Devil May Cry HD Collection

It’s absolutely undeniable that Capcom’s Devil May Cry is a masterpiece franchise. Without the original trilogy many modern action games wouldn’t have seen the dawn of day and this is completely thanks to the phenomenal combat system implemented in Dante’s demon slaying adventures. The HD collection packages all three original games without any additional content, but this isn’t a problem whatsoever. This HD package serves as a nostalgic reminder for classic fans of the series while introducing and showing new gamers what a true action game should play like.

You would have to go all the way back to 2001 for the release date of the original Devil May Cry – eleven years later and despite a few dated camera issues, Devil May Cry is as stylish, challenging and fun as ever. For those of you not familiar with the franchise, you play as Dante, the son of Sparda, a demonic powerhouse. Consequentially Dante receives demon powers passed down through his heritage and an ego to match. Dante is an instantly lovable protagonist and has become an iconic video game character featuring in more modern titles like Viewtiful Joe 2 and Marvel vs. Capcom 3. Devil May Cry 1 chronicles Dante’s battle against the forces of evil. The intense and complex combat mechanics were unlike anything ever seen back in 2001 and to this day, they still hold up seamlessly. The whole premise is to rack up stylish combos by varying up your combos and employing all of Dante’s moves, tricks and abilities. Your combos are scored through a grade system with the coveted S rank at the top of the list – this then translates to an overall level score that offers plenty of replay value to those perfectionist gamers. Playing through the original is an epic trip down memory lane and sets you up nicely for the controversial sequel.

After the roaring success of Devil May Cry 1, there was no doubt that a sequel was under way. In 2003 the second instalment of Dante’s adventure hit store shelves but it didn’t quite receive the same level of praise like the original. Devil May Cry 2 introduced some nifty additions to an already incredible combat system by letting players perform combos in mid-air and actively evade enemy attacks with a new evasion button. However, a lowered difficulty curve, a strange change of tone from Dante and a few other problems caused GameSpot to nominate Devil May Cry 2 as the most disappointing game of 2003. That’s not to say it really is a terrible game and indeed it’s fantastic to see how the series progresses and sets up what is arguably the best game in the series, Devil May Cry 3.



Clearly learning from their mistakes, Capcom made up for their woes in 2005 with the release of Devil May Cry 3. The HD collection certainly saves the best till last as Dante’s egotistical nature is reinvigorated and elevated with some brilliant technical and storyboard decisions from the development team. Devil May Cry 3 introduced players to a new gameplay style mechanic, which allows players to concentrate on offense, defense, distance weapons or speed. Choosing your own particular play style was an important part of Devil May Cry 3 and really offers replay value for those looking to explore all the different styles. The infamous camera also become un-rooted and players had some control. Devil May Cry 3 received critical acclaim as Capcom brought another over-the-top tale and intertwined it with a barrage of tough enemies and a refined combat engine. The only thing that could be criticized was the difficulty level being just a little bit too high.

So now you know what you’re going to get in the package but does the HD revamp enhance the experience in any way? To an extent yes, the HD overcoat does make the Devil May Cry games a whole load prettier, especially the original. However, not everything has been given the HD treatment, so at times you’re treated to some seriously nostalgic visuals, which isn’t a bad thing but if you wanted the retro look, you’d go back to your PlayStation 2. Oh and don’t expect any of the cut-scenes to be in HD, this has all been left alone too.

Some of you may also be wondering if it’s worth playing these classic titles if you have completed Devil May Cry 4, the most up to date DMC experience. The answer to that question is absolutely play the originals because they are much better than number 4. In my opinion the fourth instalment introduced some frustrating elements to the series and the new lead character Nero was annoying and cheap, ruining any form of challenge the series previously offered.



Ultimately Devil May Cry HD collection offers convenience for the modern gamer. It allows you to have all three fantastic titles in one case while enjoying the benefits of the HD make over. While issues such as the inconsistent camera and some graphical hitches are still present, they are more a mark of the age of the games as opposed to actual problems – gaming has simply evolved and this isn’t Devil May Cry’s fault. That aside, it is key for gamers to play and witness this highly influential trilogy and it is an absolute testament that so many years down the line, these games still feel fresh and fantastic, really suggesting how far ahead of the time they really were.

