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5 (23) 4 (78) 3 (69) 2 (36) 1 (2) 3.4 starsAverage score of 208 user reviews
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Turns out well crafted gameplay elements can make even the most bizarre crossover you've ever seen work 0
Just about everyone didn’t expect much from this crossover when they first heard about it. The crazy Rabbids mixed with Mario seemed like an odd match that couldn't go anywhere good. Yet finding out it was a turn based strategy game my curiosity made me want to check it out. My usual spiel of going through the narrative is quite pointless for this game. All you need to know is that the wacky Rabbids have invaded the Mushroom Kingdom and it’s up to Mario & Co to stop a out of con...
2 out of 2 found this review helpful. -
Review: Basis Confusion Affection Date 0
Alright so I’m writing a review for a visual novel. Thus this game relies entirely on being able to convey a compelling narrative to keep players reading like a really good book. Upfront I can tell you that it has that in spades. It even has a unique gimmick that makes it a bit more unique than a standard visual novel. Before I get to that I need to somehow write up a synopsis to this 30 hour epic. Since the game does it why not split it into two.This is how the entire game is presented. ...
3 out of 3 found this review helpful. -
Like the rest of the series the well crafted narrative makes it better than if you focused on the gameplay 0
The artistic flair from 2D models to 3D models has been retained. The mixture of both styles really makes some scenes stand out more than others.This may reveal my opinion early but I’m disappointed that I didn’t get around to playing this till now. The new gameplay style made me think Spike Chunsoft couldn’t put together a good action game set in the Danganronpa universe. Turns out I was wrong. Like any good despair inducing game you need a good setting. From the opening mome...
1 out of 1 found this review helpful. -
Splatoon 2 shows off Nintendo's lack of cohesive online structure while rising above it to still be a enjoyable game 0
As a sequel to a Nintendo game this is one of the few that feel like it has minimal upgrades. Running around painting everything is still the main mechanic and all the modes they added to the first game are still in this one. Even the mcguffin in the single player campaign is the same since once again the Octarians have stolen the great zap fish and it is up to a special inkling agent to save the day one more time. Which could be a huge issue if it just wasn’t so fun to run around paintin...
2 out of 2 found this review helpful. -
Final Fantasty XV tries a lot of new things for the franchise yet the result feels rather average 1
Over the years the Final Fantasy series has been either hot or cold for me depending on what Square Enix decides to do that year. With this release, they decided to go with something a bit more action based which does fit closer to the style of game I tend to like better. Yet does it go far enough in that direction to make it feel like a fun game to play? By the time I’ve finished writing this review we shall know that answer. So let's get started with a quick synopsis of the plot.I did g...
3 out of 3 found this review helpful. -
Mario's time in the sun could have been brighter 0
After watching Giant Bomb East play through a part of this I had to revisit it to see if it holds up at all. Out of all the Mario games, this one has a bit more story to tell via CG cutscenes. Most of it is kinda weird with the gist of it being about an evil Mario that has painted Isle Delfino with a bunch of paint. Mario gets blamed for the vile act and he must now clean up the town. After getting introduced to the ruined island paradise it quickly becomes obvious that Nintendo wanted to make ...
3 out of 3 found this review helpful. -
One little Seedlings quest to create a oasis town is fraught with peril and uneven design decisions 1
I could die from all the cuteness this game emits. Side Note: Props to the developer for sticking to a surprisingly serious ending.Directed by the creator of the Mana series this game tries to bring back those ideas and mix them with a bunch of different gameplay styles. In a lot of ways, this game felt like an alternate take on a Secret Of Mana origin story. The game begins by introducing a cute chibi looking protagonist who is of a race of Seedlings that tend to live near oases. Since most of...
2 out of 2 found this review helpful. -
Injustice 2 proves that it is important to have a good selection of single player modes in a fighting game 0
It has been a while since I put some time into a Netherrealm game. I’ve at least played all the recent releases but none of them had substantial single player content that kept me coming back for more. Most of the time I tend to play through the arcade mode with every fighter and that’s all I do. Yet that has changed with this game. Like usual before I go into any details let's quickly sum up what's happening in the world of Injustice 2 first. Batman has locked up Superman after he ...
