What PS3 game do you want for Christmas?

With Christmas literally weeks away, there will be one question firmly to the front of many people’s minds. What are the latest and greatest PS3 games out there to buy for your kids? I’ve been sent a few games over the last couple of weeks by the very kind people at Sony and have put them to the test:

Disclaimer - I have asked my younger sister to help out with these reviews as she is a much better judge than I of games that involve pets or singing!

Take That SingStar

I am not a fan of any of these kind of games. In fact, I hate them with a passion. I intensely dislike it when parties turn into karaoke sessions, and dislike a Take That addition to the franchise even more. There. That’s my gripe over with. My review would have been quite one-sided so, I requested the help of my younger sister, Louise, who is 13. She had the following to say about this game:

‘I played Take That Singstar on the PS3 and I really enjoyed it. I have other Singstar Games as well and I’d probably say this is one of the best. I think you do need to know most of Take That’s songs though and when I first got the game I couldn’t play it until I listened to their songs online. It’s simple to choose songs and you can change the difficulty for each microphone if it’s too hard or easy for the person using it. Even if you’re not a good singer it’s lots of fun, whether it’s just you singing or with a friend or two. I think it’s worth buying if you have any interest in singing or Take That.’

So there you have it. It’s not necessarily a kids game. More for people that listened to Take That when they were kids. I quizzed Louise about her knowledge of Take That and she agreed that her friends and herself would have no knowledge of Take That’s older stuff. Is the game targeted at the wrong audience or is it clever marketing, pulling a younger audience into Take That’s back catalogue? You decide.

Rating: 6/10

EyePet

This game arrived in a stunning kit. Being honest, I was really excited about trying an Augmented Reality game on the PS3. I first wrote about Augmented Reality here, and enjoy reading Christian Hughes’s thoughts on AR on his blog. I really struggled with this game though. I would sell myself as being very digitally savvy. I can take computers apart and do some light programming, yet getting this game to work was beyond me. Eyepet uses the new playstation camera to allow you to interact with a virtual pet, but the conditions needed to get this to work right were next to impossible. Between getting the right angle, light, distance and height from the playstation, I had given up before the game even started. Over to my far more patient sibling 10 years my junior to save the day.

Cool Packaging

‘Eyepet is a console game that I played on the PS3. When I started playing it I expected it to be a simple game – for young kids. The mat that comes with it is awkward to use and extremely annoying. It takes a long time for your pet to be born and even though it’s cute and cuddly when it eventually arrives, it’s not worth the hassle. As the game comes with a motion sensor camera it expects you to move as if the egg or pet is actually on the mat. Sometimes it’s better to wave your hands in front of the camera and hope for the best. When you get really into the game it can be quite addictive but there’s only so much bowling and trampolining you can do with the pet before it gets boring. It’s almost impossible to play – definitely not a simple game and probably a waste of money for most people.’

I’m in agreement with Louise here. If you’re going to spend your money on an interactive PS3 game, you’re better off going for the classics like RockBand if you haven’t already bought it, or if you have it already, wait till Sony get their act together in relation to Augmented Reality. It’s a nice idea, but first to market is more often than not a mistake. Sony have done themselves more harm than good with this effort.

Rating: 2/10

There’s much better out there if you’re looking for fun and adventure in a more traditional gaming format.

Ratchet and Clank Future: A Crack in Time - This is a solid addition to the Ratchet & Clank franchise. Fans of previous entries will be very happy with the experience delivered here. The game looks and sounds beautiful, features a decent quest and sports some tight gameplay mechanics. A gameplay revolution this is not but it’s easy to recommend to fans of platformers and lovers of the dynamic duo themselves.

7.5 Good Sequel

Uncharted 2 - (A personal favourite) Uncharted 2: Among Thieves is everything that a sequel should be. It gives a breath of fresh air to the formula of the Uncharted but it has retained all the charm that made the first one so good. This is one of the best cinematic experiences you are likely to see this year; any fan of action/adventure games will not be disappointed with this one. Fans of the first game or even just fans of the action genre should not miss out on this. For those who are on the fence, give it a rent. This is one that should be seen by all. An excellent action game!

9.0 A Great Experience