9.0 | Gameplay |

Devil May Cry has always boasted pinnacle gameplay and Dante’s smooth moves are still as stylish and a whole load of fun to pull off. With each game you pass you can see the series’ natural progression as more enhancements are made to gameplay, design and presentation. This is action adventure at its absolute finest and if you haven’t played these iconic titles before, I highly urge you to do so.

6.0 | Presentation |

Age is prevalent in this HD collection and the lack of real detail in the HD coat is rather disappointing. There are very obvious inconsistencies with what the re-mastering process has affected and what has not. That being said, Dante’s charm has certainly not faded and when the action heats up it is intense and fun to watch. Devil May Cry has always been about over-the-top antics and flashy moves and this ideology has not faded.

9.0 | Replay Value |

The Devil May Cry series is the one for completionist gamers. The grade rank system allows players to fight for perfection and ensure their combos are without fault and their scores are flawless. Harder difficulty levels also serve to keep you engaged and the infamous Dante Must Die mode sits smugly in the menus for the very best and most technically gifted gamers out there. This series is an absolute master class in action and once you’ve experienced it, you’ll find it very hard to stop.

8.0 | Final Thoughts |

Very little can be said to fault the Devil May Cry series. Capcom has simply given players another opportunity to experience this brilliant trilogy or introduce gamers to the daddy of action games. The HD revamp is actually quite disappointing but it can be so easily overlooked when a set of games are just that good. Across the board you will find thrilling combat, plenty of action, lots of replay value and a plethora of mechanics that have clearly affected and influenced the video game industry as we know it today. Make no mistake eleven years ago Devil May Cry blew gamers away and while it may not have the same kind of impact now, it still serves as a reminder for us to respect classic games like these.

Igor Kharin.

Mass Effect 3

There’s no question that the Mass Effect series has easily grasped the attention of many modern gamers. Going all the way back to the original Mass Effect, one can clearly see a stream of progression from Bioware that now has the opportunity to culminate in fantastic fashion. Make no mistake about it, Mass Effect 3 delivers in abundance, providing a gripping tale that tackles plenty of emotional issues while at the same time sticking the series’ classic roots and expanding upon them. Mass Effect 3 is a fitting end to a fantastic series that should be experienced by anyone with a fascination for gaming.

Mass Effect 3 continues the tale of Commander Shepard, who now has to deal with the deadly Reaper invasion. Those who played the previous installments will already have a good idea about the Reapers so without revealing too much information, these biomechanical monsters purge galaxies every 50,000 years and your goal is of course, to stop them. The only way to do this is to traverse previously explored and new land from the original games and attempt to unite all the nations in the galaxy into one giant army. Constant quarrel and bitter hatred between certain worlds and factions makes this task easier said than done for Shepard, but the whole notion of re-visiting lost areas and meeting old friends is one that Mass Effect 3 takes very seriously and uses these emotional ties to create a very powerful story line.





Of course the beauty of the Mass Effect series is you have the ability to transfer over your character relationships and decisions over from previous games. Unfortunately Mass Effect 1 was an Xbox 360 and Windows game only, but regardless everyone who played the previous two on their respective gaming machine can transfer over their save file, which incorporates all the decisions you made and this consequentially has a massive impact upon how your story pans out in Mass Effect 3. This is a truly unique and thrilling way to create a game and while neutrals can simply pick up and play Mass Effect 3, those with emotional investments will be the ones really getting the most out of the experience.

These emotional investments in particular are what Bioware are so good at tapping into. While Mass Effect 1 concentrated on exploration and introducing you to the universe, Mass Effect 2 furthered those bonds and relationships with the characters you met, solidifying partnerships and indeed, friendships. Mass Effect 3 however, boldly and on many occasions, forces you out of your comfort zone and manipulates these bonds you have made in an attempt to test your judgment and ability to make a decision for ‘the greater good’. These moral dilemmas are one of the many things that makes Mass Effect 3 an absolutely fantastic game.





