**********s'il y a des amateur de PS2 , je peux mettre celui de Socom. Si vous le voulez dites moi le.***********

***upadate: Je crois que la review est a accessible par tous.***

Super Monkey Ball 2
More levels. More mini-games. More multiplayer. More fun. Our full review of Sega's monkey-filled bonanza.





August 24, 2002 - Sometimes the greatest games are born of the oddest ideas. Sega's Super Monkey Ball, which debuted for GameCube last year, was certainly one of those. The title pitted players as ball-encapsulated monkeys whose only goal was to traverse giant, maze-like 3D levels without falling off the platforms to their demise. It was a twisted Marble Madness for the next-generation. Packed full of levels and equally topped with multiplayer-centric mini-games, SMB was addictive, fresh and purely entertaining. It was also a relatively simple, intuitive game, which made it a perfect selection for both children and adults, male and female players.
Now Sega and developer Amusement Vision have returned with a spirited sequel in Super Monkey Ball 2. The follow-up adheres to the play style and mechanics of the original offering, but adds an overwhelming supply of new single-player levels, expands upon the sizeable multiplayer mini-games already featured with several fantastic entries, and updates the graphic look so that environments are flashier and more animated. As a single-player game SMB2 is more difficult and satisfyingly challenging, but its multiplayer mode is untouchable by everything else currently available on Nintendo's next-generation console.

Features


Control ball-encapsulated monkeys through 3D-like mazes
New story mode
150 new stages
One to four players can compete, cooperate and collide in 12 addictive Party games
Explore 10 Monkey Worlds filled with unique themes and incredible visuals in the new Story Mode
Six totally revamped Party Games: Monkey Race, Monkey Fight, Monkey Target, Monkey Billiards, Monkey Bowling, and Monkey Golf
Six brand new Party Games: Monkey Tennis, Monkey Baseball, Monkey Soccer, Monkey Boat Race, Monkey Shot, and Monkey Dog Fight
Simple control scheme
Runs in progressive scan mode
Gameplay
Super Monkey Ball 2, like its predecessor, enjoys a simple premise, which is to roll monkeys encased in glass balls through large, maze-like, and wholly interactive levels. The control functions have remained totally unchanged from the original game, which in our opinion is a good thing. The GameCube's analog stick steers the monkeys, and that's all there is to it. The trick is in making sure the characters don't fall off the platform ledges, or that each stage's countdown timer doesn't run out, before gamers can successfully make it through a goal located on each level. It's all very intuitive.

While the premise is certainly simple, the challenges themselves aren't always as quickly passed. The phrase "easier said than done" comes to mind when writing about some of the areas featured in the sequel, which boasts some 150 totally new levels and a noticeably more difficult learning curve. While the first batch of stages is easily beaten, particularly for players accustomed to the controls of the franchise, the hard areas surface quicker than they did in the original game. There are, of course, more looping, spinning, corkscrewing areas to navigate, and there are likewise levels that move up and down, left and right, and spin things around as gamers stare in awe. The overall level design is more inspired and more extravagant than in the first title. Loops are bigger and longer, and filled with other obstacles, corkscrews move, challenging players to stay on, and levels rotate while thrusting pillars upward through holes, making navigation entirely hopeless the first time through. Sega has also added new function pads -- play, rewind, fast-forward and stop -- that trigger and move parts of levels when rolled over resulting in an improved element of strategy in-game. The single-player levels alone, revamped and fantastic, are reason enough to consider picking up Super Monkey Ball 2.

That will be times when completing a stage seems a task near impossible, and sometimes this will prove frustrating. Indeed, some of the obstacles can be described as "cheesy" the first time through as gamers have no idea what to expect and are sure to fail. But there's something intangible there, too -- attribute it to clever design or the simple will of players to win -- that will almost certainly keep gamers trying again and coming back for more. And even bested stages present new challenges to crafty players looking for the best shortcuts and time bonuses. Meanwhile, SMB2's pacing is commendable, serving up new tasks in stage after stage, all of them classy and fun in their own way, if difficult at times.