2 out of 2 found this review helpful. -
Raiding the beaches of Omaha isn't quite as fun when the controls are subpar 0
With Call of Duty going back to the second world war I thought it might be worth going back to the first game that got me interested in this setting. Medal Of Honor Frontline may not be the first in the series but it was the one that caught my eye one day while looking through the many games at Babbage’s It follows adventures of James Patterson who is a covert spy who gets moved around to different areas to complete objectives. Other than giving some context to why our hero is raiding dif...
3 out of 3 found this review helpful. -
Japanese surf rock and a great visual style doesn't turn a bad game into a good one 1
Most of my memories playing this game were the fact it had Japanese surf rock in it and the very nice looking cel-shaded visuals. Those facts remain true this day but with fresh eyes, I decided to pick this back up and play through it one more time. In a lot of ways, this is a straight up remake of Brave Fencer Musashi. At least thematically since the plot has a few things in common with the first game. The world is in constant terror from the evil megacorp Gandrake Enterprises and the only ho...
2 out of 2 found this review helpful. -
The Turning Test has some fun puzzles to solve yet the narrative has minimal emotional impact 1
Hard to not see how much this game follows in the footsteps of Portal. In both how the game is structured and the main narrative hook. The plot starts with Ava being woke up my T.O.M. on board a spaceship above Europa. It turns out the ground crew appears to be in dire straits and it is up to Ava to figure out what is going on. To reach the inner sanctum 70 different small puzzle rooms must be solved to find out what really happened. Light bridges and magnets are some of the tools you'll need t...
2 out of 2 found this review helpful. -
A Look Back At Binary Domain 0
With Waypoint starting up a monthly video game club I decided to take part in it. Since I like writing small reviews of most of the games I play I figured it wouldn’t hurt to review this month's game too. Binary Domain was a third person shooter that came out in 2012. I played it when it was new and enjoyed it. Yet does it retain its positive qualities 5 years later? Before I answer that question let's go over a few things like the story and how the well the game plays. Big Bo is awesome...
1 out of 1 found this review helpful. -
A pair of androids start a journey that leads to a uncertain conclusion 0
Over the years I’ve seen games that tried to take the multiple perspective angle with the story they were trying to tell. Most have done an average job at best but now a game has taken it to a whole new level. That game is named Nier Automata. Since I don’t want want to spoil any details I’ll be focusing my review on 2B's storyline. A quick set up of the story is that humans have fled to the moon after an alien invasion. They decide to build a android army to exterminate the a...
4 out of 4 found this review helpful. -
A short fighter jet game with some great music 0
While scanning through a stack of Dreamcast games at a local convention this one caught my eye. Like the old days, I just saw the box art and thought it looked like Ace Combat so I picked it up. Turns out the box art didn’t lie. This is an arcade fighter jet game about blowing up jets, boats and battle fortresses. That last item does imply this isn’t a super serious game even though it kinda tries to tell a serious story about being a mercenary pilot. What little plot this does have...
2 out of 2 found this review helpful. -
Blaster Master Zero is a successful remake 0
Eve is a new character that is only really around to spit out exposition. The Blaster Master name has been brought up to me through many different podcasts but I never took the time to check it out till now. Inti Creates has crafted a remake of the first game while adding new elements that make it a better game. Even though this looks like it could be a prequel it is indeed a remake since the story picks up with Jason going after Fred. He isn’t able to locate him but he does get his hands...
4 out of 4 found this review helpful. -
A worthwhile journey that should be seen 0
How can you not like Trico? He looks so cute.Many different types of media have tried to create a compelling companion story to varying degrees of success. The Last Guardian is another attempt to craft a faithful companion that the player can really care for. It succeeds in doing that by slowly endearing you to the giant beast Trico. As the boy and his giant friend go through many different locations that test the player's puzzle skills they end up helping each other. By the end, I was genuinel...
