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12 Reviews

Published by: Electronic Arts / Genre: Action & Adventure / Release date: 2006-02-24

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    12 Reviews
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      22.07.2010 15:41
      Very helpful
      1 Comment



      Brilliant and engrossing

      Black is a play station 2 first person shoot em up and has a strong storyline and very playable game play.

      Black is a black ops military group, who has been betrayed by one of their own members. The game starts with the interrogation of the surviving member, a Sergeant Keller, Keller tells the questioners about what went on and of course as he describes the events the game moves into the next level.

      Black is a first person shoot but the game is differentiated by the quality of the graphics and the superb smoothness of the movement of the player and the opponent avatars. This game leaves nothing to chance; here we have windows with reflections, reflections on guns, and the breathing of the player as he moves through the game. So when crawling and trying to go by stealth, the breathing is almost inaudible but when running and exhausted we get deep breathes and audible pain from being shot.

      The game is as with all classic first person shoot em ups it has levels which get harder as you progress. So you start with a nice easy level in which to get used to the way the player moves and how to use the gun, change gun type and how to throw grenades. It also shows how the common soldier fires at you and gives you a chance to get used to picking up the health boosts and how and when to use the health packs. Health boosts are little plus signed bottles and give the player an immediate health burst, health packs are like ambulance men's health packs and have a cross on them. Packs can be picked up and used when needed; the player can carry up to 3 at one time.

      Getting shot

      Getting shot is of course a bad thing, as the game has 4 settings from junior to full on black mode, the impact of a bullet varies between levels.
      As a guide, a player can get survive about 5 bullets, however, standing on a mine will kill unless the player has full health, being hit by a shotgun will kill in about 2 shots. Machine gun nests have to be taken out in as machine gun bullets are deadly, the player can survive about 3 hits. There are also snipers which are a real danger; I'd say a player can survive about 3 hits from these hidden menaces. There are also rocket launches and the player can survive two hits at the most.

      Shooting the bad guys

      As with all shoot em ups, hitting them in the head denotes a clean kill so even on black level an opponent can be killed in one shot. I'd say a common soldier takes about 2 shots on level 1 to kill, every level up takes one more shot to kill so at level 4 it takes 5 hits. This makes the importance of the head shot all the more important as you progress, and the need to use more powerful guns as the game progresses.

      Shotgun men

      There are huge men in armour who shoot you with shotguns, I'd say the player can survive two hits from a shotgun. They can be killed by the clean head shot but you are best off using a shotgun against them or a high powered rifle. Even then they usually come back up after being knocked down.

      Assault guards

      As the game progresses, some of the soldiers hide behind bullet proff screens, they can be killed in two ways, either sneaking up behind them and rather unportingly shooting them in the back or lobbing a grenade behind their backs.

      Machine gun nests

      These are impossible to creep past and have to be taken out by the use of grenades or rocket launches. They tend to be end of stage opponents so blowing up the machine gun with progress the game.


      Snipers can be taken out using a high powered rifle, any level with a sniper turns into a game of cat and mouse because you need to shoot the sniper rather than the other way around. These levels are amongst the best in my opinion.

      Each level

      Each level is huge and muti layered into smaller sections, as you progress you have to get past a certain point if you die before hand then you go right back to the start.

      All the way to black

      The game finishes with the back story partly told and gives the player a chance to replay the game on harder levels. Basically as each level increases, the amount of add ons disappear so level two doesn't have any health packs and level 3 no health boosts, level 4 has the hardest enemies to kill and you have to pick up all the terrorist plans as you progress.


      The game is very similar to all shoot em ups, L1 aims, R1 shoots, the buttons all change the player settings, i.e. crouch, put on a silencer, go from single to automatic burst, and change gun type. I tended to find that changing gun and using the paddles is enough for most levels.

      Sound and game progression

      As this is the best shoot em up around (as of 2007), the graphics are top notch and the back story brilliant it would have been criminal to have had a poor sound track. Thankfully, that is not the case and the sound and music is first rate, some of the levels have moody atmospheric music to go with the level. The music for the graveyard level is particularly apt, then there are the more exposive and high octane levels which have pumping music and a super-charged atmosphere.

