The premise of Heroes Paradise surrounds Travis Touchdown – a cocky slacker whose talent for violence always seems to exceed his opponents. After inadvertently killing a member of the United Assassins Association, he becomes the 11^th best assassin around. He decides to go after the 10 above him and become the best assassin alive. The story is relatively interesting, but what keeps it going is the banter and humorous dialogue between Travis and the various characters throughout his murderous mission.

Travis and the world of Santa Destroy have had a decent overhaul with the jump to the PS3. Textures are sharper, lighting is crisper, and it runs incredibly smoothly. Unfortunately, there’s not all that much technical prowess to wonder over as everything still seems a little bland throughout the game. That said, the retro touches and over-the-top visual cues make up for a lot of the simplicity the game has to offer.

Despite the visual touches, practically nothing has been added to the gameplay side of Heroes Paradise. It maintains its hack-and-slash mechanics whereby players can execute deadly limb-severing moves. The problem is that playing with a normal controller doesn’t give players much choice, as after a few strikes, a simple press of R3 and a directional instruction on the analog results in a timeous death for your enemy – and there’s not much more than that.

If you do manage to use the Playstation Move controller, it is a lot more fun however the developers have made no attempt to implement the Move’s precision with this remake. The same vertical or horizontal slashes result in the same moves and animations. It is enjoyable, but this really is a stock-standard platform port.

The No More Heroes series does deserve a spot on the Playstation 3; that goes without saying. The problem is that it doesn’t show any substantial improvements from the Wii version and its sequel Desperate Struggle. The homages to old-school games and crude social commentary are awesome when they work, but this installment just doesn’t seem to highlight them by failing to harness the potential on the new system.

Pros

• Great sense of humor
• Frantic gory combat

Cons

• Potential of PS3 and Move Controller wasted
• No gameplay differences to Wii version
• Feels bland

The plot of Ghost of Sparta slots in ever so neatly between God of War 1 and 2. Now equipped with the Blades of Athena, the ever rebellious Kratos has discovered that his God ‘buddies’ were behind the death of his long lost brother. Kratos sets off on a mission across famous mythological settings to uncover the truth behind his brothers death and to try and bring him back.  In typical God of War fashion the game benefits from great story telling and believable voice acting.

Ghost of Sparta remains true to its roots and delivers the fast paced, blood squirting hack and slash gameplay that the series is known for. This time around the emphasis is more on action as there are no puzzles to be found, but with all the chaos unfolding infront of you, you wont even notice. Kratos also benefits from new magical powers, the ability to set his blades on fire as well as a cool new Spartan weapon. Players can expect a some cool platforming sections as well as some intense quicktime events.

Visually, Ghost of Sparta is the most impressive game to ever hit the psp. The graphics are sharp and environments are beautifully detailed. Most of all the game does get pretty intense at times and the frame rate keeps up really well.

God of War: Ghost of Sparta is an incredible game and a definite pick me up for those who were left saddened by the end of God of War 3. If your PSP has been gathering some dust, this is the game which will make you take it out of the cupboard. With tons of action and some replay value, its a sure bet for any hack and slash fanatic.

Pros

• Gorgeous graphics on the PSP
• Backstory of Kratos’ brother
• Combat as good as God of War 3

Cons

• Lacking any real puzzles

Flesh and Blood is set between the second and third films, as players take on the role of Detective Trapp’s son, Michael. After Michael searches for clues on his father’s mysterious death, he is caught up with Jigsaw and his horrific games as he pushes Michael to the limits in order for him to find the truth. Players also jump into the shoes of another character, drug addict Campbell, who is fighting his own battles. The story may be somewhat confusing to grasp for newcomers to the series, however it captures the atmosphere and context of the Saw films excellently with great voice work from Tobin Bell as he reprises his role as Jigsaw.

Saw 2 plays out as a third-person puzzle game, however the elements of horror and combat give it much more to boast about. Puzzles are hands-down the strong point of the game, with some innovative ideas and unique situational puzzles really elevating the title beyond the run-of-the-mill movie tie-ins. Combat on the other hand is not so sharp this time around. When encountered with an enemy, players are required to dodge and then engage in timed button sequences in order to finish off the opponent. It does the job but doesn’t really create a sense of tension at any point.

Flesh and Blood is once again running on the Unreal Engine so it does look rather impressive. There are some great lighting effects and the gore does look meaty and believable, however there are some awkward animations and some ‘too-dark’ moments (whether the game was going for it or not).

Saw 2: Flesh and Blood is not a bad title; it’s just not a very good one either. It does enough as it improves on the puzzle mechanics from the first title, but all the intensity and horror is taken out of the combat. It’s not for everyone, but fans of the films will appreciate the atmospheric touches and authenticity translated from the movies.

The God of War Trilogy

The God of War franchise is known for its slick hack-and-slash gameplay and quick-time events; however it’s also famous for producing some of the goriest and most brutal kills in gaming. Whether Kratos is pulling a cyclops’ eye out or ripping an enemy in two, God of War flexes its blood stained muscles.

Mr. Cyclops, um... you've got something on your eye

Dead Space

While Dead Space isn’t for all-out gore, it’s spooky atmosphere and intense necromorph encounters highlight what usually comes next. Dead Space hosts so many death animations that you’ll rarely come across the same one more than once. It’s a bit depressing knowing such violence comes from protagonist Isaac dying, but nevertheless it still counts.

