Cubed3's Reviews
With a bit of refinement to how songs are turned into stages, and with a bit of touching up to the layout problems that conflict with subconscious expectations, Melody's Escape could genuinely be one of those phenomenal indie games that take the world by storm. Although it functions exceedingly well and is a great joy to play, a few flaws seriously hinder the experience. Either it quickly becomes apparent that the stages consist of mashing random keys to the beat of player-provided songs, or frustration results from the many misses that occur because of conflicting information.
A unique experience is to be found in Not a Hero. The elective journey through waves of opposition just proves how fun a small title can be and the added content provided a little extra for those who are yet to pick up the title on other platforms. While it has a few minor faults, they don't overshadow the experience, and it is a thoroughly commendable run and gun platformer.
Besides its lack of a unique angle of its own and a heavy "sandbox" approach, Project CARS will please those into sim-racers, since it is, undoubtedly, the most beautiful and realistic one ever made. Unfortunately, and despite adding lots of great, classic to modern, racing cars, as well as a few new tracks to try them out, Game of the Year Edition still hasn't ironed out some problems, like the extremely annoying controls and AI.
Kumoon would make an excellent training program for better physics in gaming. Everything else seems bland and uninspired, and leaves the game a collection of objectives that are somewhat fun to complete, but not for too long. Kumoon: Ballistic Physics Puzzle is simply a long exercise in tedium. Even if the puzzles were more varied, it may not make up for how boring the rest of the experience is.
Why have simple videogames like Pac-Man and Tetris stood the test of time, while other, more innovating titles have been disappointing at best? The answer is because the potential of these otherwise great ideas has been thrown out of the window and High Strangeness is such a failure. The notion of mixing Zelda-esque puzzle-solving, with the ability to go from an 8-bit world to a 16-bit one could rock the indie community if it was used correctly, but, unfortunately, it wasn't.
It's hard going back to the real world after a few hours with Doom. It will feel slow and mundane when compared to the experience of being an over the top, badass action hero, who destroys Hell one demon at a time; half the time with his cool arsenal of weapons, the other half with his hands! Sure, it won't create a revolution like the 1993 original, and some of its aspects (like the multiplayer) are flawed, but id Software's newest creation deserves carrying its heavy name, and is one of the few triple-A titles worthy of a full price-tag.
Deathsmiles isn't bad by any means, but it also isn't good, either. The aesthetic itself has plenty of charm and sets itself up to be a memorable experience, but the core gameplay just isn't complex enough to warrant long play sessions. It's a fun experience in very small bursts and the bosses are certainly engaging, but the bullet-hell doesn't manage to expand or change the genre in a meaningful way. It's a cookie cutter shoot 'em up that leaves a lot to be desired and doesn't offer anything in return.
Croixleur Sigma will offer players a fun experience for a short while. The content in here is overall good and entertaining while it lasts, offering a fun and entertaining arcade experience. But due to a lack of actual challenge or changing objectives throughout the game, it will barely last three hours in the eye of the average gamer. There are some entertaining modes for enthusiasts of the genre, but they will not save the game from the content drought, no matter how fun the actual content therein is. It is a title worth getting if you can accept that it will not last long. However, if you're looking for more bang for your buck, there are far better titles out there.
Even with an occasional twist on the well-established formula for match-three games, Azkend 2 never really comes up with anything to distinguish itself. It feels like a budget iOS title, and maybe that's because that's what it originally was.
Overfall is a good game - better than most first attempts at game development. It provides simple laughs, but still decent storytelling. Its strength does not lie in its role-playing aspects, though. It would've been a more tactical game if it allowed for mixing and matching through customisation of characters' skills and passive traits, and unique armour would've done much to alleviate the boredom of looking at generic character models. It does have good replay value with a few unlockable weapons, trinkets, and companions, though. If you want to play a simple blend between role-playing and the randomness of roguelikes, give it a try.
Final Fantasy IX can best be described as the most "complete" entry in the series to date; it is as whimsical as it is dark, and as nostalgic as it is its own identity, telling many individual stories that create laughs and pull on the heartstrings. Previous criticisms in the slow battle system and inability to reduce or disable random encounters are now accounted for with optional additions to gameplay, but the port does suffer in other departments - namely blurry backgrounds and slight lag in menus. The sheer love that has been poured into FFIX as a whole is on show for all to see, though, and is still evident to this very day. It is no wonder fans have been calling for Hiroyuki Ito to craft another entry in the series again, but whatever the future holds, there may never be a Final Fantasy title that will ever match up to the greatness of Final Fantasy IX.