      The final level

      The final level of this game is the best final level I've ever played on any playstation game. It has everything; you are put into a huge warehouse with two parapets overlooking your first position. The warehouse is basically full of every bag guy you've encountered, only in huge numbers and the tactics needed to complete the level is ridiculous. Particularly when there aren't any mid-stage pauses in the level, once you enter the warehouse you have to complete. This level is difficult on level 1; almost impossible on level 2, impossible virtually on level 3 and I've never completed it on the Black (level 4) level.

      This is as a friend of mine says "a double hard b****rd"


      The game automatically saves your position on the Play station's memory card, once a player has passed a certain level it starts automatically from the next level onwards each time.

      This for me is the standard all first person shoot em ups have to play against, anything after this game has to be this good or they look dated.


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        15.09.2009 19:05
        Very helpful



        If you dont have it, you should.

        I'm not much of a gamer myself, but now and again I like to treat myself. I don't know much about games, so usually I just got for what I can afford, what looks good on the cover, and what the graphics look like on the back of the case.
        Needless to say, Black ticked all of these boxes for me, and I had heard my flatmate banging on about how cool it is. So, I bought it, and I have to say I am impressed.

        For a start, the storyline is pretty cool, well thought of and well put together. I especially like the little videos before each mission. (Even though these do get annoying if you have to watch them more than once. e.g. if you have a power cut half way through a tough mission).

        The graphics are pretty good for PS2, probably better for a higher class console but I wouldn't know. This is Ps2, right? Personally I prefer to play the game in black and white, it makes it look so much better (if you haven't tried this, then you must! Run your television on 50hz and you will see. Or just do it the easy way and change the colour settings)

        I think it's interesting how you can only hold 2 weapons at once, but I was glad to learn you could swap either of them for other weapons that enemies have dropped. Only being able to hold a limited number of grenades kinda annoyed me, but I guess this adds to the realistic side of the game. Reloading is quite fast, picking up ammo is instant, the weapons are all quite realistic and it is overall just a really fun game.

        Difficulty levels range between easy and solid, so you can always complete the game in different difficulties once you get through it. It's quite a challenge in some parts, which is fun if that's what you're into.

        And that's all I have to say about it really. If you dont already have it, you should buy it.


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        13.08.2009 14:36
        Very helpful
        1 Comment



        A great shooter.

        Black is a shooter developed by Criterion games, the makers of the Burnout series, for the Playstation 2.

        The story follows a black ops soldier named Keller, it takes place during flash backs he has whilst being interrogated which is quite a unique way of doing so but sadly the story is some drivel about arms dealers and terrorists and usually is just a reason for you to continue to blow things up!

        The gameplay Black offers is in the first person perspective. Kellar can only carry two weapons at once so some strategy is needed when deciding if you should be picking up new toys like a rocket launcher, assault rifles, grenades, pistols. The guns all handle really well and have a really powerful feel to them with each bullet that lands on target providing serious damage.

        The gunplay is immensely satisfying, thanks to the games excellent explosions and distructability, while it is true not everything breaks it is truly amazing that when you throw a grenade into a building the force of the blast will not only wreck the place but as well as send enemies flying out through the windows. The game is also littered generously with things that go boom from mines to exploding barrels so you are never short of something fun to do!

        Enemy AI is the only poor thing I can think of, some of the soldiers are so mentally challenged they will let you walk right up behind them and melee them to death without even turning around to see what is going on!

        Graphics here are really good with detailed weapons and explosions are particularly impressive, this game is almost comparable to the earlier PS3 and Xbox 360 titles.

        If you are up for some more shooting action and like your explosions, Black will tick all the right boxes.


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        • More +
          25.07.2009 09:16



          Great game either way but if you are good at shooters this is one of the best on the market.

