By Matthew Scott Hunter
‘Mafia II’ (M)
Pure fan service
***
2K Games
Xbox 360
“Mafia II” is pure fan service for anyone who’s been fascinated by mob mythology, from the early days of Don Corleone to the more contemporary Tony Soprano. Movie references are tossed into the story as liberally as garlic into an Italian dish. After a brief World War II-set tutorial, protagonist Vito waltzes into the city of Empire Bay in military garb, much like a young Michael Corleone. A brief stint in prison includes a senior Mafioso cooking you dinner in a gilded cell, a la Paulie Cicero in “Goodfellas.” There are the requisite bodies in trunks, visits to seedy burlesque houses and scenes where the hero goes all James Caan on anyone who mistreats his sister.
When the game isn’t reminding you of every crime drama made in the last 40 years, it’ll be reminding you of “Grand Theft Auto.” Empire Bay does a nice job of capturing the ‘40s and ‘50s era with wartime propaganda posters giving way to early rock ‘n roll, but aside from those touches, it’s a Liberty City rip-off, complete with clothing stores, ammo shops, pay-‘n-sprays and countless cars waiting to be stolen. But unlike Liberty City, Empire Bay never feels like it has anything going on outside of the main narrative. Side missions are few and repetitive, and since money is never an issue, there’s little incentive to do them. What’s the point in climbing the Mafia ladder in the hopes that you’ll one day be running the town if there’s nothing in the town to run? CV
‘Ivy the Kiwi?’ (E)
***1/2
Xseed Games
Wii
It’s nurture rather than nature that gets Ivy through every perilous level. Much like the Lemmings in their eponymous game, the titular, newly hatched bird of “Ivy the Kiwi?” is not directly controlled by the player. It simply continues walking onward, ever searching for its lost mother. Your job is to manipulate the environment by drawing vines with the Wii remote to ensure that Ivy doesn’t walk into a spike pit or get eaten by hostile predators. With an eye-catching, hand-drawn art style, Ivy is as charming as it is challenging.
‘7 Wonders II’ (E)
**1/2
Avanquest Software
Nintendo DS
“7 Wonders II” is basically “Bejeweled” with purpose. Like the latter game, you have to match together three or more jewels (or runes), eliminating every matched row to allow more jewels to descend from above. But behind every rune is a tile, and as you obliterate runes, the underlying tiles get sent to tiny workers on the upper screen, who somehow use them to build Wonders of the World like the Taj Mahal. It doesn’t make a great deal of sense, but at least it requires a little more challenge than the far-too-random “Bejeweled.”
‘Deathsmiles’ (T)
***1/2
Aksys Systems
Xbox 360
Four young girls (somewhat disturbingly dressed in provocative outfits) get whisked away to the world of Gilverado, where they’re besieged by nasty ghouls and bizarre behemoths from every direction. It’s all an excuse for one of the craziest 2D sidescrolling shooters ever made. Though free to float wherever she wants, your heroine of choice will be hard-pressed to avoid the hundreds of deadly purple projectiles that obscure the screen at any given millisecond. This is twitch gameplay at its most frantic, and you’ll be grateful for every occasional moment of lag. CV