While it's admirable that Capcom tried to make the game appealing to the largest possible audience, it was unnecessary. Games should be made not to generate the most income, but to be as unique. The similarity of Chris Redfield's campaign to Modern Warfare and the like is inexcusable; we need a Resident Evil game, not a "third-person shooter, only this time with rocket launcher-wielding zombies." More importantly, Resident Evil 6 fails to deliver something skill-demanding, and is mainly frustrating and mediocre in most respects. The Resident Evil series: revived, surviving, or killed? Surviving, but pleading for death and reincarnation.
It would be easy to call Dear RED - Extended another case of "interesting concept, terrible execution," but the concept isn't actually as interesting as it thinks it is. With its half-baked themes and inoffensive presentation, it's really just a run-of-the-mill visual novel that happens to be condensed into the space of a lunch break. The fact that the plot is built around such an absurdly illogical surprise is just the biggest nail in a coffin already riddled with them.
Corpse Party will be a fascinating experience... but only for those who'll come for the story, the characters, and the spooky atmosphere, because, as a game, it's somewhat flawed, and even boring at times, since it focuses around "randomly" searching for objects, or going back to certain areas, for no other reason than to set an event in motion in order to move to the next one - and then repeat this a couple of hundred times. Finally, and as a side note, console users have had a far better version on their hands for quite some time now.
If this was released in the 90s, it would be a superb addition to the stack of truly memorable arcade titles. Today, though? Compared to titles like Castle Crashers, it comes up a little short. The design and aesthetics are fantastic, but ultimately, they alone can't carry the title. The repetitive nature of the combat, the low level of difficulty and lack of extra features or unlockables to expand the lifespan make this one just average.
Any Call of Duty: Black Ops III fans looking for a fresh excuse to swear loudly and frequently at their television set should definitely consider picking up a copy of the Eclipse DLC. Four great new maps to feel like an inferior gamer on, while repeatedly getting mown down at the hands of hyperactive kids with cat-like reflexes, not to mention the option of watching co-operative squad mates competently cut a swathe through a sea of the undead while regretting that decision to try and stab the oversized glowing zombie in a rash moment of madness... What's not to like?
Tinertia feels like a mixed bag of experiences. The short sections make everything manageable, but unless you have a controller, expect to get irritated more often than you get surprised. The game is challenging, and even with a controller, the controls could definitely be tightened. It's hard to say stay away, because the game really hinges on this single mechanic. Still, it manages to feel fresh, and perhaps being so different is why it doesn't feel quite right. Getting Tinertia is a paramount decision, and if you can find a demo, definitely see if it's up your alley.
TransOcean 2: Rivals achieves a level of complexity and interest deeper than first glance would give it credit for. There are actually interesting decisions to make and slightly different ways to chase victory. The major problem with is that the pacing cannot be slowed down or paused at all, and against A.I.s that are not particularly intelligent, but able to manage the hundreds of actions the player needs to be doing in a very short period of time, this leads to repeated losses. Most of the depth the game offers is simply lost because the player is forced into narrow paths to maximize their limited capacity to manage actions. There ends up being little 'strategy,' as nothing can be analysed or weighed or decided because strategy very quickly becomes a repetitious 'looks good enough' and victory feels hollow and losses feel random.
Infinity Runner sadly joins the ranks of the heaps of titles out there which had an immense potential with a great concept and great atmosphere. It starts off well but is marred by technical problems. In addition to this, the repetitiveness of the gameplay and environmental elements take away from the overall feeling of excitement over time, which the title would have provided otherwise.
A lot of the issues with Blues and Bullets come down to the pacing, both that of the story, and the gameplay itself. While it manages to execute them both well, it hasn't really grasped the best way to structure itself. There's a lot of information to take in, and piecing the information together along with Elliot doesn't always end up feeling satisfying. Despite its problems, however, it's a truly gripping story, and the style will definitely leave those interested looking for more.