          This is one of the most addictive one player games I have ever had the pleasure to play. One of the best things about this games are sharp graphics and the deadly precision you need to play it. Unlike other shooting games where you get a targeting circle the enemy has to be in to hit, in this you simply get a little dot on the screen which is where you fire (this gives a great level of realism). Another realistic feature is that enemies come with different amounts of body armour if you shoot one that is wearing a flack jacket in the body it won't kill him: headshots will. Another point of realism is that if you have a fully automatic weapon and you hold down the trigger the kickback of the gun means your targeting point jumps and you lose accuracy. There are a good variety of weapons available. Another good thing is that each level gets gradually harder as the bad guys get tougher. There are two drawbacks to this games. Firstly the story parts between the levels can drag on too longer (especially if you have an itchy trigger finger like me). The second major drawback is the difficulty of the game: even on easy I have not been able to get past the sixth level which is frustrating because I enjoy playing it so much.


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          20.03.2009 23:10
          Very helpful



          decent game worth playing

          From the makers of the Burnout racing games Criterion Games and released in February 2006. Black is a first person shooter and has also been released for the Xbox


          You work for the CIA and work for elite squad the Black Tactical Squad, a team that does whatever it takes to get the job done and works outside the law. You play as Jack Kellar, a Sergeant in the US Army special forces.

          Set in war torn Western Europe the game recaps on your actions over the previous day during you interrogation and the story is told from Kellar' view.

          You can carry up to two different weapons at once and they are set on real weapons.


          The graphics are good and the cut scenes are pretty good although the story is not the greatest but pretty good. The action is good with plenty of enemies and levels to play, not the best game on the market but a good game worth playing.


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          13.08.2008 16:45
          Very helpful



          great shoot 'em up!

          Black is a first person shooter brought to us by the makers of the hugely popular racing game series Burnout, Criterion Games. It stars a young man called Sergeant Jack Keller, and Black Ops soldier. He is currently undergoing investigation four days into the future, and you have to go back in time to complete the missions he has been appointed. Later to be revealed, why exactly he is under investigation.
          Black is set in western Russia, and our hero has been briefed on a named terrorist group called the 'Seventh Wave'. Keller's first mission sees him and his team battling against the forces of the Seventh Wave. Keller eventually reaches a checkpoint, but disobeys orders and enters into a terrorist controlled building where he is ambushed by a terrorist. However it is revealed that the terrorist is actually a former CIA operative, who goes by the name ' William Lennox'. he appears to be the leader of the band of terrorist Seventh Wave.
          The following missions show Keller on the trail of Lennox, where Keller essentially has to kill everybody in his path! Talk about the next Arnold Schwarzenegger hey?

          Black is probably one of the best first person shooters available on Playstation 2. It is very unique compared to other shooters, and has a range of features which no other similar games have. In Black, you are given a large arsenal of weapons that seem extremely realistic and similar to real life weapons. The developers have paid a lot of attention here, and each weapon has been created in essence, as realistic as possible. All the weapons have been carefully detailed and the characteristics of each gun can be felt. Most weapons have optional firing modes, this means you can choose whether your gun is fully automatic, semi-automatic or in single shot mode. This can be changed by pressing a single button. Magazine sizes are rather small and you will find yourself changing magazines very frequently. A small price to pay for blowing someone's head off! The most famous of weapons are included in this action game, including ;
          *AK-47 - Probably the most recognized gun around the world. Designed and manufactured mainly in Russia, the most powerful of nation have hundreds of these widely available. It is the most all-round perfect gun in the game. It has the option of all three firing modes, it has a steady aiming ability and a fairly long range zoom capacity.

          *Mac-10 - This gun is similar to that of an Uzi. It is mainly automatic and can spray a multiple of bullets in a matter of seconds. My favourite Uzi style gun in all the game.
          *RPG - Rocket propelled grenade. Wow. This is the weapon you want if you want to go on a killing spree no doubt. Tremendous power, but only available with 5 shots in a magazine, which you don't find that often.

