GameCity Three

Oct 30th - Nov 1st
Three day pass £50, single day pass £20, some stuff free.
Like the third colossus slamming its massive stone mace into the ground, GameCity arrives back in Nottingham with a bang. Cannilly tied in with international dress-up-like-a-monster night, you could liken it to more of an 'it's alive!', with the content crammed into the three days ranging from the corporate to the musical to the bizarre, making a patchwork Frankenstein's monster of a festival. Of course, this is its draw, and part of its experiment – to discover what a video game festival can be.
Requiring an all day pass for most of the events, GameCity errs on the side of insular but while the 'game geeks' have plenty to be happy with there are also freebies going on around the city to attract the unsuspecting gamer and joe public. So what exactly is going on?
Thursday sees Sony's Eye Toy team showing their new work with the under used PS3 Eye, David Braben (the man behind the seminal Elite and the lovely Lost Winds) spills some magic beans on game design and Splash Damage tell us how they made the transition from mod makers to creators of the sci-fi Battlefield-a-like Quake Wars.
There's also the world premier of Amanita Design's new game Machinarium, a beautifully hand drawn gem continuing in the same fashion of their Samorost. David Jaffe (God of War) is also on hand via live webcast or you could just head down to Market Square all afternoon for a Sports Day that includes a world record attempt, big screen gaming and most likely Wii Sports with lots of embarrassing flailing.
Once the evening draws in, One Life Left bring their excellent and vaguely video games related radio show to Nottingham. Unfortunately they aren't attempting to break the world record for longest radio show as originally planned, although considering they can barely hold it together for an hour, perhaps that's a blessing in disguise.
Halloween hits Friday and GameCity respond in kind. As the undead march upon Market Square, Martin Hollis and David Doak talk about their platform defining Golden Eye, Harmonix recount how they revolutionised the music industry through Guitar Hero and Rock Band, (hopefully through a mix of karaoke and powerpoint), and Stephen Cakebread goes all neon wireframe on us, charting the evolution of twitch shooter Geometry Wars.
Back on the ghost train, a magician demonstrates how video games charm us, cyberpsychologists discuss the portrayal of evil in videogames (growing horns and kicking your dog), while Oddworld's Lorne Lanning hot desks some questions and Traveller's Tales (Lego games) return fresh from Gotham City.
With Market Square's eaterys best advised to serve all manner of brain based hors d' oeuvre, a world record attempt (i detect a theme) is also going down, involving 1000 zombies and some Micheal Jackson inspired dancing. Make-up artists will also be on hand if you're sans costume or uninfected, while dancers can help you if you've lost your groove, or aren't trapped in the 1980's.
The zombie-geddon leads up to an evening of music supplied by the ghoullishly good Jonathan Coulton (he behind the 'Still Alive' Portal song) and Harmonix. There's also the amusing prospect of a Resident Evil speed-run-tag-team-marathon and a 'rather special live gaming event', whatever that may be – a Left 4 Dead preview would be quite fitting methinks.
Easing you into your Saturday hangover and new found hunger for cerebral snacking, Brian Baglow takes you back into the top-down past of GTA while Media Molecule deliver their BAFTA keynote on making the charmingly genius Little Big Planet. Considering its reviews and the DIY nature of the game, expect the most entertainment a keynote should legally be allowed to give.
There's also the launch of the 'Save The Videogame' campaign (part of the new National Video Game archive), and if that sounds like too much cataloguing, Tom Armitage will be sharing curry with anyone interested in how things will look when gamers rule the world, followed up an evening of fun in the shape of the Guardian Gamesblog's Pub Quiz and some Commodore 64 style music provided by Press Play On Tape and Powerplay.
Throughout Saturday, Market Square is host to record breaking of a virtual type via Guiness Book of Records: The Videogame (in further news: a snake eats its tail and a grandfather finds his paradox). Virtual records will be broken and prizes will be given. If score chasing isn't your thing then you can head over to Waterstone's gallery where industry insiders are fielding questions on how to start a career in gaming, and how you can make the next blockbusting genre definer, or shovelware pap.
If nothing throughout those three days tickles your mouse finger then there's always the indiecade at Malt Cross, an arcade full of home-made treats, running throughout the festival. Last year saw it demoing the Xbox Live Arcade smash hit Braid, who knows what indie treats may lie in store next week.

