SBK-07: Superbike World Championship

Bump tyres with the stars in PS2’s latest racer, writes Eliot Fish.

SBK-07: SUPERBIKE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP
PC Xbox
PS2 X360
Wii PS3
NDS PSP
$49.95
G
Rating 3/5

The seemingly endless laps of a motorbike racing circuit can make for hypnotic gaming if you surrender to it. As with the gruelling challenge of F1, the hook to SBK-07 is in the intense concentration required to carve through corners at high speed without losing control and putting all that effort to waste. If you’re more interested in chucking wheelies than caressing the throttle, this may not be the game for you.

Play modes include the instant gratification of a Quick Race, the precision of Time Attack, a simulation of a Superbike Race Weekend, a full-blown Championship, bike-handling Challenges and Multiplayer.

As an officially licensed product, SBK-07’s championship has you bumping tyres with stars such as Troy Bayliss on your way to the chequered flag, as well as straddling Ducatis and Suzukis for real-world sponsors. Most importantly, the superbikes perform as you’d expect, even if the handling has a decidedly arcade flavour.

Obvious mistakes are punished – clipping other bikes or running off the track can spell disaster – but SBK-07 allows you to race with a bit more abandon than the usual simulation. Fighting to gain a position higher up the pack of 22 riders has just enough drama to get the adrenaline going without the need to battle with unforgiving physics. If you want to increase the difficulty, you can adjust settings that include tyre wear, traction control, realistic inertia and the race rules.

The incentive to stick with the long-winded qualifying races and warm-ups to gain a place on the podium hinges on whether you’re keen to unlock real superbike race videos, a gallery of umbrella girls and various cheats. The presentation is fairly dry otherwise, so don’t expect the pizazz of other PS2 racing games such as Gran Turismo or Moto GP.

ENDGAME True satisfaction with this game is probably reserved for superbike nerds as there’s little here to appeal to anyone else, but it’s nice to see the PS2 still competing.

Wii sales trounce PS3 and Xbox

Nintendo’s Wii video game console outsold Sony’s PlayStation 3 six to one in June in Japan, a Japanese publishing company says.

Although the Wii has been on sale since late last year, they’re selling so briskly supply still hasn’t caught up with demand and long lines form when shipments arrive at stores.

Enterbrain Inc, the publisher, found that Wii also outsold Microsoft Corp’s Xbox 360 in Japan in June.

Nintendo, the maker of Pokemon and Super Mario games, sold 270,974 Will consoles in Japan in June, while Sony sold 41,628 PS3 machines, and Microsoft sold 17,616 Xbox 360 consoles, it said. Overseas sales were not available.

The Wii, with its motion-sensitive remote control wand – called a Wiimote – that can be used as a sword, tennis racket or fishing rod depending on the game, has helped make the game a surprise hit around the world, widening the appeal of games to far beyond the usual niche target of young males.

The latest numbers suggest that Nintendo’s lead is widening. Wii outsold PS3 just four to one in April and five to one in May, according to Enterbrain.

“The Nintendo’s game console is catching on not only among children but also adults and singles,” said Enterbrain spokeswoman Yuko Magaribuchi.

The availability of more game software for the Wii was another factor adding to its popularity, she said.

Nintendo has said it sold 5.84 million Wii machines worldwide in the five months since its release in November, 2.37 million in the Americas, and 2.0 million in Japan. The Kyoto-based company said it expected to sell 14 million more Wii machines in the fiscal year ending in March 2008.

Sony has shipped 5.5 million PS3 machines in the fiscal year through March.

Nintendo has also marked robust sales with its Nintendo DS portable machine, while Sony has struggled with its offering, the PlayStation Portable.

Xbox

The critically acclaimed Command & Conquer™ series returns with Command & Conquer 3 Tiberium Wars™. This highly anticipated next chapter takes the popular series back to its roots in the Tiberium Universe. Get ready for the fast, fluid gameplay that Command & Conquer is known for with an epic story that will set the standard for the single-player experience for real-time strategy (RTS) games.

It is 2047 and the stakes could not be higher. Tiberium—a self-replicating alien substance that has infected the Earth—is spreading like a radioactive ice age. The Global Defense Initiative, a high-tech alliance of the world’s most advanced nations, is fighting to contain Tiberium, but Kane, the megalomaniacal leader of The Brotherhood of Nod has other plans for Earth.

Kane’s secret society turned superpower is bent on using Tiberium to take control and transform humanity into his twisted vision of the future. All-out war rages over Tiberium and the fate of the planet rests in the balance.

The sage of Command & Conquer 3 Tiberium Wars is seamlessly tied together with live action, high-definition video sequences featuring top Hollywood talent including Tricia Helfer, Josh Holloway, Michael Ironside, Billy Dee Williams, Grace Park, and more.

Engage in massive sci-fi battles via Xbox LIVE® and experience the exclusive multiplayer modes. The Xbox 360™ version also supports the Xbox 360 Vision Camera, so preapre to meet your opponent face-to-face.

Get ready for fast, fluid fun: The ultra-responsive, smooth-as-silk gameplay C&C invented is now better than ever, intuitively placing your entire arsenal at your fingertips.
Enjoy more than 35 single-player missions: In a vast open-world “theatre of war” where each decision you make matters, play through a cohesive, epic story told from the unique perspective of all three warring factions.
Prepare for story like you’ve never seen: Over 90 minutes of high-definition, live action video sequences seamlessly tie the game’s story together. The unparalleled, diverse Hollywood cast includes Tricia Helfer, Josh Holloway, Michael Ironside, Billy Dee Williams, Grace Park, Shauntay Hinton, and more.
Battle A.I. with distinct styles of play: The computer opponent matches your style of play—choose from play styles such as “rushing,” “turtling,” “guerilla,” and more, or level the battlefield and let the A.I. use its own tactics to give you the highest level of challenge.
Discover new ways to attack: Keep your opponent guessing by building flying battleships, wielding the power of terrifying Ion Storms, and combining units to form powerful never-before-seen super-units.
See how technology makes the world come alive: Lose yourself in reflected sunlight and scream in sheer joy as you blow chunks off of enemy tanks, structures, and anything else you can launch a rocket at. The game world gains a new dimension and the battlefield comes to life as the atmosphere fills with smoke, fire, haze, tracers, explosions, and state-of-the-art weather effects.
Breeze through the intuitive and evolved interface: The fully evolved side-bar interface allows you to fully manage your base operations while never leaving the action.
Battle the best online: The Xbox LIVE exclusive multiplayer modes include Siege, Capture the Flag, Capture & Hold, and King of the Hill.
Use your Xbox 360 Vision Camera: Meet your opponent face-to-face in the lobby and talk to them while playing the game. As a bonus, check out the “Winners Circle” feature where the winner of any match can have bragging time

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