          Obviously there are more than three guns, I just wanted to express some of the differences and range of guns the game has. The gameplay is truly astonishing, when you shoot your gun, everything it hits is effected. Shoot a window, it will smash. Shoot a car door, it will dent. Shoot a concrete pillar, it will crumble. Also, a good addition is the health gauge, when you have picked up a medi-kit and you don't need it, you will store it for later use. If your are getting annihilated by bullets, why not have a medi-kit? Also, the hand grenades truly make this game believable. Can't hit the enemy because he's behind a pillar? Throw a grenade, kill the pillar, and the man too! Two birds with one stone!Before each mission, you will be asked what difficulty level to play at. You have a an option between; easy, normal, hard and Black Ops. With each difficulty you will be additional missions to carry out and objectives to complete. Also, there will be more/less medi-kits available dependant on the difficulty level you choose. There are five additional objectives that can be accessed ;

          Blackmail - Local and destroy evidence that can be used against the US.
          Intel - Collect vital knowledge on the terrorist activity.
          Recon - Find information that could help you in future missions.
          Armament - Discover hidden weapons.
          Destruction - Seek and destroy resources that the terrorists might use.

          So, there is plenty for you to do if you get bored of the main storyline! As you progress further into the storyline, you will come to adore the game. It is truly spectacular for this era of game and the graphics are something special. There are a million and one ways to complete every mission dependant on your individual style. A great game for all, that is if you are 16 or over. The lads and girls at Criterion have produced something out of nothing here and a revelation of a game. It will have you playing happily for hours. Even if you don't enjoy this sort of game, I still however recommend it to you as it truly is something to be witnessed. Have fun playing!


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          • More +
            17.05.2008 14:08



            Decent shooter than fans onthe genre will like

            Black gives us a first person shooter with a difference, for this game gives you the ability to compleley obliterate all the environments you play through, really fun to destroy everything in your path wether they are you opponents or not. Nothing more fun that breaking and shooting through al the glass inthe first few level. Destruction fans will loveit.

            The game play itself is pretty good, follows the simple formula that the likes of Goldeneye and Perfect Dark started, and the first few levels are amazing. for me the problem starts here though, the game starts to really wane after this point and shows that even though it starts off fun , the novelty of breaking stuff wears thin when you find out the game doesn't have much substance.

            The sound is tremendous in the game however and the whole presentation of the game is fabulous. The computers AI in the game can be ridiculously poor which can make for the game to seem really easy at times. Also fans of an itriguing story will be unhappy as the story mode is very disappointing.

            All in all a very good effort as it looks and feels greta but it seems like the producers ran out of ideas when it came to a story, theres not too much replay value in the game either but Id recommend it for fans of a fun shoot-em-up without having to think too much.


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            05.08.2007 21:06



            Great....but could be greater

            Black is a first person shooter for ps2

            It begins with some great vivid cutscenes which throw you straight into the action. The gameplay is superb and the action never stops. The controls are relatively easy to use and the graphics are great.

            However, the one thing that black lacks is a definite storyline, One soon tires of the random action cutscenes and you soon get confused about who your ahooting and why you are doing it.

            Black's first few levels are exciting, but the action movie formula wears thin fast, and the game's over not long after.


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              20.07.2007 15:16
              1 Comment



              one of the best games i've played

              I bought "black" not too long ago, i hadn't heard of the game prior to finding it so took a chance and i have to say it's one of the best games i've played, the controls are very easy to work and the game play itself is fantastic, the graphics also are far better than i expected, this game keeps me hooked to my ps2, so much so i often lose track of time, very addictive once you start this game, all missions that i have completed have been fun to play, the only downside to the game is that at the start of each mission you can't skip the short film, and on the first time you play you have sit through the credits (boring), the advantage being once you've saved your profile this first time you can skip this bit, as for game play i can't think of any downsides.
              if you like shoot 'em ups this is the game for you,


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                05.07.2007 07:27



                Great game to play when your frustrated and just want to shoot some stuff

                This is just an awesome game. i have nothing at all bad to say about it. I play this game almost everyday. I have beaten it several times but i still go back and replay the levels. It has just enough realism to make you feel like you need to join some military branch but not so much that its not fun to play. Excellent weapons. the only thing i would change is put a 2 player mode on it


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                23.04.2007 22:45
                Very helpful



                The ultimate gun porno's dream!

