It’s games like ‘Bomb Monkey’ that make me wish there wasn’t so much pressure to add a numbered score to game reviews. Admittedly, I hold none of this pressure myself because I have nothing to lose by doing things differently, but in general you’ll see a game like this come along and it’s going to score 6s, 7s, and a few 8s. Maybe even a 9 or two if it’s lucky. You can tell this just by looking at it for three seconds, or from hearing someone describe it.

It’s destined to these scores of “decent-but-not-great” not by value of its production or design, but by virtue of the fact that it’s a casual puzzle game. Like Mario Party or Just Dance, its score doesn’t stand among others in its genre, but rather among those like Zelda or Skyrim; games so grand in scope and lengthy in execution that they deserve the highest industry praises.

‘Bomb Monkey’ neither tries nor needs to be like this. It’s a puzzle game whose objective is simple and if it were anything else would be a worse game for it. Does this mean it’s fair to bound it to scores below 8 or 9? Just because it’s a different kind of game? Should I rate it a 7.5? 7? 6.5? Some might say yes, because it’s not as good as Zelda. Some would say no, because it’s not as good nor worse than Zelda- it’s merely different.

[Review] Art of Balance Touch! reminded me that 3DS games are still better than iOS games

Posted on 12 years ago by Austin(@NE_Austin) in 3DS, Features, General Nintendo, Reviews | 0 comments

I got an iPad a few weeks ago.

Since then I’ve nabbed a ton of games for it, from the terrible free ones like McDonald’s Happy Meal Builder (seriously, try it) to the top-notch like Plants vs. Zombies HD. The accessibility of games and the dangerously cheap cost of them had me all but convinced that this was the way casual gaming would be from here on out. I thought “Well, this is it. Gaming as a whole sure isn’t dead, but it may very well be slipping out of its casual hayday.”

Then, to my great luck, I got a review code for Art of Balance Touch! on the 3DS eShop. A simple game upon first glance, but given a few minutes with it and I realized something rather pleasant: Games are still better on dedicated gaming platforms than phones and tablets. They just are.

Tales of the Abyss review

Posted on 12 years ago by Patrick(@Patricklous) in 3DS, Reviews | 3 Comments

Game info:
System: Nintendo 3DS
Genre: RPG
Players: 1
Release Date: November 25, 2011 (EU)/February 14, 2012 (US)
Developer: Namco Bandai
Publisher: Namco Bandai

After the Nintendo DS became a virtual Mecca of fantastic RPGs, it’s strange that the console’s older brother has been around for almost a whole year with barely any games to scratch that role-playing itch. Aside from Atlus’ Devil Survivor: Overclocked, there haven’t been any other RPGs on the 3DS, so thankfully Namco Bandai are finally trying to fill the niche with this recently-released port of Tales of the Abyss. Originally released on the Playstation 2 back in 2006, Tales of the Abyss —part of Namco’s long-running Tales series— told an anime-styled story about “the meaning of birth” and was met with fairly positive reviews. But the PS2 is a completely different system to Nintendo’s handheld console, so does this RPG make the transition to a portable system completely intact?

Review: Mutant Mudds

Posted on 12 years ago by Austin(@NE_Austin) in 3DS, Features, Reviews | 0 comments

Game: Mutant Mudds
System: 3DS (eShop)
Cost: $8.99
Release Date: January 26, 2012
Developer: Renegade Kid

I haven’t done a game review in a long time. There are a lot of reasons for that, but mostly it boils down to the fact that I normally don’t enjoy trying to sift through everything I feel about a game, stamp a number on it, and then tell you to buy something you may or may not like. Nothing really makes my opinion better than any of your guys’, and it’s taken a while for me to fully realize that. Still, I’m giving reviews another shot anyway, and hopefully I won’t look back on this one with as much regret as I do my Call of Duty: World at War and The Conduit reviews. Those games are not as good I claimed, but I’m pretty sure this next one is.

What game do I have the pleasure of reviewing today? The astonishingly charming platformer, Mutant Mudds.

Review: Super Tanooki Skin 2D

Posted on 13 years ago by Austin(@NE_Austin) in General Nintendo, Reviews | 0 comments

Can this hastily created platformer live up to the hype, or will it fail in the wake of Super Mario 3D Land’s release?

If you’re at all like me, you’ve probably been looking forward to Super Tanooki Skin 2D for a long time. After all, since its initial announcement nearly 48 hours ago, the information we’ve gathered, screens we’ve seen, and videos that were posted online were nothing short of astonishing, and when I finally got my hands on a review copy this afternoon, I was ecstatic to say the most. We most certainly don’t get enough 2D platformers in this day and age, and with Maximillion and the Rise of the Mutant Mudds getting delayed until early 2012, we all need a little something to tide us over. With a little luck, that something would be Super Tanooki Skin 2D.

