FIFA Soccer 13 Review

The Good

• Exciting and satisfying matches   
• Touch-screen management controls are a great addition, particularly in co-op   
• Excellent presentation.

The Bad

• No EA Sports Football Club or Ultimate Team modes   
• Older physics engine causes some odd player interaction   
• Touch-screen controls for passing and shooting interfere with the flow.

Let's get this out of the way first: FIFA Soccer 13 on the Wii U is not a straight port of the game found on the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. There's no improved first-touch system, FIFA Street-inspired dribbling, or any of the tweaks made to the physics engine. And most disappointingly, there's no sign of the wonderfully addictive FIFA Ultimate Team. What you're left with is essentially FIFA 12 with a roster update and some good, and not-so-good, Wii U GamePad additions. That's not entirely a bad thing--the core action is still as fun, tactile, good looking as it ever was--but if you're looking for the latest and greatest from EA Sports on the Wii U, FIFA Soccer 13 is a disappointment.

What is new are the enhancements made for the Wii U GamePad. At its simplest, you can use the GamePad to play the entirety of the game away from the TV, but things get far more interesting when you use it alongside your existing display. A set of tabs along the touch screen let you perform various managerial tasks while the action unfolds on the pitch. You can perform substitutions, change your formation, and dictate new strategies to your team, such as how aggressively they should be attacking and shooting, all with just a few taps. The big, bold buttons are easy to tap, and while you might not be tweaking things during a heated forward run, pauses for throw-ins or set pieces provide the perfect opportunity to make a few tweaks, and much more conveniently than trawling through the standard menu screens.

There's also a radar screen that gives you a simplified overhead view of the action. On the screen, you can tap on a player and drag him across the touch screen to send him on a run, or tap on the opposition to mark and defend against specific players. This is a neat use of the tech, but not something that's easy to do during a match--the point at which you want to send players on a run or mark someone is the moment you can't afford to take your eyes off the TV. What you can do, though, is enlist the help of a friend to play manager while you concentrate on the action with a Pro Controller. It works surprisingly well--so long as your friend doesn't mind being relegated to the touch screen--letting you set up specific and more-intricate plays than the AI. The system is open to some epic griefing too. As mean as it is, sending your mate's goalkeeper to the other end of the pitch during the opposition's attack is pretty amusing.

This will never get old.

The other touch screen enhancements fare less well, namely those that let you touch to shoot and pass. Holding the GamePad up in front of you changes the touch screen into the face of the goal, letting you take shots by tapping where you want the ball to go. You can also tap on teammates to pass the ball to them, or tap on the opposition to go in for a tackle. While these features all work, taking your hands off the sticks and face buttons to press the touch screen is awkward and ultimately slower than just using the buttons. Penalties and set pieces work slightly differently. In those cases, you control a cursor by moving the GamePad around, using the cursor to aim your shot and pressing shoot to control the shot's power. Though purists may baulk at the idea, this system makes taking penalties much easier, and you still have the option of using the traditional controls, if you prefer.

If you do opt to play using the traditional control schemes or a Pro Controller, then you get the same FIFA experience launched last year with FIFA 12. That means defending with containment, jostles, and well-timed tackles rather than using the old two-button "pressing" technique, which sent players in to close down attackers and win the ball, requiring little in the way of skill. The physics-based player impact engine also makes a return, albeit in an older, less-refined form. That means you still get a fun, energetic, and wonderfully compelling game of football. There's little more satisfying than a well-timed cross followed by a thumping header, a heroic run up midfield for a one-on-one with the keeper, or a just-in-time clearance from the box. There are so many great moments to be had that the missing FIFA 13 tweaks aren't a deal breaker, even if it's disappointing to see the Nintendo version of the game still lagging behind other platforms.

What might be more of a deal breaker for some are the stripped-down online features. The most glaring omission is the compelling Ultimate Team--FIFA's mix of role-playing-game-like card trading, Top Trumps, and football management. The excellent EA Sports Football Club online mode, which keeps track of any experience points earned and ties them to a real-world team, is sorely missing too. What you're left with are the basics: Head to Head Seasons, an online league where you work your way through different divisions; Online Friendlies, where you compete against your friends for a trophy; and custom games. They're fun modes, particularly Online Friendlies, which makes playing regular matches against your friends much more exciting, but it's hard not to miss the more in-depth modes.

FIFA 13's presentation is among the best in the business.

