71 public written reviews
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It seems like these days the downloadable services on the three consoles need some highly praised game that is both cutesy and violent at the same time. The Xbox Live Arcade already filled that void with Benemoth's Alien Hominid HD and Castle Crashers while WiiWare has not found its game yet or the fact it is not their thing. The Playstation Network on the other hand finally has its own exclusive game of that kind…
If you ever played a Wii at least once throughout its lifespan so far, chances are you played Wii Sports, which is arguably the perfect pack-in game for a console like Nintendo's Wii. You were likely hanging out with family or friends trying to beat them at bowling, tennis, golf, or baseball. As much of a phenomenon Wii Sports is for the past three years especially among the casual audience, there is more what…
Please note: Videos consist of tournament-like level gameplay from the arcade version. The PS3 version does look similar to the arcades, but I just wanted to show high level fights of what the game's system is capable of in which I won't get with console videos right away that are in good quality. There are high hopes for the King of Fighters XII to be a worthy fighting game in the genre's renaissance this year with…
Nintendo lately has been known for distancing itself away from their hardcore audiences due to their astounding success of their casual titles on the Wii. The return of Punch-Out!! has been the faithful's hope of Nintendo actually still giving a care about their old franchises that date back to the NES days. It turns out that this new Punch-Out!! is both amazing and old-school for those who played the original NES…
The Wii has been obviously been known as the casual gamer's machine and Sega is looking to tap with that market with the conveniently titled Let's Tap. Prope, the developer of this title, is headed by Yuji Naka, creator of the Sonic the Hedgehog franchise, NiGHTS franchise, and Samba De Amigo, and it truly shows in his first retail game for the new developer. Let's Tap is pretty self-explanatory just by the title…
Rag Doll Kung Fu: Fists of Plastic has been one of the highly anticipated downloadable titles for the Playstation Network. It is made by Tarsier Studios, which consists of former Media Molecule guys that brought us LittleBigPlanet. For those who never played the PC original, Rag Doll Kung Fu is a four player free-for-all fighting game in the vein of Super Smash Bros. and Kung Fu Chaos. It has the charm that…
Note: This review is a revised cut of the arcade version of Street Fighter IV as I'm adding in the stuff included only in the console versions and more. Some videos I have posted will showcase both console and arcade versions with middle to tournament level gameplay. Street Fighter IV felt like a dream that became a reality when it was announced in late 2007. After years of waiting and waiting, it is finally out on…
Read the full review I don't care what the critics say. Violence is a beautiful thing!
The whole debate whether or not video games can be considered as art is still a mixed bag. While most games out today feel just like pure entertainment, a handful of others actually feel like a rare and special experience. Recent examples like Rez HD and Braid are rare gaming experiences that your mind was blown compared to games as entertainment. Flower is now the new artistic and special experience that is also…
The original Skate was considered a savior to the skateboarding genre of video games two years ago when the Tony Hawk franchise is fading out. Its innovative controls and being a better representation of the skateboarding lifestyle gave new life to the genre and fans of the sport as well. Two years later, the sequel is finally here and while San Vanelona underwent some changes because of a natural disaster, the core…
Q? Entertainment has been a great supporter for Xbox Live Arcade releasing their successful games that were in previous systems for the current generation of consoles. Lumines Live, Every Extend Extra Extreme, and Rez HD have been wonderful games for the 360 with their artistic experiences of combining visuals and music. Meteos Wars is their fourth game on Xbox Live Arcade being a HD version of Meteos, which…
Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix has been through a lot since its announcement in the beginning of last year. You can tell that it is Capcom's biggest and most ambitious downloadable game to date considering how popular the original Super Turbo is for fourteen years. From the new art courtesy of Udon Comics, the folks that also do the art for the Street Fighter comic books, and the new rebalanced gameplay that…
