Herdy Gerdy

PS2

Eidos - 2002

Alright, I've gotta write something here... Syphillus sucks! No, I don't like that, so far off to a bad start... Valkyrie sucks! Better, closer, warmer... Camera angles suck! That's it! I just wanted to make that point first because it is the only major flaw in the game, but boy is it a flaw. The camera angles are so bad I could have filmed it better with my eyes closed. They are so bad, Hellen Keller would have done better. Yo, camera angles are so bad I killed myself to fix them. Camera angle so bad when I walked around the house, the camera, um . . . didn't. Aw, snap!

Having said that, I'd like to say that this is a great game. It is not only original, but also very well done. The environments just get better and better as the game moves on. The colors change to create a new mood for each climate. My personal favorite was the snowy area ( I can't remember the name). Also, the number of animals they created is amazing. Each one has its own personality and reacts differently to Gerdy. I did kind of wish there was more variety in the herding because a lot of animals just followed the whistle.

In the end, small flaws like the camera angles, load times, and sometimes frustrating controls added up and took away from the overall experience. These things should have been fixed after some testing but for some reason never were. Overall, despite it being a solid game, Herdy Gerdy seemed unfinished.

What I liked: It was very original. I have only played one other herding game, Sheep, and this was far better. The environments were amazing. I also really like the art and animation. It looked like a Disney cartoon. Dying was also pretty well done: it was inconvenient but not game over. They just put you at the beginning of the stage, but did not change anything you had done

What I disliked: Camera angles, duh. I can't stress this enough. Actually, I think that probably is enough. I also hated the load times. When the game first started up, I thought my PS2 had frozen. Other than that, I really had no problems.

What to expect: Ok, close your eyes. Now, ima- OPEN YOUR EYES! How were you going to read with your eyes closed? Jeez. Now, try to imagine a herding game: lush environments ranging from warm plains to icy mountain tops, full of wildlife, each animal with its own personality. Throw in some puzzle elements and hovering bells, give the camera a mind of its own, and wait 5 minutes between each beautiful area and you've got Herdy Gerdy.

What not to expect: A good camera angle. Oops, sorry, that's the last time. Don't expect to breeze through either. Herdy Gerdy isn't too hard, but you can't just run through. You need to be careful and some stages will take a few tries.

What sets it apart from the genre: The more expansive, involved gameplay.

Ratings on:

Controls: 6 - I wasn't really sure how to rate controls. Gerdy seemed to handle well and the herding went pretty smoothly. However, because of the camera angles, I had some trouble.

Graphics: 7 - Nothing spectacular. There were some rough edges but it looked good and ran very smoothly. They did pay a lot of attention to detail.

Sound: 7 - The sound was very good, especially the background noises. There were constantly chirping birds and crickets. The music complemented the game very nicely. The voice acting was sometimes good but tended to be pretty poor.

Style: 9 - This game was clown-nosed (cool). The art and animation made it look like a Disney cartoon and it was a very original game. Sure, it wasn't the first herding game, but Eidos went all out to make it the best. If people bought good games, this would be a greatest hit.

1st hour: 6 - Boy, this thing is hard to play. The camera keeps zooming in on my ass.

5th hour: 7 - Getting used to the controls and gameplay. I also got the boots.

10th hour: 8 - Lots more fun with the new clothes and items.

1st week: 8 - I've gotten all the items and am hitting some cool new areas.

1st month: 8 - Beat the game. It stayed strong through the tournament. The extras are pretty cool.

#1 thing I hate about this game: That enormous bird who is sitting on your swim trunks so you have to blow your horn up his butt.

Sundu is a master herder.