Diablo 3 Review: Hell Breaks Lose in a Linear Fashion
Diablo 3 was worth the wait, but it’s design might upset veteran players.
It has been almost 4 years since Blizzard finally lifted the sheet on Diablo 3, and like every other Blizzard release, fans of the series have been waiting eagerly to take down the Lord of Terror once again. With over a 10 year development cycle, does Diablo 3 live up to its insane amount of hype?
Diablo has been a franchise that has been a king in PC gaming ever since its original release way back in 1996. Since then, Diablo has continued to be the standard for the RPG hack and slash dungeon crawler genre, and to this day, gamers are still playing Diablo 2 which is now a 12 year old game. Diablo 3 has a lot to live up to.
The Walking Dead Game Episode 1 Review
I’m going to do something a little different in this week’s Michael’s Gaming Corner; I’m going to do a small review like I did with Journey, why?
Mainly because reviews are just somebody’s opinion, so I felt that game reviews would fit nicely in my editorials, it’s nice to change things up every now and then don’t you think? So here’s The Walking Dead game review.
Walking Dead on arrival?
Telltale Games have done plenty of point and click games based off of popular IPs, from Sam and Max to Jurassic Park, so it was no surprise when TT Games announced they were making a Walking Dead game.
The big question was how well can TT Games transfer the world of zombies to a point and click adventure without losing out on the action or pressure of being pursued by the living dead?
For those who are not familiar with point and click games, characters are usually set in in one spot until told to move by a cruiser which the player controls.
I’m happy to say the Telltale Games handle the thrill of a zombie apocalypse very well, nearly everything works.
Generals 2: Five Elements That Will Command and Conquer
Command and Conquer: Generals, released in 2003, was a departure from C&C in almost every respect. In a series that had, up to that point, focused on the unreal and absurd, Generals addressed a real world problem.
Sim City: Five Things That Will Make it Great, in Plain Simlish
Sim City, A Worthy Reboot
Welcome back, mayor. It’s been a long and bumpy road since your last true term of office (Sim City: Societies was just an awkward, disastrously interrupted holiday). Consider raising your transportation budget so we can work on those potholes, and then read this briefing to avoid creating more of them.
Do that, and the legacy of Sim City 4, which is and shall ever be the grand master of the modern city builder genre, will get a worthy successor. A worthy reboot, if you want to take into consideration the removal of any sort of numeral qualifier from the title on the incoming game.
Mass Effect 3 Review
Mass Effect 3:The End of Commander Shepard’s Trilogy
Mass Effect 3 is a torrent of emotion. There is excitement over the grand, and promised-to-be truly final, conclusion to the series. There is satisfaction and lack of concern over the fact that this game completely stole three days of my life. And when I get to the end there is frustration and sadness, but also some closure. This is the end to the saga of Commander Shepard, and all that entails. The conclusion has created a bit of a stir; Mass Effect 3 players who have avoided the controversy and just want to beat the game had best prepare themselves.
Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning Review
Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning is a welcome new franchise in the world of Western RPGs.
The world of high-fantasy RPGs seems to go by a certain set of rules. You are almost guaranteed that there will be elves and dwarves living alongside humans. Bandits, wolves, and otherworldly demons attempt to kill you at every turn. Magic is reserved for scholars and practitioners of the arcane. These rules are especially true in Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning, the latest game from 38 Studios, Big Huge Games, and EA. Drawing upon inspiration from other famous fantasy RPGs, Amalur manages to bring together the best (and some of the worst) aspects of other well-known games in order to become its own unique thing.
Kingdoms of Amalur begins with, strangely enough, your character being dead.
Gotham City Impostors Review
Gotham City Imposters Blew My Mind.
FPS’s are generally a dirty, grimy lot. Players fight in bleak, war-torn environments with the latest in hi-tech weaponry and gadgets. Such is not the case with Gotham City Impostors, the latest game from Monolith Productions. As the name implies, Gotham City Impostors is set within the world of DC’s Batman comics. However, the twist is that you aren’t playing as Batman, but rather masked vigilantes who want to fight crime much like The Dark Knight, but can’t afford the sweet gadgets and must instead use guns and improvised weaponry. On the other hand, The Joker has his own groupies who want to terrorize Gotham City like the Clown Prince of Crime. Naturally, the two groups of crazed civilians take to the streets to see who will come out on top. Is this fight a cause you need to join, or does this game need to be locked up in Arkham Asylum? Read on, Bat-friends.
