Ars Technica's Reviews
Buy it if you have four controllers for one of the best couch games of the year; wait for working online modes if you don't.
Every other racing game studio now realizes it has to double the number of cars on track in its games
Ultimately, there's more meat on the second act's puzzle bones, especially due to a memorable final-blast puzzle, and while the game's ending was more of a whimper than a bang—and it included some cockamamie ways to tie up the plot's loose ends—I appreciated the restraint on the writers' part to not force melodrama or melancholy on what eventually transpired. This game is the story of two young people who face the ups and downs of throwing off the shackles of youth—and it's also about their family and loved ones being there the whole way through.
Avoid it until and unless they patch in a satisfying conclusion.
A fun multiplayer distraction with a twist, if you've got the patience for some lackluster modes. Try it.
Worth a look for anyone seeking a unique, more grounded take on the adventure game.
Grey Goo is definitely a throwback, albeit one with some compelling innovations. Those who remember the heyday of the RTS genre should get a kick out of it, while the unprepared may be scared away.
If you can tolerate the aging hardware, pick it up to experience a flawed but interesting footnote on Black Flag's tested formula.
Overall, the campaign is solid, if uninspiring. It didn't have any of the jawdropping moments of the first Modern Warfare, nor any spectacular set pieces. The shooting works well, you'll blast through it in about 6-8 hours, and then you'll put it away forever. On the single-player front, I'm still waiting for a new Call of Duty 4. Maybe I'm just too old and jaded.
The Wii U unexpectedly gets one of the best games of the year. Buy it.
Buy it for the kids. Rent or Twitch it for the remixes.
Don't spend the $20 asking price, but consider it for a weekend jaunt if you can get a sale price on a four-pack.
Try it if you're a tween (or a tween-at-heart). Otherwise, avoid it.
Buy it if you can tune out the story for an interesting take on the open-world genre.
Wait. Patches or expansions may tweak its motivational balance in the right direction.
All in all, these missing features and changes for the worse are disappointing blemishes on what is still an incredibly enjoyable game. Mario Kart 8 isn't the best game in the series, but it adds enough new visual, gameplay, and track design flourishes to its well-trodden core kart-racing gameplay to be worth a look.
Buy it, or travel in time to grab it in an eventual sale.
Buy it if you have a PlayStation 4. If you don't, maybe it's time to consider getting one.
Buy it, then buy it for all of your friends so you can play at their house.
Adjust your Grim Fandango-fueled expectations and you'll delight in Broken Age: Act One's brief glimmers of story and puzzle genius.