Ten years ago, the original Banjo-Kazooie bust into the gaming scene by Rare for the Nintendo 64. It was the developer's return to the genre that put themselves to the map, which is the platformer. While it is their first 3D platformer, it was a great fan favorite on Nintendo's system using what Super Mario 64 did as a template to take the genre to different heights. It introduced us to the bear, Banjo, and his bird…
Note: This review will likely contain spoilers, so read at your own risk unless you beaten the campaign. It was 2006 and the Xbox 360 has been out for a year. A lot was riding on the first Gears of War to be fill in the void the Halo franchise has been for the console. It became an instant classic and the 360's first killer app with its amazing stop and pop style gameplay along with a multiplayer component that kept…
Nearly twenty years ago, Mega Man was introduced to the gaming world and provided a challenge and a formula that worked for the rest of the series. Recently, the franchise has been in hiatus in terms of the real games than crazy spin-offs, but Capcom decided to take advantage of their downloadable games initiative with the Blue Bomber and return to the glory days of 8-bit graphics and gameplay with Mega Man 9. This…
Note: I don't have the new instruments as I am only reviewing the game, so check elsewhere for thoughts of the new Stratocaster and Drum Kit. Last year's Rock Band took the rhythm game to a whole new level. Harmonix, the originators of Guitar Hero and Frequency, managed to top themselves of making a full band experience that satisfies both hardcore and casual players with a balanced soundtrack based on difficulty…
Even though the Street Fighter II series dominated the arcade scene during the 1990s, SNK delivered more hardcore and satisfying 2D fighters with the Samurai Showdown series. The 2D weapons-based fighter is unlike anything else at that time with diverse characters, and a gameplay system that offers intense moments throughout fights. Samurai Showdown II is considered the pinnacle of the series improving everything…
Namco Bandai has been a big supporter for Xbox Live Arcade ever since 2006 releasing their classic games as arcade ports on the service. The quality varied with those releases pending on how good they were during the golden era of arcades. Namco's breakthrough hit on Xbox Live Arcade was a remake with Pac-Man Championship Edition last year making Pac-Man cool again with competitions for high scores under time…
After 20 years of waiting and begging, the Bionic Commando franchise is coming back in a big way. This is all in part of Capcom's remake renaissance with such games like Street Fighter IV, Mega Man 9, and 1942: Joint Strike. Bionic Commando Rearmed is the official console remake for the NES version of Bionic Commando with some tweaks and additions (Yeah, it was sort of remade on the Game Boy). If you don't remember,…
Some would say that the Soul Calibur series has been on a downward spiral since the first game on the Dreamcast in 1999. It already established itself as a premier fighter among the competition with its deep weapon-based combat, beautiful graphics, eight way runs, and cater to both the hardcore and the casual gamer. While the sequels, Soul Calibur II and III, had commercial success, there was some disappointment…
A handful of games of recent memory have challenged the intellects of the brain towards solving puzzles. Braid turns up the puzzle solving to the max with platforming sections along with homages to iconic games like Super Mario Bros. and Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time. This puzzle platformer for Xbox Live Arcade feels like a hybrid of Mario platforming, the time mechanic from The Sands of Time, and challenging…
No one expected Geometry Wars to become a gaming phenomenon back when the first one was released on Xbox Live Arcade when the 360 launched. Now after a Wii / DS release of Galaxies, Geometry Wars returns to its stomping grounds on XBLA with Retro Evolved 2 and it is still an amazing experience of one ship taking on various shapes, surviving wave after wave of enemies, and getting the highest score possible to show…
Capcom's remake renaissance continues in this generation of consoles with 1942: Joint Strike, a new game based from the 80s 194x series of World War II shumps. For ten dollars, or 800 Microsoft Points, you're getting a HD facelift, five levels, and pure old-school gaming in terms of no saving and memorization of enemy fire patterns. This new entry does have that same 1942 feel you expect and that's good enough for…
Unreal Tournament III has been around for a while on other platforms (PC and PS3), but it finally makes its appearance on the Xbox 360 with some new content along with the same fast and intense FPS action that the series has provided. As an "old-school" first-person shooter that separates itself from the current crop of shooters that have more depth, UT3 is more of a relief of bringing back the glory days of late…
