Alex Santa Maria
- Halo: Combat Evolved
- Far Cry 3: Blood Dragon
- Burnout 3: Takedown
Alex Santa Maria's Reviews
Paranautical Activity provides an engaging and ever-changing shooter experience that borrows ideas from the past and freshens them up with sea-themed upgrades.
There is fun to be had with ScreamRide's creation tools, but it's buried under a long slog of uninteresting gameplay modes and the faintest hints of a narrative.
Fans of mechs and match three will find a lot to like in Ironcast, but even they will eventually tire of the repeating missions and random nature of the game.
Westerado: Double Barreled is great fun in quick bursts, but runs out of steam in a hurry and never recovers from its overstretched ambitions.
An action RPG that stands among the titans of the genre, Marvel Heroes is a glorious romp for any member of the Mighty Marvel Marching Brigade.
A memorable trip into game design and development hell, The Magic Circle's only sin is that there isn't more of it to play around in. What is here is storytelling and gameplay intermingled with expert care, bringing the player on an intellectual thrill ride that should be seen by all.
Shutshimi fails somewhat to swim against the current of other procedural games, but its unique charms are hard to argue with and its gameplay is solid and enjoyable.
Mad Max is a flawed experience, but its late game character moments and beautiful wasteland save it from being purely mediocre.
An unforgettable journey that will shape storytelling in games, Undertale effortlessly resonates with players and fills its world with depth and joy.
A brief but engaging character action game, Transformers: Devastation succeeds mostly as a nostalgic treat for Generation 1 fans and anyone who can appreciate a little giant robot action.
Broforce brings the fast paced action, but its amazing concept can't hide the limits to its gameplay or the rough nature of its final release.
A largely iterative game, Fallout 4 suffers from a limited dialogue system and procedurally generated content, but still excels at creating a world that is fun and rewarding to explore.
Star Wars Battlefront is a graphical tour de force that fails whenever it becomes an interactive experience. There are hints of better games here, but nothing that saves it from mediocrity.
Rainbow Six Siege makes a strong case that every AAA shooter doesn't need a campaign to succeed. The gameplay is rich and there is plenty of depth to uncover for those players who are willing to stick it out despite lackluster progression and server issues.
A return to the licensed games of old, Gemini: Heroes Reborn provides players with a condensed combination of Bioshock and Portal that does more than just rehash, at least where gameplay is concerned.
Bombshell sports impressive shooting and a stylish presentation, but the game's takes on exploration and narrative ultimately drag down the experience.
While the style does draw you in, Fortified has a hard time keeping players invested, and its barebones multiplayer options really hamper what could have been a great online co-op choice for fans of tower defense and shooters.
Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare 2 is a chaotic good time that takes everything that was great about the first game, gives it a fresh coat of paint, and adds in more nonsense on top.
Fire Emblem's gameplay is second to none, but Conquest sports a lackluster narrative and questionable dialogue that brings the whole experience down.
Pokken Tournament shines when it comes to playing with friends, but the game's grind filled single player and dumb AI make for a pretty unimpressive package overall.