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> Results: War of the Monsters
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The names have been changed to protect the copyrightedIf you're one of those gamers that doesn't get the whole fighting game phenomenon, then a fantasy fighting game, War of the Monsters, might actually be for you. The premise is fantastic: take the famous movie monsters like Godzilla and King Kong and make a fighting game. But do it with modern technology and give players de-formable environments, interactive objects, and great visual and audio effects. Sony's done exactly that, and when you realize where many of the giant monster legends and the videogame consoles originate, it's an appropriate match.  Fighting game fanatics know that a good fighting game has a good mix of characters to play and they love to discover the various moves each offers and the nuances of fighting different opponents. To its credit, War of the Monsters does have both generic and exclusive moves for each monster, but the depth of fighting isn't on the scale of the hottest fighters like Virtua Fighter or Tekken. There are enough moves, however, for general gamers and the manageable amount fits the general audience War of the Monsters targets. The fighting is swift and includes both close combat and distance attacks. The surroundings are also a big part of the game and can affect combat. It's a blast to watch your monster grab a truck and throw it at an opponent or see him grab an opponent and knock him into a building, which causes it to crumble and cover the enemy in rubble. The camera, often a pest in such third-person perspectives like the one in War of the Monsters, can be problematic at times and leave the viewer disoriented though it can be managed with practice.  The game has decent longevity. A single player adventure mode mixes videos and storytelling with the series of matches against the other monsters, a multiplayer mode lets you play against friends, and the use of victory tokens gives you access to locked content including several monster variations, mini-games, and battlefields. There are also endurance modes and configurable victory conditions. The difficulty level is probably not going to shock any fighting experts, but average gamers and those with minimal fighting game experience will find it plenty tough until they've undertaken some practice. War of the Monsters gets high marks for ambience, which unfortunately will probably be lost on the younger generation. The opening videos set the tone of an old science fiction flick, and this pastiche carries on through the menus and even the documentation. The manual has a thematic visual flair that us oldie gamers have rarely seen since the days of Infocom, before Acrobat PDF files became a game manual standard. Kid Factor: This one seems like one you'd love to share with your kids, but the ESRB rating is Teen, and that's a fair assessment. War of the Monster's cartoon violence is over-the-top, but it's also quite frantic and noisy. The inhuman shrieks, human screams, and flippant destruction are sure to elicit chuckles from adult players, but might be disturbing for some youths. Perhaps adjusted children who are proven fans of monster flicks can handle it fine, but I think I'll wait a while before letting my kids tinker with this one. My gamerdad friends and I, on the other hand, will have a grand time right now practicing for the day when our kids are ready to play and beat us. As for the score, War of the Monsters is technically competent even if it's not the deepest fighting game and maybe not appropriate for the very young. I'll start it with 2.5 stars for its steady execution, and add a star for creativity and gameplay. That's a respectable 3.5, and if you're a giant monster flick fan, you could easily add another half star. Reviewer's Recommended Ages: 10+ ESRB Rating: T-Teen Developer: Incog Inc Publisher: Sony 
This one seems like one you'd love to share with your kids, but the ESRB rating is Teen, and that's a fair assessment. War of the Monster's cartoon violence is over-the-top, but it's also quite frantic and noisy. The inhuman shrieks, human screams, and flippant destruction are sure to elicit chuckles from adult players, but might be disturbing for some youths. Perhaps adjusted children who are proven fans of monster flicks can handle it fine, but I think I'll wait a while before letting my kids tinker with this one. My gamerdad friends and I, on the other hand, will have a grand time right now practicing for the day when our kids are ready to play and beat us. As for the score, War of the Monsters is technically competent even if it's not the deepest fighting game and maybe not appropriate for the very young. I'll start it with 2.5 stars for its steady execution, and add a star for creativity and gameplay. That's a respectable 3.5, and if you're a giant monster flick fan, you could easily add another half star.
Kid Factor by Bernie Dy
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