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1up King Kong review

PS2/Xbox - 9.0

X360 review - 8.5

On Xbox 360, the visuals don't impress nearly as much as they do in the current-gen versions, since there are only minor graphical upgrades to speak of. You'll notice a few bonus special effects like a nice blur when you look at objects through a fire and Splinter Cell Chaos Theory-style rain effects scattered around, plus character faces (especially Kong's) are certainly more detailed, but for the most part, the PS2 and Xbox versions of the game look fresh and new while the 360 version looks like a slightly modified version of those. Also, be forewarned: there is no reason to play King Kong on an HDTV, because even though it does work and occasionally does a nice job of showcasing a specific feature, for the most part it just brings out the flaws in the game's textures. It still looks nice overall thanks to the art direction, but the leap from PS2/Xbox to 360 is not a great one.

The game's overall quality is countered a bit by the length, which comes in at somewhere around eight hours -- the first four of which don't serve much purpose other than to immerse you in the world and prepare you for the great second half -- but the payoff for those who make it all the way through to New York is awfully nice and well worth experiencing for anyone who's interested in the game. The whole package does a fantastic job of building up to a climactic ending, and it's one you won't want to miss.

Not surprisingly, the game is short and quite linear. Still can't wait to play it.
 

open_mouth_

insert_foot_
The 360 is the best version, naturally, but since it's held to a higher standard than current gen, a lower score is expected.
 

Oni Jazar

Member
a lower score is expected if there isn't enough improvements. You're making it sound like it has to get a lower score.
 

Razoric

Banned
open_mouth_ said:
The 360 is the best version, naturally, but since it's held to a higher standard than current gen, a lower score is expected.

Christ some of you guys are worse than actual PR. :lol
 

Solid

Member
open_mouth_ said:
The 360 is the best version, naturally, but since it's held to a higher standard than current gen, a lower score is expected.
Yeah cause the standards are so high on the 360.
 

JMPovoa

Member
Wario64 said:
hahahahahhahaha

next gen rocks doesnt it

Actually a 0.5 deficit to next gen is a great score! That means that the game is much better than current gen (as someone so politely put it, so high the standards for the Xbox360 are) :D
 

Dr. Strangelove

I'M COOCOO FOR COCO CRISP!
Does this mean that the last gen is so good that we can hang onto it for a few more years? It will take at least that long for me to get my 360 from Walmart.com anyways.
 

JMPovoa

Member
Wario64 said:
don't most reviewers have LOWER standards when it comes to launch games? :scratch

Like in that they could hit less on the scores, as an excuse for them being launch titles? Or did i get that the other way around?
 

jarosh

Member
Father_Brain said:
On Xbox 360, the visuals don't impress nearly as much as they do in the current-gen versions, since there are only minor graphical upgrades to speak of.

hmm i find this strange. even though i expected this somehow, i remember that picture of the fireplace which looked like it had a SIGNIFICANTLY higher poly count on 360 and much better textures.
 

Tellaerin

Member
Warm Machine said:
Who is responsible for these higher standards?

The friggin' hardware is. The fact that the game looks better than the other two versions is a gimme - the game's running on a more powerful console. The question is, how much better does it look? And based on what the X360's supposed to be capable of, apparently the answer was, 'not enough to deserve a higher score'. What is so hard for you to understand?
 
A game getting a 9 at this late in the generation is facing higher standards than in the begining, but the transitions looks to be much less impactful for X360 though. It's facing a sort of weird high/low standard for gaming, gameplay is the same as the 9.0 scorer which is excellent since there is a hell of a lot of good games over the years, but the 8.5 is from the higher standards of graphics.
 

dark10x

Digital Foundry pixel pusher
I'll still buy it on XBOX360. No reason for me not to do so. I'm hoping that the game delivers an experience as memorable as Ancel's previous games...
 

jarosh

Member
1up said:
On Xbox 360, the visuals don't impress nearly as much as they do in the current-gen versions, since there are only minor graphical upgrades to speak of.

Gamespot said:
This isn't just a half-hearted port of the Xbox game. Everything in this version looks markedly better than the rest, which is what you would hope for from a next-gen console. Fantastic lighting, improved level geometry and textures, better fire effects, scarier-looking dinosaurs and beasts, and of course, a better-looking Kong, all reside on the 360 version.

wow, uhm... ok
 

mrklaw

MrArseFace
why does it matter? The game sounds like it plays well. Surely if you have a 360, you'd buy the 360 version because it *will* look better than the others. Same way if you have PS2 and Xbox, you'd usually buy the Xbox version of a multiplatform game because it'd look better.

$10 is nothing when you've just spunked $500+ on your new toy
 

Farmboy

Member
Razoric said:
Christ some of you guys are worse than actual PR. :lol

The spin...
xbox-360.gif

...is in!

Though the 360 version is the best-looking one.
 

demi

Member
dark10x said:
I'll still buy it on XBOX360. No reason for me not to do so. I'm hoping that the game delivers an experience as memorable as Ancel's previous games...

It's no Beyond Good & Evil, sorry.
 

jarosh

Member
mrklaw said:
why does it matter? The game sounds like it plays well. Surely if you have a 360, you'd buy the 360 version because it *will* look better than the others. Same way if you have PS2 and Xbox, you'd usually buy the Xbox version of a multiplatform game because it'd look better.

$10 is nothing when you've just spunked $500+ on your new toy

well, i definitely agree with you. that's not the point i was trying to make. as i mentioned in my earlier post i was just surprised at 1up's comment. because i got the impression (from several screenshots) that the 360 version looks A LOT better. and gamespot seems to agree. it's more than just a higher resolution, even though 1up made it sound like that.
 

Fuma

Banned
Seems very few have Kong for the 360 here. The game is awesome. Fighting 3 V Rexs at once, killing them, then having the camera zoom in on a highly detailed Kong as he roars (that shakes the house with a Klipsh 12" sub) is one of the best experiences I've had in gaming. If you got a 360 you need this game. 8)

edit..I have the PC game and the 360 version looks much much better. Worth the 10$ to me.
 

Xellotah

Member
I think they should rate the game as is and let the customer decide whether the improvements are worth the extra $10.
 

Patrick Klepek

furiously molesting tim burton
Xellotah said:
I think they should rate the game as is and let the customer decide whether the improvements are worth the extra $10.

That makes no sense. What's the point of reviewing the games on separate platforms? That's like saying "Don't judge the game worse if the PS2 version has terrible frame rate problems and the Xbox one doesn't. Judge the game. Let the consumer decide if the frame rate is worth picking up the Xbox one."
 
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