For those of you who have never played a Mass Effect game, but want to skip straight to Mass Effect 3, while not recommended, it’s still doable. The game begins by offering you a character creation option where you formulate your own Commander Shepard. Mass Effect 3 has a robust customization system for characters, weapons and armour, all of which can be tinkered in fascinating ways to change playstyle. For example, do you want to be a simple gun-wielding grunt, or does the idea of using augmented powers to string enemies in the air and then fill them with lead sound more appealing? Mass Effect 3 has a variety of classes to choose from, each of which does play differently and with the help of your squad to round your abilities off, you’ll have a well-balanced team of galactic soldiers in no time.

While Mass Effect 1 lacked substantially in the gunplay department, Mass Effect 2 took a few giant leaps forward for the franchise. As a result, Mass Effect 3 has been tweaked but only very slightly. Running from cover to cover and gunning over walls is still the essence of combat here and boy does it feel awesome. It really says something about the quality of a game when a RPG’s gameplay can in many ways be comparable to the gameplay of Gears of War for example. Mass Effect 3 boasts impressive AI across the board both on your team and the enemy, with the latter working as a unit to hold their positions or attempt to flank your team, whatever the scenario it seems to work well.

Mass Effect 3 continues to expand upon its riches by adding for the very first time, a multiplayer mode. It is refreshing to see a game that is so obviously single-player oriented, still putting together a wholly satisfying multiplayer experience. Reminiscent of Gears of War’s Horde mode as teams of players tackle waves of enemies as you fight for survival. The multiplayer and single player are actually interconnected should you decide to explore this avenue, but fans of the series can absolutely avoid this section of the game if they so want with absolutely no consequences resulting. This is an example of a multiplayer being a clear addition and supplementing the campaign mode – with plenty of upgrades to unlock and an engaging level up system in place, you could find yourself surprisingly captivated by Mass Effect 3’s multiplayer offering.

From a technical perspective Mass Effect 3 is a shining exemplar. It is visually stunning and these beautiful graphics go hand-in-hand with a terrific sound track and some exceptional voice acting. Again, to emphasize that when a game plucks at your heartstrings, it is essential for the dialogue to be believable, which is absolutely the case here. Naturally the PC version stands head and shoulders above the console counterparts, but overall the game performs well on home consoles, a few long loading times aside.

Overall it’s really difficult to fault Mass Effect 3 in any way, it’s almost perfect. Unfortunately it’s undeniable that to get the most out of this experience, you really need to have played the previous games but if you’re a Mass Effect fan then get ready for a terrific ending to one of the best modern trilogies to date – this is role play and third-person action at its absolute finest.

9.0 | Gameplay |
Mass Effect 3 excels at everything it does from the outset. Terrific third person shooting compliments this deep and rich role-play adventure. With plenty to do and lots of choices to make, there is rarely a dull moment here. No game comes to mind that really brings about entertainment in such a consistent manner.

9.5 | Presentation |
Mass Effect 3 is a beautiful game across the board. Fantastic visuals and audio make this an immersive and engaging experience. The story is told in a fascinating way and drives you forward with eagerness to find out how everything unravels and concludes. The RPG elements are also smooth and streamlined, allowing you to enjoy Mass Effect 3’s robust customization system. The PC version is by far the more technically impressive however.

9.0 | Replay Value |
There is simply no way to get the most out of Mass Effect 3 in one play through. With a whole bunch of ways to tackle the game, you will be playing through multiple times to really experience all Mass Effect 3 has to offer. The addition of multiplayer is also welcome and surprisingly engaging. This too has a robust customization and level up system giving you another way to enjoy the Mass Effect universe.

