In this jam-packed holiday release season there are some obvious next-gen titles that are must-haves: Modern Warfare 2, Brutal Legend, Dragon Age: Origins, Assassin’s Creed 2.  Historically, hand-held ports released simultaneously with their console-cousins have been sad attempts to convert on the huge numbers of gamers that own a DS. Marketing meetings had people applying what would seem to be sound logic, citing the number of DS’s is circulation and saying they need to capitalize on their big-name title. The name alone should guarantee at least moderate sales numbers and justify its development.

These decisions had to have been made without the slightest consideration if, in any competent way, it can be transferred to the handheld medium. Then, the developer is given half of the regular dev cycle to crank it out. Sadness ensues, and poor reviews follow.

Assassin’s Creed 2: Discovery, however does its best to break this stereotype. With quick action, varied kill methods, and challenging level design the game brings some entertaining action to quickly maturing DS. I was pleasantly surprised by some of the fun mechanics in the game, allowing me to relish in some of the more badass moments of Assassin’s creed while still feeling a Mario-esque connection to the gameplay.

Read on for more…

Having only recently fallen into the deep pool of entertainment that is the DS that I have resisted for so long, I was plagued with memories of bad Game Boy and Game Boy Advance (SP) games that tried to emulate console games. When I picked up Assassin’s Creed 2: Discovery, I told myself I wasn’t going to judge a game by my former experiences. So, with an open mind, I booted it up.

I was first surprised with how good and smooth the movement was. The game begins with the typical training simulator, showing you the ropes of how things are going to roll with the controls and movement. Then it drops you in with some basic killing to be done. Also, some basic platforming has you running as fast as you can along the rooftops and doing some fun aerobatics which actually feel pretty good.

The game is supposed to be a diversion from the main storyline on the console, but I was bored to tears within minutes and skipped practically every cut scene without feeling like I missed out on anything. It’s supposed to surround the events leading up to the discovery of America – I know I should care but I’m not terribly interested in story when I’m playing in 15-20 minute spans. I just want to kill people, and fortunately the story doesn’t really get in the way. It’s there if you want it or you can skip through it like I did.

The mechanics of the game are a little odd, telling you that you need to be in the “stealth mode” to perform assassinations, but as long as the enemy is facing the other way, you can walk up and hit the attack button and it takes them down. I stumbled upon this, thankfully, near the beginning of the game and was able to capitalize on it throughout.

Now, here’s the part that bugs me a bit – it has no touch functionality. The game could have been just fine on the PSP which has no touch and stronger graphics with no complaints. However, the great thing about the DS is that it allows developers to put interesting mini-games in that break up some of the repetition of the platforming. I was expecting some pickpocket touch games, assassination touch games, and, at the very least, some sort of “the truth” puzzles from the console to make that more robust. I was disappointed on all accounts, sadly. With these small additions, this game would have been a gem, but without them the game felt a little repetitious and mundane. The touchpad for the entire game is regulated to your “radar” and where you see your objectives.

The game cycles between three modes – Normal, stealth, and escape (sometimes the latter is timed). In the first you are encouraged to explore, finding wanted posters and removing them to increase your health. You may explore, fight and climb to your heart’s content. However, when you finish the level you are rated on your performance. Basically it rates your stealth kills, damage taken, and time taken to get through the level. What bothered me is that the expected time limit is ridiculously low. It seems like they expect you to dash through every level, not collecting anything. Stealth allows you to be seen three times by the guards or archers. On the fourth spotting, you are sent back to the level start/checkpoint. The escape levels are just that, you run as fast as you can to escape a constant barrage of arrows and sometimes to beat the clock. These are honestly my favorites because they create a sense of urgency and an excuse to burn through a level as fast as possible, only killing when it’s convenient.

If you do not enjoy timing-based combat some of the fights can get frustrating. To survive sometimes you’re expected to have lightning quick reflexes to block or parry enemy’s sword blows, or even to block an arrow. These were timing issues that could have been worked out but some of the game seems like it had a short QA pass to make sure the game came out on time. There were two platforming puzzles that saw me die to excess – sometimes 10 or 11 times before the timing worked out that I didn’t get shot or hit by magically respawning enemies. Overall, however I did enjoy the platforming in a Sonic the Hedgehog kind of way.

Assassin’s Creed 2: Discovery is an entertaining jaunt that gets repetitive at times, and sometimes frustrating due to some timing issues that seem near impossible to get the hang of. But, as far as handheld versions of big titles go, it’s a strong start to what could eventually be tweaked and perfected into a fun DS franchise. Will it get that treatment? Only Ubisoft knows. Should you pick this game up? I would say yes if you like the Assassin’s Creed brand and can’t get enough of stabbing people with concealed blades. If you enjoy the console version and own a DS, you should at least drop it on your Gamefly queue. It’s good for long rides and makes for a good bit of quick fun.

Assassin’s Creed 2: Discovery Score: 6.5

Star Wars Battlefront I and II were epic creations, meant to be fast paced and played with friends. You had many classes that tailored to many different play styles. Earning the right to pick a Jedi as your class showed a strong ability to play the game well. You played against your friends and enjoyed epic battles on what seemed a grand scale. They weren’t the prettiest game you’ve ever played, but they were fun.