1 out of 1 found this review helpful. -
Despite its uneven mission design Gravity Rush 2 rises above those flaws. 0
A lot of the cutscenes are still told via comic panels.Kat returns for one last gravity defying adventure. After falling into a gravity wormhole she gets thrown into a new world to explore. Still full of floating cities and blob monsters to destroy with powerful gravity drop kicks. Over the 4 chapters of the game, it ends up going over some interesting topics like the fact the Jirga Para Lhao is ruled by a class system that puts the rich over the poor. With Kat being the classic hero archetype ...
3 out of 3 found this review helpful. -
Old Game Review: Sonic Wings Special 0
I booted this game up today and after seeing our favorite arcade archives publisher Hamster I had to put my thoughts down about this unique version of Sonic Wings. With the story being mostly nonexistent other than a few quips by each pilot I’m just going to assume they are blowing up a bunch of vehicles to save the earth from some crazy threat. So with no plot to explain I’ll point out that this game is an amalgamation of the 3 different games. Which includes a bunch of pilots, lev...
1 out of 1 found this review helpful. -
The more I play this the more I wish it wasn't a FTP game 0
Normally I wait till after I finish a game to write a review but in this case, I’ve already seen what the main hook that could drive a player to climb the Tower Of Barbs. Upfront Let It Die lets you know this is going to be a crazy ride by introducing Uncle Death who is one rad skeleton. He acts as your tutorial guide and makes sure you know that death can happen very quickly if you miss time an attack. The morbid yet still very humorous vibe this game has is its strongest point. Without ...
2 out of 3 found this review helpful. -
Majora's Mask does change a lot of things but that doesn't mean it is a great Zelda game 0
I bought this game sixteen years ago but I never managed to complete a playthrough till now. Every time I started it something would cause me to never quite finish it. Mostly thanks to the time mechanics that make this more unique compared to other Zelda games while also reusing a lot of assets from Ocarina Of Time. Those mechanics drive the game in interesting ways while also punishing the player for not getting done with certain tasks in time. I’ll go over that more in a bit but first h...
3 out of 4 found this review helpful. -
The execution of the idea was perfect while the gameplay might not keep the player intrested in finishing it 0
Attention: I was given a code to beta test this game. By being given a code it is possible my thoughts might be bias. Of course, I’m planning on writing this in a way that doesn’t do that but I wanted to make sure anyone reading this would be informed of that fact. You spot spooky shadow guy. Your options? RUN AWAYThe greatest fear of all has been the fear of darkness. Yogamrai takes us all back to when we were kids by following a small girl who has lost both her dog and her sister....
4 out of 4 found this review helpful. -
A review of a Basketball game from someone that rarely plays sports games 0
This one character breaks what could have been a so-so sports movie plot. What does it take to make someone that doesn’t play sports games into someone that spent about 8 hours checking out all the modes before writing this review? At least for me, the answer to that question was an ambitious story mode. Like many sports games, it might seem like the standard career mode where you take a high school prodigy through college and then into the NBA when he gets drafted. Yet in between matche...
1 out of 1 found this review helpful. -
Ghosthunter was a average game when it was released and it still barely retains that fact today. 0
After watching the Encyclopedia Bombastica on this game a while ago I wanted to play through it.Finally got around to it this past week. Ghosthunter follows the exploits of rookie cop Lazarus Jones as he accidentally releases a bunch of ghosts from a containment unit. Afterward, an AI computer decides that he must go out and catch all the ghosts he released. Although he only agrees to help so he can assist his partner who was kidnapped by a vile medieval ghost who seeks to use her for his evil ...
2 out of 2 found this review helpful. -
The newest game of this series may have come out recently but the first game is still really fun 2
Forza Horizon does one very important thing upfront that turned it from a car game I barely spent any time with into one I wanted to keep playing. That one thing is the way the vehicles control. I can like realistic physics on cars as noted by Forza 3 but it isn't something I tend to play often. Yet it doesn't matter here since it is weighted more in the arcade style of racing which lets me drift all over the place with ease. Like any good video game, it does contextualize why you're racing thr...
