Oni

Rating:
Summary: Very Nice
Review: Most of the third person action games I've played have been one or the other: hand-to-hand or guns. Oni is very much different in that you do both (granted, guns are pretty weak, but more on that later). I was pretty impressed by how deep the fighting is. You could of course just bang away at the attack buttons and eventually wear down your enemies, but that would take forever, and it wouldn't look very impressive (Coolest move ever: Running Lariat--Ring their neck as you dash on by) One thing I've noticed is that the guns (except for the Superball Gun, and Mercury Bow) are pretty much useless. Against an advancing group, I suppose one could come in handy to pick off a couple of enemies, but one on one, they don't work too well. You're better off just throwing down and start punching.
Over all, I like this game a hell of a lot, and play it repeatedly just for kicks (Bad pun). Also, the anime theme of this game carries over into an actual anime (granted, it's hard to find, but it's out there.)

Rating:
Summary: Great fun--some flaws
Review: This is the first game that has every attempted having hand-to-hand combat as well as shooting. So far, the product is amazing. The fighting is awesome, there are tons of combos and power moves, and it's very, very easy to learn. That said, there were a few flaws for this game. First, because this game was released on both consoles and the PC, there are fixed save points. That in itself is not that bad, but the save points are very spread out. Another thing is the game is told in anime form. This means that the acting is pretty cheap, and the plot doesn't make a whole lot of sense. But don't play this game for the plot. Play it for the fighting. The camera control can be kind of iffy sometimes, because a guy can sneak up behind you and you wouldn't know it. Also, the levels look a lot a like, you'll take full advantage of your compass.