Chandler Wood's Reviews
The Good Knight is a satisfying conclusion to a story a year and a half in the making. Some of the puzzle mechanics may not be quite as intuitive or engaging as previous episodes, but the finale puts some heavy subjects on the table to analyze, most notably mortality and the culmination of our own life’s work and moments, and what we’ll leave behind at the end. It gives a wistful look back at the adventures and critical junctures that made Graham the man he was over the course of the king’s life — a king’s quest, if you will.
At last call, SportsBarVR does some incredible things for virtual reality, proving the kind of presence and depth that a social VR game can provide.
SuperHyperCube relies on simplicity in execution to become an accessible VR experience. It may not have a lot of deep content, but in the early days of consumer grade VR it’s a welcome addition to the lineup, showing exactly what the platform is capable of without taxing players too much. It’s not quite a must have game, but it perfectly encompasses the VR experience in a concise and accessible package. As much as I want to play it again and again, I also find no real desire to play it at all, a bizarre schism that perfectly echoes the disparity of the simple complexity present in SuperHyperCube.
Harmonix Music VR feels like it should have been a part of the PlayStation VR demo disc, or at least part of a compilation of VR experiences. By itself it lacks any real compelling reason to buy it. When I listen to music, it’s usually while doing something else. The idea of listening to Finch’s Say Hello to Sunshine through Harmonix Music VR doesn’t strike me as the best way to experience my favorite album. Getting past the reloads after each song, the lack of streaming support, and relatively limited overall scope, Harmonix Music VR is a mildly interesting virtual reality music player, but it’s not going to become a staple in either my gaming or music listening life.
Rez Infinite is the latest in the continued evolution of Rez. One can hardly call it a sequel, because a large core is made up of Rez and Rez HD content, but Area X proves that the game can evolve without the original content becoming stale or irrelevant. With or without PlayStation VR, Rez Infinite is an incredible revival of a classic best, but given the choice, I’d much prefer to immerse myself with the headset on my head, finding the ultimate incarnation of Rez’s synesthesia in virtual reality.
This is a solid base of a game that I hope sees updates and support in the future to help cultivate a rich and diverse online community of players. Until then, I’ll enjoy throwing my mechs through hoops as a giant robotic basketball in the single-player league.
If I wanted to, I could nitpick the little things about Rise of the Tomb Raider. There’s the way Lara’s hair on the front of her head seems to defy gravity, either by way of the strongest hairspray ever or invisible bobby pins. There’s the lackluster and nonexistent water effects in a game filled with water. And can somebody tell me how it is that the glowstick she hangs on her back hip can somehow bathe her face in an orange glow despite being behind her? I could nitpick, but I won’t. Those small things do nothing to diminish the quantity and quality present in Rise of the Tomb Raider: 20 Year Celebration, and while the story doesn’t exactly pop, as a PS4 player, I’m happy to welcome Lara home.
If rumors are true that we’ll see the conclusion of King’s Quest before the end of the year, I’m concerned that it will be rushed out too quickly for its own good. Or maybe it’s just the odd numbered chapters that are the knockouts, offering great story and puzzles. Time will tell how the story concludes, but Snow Place Like Home is the weak link in the King’s Quest chain, with weak environments, terrible puzzles, and a lack of any real immersion in the narrative choices as Chapter Four gives players the cold shoulder.
Great strategy games are few and far between, and XCOM 2 is an absolute treat for anyone craving a challenge on every level. Marred only be a few technical presentation hiccups and slow loading times, XCOM 2 is a deep mental and emotional experience that tests each player's resolve to triumph against overwhelming odds and failure. While losing a top soldier can be a most devastating defeat, coming back from that loss and completing a mission with a group of rookies to honor that soldier's sacrifice can be an incredible accomplishment. You may still lose the war, but each campaign's small victories drive that feeling that success is possible, no matter the insurmountable odds placed before you.
With the long term in mind, Rise of Iron is a great addition to Destiny. They’ve embedded secrets, past references, and nostalgia in ways that few other games can, because few other games retain this strong of a community for years following their initial release.
