Chris Compendio's Reviews
There are countless video games designed to bring simple joy to players, usually with adorable visuals and relatively easy and relaxing mechanics. Even still, mainstream video games are obligated to include objectives and a sense of challenge, often to a point where you have to work and jump through hoops for some solace and a pleasant shot of dopamine. Enter New Pokémon Snap, the long-awaited sequel, and a game that has you grind to earn that wholesomeness.
As ineloquent as this may sound, Black Ops Cold War is a weird game. It plays like a tug of war between the advancement attempts that Infinity Ward put forward in last year’s Modern Warfare and Treyarch’s own mechanical contributions to the series over the years. What results is a product that tries to have its cake and eat it too, except that Black Ops Cold War seems to want to eat multiple, different cakes. It’s a strange entry in the series that lacks polish and quality. Still, I have to admit that I am having a lot of fun with it, in the way I would with a flaws-and-all action flick.
One of the most endearing traits of any Jackbox Party Pack is how high-concept most of the games contained within are — you can explain the premise of these games to any novice and create unlimited hijinx. But with Jackbox Games turning in a new collection every year, more concepts are going through the pipeline, and the mass volume of them are diluting the ease of use of these packages. The Jackbox Party Pack 7 is undoubtedly fun, but explaining these concepts to new players is more of a challenge than ever.
Side-scrolling sequel Yooka-Laylee and the Impossible Lair has creative ideas, assuming you have the patience to wrangle with its difficulty.
Pinball-inspired dungeon crawler/hack-and-slash Creature in the Well is short, sweet, and satisfying, whatever that word means.
With that, it could be time for Jackbox Games to slow down, just a little. I question the need for a new Pack every year, because the more games you throw at players, the more creative concepts go underplayed, because people will just keep going back to something like Drawful. I still think that every Jackbox compilation is a treat, especially now that the studio has perfected the visuals and presentation for their games—but they run the risk of turning their annual treat into a chore.
The Shrouded Isle did not feel like a game for beginners to the genre. The premise, the world-building, and sound all made the game into a wonderful sensory experience. But for some time, it also felt like a beast to wrestle with, and an experience that felt more Sisyphean than Lovecraftian. Perhaps that’s just on me to “git gud” in managing my damn cult.
Windjammers 2 is a curious case — it’s inviting to all players with its easy concept, but becomes a steep rabbit hole of skill creep as you discover its ins and outs.
The Jackbox Party Pack 8 will probably not be the end of the line for this series, and even though the games today are far more complicated than something you’d see from the first or second packs, iteration is the key to a fun pack of games. Gather your friends together (if it’s safe) and get cracking on uncovering the intricacies and strategies of these games — hopefully with a ton of laughter in between.
It ain't perfect, but it's the best Jackbox has to offer.
A magnificent blend of genres makes Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order a solid game, but technical hitches prevent it from taking the high ground.
Despite being built from previously-used parts, The Jackbox Party Pack 6 is still one of the more solid and consistent collections.
WOAH! Crash Team Racing Nitro-Fueled is a fun remake that plays well, with weaknesses being unlockables and the Crash property itself.
Possibly the most original puzzle game in recent memory, Baba is You is also an exercise in frustration and stretched-out logic.
The turn-based strategy game Civilization VI finally made it to Switch, coming with a mostly accessible control scheme for those new to the series.
Of course, this game is best with, well, a group of friends. Otherwise, while you still may have that same motivation playing the game as an individual, it doesn't feel nearly as rewarding as a team victory. I'm lucky to be a part of groups of people that gather on weekends to play games such as this, and Joggernauts is certainly one that I intend to add to our regular rotation. I think that attempting to play through the whole game as one unit may be too much to ask due to the game's difficulty, but it may be fun in short bursts and a few levels at a time. I won't be too hyperbolic and say something outlandish like “local multiplayer is dying,” but for anyone who may think that, it's wonderful that we have games like Joggernauts to keep that spirit alive.
Pokémon Legends: Arceus is a frantic game about violence and tension. The most defining moment for its gameplay is running away in fear from a larger Alpha Pokémon, whilst you haphazardly toss Pokéballs at smaller, unsuspecting Pokémon in your path. Despite the grind, I felt motivated to catch these mons, rather than dreading random encounters like in previous games.
Doom for Nintendo Switch is a technical feat. Come for the shooting, stay for the heavy metal.
Colorful brawler Super Crush KO has a lovely art style, a great sense of humor, and tense sidescrolling brawling that should charm anyone.
The fun of Ultimate Chicken Horse may be limited without others to play with, and its simple art design left a lot to be desired, but at $14.99, these are not good enough excuses to miss out on it. Single-player level creation games are intimidating and not for everyone, but with this particular multiplayer spin on it, you may find yourself to be more creative and thoughtful than you thought you were.