Justin Nation Avatar Image

Justin Nation

Windsor, PA
The Nindersect
Nindersect

Favorite Games:
  • Rocket League
  • Neon Abyss
  • Wreckfest

4398 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!
Sep 24, 2021

When games are relatively simple, both visually and in terms of play, they really need to knock it out of the park with execution or things can go downhill quickly...

Read full review

8 / 10.0 - Suzerain
Sep 23, 2021

If you’ve ever pondered what it would be like to take control of the reigns of government, or perhaps that being in charge is all upside and basking in the adoration of your country, Suzerain is here to give you an education...

Read full review

7 / 10.0 - Embr
Sep 23, 2021

As people who’ve been following the site for quite some time should be well aware, if there’s an oddball game out there to play I’m generally down for it...

Read full review

6.8 / 10.0 - The Plane Effect
Sep 23, 2021

This really feels like one of those games where people will walk away with wildly different opinions depending on their tastes...

Read full review

6.7 / 10.0 - Fisti-Fluffs
Sep 23, 2021

There's nothing wrong with taking what would traditionally be a more hardcore genre, adding cats and some silliness, and running with it... but the problem with Fisti-Fluffs is once the initial hit of catnip passes, it lacks in staying power...

Read full review

6.4 / 10.0 - Shadows of Kurgansk
Sep 23, 2021

One of the game styles that has been plagued by the most inconsistencies on the Switch has been survival horror, and the causes of the core issues have varied from game to game...

Read full review

6.2 / 10.0 - Staxel
Sep 23, 2021

Playing Staxel you can see the thought process that produced it all around...

Read full review

Sep 23, 2021

Digital conversions of traditional desktop gaming experiences have a tendency to be hit or miss...

Read full review

6.8 / 10.0 - Crisis Wing
Sep 22, 2021

Back in the days of arcades and even earlier consoles vertical shmups were in their heyday, and while not all of them were necessarily special they could be counted on to at least be consistently engaging...

Read full review

Sep 21, 2021

More peripheral "racing" titles always tend to be a pretty mixed bag when their focus is on much more streamlined action than the racing people would normally think of...

Read full review

Sep 19, 2021

With the general lack of options for sporting experiences on the Switch, it’s always great to see a new contender enter the ring...

Read full review

8 / 10.0 - Squabble
Sep 18, 2021

I’ve stated before that when it comes to local multiplayer games my family has become pretty jaded over time, too often having been burned by all-too-familiar mechanics or just bland play that gets repetitive far too quickly...

Read full review

9 / 10.0 - Tails of Iron
Sep 17, 2021

This is a title that hit me a bit out of nowhere, took my lunch money, and is now making me earn it back one challenging battle at a time… and for the most part you can count me impressed...

Read full review

8.5 / 10.0 - TOEM
Sep 17, 2021

I don’t know whether it was triggered by a pandemic that had everyone stuck in their houses and wishing for a chance to appreciate the world around us but this year has produced a string of pretty amazing exploratory adventures, with TOEM being the latest to join the club...

Read full review

8 / 10.0 - Dojoran
Sep 17, 2021

It’s always great to run into humble and inexpensive indies on the eShop, and if you’re into precision platforming that’s handled surprisingly well for being a budget title Dojoran is an unexpected treat...

Read full review

7 / 10.0 - Nexomon
Sep 17, 2021

While there have been a few stabs at taking on Game Freak and the Big N's mega-franchise they've tended to be at the higher-dollar level with other big companies trying to jumpstart their own franchises-to-be with visions of dollar signs dancing in their heads...

Read full review

6.6 / 10.0 - Love Colors
Sep 17, 2021

When it comes to the Switch, I'm not sure I've played a title on the console more thoroughly casual than Love Colors...

Read full review

9 / 10.0 - Eastward
Sep 16, 2021

When it comes to pixel art action-adventures the normal standard that is compared against would be The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past...

Read full review

8 / 10.0 - Metallic Child
Sep 16, 2021

OK, so to start I’ll admit that just on paper I was already rooting for Metallic Child a bit...

Read full review

Sep 16, 2021

Some credit to the people behind this hidden object adventure of sorts, they're at least trying to throw some variety into the mix...

Read full review