                -(Game Information)-
                Publisher:EA Games
                Genre:First Person Shooter
                Release Date:Feb 24, 2006
                Age Rating:16+ for Strong Language and Violence
                Number Of Players:1
                Publisher Site:www.eagames.ea.com
                Developer Site:http://www.criteriongames.com/
                Product Site:www.ea.com/official/black/black/us/index.jsp
                Memory Card Usage:

                EA games are part of the huge Electronic Arts company. Electronic Arts have many more companies as well, like EA Sports and EA Sports BIG. EA games publish most of the non-sports game, like Black; Def Jam; Need For Speed; Harry Potter and Command and Conquer. Criterion are one of EA games main developers, and have always developed the Burnout series, which is known for its high speeds and total carnage. While Black doesn't have the high speed, it certainly has total carnage under it's belt.

                -(The Story)-
                Black places you in the role of a highly trained solider called Keller. The game begins as Keller is being grilled by this slimy person who says 'he will hep you if you cooperate'. Keller agrees and tells the guy everything he knows about this 'Seventh Wave', led by this terrorist called Lennox. Though there's vaguely a plot to be found here, it's a good reason to blow stuff up. Plus the ending really shocked me. I won't spoil it, but it'll surprise you.

                -(The Controls)-
                The controls are really simple. If you've played other PS2 FPS then you'll be able to jump right in. You're shoot button is R1 and to throw grenades you press R2. To crouch you press L2 and to zoom in your press R1. To change your weapon you press either the Left or Right button on the D-Pad and to change firing mode you press the Up button. Health packs can be used by the down button. The right face buttons are used for reloading (X), toggling the suppresor (Triangle), the melee attack (Circle) and picking up weapons (Square). To move and aim you use the analog sticks. The controls are really responsive and easy to learn.

                -(The Gameplay)-
                Black does away with all the button pressing and key collecting shenanigans from other First Person Shooters, and just gives you a straight up action. Usually missions involve you to get to the end of the level without dying, though if you play from normal to black ops difficulties you have to perform side missions to progress as well. But there's a ton of enemies to kill along the way. Though you don't have to kill enemies, you probably should as if you try to run past enemies you'll probably get killed.

                Enemies aren't all of the same power. At the beginning of the game the enemies are quite weak and will probably die after a few shots, but as you get to the fourth levels the enemies start wearing shields and becoming more powerful. There are some enemies who wield shotguns and wear lots of armour and have a face mask. Usually these involve you either firing at them until they die or blowing off their mask and getting a headshot. Plus there are enemies with shields, and it will take some damage before dying.

                For the most part, the A.I. is pretty smart, but there's some dumb moments. If you try to throw grenades at them they will usually run away to avoid the grenade. Or if you're against shielded men they will hold up their shields to protect themselves. Also, if they're weak they will run away to protect themselves. Like i mentioned before, sometimes the A.I. can be quite stupid. For example, i entered a room, blasted a load of enemies with grenades and RPGs, yet a guy on a higher platform didn't notice me at all. Dumb or what?

                The pacing in Black is excellent. The beginning of Black is quite slow and has a few firefights just to introduce you to the game, but as you progress through the game it starts to get more intense and there's loads more firefights. Also, there's never any cutscenes during gameplay, which helps the pacing as cutscenes usually interrupt the flow of a game. The game is very fast paced and never involves backtracking, unless you get lost in these huge levels. Also, you're never thrown into huge firefights at the beginning of levels, so it doesn't feel jarring.

                Like i mentioned before, in the harder difficulties you'll have to perform side missions. There are five types of side missions, which are Blackmail; Intel; Recon; Armament and Destruction. Blackmail is basically when you need to find and destroy anything threatening to the USA's popularity, which includes computers and things of that nature. Intel is when you need to find info on your enemies plans, like maps and photographs. Recon are items which help with your next mission. Armament is when you find hidden weapons. And destruction is what the name implies, smashing objects in a bashful nature. The side missions themselves aren't exactly exciting, but what items you find can be humorous. You'll find references to other shadowy government movies and TV shows like Knight Rider and WarGames.

