[Review] Mario & Sonic at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games (3DS)
Posted on 8 years ago by Philip(@P_Trah) in 3DS, Reviews | 2 Comments
System: 3DS
Release date: March 18, 2016
Developer: SEGA
Publisher Nintendo
The Mario & Sonic series first began in 2008 to commemorate the Summer Olympics in Beijing. Since then, Mario, Sonic, and friends have continued duking it out at each edition of the Olympics, now leading up to this summer’s festivities in Rio de Janeiro. But how does Mario and Sonic’s newest foray into traditional sporting events on the 3DS stack up against their previous ventures?
[Review] Mutant Mudds Super Challenge
Posted on 8 years ago by Jakob Vujovic(@jakovujo) in 3DS eShop, Reviews, Wii U eShop | 2 Comments
System: Wii U / 3DS (eShop)
Release date: March 17, 2016
Developer: Renegade Kid
Publisher Renegade Kid
Immediately upon playing the first level of Mutant Mudds Super Challenge, I was reminded about how much I loved Renegade Kid’s original 2D platformer. When it released in 2012, it was one of the first great 3DS eShop titles. Super Challenge feels largely like a continuation of the first game’s later levels. It’s telling that it hasn’t been named Mutant Mudds 2 since there isn’t too much new here, but that isn’t necessarily a bad thing.
More: highlight, indie, Mutant Mudds Super Challenge, top
[Review] Pokken Tournament
Posted on 8 years ago by Dennis Gagliardotto(@LyonHart_) in Reviews, Wii U, Wii U eShop | 5 Comments
System: Wii U
Release date: March 18, 2016
Developer: Bandai Namco
Publisher Nintendo
Way back in 2013, fans were treated to a very short three second clip of Lucario and Blaziken standing across from each other in a gorgeous HD graphical style we had not seen with Pokemon before. It was a whole year before we heard anything regarding it, and then out of the blue, it was announced: Pokken Tournament, a fighting game developed by Bandai Namco with supervision from Tekken and Soul Calibur heavyweights Katushiro Harada and Masaaki Hoshino. It was confirmed to come out for arcades in Japan, but ultimately fans all over the world wanted it in their homes where they felt it’d be best – the Wii U. It wasn’t until sometime into 2015 where we finally received confirmation that it would indeed be making its way to Nintendo’s home platform and getting a worldwide release in 2016. Now, here we are. Pokken Tournament is in the hands of fighting game an Pokemon enthusiasts around the globe, but has it been worth the wait?
More: Bandai Namco, highlight, Pokken Tournament, top
[Review] Inside My Radio
Posted on 8 years ago by Jakob Vujovic(@jakovujo) in Reviews, Wii U eShop | 2 Comments
System: Wii U (eShop)
Release date: February 25, 2016
Developer: Seaven Studio
Publisher Seaven Studio
Inside My Radio is equal parts a 2D platformer and a rhythm game, and both aspects are very well executed. Unlike what is often the case with similar titles, this eShop release doesn’t auto-scroll, but instead gives you free movement while syncing your actions to the beat. If you don’t execute your typical movements of jumping, dashing and stomping on the beat, then it doesn’t happen at all.
More: highlight, indie, Inside My Radio, Seaven Studio, top
[Review] The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD
Posted on 8 years ago by Vincent Ward in Reviews, Wii U | 31 Comments
System: Wii U
Release date: March 4, 2016
Developer: Nintendo / Tantalus Media
Publisher Nintendo
Dark clouds rolled over Hyrule Field, and as I trekked down the path into my sights came a large beast with a young child tied upon his staff. Hordes of Moblins riding on boars came crashing down toward me as their leader led them my way. I quickly began shooting arrows and slashing the enemies down as they came near and tried my best to keep myself alive, and as I about to deliver what appeared to be the final blow, the beast moves us onto a bridge where our sight met at opposite ends. We charged at each other endlessly and clashed our blades together every moment we could, until after a long battle, I came out on top.
