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Repetitive, boring

2 Rating: 2, Useful: 4 / 5
Date: July 15, 2007
Author: Amazon User

There are some good points to this game - the primary missions do make you feel like you're part of the story, if you've seen the movie. And driving around is a lot of fun - it was a little awkward at first, didn't seem at all natural, but I grew to like it - the cars and trucks all have very different handling characteristics, each type has a distinct "feel". The good is outweighed by the bad though.

First, you can tell a movie company had a hand in it - you have to sit through the intro every time you load the game, you can't skip it by pressing a button like you can in most other games. This holds true also for cutscenes in the game.

There also is a lot of overhead in this game... I do like the driving in this game, but don't like being forced to do it. You have to spend a lot of time driving around different places in this game, not just for missions but to upgrade guns, get ammo, etc. Later on, when you buy new safehouses they come with some ammo, and you can call a driver to whisk you between safehouses, but it's still a pain.

The weapons selection is uninspiring - you get a garrotte, a clubbing weapon, three pistols, a tommy gun, a shotgun, dynamite, molotovs, and bombs. The difference between the guns was noticeable, but not fun like the difference between cars. And I never figured out why you'd want to use the .38 or pistol rather than the magnum.

Aside from the special missions which get you advancement and make you feel like part of the movie, which were quite fun, the other things to do are very repetitive. The extortion business also gets boring after a point - while it was a little fun in the beginning to try to figure out the best way to extort a shopkeeper, halfway through the game they all became very complaisant for some reason and agreed as soon as I talked to them.

Another odd thing is the police. If you bribe the police chief then you can get the police to do most of your shooting for you. And you can defuse mob wars just by bribing a fed. So while the game is somewhat challenging in the beginning, as you extort more business, get more money, buy better weapons and more safehouses, it gets too easy, to the point that halfway through the game it seems pointless. I played it to the point at which I'd been promoted to Don (done the promotion missions and also taken out all they compounds of the other bosses), at which point the only thing to do is extort every single remaining business, at which point I quit since this is just a matter of driving around, walking in and talking to the shop owners.

All in all, not much fun. I had just finished Resident Evil 4 when I played this game, and this was vastly inferior.

Fun game...but not too well thought out

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 3 / 3
Date: October 16, 2007
Author: Amazon User

This game has a lot of positives, especially for fans of the Godfather series. Running the in-game missions is quite fun, and seeing how the storyline comes together is really fun. . . up to a point.

Early on in the game the missions and side quests are challenging and a lot of fun; however, once your character gets promoted a few times, and increases his skill levels, the missions and quests tend to become easy to finish. And once you have mastered the fun, interactive play-style of this game, you can speed through the missions in an unrealistic way. There is very little incentive to try to extort every business owner, and if one does, there is no special reward.

The biggest disappointment with the game is that the ultimate goal of becoming the don of NYC is not hard enough to reach. Moreover, once that promotion is attained, the game continues without any remaining goals - nor a finale in any real sense. Additionally, the storyline gives out 3/4 of the way through the game, and you are left to wonder about what happened to power structure of the Family - - - - how could your character have become the don???

Although the game is a lot of fun to play initially, I gave the title 3 stars, because the game simply peters out mid-way.

To those complaining about the graphics I just have to say - come on, you're missing the point of the game. I am hard pressed to understand how better graphics resolution - which would seem to mean better looking blood and bullet holes - would make the game any better. The game is not a simulator - it is a particularly violent adventure RPG. Anyone looking for "realism" should really consider why they feel a need for better looking gore.

Too slow - too violent

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 0 / 9
Date: February 10, 2008
Author: Amazon User

The graphics are outstanding as is the soundscore. However, I found it too slow paced, repetitive, and absolutely too violent for my taste.

... did I just slice that guy in half with my tommy gun?

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 22 / 24
Date: March 26, 2007
Author: Amazon User

I have to say it's a bit odd to hear streams of swear words coming from a game built for a Nintendo system.

The Godfather: Blackhand Edition is a visceral experience for gamers, which is definitely brought on by the implementation of motion sensitive controls. Hand-to-hand fighting is done by swinging the Wiimote and Nunchuk, which is done with extreme precision and feels much more controlled than Wii Boxing.

