Uncharted 2

From the first time I played uncharted 1, I was hooked...A great story, beautifully rendered backgrounds, lush environments and amazing game-play...but it was missing a little something. Thats where Uncharted 2 comes in and kicks hot burning sand in your face, Beautifully rendered sand. This game plays like an action movie and handels it even better than the first. Naughty dog took what the game was missing and mad it run like clockwork. Its not the longest game but time does not tarnish this game. Campaign blew me out of the water and multi-player was new and exciting. The only problem is it takes about 23 bullets to take a player down. the extremely large health factor thew me off a bit and was frustrating at times, but other than the health factor this game is a rock solid 5! Go play campaign it will not disappoint.

ICO

From the same team that brought Shadow of the Colossus first brought ICO, a third person puzzler based on a boy that was born with horns thats is locked away in a fortress because his horns are considered a bad omen. The young boy meets the queens daughter Yorda and is bent on saving girl and escaping the island. While escaping the castle the boy and Yorda encounter shadow figures who are trying to hurt you and take back Yorda. To survive the game you have to pass a multitude of puzzles and keep Yorda safe using only a stick. The game is beautiful and one of the most memorable games I can think of. The atmosphere of the game is very dream like and light feeling. One of the most memorable moments is the first time you see Yorda, she's so bright she seems almost ghost like or angelic. This game is defiantly on my top ten list and still stands the tests of time. Jerad's rating 6 out of 5! Get it now

State of Emergency

State of Emergency was made in 2002 by rockstar studios the same studio behind grand Theft auto. Even at the time this game came out it seemed like a cheap stylized knock off of GTA. I heard somewhere that the game was based loosely on the 1999 world trade organization riots in seattle. The one thing that did impress me was the shear number of characters that engine could handle having on screen at once. Even with all those people on screen at once and the ability to create "chaos" in the streets the game still couldn't stand on its own. The characters lacked personality, game-play was repetitive and the game was all around lackluster. Jerad's rating......if you havent played it, your not missing much..... 2 out of 5.

Heavenly Sword

Sometimes referred to as the female god of war, this game did not disappoint. I actually first saw this game as a demo before I even bought a PS3 and damn did it impress me. From the extremely detailed environments to the over the top perfect animations and voice acting this game was the actual reason I had to have the PS3. This game was also one of the first games to use the six axis function of the controllers to maneuver anything from cannonballs to weapons and arrows. This game expertly weaves a story together that draws you in and leaves you wanting to finish the story and find out the ending. You not only feel for the heroine but also for the villans because of how well their personalities were crafted. Some of the game-play does get repetitive but the over the top supermoves and combo counter makes up for the repetitive nature. Everything about this game definitely beyond average and near perfect. Plus how can you go wrong with a smoking hot scantily clad ginger wielding a sword bigger than her entire body? Jerad rates this game a solid 6 out of 5!

Halo

The first of this mega series came out in 2001 and was PHENOMENAL. From the opening movie I knew this game was gonna be amazing. This game was so unlike any game out at the time, the controls were smooth from the mechanics of guns to the amazing handeling of the warthogs. Halo was not only an action packed shoot-em up but the game also brought with it a very immersive story line about the history (or future) of Halo and all the characters found in this game. The game also provided moments of brief horror and paranoia. When your exploring the ruins and first run into some of your team devastated by the Flood and when the Flood firsts attacks I was generally scared for the well-being of humanity. This game is non-stop action until the end and leaves you begging for more. Fortunately for you there are 3 more installments waiting for you. The only thing that bothered me was that the aliens spoke fluent english. Beyond that small hiccup this game WAS amazing remember that it came out in 2001 and may not measure up to todays standards but still when the game came out Jerad would have given it a solid 9.75 out of 10!