GameZone's Reviews
Six months ago, console and PC fans were treated to a six-game collection of the original NES Mega Man games. You know, the ones you might have played as a kid, that strengthened your resolve and made you the amazing gamer you are today. Or, on the flipside, made you rage at your NES, resulting in thrown controllers and NES carts. Whatever childhood memories you have of Mega Man, there's no denying that it took the platforming world by storm with an intense difficulty, and some kickass music.
I went in not really wanting to play Far Cry Primal, or at the very least, not enjoying it. However, I was pleased that Ubisoft Montreal didn't simply copy their formula from their other games, and paste it into a Stone Age setting. A lot of the mechanics are updated and refined, and frankly, just make a whole lot more sense given the time period.
As you could see from the previous page, there isn't a whole lot to dislike about Popcap's latest foray into flora versus the undead. It takes the core foundations from the previous game, such as the tight controls, and great gunplay, and adds a plethora of layers on top of that, with the inclusion of more modes, a solo option for us loners, and even more classes to play as.
Fire Emblem Fates is a fantastic followup to Awakening, introducing some slight new gameplay elements as well as gorgeous new graphical options.
Fire Emblem Fates is a fantastic followup to Awakening, introducing some slight new gameplay elements as well as gorgeous new graphical options.
Arslan: The Warriors of Legend is yet another fine example of what Koei Tecmo can do with their standard Warriors formula, and tweak it just enough so it works for a completely separate licenced property.
With loads of new features, XCOM 2 turns out to be another hit out of the park. It's obviously not a game for everybody due to sheer difficulty alone, but anybody with the patience to learn should be pleased with the love and attention put into this title.
Minecraft: Story Mode's first episode gives a clear baseline for seeing where the plot is headed, but the questions it leaves are predominantly on a gameplay front — not the sort you want staying with players. Will the point-and-click elements take greater hold over story sequences that currently dominate? Will quick-time events continue to be a predictable response for every point of conflict? Will player actions feel more and more pointless than they already do? On the matter of how enticing the episode is at building interest in the one to follow, Episode 1 does its job...but not expertly. It's very tame in the gameplay department, and players will find it a shallow experience as a direct result of the contrived design choices. It's enough to put the entire project in jeopardy, ultimately making this introduction a fragile start for the five-part series.
Firewatch is truly more about the journey, than it is the destination. In the end, I didn't care all that much about the mystery being solved, however, I did care about Henry's overall progression. You not only feel for this character, but you more or less are this character.
Gravity Rush Remastered is a damn fine example of thinking outside of the box when it comes to traditional 3D platformers, and I'm super glad that both Sony and Bluepoint gave PS4 owners the ability to experience the game, if they were previously unable to.
LEGO Marvel's Avengers is easily one of TT's best attempts as both a LEGO title, and a licensed one. It's proof that TT understands both the LEGO properties and whatever licensed property they're tackling at any given time.
Resident Evil Zero HD is Resident Evil Zero in a prettier dress. I hope that's what you wanted to hear going into this review, because if not, I suggest you swiftly move on. I thought I spoke Resident Evil, but revisiting Zero 14 years after the fact feels like reading cuneiform. The only way I can possibly imagine enjoying the game is viewing it through glasses so thickly rose-tinted that any bit of nostalgia bait would seem a hidden gem. And in those circumstances I'd sooner recommend playing a dated game that's actually fun.
I had a really rough time with Final Fantasy Explorers. Comparing it to Capcom's already established series was always on my mind, and honestly, it's unavoidable when you're familiar with it and a big fan of the franchise.
Jonathan Blow's The Witness is an interesting experience, eliciting emotions that push me away yet draw me in at the same time. The Witness exists as a fully 3D open-world, offering mystery and intrigue that is answered only by exploration and solving two-dimensional puzzles. It is both compelling, and incredibly frustrating at the same time.
The bar has been set high for 2016: The wonderful meshing of twitch and RPG based combat, constantly growing list of abilities, ever changing enemy types, and all around charm sets Mario and Luigi: Paper Jam apart from other RPGs. Almost every aspect of Mario and Luigi: Paper Jam coalesces into a near perfect game. That's quite the feat considering how many different things are jammed into this little package. There's almost always something new to do after every notable encounter, which is important in a genre that is flooded with games that become exercises in rote repetition long before they end. Paper Jam is roughly 30 hours of portable gaming joy, and a great start to a year that should be loaded with JRPG styled goodness.
Set a game in a sterile underground facility, give the player physics-based powers and a first-person view, and it can be hard to stand out from the crowd of games inspired by Portal. Make it a tie-in to the Heroes Reborn television series and you're just piling on the red flags.
In the end, The Deadly Tower of Monsters was not very good. A funny game still needs to be fun to play and this game wasn't. It felt like a bunch of guys got together with a good joke and tried to fit a video game under it without any real game design experience. There really was potential in the storytelling, but it fell flat when the journey between joke A and Joke B was peppered with thoughts of shutting the game off out of boredom.
In the end, Punch Club looked like a fun, light-hearted sim game that ended up being a way better game than anticipated. It could do with a bit more in the way of interactivity, but it does present itself as a fighting simulator and not a straight forward fighting game. It delivers a lot more than it advertises, so these gripes are only so big.
Not all of its design choices may be consistently tasteful, but Aviary Attorney tells a good story to the end, paying attention to a lot of the finer details for a cohesive and entertaining whole. Where it does not succeed is in its courtroom happenings. While the game can hold its own, they're not the standout moments they could have been. Further, its narrative could definitely have benefited from further development for a fuller experience. These characters do grow on you and it's clear that much care went into creating a regal-yet-lighthearted atmosphere that players would grow accustomed to. Because of that, it's dissatisfying to have things end sooner than they need to. Its humour and storytelling will be appreciated for their value as individual elements, but these touches don't bring the overall experience to the highs it was creatively meant to achieve with greater support, ultimately making Aviary Attorney a pleasant mystery but a restrained one.
As I've already mentioned, Capcom did an absolutely stellar job at bringing this title to PC. Unlike games such as Final Fantasy Type-0 HD which came with some graphical upgrades, still suffered from a capped framerate at 30fps. Thanks Square Enix! So the fact that the game is so good along with it being a great port should solidify this purchase for those who might have missed out on this game during the last generation of consoles, like myself.