Vancouver 2010

Review from Cav - Saturday, 13 February 2010 @ 2:51pm

When I saw Vancouver 2010 was coming up I thought to myself “Cool, I quite enjoyed Nagano ‘98 Winter Olympics on the N64! Things must be better 12 years later. Bring it on!” Here’s where you insert that ‘Bap-Bowwww’ sound that TV Game Shows play when someone screws up a question. Man, am I disappointed in this game.

Mum? What? You missed it? Oh crap!

The one thing that really bugs me about V2010 is the real lack of variety. Of the 14 events that are available to players, there are only really 5 really ‘different’ events, being Ski Jump, Speed Skating, Sledding, Aerial Jumps and Downhill. I mean is there really any difference whether you are in a Bobsled or lying down on a Luge, head or feet first? No not really. What about downhill racing? Does it make a difference wether or not you are on Skis or a Snowboard? No, I didn’t think so. The distinct lack of these events was a huge let down for me. What is really missing is stuff like Snowboard Half pipe, Curling, Biathlon and Figure Skating! When the hell are gamers going to get a chance to spin a thumbstick and attempt to pull off a triple axle? When are we going to be able to execute perfect timing? When can we re-enact Blades of Glory? This could really go places! You could select your music and your costume, then pick from a choice of moves and choreograph the lot! Once it is all set, it’s up to you to try and pull off with button sequences from your chosen moves. This could really work! Hey Sega! You know where to find me!!

The 5 ‘types’ of events I listed earlier all control in virtually the same way. Downhill races pretty much all control the same way to start steer with the stick, crouch and carve with triggers. Sledding events start the same way, mashing A to start then B to jump in/on board, although Luge does differ ever so slightly in the start, with a ‘button press timing’ acceleration start and the fact that you are already on the board. The event I find the most challenging would have to be the Women’s Aerial jumps; aside from the three timing presses the main jump has you operating both the left and right thumbstick at the same time to perform the more difficult jumps. If you can’t pat your head and rub your stomach at the same time you may be in a bit of trouble here.

Did you just drop your guts?

It was awesome to be told when I beat my friend’s scores, which was a cool feature. It was a real shame was the friend whose scores I beat were MY OWN PERSONAL BESTS! No one on my friends lists has this game! On the subject of having no friends, (this is a rare occasion; I promise… you don’t believe me, do you?) I took my Olympic ‘A Game’ online. My first attempt to find a game online was fruitless. I don’t know, but I’d put a Pineapple on it that it had something to do with the fact that Bioshock 2 had been released that very day, and that those who didn’t have it yet were playing Mass Effect 2 or the AvP demo. I wasn’t until about 2 in the morning, the following night that I got an online game. Now if the choice of Flag was any indication to my opponent’s true identities, I was playing against a Yank, a Dane and a Japanese opponent. I was really unhappy with the player names in transparent, coloured text above their heads. This often made it difficult to see gates in downhill events, which leads to missing gates, which slows you down….. which can lead to rage quitting…. and did. Unless you have played nothing but this game since its release and memorised the course, this was a real let down. There are 2 online types of games with Player match, Ranked match - whick ranks you by ‘TrueSkill’ points. I only ever found Ranked/True Skill matches. This was a downer.

The Graphics do well, but with the repetition of game types, they have gotten away with using the same arenas over and over again. Emotions are shown well by athletes, depending on their performances, jubilation or disgust. Oh, and can someone please answer the following: Why the hell to the Athletes who place on the podium jump around like the just sank twelve Red Bulls and really need a leak? No one ever goes off like that when they win a medal; it would be an outright embarrassment to your country. The soundtrack is very ‘today’, but it really fades into the background when concentrating on the controls

So was it thru the banners or around them?

I have a feeling that Vancouver 2010 was a little rushed, just to get it out before the start of the Winter Olympics, with no real feel or variety in it. I seem to recall the Beijing Olympics Game scored poorly with some reviewers as well. Are we not learning from our mistakes, people? After the Winter Olympics are officially over (for real), you may find a few copies in the pre-owned section of you favourite videogames retailer

EDIT: If you do play/buy this game, make sure you don a black armband for Georgian luger Nodar Kumaritashvili, who died while on a practice run before the opening ceremony. Crazy stuff.

Pros

It has multiplayer and online play - Australia has been included - Notification of 'Friends records broken' - Yes these are lame and I can't really think if anything

Cons

Too much same same - No one is playing it to justify playing online