9.0 | Final Thoughts |
When a game has this much hype surrounding it, it’s usually very easy to nit pick and play the game down somewhat. This simply isn’t the case with Mass Effect 3. The third and final instalment of this epic trilogy brings its absolute A-game, with a beautifully woven story that providing you played the previous games, intertwines all of your decisions to make for one of the most dramatic endings to a video game series ever envisioned and created. If the mesmarising story somehow manages not to hook you, then the brilliant gameplay, terrific voice acting and plethora of moral decisions and choices surely will. Mass Effect 3 is a champion role-play game and it’s almost a sad day with this trilogy finally coming to a close.

Editor’s note: There’s been a lot of controversy surrounding Mass Effect 3’s ending including a full on petition to get a new ending put into place. I personally found Mass Effect 3’s conclusion as a whole, satisfying and can’t really justify the amount of fuss that’s been brewed up. Furthermore, it’s completely up to Bioware how they choose to end the series and not down to the gamer. Saying that, Bioware has confirmed a free downloadable content pack that’s set to give gamers an alternate ending that should appease those not best pleased with the final chapter of the game, so keep your socks on!

Igor Kharin.

Free shipping orders $100+

While we can't promise your goods will be delivered by a UFO, we are offering FREE shipping on orders that total $100 and over to all lower 48 States for a limited time.  Don't delay, buy it from CeX today.

CeX on TV’s Get Your House in Order

Channel 4 TV’s ‘Get Your House in Order’ chose CeX as the place to sell hundreds of games, DVDs and Blu-rays for the best cash prices. They popped into CeX Manchester Arndale and got a pile of cash within minutes.

Channel 4 TV (UK, April 2012)

They sold boxes of DVDs....

...followed by boxes of games, our strong man did some heavy lifting.

The cash payout from CeX was huge, as was the receipt!

Find out how much your stuff is worth at CeX

UPDATE CeX now open on Market St, San Francisco

The 11th CeX store in the USA is now open in San Francisco, located at 960 Market Street, between Powell St and Civic Center/UN Plaza BART stations.

We'll share photos very soon. Find your nearest CeX here.

UPDATE CeX Street Fighter X Tekken tournament results

This month we hosted a Street Fighter X Tekken tournament for competitive combat at CeX Berkeley.

 Fingers were flying...

 Choose your tools carefully, stick or pad?

While they say it's the taking part that counts, and there was much banter at the event, the winners were....

1 Brandon Z. winning $50 CeX vouchers

2 Calvin L.

3 Jeremey C. 

4 Joe M. 

5 Michael G

Like CeX on facebook to get info on our next tournament.

Ninja Gaiden 3

Ninja Gaiden 1 pretty much single-handedly changed everyone’s expectations with regards to action adventure games back in 2004. It was a revolutionary makeover of a classic series into the modern world of gaming, bringing with it engaging and challenging combat, intuitive and innovative enemies and well crafted levels – Ninja Gaiden 1 was a masterpiece. To put it bluntly, Ninja Gaiden 2 wasn’t received as well. With some developer shuffling at Namco, Ninja Gaiden 2 emerged as a shadow of the original with all the essential mechanics still present, but the soul of the game missing. Now we have finally made it to Ninja Gaiden 3, which has a tough task ahead of it. Will this instalment be the best in the series or another lacklustre sequel that fails to live up to the fantastic original?

What immediately stands out in Ninja Gaiden 3 is this game is heavily story driven. While previous instalments in the series had Ryu’s tale pacing slowly behind the scenes, Ninja Gaiden 3 attempts to modernise the experience somewhat with an intrusive and convoluted story line. This is rather unfortunate as the characters are all pretty much unlikeable, it’s way too easy to predict how the story will unravel and rather long cut-scenes seem to always pop up when you least want them to, disrupting the pace of the game entirely. It’s fortunate then that the story is never what would bring an action junkie to a Ninja Gaiden game right?


