‘the saboteur’

‘the saboteur’

(Electronic Arts) for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3

Grade: C

World War II has been the setting for so many video games that playing them all would probably take as much time as the war itself.

So it’s surprising when someone comes up with a fresh approach to such a familiar conflict — a feat Pandemic Studios has pulled off with “The Saboteur” ($59.99).

Forget about the grunt’s-eye-view of “Call of Duty” or “Medal of Honor.” The hero here is a free agent, a cocky Irishman named Sean Devlin who’s more interested in auto racing than fighting. But after a Nazi kills his best friend, Devlin ends up in Paris, where he’s recruited by the French Resistance. So much for saving the world from tyranny — Devlin’s motivated by simple revenge.

That entails raising hell all over Nazi-occupied France: stealing German supplies, blowing up their installations and assassinating their leaders. It’s like a cross between “Inglourious Basterds” and “Grand Theft Auto.”

“The Saboteur” borrows very freely from other, better games. Its open-world mission design is straight out of “GTA.” Devlin’s uncanny ability to scale buildings is reminiscent of “Assassin’s Creed.” And the stealth sequences owe a debt to the “Splinter Cell” series.

Unfortunately, “The Saboteur” is never as polished as any of the games that it draws from. The stealth element is particularly disappointing, especially if you think an effective saboteur should keep a low profile. It’s almost impossible to maintain cover through an entire mission, and you usually end up having to blast your way out of trouble.

Sneaking around on the rooftops is a bit easier, but climbing the walls is so slow and awkward that it’s rarely worth the trouble. And forget about hand-to-hand combat: It’s so sluggish that by the time you land a punch, your target will have sounded the alarm and brought all his Nazi buddies running.

And then there’s the protagonist, a hard-drinking, foul-mouthed Irish stereotype.

Devlin is supposed to be a charming rogue, but he comes off as a boorish knucklehead. Other cliches, from the duplicitous Frenchmen to the cold-blooded Germans, don’t fare much better.

There are some things to like about “The Saboteur.” With the Nazis in charge, Paris is literally colorless, presented in evocative black and white. As the enemy’s influence wanes, more parts of the city come alive with vivid color. It’s a clever means to show how much you’ve accomplished, and the City of Lights looks gorgeous either way.

—Lou Kesten, Associated Press

‘RESIDENT EVIL: THE DARKSIDE CHRONICLES’

(Capcom) for Wii

Rating: M; Grade: B

“Resident Evil: The Darkside Chronicles” ($49.99) revisits several notable events from the series and adds an original scenario that takes place in South America.

One or two players can take on the zombie hordes, but they have no control over the characters’ progression through each level. Their main contribution is shooting the zombies and other monsters that pop up on-screen, and grabbing items before they pass out of view. Players can pick up a variety of weapons or swing a knife when enemies get up close.

The game looks great, and the uncontrollable viewpoint means there’s always a chance for something to pop up right in the player’s face.

It’s an effective shooting gallery-style game, though the “camera” does bob about a little too much in some places.

—Justin Hoeger, Sacramento Bee

‘KATAMARI FOREVER’

(Namco) for PlayStation 3

Rating: E; Grade: B

In “Katamari Forever” ($49.99), the King of All Cosmos has managed to knock himself out, and his son, the Prince, has created a robotic replacement that malfunctioned and destroyed all the stars in the sky — again. Now the Prince and his cousins have to work not only to restore the King’s memories and wake him up but also to create a new sky full of stars.

The Prince does this by rolling up as much junk as possible into a ball, often starting with tiny items before graduating to larger ones such as the Katamari ball, which grows exponentially.

There’s usually a time limit, item limit or some other stricture on creating the ball, which the King (or RoboKing) judges and places where it needs to go.

The controls use the same two-stick setup as the previous ones, though the Prince can now jump, and can attract items to the Katamari with the use of special items.

—Justin Hoeger, Sacramento Bee