Sony’s “Buzz” series, launching on the PS2 as a sleeper hit and spawning a number of varied sequels, is seemingly Sony’s answer to the “Scene It” quiz available on the Xbox 360, as well as the numerous party titles on the Nintendo Wii. Relaunched on the PS3 with a number of new promising features, such as wireless controllers, online compatibility, and an alluring price tag, the outlook is certainly bright.

“Buzz!: Quiz TV” never veers to far from the successes of the titles that preceded it, but thankfully so – it simply refines and hones a tried and tested formula with a few welcome improvements, whilst retaining the fun and goofiness of the previous efforts (such as the hilariously pompous host of the whole affair). If not obvious already, it is worth mentioning that, like most party games (such as Guitar Hero), Buzz is hardly a paragon for visual excellence, and provides no reason to buy an HDTV, yet in the HD-changeover, it is still a sharp and vibrant game.

The game’s format will surprise few – with a maximum of eight players, you can participate in seven rounds of whacky games, in which you build your points, leading up to “The Final Countdown”, in which you may very well end up with nothing! Unlike the various topic-central Buzz titles, Quiz TV is a well-rounded general knowledge quiz, and unlike its similar predecessor “The Big Quiz”, allows players to choose topics in between each round, a welcome introduction, one must add.

I must note that I have always found “The Final Countdown” finale a tad irksome – it introduces a risk and reward system without any real choice as to avoiding the risk. However, Quiz TV allows a modicum of choice, in that players are often able to stake their knowledge on a particular subject in order to gain more points. This is a welcome addition, and with some refinement (such as the stakes being higher), this would serve well to replace or supplement the current final stage.

It is also important to note that, like previous Buzz titles, intelligence is little indication of who will emerge victorious – several rounds rely on reaction speeds, and in times of desperation, I myself admit to simply bashing the controller in a hope of collecting points, which quite often worked greatly to my advantage. Furthermore, in rounds such as Point Stealer, you’ll need to be devilishly sly to survive with your points in tact, as losing players will almost certainly gang upon the winning players. It’s mildly irritating that if you hold a significant lead over players, that they can erase that lead simply by answering a few questions in the Point Stealer round, even if their performance throughout the preceding rounds has been mediocre.

The hype for the next-generation iteration of Buzz undoubtedly stems from its online offerings. It cannot be denied that playing online against faceless contestants will never replicate or match the fun of playing with friends in a party atmosphere, but there is so much downloadable content becoming available soon (in way of quiz packs), and so much more promised that it is likely that Quiz TV will remain sustainable over time. Of course, it doesn’t seem like the smartest marketing decision from Relentless, because once you have the ability to download more questions, why would you ever want to buy another Buzz game?

Perhaps the most genius aspect of the game is the ability for players to create their own question packs for use online. It is a flaw that these packs are only 8 questions long, but there are no limits as to what questions to create (allowing endless, even filthy, possibilities). Perhaps it is too trusting to allow players to create packs without any sort of verification process, but one hopes that, in the spirit of fun, most players will create fair and accurate (or what they believe to be accurate, at least) question packs.

Hardcore gamers may very well nudge Buzz aside for their Metal Gear Solid or Grand Theft Auto IV’s – that’s fair enough, yet I, as a fairly “hardcore” gamer myself, have already enjoyed endless hours of fun from the Buzz series, and the newest outing on the PS3 contributes considerably to this. It ventures out with new wings with its next-generation capabilities and shiny visuals, yet never strolls too far from what made the series so enjoyable in the first place – the outright goofiness of it! As with previous titles, its quiz mode is slightly flawed and slanted in favour of allowing losing players to regain a lead, but Buzz is hardly a game to be taken seriously, and as a game enjoyed with as many friends as possible in a party atmosphere, there are no titles on the PS3, and few next-gen titles in general, out on the market that can surpass this.

Score: 8/10

Thanks for reading,
Reefer