So, you’ve been at work/school/college all week and now you’ve finally scrabbled enough money together to get something  on the store, but what do you get? Well, a nudge in the right direction might be FirstPlay, but is this episode for you, and is it worth subscribing? Worry not! This article is for you, where I take a deep look into the contents of this FirstPlay and comment on the episode as a whole…

HD REVIEWS AND PREVIEWS

Reviewed: 2010 FIFA World Cup

Of course, if you’re eager to see any of these games, this episode will sit quite nicely in your collection. As usual, the reviews are thought-provoking whilst conveying useful information about the game/film in hand. Lucy Porter’s ringing voice highlights all of the good points about each title whilst criticising (constructively) the weaker parts. Some great videos of gameplay from 2010 FIFA World Cup allow you to decide for yourself about the game and some helpful visual comparisons to MLB 10: The Show and Major League Baseball: 2K10 also aid the review.

Previewed: Blur

The previews, as always, give quite a detailed look into both Blur and Mafia II, the Blur footage shows off the weapons feature in action and lets you see the lush graphics we’ve come to expect from the PS3. The Mafia II footage gives a great idea of the atmosphere of the game with some extra snippits of an interview with one of the developers of the game.

Once again, FirstPlay doesn’t disappoint on the Reviews and Previews front but how does the rest of the episode hold out?

SCREENSHOTS

Yay! Old school Sonic!

Like I said, a bumper pack of screenshots, in Sonic the Hedgehog 4, you’ll get some nice shots of the Splash Hill Zone (exactly the same as Green Hill Zone but with a different name) depicting good old 2-D Sonic in his adventures, but in HD.

After that, there’s some lovely shots of Team Ico’s The Last Guardian to have a ganders at. Some fantastic pictures here highlighting the detail of the ruins which just beg you to use them as wallpapers, other than the ruins though there are some lovely shots of the cat/dog/bird thing working together with the little child.

Who's a good dog-cat-bird-thing!?

Next up is the comical Dead Rising 2, featuring screenshots of the fictional city resembling Las Vegas, a look at the various costumes available and lots and lots of shots of, you guessed it, zombies.

And last but by no means least, we have UFC Undisputed 2010. Housed in this episode are 15 or so screenshots of people, well, fighting. The images will show off some of the new moves included in this version as well as a mention of the new fighting styles.

NETWORK HIGHLIGHTS

FirstPlay have decided that flags are easier...

First off, the Online Shooter Round-Up, which this week focuses on Battlefield: Bad Company 2, Bioshock 2, and Aliens vs Predator. Lucy Porter compliments Battlefield’s destructive nature noting it’s uniqueness compared to Modern Warfare 2, and there’ll be footage of Bioshock 2′s ‘Capture the Little Sister’ mode, with a look at Aliens vs. Predator (although apparently balancing the three factions (Alen, Marine, Predator) was a bad idea).

If you don’t like shooters, how about some comics to relax!? With the likes of Iron Man, Weekly World News, Transformers, Marvels, and Locke & Key there’s something for everyone. At least, everyone who reads comics that is.

In the Video Store Round-Up, we have Surrogates, The Fantastic Mr. Fox, Harry Brown, The Informant!, and Saw VI. Again, something for most people here with a horror movie, family film and more featured.

Awww... brings back good memories!

Finally, we have the PS one Classics Round-Up featuring Final Fantasy VIII, Crash Bandicoot, and Bishi Bashi Special. Looking at these classics make you realise how far technology has come on in the last ten years. Final Fantasy VIII, a graphical marvel on release, is shown with a couple of pre-rendered video, a look at the battle system and a glance at the environment (both on and off the world map). Crash Bandicoot (developed by Uncharted creators Naughty Dog) is also given some screen time with a brief description of how the game works. And lastly we have Bishi Bashi Special, a trippy game with hundred of short, random minigames. Trust me, it has to be seen to be believed.

FEATURED DOWNLOADS

Alas, this week’s featured downloads section seems a little bare if you’ve bought any of the previous epsiodes, with offerings comparable to that of Episode 001, this weeks downloads are: Just Cause 2 Parachute and FirstPlay Official Theme.

If you haven’t picked these up already, and you own Just Cause 2, this episode might be worth a buy although you only get a modified (although exclusive) parachute. So this week’s download section seems a bit sad, but last week did contain a PS mini worth £2.49 didn’t it?

FINAL SUMMARY

So, maybe not as good as last week’s episode, mainly because of the lack of new downloads in the downloads section. But, there are more screenshots in this episode and a fantastic look at FIFA, Blur, Mafia II, L.A. Noire, The Last Guardian and more which all redeem this episode. All of this for 99p (or less on a subscription)? I think so! Not the best episode so far, but by no means the worst (not that there has been a bad episode yet). 7/10

NEXT WEEK

If this week’s episode didn’t grab you, or you just want more FirstPlay, then stay tuned for next week, where Episode 004 gives a sneak preview of Gran Turismo 5, as well as a look at the new PlayStation Move controller and upcoming Action RPG Alpha Protocol.

And if you want a load more FirstPlay, then you can subscribe for 90 days (12 episodes) for £8.99 – that 30% off each episode. And if you want to know a little trick, the movement of Store Updates to a Wednesday could just bag you a 13th episode if you subscribe at the right time.

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