other modes, like Laps and Cup, which see you racing directly against opponents, but finding a server doing anything other than Time Attack is currently nigh on impossible. Luckily there's the option to create your own and invite friends. These multiplayer options are also available to play locally, either in turns or in split-screen

Call of Juarez: The Cartel

Sometimes a game’s concept is just flat out better than the final product.  That is the case for Call of Juarez: The Cartel.  The concept is there; a Mexican drug cartel bombs a U.S. law enforcement agency.  In response, the U.S. government puts together a task force to take them down—pretty straightforward story.  Now, take into account the dynamic range of the characters like Ben McCall, a brutal LAPD cop and descendant of Ray McCall (from the previous Call of Juarez titles); Eddie Guerra, a DEA agent with a gambling habit; and Kim Evans, a gang-affiliate turned FBI agent, and you get a pretty diverse range of characters to build a story off of.  Throw in the idea that depending on the character you choose to play as, the story itself can reveal certain things according to that character’s point of view.  Each character has their own personal agenda and reasons for being a part of the case, and those motivations are made clear through cut-scenes and the gameplay itself.  So far the concept seems golden, right?
Well, this is a classic example of how the execution fails to live up to the concept.  Each character has their faults, and they could have built off of these weaknesses to develop characters who you truly can root for in the game.  Instead, what they create are characters that are boring and hard to form a real bond with.  This leaves you not caring what happens to them.

Watch Call of Juarez: The Cartel Launch Trailer
The story is a modern take on the Wild West.  It takes place in Los Angeles and throws in elements of the West.  I guess this was their way to keep the Call of Juarez name on it.  The story is slow to develop and filled with repetitive one-liners.  There’s only so much praise you can get from your partners for blowing people up before it drives you crazy.
The level design is bland and follows a very linear path.  All you do is move down a pathway, shoot the enemies that pop-up, and continue moving.  The rest is just rinse and repeat.  Also, there is a lack of interesting weapons, consisting of riles, pistols, and grenades.  It’s like they updated the year the game took place, but not the weapon selection.  They do attempt to break up the monotony by throwing in some other gameplay mechanics like hand-to-hand fighting and some driving sequences, but they just seem like they were thrown together last minute.

Aside from the gameplay mechanics and design itself, the graphics are not much to look at.  The textures are bland at best and not something you’d expect from a next-gen game.  The guns look like plastic.  Details are nonexistent, and in a game where gameplay lacks, you sometimes have to turn to graphics to enjoy it.  Unfortunately, this game doesn’t deliver on either.
I will say, this game does offer a fun multiplayer experience.  Call of Juarez: The Cartel offers a nice drop-in/out co-op for up to three players.  Before the level is a lobby, designed to look like a parking lot, hotel room, or whatever is appropriate for the upcoming mission.  This is where you can wait for people to join or switch weapons.  The multiplayer modes are actually quite fun.  There is the traditional team deathmatch mode, but they throw a nice partner system spin on it that gives you bonuses for performing actions with your partner.  So rather than running around solo, you have some incentive to stick close to your teammate.  It’s actually quite similar to the “high-five” in Uncharted 3.  One of the strongest modes is Objective Mode, where you and your team must complete a series of objectives.  This could mean getting drugs into your car and driving through the streets to progress to your goal.  Upon arrival, you are met with another objective.  It flows nicely together, and it seems like you are working towards an overall goal rather than a bunch of smaller missions that end right away.

To sum it up, Call of Juarez: The Cartel has great potential, but just doesn’t deliver on it.  The repetitive gameplay, the corny one-liners, and the lackluster graphics make it an unenjoyable experience.  The few redeeming features are multiplayer and the ability to play as three of the main characters to reveal the different points of view of the story.  Unfortunately, the story isn’t one you are likely to care about.

From Dust

We’ve been looking forward to Ubisoft’s From Dust for some time.  Not only is the concept unique compared to other games, but the art style is better than most downloadable games.  The focus that Ubisoft Montpellier has given to the visuals is ridiculously unreal; you’ll find yourself getting lost in the majesty as stuff you pick up settles into the terrain in real time.  That brings up an interesting question—is From Dust more than just a flashy presentation?  Is there actual depth when it comes to playing as a god?
Well, there is, but it would be in your best interest to pack some patience when you start this game.  Not only is being a god tricky when it comes to completing each part of the story (and the additional challenges), but the ineptitude of your tribesmen is equally as tricky.  They summoned you—a god known only as The Breath—to help them reach totem poles and expand their civilization.  Easier said than done, since they’re pretty helpless.  Each one has a description, but they come to a halt when it seems like anything gets in their way.  They’re even afraid to approach a body of water.
While it’s a slight letdown that these tribe-folk don’t help you over the course of each mission (even when you send them off, they can get lost or stuck), From Dust’s control scheme isn’t so bad.  You’ll manipulate pieces of a land in each stage, building bridges and guiding these lost souls to their next totem marker.  It takes a little getting used to at first (Actraiser this ain’t), but the controls work moderately well as you pick up objects and use them to interact with the earth. They aren’t the most precise in the world (and this may frustrate those with agile hands in later stages), but they’re functional enough with a game controller.
Now, about that real-time morphing effect we discussed earlier—it’s beautiful.  Not only does From Dust feature some crafty level design, but it also has some weather effects that shift into each one almost seamlessly.  Desert globs flow into the sand, right down to the tiniest of particles; water shifts when wet land forms beneath it; volcanoes explode with great ferocity.  Watching this as it happens is almost like taking in a terrific nature special, except that you get to play around with it.  Granted, you shouldn’t forget about your objectives, but being able to terraform these worlds as you see fit is a welcome delight.  If you ever built a sand castle as a kid, you may just say, “Screw the tribe,” and try your luck again here.
Along with From Dust’s main story mode, there are also 30 additional challenges in which to complete.  These range from downright infuriating (the most precise of controls are needed to keep your tribe from perishing) to cakewalks, particularly with the opening stages.  Still, the progression set-up is a welcome one, and the ability to record your best times on Xbox Live—through interactive leaderboards—works just fine by us.
Again, though, From Dust won’t be everyone’s speed.  There’s a steep learning curve here, and you’ll have to put up with some really stupid tribesmen in order to get the most mileage out of it; seriously—they’re afraid of frickin’ water!  Some might be abundantly bored within the first hour, but those who stick with it will be rewarded with some interesting challenges and even more beautiful terrain.  It’s up to you to decide if you’re up for the journey.
We do like how Ubisoft tried something different with From Dust, though.  It’s not often you see a major publisher take a flying leap like this with something really “out there”, if you will.  While the little flaws may have you wondering if it’s worth the trip, you at least owe it to yourself to try it—even if it’s only to see the terraforming effects.  Seriously, can you imagine how good these would look in a typical action game?  Ubisoft Montpellier should keep this on hand for their next project.a