Characters do not level up as such as they did in old Final Fantasy games, instead they have crystarium points which are used to buy better stats and abilities, this is similar to the system used in Final Fantasy X. It can be tedious levelling up this way but not as tedious as the weapons upgrades which is a big disappointment in this game. It takes a lot of time and gil to level up the weapons and accessories and it’s something I have not bothered to spend as much time on. Another downside to this game is the lack of mini games. There are 64 extra misisons called Cie’th stone missions but they only require you to beat certain enemies which is no different from what you do all game.

Like all Final Fantasy games this will require a lot of hours to complete but it does suck you in. If you’re a fan of previous Final Fantasy games then you will love this one.

You have two main weapons which are a giant axe and your guitar, which in this world can shoot lightning when played. The game has a very old school feel about it. Running around slicing demons reminds me of the old playstation game, Medieval. The world map is very open and there are plenty of hidden secrets and side missions although the side missions are very repetitive and finding all the hidden secrets is tedious to say the least. This is similar but not as extreme as Oblivion, where the main story is just a small part of the game. I must also mention the music on this game. If you are into classic metal bands such as Black Sabbath, Motorhead, Judas Priest etc. then you wont be disappointed. The music on this game is simply great and fitting for the game.

The multiplayer mode is a mix between the main gameplay and a sort of command and conquer style gameplay. During the story of the single player you play various stage battles where you have a stage and merch booths and from these you can build units and lead them into battles against the enemies stage. This is essentially what the multiplayer is although you are not just limited to being Eddie and building his units.

Verdict: I would recommend this game to anyone who is into classic metal music and just want a casual fun game to play on. Be prepared to be driving about all over the world map, there are a few tedious moments and once you’ve done the story and side missions there isn’t much left apart from trying to find all the hidden secrets and the multiplayer which can get boring after a game or two.

One massive improvement is the simple creation of email accounts. For a regular computer user such as myself it has never been difficult setting up new emails but for more novice users it has been more challenging as they are not expected to know what their STMP settings are. Well now Thunderbird will look them up for you. All you need to know now is your email address and password and Thunderbird does the rest. It also asks for your password on initial setup of the account which is something i’ve always thought it lacked.

Another new feature is the improved search. Again, it is not something that I use much and when I do I usually do a basic search of subject titles or message content of recent emails. But if you’re looking for a certain email from a certain someone that contains a certain phrase then you can easily find the exact email you are looking for. Thunderbird lists the senders of the emails down the left hand pane and also displays a graph showing the months the emails were sent in. All this information of course, is stored in it’s own tab.

A more detailed list of the new features can be found here.

I think Thunderbird has taken a step backwards graphically. All the graphics and even the logo itself look more outdated than in the previous version. To me they give the whole program a feel of Windows 2000 and considering the program itself doesn’t use very many graphics anyway, I would have expected more effort to have been put into the few it does contain, or at least keeping the same would have been enough. Of course this doesn’t alter the performance of the program in any way and for me Thunderbird still remains the number 1 free email client in the world.

The first 13 tracks on the disc were the original release of Bleach plus the song Downer that was added in later releases of the album. Bleach is a favourite among many Nirvana fans because it is Nirvana at their rawest and punkiest sound. Apart from About A Girl all the tracks have destorted guitar, heavy bass and tinny drums. It really makes you realise just how polished their later albums were in comparison and this is the only album where you’ll really hear Nirvana sounding the way they always wanted to. For me personally there are not really any tracks on this album that stand above the rest. I really could not pick out the top 5 but songs such as School, Floyd The Barber and About A Girl really stood the test of time and were performed by Nirvana the most in their career.

Verdict: If you like Nirvana and don’t have Bleach then buy this album. If you love Nirvana and already have Bleach, buy this album anyway. If you want to get into Nirvana I suggest Nevermind or In Utero first.

For those of you who are not familiar with the TV series you may find this CD a little odd but still enjoyable. There are many different varieties of musical genres throughout this album from the bands attempted rapping in the opening track Hurt Feelings to a dark 80′s sound in Fashion is Danger, with vocals that sound slightly like Marilyn Manson and a cheesey reference to Thatcher and Reagan. You are also treated to an odd Russian styled track called Petrov, Yelyena And Me which in the TV show has an odd video to match.

The lyrics in all of the songs are not just amusing but also on the verge of genius. Rambling Through The Avenues of Time and Carol Brown are prime examples of the skillful and clever song writing the band frequently produce, although that could easily be said about the other tracks too.

Verdict: These guys may not be to everyone’s liking but they are certainly to mine. You have to get the humour to really appreciate them and I highly recommend watching the TV show first. If you enjoy the second series of the show you will find it hard not to buy this.

The album ends with the three part track, Exogenesis Symphony. I will admit I am not too fond of these three tracks. They certainly wont get much love if they came up on your ipod on shuffle. The three parts do work on their own but you can’t really get the full potential out of them unless they are all played in sync. The tracks themselves are just examples of the way Muse like to branch off from the traditional Guitar, Bass and Drums combo. Although this is nice in small doses throughout the album I think these tracks do let it down a bit.

Verdict: The first 7 tracks are all great Muse tracks in their own way but Exogenesis Symphony is just not for me. The band, Matt Bellamy in particular showcase their many musical talents and it wont disappoint any Muse fan. If you don’t like the album at first, give it a few more listens. It grew on me very quickly and now I find it hard to stop listening.