The levels themselves are one thing, but what about the new additions? There are plenty to list. First, Sega has included a Story Mode in the single-player game. It's simple and at times ridiculous, weird and borderline disturbing, but it fits with the over-the-top style of the game. In it, a tyrannical monkey scientist named Dr. Bad Boon, desperately seeking friends, has kidnapped the bananas of the peaceful monkeys and so they go on a quest to retrieve them. The levels in the game are then explained as booby-trapped challenges that Bad Boon has setup for the monkeys. It's not deep or thrilling, but it is cute enough and the occasional in-engine cut-scene tells the story as players advance.



One of the pretty lava-themed single-player stages.


More importantly, though, are the multiplayer-centric mini-games, of which there are many. The six minis featured in the first game are back, including Monkey Race, Fight, Target, Billiards, Bowling and Golf, and all of them revamped and boasting new additions. Each mode has been deepened considerably with the inclusion of more levels, or more holes, or more lanes, or more arenas. For instance, Monkey Bowling now comes complete with regular lanes and fantastical ones that move, zigzag, or go concave. In truth, these new lanes could probably be released as a stand alone game; exploring the mode is that much fun, that rewarding. But the fact that Monkey Bowling is only a small part of the huge title is a true testament to how much replay value it radiates. Monkey Fight now includes a sudden death mode; Target has formation flying and split-screen play; Race has several new track themes. All of these are great fun. Players can imagine the multiplayer possibilities.


But there are six brand new party games too including Monkey Tennis, Baseball, Soccer, Boat Race, Shot and Dog Fight, several of them true winners. It seems some of these are a monkey-ized reproduction of Sega's other games. Monkey Tennis plays a lot like a cross between Mario and Virtua Tennis, for instance, which pleases us greatly. It even supports two-on-two multiplayer action -- an option that is sure to waste the hours and days of gamers in college dorms across the globe. Baseball lacks depth, but is fun in short bursts. It follows the basic structure of the sport with some major changes. One player must pitch, or roll, a monkey ball down to the batter. Once the ball has been hit, it rolls over ramps in the outfield that jettison it off for a single, double, triple or home run; if all ramps are missed, the batter is out. Soccer plays like Virtua Striker, which means it controls sluggishly. In Race, gamers must kayak down a river using the L and R buttons to steer. It's hard and frustrating, and will definitely take some practice, but it's also fairly rewarding once it's figured out. Shot is something like Virtua Cop, meaning that players control a target and must shoot objects as they are guided around on a track; it's fun primarily as a multiplayer experience. Finally, Dog Fight, a mode in which monkeys fly through the air and try to shoot each other down, is very enjoyable, though hard.
In our experience, the six additional games aren't as well conceived as the original six, but there are standouts. Tennis, for instance, is incredibly enjoyable. And still, the fact that they have even been included is amazing given the sheer selection already available.

Graphics
Super Monkey Ball 2 is difficult to rate from a graphic standpoint because it's not a game that's designed to be a visual stunner. With that noted, though, there are several things that Amusement Vision has done right with the franchise, and better with the sequel. SMB2, like the original, takes players through several differently themed worlds, from greenery locales to water-filled levels, space spots and fiery mazes, all complemented with Sega's almost trademark-like crisp texture work, commendably detailed. The fluidity is always at a rock solid 60 frames per second, which is well done. But on top of that, the levels in SMB2 are filled with much more going on in the background, far more geometry, and it's often animated. For example, there are cogs that turn, or water that waves and splashes about onto entire cities below, or lava that spits up flames, and so on. It looks great.



Take a look at the amazing water in SMB2.


The presentation of the monkeys themselves is still cute and appealing. When they successfully navigate a landscape, for instance, players are rewarded visually with all sorts of animations, from dances to rolls and more, all of it nicely conceived. The game is very colorful and bright, accentuating its arcade-like feel and style. But at the end of the day the graphics are still simple, geometry low, polygons limited, which is somewhat disappointing, but hardly an issue. SMB2 runs in progressive scan mode this time around, which makes us very happy.

