" If you are a small girly monkey (like, say, Genghis Kong), this may be too much gun for you. "

      Title: Cybergun Desert Eagle by Cybergun

      Format: PS2 gun accessory

      Reviewing Monkey: Chimpan-A

      The Hype: Arcade shooting games are some of the most popular out there (right underneath fighting). The problem with porting them over to the console is the lack of a big plastic gun to point and shoot. To that end, some companies have gone to the trouble of making guns for your console systems. Some companies, like say… Cybergun, have made big pretty guns, because the bigger the gun- the cooler you feel.

      What This Monkey Thought...

      Usefulness: Well, what you're essentially looking at here is a light gun; it is therefore only useful if you have light gun games. As far as those go, however, having a gun is a must. Playing a gun game without a gun is like playing twister without a gaggle of naked cheerleaders…what's the point, really? This is a PS2 gun, and there are several new games that use the Guncon gun systems. This gun is designed to emulate both the Guncon and Guncon2 (as well as having a "normal" setting…that really doesn't work). How well the emulation works depends on the game you're playing and the setting you're using. On some games it will lock up or only work if it's plugged in by itself, on others though it works perfectly fine (even to working with the second gun). Do make sure, though, that the game you want to use this with can use a Guncon or Guncon 2 and you shouldn't have (m)any problems. 3.5 out of 5

      Performance: This gun has a plethora of buttons and features- all of which perform adequately. The button response is good with no real lag time. The gun features three firing settings: Normal, Auto-load, and Auto Fire/Load. The first two work perfectly fine, the latter tends to clog up the gun at times. Shots don't come out as quickly as they should, or it skips out on random shots. The trigger on the gun is a little stiff, so it's not going to have as high a firing rate as some other guns. The gun's also got a blowback system, which works perfectly well as far as the mechanics on the gun go. This feature too, though, can affect your in game rate of fire; occasionally you'll miss shots because the gun is too busy recoiling. If your game doesn't require you to fire too many shots in succession then it won't be too big a deal. And hey, having recoil at all is a point in its favor. 4 out of 5

      Aesthetics: If you are a small girly monkey (like, say, Genghis Kong), this may be too much gun for you. A true to life replica of a Desert Eagle .50AE, this is not a small gun. I personally didn't have too much trouble with it, but my hands defy physical laws with their size. You obviously know what it looks like, if you've seen an action movie in the last decade, and the shape is virtually identical. It's done in green translucent plastic though, which is untrue of most real world guns. The gun looks quite nice (Far better than that ugly ass lump of orange plastic called a Guncon 2), and you may actually like the feel of holding it. 5 out of 5

      The Verdict:

The gun has a few compatibility issues and its emulation isn't perfect. It does function pretty well though, and I was not disappointed in using it. The buttload of features helps gain back ground lost to other issues. Plus, the overall design aesthetic mean you'll be able to feel about 43% less nerdy while using it to blow away digital baddies.

      The Good: Lots of cool features- like blowback!

      The Bad: A few compatibility and rate of fire issues

      The Overall Ugly: A very cool alternative to the Guncon guns. Certainly a lot prettier

      What it's Worth: Market price