Some of the actions may take awhile to get. Of course, trying to get the character to slam someone's head into a table as opposed to headbutting them really isn't too much to complain about. :)

Parents who are worried about the impressionable young minds of their children will most likely not want their kids playing this game (along with implementing the willful ignorance of the fact that they'll probably just play it over at their friend's house.) Grand Theft Auto was all about sandbox style car thievery with the added incentive of being able to kick people's butts. Blackhand is pretty much about organized crime, the incentive of getting to steal cars, and finding new and inventive ways to kill people... mainly the latter. My girlfriend was watching me play and at one point she just looked on in horror as I bent a guy over and shot him in the head with a shotgun at point blank range (while I, I'm sorry to say, laughed with testosterone filled glee.)
I actually spent a good twenty minutes running in and out of the safehouse, chucking bottles at people.

The game definitely earned it's M rating, but the overall gameplay is exemplary. The controls are fluid and intuitive, with the storyline mixing into the original movie complete with voice work from some of the cast members. It was a bit of a shock when "Michael Corleone" shows up and looks and sounds nothing at all like Al Pacino, which was a bit of a letdown.

The ultimate problem with the game, though, comes down to the graphics. I'm all about the gameplay, but EA really took the low road when they just ported over the PS2 version. They've added a ton of gameplay and, of course, the controls, but there have been plenty of times where I've thought "damn, these graphics are ten years old." Of course, with the realistic controls, maybe the world is better off with obviously shody graphics.

The storyline missions keep the game moving and there are plenty of side missions to keep you occupied. It's advertised as offering around 50 hours of gameplay, so anyone who beat Zelda and is looking for their next big time consuming epic, this would be it.

The wii version is the best!

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 7 / 9
Date: May 19, 2007
Author: Amazon User

The godfather blackhand edition is truly the first major wii game apart from Zelda.

Pros:
The controls are wonderful.
Many unlockables.
The game is very long and enjoyable.
Driving is a blast.
Huge environments

Cons:
Graphics could be better
Low selection of character models and varity in vehicles

Awesome game.

Violence for fun!

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 15 / 16
Date: May 07, 2007
Author: Amazon User

I bought this game because of the reviews on this site (as I usually do). This is a great game that follows in the footsteps of GTA with a solid new interface. Really cool game even if you haven't seen the movies. If you have seen the movies you should be glad to know that in the beginning of the game you start out as Luca Brasi's errand boy!! Running around lower Manhattan hassling shopkeepers and bribing cops. Tons of blood and swearing. Driving the cars is very intuitive as well. Only four stars overall, but that is more for the Nintendo graphic capabilities that remind me of Playstation 2 caliber. Sweet!!! Buy it. Did I mention fast loading times???

Just pure fun

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 3 / 4
Date: May 06, 2007
Author: Amazon User

The controls make this game very fun to play -- strangling, throwing, slamming, shooting -- it all feels natural. The story is great but it might be hard to get motivated to keep playing the game once you complete the story.

Great fun game

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 3 / 5
Date: May 09, 2007
Author: Amazon User

I wasnt sure at the begining about buying this game but I give it a try, and let me tell you it is a great game, it uses the wii remote in a very good way, you throw punches headbutts and even there are finishing moves, it was done very well, the game gives you 30+ hours of gameplay in gta missions styles, and they are fun. If you are looking for a more mature game, and something different, action, for the wii this is the game, I highly recomend it, the wiiremote moves and everything works just great.

Even better than Grand Theft Auto series...

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 3 / 4
Date: June 19, 2007
Author: Amazon User

Even since I got this game a few days ago, I find this to be THE one game that gets me to play the Wii console. This game is so addictive, that even other GTA clones or GTA itself can't compete. I've played games like this on other consoles, but this is the first game that actually takes place in a real city, based off a real movie. I hear a lot of people saying that games based off movies are worse than the movie. Not so here. This is one of the rare movie-based games where it actually IS worth playing. It's challenging, has loads of different missions and storefronts to complete, able to roam around New York without any trouble. Can't get any better than this, especially on the Wii console.

While mostly a port the controls are generally spot on

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 1 / 3
Date: May 16, 2007
Author: Amazon User

The game was loads of fun and the mature action of this game wasn't diluted at all in the Wii version. It even includes extras like the hit missions. I only wish it didn't seem so short, though that might have been because I was having so much fun playing it. The Wii controls are generally spot on and gives a very satisfying experience when using guns or even better when going hand to hand.

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