Sound
The audio portions of Super Monkey Ball 2 are its greatest weakness, so far as we're concerned. The title delivers adequate sound effects, sometimes even cute, for monkey bounces, calls, cries, and shouts of joy during match wins. But the music is out of date, to say the least. The mixture of old riffs and outrageous beats is more usually, but not always more annoying than it is pleasing. We often play our games loud with no complaints from other editors, but every time we leave SMB2 on we're always told by several of them to close our door or shut it off immediately.


Closing Comments
Super Monkey Ball 2 is just as simple as the original, and also just as addictive. The title is a playable example that games don't need to knock your socks off visually to be ingeniously fun. With inspired, intuitive controls to boot and 150 challenging new levels that are more difficult -- sometimes frustratingly so, the single-player mode alone is worth the purchase.
But where it's an entertaining single-player experience, it's a superb multiplayer one. All of the revamped mini-games are fantastic, with my personal favorites going to Monkey Bowling and Golf. I could play these with friends for hours on end and love every second. Then there are the new party games, a mixed bag; Tennis is excellent while some of the others, like Boat Race, are fun only in short bursts. All in all, though, this is one of the best multiplayer games for GCN, without a doubt and hands down.

Bigger. Packed with more options. More refined. Prettier. And for GCN owners looking to play with some friends, something of a godsend. Sega has outdone itself.

-- Matt Casamassina


Presentation
Monkeys, balls, colorful menus, lots of options and a new story mode which is cheesy, but cute. 8.0
Graphics
Prettier than the first. Colorful, varied themes for locales, with more geometry and animation in the background at 60 frames. Still low polygon. 7.0
Sound
Gets the job done, but not very well. Uninspired music proves more annoying than catchy. Decent selection of cute sound effects. 6.0
Gameplay
Amazingly intuitive. Challenging. Fun. Addictive. Sometimes too frustrating and cheesy, but the draw to keep playing is always there. 9.0
Lasting Appeal
In a league of its own. 150 levels, 12 mini-games, and so many multiplayer possibilities that replay value is incalculable. 10.0
OVERALL SCORE (not an average) 9.0

_________________
Ubisoft Montréal
Animateur Far Cry Xbox

SOCOM:
http://ps2.ign.com/articles/369/369008p1.html
http://ps2.ign.com/articles/369/369008p2.html

Faut que tu sois abonner. Il y a un petit cadena, alors pas tout le monde peut le voir. Me semble enteka...

_________________
Ubisoft Montréal
Animateur Far Cry Xbox

Il m'ont un cadena mais il n'est pas dans section Insider.

C'est bien. Me semble qu'il on été un peu sévere.

_________________
Ubisoft Montréal
Animateur Far Cry Xbox

_________________
I love tube disasters. I wanna marry a tube disaster. I want another one like last one cos I live for tube disasters, yeah.
Philippe Côté, Modérateur du forum Jeux Consoles

J'avais arranger ca.



SOCOM: US Navy SEALs
The best online military shooter on a console, but...





August 26, 2002 - SOCOM: US Navy SEALs should stand as a sort of object lesson for ambitious developers. Before you get started on the little things, it's wise to make sure the big ones are in order. SOCOM is filled with all kinds of brilliant attention to detail in its presentation, animation, level design, and many other areas, but those don't serve to fill the holes in its artificial intelligence and basic controls. The AI hurts the single-player game, while the control causes problems with the multiplayer game, and as a consequence, neither is as good as it could have been.
This is still the king of the military shooter genre on consoles, but mainly due to the considerable weakness of every other entry in that same category. Certainly it is nowhere near the equal of the top games on the PC, like Counter-Strike and the newly-released Battlefield 1942. But then gamers already fragging away on PC online multiplayer games likely aren't even bothering to read this review.