When Ninja Gaiden 3 lets you get into the action you will notice a whole host of changes from the previous games. First of all there is a lot more quick time event interaction here, with the game constantly prompting you to press “this button here” to perform this finisher or “x button that way” to dodge that hazard. Ninja Gaiden 3 has tried to take a rather big leaf from God of War’s book by trying to mix combat and quick time button presses together. The QTEs allow Ryu to do a whole bunch of cool things like K.O. enemies by grinding through their bones with his awesome Dragon Sword, but the awkward camera angle jumping in and out of close view makes this a pretty jumbled experience. More often than not you could find yourself mashing the X or Square button and just watching the camera going ballistic as Ryu jumps from enemy to enemy performing a barrage of finishing moves while you have no real idea of what’s going on. It is this previous statement that really defines what’s truly wrong with Ninja Gaiden 3.





On medium (default) difficulty, it is absolutely plausible to button mash your way through Ninja Gaiden 3 without any real worry, tell me you don’t see a massive problem with that? This series has always been known for its extremely challenging and intricate combat mechanics, where even a single basic enemy could cause you serious discomfort but here it’s simply not the case. Where as before Ryu Hayabusa had access to a variety of weapons and Ninpo magic, he now has only the Dragon Sword and an insane Ninpo finishing move that wipes out every enemy on the screen! It’s apparent that Ninja Gaiden 3’s normal mode has been simplified in an attempt to cater for the masses. This particular issue has had many reviewers grinding their teeth in view that this is a betrayal of the series but I can’t quite help but feel that there’s a reason you can simply increase the difficulty level to enjoy Ninja Gaiden 3 in a more natural and challenging environment. I praise the development team for thinking about those who haven’t had a chance to get stuck into a Ninja Gaiden game before, but I would have hoped they would have made it abundantly clear before you pressed play that players who have already completed previous Ninja Gaiden games MUST increase the difficulty level to experience any form of challenge.


That aside Ryu has a few more nifty tricks up his sleeve to keep Ninja Gaiden 3 feeling fresh from its predecessors. Ryu can now scale walls and attack enemies from above using his Kunai Climb ability and the reverse wind technique has been removed in favour of a new dash-slide that helps Ryu avoid danger and move across the map quickly and efficiently (although once again the camera angle can get iffy). Ryu’s cursed arm is also the source of his new ultimate technique, which can be unleashed when enough enemies have been killed. This too sees Ryu explode across the screen slaying multiple enemies in succession, which again on the normal difficulty setting serves to ease the experience for newcomers. Lots of nostalgic elements from the Ninja Gaiden series have been omitted in an attempt to streamline Ninja Gaiden 3 with the Muramasa store, scrolls, items and dragon statues all gone from the game. Ryu’s only other tools are unlimited shuriken and a high-tech bow for dealing with ranged and flying enemies.


So far it seems that Ninja Gaiden 3 is failing to impress in this review, but I felt I had to emphasize the differences between the games to really help you understand where this instalment stands in comparison. Ninja Gaiden 3 does have some really positive things going for it. In particular is the terrific level design – when you up the difficulty to hard you can really appreciate the hard work put in by the development team to make sure Ninja Gaiden 3’s levels were an absolute joy to look at and traverse amidst battle. Also Ninja Gaiden 3 has a good variety of enemies and despite a few big guys coming back for multiple showings, has some of the best boss battles this series has ever seen. Giant dinosaurs and robot spiders to name a few, but these huge battles can definitely be seen as the highlights of this game and getting to these particular sections is absolutely worth it.





If you’re looking for a little fun outside of the single player, then it’s worth in part out of intrigue to check out Ninja Gaiden 3’s cooperative challenge and competitive modes. The former concentrates on Ninja Gaiden’s core action and will surely appeal to fans of the series. The latter however, is a bit of a gimmick and is once again plagued by the game’s frustrating camera. It’s obvious however why people purchase a Ninja Gaiden game and this is merely additional content to supplement the core single player gameplay.


From a technical perspective Ninja Gaiden is impressive on many levels. Visually this is a stunning game, both environmental and character design are superb. The enemies are all beautiful in their own unique way and combat is wholly impressive, especially on the hard difficulty setting. The voice acting is poor for the most part, but audio throughout the game is terrific, especially when enemies scream in agony as you impale them with your mighty Dragon Sword. The real issue here that hinders the game is this damn camera, which just won’t stay still long enough for you to ever really figure out what’s going on in the more heated battles.


