Evan Norris's Reviews
Like its 2010 predecessor, Super Meat Boy, it will chew you up and spit you out. Unlike Super Meat Boy, it embraces auto-run gameplay and randomly-assembled levels, two changes that open up new opportunities but also create new problems.
Phogs! isn't a great game — or even a good game — but it's impossible not to like.
Cake Bash is a visually-enchanting game with a great premise and charming characters but it's regrettably short on content and variety.
There are some opportunities for local multiplayer score-chasing, thanks to multiple modes, characters, and online leaderboards, but the core action is insufficient to keep players hooked.
Sakuna is eye-opening, not only because it shines a light on the nourishing, temperamental, and soulful qualities of rice but also because it demonstrates how a small team of two people can produce greatness by combining two seemingly incompatible genres.
A decent replacement for a 3D Zelda game, thanks to some interesting if unpolished ideas.
At times the game can feel too scripted, and its approach to "game overs" is dubious, but in general it delivers the scary scenes and disturbing atmosphere Frictional fans have come to expect.
Ten years later, Risky's Revenge remains a solid, gorgeous action-platformer.
There are some obvious omissions, including special features typical of anthologies like this and, most glaringly, Super Mario Galaxy 2, but the greatness of the included games shines through.
With Herzog Zwei, the SEGA AGES line comes to an end. It's a worthy and appropriate send-off, since it represents what the series is all about: recognizing, preserving, and enhancing older, often overlooked SEGA titles.
While the story goes nowhere and the final boss battle is a letdown, rewarding exploration, creative puzzles, handsome art, and appealing music make it a worthy purchase — particularly for enthusiasts who can't get enough of the indie Metroidvania scene.
A beautiful experience, filled with varied and engaging content, wrapped in gorgeous art and music, and populated with memorable characters and moments that will stay with you for a lifetime.
With smoother action, a deeper story mode, and a little TLC, the game could evolve into a decent substitute for Smash Bros. Right now, though, it's simply not ready for center stage.
Boasts an expansive character creation tool and some thoughtful turn-based rules and systems, but those positive features are negated by outdated visuals, plodding gameplay, and a series of repetitive, tiresome, drawn-out missions.
While the title boasts an addictive "just one more" quality, it lacks the content, variety, and polish needed to elevate it among like-minded games.
While it doesn't match up with the best of the sub-genre, due to performance issues and generic designs, it provides enough exploration opportunities, deadly combat scenarios, and mysteries to satisfy hardcore fans.
Skully has some good ideas and a surprisingly moving story, yet a lot of the good stuff is undermined by inconsistent gameplay and technical issues.
One of the best games of the year and one of the better indie games of the generation.
While the series is starting to grow long in the tooth — running low on laughs and short on captivating historical personalities — it can fall back on solid mechanics, a substantial campaign, and, now, the freedom to design and share homemade maps.
Paying extra seems to be part of the package with Tennis 1920s. While the game offers accessible controls, some good-looking backgrounds, and sporadic fun, it throws up too many restrictions and paywalls to guarantee a consistently enjoyable experience.