So I was a little late picking up this game, one of the most anticipated sequels of what is arguably the greatest Organized Crime game ever made.
The original Mafia (The PC Version) was known for its incredible collection of cars, its deep Hollywood grade story, and still standing up to modern games in terms of playability and enjoyability.
I was very excited to pick up Mafia II for Xbox 360 the other day. I had saw some previous reviews and ratings, but I didn't really use those to judge. What did catch my eye however is the price cut that the game has saw, that other games released the same month have not. Mafia II can now be picked up for around $30 at your major retailers. This told me that perhaps the game was not selling nearly the volumes that was expected.
I popped the game in, and was surprised to see that it is not a true Sandbox game like its predecessor. I find it awefully annoying that in order to collect certain collectibles, you can't just go back to the locations, you have to reload not just the particular mission, but the whole damned chapter. Considering it can take a little over an hour to play a chapter, this is a huge pain in the rear. The other thing that seems to be really messed up is the economy. Missions earn you very little money, yet weapons, ammo, car repairs and upgrades cost a fortune. Luckily, for some easy money, you can head up to the junkyard and destroy cars, but this is also surprisingly time consuming.
The graphics are descent, although I have witnessed some anomalies while driving around. The radio station is your standard 1940s-1950s fare, and it was nice to hear a couple songs from the original game make it back in.
Overall though, my general enjoyability and entertainment factor was rather disappointing. I would definitely say that this is one of the most disappointing games for such a highly anticipated title.
Sunday, March 20, 2011
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
MFEGs Breakdown of Oscar Best Picture Nominees
MFEGs Breakdown of Oscar Best Picture Nominees
So I thought I would do this article with the Academy Awards being this Sunday, and my wife being very interested in the subject matter. And to be very honest with you all, my very loyal couple of readers, I have actually only personally viewed 2 of the films. So these short reviews are going to be based on my viewing of the trailers, and second hand opinions from listening to co-workers conversations about the films.
Let us begin.
127 Hours
This film drama about mulilation and sacrifice stars James Franco, experienced dramatic actor, who might remember as the Stoner in Pineapple Express, and Himself in 30 Rock. I didn't actually see this film, but I did read the synposis on Wikipedia, and I did watch the trailer. Judging from the trailer, and his past roles, I find it believable that he could cut his own arm off if you told him there were drugs in there. I was only disappointed that he didn't do it with this teeth. Its pretty F'd Up, and since I don't care for movies like Saw, or Hostile, I choose to stay away from those slasher flicks retarded little cousin.
MFEG Rating: 1/10
Black Swan
An Inside look into the world of Ballet, and the personal turmoil put up with by these rich daddy's girls. The only differance between these girls and the girls working down at the local Perv Row are a few extra zeros in Daddys Bank Account, and the fact that he made it to her dance recital on time. Even when someone tried to intice me about the prospect of Natalie Prtman and Mila Kunis hooking up on camera, all I could think about was Meg Griffin treating Queen Amadala as her prison bitch. No Thanks.
MFEG Rating 2/10
The Fighter
A Boxing Movie with Marky Mark and no Funky Bunch. Mark Wahlberg was perfect for this role, considering the 3 minutes of artistic hell he put us through as he did his Shadow Boxing Dance all the way through the Good Vibrations Video. I had little to know desire to see this after witnessing the labotimization of acting skills which must have happened when he got suckered into starring in The Other Guys. When the producers relaized they signed this guy to a binding contract they must have immediately jumped up and shouted, "Call Batman" I am sure I will enjoy it once its out on DVD.
MFEG RAting 5/10
Inception
Here is a movie that even the actors admitted they still don't understand. Its a dream within a dream within a dream. C'mon, you are telling me that guys that can control dreams would rather mess with other guys, rather than spend the entire dream alone with Katy Perry? The last time I was so sound asleep that I had a dream within a dream was when I saw Leo drowning on the Titanic.
MFEG Rating 1/10
The Kids Are Alright
Didn't see it, don't really care. My Wife wants to see it, so I guess that will give me a night to play Xbox. Seriously though, how does a film that wasn't even in the Theatre, or on DVD make it to be an Oscar Nominee. Seems to me someone was kneeling under the podium when the nominees were announced!