The single-player side suffers less, if only because it has seen little in the way of updates since FIFA 12. There's Virtual Pro, where you create a player, selecting his age, play style, and position; and Career, where you can take your virtual player or a real-life player through a 15-year career. There's also a range of basic tournaments to play through, from the FA Cup through to custom leagues and knockout tournaments, as well as quick exhibition matches. What's missing are the weekly statistics updates for teams, which affect stats for attack, midfield, and defence. Gone, too, are the skill games that appeared on other platforms, which replaced the old keeper-vs.-player loading screens of the past with addictive, bite-size challenges.

The exclusion of these features isn't the end of the world, but it's a loss for players nonetheless. Still, FIFA 13 is an enjoyable and thoroughly rewarding football simulation--and is good looking too. Everything from the menus, to the music, to the action on the pitch is slickly presented and smoothly animated. Some of the GamePad additions are welcome, and at least it's easy enough to ignore the ones that aren't. This is by far the most feature-packed and enjoyable game in the FIFA series to hit a Nintendo console. It's not the best version out there, but it's a good start to the series on the Wii U all the same.

Disney Epic Mickey: The Power of Illusion Review

The Good

• Tight platforming feel   
• Great, challenging level design   
• Colourful visuals that are full of charm   
• Lots of classic Disney characters to meet   
• RPG elements provide lots of extra content.

The Bad

• Later levels might be too challenging for some.

Don't let the cutesy good looks and eclectic collection of Disney characters fool you: Disney Epic Mickey: Power of Illusion is a ruthless platformer. Like the classic Castle of Illusion and World of Illusion games it's inspired by, there's little in the way of hand-holding as you're pushed through its smart, well-designed levels and asked to save the world with little more than a stomp and a paintbrush. And while the tight platforming is a wonderful thing, it's Power of Illusion's role-playing elements, such as side quests, shops, and a leveling system (albeit, a basic one), that make it such a rich experience.

Characters like the Lost Boys are around to lend you a helping hand.

It helps that there's a story tying the whole thing together, which draws from both the older games and Mickey's latest outings in the Epic Mickey series. Oswald once again summons Mickey to the Wasteland--a sort of limbo for forgotten cartoon characters--except this time he needs Mickey's help. The evil witch Mizrabel's Castle of Illusion has suddenly appeared, and cartoon characters across the Wasteland are disappearing fast. It's up to you to enter the castle, search its rooms, find the missing toons, and take down Mizrabel once and for all.

To do so, you have a number of special abilities at your disposal. You can spin to take down enemies, fire blobs of paint and thinner at them, or bounce off their heads. It's the latter that makes the platforming so satisfying, thanks to tight controls and a neat mechanic that rewards you for riskier attacks. If you leave your bounce attack to the very last second--just before you come into contact with an enemy--you gain a super-bounce, which leads to more item drops and sends you skyrocketing to access secret or difficult-to-reach areas.

Each room in the castle is based on a classic Disney franchise such asPeter Pan, The Lion King, The Little Mermaid, and Aladdin. There's a great attention to detail at play that makes levels not only a joy to look at, but a joy to play. The vast ships of the Peter Pan levels give you plenty of room to jump around, while cannons and barrel-rolling henchmen provide obstacles for you to duck and weave your way through.

Run Mickey, run!

The Little Mermaid levels are more constrained, with tight, jellyfish-filled tunnels and rows of spikes requiring precise movements to make it through safely. While Mickey has unlimited lives and can take multiple hits before his health bar is depleted, getting killed during a level sends you straight back to the beginning. That can be frustrating, particularly during some of the extremely challenging levels in the latter half of the game, but the sweetness of the platforming inspires you to give it just one more go.

Aside from traditional platforming obstacles such as spikes, fireballs, and moving platforms, Power of Illusion also makes use of the touch screen in some inventive ways. It shows an outline of the platforms on the level, as well as objects you can interact with. Some, like cannons that fire you into the air, can be drawn in by following a specific outline, giving you access to new areas. Or you can remove obstacles like blocks by using thinner. The puzzles aren't overly taxing, but the fact that you have to stop what you're doing and peer down at the touch screen to solve them means they sometimes interfere with the smooth of flow of the platforming. There are bonuses for solving them, though, with a neat reward system giving you bonus paint, thinner, and a temporary speed boost for accurate drawing or erasing.

