Robots in Disguise

I think it was back in July that I picked up Transformers: War for Cybertron for the PS3. At the time there wasn't any quality retail releases coming out and this game wasn't on my radar at all. However, after listening to Arthur on the Rebel FM podcast talk about it constantly for a couple of weeks my mind was changed. The multiplayer component sounded terrific and when the reviews hit they were nearly all effusive in their praise. So I decided to take a risk.

When I first put it on I wanted to hop straight into multiplayer but the servers were acting up so I had to start with single player. I chose to start with the Autobot campaign and after an impressive opening cut-scene I was thrust into the war on Cybertron. My lasting impression from that first and only session is that it was very boring. The first level seemed to take an age to complete and the enironment is just so drab. I presume the whole game is looks the same, one boring metallic colour. The fact that you can transform into a car at anytime sounds like fun but driving them is anything but. I was left to hope that the multiplayer would be the saving grace.

It was about three days later that I finally managed to join an game online and I enjoyed it. I played a good few rounds and I think that it works very well as a combat arena type game. My only problem with it is that it started to give me motion sickness, a problem that I have found with quite a few games this generation.

Of all the games I've bought recently I feel that I have done this one the biggest injustice. I've only tackled the single player game once and have yet to return to mulitplayer since my first session. That is not long enough to make a judgement and as such I have kept the disc close to the PS3. I will certainly return and give it another chance but not until the next few big releases are out of the way.

The Golden Compass - Bite-sized Review

I just thought I'd post a few little thoughts on this film.

I never got around to seeing this film in the cinema when it came out but I've just finished watching it now. The overriding impression it has left me with is that it was a massive missed opportunity. Now I've never read the books but from the film it is obvious that there is a very detailed and well thought out universe there. The film however failed to get any of this detail across.

It felt as though the makers knew that they couldn't fit everything into this film and were determined to keep the running time under two hours. As a result the movie hurtles along at a million miles an hour, jumping from one place to another. There isn't enough time given to explain the world that these characters live in, which is a shame. Also the actors Daniel Craig and Nicole Kidman whom the advertising was based around had barely any screen time. Especially Craig, who has little more than a glorified cameo.

Having said that I felt it was okay and I would be interested in seeing a sequel if it gets made. That is a pretty big if at this stage considering its box office in the US. It has certainly made me interested in reading the books though.

Another thing I have to take issue with is its win in the Best Visual Effects category at the 2008 Oscars over Transformers. The effects were impressive but nowhere near the level of Transformers that in my opinion set a new benchmark for visual f/x.

Oscar Winners, my take

Not too many surprises really at last nights Oscar ceremony. I'm happy to see that No Country for Old Men won big on the night. It really was a great film and the Coens deserve their best director[s] award. Javier Bardem winning for his performance as a really scary villain was thoroughly deserved too. I also so Michael Clayton this year so I also think that Tilda Swinton was good value for her win too.

Unfortunately, I wanted to see Viggo Mortensen winning for best actor but it went to Daniel Day-Lewis as predicted. I haven't seen his performance yet but from the ads it does look good. Hopefully I'll be seeing the film soon.

The biggest upset for me took place in the technical categories so I suppose it isn't that big a deal but it annoyed me nonetheless. How did The Golden Compass win best visual effects over Transformers? For me Transformers took visual effects to the next level with their photo realism. They truly were absolutely amazing and in this day and age when we have become very blasé about visual effects. I've seen clips of The Golden Compass and while the effects were good they were basically the standard of what we now expect. They certainly didn't raise the bar in the way that Transformers did. Was it a case of Michael Bay's over excitable direction detracting from the impact? Possibly.

It was also nice to see The Bourne Ultimatum pick up three awards. All in technical categories but an Oscar is an Oscar.