                There are lots of guns in Black, which is no surprise considering the game is all about shooting. There are lots of different guns with that as well. There's lots of long ranged weapons, like the G36C; MP5 and AK-47, as well as short ranged weapons like the Shotgun and Uzi. But there's weapons like RPGs which are explosive and really cool (especially on Silver Weapons when you have UNLIMITED AMMO!). Also the Sniper Rifle comes into use as well.

                Black's main appeal is the promised 'destruction' in the game. This is true and really cool. There's lots of destructible objects in the games, like barrels; furniture and much more. Plus, a lot of the environment is destructible as well. You sometimes need to blow down a locked metal door with a shotgun, which is pretty cool. These destructible environments are brought to life thanks to fantastic explosions and awesome effects.

                The difficulty level is quite challenging, even on easy. This is probably due to the lack of checkpoints and save points. You have to travel quite a bit through the level until you get to a checkpoint, plus you only save at the end of each mission. If you quit or restart before a mission ends, you'll have to do the whole mission again. So if you get onto a challenging section and want to stop playing, if you do then you have to do the whole mission again. This is quite frustrating, especially if you have to leave for emergencies even if you're not stuck. There's a total of four difficulty levels, which are Easy; Medium; Hard and Black Ops. Black Ops is unlocked if you complete the game on Hard. Black Ops means all side missions and main objectives must be finished. Plus you can't carry health packs, so if it gets intense you're stuck.

                -(The Graphics)-
                Black is an amazing looking game that pushes the PS2 to the limits. The game has excellent lighting, as it has realistic sunsets and glares. The environments are excellent, as you gun through factories filled with catwalks, a graveyard, sewers and the excellent bridge level. The best thing about the game is the explosions, which are excellent. The look so cool, and when they happen, you feel a vibration and the screen goes blurry as well. Also, a nice motion blur effect is used when you reload. The guns look good as well, and animate realistically. One nice touch is instead of using CG movies, Black features recorded movies, which looks like a movie. This is a really cool touch. And with all the explosions, there's never a moment of slowdown. The only problem i had was there's no blood, which looks stupid considering the weaponry we're using. But this is pretty minor and doesn't detract from the visuals much.

                -(The Sound)-
                The sound also exceeds as well. The game has an excellent score, though it doesn't play much and a lot of the game is in silence. The voice acting is ace as well, as they all sound suitably gruff. The terrorists also speak their native language, which is a nice touch. The effects are awesome, as all the guns have a unique sound and sound awesome as well. Overall the sound is just as good as the graphics.

                -(Replay Value)-
                Most people (aside from OPS2) have criticised Black for it's brief length and lack of multiplayer, and this is something i agree on. While the online wouldn't effect me as i don't play online, it'll effect people who have online. Plus i would of loved to see split-screen multiplayer. Even some additional modes would be good. The main campaign took me around 7 hours to finish on easy, and a little more on harder difficulties. But if you play the game on all 5 difficulties levels that will be about 25 hours. Plus you'll want to play with silver weapons. But to be honest, it's only worth playing twice or three times, as playing it after three times can be very dull. I'm sure this is something the sequel will fix.

                Replay Value=6
                Overall Score=8.8=Great

                -(Ending Comments)-
                Black is one of the best FPS I've played. It's just about straight up shooting, rather than pressing switches or finding keys or other things of that nature. Sometimes this comes off as shallow, as it can be repetitive just shooting loads of terrorists, but the awesome visceral presentation, satisfying gunplay and cool explosions make this less annoying. If you love FPS this is a must have and if you're craving for some heavy-hitting action then this is a must have as well.

                -(If You Like This I'd Suggest)-
                Call Of Duty
                Medal Of Honour
                Urban Chaos:Riot Response

                -(Where You Can Buy It)-
                amazon:used and new from £9.75
                Platinum Edition:£14.98


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                  29.08.2006 15:41
                  Very helpful



                  One of the last FPS on the ps2 before the ps3 and one of the best too.

