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Sports themes dominate new game releases

by Nicolas Guibert Sun Mar 30, 2:48 AM ET

PARIS (AFP) - New games releases for spring 2008 include a range of sport themes, with a new version of Pro Evolution Soccer 2008 specially for Wii, a blue tennis-playing hedgehog, high-def racing cars and a "god of war" combat game, complete with high gore and ancient Greek mythology. ADVERTISEMENT

Pro Evolution Soccer 2008:

While X-box 360 and PS3 owners have been putting the boot in since last autumn, Wii users have been awaiting their own adaptation of the game, and here it is.

The programmers from Konami, who totally rethought the commands for use with Wii toggles, Wiimote and nunchuk, have included, among other novelties, the possibility of moving defenders up field, to trap the other team's forward players offside, by lifting the Wiimote with a yank, or firing a nunchuk shot. Other new features include improved facial animation and 30 new stadiums.

And whereas in most football games it's not possible to direct one player at a time, here, the Wiimote, helped by a cursor which appears on the screen, allows users to point at individual players and give orders, even when he doesn't have the ball, giving the new Pro Evolution Soccer a totally new strategic dimension.

Unnerving to start with, getting to grips with the different phases of the game is helped by clear instructions given during the game.

But one major regret is the disappearance of the Masters League, which has been replaced by another, less convincing system.

From three years. Developed and edited by Konami. Released March in Europe and the US.

Tennis Hedgehog:

Sega superstars tennis puts Sega's blue hedgehog and other well-known characters on a series of unusual courts to play a less than traditional game of tennis. The title harks back to classic Sega arcade games of the 1980s and 1990s like Space Harrier, Outrun, After Burner and Golden Axe and the like, as does the soundtrack which showers winning players with nostalgic numbers.

Online reviews point to the fact that although the characters aren't all A-listers and the actual tennis isn't particularly great, the game comes off well, thanks to interesting court design and the music.

Easy accessibility of the game is also a plus, though playing with friends is advised, because users quickly get the measure of a one on one game.

From seven years. Developed by Sumo Digital, Edited by Sega, for Xbox 360, PS3 and Wii. Released March in Europe and the US.

With God of War:

Chains of Olympus, after two Playstation 2 adventures, and before its arrival on PS3, the Spartan warrior Kratos makes his debut on the portable Sony console.

The least said is that the tribulations of the "Ghost of Sparta" are as bloody as ever, and in this latest version players discover the past life of Kratos and his battles in the service of the gods of Olympus, before his rebellion against Mars, god of war.

Apart from that, and as with all "God of War" games, players are invited to massacre warriors and mythic monsters with sharpened blades from the first second of play. Combat follows combat in a frenzy, with graphics and animation of top quality, but not aimed at sensitive souls.

For over 18. Developed by Ready at Dawn Studios. Edited by Sony. Released in March in Europe and the US.

Gran Turismo 5 Prologue:

This is the latest in the game which is an institution in the virtual car-racing world, and again pushes the limits of racing realism on asphalt, dirt track or snow.

Following number four, Sony has brought out, several months before the final version a "prologue" of the finished game Gran Turismo 5 -- a kind of major "demo" model -- in an apparent effort to calm, or increase, demand for the real thing. This highlights Sony's commercial genie, managing to sell in less than 12 months, both a draft and final version of the same game.

Novelties include the appearance of Ferrari among the 71 cars and five circuits, as well as a new online mode allowing players to taken on up to 15 other drivers.

Graphically, as always, the game offers quality video-like images of the cars. It is also easy to handle and fab for car lovers who don't like to see their precious motor damaged. Whether GT 5, expected to be released at the end of the year, keeps the promises of the Prologue remains to be seen.

From three years. Developed by Polyphony Digital, edited by Sony. Released in March in Europe, in April in America.