Wednesday, December 1 2010
Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 2
Naruto himself is a constantly moving ball of volatile energy. Thus, Ninja Storm 2's Adventure mode would be so much improved if it would just cut down on all the walking.
Monday, November 29 2010
Kirby’s Epic Yarn
The unapologetic sugary sweetness of Kirby is both attractive and resistant, depending on your age and possibly your gender.
Wednesday, November 24 2010
Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Mini-Land Mayhem!
The title is characterized by classic Mario audiovisual presentation and is dripping with charm.
Monday, November 22 2010
‘Rock Band 3’ Is the Best Mainstream Rhythm Game This Year
Harmonix's solution to last year's glut of rhythm games is to return to challenge the broad base of fans that they gained the attention of last year.
Friday, November 19 2010
‘Fable 3’ is the Quintessential Mixed Bag
Every pro comes with a con, and every con comes with a pro. Playing Fable 3 ultimately becomes a test of how much you can put up with, but it's still a fun game despite itself.
Wednesday, November 17 2010
‘Call of Duty: Black Ops’: Treyarch Attempts to “Modernize” Warfare
Treyarch's greatest "sin" is in failing to really add anything new despite having the same advantage that Infinity Ward had recognized and realized with Modern Warfare -- that an interactive medium might offer a new perspective on an old story, the war story.
Saw II: Flesh and Blood
Conceptually the series was always a modernized take of the morality horror films of the '70s and '80s, modern in this case being a combination of the rhetoric of Fight Club alongside video game elements.
Monday, November 15 2010
Friday, November 12 2010
Medal of Honor
Before it was even released, EA’s Medal of Honor ran through a media hacksaw, resulting in some enemy name changes, but more importantly, it brought to light the emotional obstacles any form of entertainment has to go through when trying to interpret a conflict that’s still being written.
Wednesday, November 10 2010
‘Ys: The Oath in Felghana’: The Perfect Affectionate Remake
We are explicitly encouraged by the narrator to play as though we ourselves are Adol. And, hey, no problem, I play as guys all the time. Except the game is convinced that I'm absolutely sexually irresistible. It made me feel that I wasn't so much a character as a sex object, my very nature becoming the focus of every woman's obsession. "Ladies, please!" I wanted to tell them. "Love me for who I am!"
Tuesday, November 9 2010
Power Gig: Rise of the SixString
None of this is impossible to learn, it simply makes for a game that you not are going to bust out this Thanksgiving with everyone hopping in to play a few songs. A Power Gig guitar player is going to require some time to develop through tutorials and practice.
Friday, November 5 2010
‘Fallout: New Vegas’: Place Your Bets and Save Your Game
A worthy companion to Fallout 3, Fallout: New Vegas has a great setting, story, and world that is compromised by buggy software.
Wednesday, November 3 2010
Lionheart: King’s Crusade
Neocore’s Lionheart: Kings’ Crusade and Neocore’s King Arthur: The Role Playing Wargame are very similar to each other. They are both alternatives to the hefty Total War series, they both dress their period RTS combat in period “authentic” music and art, and they’re both a bit rough around the edges.
Monday, November 1 2010
Quantum Theory
If you thought the machismo in Gears of War was overdone, Quantum Theory makes it look subtle. In the beginning, Syd's blood lust is unintentionally funny because it sounds so forced, but by the halfway point, the tough guy act ceases to be a fun parody of itself and just gets sad.
Friday, October 29 2010
Etrian Odyssey III: The Drowned City
Where Etrian Odyssey III truly succeeds is in giving the player something to do amidst all of its "grinding". It's still grinding, really, but it's disguised better.
Wednesday, October 27 2010
Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode 1
Sonic the Hedgehog 4 often puts one in a role that is more that of the voyeur than that of the player.
Monday, October 25 2010
Dead Space: Ignition
Dead Space: Ignition is an interesting experiment. As part motion comic and part mini-game collection, it’s a prequel to Dead Space 2 that revolves around one couple, an engineer and a cop, as they try to survive the necromorph invasion on The Sprawl.
Friday, October 22 2010
Castlevania: Lords of Shadow
Conveniently, Hell has taken refuge on Gabriel’s plane of existence, giving him a license to kill, not in the name of love but in the name of God
Wednesday, October 20 2010
Dawn of Heroes
On paper, a simplified tactical RPG probably sounds like a good idea. Games like Pokemon have shown that the formula can deliver to younger audiences. The reason that Dawn of Heroes bombs is that it doesn’t really pay attention to what the player wants to do in this type of game.
Monday, October 18 2010
Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions
Shattered Dimensions evokes nostalgia in those that have followed the character for some time.