                  Game Info

                  Genre = FPS (First Person Shooter
                  Developer = Criterion Games/Software
                  Publisher = Electronic Arts
                  Players = 1 Player
                  Online = No
                  Age = 16+
                  Memory Usage = 59KB Minimum
                  Released = February 2006

                  Criterion is a Game Developer based in Guildford, England. Which is best known for its amazing stunning work on the Burnout series. What they did for the racing genre they are trying now do for the FPS genre with this game Black. By bringing the fast paced adrenaline metal mangling destruction of burnout into the form of exploding cars, buildings, towers from rockets and everything being blown to rumple by bullets and grenades.(Please read on to see if they done what they have planed to do.)

                  The story follows your character Sgt. 1st. Class Jack Keller who is a Black Ops soldier which is a specialist CIA covert group. It begins with you being interrogation with questions about terrorists and the operations in was in that toke place in the last 4 days. As Keller describes about his missions and what happened the game flashbacks to each missions which you then play.

                  Just like what Criterion did on the Burnout series was stunning, the same is said here if not better. So much detail it has in the game it really does have the Wow factor to it and it be very hard to choose 5 games that comes close or equal to the gorgeous graphics Black has got not only on the PS2 but on any console. From even something as everyday items like glass windows have that amazing reflecting lighting. The glare of light from metal objects that if possible you could fell the heat. Ok you maybe thinking yeah that sounds great but that is when everything is calm, nice and has that new look to it. When the bomb drops then destruction has never looked so beautiful.

                  Starting with the bullets, letting rip with a clip of your rifle around the place will have the glass smashing the small pieces, following your trail of fire leaves bullet holes through the walls, floor cars anything. See that tower up there? Not for long, shoot a rocket at it and it explodes in the pieces with the tower coming down in half leaving smoke to pour out. Stuck in a room then just blow the doors of its hinges with a shotgun. How about being on the other side and want to get it, Throw grenades through the window and get back. As what you get is not only the shattering of the glass and even the door being blow back outwards towards you but even the bricks, mortar and the roof can be demolished with enough force will let the beams of light in.

                  The last level is a great place to mention the level of destructive graphics. Where as you in a big room with a walkway at one side with loads of windows right the way along it, rooms full of big boxes which I'm guessing has ammo in it, explosive barrels around the place too. What I like doing here and many other times in the game is to just go mad by throwing all my grenades through the windows, switching to my heavy machine which holes loads of ammo and start blazing bullets everywhere, with panels of shattering glass, ammo boxes and barrels exploding into multiply bursts of flames along with the grenades. Ones the flames and dust settles down it's greatly satisfying to see everything obliterated even the 4 big pillars destroyed right down it's bones of the metal rode like you would see in the lobby area of the Matrix film but even to the more extreme.

                  Taken into account what that room is like and what grenades can do to towers and buildings, through out the whole game you will encounter areas like this everywhere you look and I am glad the makers of burnout has made a FPS.

                  With destruction at this amount in the game you would really be let down if the sound was bad but Black also gets top marks here by ticking the right boxes. From the shattering of the glass the sounds it makes is like sweet music to my ears and its odd to think that the equivalent in real life would make you jump. Rumbling explosions that could deafening you for real with its thunderous booms that real adds to the atmosphere and really know Criterion has giving you something special to play.

                  The same goes for the music, at times when you are walking about and the place is empty, totally deserted there's a calm tune playing with a hint of spooky sounds take starts that gives you the feeling that's something is about to kick off and it usually does with rockets and loads of enemies ambushing you in the open. Plus there's the fast paced music in some of the gun fights that's adds to the action of the gameplay.

                  The controls just like any other FPS are all ways basically the same, where as the L1 is to aim and R1 to shoot and the other 2 buttons are used for Crouching and throwing grenades. The square button is used for pick up and swapping weapons as only two you can hold. You have a melee attack with the O button and the triangle can be used to attach or detached your suppressor if you have it and is for that gun. You can also change your fire mode from single to burst and fully automatic with up on the d-pad, which of course I did not bother with at first but relished that the single shoot has much more accuracy. The only problem I had with the layout was that I sometimes wasted health packs by pressing down to use them when I was thinking it was to change fire mode.