The question thus arises: if the PlayStation 2 is not presenting you with your first experience playing this type of game, nor your first experience playing online, is it worth your time and effort? It's a difficult one to answer positively. How many people out there a) are willing to spring for broadband, and b) aren't already playing Counter-Strike or Ghost Recon? There's the target audience for SOCOM, we suppose, but we also suppose that it isn't a very big one.

Single-Player Gameplay
SOCOM is a realistic military shooter in the Rainbow Six mold, but if you'd like a more accurate comparison, it's a small-scale version of R6's grandson, Ghost Recon. It's a small-unit infantry combat game rather than a counterterrorism simulation, with freer movement and less exacting mission design. The universally-shared qualities of the genre still apply, though -- death can come quickly, stealth is the most important of skills, and the AI is often eye-poppingly boneheaded.

Ahem. Players of Red Storm's games will get the joke, at least. They should be very familiar with the way in which teammates and enemies alike tend to be killed by their own stupidity in games of this sort. SOCOM, sadly, is no exception to the rule.

Here's an interesting example of the AI behavior, from mission 3, where the objective is to defuse a series of bombs and rescue several hostages on an offshore oil rig. I am parked in front of a bomb, waiting out the 30 or so seconds required to defuse it. My partner is covering me when two terrorists run toward us, intent on doing me a mischief. In response, my parter switches weapons (going through a short animation in the process), runs to the terrorists, knocks the one over the head with his rifle butt, and then knocks the other over the head with his rifle butt. Now, which is the more aggravating problem with the AI: my partner's inability to understand the use of a ranged weapon, or the terrorists' inability to get a single shot off while there's a fellow trying to knock them over the head with a rifle butt?

This is just one example among many. Foolishness and idleness are the main causes of death in SOCOM's single-player game, which leads to an unpleasant sensation on the part of the victorious SEAL: did I win because I was good, or did I win because my opponents were stupid? When it's possible to run through a level on my own, wiping out every single enemy in the process, without receiving a scratch or utilizing the assistance of my teammates, I am inclined to believe the latter.

The AI is essentially the one overriding flaw in the single-player mode. The objective layout and corresponding design of the navigation system have problems -- just like Rainbow Six, where the game sometimes loses track of how to guide you if you deviate from a single path through the level -- but that's a minor complaint in comparison. It's quite unfortunate, because as I say, the details are quite superbly designed. The mission concepts are varied, the mission settings are inventive, the team command interface is excellent, and you're given many opportunities to interact with the environment in different ways. I particularly enjoyed the opportunity to pick up and use any of the weapons scattered around the environment -- a realistic touch, and helpful if you run out of ammo. The only innovation that doesn't quite fly is the voice recognition headset, which is more of a gimmick than a useful feature. The manual team command interface is simple enough that I saw no reason to bother with the headset.

Regardless, it's the AI's weaknesses that thwart many of the game designers' intentions. SOCOM is meant to make the player use teamwork and stealth to win, but in practice, there's not much impetus to bother with either, save for the mission grading system. That's not enough encouragement. Death should be the penalty for sloppy gameplay, not receiving a poor letter grade after successfully completing nearly every mission objective.

Multiplayer Gameplay
The online multiplayer game partially fixes the AI difficulties by providing human opponents. I say "partially," because many friends and foes online are going to make the bots in the single-player game look like Audie Murphy. At the very least, however, they'll shoot when they see someone.

SOCOM provides a few different game types for online team play, based on models familiar from Counter-Strike and the like. Suppression is team deathmatch. Demolition is a smart variation on single-flag CTF crossed with CS bomb-planting -- there's one bomb in the middle of the map, which either team can use to blow up the other's base and win. Hostage Rescue is exactly that, with the usual kink thrown in by neither team's interest in seeing the hostages die.

