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1550 games reviewed
74.8 average score
80 median score
57.4% of games recommended

Shacknews's Reviews

Sep 26, 2014

Super Smash Bros. brings everything good about the series, including its rich roster of beloved characters, stages that honor Nintendo's handheld heritage, tens of hours of unlockable content, and condenses it all into a fine portable package. It goes a long way towards catering to both long-time fans of the series and casual newcomers with mechanics that are simple to grasp, while also adding some welcome new degrees of complexity.

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Sep 25, 2014

Middle-Earth: Shadow of Mordor wears its influences on its sleeve, but integrates them so well with its own ideas that it stands up as a unique achievement on its own.

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Sep 25, 2014

Forza Horizon 2 successfully captures the feel of the original Horizon title, and in fact, surpasses it in every way. Forza Horizon set out to give racing fans the opportunity to enjoy the Forza series in an open-world environment, and with the addition of a vast and beautiful locale, multiplayer options, both online and in single-player mode, and all of its activities, Forza Horizon 2 is yet another sequel that vastly improves on its original.

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8 / 10 - Gauntlet
Sep 24, 2014

Although it isn't as deep as other action role-playing games out there, its simplicity is a big part of its charm. It is the kind of game I find myself trying to talk my friends into playing so that we can confront the hordes, battle giant bosses, and fight over gold.

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9 / 10 - FIFA 15
Sep 23, 2014

Ultimately, FIFA 15 succeeds in creating the ultimate experience for fans. Whether you want to manage a club to a Champions League Title, or have a 10 year career with a custom player, FIFA's got it. FIFA 15 sets a high bar for sports games, and FIFA 16 will need to work twice as hard to clear it next year.

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Sep 22, 2014

The Marvel fan-service, along with the constant small moments of delight and whimsy, more than make up for a few remaining weak spots.

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Sep 22, 2014

This is just the beginning for D4, as more episodes are forthcoming. But for now, it's a solid package. Swery's latest is off to a good start.

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8 / 10 - Wasteland 2
Sep 22, 2014

Wasteland 2 is a return to an old-school kind of role-playing experience, which means that it isnt' simple or easy, but it grabs your attention nonetheless. See what it takes to survive in a post-nuclear apocalyptic world.

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Sep 17, 2014

Hyrule Warriors offers an intriguing blend of both the Zelda and Dynasty Warriors series, making for an experience that fans of either series can thoroughly enjoy. It stays true to the Zelda series' lore, sights and sounds, and combines it with the fast-paced, button-mashing action the Dynasty Warriors series is so well-known for.

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7 / 10 - Destiny
Sep 16, 2014

Destiny, Bungie's ambitious space opera, has vision in spades and is mechanically sound--but it falls short of its lofty goals.

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Still, my plucky band of characters, some favorites and some third-rate, had dungeons to conquer through the power of music. Square Enix pushed this concept much further in Curtain Call, which makes this the ideal proof-of-concept for its odd rhythm-RPG marriage. It's too bad that now that the company has shown how well it can work, it's taking a bow.

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7 / 10 - The Sims 4
Sep 10, 2014

The smarter sims, sleek customization system, and emotions truly brings The Sims 4 to life. However, even with those impressive features, the game ultimately feels like a incremental step up from The Sims 3.

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6 / 10 - NHL 15
Sep 9, 2014

If you're expecting a completely stacked, feature-laden game as you've gotten in the past, you're bound to be disappointed and on the phone with EA's customer service department, wondering where the majority of your game content has gone. However, if you're an avid hockey fan, you probably won't mind hitting the ice and taking part in a well-rounded contest of hockey, and seeing what the new visuals and audio have to deliver.

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Dead Rising 3 is a technologically sophisticated game with a very straightforward concept. Here are a bunch of toys for you to use to lay waste to the zombie horde. Go out, explore, and have at it. Although it often feels like the time limit (present in all Dead Rising games) conflicts with the idea of running around a big open world, it doesn't take away from the satisfaction of zombie bashing.

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Sep 4, 2014

There's no other way to say it. Hatoful Boyfriend is weird! With that said, its novelty proves to be both a major boost and its greatest flaw.

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8 / 10 - Lethal League
Sep 3, 2014

For its simple premise, its fun characters, and an experience that can be fully enjoyed both online and off, Lethal League has proven to be a delight.

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Professor Layton vs. Ace Attorney comes out with a game that in many ways improves upon both formulas. It may be too bogged down in its own story and look slightly dated, but the pure puzzle mechanics still work both in and out of the courtroom, and are bolstered by the crossing of ideas. It's more than the sum of its parts, and as a result is a nice treat.

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Aug 26, 2014

Infamous: First Light is at its best when it's iterating on and riffing on Second Son. In many ways, the abbreviated length of First Light makes it a better bite-sized package. It's more linear and less surprising than fans might expect from the series, but exploring this world as Fetch is just as fun as it ever was.

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8 / 10 - Madden NFL 15
Aug 22, 2014

EA Tiburon could be onto something, and if it continues to listen to fan feedback, we could be in for some glorious days of video game football yet. For now, this is definitely worth checking out, as it's far from the same old thing.

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6 / 10 - Wayward Manor
Aug 13, 2014

Wayward Manor is a puzzle game created in collaboration between The Odd Gentleman and Neil Gaiman. That alone is enough to catch some interest, but whatever charm the game has quickly wears thin. 

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