N-Gage: Resident Evil: Degeneration & Asphalt 4: Elite Racing

Want some gaming on the go? Check out the below N-Gage game reviews!

In a new regular feature for NZGamer, we're taking on the latest N-Gage games to see how they fair. From the latest blockbusters to the simplest of puzzlers, we'll be providing our take on how they fair. All our N-Gage reviews have been performed on a Nokia N96.

Resident Evil Degeneration:

RE: Degeneration follows the events of the CGI movie of the same name. As a side note, I can't for the life of me think of a logical reason why Capcom didn't release a movie game on the Xbox 360, PS3 or Nintendo Wii.

Degeneration looks much like RE1, and the game features Leon Kennedy of RE4 fame. The basic overview of Degeneration, for those who've not watched the film, is that the good old T Virus is unleashed upon a small US airport and Leon must save the world yet again.

Controlling Leon can at times feel a little clunky; the mobile phones can only do some much when it comes down to it. The sound is a little funky through the game, but again the previous point about the system specs puts it into context.

The game has a great leveling up system; players can buy a new assortment of weapons with the vast amounts of cash lying round the airport. It can lead to feeling a little unrewarded, given that there's excess cash to level up and go on a virtual spending spree to rival the average US soldier’s arsenal.

The game takes about 1 1/2 hours to complete, which is an absolute monster of a mobile game. People do enjoy 20-30 hour Final Fantasy portable epics, but many of us just wanna play a good tight story in a few hours, rather than a month.

Players will be rewarded with an additional story in Mercenaries mode. Here, you'll face a few time-based objectives, which helps to extend the shelf life of the game.

Overall, RE: Degeneration maybe not as pretty as it's next gen cousin RE5, but is a must for any RE fan who has an N-Gage.




Asphalt 4: Elite Racing

Wanna have all the fun of Burnout 3 on your mobile? Well Asphalt 4 is for you!

This series unashamedly steals that great formula of Burnout - fast cars, racing and taking down your opponent by any means necessary. It’s clear this is a pure arcade racer from the get go; those GT purists will have a tough time accepting the idea of the control scheme and how easy it is to drift around a corner at 150 km/hr. The upside is you’ll never lose touch with the race leaders and even after a major wipeout you’ll be close to the front of the pack in no time.

The game isn’t the prettiest, and the looping soundtrack during the races can drive you a little nutty after a few minutes. It features an upgrade system to unlock various goodies, but you’ll probably find yourself not needing them to win the races.

The major criticism of Asphalt 4 is that those who’ve downloaded Asphalt 3 will be let down by the lack of add ons - the game feels and looks very similar. Those new to the series may want to pick it up if you long to have a quick fix of racing while taking the bus to work or home.