Ultimately don’t let Ninja Gaiden 3’s emphasis on story and streamlined gameplay layout fool you, this is a Ninja Gaiden game, but it’s simply hidden in the menu screen! Those of you who have never played a Ninja Gaiden game before in fear of the relentless difficulty will be very pleased with the game’s default setting. Old school Ninja Gaiden fans push the game up to hard mode and enjoy another great Ninja Gaiden experience.

7.5 | Gameplay |

This is Ninja Gaiden streamlined for the masses. The removal of extra weapons and a variety of magic absolutely suggests the developers wanted a Ninja Gaiden that was much easier to access for newcomers to the series. The unnecessary over-use of QTE’s makes you feel at times like you’re watching an interactive movie as opposed to playing a game but on the hard difficulty this really does feel like a Ninja Gaiden game.

8.5 | Presentation |

You wouldn’t expect anything less from a Ninja Gaiden game. It is beautiful in every department but presented awkwardly with a frustrating camera. The camera has always been Ninja Gaiden’s worst enemy going all the way back to 2004 and it seems this issue is almost impossible to correct! So much so that I’m finding it difficult to keep nit-picking it as an issue every time I review a Ninja Gaiden game.

4.5 | Replay Value |

The multiplayer experience is hit and miss. Cooperative challenges are a lot of fun actually because they concentrate on Ninja Gaiden’s core gameplay mechanics, which is ultimately what we want. The competitive online mode is more of an intrigue than anything else really. I don’t see any real reason to keep coming back to that mode after you’ve given it a quick go to see how it plays, which by the way, is pretty average.

7.0 | Final Thoughts |

Ninja Gaiden 3 has been surrounded with a lot of journalistic hype as review scores have been ranging from 3.5 / 10 all the way up to 8. Now I fully appreciate that everyone can have their own opinion, but that’s a drastic difference in opinion right there. I believe that right out of the box, Ninja Gaiden 3 doesn’t do justice to the series – it is too simplified, streamlined and in a word, westernized for my liking. The stripped down gameplay and introduction of overpowered finishing moves makes it hard to find the Ninja Gaiden game hiding under the surface. Push the difficulty up to hard however and get ready to enjoy a familiar Ninja Gaiden experience with well-crafted levels and some of the series’ most impressive boss battles to date. It may not be perfect, but it’s certainly a Ninja Gaiden game at heart.

Igor Kharin.

Brucie Kibbutz launches new gadget range

Here at CeX Towers we share a love of gadgets and frequently enjoy a sociable gaming night with friends, pizzas and a few cases of beer.  If only we could combine our love of gadgets, games and looking after our appearance all at the same time? Well fellow gadget and games fans, help is at hand.

We've always admired Brucie Kibbutz, the legendary lifestyle coach, fitness guru and luxury automotive entrepreneur, so we were excited to learn about a new range of cutting edge gadgets that Brucie is launching this month designed to make us look good too. Launching for iOS and Android devices, the Bright White Extreme Rock allows you to listen to your favourite tunes and whiten your teeth at the same time. Brucie declares 'it's all about abs, lats and white teeth. The louder you listen, the faster they whiten.'

Winner, Simon Cowell is rumoured to use the Bright White Extreme Rock.

Brucie Kibbutz, modelling the Bright White Extreme Rock.

Don't own an iOS or Android device? Brucie is also launching a budget line for those of you 'still looking to be winners' called the Bright White Lite Rock. Brucie claims 'it's the prefect partner for the gym.'

Bright White Lite Rock, designed for workouts.

We think it's probably worth splashing the extra cash to get the Extreme version, so you can take calls while you dial the whiteness on your teeth up to 11, although launch pricing has yet to be revealed. Brucie is already looking at brand extensions to take the Bright range 'to bring beautiful Bright to where the sun don't shine.' Industry pundits were left speculating on what's coming next, but Brucie promised to 'reveal all' this summer. As Brucie says ' Stay Alpha, Bro!' Share your thoughts on the CeX facebook page.