And to that, your first gamble would be was this title worth the $40 it cost?
Well, that depends on how much you enjoy playing poker, and to that the fact
that this title is made by Activision, a fairly big publisher that managed to
put some effort and some money into the title. World Championship Poker is a
known franchise that has appeared on other consoles and has a loyal following.
But is it enough to satisfy your poker needs? Let’s find out.
In WSOP, like other games of this nature, you can
elect to try a quick game or start up a career. And of course, I started up a
career. And the game segues to your character’s regular poker game held at
your buddies house. Well no sooner do you start when Chris Ferguson (a real
poker pro) appears and announces that he lost a bet, and that he now has to
take the winner of your regular weekly game and coach them to the pro circuit.
And away you go…
elect to try a quick game or start up a career. And of course, I started up a
career. And the game segues to your character’s regular poker game held at
your buddies house. Well no sooner do you start when Chris Ferguson (a real
poker pro) appears and announces that he lost a bet, and that he now has to
take the winner of your regular weekly game and coach them to the pro circuit.
And away you go…
"This is the kind of hand you want to raise on."
Well, I’ll tell you, I lost that first game, but
for some reason Chris still brought me to the pro circuit as if I had won.
Strange. Once there, you are given a start up bankroll and the option to play
in a couple of different games at the casino. One being a limit hold em’ game
and one being a no limit game. Each one of these games is set up pretty
straight forward, you buy in and try and finish in the money. Playing and
losing will have you buying in again and again until your bankroll is
depleted. Now when you first setup your career mode, the game asks if you are
a novice, a semi-pro or a pro. If you chose novice or semi-pro then you will
be given more money should your bankroll run out, but if you select pro, your
career is over if you run out of cash.
for some reason Chris still brought me to the pro circuit as if I had won.
Strange. Once there, you are given a start up bankroll and the option to play
in a couple of different games at the casino. One being a limit hold em’ game
and one being a no limit game. Each one of these games is set up pretty
straight forward, you buy in and try and finish in the money. Playing and
losing will have you buying in again and again until your bankroll is
depleted. Now when you first setup your career mode, the game asks if you are
a novice, a semi-pro or a pro. If you chose novice or semi-pro then you will
be given more money should your bankroll run out, but if you select pro, your
career is over if you run out of cash.
The game has a full collection of professional
players that, if you watch the TV show regularly then you will recognize pros
like the aforementioned Ferguson, Scotty Nguyen and the "I still can’t believe
she’s a pro poker player" Jennifer Tilly. All of whom, kinda look like their
real life counterparts. I mean, sure the name is right there and when that’s
there it’s easier to see them in all their pixilated glory, but it’s almost as
if the developers chose players who would stand out anyway with their specific
look. Chris with his cowboy hat and long hair, Scotty with his mullet and
Jennifer with her, um, er assets. So in that sense you can tell that it’s
them, but I don’t feel they did a good enough job of making them as well as
they could have. Now the backgrounds and the little nuances all look great,
with the velvet ropes surrounding the tables and the crowds of people
watching, hey, spot on as far as I am concerned. Even the loud carpeting and
fake plants in the background all felt like it was lifted directly from the
show.
players that, if you watch the TV show regularly then you will recognize pros
like the aforementioned Ferguson, Scotty Nguyen and the "I still can’t believe
she’s a pro poker player" Jennifer Tilly. All of whom, kinda look like their
real life counterparts. I mean, sure the name is right there and when that’s
there it’s easier to see them in all their pixilated glory, but it’s almost as
if the developers chose players who would stand out anyway with their specific
look. Chris with his cowboy hat and long hair, Scotty with his mullet and
Jennifer with her, um, er assets. So in that sense you can tell that it’s
them, but I don’t feel they did a good enough job of making them as well as
they could have. Now the backgrounds and the little nuances all look great,
with the velvet ropes surrounding the tables and the crowds of people
watching, hey, spot on as far as I am concerned. Even the loud carpeting and
fake plants in the background all felt like it was lifted directly from the
show.
"He’s a little too relaxed for my liking."
The game features the single coolest thing I have
ever seen in a poker game, and that is the nifty little button that you push
and the camera angle switches to you curling up your hole cards. Just like the
card cam built into the table on the TV show so the viewers at home can see
what each player has. It’s really slick and I can’t believe that this is the
first time that I have seen it since all the shows feature this view in one
form or another. And before the emails come, I never played last years version
of the WSOP, so if they featured it on that one then I’m glad they kept the
gimmick alive.
ever seen in a poker game, and that is the nifty little button that you push
and the camera angle switches to you curling up your hole cards. Just like the
card cam built into the table on the TV show so the viewers at home can see
what each player has. It’s really slick and I can’t believe that this is the
first time that I have seen it since all the shows feature this view in one
form or another. And before the emails come, I never played last years version
of the WSOP, so if they featured it on that one then I’m glad they kept the
gimmick alive.
