IL-2 Sturmovik: Birds of Prey Review Xbox 360
It needs to be noted that this review was written MONTHS ago. It is possible that over time, and with patches, certain aspects of this review may no longer be applicable or accurate.

The Good:

1. Closest thing yet to a console Flight SIMULATOR.

2. Good graphics.

3. Decent campaign and LOTS of single missions to fly.

4. Variable realism settings.

5. Quick mission editor extends the life of the game.


The Bad:

1. Can't get into multiplayer games. (at the time this review was first written in 2009) Seemed like no one was playing this game online.

2. Lack of cockpits for Axis planes.

3. Sound skips or drops out, in cut scenes sometimes.

4. Having to click the right thumbstick to look around is absolute CRAP.

5. In-flight chatter is annoying. (as it is in EVERY console flying game)

6. Historical inaccuracies and inaccuracies with aircraft.

7. No Axis campaign.


Final BS Rating: -2 SUCKS

As far as air combat games for consoles goes, this game is actually fairly decent. However it still pales in comparison to its PC big brother, IL-2 Sturmovik 1946. Considering that IL-2 1946 can run on PCs that are pretty low-end, you're really much better off buying that game instead. Especially considering how cheaply you can get the game by now.

At first I thought my review might be a little harsh. However I decided that maybe it really wasn't. After finishing the campaign, I really haven't felt the urge to pop this game back into the 360 and play it some more, other to grab some of the easy achievements.

Birds of Prey was, at the very least, a step in the right direction for console flying games.

Brothers in Arms: Hell's Highway Xbox 360 Review

Brothers in Arms: Hell's Highway Xbox 360 Review


Liked:

1. Graphics are good but nothing mind-blowing.

2. Sound effects are fantastic.

3. Gameplay is generally fun and enjoyable.

4. Action camera is fuckin' badass! I can't get enough of seeing enemies get their faces and limbs blown off.

5. Story is ok. Kind of like a poor man's Band of Brothers or Saving Private Ryan.

6. Most achievements you get simply by playing the game. Nothing wrong with rewarding players for playing your game.

7. Good voice acting and soundtrack.

8. Not one single word mentioned about the "Holocaust". Thank fucking God.


Disliked:

1. I can't stand Leggett. Always hated the mother-fucker and this game just makes me hate him more.

2. Textures sometimes take too long too load, and you end up looking at a very blandly rendered model. Particularly bad on the characters' faces during cut scenes.

3. Some gay glitches... Pathfinding is bad sometimes, and both enemies and friendlies get stuck on scenery or run around like a dog chasing its tail.

4. Too much of the emotional impact of the story relies on the player having played the previous two games.

5. Minor gripes: These are a bunch of little things that when added up made me take away a point from the game. I felt it would be unfair to remove a whole point for each one of these things.

Did the Germans run out of grenades by September, 1944? The enemy AI never uses grenades. (this could be a good thing too)

Speaking of the Germans, they are the typical Hollywood propaganda style Nazis who seem to enjoy shooting Dutch women for pleasure.

Some of the achievements are just plain crazy. Like the one where you have to play for 100 days straight, and the one where you have to remember to play it on Sept. 17 next year... Can't cheat with that one either, since you have to be signed into Xbox Live to get it.

Sometimes the cut scenes seem to just "jump" right into a completely different scene. A good transition or fade would have looked better and been smoother.

Sometimes your squaddies will "teleport" to you or in front of you rather than run. That looks really shitty and can sometimes get them killed if they happen to teleport out in front of the cover.

The game uses those "quick flash frames" to represent madness that so many games have started using ever since F.E.A.R. started it all... Enough already.

Finally, and I don't know if this is a bug, or just AI behavior, but often you can give your men orders and they won't follow them.


Yay: The action cam and the intensity and sound of the fighting definitely make this a great experience. +1

Gay: I'm getting tired of every WW2 FPS trying to be Band of Brothers or Saving Private Ryan. Enough with the sappy emotional stuff. Story and emotions can be good, but for fuck's sake all the kids are going to start thinking that World War 2 was fought by a bunch of Emos and the war started because Hitler threw people into Concentration Camps. -1

Final BS Rating: +3 HARDCORE

Notes:

I didn't even bother trying the multiplayer, it simply didn't interest me. This review only considers the single-player campaign.