Look Ahead: May 2009 Games
Fuel, Pokemon, rock 'n' roll and beyond
Boom Blox Bash Party Wii May 29th
Boom Blox was largely received as one of the best third-party games on the Wii. And now, a year later, it still stands out amongst its peers. Never being ones to rest on their laurels EA are back with a follow up - Boom Blox Bash Party.
The game promises to extend the original in a number of ways whilst retaining the simplicity and directness of controls. Not least are there a whole host of new ways to interact with the environment. From the slingshot tool to being able to pick-up and throw the in game characters, it looks like there will be more ways than ever to solve each level.
The environments themselves are also a lot more interesting. Not just because of the inevitable visual improvements but because they now effect the run of play. In the space level for instance the blocks have less gravity and float off when struck, whereas the underwater areas impose their floaty physics to gameplay.
The jewel in the crown is the ability of players to create their own levels using the same tools as the developers. These can then be shared, LittleBigPlanet-like, with an online community that can play and vote on your creations. If this was just a little more of the same we'd be excited. But with these additions we are on the edge of our seats for some proper time with Stephen Spielberg's plaything.
Battlestations Pacific PC Xbox 360 May 15th
Sensibly sticking to what they and the PC platform does best, Battlestations: Pacific is a real-time strategy game from Eidos Interactive. The game takes the series on and expands the concept in several ways. New combat features such as island invasions affect the run of a battle in progress. New weapons, planes and ships also feature - such as HVAR rockets and experimental jet fighters like the Kikka and Shinden.
The theatre of war also shifts beyond Midway and focuses on American forces as they continue the war in Okinawa. The biggest change promises to be that of a Japanese campaign that follows a "what if" scenario where Japan is victorious at Midway and invades America.
Always a big part of these games, the multiplayer options have been boosted with five new modes for both humans or AI opponents and either on or offline. Island capture for instance tasks you with spending points on ships, submarines, planes, landing craft to fight your way through enemy defences and capture the islands unlocking further unit types as you go.
Guitar Hero Metallica 360/PS3 May 29th
Guitar Hero continues its stream of special editions with Guitar Hero: Metallica this month. This follows up the previous Aerosmith themed game that was well received late last year. Guitar Hero: Metallica features 49 songs, 28 from Metallica, and 21 more from other bands that are "their personal favourites and influences from over the years". Activision report to have worked with Metallica to select songs from their catalogue that "pretty evenly represent all the different phases" of the band.
This version of Guitar Hero is a little harder than those past. No bad thing as players' familiarity with the format has increased somewhat. To this end the game features an Expert mode for drummers that adds a second bass drum pedal, providing they have the necessary additional peripheral. The game also includes the music creation mode from World Tour that enables players to create their own songs. In contrast, the Battle mode comes from Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock, although including Metallica influences with power-ups like "Fade to Black" and "Trapped Under Ice".
Although we have seen most of this before, the offer of a Metallica themed outing for our fake plastic guitars is as mouth watering as ever.
UFC Undisputed May 19th
UFC 2009 Undisputed returns this year with its mix of martial arts and ring fighting. Ultimate Fighting Championship 2009 has plenty to carry on its shoulders as THQ look to refresh the franchise which remained without release since 2004's UFC: Sudden Impact.
UFC 2009 takes the game away from the plethora of pro-wrestling titles and instead promises more realistic martial arts combat. A wider range of moves and more attention to timing than button mashing, UFC 2009 will attract players looking for a more skilful experience. And with around 100 UFC personalities across the five weight classes the game should offer plenty of breadth to matched the nuanced fighting.
Having hit the wall with wrestling games, we are more than happy to hear about some new ideas being thrown into the ring, and look forward to giving the game a good run for its money.