MFEG RAting 1/10
The King's Speech
I do want to see this, The trailers look pretty cool, and Helena Bonham Carter is so creepy in everything else she is in, she is actually one of the coolest women in Hollywood. So its no surprise that she is married to the coolest director in Hollywood, Tim Burton. I am thinking of this movie as the little film that could. It was supposedly shot on a £11 Million Budget. Anyone that can make a believeable period piece with that kind of money has Talent. Based on the Trailer and the ninja accounting skills:
MFEG Rating 8/10
The Social Network
Ah Yes, Facebook. How did we ever stalk ex girlfriends and family we don't like before you? We have Mark Zuckerberg to thank for that one. Jessie Eisenberg has been praised as "nailing the part!". Jessie must have realized he got it all wrong when Marked showed up during his SNL Monologue. Mark wasn't a socially awkward shutin like Jessie played him. The way he was grinning from ear to ear on Camera, looking like a 10 year old boy that just found his dads massive porn collection, Mark isn't socially awkward shutin, he is a socaially awkward attention whore.
MFEG Rating 3/10 only because we didn't come up with the idea for Myspace 2.0 first!
Toy Story 3
Disney you have done it again. You have successfully navigated us through another LSD Inspired ride through 2 days in the lives of talking toys. What we have here now is the third time that Woody's "Friends" have abandoned him due to his selfish attitude. Woody has yet to realize that he isn't the leader of the gang, but rather the kid with the learning disability who always has to pick teams when the kids play kickball. Woody is like the older sibling that none of the other kids like, cause he has to make all the decisions, we have to watch what Woody wants to watch, we have to play the games Woody wants to play. Back off Woody! What really could have helped this movie would have been more Adult Humour like the first 2 Shrek Movies. Thats right, for Toy Story to be better, it needs more Shrek
MFEG Rating 6/10
True Grit
You know how I said that Grand Theft Auto IV was the greatest game ever made? Well, True Grit would be its cinematic Counterpart. I am normally a person who prefers the originals when it comes to re-makes, but Jeff Bridges is twice the Rooster Cogburn that John Wayne was, and I am a very big John Wayne fan. This movie has everything, comedic insults between the leads, gunfights, amputation, and subtle racism. This is the movie that all other movies shall now be compared against. Iff this movie does not win Best Picture, and Jeff Bridges does not win Best Actor, then that alone will be all the proof anyone needs to agree that the Oscars are fixed!
MFEG RAting 10/10
Winters Bone
Sorry, when I heard the movie wasn't what its title suggested, I passed
MFED Rating 1/10 for leading me on! That, and I ran out of juice writing.
So I thought I would do this article with the Academy Awards being this Sunday, and my wife being very interested in the subject matter. And to be very honest with you all, my very loyal couple of readers, I have actually only personally viewed 2 of the films. So these short reviews are going to be based on my viewing of the trailers, and second hand opinions from listening to co-workers conversations about the films.
Let us begin.
127 Hours
This film drama about mulilation and sacrifice stars James Franco, experienced dramatic actor, who might remember as the Stoner in Pineapple Express, and Himself in 30 Rock. I didn't actually see this film, but I did read the synposis on Wikipedia, and I did watch the trailer. Judging from the trailer, and his past roles, I find it believable that he could cut his own arm off if you told him there were drugs in there. I was only disappointed that he didn't do it with this teeth. Its pretty F'd Up, and since I don't care for movies like Saw, or Hostile, I choose to stay away from those slasher flicks retarded little cousin.
MFEG Rating: 1/10
Black Swan
An Inside look into the world of Ballet, and the personal turmoil put up with by these rich daddy's girls. The only differance between these girls and the girls working down at the local Perv Row are a few extra zeros in Daddys Bank Account, and the fact that he made it to her dance recital on time. Even when someone tried to intice me about the prospect of Natalie Prtman and Mila Kunis hooking up on camera, all I could think about was Meg Griffin treating Queen Amadala as her prison bitch. No Thanks.
MFEG Rating 2/10
The Fighter
A Boxing Movie with Marky Mark and no Funky Bunch. Mark Wahlberg was perfect for this role, considering the 3 minutes of artistic hell he put us through as he did his Shadow Boxing Dance all the way through the Good Vibrations Video. I had little to know desire to see this after witnessing the labotimization of acting skills which must have happened when he got suckered into starring in The Other Guys. When the producers relaized they signed this guy to a binding contract they must have immediately jumped up and shouted, "Call Batman" I am sure I will enjoy it once its out on DVD.
MFEG RAting 5/10
Inception
Here is a movie that even the actors admitted they still don't understand. Its a dream within a dream within a dream. C'mon, you are telling me that guys that can control dreams would rather mess with other guys, rather than spend the entire dream alone with Katy Perry? The last time I was so sound asleep that I had a dream within a dream was when I saw Leo drowning on the Titanic.
