Reviews

Full House Poker was developed by Microsoft Games Studios and published by Microsoft Game Studios.  It was released March 15, 2011 for 800MSP. A copy of the game was provided by the publisher for review purposes.

Last year, 1 vs. 100 pushed boundaries for what the digital space could provide on consoles by engaging thousands of players at one time in a game show like format. This year, Microsoft is back at it again with a spiritual successor of sorts in the form of Full House Poker. Players fill the shoes of their own avatars as they play the prevalent form of Poker (Texas Hold ‘Em), while attempting to expand their own virtual bankrolls. But do the cards deserve you going all in?

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Perfect Dark was ported to the Xbox 360 by 4J Studios.  It was originally developed by Rare and published by Microsoft Game Studios.  It was released March 17, 2010 for 800MSP.

When Perfect Dark was released over a decade ago on the Nintendo 64 it was the definitive shooter for its day.  It started with everything that was great from GoldenEye 007 and took it beyond the limits a movie adaptation is forced to have.  Rare offered everything from co and counter operative gameplay to multiplayer challenges with bots.  The game received rave reviews from critics at the time.

Players first learned about the Xbox Live Arcade port in April 2009 via a single leaked screenshot of a developer’s dashboard which showed the icon of Joanna Dark behind the developer’s avatar.  The leak was confirmed in June of that same year by none other than Xbox Live’s Major Nelson.  But like so many games from yesteryear consumers had doubts as to whether the game truly lived up to their memories.

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Beyond Good & Evil HD was originally developed by Ubisoft Montpellier, ported to XBLA by Ubisoft Shanghai and published by Ubisoft. It was released for XBLA on March 2nd 2011 and retails for 800MSP.

Beyond Good & Evil is considered by many to be a cult classic. It was well received by critics and gamers alike during the last generation of consoles. However it didn’t sell particularly well and as such the apparent sequel has been in limbo for a while.

The game tells the story of Jade, a photo journalist living on the planet of Hillys. Jade also runs an  orphanage for children whose parents have gone missing during attacks from the Domz, an alien race who currently have the planet under siege. A group known as IRIS soon recruit Jade to help expose a conspiracy between the Domz and the Alpha Sections who rule Hillys.

Ubisoft Shanghai were tasked with porting the game to current-gen consoles, which in this instance also meant reworking some of the games graphics. It’s this extra work that sees the game add the ‘HD’ moniker. To sweeten the deal the game has been released for the lower price point of 800 Microsoft points (with most big releases lately costing 1200). It seems Ubisoft is trying to give this game more of a chance than it got before, but does it deserve it?

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Serious Sam HD: The Second Encounter was developed by Croteam and published by Majesco Entertainment. It was released for XBLA on September 22nd, 2010 and retails for 1200MSP. A copy of the game was provided by the publisher for reviewing purposes.

Sam is back!  Continuing directly where Serious Sam HD: The First Encounter left off, Sam having defeated a head general of an alien army.  He has boarded a spacecraft, seeking to take the fight back to the alien homeworld.  Shortly after takeoff the ship crash lands in Central America.  Sam soon discovers that a second ship was left on Earth and determines to fight through the alien army to get to it.

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OutRun Online Arcade was developed by Sumo Digital in conjunction with Sega and published by Sega.  It was released April 15, 2009 for 800MSP.  It is available for a limited time, and will be removed from Xbox Live at the end of 2011.

Sega’s OutRun series has been a staple in racing games for years.  So many games spun out of the influence of the original, motion chair enabled, arcade game; Ridge Racer, Daytona USA, even several sequels to OutRun itself.  In 2003 Sega released OutRun 2 in arcades around the world.  A fully 3D reimagination of the original game, it featured the original split-stage gameplay combined with new challenges and vehicles.  The success of OutRun 2 prompted a special edition arcade game, OutRun 2 SP, which featured all new courses and music, as well as a port to the original Xbox.  These were all later combined in to the console-exclusive OutRun 2006: Coast to Coast, which featured all the cars, courses and music from both OutRun 2 and its SP counterpart.