Assassin's Creed III Review

The Good

• Great storytelling that bridges two time periods   
• Exciting sea battles   
• Watching your homestead come together provides a sense of progress   
• Lots of historical and visual details to admire   
• Varied missions make good use of individual mechanics.

The Bad

• Far too many bugs and other technical issues   
• Hunting is underdeveloped  
• Parkour and stealth inconsistencies.

Certain vital events from the American Revolution have become so iconic that they still loom over our collective consciousness. The Boston Tea Party, Paul Revere's famous ride, and George Washington's crossing of the Delaware River aren't just important historical events--they are symbols of perseverance, self-sacrifice, and the quest for independence. Assassin's Creed III depicts some of these milestones, though it doesn't fully romanticize early American culture. These were somber times, sullied by bloodshed, slavery, and oppression, and this ambitious action adventure isn't afraid to confront the darker aspects of colonial expansion.

Assassin's Creed III also isn't afraid to draw parallels between historical events and modern ones, making statements about subjects like the fairness of the press that ring just as true today as they did then. You explore these themes from the perspective of two characters: Desmond Miles, a modern-day Assassin seeking to halt the ambitions of the opposing Templars; and Ratonhnhaké:ton, Desmond's Native American ancestor, more commonly referred to as Connor.

In some respects, Connor is a vessel for ideas more than a force of nature in his own right. Noah Watts' unsure voice acting keeps Connor at arm's length, emotionally--though in some respects, the distance is appropriate, given Connor's uncertain path through a complex political landscape. Connor finds himself a key figure within the Revolution; he fires cannons, commands troops, and jams his tomahawk into loyalist flesh. He conspires with Samuel Adams, and participates in renowned occasions such as the Battle for Bunker Hill. Assassin's Creed III renders particular details with great historical and visual authenticity. Major and minor figures are depicted; the cities of Boston and New York are exquisitely re-created; and even minutiae like the lines of The Beggar's Opera are presented with fine accuracy.

Freerunning is fun, but riding a horse is a more efficient way to get around.

Assassin's Creed III is hardly a documentary of America past; it's historical fiction, semi-twisted by the conspiracy theories that inhabit the overarching narrative that drives this ongoing series. If you're a newcomer, you'll be glad for the opening montage that fills you in on the ongoing Templar-versus-Assassin conflict. You learn that Desmond is now creating his own legend, and holds the fate of the world in his hands. Assassin's Creed III draws important parallels between the two men, both of whom navigate a thorny relationship with an estranged father. Desmond's story tugs at the heart more than once, not because of his newfound relationship with his aloof father, but because he learns more of the civilization that preceded us here on earth--and its futile attempts to ward off the disaster that annihilated it.

In both time periods, themes that the series has previously explored are further deepened. The Templar point of view is frequently expressed, often via the soliloquies of dying men who plead the good intentions of a philosophy that would seem to pave an apparent road to hell. Yet the truth isn't so cut-and-dried, and Connor is forced to confront his own convictions. You hear the sincere and convincing words of the men you've assumed represent the wrong side of morality, and must wonder: are the ideas of good and bad so absolute after all? Are the men you cradle in your arms as they gasp their dying breaths necessary casualties, or do they whisper ideas worth hearing and understanding? As one character insists, "There is no one path through life that's right or fair."

Put him in the long-boat and make him bale her!

When playing Desmond, you sneak, run, and leap your way through relatively linear levels, climbing up skyscrapers and sneaking through suspicious crowds when you aren't giving concussions to Templar agents. These fluid sequences hint at the possibility of full-fledged modern-day adventuring--though never quite arriving there. There does come an important revelation, however: the typically surprising finale that leaves you scratching your head, and in this case, forces you to consider an unpleasant truth about the nature of humanity. The finale lacks punch and closure, but leaves you guessing, trying to weave a tapestry of truth out of the conspiracies that have always buoyed the series' self-serious stories.

You spend most of your time as Connor, however, though this fact may not be abundantly clear when you first leap into the past. Within the first several hours of the game, you do get chances to experience the fanciful parkour mechanics for which the series is known, but Assassin's Creed III's early times are focused on establishing tone and backstory--not on free-form exploration. As you play that opening, it's hard not to wonder: when does the fun stuff come? In retrospect, however, the slow pace makes sense, giving you a chance to become invested in the world and its people, and allowing later story events to wield power they may not otherwise have held.