                  The gameplay is just basically a simple shooter and which they have done a great job and you could even say done to perfection. With other games of this type you may get things to do like pressing switches, using computer points, finding keys to open doors and so on with mean different things, but with black you get non of that and its just a straight shooter letting you destroy everything in your path. From the start the first level lets your cause chaos by blowing up cars, taking out the pillars of a museum, blowing the door of its hinges, destroying phone boxes and any everyday objects can be mangled. Turning a street in to war zoom has never been this much funny.

                  Some of the levels keeps you as a one man team but others you will be accompanied by 1 or 2 other special ops members and keeping with simple play of the game there's no orders involved, so you can get on with what you are doing while the other team members attack and also watch your back. They have been given good AI so they move and attack with good intelligences, making the game feel that extra bit real and even they shout out if there's a incoming rocket or if they under very heavy fire and need your help.

                  There are 8 levels which all you have to do is get to the end while either taking out all the enemies, blowing defense points or breaking into there bases to find info and try to take out the leaders of these terrorists. The first although great is very short but as you progress the levels not only dives deeper into the story alone with tougher enemies but also the length of the levels change. Starting off in a street fight, you continue through big wooded area, attacking there base and getting to a farm that's under fire. Then onto many different locations that all well designed like the bridge where you get to do some long range silent shots, to cities, ruins, underground bases, sewers and even a graveyard where you most hind behind gravestones as a sniper is take shots at you, which is another great level as the is debris of stones flying everywhere as you working you way close to the sniper and to somewhat safety of a building.

                  Other cool effects that makes the game feel more real and gives it a better atmosphere is when you reload your gun the surrounding area goes into a burry as your character focuses on he's gun which is what you get in real life for example if you were to look and focus on your finger close up everything around you goes into a blurry. The other effect is when you been shot to a very low amount of health the screen slows down and goes black and white to show you are about to die plus as its slows down it gives you a bit of time to realize it and then heal your self with a medi-pack. Although if you don't get shot again you will heal slightly this then brings the color back to the screen and to normal speed.

                  Although this type of chaotic destruction is very rare on consoles and is special in Black this will be the norm for many games to come on the next-generation of gaming for the Playstation 3.

                  The is any easy mode which should that long at all as I played it first time on normal and completed it in about a week, ones completed thought you unlock silver weapons which I though would be new weapons but all it was is all the guns are make out of very shiny silver metal, that does look really good and also have unlimited ammo apart from grenades but is great fun walking around with a rocket launcher. There also a hard mode which is probably really only for experts as normal was very hard at the end but if completed then unlocks Black Ops difficulty mode from which I've found out is extra hard and it also gives you a M16 Assault Rifle with an M203 grenade launcher.

                  So apart from replaying the game on different difficulties there is nothing else to play or unlock. If they were to make sequel then I really do hope that add a multiplayer mode plus online mode and maybe a co-op mode.

                  ==BUY OR NOT TO BUY==
                  This is one of the greatest games on the PS2 and is a must to play, but as there is very little replay value that may last up to 2 weeks then you should either rent it or try to get it cheap.

                  Graphics - 10/10
                  Sound/Music - 10/10
                  Controls - 10/10
                  Gameplay - 10/10
                  Replay Value - 3/10

                  FINAL RATING - 8.6/10

                  Amazon.co.uk = £17.99
                  Play.com = £17.99
                  Website Links
                  Thanks For Reading. Eddie


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                • Product Details

                  Black is a fresh and unique take on the first-person shooter. Moving away from the covert and simulation obsessed games of recent years, Black delivers intense action gun fights by identifying the key components of great Hollywood shoot-outs and recreating them as a game. The peerless fire-and-effect experience will revolutionise video game shooting. With the odds stacked heavily in the enemy's favour, the player can only succeed by learning a new style of attack&. be bold, be aggressive and use the physical environment as an ally. In Black, it's not just who you shoot, it's what you shoot. Signs, walls, statues, doors, ceilings, and windows can all be destroyed to surprise, stun, wound or kill your enemy with devastating results. Every bullet has an impact, every impact has an effect