2 out of 2 found this review helpful. -
A very distinct looking game that is below average. 0
With this game being part of Games With Gold I decided to play through it for the first time. This isn't a review of the multiplayer which is pretty much nonexistent although it seems like it would be okay going by how the fights play out in the single player. The game itself is a prequel to the movie Tron Legacy and takes place entirely within the grid. Which is a fancy way of saying this takes place in cyberspace. The programs have human forms and the creator Fynn has created a new monitor pr...
2 out of 2 found this review helpful. -
I may still enjoy playing this game but I just can't look past how bad it it from a modern perspective. 0
Shadow must have his revengeance! Too bad I could barely hear what he was saying during this scene.In the past, this game easily met my expectations but time hasn't been kind to this game. With quite a few flaws peeking through the rough exterior. Other than the characters the story doesn't have anything to do with the first game with it starting with Sonic escaping a city full of robots. Or with Eggman, as he releases the ultimate lifeform Shadow from an island prison. The dual story idea was ...
1 out of 1 found this review helpful. -
SAO: RE: Hollow Fragment has a setting that I really like. Yet how the game is presented is less than perfect. 0
Most of the story told via 2D artwork or CG scenes. Also no English dub.Almost from the first hour, this game impacted me in two different ways. First, it quickly became obvious that this game had an insane amount of quests and events to do. At the same time, it shows off how small of a budget it had thus making it one of those rare B-tier games. Each one has some positive aspects while also causing some negative moments to pop up too. Before I enlighten you about these issues a bit of story su...
7 out of 7 found this review helpful. -
In its day Jedi Power Battles was a great brawler. Yet now it looks like a boring game with annoying mechanics. 0
With the release of a new trilogy Lucasarts decided to make a lot of Star Wars games. This one is loosely based on Episode I. They make use of characters from the movie to create a video game without caring about sticking to a script. Like the title might imply this game has the player use one of five Jedi to fight their way through 10 levels.Deflecting blaster bolts back at enemies is a constant task throughout the game. At least it seemed key to not dying all the time. Each of the 5 Jedi kni...
2 out of 3 found this review helpful. -
A solid title that relies a bit to much on certain mechanics. 0
Chronicles Of Teddy is a absolute love letter to Zelda II: The Adventure Of Link. Even from just the opening text crawl it was obvious to me that they were trying to create a new game with similar gameplay. They succeeded in doing that with some flaws that started to appear the closer I got to the end. I’ll talk about those issues a bit later in this review when they are relevant. Instead this is where I usually write up a bit about the storyline.The game literally begins within a game th...
1 out of 1 found this review helpful. -
Even in 2016 it is fun to catch a bunch of crazy monkeys. 2
When done well a silly 3D platformer can last to this day. Ape Escape 2 proves this fact with all the additions they added to this sequel. Most of the new stuff revolves using gadgets to solve problems that weren't a issue before. Which isn't counting the boss fights or the new levels that must be explored to catch all the monkeys. But before I get into more detail let me quickly tell you about the story first. A vile Monkey named Specter has once again escaped from the Zoo thanks to the blunde...
2 out of 2 found this review helpful. -
Vibrant environments may make this a fun game to look at yet the rest of the experence didn't live up to the visuals 0
This might just be my greatest review challenge yet. Most of my reviews come down to either liking the narrative or enjoying the gameplay. With Abzu neither of those factors are a big reason why I liked this aquatic adventure. I can even sum up the narrative in one sentence. A lone scuba diver wakes from what seems like a long slumber and must travel through the ocean to seek out magical life portals to bring back life to the ocean.The scale and magistracy of being beside a a whale is impressiv...
3 out of 3 found this review helpful. -
I was expecting this game to get boring quick. Instead a few cool moments and visuals kept me entertained. 0
Claiming the badge at the end of the level is a nice moment.Upfront the best thing about Unravel is the beautiful/gloomy environments that Yarney platforms his way through to reclaim lost memories in the form of a different yarn badge. To get to the beautiful looking mountain and other locations Yarney uses the different photos in the house to visit different memories. Not much time is spent on story other than a quick introduction and a bit of text/photos after reclaiming a badge. Which is fin...
