10 years ago
Devil May Cry 4 Special Edition review (Xbox One)
I’m the first person to admit that I’m a poor choice to review a Devil May Cry game. Especially one like Devil May Cry 4 Special Edition Read More
11 years ago
Monster Jam Battlegrounds review (Xbox 360)
Monster Jam Battlegrounds was developed by Team 6 and published by GameMill Entertainment on Xbox 360. It was released on June 10, 2015 for $14.99. XBLA Fans’ Michael Cheng purchased a copy out of pocket for review purposes.
Monster Jam Battlegrounds is easily a contender for the worst game covered by XBLA Fans of 2015 and is possibly the front-runner. Never have I felt as hoodwinked by a game and had as much buyer’s remorse on an Xbox product before as I have now, and I have made many extravagant purchases such as multiple Xboxs and collector’s editions for games from different regions and brand new, out-of-print Xbox 360 games like Dead or Alive 4 and Rumble Roses. I’d venture to say this is a sick and cruel joke by Microsoft to state that the XBLA platform is dead, and everyone should move forward to Xbox One and ID@Xbox. How, in 2015, can anyone justify one minute and 10 seconds of loading time and then having another 15-second period of filler with a stadium cutaway before finally being able to play a level that lasts about 15-45 seconds? As if that isn’t bad enough, there is another 30 seconds of load time after finishing and leaving the level. This is only scratching the surface of Monster Jam Battlegrounds‘s world of problems.
11 years ago
Sparkle Unleashed review (Xbox One)
Sparkle Unleashed was developed and published by 10tons on Xbox One. It was released on June 3, 2015 for $7.99. A copy was provided by 10tons for review purposes.
In a competitive market with many games vying for consumer purchase, I can’t find a single major fault to Sparkle Unleashed. Every feature is well-crafted, and there isn’t a wasted step in its motion. The graphics are aesthetically pleasing, and the music reminds me that a magical world can exist right at home. So can I cut this review short and recommend you buy it right now? Not quite.
Sparkle Unleashed is a puzzle game in which the player shoots colored balls into matching, moving colored balls to remove them from the play area. The balls on the field are constantly moving forward and will try to reach an end (that varies per level) to cause the player to lose. Some level layouts will feature multiple tracks from which moving balls may appear. As you complete levels, you’ll eventually reach scripted locations that allow you to choose to upgrade power-ups. It’s a simple but solid system that invites players to keep, well, playing.
11 years ago
Mega Coin Squad review (Xbox One)
Mega Coin Squad was developed by Big Pixel Studios and published by Adult Swim Games on Xbox One. It was released on May 20, 2015 for $14.99. A copy was provided by Big Pixel Studios for review purposes.
You know you’re playing a special game when you are actually standing up out of your seat and cursing out loud at the creature that just killed you, but you can’t wait to hit continue and try again. Mega Coin Squad made me do that — a lot.
Big Pixel Studios’ platformer distills everything you like about platformers down to the bare essentials. You run and jump, you shoot, you dash, you collect coins and you die. A lot. And it’s also a lot of fun.
11 years ago
Spy Chameleon review (Xbox One)
Spy Chameleon was developed and published by Unfinished Pixel on Xbox One. It was released on May 21, 2015 for $4.99. A copy was provided for review purposes.
If you would have asked me what kind of game I wanted to play before Spy Chameleon was on my radar, my answer would not have included a chameleon stealth game. So when Unfinished Pixel’s game was announced, it was with a raised eyebrow that I mused, “What is this nonsense?” and expected the worst when it came time to review. To my surprise, Spy Chameleon is unexpectedly fun and well designed (barring moments of chagrin while streaming on the XBLA Fans Twitch channel). I’ll venture to say the game will be underrated; many have been quick to dismiss the title without giving it an opportunity to prove its worth. The stealth genre isn’t for everyone.
Spy Chameleon has the player controlling a chameleon through many levels in the name of completing objectives. Naturally, those objectives don’t factor into the gameplay and are simply excuses to play. Every 15 levels a specific objective ends. Each series introduces more environmental hazards that threaten the safety of the protagonist. Fear not, though, the chameleon has an ability to change into four different colors to blend into the environment and avoid detection. Armed with this talent, the player sets forth to survive another day in the world of corporate espionage. (Note that all of my following comments are tailored to gameplay on hard difficulty; normal difficulty has slower-moving light beams, which makes it feel like a different experience.)
11 years ago
The Swapper review (Xbox One)
The Swapper was developed by Facepalm Games and published by Curve Digital on Xbox One. It will release on June 5, 2015 for $14.99. A copy was provided by Curve Digital for review purposes.
