38 public written reviews
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I really want to like the new King's Quest. Someone - or a team of someones - put a lot of their soul into the early parts of this game, crafting a Daventry I wanted to explore with fun Shrek-esque takes on the familiar characters of the King's Quest games of old. Having stories set around the events of those games is an inspired design decision and one that occasionally nears greatness in the new series. But after…
When they're not shoving out confused, mechanically stillborn garbage like White Knight Chronicles, Level 5 can crank out some damn great games. Their greatest trifecta to date is the loosely-defined trilogy of PS2 era action-RPGs Dark Cloud 1 & 2 and their spiritual successor Rogue Galaxy. At the time of its release, Rogue Galaxy was ambitious, but suffered from severe frame rate problems and long, often buggy…
When it comes to great sequels, few games knocked it out of the park in the 360/PS3 era quite like Arkham City. It expanded upon the cool gameplay of Asylum and added some fun new tech and a great world to explore, along with a strong narrative and a hell of a lot of fun stuff to see and do. Arkham Origins was passable, mostly because it didn't upset the apple cart - if someone liked Arkham City and wanted more of…
As the title should indicate, this is a review for the iPad version of Contradiction: Spot the Liar and is not indicative of the PC version. I'm a big fan of hammy performances and movies. I'm that die-hard Bruce Campbell fan who has watched Army of Darkness more times than I care to count, has Brisco County, Jr. on DVD, and sat through every episode of Jack of All Trades. I'm fond of Syfy's absurd films. I've…
Very few games I play are ever offensively bad. Most are, at worst, mediocre yawn fests with elements that just don't work. Some are broken, some are ill-conceived, some are meant for a different audience. Only a tiny fraction of the games I've played have truly have earned that one star rating. Of those, I'd be hard pressed to tell you if I've ever played a game more offensively juvenile than Quest for INfamy. From…
There's a glint in Wadjet Eye's, er, eye that I greatly respect. Their gameplay and graphics might be evocative of Sierra and LucasArts, but they've got a quirky soul to their games that's all their own. Little touches like reusing voice actors might be born out of a budget, but I get the very real sense that everyone involved with this company is growing and learning. And that's what makes Primordia such a…
For every Tales of Vesperia or Xillia, it seems there must be a Graces or an Abyss. They have something of an awkward feel to them, as though they're layovers for the Tales team while they prepare to fly towards some greater destination. On almost every level, these games are their brothers' shadows, built more to meet some sort of strange Tales quota than to actually push the series forward. It's not that Graces is…
Let's get the truth bombs dropped right out of the gate - if you have easy access to the IA edition of Final Fantasy X, there's little point in buying this updated version of the game. The only updates you'll find here are some nicer facial animations and a few updated songs throughout the game. That's really about it. X-2 suffers from even less updatery - none, actually. These are still very much the games you got…
When it comes down to it, I probably wouldn't have paid $60 for Devil May Cry, even though it's a genuinely terrific game. It seemed like a bit of a steep entry point for an action game, and it's in a genre I'm not terribly excited about anymore. But when it steeply dropped in price during a Black Friday sale, I decided to take a chance on it, and I'm really glad I did. Overall, this is a superbly crafted game that…
If you're a child of the eighties and early nineties, the concept of Organ Trail is probably going to sound delightful. Redesigning Oregon Trail with zombies and Romero-esque touches seems like it should be the recipe for a hilariously good time. But a great concept doesn't make up for terrible aiming controls, poor hitboxes, and a handful of irritating, game-breaking bugs. Let's get the good out of the way - this…
There's a certain gleeful abandon in Dante's Inferno. Throughout the whole game, I got this feeling that this game was developed by a committee of executives who really hate folks like Joseph Lieberman and wanted to create a game that would blatantly piss in their Cheerios. In that regard, they definitely succeeded, as Dante's Inferno is a veritable checklist of all the things that would upset or horrify a strict…
I want to like Alpha Protocol. The premise of an espionage RPG is great, and there are some meaningful and brilliant ideas in terms of the game's conversational cause-and-effect system. But everything else about the game is so ridiculously subpar that it's hard to recommend this game to anyone except game industry scholars looking for some great ideas for a better game. The premise of Alpha Protocol begins its bland…
In the interest of full disclosure here, I'll admit right off the bat that I'm only 35% finished with Just Cause 2, according to its detailed statistics page. Scoff it up, if you want, and say I shouldn't write a review of the game with such a miserly amount of the game finished. But consider this, to the game's credit. That 35% accounts for me having completed the game on Normal, caused an incredible amount of…