2 out of 2 found this review helpful. -
Furi doesn't rely on its style to carry the player through it. Instead it is all about the gameplay. 0
From the very first battle it becomes obvious if this is a game you'll enjoy. Furi does very little traditional story telling because it is purposely left vague with most of the narrative just setting up the backstory of the next jailer that stands in the way of the stranger. With the entire game consisting of boss battles that means that the gameplay is the most important part.Every part of this game is about timing. Like dodging a wave attack or learning the correct time to parry going only b...
3 out of 3 found this review helpful. -
Welcome to the groovy future, where being only a head is a good thing. 0
From the moment Headlander starts up it is obvious that Double Fine wanted to recreate the visual style of a 80’s space opera. Between the synthy musical score and very distinct visual look of the space stations you’ll end up exploring it does a excellent job recreating that style. So it may have some groovy locations but does the game manage to use that to create something fun to play? By the end of the review we shall know that answer but first let's go into the plot that sets up ...
2 out of 2 found this review helpful. -
Another great traditional Kirby game 0
Kirby returns with another traditional game but this time he’s got a robot. It is another peaceful day on planet Popstar and like usual the residents are being lazy. Yet this day a UFO lands on the planet and starts using the resources to turn everything into a machine. Kirby isn’t going to stand by so he sets off to stop their evil plan. Along the way he gains a mech that lets him solve problems he wouldn’t otherwise be able to handle. The focus on industry visually makes thi...
2 out of 2 found this review helpful. -
Slashing through hundreds of anime soldiers can't always be a fun time 0
Koei continues their crusade to create as many Dynasty Warriors clones as possible. Up to this point they have created games based on anime's that I knew about. That is no longer true with this one. This story is about the prince of Pars who is named Arslan. He is a kind man who gets thrown out of his kingdom by the invading army of Lusitana. Starting only with his loyal lieutenant Daryun he must slowly gather up a army to take back what he has lost. It is hard for me to not compare this to the...
2 out of 2 found this review helpful. -
Welcome to Vallhalla where the drinks are sweet 0
This statement is true no matter where you live.I’ve seen many different takes on the visual novel formula but I haven’t quite had this kind of reaction since Analog: A Hate Story. From what the developers set up in the prologue game that they put out 2 years ago I knew this was my kind of narrative. No one has quite tackled being a bartender in a video game before. It is the future where corporations are running the world. In no other place is this more prevalent than Glitch city. ...
2 out of 2 found this review helpful. -
Assault Android Cactus is one of the best dual stick shooters I've played in a while 0
This game has a few cut scenes to set up and end the story. The last time I really enjoyed a dual stick shooter was Geometry Wars. Now Assault Android Cactus picks up that same torch with some new mechanics that make it just as interesting to play. First up it does have some minor story bits to get the player into the action. As the take no prisoners android space cop Cactus you must take down a group of rampaging robots that has took over a freighter than Cactus crash lands onto. She then meets...
5 out of 5 found this review helpful. -
Chibi-Robo returns to star in a delightful zip lash slinging adventure 0
The initial first impression I got from around the web was that this game wasn't that great. Turns out I ended up enjoying it a lot more than I expected. The Chibi Robo series has had an identity crisis for a while now. Starting off he was just a cleaning robot that helped people and now in this latest game he is a platformer hero who must save the world from a mini alien invasion. 6 different continents must be saved and only his zip lash line will be able to wipe out any robot alien that stan...
1 out of 1 found this review helpful. -
A random PC game review: Incoming 0
Reviewing older games is tough. I can’t get into the mindset of 1998 me which would have been impressed by the graphics. So instead I have to go with what I thought of it today. Without harping on the fact it doesn’t look that great anymore. Incoming is a vehicle based action game with some minor real time strategy sections depending on which mode is chosen. The main crux of the story is that aliens are going to take over earth and only a small strike force of pilots has any chance a...
1 out of 1 found this review helpful.
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