Justin Nation Avatar Image

Justin Nation

Windsor, PA
The Nindersect
Nindersect

Favorite Games:
  • Rocket League
  • Neon Abyss
  • Wreckfest

4399 games reviewed
70.7 average score
71 median score
43.4% of games recommended

Justin Nation's Reviews

Strangely enough this isn't my first rodeo, back in the day I wrote for the N64HQ as well as a few other outlets on freelance gigs but then when the HQ closed I decided to step it up and started The 64 Source. As the first word of a follow-up system to the N64 began to swirl I then decided to venture out into completely new territory and started OperatioN2000, where I had very little regular reputable news to share. With no other options I decided create my own content focused on profiling key developers and their current relationship with Nintendo or "dream games" where I saw opportunities for Nintendo to dust off classics or recently-made games and do something new with them on improved hardware. This was all going pretty well until my wife and I decided to have our first child and I then decided that it was time to hang it up and focus on my family. As I closed down both sites I did decide to partner with Billy Berghammer, another former N64HQ writer, who had created his own site, PlanetN2000. We agreed to move over the relevant content from the older sites to his and on top of that I had taken a grad school class in programming in ColdFusion and decided to offer to code the front-end and back-end for a new version of his site. Through these efforts the newer and more complete Planet GameCube was born! While I would occasionally contribute to that site, helping do things like working out Louie the Cat doing rumors and other odd things, I eventually decided to stop as my family obligations grew. While I had continued to follow Nintendo through both the Wii and Wii U eras my TV time was limited enough that I began playing more PC games again. It is in the PC space that I began to play a number of independent games and they started to be the games I enjoyed the most. Between their lower price, their often less traditional gameplay and approach, and their great variety I was hooked! With the launch of the Nintendo Switch I was already excited by the possibilities. The portability factor alone meant that I would have far more options and places I could play away from the TV, and games like Breath of the Wild looked impressive. With my oldest daughter poised to start her senior year in high school and my youngest finishing out junior high I started to see an opportunity to get back into amateur games journalism once again with what is now Nintendo World Report as well but I'd initially just thought about writing some editorials periodically. Then, right before the launch of the system, Nintendo had their Nindie-focused presentation and I saw my two most beloved gaming worlds colliding. The games I had been playing on my PC could now be played in a portable way and on Nintendo hardware! Being the type who tends to work against the normal current the concept behind Nindie Spotlight was born!
Mar 2, 2019

Your goal in the game, I suppose obviously, is to mow down zombies, grab power-ups and gold, and try to last as long as you can...

Read full review

Mar 1, 2019

While very similar to its predecessor in many ways, this sequel seems a bit more streamlined in terms of the structure of its main campaign, sort of blending all of the factions into one weird narrative with all sorts of alliances...

Read full review

Mar 1, 2019

Trying to specifically describe in words how Back in the Groove plays would be a challenge, mainly because while it has elements that may feel familiar in places it is all joined together with random silliness and perhaps a touch of chemically-induced inspiration...

Read full review

Mar 1, 2019

Starting out with only 2 starter deck options for both the fronts and backs of the cards you’ll be looking to win some games in order to start building experience to unlock the next set of goodies...

Read full review

6 / 10.0 - Treasure Stack
Mar 1, 2019

The biggest difference in how Treasure Stack is played is that rather than control the blocks themselves you control a small character who is moving around within the space...

Read full review

5 / 10.0 - Awesome Pea
Mar 1, 2019

The first thing you’ll notice, or at least I did, is that your rate of movement is relatively slow and jumping is decidedly floaty...

Read full review

9 / 10.0 - APE OUT
Feb 28, 2019

As someone who loves playing things that are different and a bit daring, Ape Out has easily shot out as one of the games I’ve enjoyed playing the most on Switch...

Read full review

8 / 10.0 - Space War Arena
Feb 28, 2019

While overall Space War Arena is only a middle of the road strategic challenge, it fits into the Switch lineup pretty nicely without too many competitors in the same semi-casual space...

Read full review

6.5 / 10.0 - World Tree March
Feb 28, 2019

You play the game as a young former Royal Food Advisor who has an unorthodox style and is trying to revive a struggling market under the shade of the World Tree...

Read full review

5.5 / 10.0 - Anodyne
Feb 28, 2019

Set in the hero Young’s subsconscious, the world of Anodyne can be quite unusual, unless you consider it normal to be doing things like talking to a lobster, for instance...

Read full review

6 / 10.0 - RemiLore
Feb 26, 2019

In the game you’ll play as Remi who, through a strange accident involving a talking book named Lore, is transported to the world of Ragnoah-an, which is overrun by mechanical monsters...

Read full review

6 / 10.0 - Daggerhood
Feb 22, 2019

The controls in the game are fairly simple, you’ll have the ability to wall jump, double jump, and then throw a dagger...

Read full review

8 / 10.0 - Q.U.B.E. 2
Feb 21, 2019

Obviously having drawn inspiration from the likes of Portal, blending a very clean aesthetic style with smart puzzles and a use of physics, Q...

Read full review

8 / 10.0 - X-Morph: Defense
Feb 21, 2019

I’m really impressed by everything the folks behind this game have put together...

Read full review

7.5 / 10.0 - Devil Engine
Feb 21, 2019

Overall, this is in no way a game for casual shooting fans, it is for hardcore shmup fans who are thirsting for their next serious challenge...

Read full review

Feb 21, 2019

Working to its advantage the portability factor of the game is pretty strong...

Read full review

Feb 21, 2019

You play the game as a spirit who has been summoned to aid a girl named Yamiko, who has tasked you with cutting through the Kaiho, a bunch of light-powered dudes who have captured her...

Read full review

Feb 21, 2019

What absolutely works well for the title is the aerial combat itself...

Read full review

6 / 10.0 - Rotating Brave
Feb 21, 2019

As you progress through stages one demand is that you rotate your Switch, turning it 90 degrees at a time, to change the feel of play from being vertical to horizontal...

Read full review

5.5 / 10.0 - Hell Warders
Feb 21, 2019

Only through a mix of some smart defensive planning, supplemented with your ability to move around the battlefield and fill in when necessary will you survive, and this is especially true if you try to go it solo...

Read full review