MFEG Rating 1/10
The Kids Are Alright
Didn't see it, don't really care. My Wife wants to see it, so I guess that will give me a night to play Xbox. Seriously though, how does a film that wasn't even in the Theatre, or on DVD make it to be an Oscar Nominee. Seems to me someone was kneeling under the podium when the nominees were announced!
MFEG RAting 1/10
The King's Speech
I do want to see this, The trailers look pretty cool, and Helena Bonham Carter is so creepy in everything else she is in, she is actually one of the coolest women in Hollywood. So its no surprise that she is married to the coolest director in Hollywood, Tim Burton. I am thinking of this movie as the little film that could. It was supposedly shot on a £11 Million Budget. Anyone that can make a believeable period piece with that kind of money has Talent. Based on the Trailer and the ninja accounting skills:
MFEG Rating 8/10
The Social Network
Ah Yes, Facebook. How did we ever stalk ex girlfriends and family we don't like before you? We have Mark Zuckerberg to thank for that one. Jessie Eisenberg has been praised as "nailing the part!". Jessie must have realized he got it all wrong when Marked showed up during his SNL Monologue. Mark wasn't a socially awkward shutin like Jessie played him. The way he was grinning from ear to ear on Camera, looking like a 10 year old boy that just found his dads massive porn collection, Mark isn't socially awkward shutin, he is a socaially awkward attention whore.
MFEG Rating 3/10 only because we didn't come up with the idea for Myspace 2.0 first!
Toy Story 3
Disney you have done it again. You have successfully navigated us through another LSD Inspired ride through 2 days in the lives of talking toys. What we have here now is the third time that Woody's "Friends" have abandoned him due to his selfish attitude. Woody has yet to realize that he isn't the leader of the gang, but rather the kid with the learning disability who always has to pick teams when the kids play kickball. Woody is like the older sibling that none of the other kids like, cause he has to make all the decisions, we have to watch what Woody wants to watch, we have to play the games Woody wants to play. Back off Woody! What really could have helped this movie would have been more Adult Humour like the first 2 Shrek Movies. Thats right, for Toy Story to be better, it needs more Shrek
MFEG Rating 6/10
True Grit
You know how I said that Grand Theft Auto IV was the greatest game ever made? Well, True Grit would be its cinematic Counterpart. I am normally a person who prefers the originals when it comes to re-makes, but Jeff Bridges is twice the Rooster Cogburn that John Wayne was, and I am a very big John Wayne fan. This movie has everything, comedic insults between the leads, gunfights, amputation, and subtle racism. This is the movie that all other movies shall now be compared against. Iff this movie does not win Best Picture, and Jeff Bridges does not win Best Actor, then that alone will be all the proof anyone needs to agree that the Oscars are fixed!
MFEG RAting 10/10
Winters Bone
Sorry, when I heard the movie wasn't what its title suggested, I passed
MFED Rating 1/10 for leading me on! That, and I ran out of juice writing.
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Grand Theft Auto IV
The Greatest Game in the History of Video Games.
I am going to start my reviews on an older game, because, quite frankly, it is one of my favorites. So much in fact, that I own it for Xbox 360 and PS3.
Very few games in history have had the pre-release following that Grand Theft Auto IV had prior to its release on April 29, 2008. A few that spring to mind are Half-Life 2, Rock Band, and to a lesser extent, any Call of Duty Game after Modern Warfare.
Grand Theft Auto was always a game known for its sprawling stories, landscapes and its abilities to push the boundaries to decency (Although it could be argued that any in game content isn't too different than LA's Evening News broadcasts.) The story in GTA IV Delivers in all aspects. The story is long, the cut scenes are entertaining, and the plot is worthy of a blockbuster movie.
But enough about that stuff. Lets talk about what everyone else wants to hear about. Driving Around, cop chases, and killing hookers. After all, its those aspects that made GTAIII So popular back in 2000. Thanks to an all new cop system, police chases are more fun than ever. Have 1 star? You can easily hop in a car, quickly turn two corners and you are clear of the pigs. 2 Stars will likely take you a few seconds longer, but 3 or more stars, why, the cops now want you dead, and they will do just about anything to do it!
Running people over has never been more hilarious. Thanks to a new physics engine, no two hits are ever the same. Blood stays on the car from the collisions too. There is no feeling like mowing down pedestrians with a cop car, and then parking it in front of a cop shop with the front end looking like it was the backdrop to Friday The 13th.
