London 2012: The Official Video Game of the Olympic Games

The London 2012 Summer Olympics will captivate the world in a matter of days, but the official video game tie-in is already here, courtesy of Sega. The lengthily named London 2012: The Official Video Game of the Olympic Games puts players in the position to experience the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat in over 30 world-class competitions. London 2012 manages to capture the games' spirit with its collection of mini-games, but the lack of real-world athletes and a few ho-hum events keep it from bringing home the gold.

On Your Mark?
London 2012 features 36 nations competing for Olympic gold in such varied competitions as the 100 meter dash, archery, skeet shooting, table tennis, and weightlifting. When you select a nation to represent, London 2012 displays relevant background information such as the country's first year of Olympic participation, total number of medals won since, and the sports in which it excels. I selected team USA which excels at athletic, swimming, diving, and wrestling.

Unfortunately, London 2012 lacks real-world athlete names (like Usain Bolt), so players spoiled by FIFA Soccer 12 ($59.99, 4 stars) and Madden NFL 12's ?($39.99, 4 stars) painstaking player recreations won't feel like they are playing a true Olympic game. That said, you can edit characters' names and appearances, so if you're diligent and have the time, you can recreate your favorite athletes.

Get Set?
Each in-game day you can choose to participate in a handful of events. You can opt to play a tutorial before each event to get the flow of the mechanics, or dive straight in?the latter isn't recommended. London 2012 focuses on rhythm and precision, not button-mashing, so if you leap into the game with a button on rapid-fire, you won't medal. This is exemplified in the racing events where you tap a button to fill a momentum meter. Keep it in the green and your sprinter runs at a fast, steady pace; have the meter go red by pressing the button too rapidly and she or he will burnout. Swimming works in a similar time-based fashion but you use analog sticks instead of buttons. It's truly a refreshing change of pace.

That said, some of the simplified controls lack a certain pizzazz. The gymnastic events are quick-time events, which essentially sees you tapping buttons in time with their on-screen appearances. Some will appreciate the simplified controls, but I found them a bit too simple. London 2012 also supports the Kinect and PlayStation Move motion peripherals. I played the game using Kinect (it supports a dozen events), and found the controls hit or miss, depending on the event.

Sega includes multiple modes to keep gameplay fresh. Besides the single player, local multiplayer (up to 4 players), and online multiplayer modes (8 players) there's Event Play where you pick and play a group of sports in four-player competition, and Party Play that lets you play one-off events. You can also save these event "playlists" so you can load them up and continue playing at a later time.

The game has TV-style presentation, complete with instant replays and component announcers who pull you into the action. You'll enjoy watching London 2012's attractive character models that swim, run, and cycle in realistic fashion. That said, the characters have dead eyes and expressions that dip into the uncanny valley.

Go!
London 2012 is a solid title that manages to capture some of the competitive glory that is the Summer Olympics. It is, essentially, a collection of mini-games, so there isn't much connection between events even in career mode. The game excels in multiplayer modes?either online or local?as the computer competition ranges from pushover to tough-as-nails. If you're looking to live the Olympic thrill, London 2012 is a silver-medal game for the less athletically inclined.?

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