Teamplay is more interesting than the single-player game, because when you die, it's usually for a good reason. The realistic damage system (one-shot kills are quite common) and relatively imprecise controls (the pistoleros that dominate PC FPS games will find their skills much less useful here) mean that victory goes to the player who gets the drop on another, not the one who's quickest on the draw. Sneaking around stealthily, using teammates to implement diversionary tactics, and shooting the bad guys in the back are the order of the day.

The available game types provide a reasonable amount of variety, Demolition being an especially clever design, but it would have been nice to see some more complex missions, more along the lines of the single-player game. Suppression gets old fast, and even the other two wear a bit after a while. Longer missions with multiple objectives for both sides, like the Assault levels in Unreal Tournament, would be perfect for this type of game, creating a fluctuating strategic environment and offering many more opportunities for creative level design.

A more significant problem, of course, will be the people. A lot of people are going to want to play this like Quake, which it most emphatically is not. Against each other, they will get involved in lengthy, pathetically hilarious circle-strafing shootouts, and against intelligent players, they will die like flies. This is just peachy if they're on the other team, but it's a bit aggravating if they're your erstwhile allies. It remains to be seen how badly the idiocy of its players can hurt SOCOM as a multiplayer experience, but at present, it's a significant worry. The built-in clan system helps a bit, though, offering a few options to make sure a team consists entirely of friends.

As for the technical aspects of the online game, it's been no problem for us so far. Registering and connecting online has been a snap, lag hasn't intruded (likely thanks to the broadband-only stipulation), and online, the voice communication headset manages to jump the gap between gimmick and useful gameplay innovation. After extended play, the noise may wear out its welcome, but if your team consists only of people you'd like to talk to, it's handy for setting up strategies in situations where you're familiar with the level. It also keeps the volume down -- when the editors here get together to play Battlefield 1942, the constant cross-office hollering becomes a problem.

Graphics
The details vs. big picture theme applies to SOCOM's visuals as well. As a rule, its textures and model detail are relatively simple. Its inanimate constructions are usually pretty rough around the edges, covered in simple patterns and colors, and the character models are very simple, oft-repeated designs. On the other hand, though, its levels are designed with obvious care and attention to detail, even if the engine that draws them isn't the most powerful, and while the characters may not be much to look at standing still, their movements are something else entirely.
The most common animation for the bad guys is, naturally, death, which they do very well. There's a wide selection of smooth, realistic death animations, as well as related sequences for wounds -- an enemy will take a round in a non-vital location, fall down while reacting to it, and then smoothly get back up. The SEALs, meanwhile, have several different animations for fiddling with their inventory, reloading weapons, and sending hand signals to teammates in addition to dying. These are all of similar quality.

SOCOM's game worlds generally don't leap out and grab you with their looks, but the quality is in the details. Each area is realistically laid out, with different types of locations rather than lots of cloned buildings, and both interior and exterior details add an extra degree of realism. While the built-in mission routes tend to stick you to a rail, the levels aren't designed that way -- if you like, there's plenty of room to wander around and explore, doing a little sightseeing. Light and shadow fall appropriately, and the pattern of lighting and cover is designed to provide opportunities for stealthy movement.

Special effects for weather and the like are a little hit-or-miss. The rain isn't especially impressive, but snow in places like Alaska looks a fair bit nicer, especially since it's complemented by tracks and blood trails in the flakes that have already fallen. There's also the odd bit of what looks like volumetric lighting, seen in the interior of ships and a few other places, which adds a strong atmospheric touch.

Sound
Sound effects are another important element of the atmosphere of this type of game, and SOCOM does quite well in that regard, presenting a strong combination of voice acting, environmental sounds, and more active effects. The gunfire effects show particular attention to detail. They're of the lighter, more realistic sort -- silenced weapons sound particularly authentic, since you can hear the sound of the bolt cycling in between a brief bit of noise from the muzzle and the subsequent ricochet effect.

