Prototype 2 amps up the violence factor

The original Prototype was one of the cooler roleplaying/action games of 2009, notable for your character's ability to perform a flying sidekick on a helicopter. Prototype 2 builds on its predecessor by adding new abilities and taking the plot deeper. It retains the gruesome aspects of the first game and, if anything, cranks up the power of them. This is most definitely not a game for kids. The Prototype line has a very grim, urban superhero setting. It's got far more in common with Blade than Spiderman. There's no hint of spandex to be seen. Your character is infected with a genetically modified virus which kills most people, or turns them into zombies, but grants you blood-powered abilities. You can run up the side of buildings, glide through the air, leap tall buildings and fight like crazy. Run low on health, and you gain more by eating your victims rather graphically. Consuming them also lets you tap into their memories and shapechange into them, though this only works on major plot characters. Prototype 2 features a new protagonist, James Heller, an African American soldier and churchgoer, who blames the original game's protagonist, Alex Mercer, for the death of his wife and daughter. Plus points to the designers for giving us a black hero — this is far too uncommon in modern gaming. Controls on the PS3 version are pretty fluid, though it's easy enough to keep pounding the attack button in combat and miss the special moves. As you build up powers, more options are added, yet the game manages to avoid being a button-masher. Though the game is open-world, it's not a sandbox. The missions are clear and run from one to the other. There are a few special powers to be gained by exploring, so there's something there for sweepers. The primary enemies are Gentek, the company behind the virus (equivalent to Resident Evil's Umbrella Corporation) and their tame mercenary outfit, Blackwatch, but as with the first game, there's no built-in morality mechanic: enemy, zombie or civilian, you can kill and eat them all without turning to the dark side. The cut scenes are stylish; a mix of live action and CGI, heavily rotoscoped with leached colours, often in black and white. They do set the mood, but the frequency of them is mildly annoying. But that is a minor annoyance. Prototype 2 is a worthy successor: cool, grim and gritty, expanding on its predecessor's original take on superheroes. But it's definitely not for the squeamish or for youngsters. If you've got kids, make sure they're fast asleep before playing it. Battleship is the video game of the movie of the electronic boardgame based on the old pen-and-paper game schoolboys used to play in the back of dull maths classes. Is that clear? I have to admit, I didn't expect to enjoy it, but I was pleasantly surprised. For some reason, the primary mode of the game is a land-based first-person shooter (FPS), but alongside your character, you have to simultaneously take control of a growing fleet of warships to combat an alien invasion force. Yes, alien invasion force. I think that's something from the movie. Why aliens capable of crossing the stars to invade Earth will send submarines, cruisers and missile ships is something I can't fathom, but this is not a game you should apply logic to. I rather like the combination of shooter/strategy — it reminds me of Activision's remake of Battlezone. Both aspects of the game are fairly simple, but there is a crossover — some of the enemies you kill in the FPS drop cards you can play in battleship mode, including a card that lets you take control of a ship to fight in 3D for 20 seconds. Again, this 3D mode is rather simple, but it's worth doing it because your weapons do three times the damage they do in standard battleship mode. Another card lets you repair damage to ships, others boost weapons or armour. And one lets you bring a sunk ship back into play. How, I have no idea; my logic fuse just tripped again. Although both the FPS and the battleship mode are simple, you have to keep tabs on both. Though the shooter is paused while you're in the boardgame, the reverse isn't true, and you'll have to keep crossing to it to deal with new threats. Although the game itself is interesting, it's the lack of extras that let it down. There's no multiplayer mode, online or otherwise, just a straight solo campaign. And it simply isn't cool or gripping enough to carry that off well. It's worth noting that although the game is rated 16+, I didn't see anything to justify such a high rating. There's no blood when you shoot enemies: get them with a headshot, they pop unrealistically into pieces, otherwise they just fall down.