Anthony Shelton
- Super Mario Bros. 3
- Super Mario World
- Super Mario 64
Anthony Shelton's Reviews
Forget Shoot 'em ups. We need more Blow 'em ups
Not as clever as the Devil
Assassin's Creed Chronicles: India is a stealth game with Assassin's Creed adornment. Its story barely invites you to understand more about Arbaaz Mir and Climax Studios completely fails at telling one, but if you are desperate for a stealth game, you will be challenged and fairly compensated for your time and money.
Defunct combines speed and exploration in a package that's simplistic but engaging. The gravity functions lack a variety of uses but they're necessary in nearly every situation, and there's so many ways to engage with the game the way you want. It doesn't have all of its screws tightened, but what's there is packed with replay value.
Firewatch kept me engaged from beginning to end. The dialogue and the voice acting were believable and relatable, and I felt like the choices I made were ones I might make in real life. I wish Campo Santo added greater ramifications to some choices but it didn't diminish the emotional effect they had on me. The ending will be a point of contention for some, but it all comes down to a perspective and regardless of that, you should play this game.
There's no making up for a lackluster story that clearly pads the game length, unimaginative missions, or a weak combo structure, but Arslan: The Warriors of Legend could have been a much better experience had it not been marred with inexcusable framerate problems and sullied with glitches.
Depicting the horrors of an asylum with animated pictures was a tender touch to sensitive imagery. Even the 3D animations conveyed moments with care. But the story is confusing and painfully disappointing and the translation errors make matters worse. So I can commend LKA's efforts, but I can't recommend The Town of Light.
Despite the shoddy graphics and performance, and a story that could use polish in its execution, Homefront: The Revolution has a solid foundation. It's challenging and the mission variety in a pseudo open-world game is the best I've played in a while. It kept me engaged for its 22 hours. At the end, I felt satisfied. I hope to see another one with a bigger budget behind it.
Mighty No. 9 went through a tough development and was rightfully scrutinized but it's a challenging game with great controls. The graphics could be better and the framerate doesn't stay at 60 but those problems don't ultimately hurt the game. What hurts Mighty No. 9 is that it's not Mega Man. So if you want Mega Man, you're better off playing Mega Man. If you want a game in the spirit of Mega Man, Mighty No. 9 will satisfy you.
Deputy Dangle as a whole is like a good joke told too many times. It’s another wobbly physics game that doesn’t add anything significant to the sub-genre and the creative missions it has get played out because they’re too long. Combine awful PC controls, unstable framerate, uninteresting fourth grade humor, and game-breaking bugs and it becomes another indie game that should’ve only been an internal experiment.
Story can’t be the thing that carries a video game and story is all Eisenhorn: XENOS has. A character as powerful as Gregor Eisenhor, with a great voice actor in Mark Strong, and an epic story deserves more than a glorified version of a mobile game. But brainless combat and mechanics, crummy audio, and unacceptable bugs keep this game to no more than a book promotion.
Lethe’s story starts off as one thing and transitions into something different. It can be difficult to follow when you’re trying to figure out who’s voice you’re reading. But the atmosphere completely makes up for it in many ways, so if you choose to ignore the story, you might find the scary elements enjoyable. It’s not a revolutionary horror game and it might not scare diehard horror fans but there’s some fun to take away from this game.
Shing! misses the mark of great beat 'em up by a long shot; which could have been avoided with more attention to detail. If Mass Creation put in the effort, it could have been one of the best beat 'em ups this generation. But we're stuck with something too dull to take a bigger slice of that audience.
It's tough because you should play the games, but this collection is only a must-have if you've never played them or have no means of playing the copies you own. Otherwise, the included soundtracks are not enough to make this 35th anniversary package feel special enough to warrant a buy.
Kirby Fighters 2 achieves nearly all of its glory in Story Mode, but there's still some fun in short bursts if you have friends to play with or enjoy the time trials. Skip online unless you're playing with friends. But even that risks your sanity.
Tetris Effect: Connected upgrades its musical rhythms and visualizations with fun multiplayer PvP, but the new Connected mode steals the multiplayer show with an exciting, energetic way to play Tetris that's a welcome alternative to its competitive modes.
Mr. X Nightmare is a quality addition to an already quality game. You can feel the care taken to bring in the new characters without wrecking the balance of the game, the fantastic soundtrack, and a great new mode that's positively addicting and well-made.
Much of the best parts of Dodgeball Academia are centered around playing dodgeball, but the story bursts with fun and positive themes, even though it does meander a little bit, and throws in a few themes that aren’t fleshed out enough.
Hindsight 20/20: Wrath of Raakshasa tries to convince you that your choices matter and that you should feel bad about some choices and good about others, but they don't matter because you don't connect with the characters or the world they inhabit. Your choices change outcomes, but many of them feel unnatural or contrived, and most are signposted making it feel like the game is trying to tell you that choices matter rather than letting you experience the impact. Tack on an awful presentation and bland combat and you have the recipe for a game that ultimately doesn't matter.
Steel Assault brings back the arcade feel with tremendous accuracy and care. Its brevity nicely contrasts with how difficult it can be, and the bosses are fun and distinct. The grappling hook is a great addition with unique uses, though it's a little unreliable at times. If Steel Assault were to cost 50¢ per play, I probably lost $20, and I don't regret it.