‘CIVILIZATION IV: BEYOND THE SWORD’

August 12, 2007 at 2:00a.m.

2K Games for PC

Genre: Strategy

Rating: E for Everyone

Grade: C

If you’ve played “Civilization IV” a lot, then chances are you have already burned through the Warlords expansion pack from last year. But have no fear: All-new content is available with “Beyond the Sword.” It offers some all-new scenarios to play through and does a good job of tweaking some of the nagging problems from the original “CivIV” release. This expansion pack is mainly about delivering more minutiae to the game, creating an even deeper playing experience.

One area that got a nice bump up in functionality is the all-important space race. There is also an influx of corporations into the game, and they act like real corporations — quickly infesting more cities and soon monopolizing a lot of territory and resources.

One of the more hyped features is spies. The spies have great potential, but their purpose (stealing technology and information from nations) never comes into play and the payoff is not worth the risk.

There is not much of a noticeable upgrade to the game’s infrastructure, but it was solid to start with. If there is any complaint, it’s that the interface is still overcrowded (sim/strategy games really need better quick-access menus and streamlining). You can’t play the same game forever, but “Beyond the Sword” gives plenty of good reasons to load up “CivIV” and conquer the world again.

‘PICROSS DS’

Nintendo for DS

Genre: Puzzle

Rating: E, for Everyone

Grade: C+

y now, many gamers may have upgraded from playing “Minesweeper” on their PC to playing more complex games with similar themes. “Picross” is one such title — it mixes the logic of “Sudoku” and “Minesweeper” to reveal pictures.

There’s a bit of a learning curve with “Picross,” but once you hit that “I’ve got it” moment, you’re going to have a ton of fun, because of the overwhelming number of puzzles to play and the amount of customization available. Best is that you can create your own puzzles and share them with a friend locally, which gives this game a huge replay potential.

Nintendo made a wise decision to price this game at a reasonable $20. It’s great to see a company respect its customers and give them a product that appeals to the masses on skill level, enjoyment and price.

‘NASCAR 08’

EA Sports for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 2

Genre: Racing

Rating: E, for Everyone

Grade: C+

If you’ve ever found yourself staring at the TV wondering, “Why get all excited about watching people drive cars in a circle for five hours?,” don’t get your hopes up — “NASCAR 08” won’t answer the question.

It isn’t a horrible game. In fact, it’s fairly enjoyable once you get onto the pavement and start racing. But this game lacks so many basic features you’d expect to find, that you’ll never figure out the NASCAR appeal with this game alone. The most glaring omission is a career mode, which is just maddening — really, in 2007 you can’t muster a career mode?

“NASCAR 08” seems like a primer for those who have never played before. The main gaming mode is the chase, which is a glorified tutorial. You run a bunch of races and win some licenses while the game introduces you to basics like sling-shotting and drafting. It doesn’t take long to master it, and then it’s just a matter of time before you start taking checkered flags.

While the races themselves are fun, it would be nice to see an upgrade in the visuals. The Xbox 360 and PS3 versions do not look vastly different from their predecessors, and there are a lot of missed opportunities. Couple this with a lack of online play, and you feel like you’re just going in circles doing the same old thing. In fact, maybe this is like real NASCAR after all.

-Chris Campbell, Scripps Howard News Service