Think you are safe from damage when riding in the car. Some objects are immovable. Who do you think is going to win in a collision between a Turismo, and a concrete bollard sticking out of the ground? Chances are, when you hit that cement post with your car combined with a little bit of speed, you are going to make Niko do his very best Super Dave Osborne impression right into the brick wall or sign that is almost guaranteed to be in the flight path of your flailing character.
What action game would be complete without a little gunplay? Unless you are playing In The Night Garden The Game (The Dad's will know what I am talking about. Its a show that could only have been created by someone who was on a combination of LSD, Mushrooms and Peyote.) There isn't an overly huge selection of weapons in the game. You have your basics though, Handguns, AK-47, M16, etc. You will have the most fun with the Rocket Launcher though. Park a limo across the street in Star Junction, and see how many cars you can get to blow up in a chain reaction.
I think we will use GTA IV as the baseline for all future video game reviews. And like I said in the Welcome, this is going to be a biased blog, so in my opinion, GTA IV gets:
10/10
I am going to start my reviews on an older game, because, quite frankly, it is one of my favorites. So much in fact, that I own it for Xbox 360 and PS3.
Very few games in history have had the pre-release following that Grand Theft Auto IV had prior to its release on April 29, 2008. A few that spring to mind are Half-Life 2, Rock Band, and to a lesser extent, any Call of Duty Game after Modern Warfare.
Grand Theft Auto was always a game known for its sprawling stories, landscapes and its abilities to push the boundaries to decency (Although it could be argued that any in game content isn't too different than LA's Evening News broadcasts.) The story in GTA IV Delivers in all aspects. The story is long, the cut scenes are entertaining, and the plot is worthy of a blockbuster movie.
But enough about that stuff. Lets talk about what everyone else wants to hear about. Driving Around, cop chases, and killing hookers. After all, its those aspects that made GTAIII So popular back in 2000. Thanks to an all new cop system, police chases are more fun than ever. Have 1 star? You can easily hop in a car, quickly turn two corners and you are clear of the pigs. 2 Stars will likely take you a few seconds longer, but 3 or more stars, why, the cops now want you dead, and they will do just about anything to do it!
Running people over has never been more hilarious. Thanks to a new physics engine, no two hits are ever the same. Blood stays on the car from the collisions too. There is no feeling like mowing down pedestrians with a cop car, and then parking it in front of a cop shop with the front end looking like it was the backdrop to Friday The 13th.
Think you are safe from damage when riding in the car. Some objects are immovable. Who do you think is going to win in a collision between a Turismo, and a concrete bollard sticking out of the ground? Chances are, when you hit that cement post with your car combined with a little bit of speed, you are going to make Niko do his very best Super Dave Osborne impression right into the brick wall or sign that is almost guaranteed to be in the flight path of your flailing character.
What action game would be complete without a little gunplay? Unless you are playing In The Night Garden The Game (The Dad's will know what I am talking about. Its a show that could only have been created by someone who was on a combination of LSD, Mushrooms and Peyote.) There isn't an overly huge selection of weapons in the game. You have your basics though, Handguns, AK-47, M16, etc. You will have the most fun with the Rocket Launcher though. Park a limo across the street in Star Junction, and see how many cars you can get to blow up in a chain reaction.
I think we will use GTA IV as the baseline for all future video game reviews. And like I said in the Welcome, this is going to be a biased blog, so in my opinion, GTA IV gets:
10/10
Welcome
Welcome to the Mens Film & Entertainment Guide, or MFEG.
This blog is going to bring a fresh new look at reviews for Movies and Video Games, with a sense of humour, but also, to review the aspects of entertainment which men really care about. We don't care of these things contain all the artsy elements they are supposed to. We just want to be entertained.
We will finally give action films reviews that will do them justice. Kevin Smith will no longer have to fear the technical reviews of this films here. We just care about whether or not we were entertained and enjoyed the 2 hours spent watching a movie, or the days we spend playing a particular video game.
So sit back, relax and enjoy yourself. Because we are men! We deserve it!
This blog is going to bring a fresh new look at reviews for Movies and Video Games, with a sense of humour, but also, to review the aspects of entertainment which men really care about. We don't care of these things contain all the artsy elements they are supposed to. We just want to be entertained.
We will finally give action films reviews that will do them justice. Kevin Smith will no longer have to fear the technical reviews of this films here. We just care about whether or not we were entertained and enjoyed the 2 hours spent watching a movie, or the days we spend playing a particular video game.
So sit back, relax and enjoy yourself. Because we are men! We deserve it!
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