Of course with all these pros and it being based
on a TV show, one would expect a decent helping of voice work, and alas it is
here. However, and this is a biggie, the co-hosts of the show Lon McEachern
and Norman Chad do keep the flow moving, but not as smoothly as I would have
thought. For example, the canned phrases do become more noticeable the longer
you play the game and the breaks in the voicework weren’t as fluid as I would
have thought, "And the board pairs a couple of (slight break in the audio)
tens". It just seemed uneven. The pros, especially Chris Ferguson also seem to
be talking more then they actually want to and there is some
uncomfortable-ness detected in their voicework.
on a TV show, one would expect a decent helping of voice work, and alas it is
here. However, and this is a biggie, the co-hosts of the show Lon McEachern
and Norman Chad do keep the flow moving, but not as smoothly as I would have
thought. For example, the canned phrases do become more noticeable the longer
you play the game and the breaks in the voicework weren’t as fluid as I would
have thought, "And the board pairs a couple of (slight break in the audio)
tens". It just seemed uneven. The pros, especially Chris Ferguson also seem to
be talking more then they actually want to and there is some
uncomfortable-ness detected in their voicework.
"Pretty good huh?"
The A.I. of the game isn’t as clever as you think
it should be and the difference between semi-pro and pro is pretty minimal in
my opinion. You can come over the top early enough and scare everyone out of
the pot fairly regularly, but still, the game does provide an ample amount of
challenge especially as you get deep into the pro circuit and find yourself in
a huge money making tournament.
it should be and the difference between semi-pro and pro is pretty minimal in
my opinion. You can come over the top early enough and scare everyone out of
the pot fairly regularly, but still, the game does provide an ample amount of
challenge especially as you get deep into the pro circuit and find yourself in
a huge money making tournament.
One cool feature in the game is that it does make
use of the 360 camera (that I don’t have) and you can paste a picture of
yourself on the screen for everyone to see while playing online with others.
It even maps your likeness to the character sitting at the table and is pretty
darn accurate. I got a kick out of seeing some of the funny stuff people do
for their picture, bravo to those out there having fun. More importantly
though is that the game is Live compatible and there is a pretty big community
out there playing the game. This is where the real poker challenge is anyway,
against real people.
use of the 360 camera (that I don’t have) and you can paste a picture of
yourself on the screen for everyone to see while playing online with others.
It even maps your likeness to the character sitting at the table and is pretty
darn accurate. I got a kick out of seeing some of the funny stuff people do
for their picture, bravo to those out there having fun. More importantly
though is that the game is Live compatible and there is a pretty big community
out there playing the game. This is where the real poker challenge is anyway,
against real people.
The game does allow you to trick out the gameplay
as well, speeding up the game to near sonic boom territory and to have the
computer zip through any hands that you fold. Doing this can dramatically
effect your play so unless you are used to a rocket fast game, your money can
go that much more quickly playing this way. Of course there are other options
you can work with as well, allowing for a pretty customizable gaming
experience.
as well, speeding up the game to near sonic boom territory and to have the
computer zip through any hands that you fold. Doing this can dramatically
effect your play so unless you are used to a rocket fast game, your money can
go that much more quickly playing this way. Of course there are other options
you can work with as well, allowing for a pretty customizable gaming
experience.
|
Review Scoring Details for World Series of Poker: Tournament of Champions |
Gameplay: 7.0
You can adjust things to your liking, and even use
the card view perspective, it’s pretty good.
the card view perspective, it’s pretty good.
Graphics: 7.0
The backgrounds and ambience are all dialed in,
but the celebrity likenesses are something to be desired, the load screen
(and it can be a long wait) features the hosts of the TV show, and the first
time I saw them, I kinda chuckled at their appearance.
but the celebrity likenesses are something to be desired, the load screen
(and it can be a long wait) features the hosts of the TV show, and the first
time I saw them, I kinda chuckled at their appearance.
Sound: 6.5
The voice work, which is the audio’s
most dominating feature isn’t as smooth as it should be, somebody needed to
coach the pro players on their voice acting.
most dominating feature isn’t as smooth as it should be, somebody needed to
coach the pro players on their voice acting.
Difficulty: Medium
There is some challenge here, and I am enjoying
what I have seen, but this is nothing you can’t eventually beat.
what I have seen, but this is nothing you can’t eventually beat.
Concept: 6.5
This is nothing new, poker is big right now and
poker games are fairly popular.
poker games are fairly popular.
Multiplayer 8.0
It’s fun to go online and find a game to play in,
and the camera trick is just cool as all get out.
and the camera trick is just cool as all get out.
Overall: 6.8
An average entry in the poker genre, there isn’t
anything new or groundbreaking here, some decent challenges sure, but I was
left wanting more.
anything new or groundbreaking here, some decent challenges sure, but I was
left wanting more.
