The Month: August 08

Friday 1 August 2008

Here we are again, the beginning of the new gaming month. Well... the beginning of the new month, but the new gaming month too. Hopefully after last months disappointments we'll see a more formidable line up of summer games. In addition, this is to note that DW apologises for his continuing absence, but he's working on a new project currently. Hopefully once it's up and running we'll see some more of him. Thanks to Melasis for keeping some sort of material on the site.

Table Football
Well... I know to people who don't have a Wii this must sound like a ridiculous idea for a game. But it looks like it might be fun. And I don't see why it shouldn't be. It's a typical Wii-style game: and they've been one style of game that hasn't seen disappointment after disappointment. Mainly because people didn't really expect much from them.
Platforms: Wii
Release Date: 08/08/08

Age of Empires III: Asian Dynasties
This is a new expansion for AoE III. If you enjoy AoE III then go for it, it adds quite a bit of new content: maps, civilisations, campaigns etc. If you haven't played AoE III and you were thinking of buying this game and the original and giving it a go then I would suggest against it, even if you enjoyed the previous installments of AoE. It was a fair game but not really much worth spending good time and money. This expansion, unless it fixes the inherent 'business' of the first one probably isn't worth getting.
Platforms: PC, Mac
Release Date: 12/08/08

Madden NFL 09
If you don't know what this is, don't buy it. If you do, then you might like it, lots of new features etc. but still, essentially, Madden NFL 08, just updated slightly. Your choice this time. As a side note, the Wii has its own version Madden NFL 09 All-Play. Same game, but with support for your remote. Dunno whether that really makes a difference. *yawn*
Platforms: Wii, PS3, X360, PSP, DS
Release Date: 15/08/08

X-OOM Media Centre for Wii XE
This looks interesting. I hadn't heard about it this before I started the research for this article, but it looks like a must have for Wii-only owners. It basically brings Wii owners up to speed with Xbox owners, working as an extension of their PC onto their Wii: effectively Media Centre Extender. However, as far as I can see, this program doesn't require XP Media Centre 05, or Vista. And it retails at £29.99! Not bad at all. So if you own a Wii and can't be bothered with the more complicated methods of getting your movies onto your big screen then this is the way to do it. So long as it works ok, this is my pick of the month for the Wii.
Platforms: Wii
Release Date: 15/08/08

Sony Playstation 3 with 80 gig HDD
It's finally arriving here. The 60 gig's bigger brother. Retailing at 299, so snap one up if you have the odd £300 lying around. Pick of the month for PS3, seeing as PS3 games seem so scarce this month.
Platforms: n/a
Release Date: 27/08/08

The Sims 2: Apartment Life
Well... it's yet another expansion pack from EA Games for the Sims 2. God knows what extras this one contains, but I can tell you without looking at a detailed list that it will have new items, new places to go, and new clothes and stuff for your own personal avatar. If you Sims fans have any space left on your shelf for more expansions then I'm sure you don't need to tell you to buy this one.
Platforms: PC
Release Date: 29/08/08

Too Human
Looks something interesting: an RPG set in the middle of the typical 'epic struggle' between some guys and the bad guys. You are a 'cybernetic god' in the middle of it all, preventing the good guys from getting wiped out. Dunno. Seems a little 'done' to me, but the developers are pretty reputable, Silicon Knights, it uses that Unreal Engine 3, which is pretty well reknowned. So, yeah, it might be worth giving a go.
Platforms: X360
Release Date: 29/08/08

Soul Calibur: Legends
For those people unlucky enough to not be able to own SCIV, you've been given this token game: Legends. Honestly... get a console that has SCIV on it if you want it. There is no way this could be good.
Platforms: Wii
Release Date: 29/08/08

Well, there seems to be plenty of choice, but no quality. Not a good month for gaming really. My two 'pick of the month' games weren't even games! If you own a 360 my suggestion is going to remain SCIV, same for the PS3, unless you want another PS3. I suppose my general suggestion to all gamers this month is for you to go out and get some much needed fresh air. Next month the gaming season starts again, you're going to need to store away as much oxygen as possible for the gaming-heavy winter months.

Labels: PC, PS3, The Month, Wii, Xbox360

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Article Posted: Friday 1 August 2008 at 03:48.
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