Voices from both sides of the line are an effective component of the game's presentation. There's the calm voice of your control presenting mission objectives, the more varied voices of your fireteam on the tac net (they have a large selection of different responses to commands, all nicely gung-ho), and the many different tongues spoken by the terrorist bad guys. The foreign languages actually become part of an interesting little gameplay element -- if one of your objectives is to overhear a conversation in Russian, you can't complete that objective if the one Russian speaker on the fireteam dies.

SOCOM's dynamic soundtrack is effective, but it's not quite so smoothly tuned as what we've heard in games like Metal Gear Solid 2. The tracks themselves are excellent, a strong orchestral score reminiscent of Red Storm's games, but the transition from ambient sounds to the heavy music that accompanies a combat situation is a bit too stark, and the battle music hangs on a little too long after a situation ends. It would be nice if there were a "medium" setting for a mild threat -- a single lone enemy, say, or the comedown after a firefight -- but as it is, the rather binary nature of the soundtrack breaks the mood.


Closing Comments
I'm disappointed that I didn't enjoy SOCOM more than I did, because it's obvious that a great deal of care went into many parts of this game's design. It is a superb piece of presentation and interface design -- it does a better job with team command controls than any other PS2 game we've seen -- and its world is build with serious attention to detail. If its other problems were fixed, it would be one of the very best games on PS2.
As it is, though, the AI design robs the single-player game of its impact. The significance of a success is in proportion to the challenge overcome, and while I often succeeded in SOCOM's missions, I didn't feel all that successful. The online multiplayer game is significantly better, but it's only very impressive in comparison to the absence of competition on a console. Players with access to the alternatives available on the PC aren't likely to be too impressed.

Inevitably, though, I speak from the perspective of one such player. Those who've never gotten to try a game like this online, and who are willing to make the necessary investment in a broadband connection, should be quite impressed by SOCOM's online game, and they shouldn't have any problems jumping right in.

-- David Smith


Presentation
Superb interface design, and realistic detail throughout in graphics, sound, control, everything. The online interface is very user-friendly, and includes built-in community options. 9.0
Graphics
Not immediately impressive, but the more you see, the more the little details in animation and design show through. 7.0
Sound
The dynamic soundtrack isn't engineered as well as some, but the sound effects and voice acting are ace. 8.0
Gameplay
Online multiplayer is good, if not great, but the real problem is the single-player game's AI. It shoots some unpleasantly big holes in otherwise strong design. 5.0
Lasting Appeal
Toss-up. The online game presents potentially infinite replay value, but only if it hooks you. 7.0
OVERALL SCORE (not an average) 7.5

_________________
Ubisoft Montréal
Animateur Far Cry Xbox

Bof, je me fit pas trop a IGN, il est coter 90% sur gamerankings et c'est IGN qui a donné la plus basse note.

http://www.gamerankings.com/htmlpages2/4387.asp

Pikmin, c'est du vol que tu fais là... Tu prend une article payante pis tu la met sur un forum que tout le monde peux voir

_________________
Xbox Live gamertag: i20
Ne m'envoyez pas de message privés, je ne peux pas répondre!

téteux

_________________
Ten thousand years into the reign of our madness and misery
X-Box Live: WarmVomit

Je paie mon abonnement. C'est comme si j'acheterais un magasine et que je le preterais a d'autre.

_________________
Ubisoft Montréal
Animateur Far Cry Xbox

Je suis d'accord avec ça.

_________________
I love tube disasters. I wanna marry a tube disaster. I want another one like last one cos I live for tube disasters, yeah.
Philippe Côté, Modérateur du forum Jeux Consoles

Je vais me renseigner auprès de IGN, nous en aurons le coeur net.

_________________
François Taddei,
Concepteur en Chef et Porte-Parole pour Beenox
Administrateur sur Micro.Info

Ils vont dire qu'on a pas le droit c'est sur

_________________
I love tube disasters. I wanna marry a tube disaster. I want another one like last one cos I live for tube disasters, yeah.
Philippe Côté, Modérateur du forum Jeux Consoles

lol ouais...