Costly Show Of Hands
Sydney Morning Herald
Monday February 5, 2007
Tournament of Champions is a solid but expensive poker package, writes Jason Hill.
World Series of Poker: Tournament of Champions 2007PC Xbox PS2 X360 Wii GC NDS PSP $79.95 ***Riding a tidal wave of popularity, Texas hold 'em poker is an engaging card game that is simple to learn but difficult to master. And, as World Champ Joe Hachem proved, it can be very lucrative, too. Aussie Joe features in this game, along with many professional card sharks. On the Xbox 360 version tested by Icon, you can challenge other real players in online tournaments and use a Live Vision camera to practise your best poker face, appearing onscreen.Most time will be spent in the career mode, in which players try to progress through a series of tournaments with increasing stakes. Going "all in" on a big hand is an adrenaline rush, even if there's no real cash involved.The game's interface is simple and all the necessary information is always on display, such as your hand, the blinds and the status of competitors. Beginners are not given much instruction but tools showing the odds of achieving certain hands, cards that will help and your current hand rank are helpful. The pace is slow but other characters, thankfully, don't waste time making repetitive comments. However, the Australian characters are unintentionally hilarious and the commentary isn't much better. Computer-controlled opponents are reasonably intelligent and convincing, although they tend to play in the same style. You'll witness smart behaviour such as check-raise strategies and trying to keep weaker hands in play. But their betting can sometimes be too aggressive.Players can also try High-Low and Omaha poker variants, host their own online tournaments and play at famous venues such as the Rio and Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. It's a solid poker package but, with many low-cost competitors on the market, budget-conscious shoppers might do better looking elsewhere for their card-playing fix. ENDGAME: A quality poker simulation but struggles to provide enough new features to warrant its price. Children of ManaPC Xbox PS2 X360 Wii GC NDS PSP $69.95 **This anime-styled adventure is packed with sword-slashing action and colourful fairytale characters but it doesn't quite have the depth or imagination that graced earlier games in the Mana series. Instead of having the freedom to explore the world, discovering useful items and encountering monsters to fight, Children of Mana warps your character from your village home to the battle site and back again, which makes the game feel less like an epic fantasy journey and more like a mechanical mission generator.Quests generally involve clearing successive rooms of cartoon-like monsters by hitting them with a sword or hammer. Because you can wield two weapons at once, it's also possible to accost enemies with a ranged weapon (such as a bow and arrow) first before closing in for the kill. Oddly, enemies tend to bounce around when struck, which can be annoying.A smattering of magic is at your fingertips, as an elemental spirit can accompany you to provide special power in times of need. However, it seems far more effective to bash monsters as quickly as possible than to bother with the clumsy magic system.Neither the touch screen nor the double screen features of the DS are used well, which seems a waste.It may be formulaic but Children of Mana still dangles a carrot by allowing players to enhance and customise their character by combining coloured gems to invoke new powers and abilities. Fusing gems in the search for a new skill to play with is interesting but the combat still involves repetitive button use.The vague story built on a pervading evil, magical tree and legendary sword is dull and too cliched to be compelling. ENDGAME: Children of Mana is beautifully presented but it's too childlike to satisfy serious gamers. Eliot Fish
© 2007 Sydney Morning Herald