Dark Sector (360/PS3)

[Synthesthesia]

Its a very polished and enjoyable game though and well worth picking up if you like Resi 4 or Gears. Just dont expect to get what the hell is going on with story. This is clearly a case of gameplay over story.

It's decent, and quite enjoyable. But it's also really tedious in places, and the controls are horrible. The way he controls gives me motion sickness, headaches etc. I enjoyed it and completed it, well worth a go for a tenner.

[Number45]

What are the problems with the controls? No problems whatsoever with them here (At least once I'd turned off the SIXAXIS support for the glaive. ).

[rmoxon]

It's decent, and quite enjoyable. But it's also really tedious in places, and the controls are horrible. The way he controls gives me motion sickness, headaches etc. I enjoyed it and completed it, well worth a go for a tenner.

I disagree totaly, I didnt find the game tedious at all, there wasnt a single part of the game that I thought was bad, and most games have a couple of bad parts.

As for the controls, what version did you play? the 360 version plays great IMO and the controls are well mapped,they probabaly arent quite as well implemented as in Gears of War, but then very few games do control as well as that.

[JazzFunk]

Had this game for a fair few months now, it was £5, just been playing it now, got well into Chapter 2 so far, got the glaive, killed a fair few peeps with it but apart from severing one bod's arm, haven't achieved decapitation status as of yet - I'm guessing the glaive gets powered up? Any glaive tips'd be happily appreciated, I enjoy focused dismemberment in games, I hope I'm not missing out on dismemberment opportunities...?.

I'm on the see-saw tipping point in terms of how it plays. So far, what I've seen and felt, it seems very competent, extremely derivative, very DARK, but has played pretty blandish, and I'm hoping that the glaive mechanism becomes more intuitive and powerful, I really hope to muster the enthusiasm Cavalcade had for this game.

Game looks pretty awesome on my monitor, too, reminds me of a cross between Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory and Condemned in terms of visuals.

[chopemon]

You will get some upgrades for the glaive that will make enemies become play things. You'll be able to happily choose which enemy loses which limbs in which order!

[JazzFunk]

Finished this about half an hour ago, part of me really liked it, the other felt a bit meh about it all, a maximum of 7.2/10 for this bugger.

To me, and I can only speak for myself, this feels like a cross between Resi 4 and Timeshift, with the Timeshift element winning out overall. For all who're wondering, Timeshift is a relatively early 360 game, the epitome of a "meat n' potatoes" FPS game, entirely solid but also entirely bland and predictable, it's like boiled potatoes, the bad part of this game entirely reminds me of that game, the vibe is the same.

There are some really classy elements to this (the graphics, the glaive, the tension, some of the sound) but then you get generic FPS issues, like the whole game is a pattern, ie. "Go down this corridor, *expect* wide space at end, wide space contains loads of baddies, you must kill them all if you wish to go on, thankyou for killing them, progress down next corridor" etc.. There are a few bits where the atmosphere takes over, where the game lets you explore and suck in some incredibly good, creepy atmos, but these moments are minimal.

Graphics on this still look awesome for such an oldish game, it's no wonder Bioshock looked so lush if the gfx were partially handled by these guys, the shadows and darkness fx in this game are utterly brilliant, there are certain aforementioned bits that freaked me out (the cemetery bit is very well done, plus the bit in the derelict mansiony place).

When it's good, it resonates with the same survival horror feel of Resi 2, there are times when you've decided to run n' gun and you realise you are utterly up **** creek, you have to make do with either the glaive or nicking a baddie's gun (whereby the baddies' guns are 'coded' to that particular baddie, so you can only use them for 20 seconds or so until they self destruct in your hands). Like, stress-gaming, where you KNOW you can do it, it might take a few tries, but your heart's beating quite rapidly, no tangible sense of safety is in sight (even the 'Black Market' points, you go in and it isn't entirely clear what each decision means, the upgrade/buying/selling system in this game is entirely ****E). When it's bad, it just reminds you it's a well-executed process, just like Timeshift, but is also kinda unfun stressy at the same time.

The main selling point of the game, The Glaive(tm) is fairly well done but not quite as awesome as teh Internet makes it out to be, yes, you CAN dismember the enemies, take their arms, legs, heads off, even split them at the waist, you CAN add aftertouch to The Glaive(tm) so you can slightly spin it FPS-style around corners, or into their heads, but when fighting against (mainly) supernatural-type enemies, it feels more stressful rather than enjoyably godlike, it's a chore getting rid of a horde of metal screaming c*nts with that Glaive when in cover.

Anyway, I'm starting to sound negative here, this game is an *interesting* one, there's a lot in here to discuss, it's a game that seems to divide folk (like it half has me), it's DEFINITELY worth the £2-£5 you can get it for.

[Skull Commander]

This is a game I keep meaning to get back to. I got over half way through it then stalled, and have never went back. I need to start a fresh playthrough.

Anyway from what I can remember, I'd agree with what you said. There is much to like about this game, but then you get a section that just feels generic and lacking.