It’s moments like these that has kept The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess in the hearts of gamers for so many years. Iconic characters like Midna and Zant offered unique faces of the like fans have never seen before this iteration in the series, so it only seemed fair that after Wind Waker, it was Twilight Princesses’ time to receive an HD makeover. With added visual flair, quick fixes to old problems, and the removal of motion controls, is The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess an adventure worth taking once more?
[Review] Mega Man Legacy Collection
Posted on 8 years ago by Dennis Gagliardotto(@LyonHart_) in 3DS, Reviews | 12 Comments
System: 3DS
Release date: February 23, 2016
Developer: Digital Eclipse
Publisher Capcom
It’s been over half a decade since Mega Man received a new release, but the iconic character still lives on by making the rounds with appearances in places such as Super Smash Bros. Finally though, a new product is here. Mega Man Legacy Collection brings together the first six titles of The Blue Bomber’s adventure into one spot, with added challenges, a museum to look at concept art from each game, and a music player to listen to some of the series’ most memorable tracks. This package serves as a way to honor Mega Man’s legacy and impact since his arrival into video games, and is one hardcore fans of the series will certainly enjoy.
[Review] LEGO Marvel’s Avengers
Posted on 8 years ago by Philip(@P_Trah) in Reviews, Wii U | 7 Comments
System: Wii U (reviewed), 3DS
Release date: January 26, 2016
Developer: TT Games
Publisher Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment
The LEGO video games have always been relatively simple yet fun romps through iconic universes like Batman, Harry Potter, and pretty much everything in between. Yet, while LEGO Marvel Avengers captures that same LEGO charm that the series is known for, it suffers from a number of bumps and hiccups that manage to hold it a little further back from its older siblings.
[Review] Return to PopoloCrois: A Story of Seasons Fairytale
Posted on 8 years ago by Patrick(@Patricklous) in 3DS, 3DS eShop, Features, Reviews | 5 Comments
System: 3DS
Release date: March 1, 2016
Developer: Epics
Publisher XSEED Games
If there was an award for the most unlikely RPG revival of 2016, it’d have to go to Return to PopoloCrois. This series started out as a comic but became a cult classic game series in Japan thanks to a string of games on the original PlayStation. Now it returns for modern audiences, but Return to PopoloCrois is very much a return to the early days of 32-bit RPGs. It also brings in elements from the franchise formerly known as Harvest Moon, mixing the farming with a more traditional RPG experience. The two titles have a similarly peaceful pastoral setting (and apparently a large female fanbase in Japan) so it initially seems like a good mix, but unfortunately the gameplay side of things is a bit lacking.
[Review] Fire Emblem Fates
Posted on 8 years ago by Vincent Ward in 3DS, Reviews | 15 Comments
System: 3DS
Release date: February 19, 2016
Developer: Intelligent Systems
Publisher Nintendo
Fire Emblem Fates has been on just about every strategy RPG fan’s radar within the last year or so, with enthusiasts of the genre patiently anticipating the next title in the series to re-immerse themselves in a world with such beauty and intrigue equally spread between its gameplay and characters. Now with the long wait coming to an end and with essentially three new and different experiences being released at once, it’s finally time to see if the wait was worth it. Does Fire Emblem Fates build upon on its predecessors in all the right ways, or was it fated for failure?
More: Fire Emblem Fates, highlight, top
[Review] Project X Zone 2
Posted on 8 years ago by Dennis Gagliardotto(@LyonHart_) in 3DS, 3DS eShop, Reviews | 7 Comments
System: 3DS
Release date: February 16, 2016
Developer: Monolith Soft
Publisher Bandai Namco
The original Project X Zone that released back in 2013 was a pleasant surprise to fans of Capcom, SEGA, and Bandai Namco alike. It brought characters from each respective publisher into a strategy RPG format where they band together and go across space and time to defeat villains across multiple series, as well as original characters, to save the world from collapsing into itself through the constant overlapping dimensions colliding. Project X Zone 2 doesn’t veer to far from the original, featuring a lot of the same characters, maps, stories, and more. It almost makes this feel like more of an expansion than a true sequel, but that’s not such a bad thing. The fan service of bringing all these iconic characters into one game is what keeps an experience like this special, and the humor on top is a bonus throughout.
