Battle of Forli is the first of two planned DLC for Assassin's Creed 2 - the other being Bonfire of the Vanities coming next month. Fitting into the 12th sequence of the main story, you follow Catherine Sforza (the hot gondola lady) and an underused Machiavelli to help protect the city of Forli under attack. The first half entails you fighting your way through groups of enemies whilst protecting Sforza and Machiavelli. It's a pretty simple task, but by the fifth encounter the momentum of the story had stalled and my interest was wavering. Things do pick up come stealth time, but again you're delayed by some clumsy encounters. The story does take some interesting turns, but it's all over before you know it. It took me about an hour to complete the sequence and there's no going back as you can't replay individual chapters in AC2.

Aside from the gap-filling story, nothing new comes from the DLC. There are no new weapons, armour, locations - even achievements/trophies are left out. For the bite-sized experience you're getting, it at least comes with a matching price of $4. Even so, considering the scope of the main game, Battle of Forli turns out to be an underwhelming experience. It does, however, leave you anticipating the next DLC which promises to be the fleshed out adventure we were clamouring for. no comments

It's no secret that most Japanese action games tend to be a little intimidating to the average gamer; for most people, the wince-inducing difficulty is enough to put them off. For others, sometimes it's the awkward pre-occupation with female genitalia or the innate Japanese nature of these games that puts them off.

Bayonetta is the most recent game from Japanese developers Platinum Games, and is the brain-child of Hideki Kamiya, creator of the original Devil May Cry. With such pedigree behind it, it comes as no great surprise to say that the game is a slick, well-made action game, that provides an extremely solid playing experience. Also, and quite refreshingly, it's not as crushingly hard as most it's competition either.

Does this mean that the game is more tailored toward the average gamer? The answer to that is yes, but it's a half-hearted yes. Bayonetta is definitely more friendly to newcomers than the Devil May Cry or Ninja Gaiden games, but it's by no means a pushover, and is still an extremely challenging game. Further to this, it's very Japanese (the story is pretty bizarre), and there is just enough partial nudity and unnecessary crotch shots to make you feel a little uncomfortable; especially on the nudity front, as Bayonetta's suit, which is made from her own hair, is routinely summoned into various shapes (giant fists/feet/demons) during combat, leaving her almost naked.

Where Bayonetta truly excels, though, is in it's exhilarating combat system, which is immediate enough to allow newcomers to pull off some effective (and spectacular) combos, yet deep enough to keep you coming back for more. The fact that Bayonetta manages this without ever leaving the player feeling bewildered is testament to just how well-balanced the combat is, and goes a long way to making up for much of the game's faults.

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