The Darkness II Review
The Darkness II is a Great Ride.
It’s been 5 years since we last saw The Darkness, but it’s back and stronger than ever. With Jackie having trouble forgetting about his dark past, The Darkness looks to make him their host for eternity. Should you embrace The Darkness, or is this a title best left in the dark?
The Darkness II takes place 2 years after the original title. Jackie is now the Don of the Franchetti crime family, and looks to become the most powerful crime lords that nobody will want to double cross. The Darkness has been contained by Jackie with the help of Johnny Powell, but it wants to once again be released to destroy everything in its path. Jackie is having trouble keeping the Darkness at bay due to the reoccurring visions of his girlfriend Jenny, and the visions are becoming stronger every day.
Trine 2 Review
Physics based puzzle games can get to be tough. Physics based puzzle games that have you playing as three different characters can be even tougher. Such is the case with Trine 2, the sequel to the original Trine. This latest entry in the series follows the same characters from the first game as they are again forced to work together on a brand new adventure. But is this game a fun, fantasy adventure, or is Trine 2 trying on one’s patience? Read on to find out.
Rayman Origins Review
Generic brown shooters are boring. Sure, I play them, but I’m not exactly sure why. A majority of the third/first-person shooters that came out last year are good in their own right, but they don’t seem all that original or engaging. The stories in these games may have one or two moments that really suck you in, but for the most part it’s the same stuff we’ve gotten before. In a sense, TPS/FPS games could be considered the procedural TV cop dramas of video games in that the market is so saturated with them that its hard to notice or care when a new one is released because they all just tend to bleed together. That being said, if shooting games are the cop dramas, then Rayman Origins is the wacky Saturday morning cartoon show you watched as a kid. This game reminds me why I hate TV cop dramas.
Rayman Origins, developed and published by Ubisoft, is a 2D sidecrolling platformer starring Rayman and his friends as they battle an evil force that has been disturbed by, well, Rayman and his friends (in a hilarious, yet cool opening cinematic). For the most part, this is all the story you get which is a breath of fresh air for people who just want to enjoy the game. The game begins with you and up to 3 of your friends playing as Rayman, the big blue frog-thing Globox, and tiny blue creatures known as Teensies. Players go from world to world, completing levels and their challenges in order to obtain Electoons which are needed to continue on to new worlds, unlock secret areas, and unlock new characters. Players can jump, attack, sprint, and… well that’s about it aside from several new moves learned throughout the game. Although this isn’t such a bad thing as you have to worry less about controls and more about having fun.
Each level is pretty straightforward, with a few secret areas to find. Ubisoft deserves much praise for the level design though, as many of the levels are lain out so that a player can sprint through an entire stage jumping on enemies, swinging from vines, breaking through barriers, and jumping up walls without breaking their stride. Lums, which act as points towards a level end reward of more Electoons, are littered throughout the stages both hidden and in plain sight. Trying to collect all or as many of them as you can adds to the game’s challenge as many extra Lums will float away or are tucked in a narrow passageway surrounded by spikes. Nothing changes too much from level to level in terms of the gameplay formula, although the game does throw new things at you from time to time, such as the last stage of every world which has you riding on the back of a mosquito and shooting enemies ala Gradius.
As I said before, Rayman Origins is a cartoon. This game has got to be one of the most vibrant, detailed, gorgeous games I’ve played since Odin Sphere. Everything from the environments to the characters is beautifully drawn to the point where you feel like this shouldn’t be a video game, but rather a cartoon on Nickelodeon. The in game worlds at first seem to be your standard “Forest World, Ice World, Fire World”. However, these areas have so much personality and charm that you can’t help but fall in love. Whether you’re jumping on drums in the Desert Of Dijiridoos or dodging flying forks in Gourmand Land, you can be assured that each new world will be completely unique and a blast to play. The art style and the environments are great on their own, but the music really brings it all together. Everything from ukuleles to kazoos and even chipmunk-esque vocals (I promise you, it’s good) further suck you into Rayman’s world and fill your head with tunes that get stuck for days.
Not owning Rayman Origins will leave a cold, empty space in your game collection. Not playing Rayman Origins will leave a cold, empty space in your heart. This game reminds me about how awesome it was to be a kid, where I played video games to have a great time and challenge myself as opposed to playing for trophies/achievements. A lot of gamers will pass this game up thinking that Rayman Origins is some kiddie game, but since when did “Game for kids” mean “Game not for grown-ups”? Oh well, their loss.
Final Score: 10/10
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