What do you do when one person isn’t enough for the job? Create clones, of course! The Swapper is a story-driven puzzle-platformer experience featuring a protagonist’s desperate attempt to survive a derelict space station. Things aren’t what they appear to be, and the player is drawn farther into the rabbit hole while collecting strange orbs to power up portions of the station. What is going on? What happened here? Where is everyone? And who is that talking? Players will be engrossed by an indirect narrative while attempting to solve the mysteries of space station Theseus. This is definitely an out-of-body experience.
11 years ago
Game of Thrones Episode 4: Sons of Winter review (Xbox One)
Game of Thrones Episode 4: Sons of Winter was developed and published on Xbox One and Xbox 360 by Telltale Games. It was released May 26, 2015 for $4.99. A copy was provided by Telltale for review purposes.
After the disappointment of Episode 3, I’m incredibly relieved to say that the latest episode of Telltale Games’ Game of Thrones series is something of a return to form, and is arguably the best episode in the series so far. There is more action in this episode than the previous three combined, and most of the featured character storylines progress in more interesting ways as they break free of the TV series’ major characters and plotlines.
11 years ago
Toro review (Xbox One)
Toro was developed and published by Recotechnology on Xbox One. It was released on May 15, 2015 for $19.99. A copy was provided by Recotechnology for review purposes.
Being a video games reviewer has never been more challenging: a single wrong word written in haste may be instantly shared thousands of time across the vast and uncontrolled expanse of the world wide web, often leaving reputations and lives shattered once the dust settles. I might be dramatizing things a little here, but with reviewers being lambasted left, right and centre for their opinions on games like GTA V, The Witcher 3 and so on, I wanted to approach Toro‘s rather sensitive subject matter (bullfighting for those not in the know) with a suitable amount of caution. I needn’t have bothered; Toro is so relentlessly bad that it would be impossible to review it in a positive light even if I was a huge bullfighting fan (which I am most certainly not.)
Although Toro is undoubtedly a game about taunting, jabbing and ultimately killing identical bulls in a multitude of nearly identical locations, I would be overselling it quite considerably if I were to state that Toro simulates or even vaguely represents what happens in an actual bullfight with any level of panache. Each “fight” is split into three timed sections in which the player is expected to hold down the left trigger and press the right bumper (to call the bull) repeatedly, then time one of up to four moves — without being dashed to the floor like some sort of bloodless human-shaped lump who seems to have long since experienced rigor mortis — until the timer runs out. At the end of the first stage, players are expected to press a few buttons in sequence in order to stick flags in the bull, and at the end of the third stage, do the same thing, followed by stabbing the bull just behind its head using a crosshair that the game seems to auto aim at exactly the right spot every time.
11 years ago
Badland: Game of the Year Edition review (Xbox One)
Badland was developed and published by Frogmind on Xbox One. It was released on May 29, 2015 for $9.99. A copy was provided by Frogmind for review purposes.
Badland is one of the most popular mobile phone games ever, so I guess it’s no surprise to see it finally making the long-awaited transition to home consoles. Developer Frogmind have certainly talked a good game and are promising that this Game of the Year Edition features a huge raft of new and upgraded content, including over 100 levels, plus a load of multiplayer features.
For those (like me) who are pretty new to Badland, the game is a side-scrolling, physics-derived puzzle-platformer that features a chasing camera (think the original Mario Bros.) to ensures a frenetic pace. The sumptuous, hand-drawn graphics mask challenging and varied gameplay that is dished out in bite-sized levels. There is an element of trial and error in most games like this, but Badland does well to ease the pain with its generous checkpoint system.
11 years ago
Nero review (Xbox One)
Nero was developed and published by Storm in a Teacup on Xbox One. It was released May 15, 2015 for $19.99. A copy was provided for review purposes.
If you asked me what I thought of Nero the moment after I finished it, I wouldn’t have been able to say anything. I had just completed a walk through a gorgeous storybook world, and it reduced me to an emotionally exhausted husk. Even as I write this review, I’m not sure if I’ve fully processed my experience with the game. Either this is one powerful game, or my heart is just really weak.
Nero straddles the line between a first person puzzler and a pure storytelling game. You spend half of the game walking around absorbing the game’s text-delivered tale, while the other is spent working on head-scratching brainteasers. It doesn’t take long to realize which half is stronger, as the puzzle gameplay often feels superfluous compared to the sections that are just walking and reading. The story a page-turner, but the game itself may be a harder sell.