In a lot of ways, Sam and Max: The Devil's Playhouse is the best use of Telltale's adventure engine yet. It's certainly the most creative, featuring smart, unique designs to each episode that don't feature the same recycled environments time after time. The new gimmick of Max having psychic powers (through the use of children's toys) also leads to some genuinely brilliant and hilarious moments. But the control…
I'm not one of those people who was super-familiar with the ins and outs of the Dragon Quest series. I vaguely recall playing Dragon Warrior on a friend's NES back when I was a little kid, but I don't remember a single thing about it other than the name. I am, however, a big fan of Japanese RPG's of all sorts, and when it was announced that Dragon Quest VIII would see a stateside release, I was pretty intrigued.…
Read the full review Dragon Quest VIII: Journey of the Cursed King
Police Quest is a hard sell to modern gamers. Hell, it's a hard sell to classic adventure gamers or just about anyone who doesn't want to have to save, load, and restart seemingly every other minute. Of all the Sierra adventure games, only Codename ICEMAN rivals it in pure difficulty due to some frustrating procedural elements that must be followed to a T. I highly recommend the series of games, but adventure…
Read the full review Police Quest: In Pursuit of the Death Angel
I get the criticisms leveled against Bulletstorm's ridiculous, completely over-the-top dialogue. I know there are a dozen groan-worthy moments in the game. And you know what? I don't care! The game is pretty damn hilarious, and has a certain panache for male testerone-fueled moments that really haven't been seen to this degree since Duke Nukem 3D. From a pure gameplay perspective, you'd think the gimmick of "kill…
From a pure fantasy literature lover's perspective, Lord of the Rings Online is a stunningly well-crafted game. The developers make every attempt to keep to the nuances of Middle-Earth lore as written both in the primary novels and the Silmarillion, as well as taking some small, smartly written liberties to expand the world and make it into a full-fledged game beyond just the realm of the Fellowship. It's not…
Read the full review The Lord of the Rings Online: Shadows of Angmar
Enchanted Arms is a hell of a fun mess. Its story, characters, and settings are as laughably bad as anything I've seen since Metal Dungeon, and should there be a video game retrospective Razzie award, it certainly deserves a nomination. There's not a minute of dialogue in this game that isn't cringe-inducing. There are no great characters in the entire game. The plot makes other cliched games look like gems. And…
Marvel: Ultimate Alliance gets all the basics right. It's a bit unspectacular and leaves something to be desired in terms of replayability, but I certainly can't fault the core gameplay or the fun selection of characters. It's ultimately a good game that could have been amazing, but falls just short. GRAPHICS AND SOUND: Ultimate Alliance doesn't have many tricks in its bag visually or aurally. What you get is a…
Banjo-Tooie is a shining example of how game developers can learn from their mistakes and go on to create something amazing. It eliminates almost all the problems of the first game, while still maintaining the solid gameplay and the sense of colorful fun from the first. This is one of the best platformers on the market today. GRAPHICS AND SOUND While not a huge leap from the first game, there's much more variety to…
Banjo's adventures have aged admirably well. Rare's classic platformer holds up even today as one of the better releases to date in the genre, and young and old gamers alike will find a lot to enjoy here. If you can look beyond some bland design and gameplay choices, this is a solid choice for some platforming action. GRAPHICS AND SOUND Banjo and Kazooie's adventures have a vibrant, detailed feel to them, even given…
Worms 2: Armageddon is like a big, juicy, unblemished, crisp red apple. You bite into it, you savor it, it's practically an orgasmic experience... until you discover that little tiny worm inside, flipping you off and aiming a bazooka at your skull. This Xbox Live re-release is as thoroughly addictive and fun as its predecessors, but a few things hold it back from perfection. GRAPHICS AND SOUND To date, this is…
Covenant of the Plume is deceptively slick for a strategy RPG. It drew me in with its sweet, sweet nectar, got me in a dark alley, and then beat the holy hell out of me with its sudden spike in its difficulty. GRAPHICS AND SOUND- Square Enix pulls off one of the coolest introduction videos on the DS to date with Covenant. I don't normally point out cinematics, but sometimes when a good one happens on the DS, it…
Read the full review Valkyrie Profile: Covenant of the Plume
Devil Survivor was something of an impulse purchase for me, and surprisingly, it's a purchase that really paid off. Devil Survivor is an RPG with turn-based strategy elements, and has a lot to offer gamers with its depth and replayability. GRAPHICS & SOUND Devil Survivor is pretty much a meat-and-potatoes game when it comes to graphics. There aren't any flashy effects or cutscenes, but what's here is solid. The…