"Dude! Why'd you have to make such a mess when dying!?"

Soldier of Fortune

While gamers might remember the lackluster third entry into the series, set your mind back to the original Soldier of Fortune. One of the first games to incorporate technology which allowed for dynamic dismemberment, Soldier of Fortune shocked players as they blew off legs, arms and heads off of enemy mercenaries.  It may not seem inappropriate now, but back then it dropped a whole lotta jaws.

That dude getting shot used to have a head - Pivotal point in gaming history

Dead Rising

Zombie apocalypses are never going to be pretty, but Dead Rising proved this notion by providing players with hordes of the undead to manipulate and devour as they pleased. Dead Rising is probably the only game you’ll see death from a lawnmower, baseball bat and a rocket-launcher in within 5 minutes of playtime.

The possibilities are endless...

Ninja Gaiden 2

Ryu Hayabusa knows how to take on some seriously hard enemies. Another thing he knows is how to make gallons of blood spurt from said enemies at will. Ninja Gaiden 2 produces some of the fastest and most gruesome kills in video game history thanks to razor-sharp weapons and lightning-fast reflexes. It just doesn’t get any better.

Ryu bowing after his "Jackson Pollock in Blood" rendition

Notable Mentions: Mortal Kombat series, Thrill Kill (google it!), Manhunt, MadWorld

In WET, you play as Rubi Malone, a samurai-sword and duel-pistol wielding “problem solver” who handles life’s more ‘complex’ situations – almost like a bounty hunter, without rules or morals. After a deal goes south with a rich business man, Rubi is forced to deal out some revenge, taking players on a globe spanning escapade to find her double-crosser and set the record straight. The story isn’t bad by any means, but it’s not Oscar winning material. It unfolds with a few plot diversions and twists, although it doesn’t actually require any of these elements, as WET is all about the action, and that is where the gameplay comes in.

WET plays out almost like a Tony Hawk’s game with guns. You shoot and slash your way through levels, usually destroying certain objects in order to block enemy entrances, allowing the player to clear the room with a combination of acrobatic skills and stylish gunplay. Rubi’s health regenerates in accordance to the style points earned from killing enemies.

In terms of acrobatics, Rubi can jump, dive, slide, wall run, vault, scale ledges, swing, slide down ladders – all while firing from a range of weapons, spanning from pistols to shotguns. All these acrobatic elements culminate into some great platforming moments that would even make the Prince of Persia blush. Rubi’s weapons and acrobatic abilities can also be upgraded throughout the game, giving the player a greater variety of moves to score big (and kill even bigger) with.

Different from games such as Max Payne and Dead to Rights which use ‘bullet-time’ bars, slow-motion is activated whenever the player shoots while performing any of Rubi’s graceful stunts. Whether diving through mid-air, wall running, or sliding on her knees, time will be slowed down while firing, allowing for players to cause some beautiful chaos, which results in some awesome action sequences that even Michael Bay would be proud of.

The shooting is also rather unique in WET, allowing players to fire at two targets simultaneously. While one gun auto-aims at the closest enemy, players can aim Rubi’s other gun at another, allowing for the continual death-count to be taken up a notch, as well as helping with those over-whelming enemy situations.

Swordplay is also a lot of fun in WET, giving the ability to strike using the sword from a number of different style moves, such as leaping off walls, an upward thrust out of a slide or slashing through mid-air. The normal attacks are your typical hack-and-slash combos, but are incredibly entertaining with some slow-motion and dismemberment thrown in there.

‘Rage’ events also come into play, where pre-determined segments, literally (and figuratively) have Rubi seeing red, whereby the colours turn red and black, while blood appears as a contrasting white. These moments are pure eye-candy, and with the heightened artistry, comes a drastic increase in body-count as Rubi will easily shoot and slash away enemies in her enraged state.

In addition to the normal gameplay, there are certain sequences, such as a highway car chase where Rubi leaps from vehicle to vehicle thanks to some action-packed quick-time events. There’s always something special about cars flipping and exploding in slow motion, and WET has it all.

Past the story mode, there is a ‘Points Count’ mode where a required style score is needed to progress through levels, as well as a ‘Challenge Mode’ which pits Rubi against the clock in order to take out certain targets while performing her trademark jaw-dropping stunts.

Where WET excels is in its style as it is reminiscent of 80’s grindhouse action films, full of boyishly awesome gore and foul-mouthed dialogue. A film grain and scratched-frame effect is incorporated, allowing for a unique yet over-the-top action game to be presented.

Rubi is also a pure badass, yet charming enough to really enjoy and like. Voiced by Eliza Dushku, she sounds and looks great with flawless animations and movements. Enemies, although varied, are still the produced goons, but at the fast rate and pace that you kill them at, it doesn’t really matter. Complete with retro film adverts between each scene of the game, WET is one stylish outing.

WET is an exciting title in terms of its action and presentation. While it’s not the most polished game in existence, its over-the-top action and grindhouse style emmits awesomeness and will be loved by any fans of the genre. WET is proof that a game can be outrageously fun by disregarding common technicalities which limit many games today. Some of the mechanics may not make sense on paper, but when you sit back and play WET, you’ll soon understand just what fun is all about.

[starreviewmulti id=1 tpl=20]