Chasing Dead had promise, but fails on every single basic level of game design and playability. I honestly do hope the team is able to salvage this game in the future with updates, because I think if the performance of the game was at a decent level it could be a fun game. As it stands, this is the worst title I've played in 2016, and should be avoided at all costs.
Steel Rivals was a game that could have been a decent little fighter similar to Soul Calibur, but it is an obviously very rushed and incomplete fighting game that should be avoided by even the most hardcore fighting fans.
While Barbie and Her Sisters: Puppy Rescue isn't a game targeted for me, I don't know if young kids will be able to enjoy it either. The Barbie on her bike segments are a big chunk of the game, and they are very clunky and at times confusing, which could be very off-putting to younger gamers. It's a budget retail release at $39.99, but with the stellar Wii U lineup of family friendly first party titles, it's hard to recommend this game as a purchase. If you have a kid that's an extreme Barbie fan, this may be worth a look, but other than that I'd leave Barbie and Her Sisters: Puppy Rescue in the kennel.
If the frame-rate was smooth and the game was more technically sound, I could see potential for a fun horror game. The atmosphere is nice, the audio is extremely well done, and the story seems pretty interesting as well. It's just a shame that the frame-rate is so bad that you probably won't make it til the end to see the conclusion.
Metroid Prime: Federation Force is not a good game at all. When you find yourself just wanting to complete levels to see if the game ever changes and gets better, that’s a sign that something is very wrong. The core gameplay is simplistic, boring, and not the level of quality one would expect from a Metroid game. Other M may have been the most fan-derided Metroid game until now, but Federation Force will easily take the crown from here on out.
B3 Game Expo For Bees has a lot of potential, but the shortness of the game is just unacceptable. Considering the game is $9.99 on the eShop, if you are curious, I’d wait for a price drop. The presentation, graphics, controls, and atmosphere are well done, but the fact that the game is over before it really starts makes this a hard game to recommend.
Honestly, Mario & Sonic at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games for the 3DS is not a terrible game, but it's not good either. It's just kind of….there. Nothing about the game is really satisfying, nothing about the game stands out, and poor and lazy design choices make it feel much more like a cash-grab than a full fledged experience. Hopefully the Wii U version has some more polish and features, because the 3DS version falls very flat and doesn't even earn a bronze medal.
Paranautical Activity isn’t a bad game, it is just is very flawed. Sadists and FPS fans looking for something quirky and somewhat enjoyable might get a little amusement out of the game, but it’s hard to recommend it with these glaring issues for most gamers.
Lego Star Wars: The Force Awakens could, and should, have been a very fun addition to the Wii U library, but technical issues impact what fun can be had. This obviously is a lazy port to the Wii U, and it shows from the moment you boot up the game.
Mario die-hards that only have a 3DS will find some enjoyment in playing the new mode, and the limited selection of online courses, but without the ability to share your created courses with the world, it seems like a waste of time.
This is the Police isn't a bad game, but it feels like the game could have been much more interesting with a little more variety in the actual gameplay. Managing your cops can be fun, and some interesting things happen throughout the course of the game, but a little more variety to keep things fresh throughout would have went a long way with the game. As it stands This is the Police is a decent game that, for many, will overstay its welcome.
At the end of the day though, Final Fantasy Explorers just feels shallow. It's not that it is a bad game, it's just painfully average in almost every respect. With some more graphical polish and more unique things to keep it in-line with the Final Fantasy universe, I think this game could have been a huge success. If you are a Monster Hunter or Final Fantasy diehard and want something new to play, this might fill the void for a little while, but at the end of the day, it just feels like a poor-man's attempt at Monster Hunter.
Mario Party 10 isn't a bad game, but it's not a great game that it should have been for the anniversary of the series.
It's not a great game, but it's solid. It looks nice, plays smooth, and the gameplay variety is solid. It's an average 3D Sonic game at a budget price, and that's not really a bad thing.
Super Bomberman R is decent for a launch title on a system that is a little lacking in retail titles, but it has it's issues.
Futuristic racers were all the rage back when I was growing up in the 90s. Games like Wipeout, F-Zero, and Forsaken were popular titles, with fast machines in futuristic locales. The genre has even had a bit of a return with the Fast Racing series on the Wii U and soon to be Switch as well. LifeSpeed was an interesting title because it was built with the New 3DS in mind, and is exclusive to this version of the console. Does the risk pay off with a quality title?
Usually when I review a game, I have a good idea of the style before going into it. FACTOTUM was the first release from TACS Games on the Wii U, and it was a pretty unique and solid game, so I was excited to see what they would bring to the table with Radiantflux: Fractal. After playing the game extensively, I’m still not quite sure what it is, but I think I kind of like it.
Mario Party: Star Rush isn’t the Mario Party game we all were hoping for and a return to form for the series, but I think it’s a step in the right direction after the questionable Mario Party 10 on the Wii U. The party isn’t as hype as it needs to be, but some will be able to find a good bit of enjoyment in this title.
Truth be told, I had some fun with FullBlast. The visuals are solid, the gameplay is good, and it could have been a stellar title with some more polish. The strange text issues show that this was a bit of a rushed game, along with the fact that the game actually crashed on me twice while looking at the leaderboards. If you are a fan of the classic days of shmup games, FullBlast is worth checking out, just don't expect anything revolutionary in the genre.
Year Walk is a game I thought I was going to love, but I just merely like it. It's not a bad game by any means, and I think some fans of both dark art and horror will enjoy this game much more than I did, but for me, I have to hark back to that abstract art analogy I used earlier. You either "get it" or you don't, and for me, Year Walk was just not the game for me.