Cubed3's Reviews
Burning Blood delivers faithful representations and beautiful presentation, but the mechanics are riddled with flaws. The story gives the best adaptation of the Paramount War, but the fact that there is no Dressrosa segment when so many characters from the arc are here is unforgivable. The basic and easily abused nature of the combat will see few returning to this title after more than a few plays.
The number of abilities successfully translated from "scripted sequences only" to organic gameplay is usually a solid metric of an action game's quality, and by that criteria, SUPERHOT excels. Its intense gameplay and layered narrative will delight fans of both the aggressive and the analytical simultaneously. While a lot of its innovation is clearly untested, its memetic presence is sure to be a talking point among indie fans for a long time to come.
Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair is a visual novel that toys with other genres with liberal regard to convention. Part murder mystery, part game show, all visual novel, it manages to be the most fun when the player has to piece everything together. While the game is bland to look at, it's not always about the look. It takes a bit to get to the juicy core of this creepy title, but once you're there, you may not want to leave.
Rogue Stormers just isn't a package that can be easily recommended. The difficulty is largely unfair, including enemies who don't die when they should, and come at you in groups of 30 strong. While there's nothing wrong with the controls or artwork, there's nothing really noteworthy either. Rogue Stormers is a bland experience when it works, and a hair pulling experience when it doesn't.
It is good fun while it lasts, and is worth a couple (dozen) runs through to the Overseer to see what he has in store.
Undoubtedly, fans of abstract puzzle games will find a lot to enjoy here. But those not so inclined to stick with something a little frustrating and overtly self-insistent perhaps may prefer to wait for the next reboot of this intriguing but poorly executed experience. Where Journey uses the concept of abstract, indirect storytelling to its empowerment, Soul Axiom ends up leaning on it like a crutch when it suits, much to its detriment in terms of the overall experience. The confusing PR description of the game, which is nothing like the experience you actually get, is testament to that muddled framework. This is well worth a go, but it is not a polished gem by any stretch of the imagination.
Brigador is, at the end of the day, a board game about carnage. In a landscape of games that either make you feel bad for seeing these atrocities, or turn you into a legitimate sociopath, it is a rare gem that manages to make you forget that what you just blew up was someone's home. Reaching each goal is satisfying, and for that, Brigador should feel very proud of what it's accomplished.
MagNets: Fully Charged had an good idea, but executed it poorly. Collecting trinkets from continuously respawning enemies until you have enough to get an item required to progress, only to have to do it again to pass another metaphorical broken bridge, makes for a subpar experience. A repetitive electronic soundtrack makes you feel as though no progress is being made as you constantly backtrack to ensure the survival of key buildings. All in all, MagNets: Fully Charged is a frustrating and tedious experience to behold.
Hyposphere could have some interesting ideas somewhere, but good luck finding them. As it stands, it's a series of metaphysical questions better left unasked. Even if the game worked as frequently as it should, it gives way to boring design that never feels like anything other than the designer bragging about how deep they are.
Overwatch has all the glitz and polish expected of a Blizzard game, with all the usual underlying quality. It is highly unlikely that this game will go under or stop being supported, as well. However, its volume of content is a bit questionable for a game that costs $40 to even play. With that said, every other aspect shines, and is helped heavily by its unique MOBA-esque character system and the ability to switch in the middle of a map. It has been said that new champions and the like will be free, and if that's true, Overwatch will only climb uphill.
With an excellent roster and polished mechanics, this is a straight improvement over the last instalment of Guilty Gear. The problems with the series are problems common to the genre, and although they can't be ignored, they are lessened by the introduction of beginner-friendly mechanics and a cast that's easy to love. Full of gorgeous visuals and absolutely gushing style, all while retaining incredibly tight controls and mechanics, this latest entry is definitely one worth looking into, whether a genre vet or someone completely new to fighting games.
Everything is great except for when it is time to get to the actual "game" portion, and here Unravel sort of, well, unravels.
While Borderlands was always going to be a fairly tough act to follow, Battleborn succeeds by possessing enough depth and charm to stand up on its own two feet. Here, Gearbox have created an interesting universe brimming with their trademark humour and populated by an interesting cast of characters that make it a fun place to kill time and other people in. Yes, there are a few minor issues that mar the experience somewhat, and the overall package could definitely use a bit more content to boost its longevity, but hopefully these are concerns that are currently being addressed.
Taking the smooth and free-flowing gameplay of Muramasa and Dragon's Crown, Vanillaware has reinvigorated one of the PS2's late and great RPG-brawlers into something even more spectacular for modern systems. Odin Sphere Leifthrasir is more than just a pretty picture; it has some of the finest, fluid and rewarding beat 'em up gameplay of any game, spread amongst five delightfully varying characters that tell a thoroughly engaging story. The challenge has definitely been lowered, but the unlockable difficulties and new Boss Rush mode are punishing and more than make up for it. With the original version included, this is the best of both worlds of Odin Sphere, and is absolutely worth the asking price.
Episode 5: Order Up! is certainly the strongest episode yet, but it's not exactly terrific, especially given what TellTale Games is capable of producing. The lack of real Minecrafting (yes, that's a word) clashes with the core of what Minecraft is, forcing puzzles to be solved rather than walls blasted through? It's Minecraft by name to shift more copies, which is disappointing, and looks somewhat mundane when compared to the open world survival game.
"Obnoxious" is the best description of ASSimilation, as might be guessed by the entirely meaningless suffix in the title. There are fewer Death Blocks, but the level design isn't any better, and is, in fact, more generic than ever. Enemies and obstacles too clearly fall into one of about five categories and change only appearances between the stages, and the bosses are just as uninspired. A replay of the initial Angry Video Game Nerds Adventure would be vastly superior to waste a few hours - if your desire is to play repetitious stages filled with interchangeable hazards, then why not save some money and just buy the cheaper and superior original?
Far Harbor is one of the best DLC expansions in the series. There are plenty of new people to meet, locations to discover, and quests to complete. It is perfect for the type of person that wants a bit of a shake-up to their normal Fallout 4 experience, or just wants more land to explore.
The Sun and Moon is a perfect example of a very competently made game that lacks heart. There are some good ideas here and the platforming can be enjoyable in short spurts, but it is missing something to tie it all together. An occasional clever twist, or inspired level, simply isn't enough to carry the game through to the end, and everything starts to blend together after a while. The difference between The Sun and Moon and truly great puzzle platformers is the same as a meal cooked by a professional chef and one warmed up in the microwave. A little more time spent building up this experience could have made it truly remarkable, but instead it is just yet another puzzle platformer in a genre saturated by them.
It's probably says a lot for a game when the only real complaint is that there isn't more of it. Stikbold! hits all the right targets, but it feels as if it is just missing a little more. Online multiplayer would have been amazing, and a bit more depth in both the single player campaign and multiplayer options would have made this title complete. It's still good fun while it lasts, and even more so if a couple friends can be found for some dodgeball shenanigans. While it might not be the best party game, it is still a very good one - besides, how many other games are there where you can throw dodgeballs at enormous whales and honey loving hippies?
Californium is a labour of love that didn't even try to do a fine job at using the thing it loves the most. It makes promises of offering a plot-heavy adventure that is heavily inspired by Philip K. Dick, when it's just marginally influenced by it, and, even worse, gameplay-wise, it is a frustrating hidden object game, which becomes less so due to its gorgeous, wallpaper-worthy visuals.