Blue Dragon is a really mixed bag. On the one hand, if you're looking for a meaty traditional JRPG with some great bonus content, Blue Dragon is an excellent choice. But on the other hand, if you're tired of cutesy anime-styled characters, weak plotlines, and laughably bad dialogue, then you'll probably want to steer clear of Blue Dragon. GRAPHICS & SOUND Blue Dragon isn't a bad-looking game. There are some…
Let's get this out of the way first - if happy-go-lucky anime makes you want to tear your hair out, steer well clear of this and any Disgaea game. Fans of anime or those who are only slightly annoyed by it will find a deep, addictive strategy RPG to add to their collection, but the cheesy dialogue and atrociously cutesy characters might be enough to turn away many prospective gamers. GRAPHICS Apart from some nice…
When I hear the words, "It's like Diablo," I definitely get interested. Diablo 2 remains one of my most-played games of all time, and I crave hack-and-slash RPG's in a similar vein. Thankfully, Titan Quest offers up a sizable, fun experience very much "like Diablo." GRAPHICS For the most part, Titan Quest is a very pretty game. It doesn't do anything too technically impressive, and its style isn't going to make…
Galactrix is a game I really want to like. I adored the original for its blend of classic gameplay with RPG elements. Galactrix still has those basics, but the difficulty has been ramped up, almost to the point of being frustratingly broken. GRAPHICS Galactrix has cleaned up some of the menus and graphics of the original. It's nothing that will blow your mind, but it's very pleasant to look at and the text is much…
If I could rate games based solely on the amount of fun I had playing them, Silent Storm would be off the charts. Unfortunately, a few technical flaws mar an otherwise stellar game. GRAPHICS Although it's now showing it's age a bit, thanks to some creative graphics design, the majority of Silent Storm stil looks good. My only real complaint here is the high number of recycled character designs. I wished for a bit…
The isometric turn-based RPG was a specialty of Black Isle, and Arcanum was another excellent addition to the genre. Unfortunately, bugs and glitches marred the game, and the closure of the studio after its release meant little official tech support to address these problems. However, Arcanum is still a great RPG if you're willing to track down some home-brewed tech fixes and unofficial patches. GRAPHICS The overall…
Read the full review Arcanum: Of Steamworks & Magick Obscura
Please note that this review was done on the Wii, using the Gamecube controller. If you love all things Mario or Square RPG's, definitely don't miss out on this game. Just don't walk into it expecting the style or scope of RPG's since its release, and you won't be disappointed. GRAPHICS Super Mario RPG is a really mixed bag, graphically. Some of the towns and environments look great, and I love the simple,…
Read the full review Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars
Please note that this review is for the Wii Shop version, with a Gamecube controller. The Donkey Kong Country games are venerable classics in platform gaming. The gameplay is simple, the graphics still look crisp and vibrant, and the breezy fun of the genre is still a blast even today. GRAPHICS- The graphics are surprisingly bright, detailed, and vibrant, and have aged very well. The animations are smooth.…
The Good: -Amazingly deep turn-based strategy roleplaying game. I've sunk dozens of hours into Disgaea 3, and have only scratched the surface of its post-game goodness. The new evilty system and the class world add a bit to the gameplay as well. -Continued refinement of the Disgaea combat system. Certain additions and changes have been made to the familiar turn-based combat, but nothing that will throw off old pros.…
Saint's Row 2 is without a doubt one of the single meatiest and tastiest experiences I've had on the Xbox 360 to date. It's an absolute kick in the pants from the very start. Whether you're blowing your way out of prison, customizing a bevy of vehicles, throwing down in an MMA arena, or kicking the tar out of a rival gang, there's always some fun to be had with Saint's Row 2. If there's one complaint I have with the…
Let me start this review by saying that if you're not into traditional Japanese roleplaying games, you might not want to start with Lost Odyssey. The difficulty of the early parts of the game might be a bit rough for those not acclimated to level grinds and equipment hunting. But if you're willing to stick with this game for the long haul, Lost Odyssey is surprisingly enjoyable, if a bit rough around the edges.…
While technically sound and with some great individual moments, Quest for Glroy 2 & 3 simply could not capture the magic of the first game. Quest for Glory 4 manages to match the original and even surpass it in a great many ways. QfG 4 transports the hero to a new realm inspired by Transylvania. It's an intriguing setting for the game, relying upon many eastern European legends while keeping that same Quest for…
Read the full review Quest for Glory IV: Shadows of Darkness
The first game I can remember playing is Hero's Quest (eventually renamed to Quest for Glory after a lawsuit by the creators of a board game with the same title), so my review for this game certainly comes with a certain sort of nostalgic bias. However, this is also a game I frequently revisit, and I can say assuredly it still holds the same appeal as it did when I was five or six. Quest for Glory 1 follows you as a…
Read the full review Quest for Glory I: So You Want To Be A Hero