Touhou: Scarlet Curiosity is an entertaining blend of genres that breathes a palpable life into bullet hell games, taking them from a niche variety to one more accessible for casual players. The narrative and characters fall into decidedly JRPG stereotypes, but the plot does evolve into a more coherent and intriguing mystery than it first lets on.
This review will contain spoilers for all previous episodes and the current episode of Batman The Telltale Series. For our review of Batman The Telltale Series Ep. 1: Realm of Shadows, click here.At the end there’s the promise of a new larger villain at play, who seems suspiciously like Telltale’s version Scarecrow with a slightly modified Batman Begins story, using a neurotoxin to “free” the city of Gotham. I’m just waiting for the inevitable Joker reveal, because let’s be honest, everyone who takes on the Batman mythos wants the chance to do their particular version of the Joker. At this point, while trying to honor Batman and give unexpected beats, Telltale has managed to make Batman actually feel dull. There’s a lot of potential in what they are doing, but Children of Arkham is more poorly rehearsed high school play than engrossing Batman fiction.
Rise of Iron seems to hold an indelible bit of content on initial playthrough, and I’m excited to see how it holds up under pressure of full release and repeated scrutiny.
There’s a lot going for Jotun, it’s Norse artistic nature permeating the very being of the game, but there are certain aspects of it that certainly focus more directly on the art side of things rather than the gameplay experience. That’s not always a bad thing, but in the case of Jotun, it can make the overall experience feel disjointed; going from a simplistic and art inspired level to a challenging boss battle is a paradigm shift that is difficult to properly balance. At the end of the day Jotun is a great game for everything it does right, including its art and overall styling, but misses a lot of the key aspects that could make it a perfect journey to the halls of Valhalla.
The disparity between the repetitive majority and the engaging finale did cause me to like The Final Station after it was said and done, but it’s not enough to overlook the significant flaws along the journey. Ambiguity is supposed to provide a level of intrigue, making players want to look further and explore dark corners, being rewarded for the risks they take to discover more. Instead, The Final Station hands out breadcrumbs without promise of a full loaf until the very end. Repetition and simplicity hold back what could otherwise be a fascinating survival horror indie,and a personal tale of interest about the train conductor. It’s worth taking a ride on this train once if not to see the promise the narrative holds, but don’t expect to want to hop on board with the mechanics again when you reach the final station.
Attack on Titan is an excellent example of a passion project made right. It's not a simple cash grab, but created with care for fans of the franchise and newcomers alike. It captures the precise feelings I get watching the anime without sacrificing anything for the interactive or visual experience, from the terror of the Titans to the rush of zipping through the air inches away from certain death. While it could have had a more robust RPG system and and a much cleaner HUD, these aren't big enough issues to detract from the titan amount of fun that Attack on Titan is, each and every nape I cut.
Batman: The Telltale Series is off to a strong, if very basic, start. It shows promise of the ability to be more than just another Batman story, though Realm of Shadows did dabble in the ultra accessible exposition more than I (or just about any other Batman fan) would have liked. The intrigue lying in the episode’s cliffhanger regarding a dark Wayne family secret has me itching to find out more, but I don’t feel like the series has really taken off yet. It’s unusual for a season opener by Telltale to land in the mediocre category, but it seems like they are taking their time with such an iconic legend, letting us in to know the heart and hope of Bruce Wayne rather than just the fists and terror of the Batman.
It’s not that I think Headlander is a bad game — quite the opposite. It’s just that I want Headlander to realize its potential — to be so much more than what it is.
Descent’s maps seem like Treyarch is tapering off.
10 Second Ninja X is one of gaming’s simple joys for those who relish repeated challenges in order to shave fractions of a second off of leaderboard high scores. The downside is that it fails to cater to the players who don’t immediately appreciate that level of challenge, shutting the door to them pretty quickly. Break past that barrier though? While it may not seem possible to do a run half a second faster for a three star score, persistence pays off as the slightest of shortcuts comes to heel, turning feelings of rage at the surmounting impossibility into a celebration that calls for a six pack and a cigar, before moving on to the next impassible trial.