In December 2008 Sega announced a new spinoff to the OutRun 2 sub-series, OutRun Online Arcade.  Boasting high-definition (1080p) graphics, Dolby 5.1 surround sound, and online play it was truly an OutRun for today’s consoles.  Unfortunately due to an upcoming expiration of contract with Ferrari the game will be pulled fro XBLA in December of this year.  Are shiny graphics and typical next-gen features do enough to merit the 800MSP price?  Find out in today’s Rewind Review.

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Days of Thunder Arcade was developed by Piranha Games and published by Paramount Digital Entertainment. It was released on February 25, 2011 for 800MSP.

Days of Thunder is arguably one of the greatest racing movies ever made.  The story follows rookie Cole Trickle (Tom Cruise) in his rise to victory in the then-Winston Cup championship.  Over 20 years later the franchise has been resurrected in the form of Days of Thunder Arcade.  Continuing some time since the movie ended, the premise again follows a rookie (the player character) in their quest to be champion.

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Hard Corps: Uprising, developed by Arc System Works and published by Konami, is the latest in the Contra series, available now for 1200 Microsoft Points.

Hard Corps Uprising tells a zany tale about a corrupt nation or an evil dictator or both, some other evil bits here and there but truth be told the story is not the reason to buy the game, however there are many others. This latest installment in the Contra series, though not named as such, revamps the visuals with a crisp anime-esque appeal and animations and tops it off with an exciting hard rock soundtrack, as is Arc’s trademark.

Hard Corps epitomizes an action shoot ’em up in every way, for better and for worse. Tons of enemies on screen of which there are decent variety, but not too many you have to learn something new every two seconds, though the same can’t be said for the boss fights. The game starts a bit slow and there’s no formal tutorial so certain elements of the game go unexplained, but once you get the hang of the Action Ships and play some of the more inventive levels, Hard Corps shows itself to be as enjoyable and thrilling as any other Contra title. Read More

Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix is developed by Backbone Entertainment and published by Capcom and was released November 28th, 2008. It retails for 1200 MSP.

This past Wednesday was the 20th birthday of Street Fighter II: World Warrior, the original sequel incarnation that spawned countless variations of the same game. When the Xbox 360 first launched, Street Fighter 2: Hyper Fighting was released on XBLA in 2006 which was met with favorable reception but had a pretty bad online code from the reviews. But during 2008, while the hype train for Street Fighter IV was in effect before its release, they put out one of the most gorgeous fighting games on XBLA with Super Street Fighter II HD Remix.

SSFIITHR is an updated remake of Super Street Fighter II Turbo which originally came out in 1994 on the 3DO, It added in Super Combos, Air Combos, and the dastardly Akuma. With this new remake, Backbone decided to grab UDON Entertainment to do the art and character sprites with beautiful hand-drawn sprites. It also includes new music by the OverClocked ReMix as well as rebalanced gameplay in the fighting engine. Is it as “Down Right Fierce” as you expect Hadouken lovers?

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Bejeweled Blitz Live was developed and published by PopCap. It was released on February 23,2011 for 800 MSP. A copy of the game was provided for review purposes.

Bejeweled Blitz Live is the latest Popcap title to hit the scene, though some might make the argument that it was released on PC or Facebook a long time ago. In an attempt to change up the formula a bit, PopCap has offered a handful of modes and features that take advantage of Xbox Live’s multiplayer and matchmaking. The question on everyone’s mind is whether or not these additions make it stand out from these previous versions. Read More

Trials HD was developed by RedLynx and published by Microsoft Game Studios for XBLA on August 12, 2009 as part of the second annual Summer of Arcade. Retails for 1200 Microsoft Points.

Trials HD is the quintessential example of a game that is instantly playable and fun, but tough as nails to master. What starts off easy and fun gradually becomes borderline maddening and impossible, rewarding the most patient and determined players with personal satisfaction as well as leaderboard bragging rights.

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