Viva Pinata: Trouble in Paradise

Xbox 360.
The sweet life.
Gardens – respite of the city dweller, haunt of the horticulturist and playpen of Monty Mole. If you're lucky enough to live somewhere with a spot of green (as opposed to a slab of rusty concrete and some mutant pigeons), then i'm sure you'll appreciate the work that goes into tending to such an urban paradise. Me, i've got some hassle free decking and not a lawn mower in sight. As much as I love to relax in a garden (a pox upon thee for ever saying chillax), I hate gardening. Perhaps i'm work shy (150+ hours of grinding in Final Fantasy VII would say not), more likely it just doesn't tick my box. Which is odd then, as Viva Pinata: Trouble in Paradise does just that.
Essentially a day-glo, Pokemon-a-like garden simulator that sees you cultivating plants, raising Pinata and shipping them off to parties round the world, Viva Pinata replaces animals with multicoloured papier mache-alikes, blood with candy and Charlie Dimmock with some very strange people. Or at least, stranger. 
The first in the series was quite a leap for the 360. Stereotypically home to hyper violent 'shooter-them-up murder simulators', its arrival was a splash of contrast aimed at sucking in new gamers to Microsoft's fold. And it did all right. But there were things missing that the new candy addicts demanded, such as online play. And here they are, wrapped up in a sequel that's more redux yet seven shades closer to perfection.
Fine tuning the experience, Trouble in Paradise takes the core ideas (gardening, collecting Pinata) and runs with them, streamlining the interface and introducing co-op and online play, plenty more Pinata and a whole host of features to customise your garden with like themed object packs. 
It also feels more directed – with challenges to complete and goals to meet, you'll never get lost in the freeform gardening and with an extra person thrown into the mix, the experience has proven to be even richer than before. 
Admittedly, despite all the new bells and whistles, there's not a whole lot of progression on show. But to fans of the original, all the changes are welcome and worth losing yourself to the addictive, simple yet deep gameplay again, proving that there's more to the 360 than guns and foul mouthed teens. Unlike your own garden perhaps...
8/10

Star Wars: The Force Unleashed

Xbox 360, and everything else, ever.
The Force, tethered.
Aiming to blow your mind with the power of the Force™, The Force Unleashed is the latest chapter in the merchandising juggernaut/contemporary mythology know as Star Wars. Bridging the gap between the sucky prequels and the original beauts, it tells the tale of Darth Vader's secret apprentice and his initial mission to rid the universe of the remaining Jedi.
Pitched as an 'awesome' take on the Force, the emphasis is on over-the-top powers that sees the young Sith make all the Jedi in the films look a tad lame while at the same time ramping everything else in the Star Wars universe up to 11.
Playing like a cross between Ninja Gaiden and Psi-Ops, The Force Unleashed is all about getting creative with your Light Sabre and your telekinetic and electric super powers. Combining stunning graphics and audio with some incredible physics and animation systems, it's a spectacle to behold, particularly when you're chucking panicking Stormtroopers around with your Force Grip.
When it works, it works really well, nailing that '30 seconds of fun' gameplay hook that made Halo so great. When it doesn't, it's a painful and tedious experience hampered by the Force Grip's awful auto-targetting, an unwieldy camera and dispiriting 'balancing' features such as Force resistant shielding that ultimately render you only slightly unleashed.
Boss fights too are a lesson in frustration, highlighting how weak the Light Sabre combat is by forcing you to defeat them cinematically through sequences that require the player to mimic on-screen button prompts instead of skilled sword play. The opportunity to destroy a Star Destroyer with your mind should have been one of gaming's greatest moments. Instead it's enough to turn you to the Dark Side thanks to some shocking design.
Considering the convoluted plots of Phantom Menace etc, it's particularly refreshing to admit that while the gameplay can be lacking, The Force Unleashed is at least a good yarn that for once lives up to its heritage. Supported by some excellent voice acting and well rounded characters, it's classic stuff with twists and turns at every step and probably the main reason you'll fight on through to its revelatory end.
7/10