PlayStation 2 Review

Currently best selling video games console of all time, the PlayStation 2 (or the PS2) is great. With a long lifetime of games being made up until 2013, it definatley deserves to be bought. And here is a review of it, since I just got it today for cheap (and no, it wasn't the slim).

First of all, let me just say this. People originally bought the PS2 as a DVD player, because it was the cheapest on the market, at the time. However, this messed up the insides of the PS2, and they stopped working in about 6-8 years if people used it for this reason. Yet, if you use it just for games, you'll be fine. But if you want it as a dvd player get the PS2 slim.

The controller is also great. It is officially called the Dualshock 2, the first Dualshock to have analog sticks, and they work out well. The buttons are the same, and the triggers are buttons which I like. It fits snugly in your hand and no part of the plastic feels sharp or soft. The light to show that the controller is connected is between the analog sticks and is a nice feature.

Some of the best games are on the PS2, as well. Okami, Tomb Raider, Metal Gear Solid, GTA: San Andreas, Bully, Grand Turismo, God of War, Guitar Hero 2... and that's barely a few. For the ones I've played, I've rarely encountered clunky controls, which is good.

Something they got right on the PS2 but not the PS3 was the material they built it with. You can't get fingerprints on the PS2 like you can the PS3, and same with the PS2 slim. It makes it look better even when it gets used, and it feels good when you're carrying the system.

There's only two things I don't like about it though. First one, I don't really blame the PS2 since most other consoles of the same generation were doing the same, but you have to save games on a memory card rather than onto a hardrive. And you have to buy the memory card separate, I think. Ugh.

Secondly, it killed the Dreamcast. Whilst the Dreamcast was a GREAT system, it didn't sell well because it was just after the Sega Saturn (which was -despite me and some others liking it- hated, so it put Sega's console market in a bad place with only 12% of the market controlled by them) and the PS2 was more hyped so it outsold the Dreamcast massively. Shame.

Moving on. The PS2 had some really fun and cool accessories, such as the pistol, the better controller, the driving wheel, the remote, and there was even a KATANA controller. Whilst some were bad, they were still pretty creative.

The PS2 was mostly black, but I think it looks pretty cool silver or red. There is many colours it comes in. Another thing worth mentioning is that the PS2 is almost silent, unlike the Xbox or Gamecube. PS2 was great, and is great. I really reccomend the slim rather than the original, but either way, it's a blast.

OVERALL SCORE: Awesome. 10/10.

Nintendo Game Boy Review

There have been a lot of Game Boys: Game Boy Colour, Game Boy Advance, Game Boy Advance SP, and Game Boy Micro to name most. But I'm talking about the original one from 1989 (released in Europe during 1990). Think of it as a portable NES. I consider it one of the best portable consoles of all time.

The button layout can make a handheld system great or junk. And this one isn't junk. It's like an NES controller, with a d-pad and the B and A buttons, but also with two other "SELECT" and "START" buttons. On the side, you can control contrast which is really helpful, and on the other you can adjust volume.

One thing that isn't that great, though, is that there is no menu on the Gameboy. You switch it on, and the Nintendo logo appears. That's it, and then it waits for you to put in a cartridge. It could have a "memory" option or a "settings" to get a custom background, at least something.

A kinda bad thing is the cartridges are hard to store. I usually put cartridges on shelves, but here's the problem with these: there are no end labels. So you have to pull out a game, see what it is, put it back, and repeat until you find the one you want. Thus, I now put them in a box.

Games on the Game Boy are numerous, at 716 (not for all Game Boys). They're basic, but still fun, the best one on it being Mario. Think of it: the first system that allowed Mario on the go. Why not? Only issue: you can't save. So games aren't long, but c'mon! A good thing about them, though, is that you can play them on the DS and GameCube (with an extension, I know I said there was no accesories for the GC but I was wrong, and it can also play Game Boy Advance and SP games).

A good thing - you can put in headphones!

The Game Boy was advanced for it's time, but the DS is better than it now. If you're a retro gamer, get it, but if you just wanna play the games, get a GameCube with the extension or a DS.

OVERALL SCORE: 7/10.

GTA IV: The Lost and Damned Review

GTA is awesome. DLC, however, is usually crap. Episodes From Liberty City throws that out the window, with great missions and a solid story. Also, you can get this on a disk with The Ballad of Gay Tony, which is great.

First off, there is so much to do. Play cards, play an arcade game, pay respect to dead bikers, shoot random people, annoy cops, blow things up, watch TV (which is HILARIOUS) and so on. If you get bored of the story missions, it's guaranteed that there'll be something to keep your interest.

For those that care, graphics and sound is good. GTA IV graphics are better, but they're still nice here, and look pretty similar.Sound is also great, with some amazing voice acting.

Bikers will be replaced when they die, and you'll hate losing them. When they do die, you can see them on the wall where all bikers who have been killed in shootouts are displayed. Their AI can be a little annoying, though, as when you ride they can crash into you if you suddenly break. The driving of bikes is also kinda slippery, since turning whilst going fast can make your do a 360 degree spin even if you don't want to. There is next to no grip on bikes.

Guns are awesome here. You have your beast double-barrel shotgun, as well as other classic redneck weapons. They're powerful yet fair, realistic, and a whole lot of fun. Pistols, shotguns, smgs, EVERYTHING. That's a great part of GTA - guns.

Characters are memorable. Johnny is your character who is the stereotypical "American biker" who loves booze, money and women. Billy is much of the same, but harder and the leader of the Lost. They all have beards... most, anyway.

One thing I love is how characters from TLAD appear in TBOGT. It's actually pretty cool how they hate each other, but don't actually go after each other.

GTA: TLAD is great and I reccomend it to people who like GTA IV and even GTA V. It's really cheap as I got it for £10, and it's probably cheaper some other places.

Fun: 8. GTA is always fun.
Characters: 8. Not one dimensional and you'll hate losing most of them.
Controls: 7. I've never liked how A is run and X is jump and all that, but they're still good controls once you get used to GTA.
Story: 8. Not amazing, but good.
Graphics and Sound: 7.5. Not as good as that in GTA IV, but still great.
Writing: 8.

OVERALL SCORE: 8/10, aka 4/5 stars.