Justin Nation Avatar Image

Justin Nation

Windsor, PA
The Nindersect
Nindersect

Favorite Games:
  • Rocket League
  • Neon Abyss
  • Wreckfest

4352 games reviewed
70.7 average score
70 median score
43.2% 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!
May 31, 2019

While Selma and the Wisp can at times be aggravating it at least has a slightly different flavor than most titles on the Switch...

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5 / 10.0 - Golem Gates
May 31, 2019

Though Golem Gates has ambition it simply has some issues and its performance overall isn't helping anything...

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8 / 10.0 - Gato Roboto
May 30, 2019

While there’s certainly an abundance of Metroidvania titles on the Switch, to date Nintendo’s premiere ass-kicking heroine Samus Aran has yet to appear on the system...

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May 30, 2019

Though it’s not an experience everyone will enjoy Super Cane Magic Zero does more right than wrong and is simply a game that does its own thing without apologies, something I can respect...

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6.5 / 10.0 - Vectronom
May 29, 2019

One of the things that indie titles tends to excel at is finding ways to punch up gameplay that can be familiar at its base with some elements that are unexpected...

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6 / 10.0 - Terratech
May 29, 2019

Sandbox simulators are always tough to review...

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May 28, 2019

Whether played solo or with a friend Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons makes for a thoughtful and generally satisfying puzzle adventure...

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8.5 / 10.0 - Crystal Crisis
May 28, 2019

All in all Crystal Crisis is a game laser-focused on a specific style of play that absolutely delivers a great value with various modes, characters, and quite a bit of personality as well...

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Being an enormous fan of classic pinball tables from the Williams era I'm always excited to see what they have in store with each new volume...

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May 28, 2019

While Nintendo has released some interesting games at different points in their history that have generally met with success there’s been a degree of disappointment for some fans who’ve held out hope to see them return but remain unannounced...

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May 24, 2019

All in all for a budget-friendly price Super Tennis Blast delivers a very solid traditional tennis experience with a bit of extra flavor thrown in to boot...

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7.1 / 10.0 - Skelly Selest
May 24, 2019

This may be one of the more aggravating games I've reviewed for the site, where a small number of critical issues have chipped away at an otherwise impressive game...

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4.5 / 10.0 - Back In 1995
May 24, 2019

It feels like this game is looking to emulate the general look of the time and took every shortcut that offered (tank controls, low poly objects, muddy and awful textures, fixed camera angles) but then didn't invest in making it at all compelling...

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May 23, 2019

Way back in the days of the original top-down Grand Theft Auto a new genre was roughly born, one that put an emphasis on a little crime, chaos, and fun along the way...

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8 / 10.0 - Akane
May 17, 2019

If you appreciate great pick-up-and-put-down play sessions that are intense and keep you coming back for more Akane may be a great match...

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May 17, 2019

There’s always a tricky element in sequels when you understand that they’re relatively more of the same, just with some minor changes...

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3.5 / 10.0 - Chicken Rider
May 17, 2019

It’s hard not to have mixed feelings with transplants from the mobile space sometimes...

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8 / 10.0 - Octogeddon
May 16, 2019

Aside from it feeling like it may take its sweet time to hit its stride Octogeddon works in a satisfying manner both in terms of being an action and a strategy game...

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May 16, 2019

Fans of classic animes in particular are likely very familiar with giant robot mechs battling it out in intense flurries of laser fire and missiles...

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6.5 / 10.0 - Darkwood
May 16, 2019

Survival games tend to not be for the impatient or faint at heart as it is, so when you start one up and it literally tells you that it won’t hold your hand it’s hard not to be a bit nervous...

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