Monster Hunter Freedom 2

Monster Hunter Freedom 2 for PSP
$39.99

They fought for survival together, tracking the most deadly prey. Now, the Monster Hunters face their most dangerous challenge yet. With more action, more perilous monsters and a massive new land to explore - it's an epic challenge. In a world before time began, join forces to keep your freedom. In a land of danger, it's simple, but never easy. Hunt or be hunted.

As mighty hunters, players can face a variety of quests alone, but the true spirit of the game comes from playing with others. Multiplayer cooperative battles for up to four friends via wireless ad hoc mode foster team building and strategy for the ultimate battle of man vs. beast. Players can fully customise their characters, building up their abilities with armour and weaponry as they make their way through hundreds of quests. With the addition of infrastructure functionality, players will now be able to download even more content and quests.

Rated: 12+
By: Capcom

Monster Hunter Freedom
$14.99
Reviewed for Big Boss Games by: Tim

Monster Hunter Freedom
By: Capcom
System: PlayStation Portable - PSP

The story intro (taken from the instruction book): What Story?

Story: 0/5
The story in this game is very weak. You must take a job assignment to kill, gather or trap a monster. You get to carve any animals that you kill, farm for more items to use, to make a new item, and repeat over and over and over till you toss your PSP into a wall!

Sound: 2/5
The sound in the game is good, the music changes tempo when you are near a strong monster. This feature helps to keep you on the edge, while trying to hunt down your target. The music also gives warning when to run from an ultra tough monster.

Graphics: 3/5
The graphics are in 3D. The game truly looks good.

Gameplay: 3/5
Working as a team (Ad Hoc/Infrastructure) and hunting down a tough monster is tons of fun. When playing solo this game is not as great and at times a bit tiresome and tedious.

Replay Value: 4/5
This is where this game shines. It supports up to 4 players in "Link" mode allowing up to 4 players to join in on a hunt at one time. Working as a team can make the most boring hunt, fun!

Overall: 2.5/5
This is a so-so game. Only the Monster Hunter fans from the PS2 game are going to love this game. I did like the multi-player aspect of the game. It lacked story and that is one of the major reasons why I play videogames. Oh and don't forget to CARVE! CARVE! CARVE!

Monster Kingdom: Jewel Summoner
$39.99
To me, a good game should have: a story line, lots of adventure, cool characters, and very creative.
I know, I know, high standards. But this game had it all. I'm really glad i bought it. I can even play it through more than once -- the story line depends on which characters you choose to be a part of your team. And they're entertaining!
I definitely recommend this product.

Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII
$19.99
Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII

The PSP hasn't had too many notable breakthroughs in the past few years and has clearly been in a fight for its life as the Nintendo DS continues to flourish. However, as the Xbox has shown us with the phenomenal success of Halo: Combat Evolved, one game can be the ticket to victory or just another limp paddle stroke along the slowly moving river. Does Crisis Core prove to be the PSP's bread and butter or another nameless title to be left in the dust?

Crisis Core offers the same tickles and thrills of a fan fiction story line. It incorporates most of the cast from Final Fantasy VII and adds a few forgettable new ones. Following the exploits of Zack Fair, the game sets the scene for those of you who have or are about to play the original Final Fantasy VII. It's interesting to see Cloud out of the limelight for once, and have the focus redirected on a more energetic, optimistic and let's face it, overall better protagonist. Aside from the fan favorite characters, Crisis Core experiments with adding some new faces to the legendary title. The first unmemorable face is Zack's mentor, Angeal. Angeal is a wise, reserved soldier who tries to impart his wisdom onto Zack and as a result ends up frustrating the vibrant youth and forcing the player to continue pressing the "skip scene" button. Cissnei, a Shinra turk, is yet another among the forgotten, acting as a secondary and painfully unnecessary love interest. Most of Cissnei's dialogue is like butchered Shakespeare, out of breath, rushed and no where near poetic. Honestly, if Cissnei as a romance was that important to Square Enix the writers should have invested more thought into her or not had her in the plot at all. Of course not all of fresh characters go by the wayside, in fact one sprite in particular contributes a brilliant performance and the cornerstone conflict of the story. Genesis, is arguably the main antagonist of Crisis Core, and gives the original Final Fantasy VII villain, Sephiroth, a run for his money. Misunderstood, bitter, and a man of artistic words, Genesis steals the show as a truly complex, mysterious and intriguing character who leaves the player to speculate if his motives are really right or wrong. But, if you are like most veterans of the series, you are purchasing this game for one and only one reason, to have another show down with the menacing First Class Soldier, Sephiroth. Sephiroth takes second fiddle this time around and acts more as a morally conflicted partner than an actual "villain". I often found myself waiting and watching for Sephiroth's epic fall to the dark side, much like anticipating Anakin's transformation into Darth Vader in the Star Wars series. However, I felt somewhat cheated. Sephiroth's fall was portrayed way too fast and resulted in an uninspiring, yet expected, show down with Zack at the foot of Jenova.

While the story may be a hot/cold experience for most, the one solid thing about Crisis Core is the gameplay. Mirroring similar traits from Final Fantasy XII, Crisis Core has the protagonist roaming around the battle field selecting attacks from a menu located in the bottom right corner. While this gameplay was not well received by the gaming community, I personally think it is a huge feat for a portable game. All the traditional aspects of an RPG are here. Magic can be quickly selected and thrown at enemies and heavy physical attacks, though time consuming, result in a rewarding blow. Overall, the game is merely a fast fingered traditional RPG that allows the player more freedom in dodging enemy attacks (Finally!).

Crisis Core doesn't only succeed in gameplay, but in the visual field as well. The environments in the game are astounding, delivering the nostalgic and beautiful ambience of the original title, revamped spectacularly taking advantage of the PSP's impressive graphics. From character models to high-action battle effects, the visuals in Crisis Core put PS2 graphics to shame. In particular, Square Enix's mastery of the CG rendered clips are well worth the price of admission alone.

Lastly, the audio in the game can be viewed as a mixed experience. While the music is extraordinarily composed and adds unparalleled intensity to battle sequences and complete despair in those unexpected plot twists, the voice acting just can keep up with the pace. It isn't always the voice actors' fault, but downright ridiculous and often embarrassing dialogue. The actors did the best the could with what they were given, but most times it seems like all the good lines were given to Genesis. Don't get me wrong, the story still isn't that bad, but just beware. You'll have to suppress some of those corny scenes from your memory to enjoy the plot thoroughly.

Altogether, Crisis Core is one of the best portable experiences on the market today and is well worth those twenty some hours it takes to complete. The story is interesting, the gameplay innovative, visuals breathtaking and the sound up to par with other titles in circulation, make Crisis Core a definite success for the PSP and another compelling chapter in Final Fantasy VII mythology.