Crash Bandicoot Returns in Fine Form

Phil Villarreal - Arizona Daily Star

Nov 30, 2007

VIDEO GAMES

Ratings are out of 10.

Crash of the Titans

(Xbox 360, Wii, PlayStation 2, PSP, DS, Game Boy Advance $19.99- $49.99)

Since his debut on the original PlayStation more than a decade ago, anthropomorphic marsupial Crash Bandicoot has run hot and cold in his quest to sit alongside Mario, Sonic and Ratchet as kings of platformers - action titles in which jumping and overcoming obstacles are significant parts of the play.

After a few years off, the jovial character has returned in solid if uninspired form, leaping, punching and floating his way to success in a cheeky adventure that rarely slows.

Although there is no online action, an offline two-player co-op mode is the most fun way to plow through a series of smallish, easily beatable enemies. Larger creatures, which try to swipe at you with claws and tusks, are more fun to tangle with, because after you stun them, you can hop onto their heads and control their movement in a move called "jacking." Like a Pixar film, the game appeals to kids with simplicity while playing to adults with sly humor.

Rating: 7.5.

The Eye of Judgment

(PlayStation 3, $69.99)

"The Eye of Judgment" toes the line between gimmick and innovation. Bundled with the PlayStation Eye camera, which lets you video chat because of an embedded microphone, the game is a card- based strategy competition like "Magic: The Gathering." You struggle with your opponent - either online, seated next to you or alone against the computer - to ace out your opponent and take over the grid.

The use of physical cards, scanned by the camera, is unnecessary, but weirdly cool in a "Back to the Future Part II" sort of way.

"The Eye of Judgment" is complicated and difficult to learn, but geekily absorbing. The rating would be at least a point higher if the game would have included some sort of single-player quest mode, but nearly all the gameplay focuses on story-free, one-on-one card battles.

Rating: 7.6.

Spider-Man: Friend or Foe

(Xbox 360, Wii, PlayStation 2, $39.99-$49.99)

In the wake of sometimes awe-inspiring Spidey games such as "Ultimate Spider-Man" and the open-world games based on the movies, it's disappointing to see the web-slinger stuck in a run-of-the- mill brawler.

Credit the developers for at least coming up with an appealing concept. You meet Spider-Man's enemies, fight most of them and recruit them onto your side after you've beaten them down. Once you've co-opted the bad guys, you can use one of them as your character instead of Spidey. A similar idea worked well in "X-Men Legends II: Rise of Apocalypse," but it feels stale here.

The problem in this game is the characters fight too similarly to give you much of a reason to prefer one over the other. The action is depressingly linear and repetitive: You enter a room with the exit closed off, punch all your enemies to death, triggering a magical opening to the next room, in which you'll do the same thing. You have none of the building-swinging freedom for which a Spider- Man fan yearns.

Still, there's something satisfying about grinding through an easy game as Spidey and his rivals, almost out of a sense of obligation to your love for the character. Much like watching the pathetic movies, come to think of it.

Rating: 6.

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