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If you are at all a fan of puzzle games, play Tumblestone. Its intelligent spin on a simple mechanic forces players to plan ahead and think about the consequences of their actions. There is a veritable ton of single-player content, which unfortunately must be completed in order to unlock the rule-changing modifiers for use in the game's arcade mode. It truly shines when playing with friends in the same room as you all shout expletives while simultaneously thinking that the winner must be a complete genius.
Those two ideas that come with gigantic BUTs attached to them are the kindest things I can muster about Ghostbusters. The rest is a vapid, hackneyed slog that feels incredibly long despite being rather short. Ghostbusters does the bare minimum required, and it's apparent that this is a project that nobody cared about. It's ironic that a game so entrenched in specters and spooks is so completely lacking in spirit.
But I guess that’s the rub of doing a review. If I stopped after my first playthrough, I wouldn’t be recommending it. With two under my belt, I recognize I could have had a great time with Fairy Fencer F: Advent Dark Force had I just done the opposite of what all the characters told me to do. It’s quite the Jekyll and Hyde situation, one I can easily recommend to Compile Heart fans, but only endorse for non-fans on the stipulation they don’t listen to Tiara and Eryn.
There are no other games like Quadrilateral Cowboy, and it will likely stay that way. It’s a unique blend of computer science, puzzles, and beautiful storytelling that could only come from Blendo Games. The engine is a bit worse for wear and I definitely wish there were more to play, but damn if this isn’t one of the coolest games out there. Plus, there’s mod support built in, so who knows what the future has in store for this title. Like Gravity Bone and Thirty Flights of Loving before it, this is a game that cannot be missed by fans of the medium.
Without those lackluster diversions, it would be an amicable trifle. Even at its best, the game feels like an idea gestating in real-time, like a sponge dinosaur filling up with water. So much of Headlander teases you with the idea of what could have been; a shame, because the game we actually got is kind of a bummer.
The base mechanic may conjure up thoughts of Mavis Beacon, but so much has been built onto that foundation, making Epistory - Typing Chronicles so much greater than just a typing game.
Hawken has never been a terrible game, but it has never made a case for itself as anything more either. This console version puts up even less of a fight. If you're broke and bored this summer and looking for something to sink some hours into, Hawken on console could be a reasonable pastime. But there is no getting around the fact that this is the worst way to play an already mediocre game.
I didn't think I would have this much fun with a casual rail shooter that uses touch controls, but Gal*Gun: Double Peace kept me engaged and entertained with its uncompromisingly Japanese high school antics.
Perhaps it took a move to the home consoles and a years-delayed retouch, but God Eater Resurrection shines as a less demanding, flashier alternative to the likes of Monster Hunter. It'll never ask for the same depth of dedication, but it doesn't try to, and in (not) doing so, manages to prove that being the "diet" version of something isn't always a bad thing.
I actually quite like the adherence to nostalgia, as Square is only giving fans with they want after years of complaints that projects like Final Fantasy XIII strayed too far. But by the same token of goodwill, it plays it a little too safe in regards to its at times predictable story, and doesn't really do anything new that moves the genre forward in any way. Still, if old school is what you want, you'll get it.
Jordan: That's spot on with how I feel. As much as I want to like Energy Hook -- the concept itself is sound, and should work -- the whole thing comes across as unfinished and unpolished. Even when the stars align and the game seems to play as intended, the feeling is fleeting. It lacks staying power.
If you've ever wanted to try your hand at Monster Hunter, start with Generations. The tutorial aspect isn't any better than normal, but it's much more likely to appeal to a wider audience with its breadth of customization options and content. If you've been champing at the bit for more great gameplay you already love, with lots of new things to discover, Generations doesn't disappoint there either.
Don't sleep on Videoball. It might not be the future of eSports, but it is the future of several fun, sweary, elbows-in-each-others-ribs nights with your friends.
Can you play Necropolis by yourself? Only if you're really dedicated to the idea of running the same series of floors over and over with the intention of making progress. Without company, the initial dungeons begin to blend together a bit, and restarting isn't so much a pain from a pure skill-based roguelike standpoint, but a crisis of variety.
The fluid movement, artwork, music, and technology all come together in FRU for a mesmerizing experience that really shows what the Kinect is capable of, or should I say was capable of. I can't imagine too many more games will be made for it, if any. At least people with Kinects can have one game to try to justify the purchase aside from some fancy voice controls. If you have a Kinect, you owe it to yourself to buy FRU.
At this point, I'm starting to grow tired of the cast that's been there since World at War (I still want to see more of Goldblum and company from Black Ops III's packed-in map), but the voice actors still give it their all and sell it all these years later. Dempsey is one of Steve Blum's best bit roles to date. Still, if you aren't keen on zombies (and many of you aren't, after nearly 10 years of it), you can probably stay away from Descent.
My fear is that the situation won't improve fast enough, assuming it ever really does get better down the road. Despite its rough edges, the PC version has been successful for years now, and I have to imagine 7 Days to Die will also do well on consoles where competition among these types of sandbox survival experiences isn't so fierce. With that in mind, it's disappointing to see this sold on Xbox One and PS4 (with a retail release!) as if it is completed game. It clearly is not. After some substantial updates, I'd potentially want to give it another chance, but as is I wouldn't want to spend another minute with it.
This is all stuff that a player can get used to given time and patience, and the quality of JoJo’s fanservice in the game is unimpeachable, enough that a forgiving fan can find much to enjoy in the package. All the same, it’s impossible to get past the impression that the game’s design is a distinctly B-team effort, driven more by a desire to differentiate from Cyberconnect2’s other flagship games than by improving on them or going with what’s worked. Simply put, we’re still looking for that definitive JoJo's game, because JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Eyes of Heaven isn’t it.
Ultimately, this is a low-cost horror game that does a lot of things well. However, the game would be better served if it were less mechanic-heavy, since the gameplay tends to detract from the tense themes created with the art, writing, and sound.
Despite its sparkling surface, Song of the Deep could use a bit more polish. That said, it hits more than it misses, and I can easily see myself coming back to its sprawling world every few years or so. With more development time in the form of a sequel (possibly using another mythos and setting), it could be something really special. For now what we've got is absolutely still worth playing.