3 great games for Xmas -- and 1 crappy one (part 2)

December 3, 2:14 PMPC Game ExaminerBryan Edge-Salois

Previous Next

Comment Print Email RSS Subscribe

Subscribe

Get alerts when there is a new article from the PC Game Examiner. Read Examiner.com's terms of use.

Email Address   Include other special offers from Examiner.com Terms of Use

Here are three more great games for the PC for those gamers who have been good this year -- and one game for gamers who have been naughty.

Spore (Strategy)
Spore is a charming game in which you create a creature and shepherd it throughout its evolution -- from a tiny microorganism to a star-faring race. The creature creator alone is immensely fun and easy to use, and it's very kid and family friendly. (My five-year old loves making creatures and just watching them run around, and my older brother and his seven year old daughter play together).

• Read Gamespot's review (8/10)
• Read GameSpy's review (Editor's Choice)
• Visit the Spore home page to learn more

Far Cry 2 (First person shooter)
Far Cry 2 is an excellent, open-ended "sandbox" style of FPS shooter. Unlike many shooters which "drive" you through a series of missions, Far Cry 2 lets you freely choose which missions to pursue, when to pursue them, and how to pursue them. You also get to travel from mission to mission in the massive African country where the game takes place--it's a game AND a virtual African safari.

• Read Gamespot's review (8.5/10)
• Read GameSpy's review (3.5/5 stars)
• Visit the Far Cry 2 home page to learn more

Prince of Persia 2008 (3rd person action/platform game)
Like its predecessors, Prince of Persia 2008 involves a lot of acrobatics and swashbuckling combat. You and your companion Elika must imprison the evil god Ahriman, which means a lot of very fun and stylish fighting set in a mythical 'Arabian knights' type of setting. This game is considerably easier than its predecessors (whether that's good or bad is up to you), but it also eliminates many of the frustrating and annoying elements that plagued its predecessors. 

• Read Gamespot's review (8/10)
• Read IGN's review
• Visit the Prince of Persia home page to learn more

And for the gamers who only deserve coal in their stocking this year...

Dark Horizon (Action/Space Combat)
Dark Horizon is a starfighter combat game in the same vein as classic PC shooters like the X-Wing and the Wing Commander series (A genre which is largely dead on the PC). Unfortunately, Dark Horizon gets more wrong than it does right.

• Read Gamespot's review (4.5/10)
  -- "...considerably less laughable than its predecessor..."
• Read IGN's review (6/10)
  -- "A spaced-out interstellar joyride that alternately confuses and entertains" (IGN is a little kinder to the game)
• Read Total PC Gaming's Review (5/10)
  -- "Surely space combat has come further than this in the last decade?" 

Looking for more good games (and maybe some games to avoid?) Check out these articles:

Read Part 1 of 3 great games for Xmas -- and 1 crappy one

Read Part 3 of  3 great games for Xmas -- and 1 crappy one

Read Part 4 of 3 great games for Xmas -- and 1 crappy one