As fans, we’ve waited for the next iteration of Star Wars Battlefront for over 4 years now. We were all crestfallen when we heard Free Radical had been taken off the project, and even more bummed when we saw the footage of the game that could have been.

Star Wars Battlefront: Elite Squadron is, unfortunately, not the game we’ve been waiting for. Before you go jumping in thinking this is going to be the what the Sith ordered to satisfy your Battlefront craving, there are a few things you will want to know…

First off, remember that this is a DS game. Secondly, remember Nintendo’s stance on online play, and the wifi/internet abilities of the DS/DS Lite. Or, I should say, the fact that they don’t have any online capability. But I’m getting a little ahead of myself – Let me start at the beginning.

Star Wars Battlefront: Elite Squadron is a game that has very big shoes to fill. By carrying the Battlefront name, it is following up the best selling Star Wars game of all time. With that name comes high expectations – sadly it misses the mark on many counts.

You begin the game during the Clone Wars, as Clone brothers X1 and  X2. I understand that the clones had designations, but I really could have done with some better names, or nicknames. You are not typical clones, but special ones given more free will than the rest. You play a couple training missions, and then whammy, Order 66 comes down. Your bro, X1 has no problem following orders, but you question the order to kill your Jedi friend.

The game then takes you on a ride that includes both land and space arenas. However one key difference is that you may do both within the same mission. Its not completely seamless, the taking off/landing are all cut scenes but its a neat transition. You basically have 3 main combat modes:

1) Ground
2) Space
3) Speeder

All three are pretty fast paced, if a little repetitive. As you continue on, you find out that X2 was there at all the major battles throughout the Star Wars franchise, but just in the background. They wisely don’t have you actually come face to face with any of the main cast during the timeframe that covers the movie but you have radio contact on several occasions with Anakin, Obi-Wan, Han, Leia, Lando and Ackbar. Once the classic trilogy story has ended you have one more act, in which you actually become a Jedi and become a student of Luke’s.

The biggest problem I have with the story is most of the dialogue. I know the game is 10+, but they could have made it slightly more intriguing and original. They basically took the Star Wars storyline and just shoved these guys in. I’m shocked that Sansweet allowed this to happen, being the keeper of the timeline.

The gameplay while on the ground is focused around 4 classes plus Jedi – Assault, Heavy, Engineer and Spy. Each class has a primary and secondary gun, along with either a grenade or auto-turret. Plus, your lightsaber and force powers, which are available during Act 3 of single player only.

Graphically, I’m not going to really delve too far. The capabilities of the DS aren’t given to cinematic 3D graphics. The game looks pretty good – the artwork is very Star Wars-y and creates the right atmosphere. However, when there are more than 5 models on the screen, the game takes about a 20% speed hit. Its most noticeable when you’re playing the Spy, when he’s firing so quickly.

Controls bothered me a LOT. With little to no control over where I’m firing I found just running in a big circle around the room holding down B. Plus, the game did not feel like a DS game should. There was absolutely no use for the touch screen outside of looking at it as a radar. You could slightly zoom in if you tapped it, but for 99% of the game I left my stylus in the hideaway. The other 1% was the menus at the beginning, however I could have just used the d-pad. It felt very much like a lo-res port of the PSP version, just to try and tap into the bazillion DS owner market.

Sound was good – I love the SW music so that was a joy to me. Lightsabers sounded like they’re supposed to. Blasters sounded like they’re supposed to. Good stuff.

The overall fun of the game? Its not in the single player. The single player campaign was, overall, way too easy. When there were parts that were actually difficult they seemed, in contract, to be out of place. There were two points in the game where I got flat out frustrated and had to walk away for a bit. As for the instant action, I had only one opportunity to play with someone over the DS wifi and it was pretty stable, but still a little laggy. The instant action strategy is mostly just run up to someone and press B. They’ll die or you will and then you’ll pick again and respawn. There wasn’t much strategy in it or really that much excitement.The single player isn’t really worth playing again, and the instant action wears out after a few hours unless you have friends to play with. The best parts for me were the space battles. They seemed to flow pretty well and I found myself wishing I were in space when I got on the ground.

To conclude – if you’re really craving some good Battlefront action, you’d be better served by going back and playing 1 or 2 to get your fix. Online for both games still works well and there are a lot of people still playing. The DS game would be good for a select few who just cannot get enough Battlefront, but please – give it a rent before you sink $30 into it to make sure its what you’re looking for. The mobile Star Wars Battlefront games haven’t been stellar yet, but there’s hope for the DSi to maybe fix that. In the meantime, we’ll be watching the YouTube video of what could have been Battlefront III. And crying in the corner because it no longer is.

Overall, I give this game a 6 out of 10 – there were enjoyable parts of the game, for certain. Mostly they came because of either a neat musical effects, and like I said before: in space. It is by no means a terrible game. However for one who bears the Battlefront name, it missed the mark of greatness.

Star Wars Battlefront: Elite Squadron

Rating: 6.0/10