Clearly something in the heavens doesn’t want us to have a little luck.

PilotWings: Resort – Flying High, or Crash Landing? NintendoEverything Review

Posted on 13 years ago by Austin(@NE_Austin) in 3DS, Reviews | 0 comments

Game Info
System: Nintendo 3DS
Genre: Flight Thing (Simulation?)
Players: 1
Release Date: March 27th, 2011
Developer: Monster Games
Publisher: Nintendo

I admit, I’ve never used a poorly-worded catch phrase as the title to a review before. Other sites seem to do this endlessly, (“Can Zelda slash its way to victory?”, “Will Mario need steroids for his latest sports title?”) yet I’ve never found it to be quite in my taste. For some reason this week I’m feeling different, because (as you can see) there is a magnificent use of puns in the title of this review, if only to allow myself a very easy segue. “How?”, you ask? It’s simple: PilotWings: Resort is not a crash landing, but it’s also no cruise-level flyer.

When I begrudgingly lugged myself down to one of my local GameStops to finally trade in some old Wii games for PilotWings: Resort, I was a little bit… erm… “miffed”. I mean, after all the hype we had seen surrounding the launch of Nintendo’s new handheld, there really wasn’t much to be had in terms of launch titles. Sure, Nintendo had Steel Diver, PilotWings, and some game about animals (elephants, if I recall), but aside from one or two select games, nothing seemed worth even a passing glance. So, needless to say, the thought of trading in 6 games for 1 wasn’t the most appealing one I had had in the last few months. Bottom line? Bleck.

Still, after a few minutes of getting everything traded (and being surprised that I got a lot more than I had expected), I made the purchase, alongside Street Fighter 4 3D, and headed back home to play them.

NintendoEverything 3DS Hardware Review

Posted on 13 years ago by Austin(@NE_Austin) in 3DS, Reviews | 0 comments

There are a lot of words one could use to describe a system like the 3DS. “Awesome”, “Innovative”, “Sleek”, “Sexy”; these would all fit the bill very nicely. After all, it’s been seven years since Nintendo first released their genre-busting “Nintendo DS” onto the gaming scene, so it’s only fitting that their next handheld device would be, for all intents and purposes, at least as innovative if not more so than the 140 million seller that the original DS was. While many people have used many words to describe the new 3DS system, and all of them ring true, one word is better than any other at illustrating everything there is to know about this $250 fun-box.

The 3DS is absolutely and unwaveringly Nintendo.

Mario Sports Mix review

Posted on 13 years ago by Austin(@NE_Austin) in Reviews, Wii | 0 comments

Game Info:

System: Nintendo Wii
Genre: Sports/Party
Players: 1-4
Developer: Square Enix
Publisher: Nintendo

He has appeared in over two hundred video games to date, has taken on professions
from doctor to professional boxing referee, and his combined sales total from all
his games is over 210 million units. He is, of course, the one and only Mario, and it
seems as though his talents never end. From defeating over-sized apes in the original
Donkey Kong to taking the gold trophy in intense cart races, he is a master of
everything that comes his way.

A Shadow’s Tale review

Posted on 13 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in Reviews, Wii | 0 comments

Game Info:

System: Nintendo Wii
Genre: Platformer
Players: 1
Developer: Hudson Soft
Publisher: Hudson Soft

Pacing is something that can either make or break a game. Take too long to get to the interesting parts like, say, Final Fantasy XIII and most people won’t stick around to see what comes after all the corridors and tutorials. On the other hand, if the game starts out strong and then loses momentum, gamers will quickly get bored of the whole experience. A great game should be enjoyable from start to finish, and unfortunately A Shadow’s Tale (or “Lost in Shadow” for all you Americans) fails in that regard. The final result is a game with a few interesting ideas that ends up difficult to recommend thanks to some awful pacing and poor design choices.

Golden Sun: Dark Dawn review

Posted on 13 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in DS, Reviews | 0 comments

Game Info:

System: Nintendo DS
Category: RPG
Players: 1
Release date: November 29, 2010
Developer: Camelot
Publisher: Nintendo

There’s certainly no shortage of RPGs on the Nintendo DS, with Nintendo publishing Pokemon HeartGold and SoulSilver, Dragon Quest IX, and Glory of Heracles all over the last twelve months. Joining these titles on the crowded handheld is Camelot’s Golden Sun: Dark Dawn, the latest game in a series that has been off the radar since it last appeared on the Game Boy Advance. Fans have been begging Camelot for a new Golden Sun game for ages, so does Dark Dawn live up to expectations and, more importantly, does the series still hold up after a seven-year hiatus?