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Goat Simulator is stupid, ridiculous, and incredibly fun. Everything from the hidden areas to the different goats make this game hilarious, and well worth the price.
The lengths to which Burial at Sea: Episode 2 goes to distance its gameplay from BioShock Infinite's blueprint is outmatched by the indulgent spectacle of its writhing narrative - a risk not fully conscious of its consequences. Through success, failure, and to simply admire the sunset of a generation, the conclusion of Burial at Sea remains a worthwhile experience.
An overall very well developed puzzle-platformer that can entertain -- or frustrate depending on your skills and patience -- for hours.
Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes is a small appetizer for what could be one of the greatest meals on this generation of consoles. It's true the initial mission in the game is short, but the extra content, missions, items and a first-look at the visuals more than makes the $29.99 price tag worth it. Definitely don't miss this.
Luftrausers' success is its addictive duel between confidence and doubt; what's the best option when every choice is conceivably the best option? Providing the player with heaps of ways tackle problems is nothing new, but creating a large number of choices and making each one uniquely viable? That's special, and it's Luftrausers' specialty.
Yoshi's New Island follows a similar formula as previous Nintendo remakes/reboots but ultimately falls short of recreating the magic we expect from Nintendo platformers. It is a shame that Yoshi's New Island could not provide enough new content to warrant its "new" name. Even if you enjoy the gameplay pulled directly out of the original title, it's hard to recommend playing this game over its predecessor (even if you've already played Yoshi's Island). Yoshi's Island DS has a little more variety and difficulty but ultimately, Nintendo just hasn't been able to reproduce the greatness of the original title.
In today's entertainment software landscape, the pure definition of a true "system seller" is a thing of the past. Gone are the days of 16 bit Zelda vs. a more "graphic" version of Mortal Kombat. And the era of complete AAA 3rd party exclusivity, a la Final Fantasy or Metal Gear Solid, is virtually extinct. What we have here is a "limited" release. Something that is better defined as NOT being made available on a certain machine. But for the effect that Microsoft honestly needs right now in its effort against Sony, Titanfall is the weapon that keeps the door open. If this game was out on the PS4, or had plans in the near future for a release, this generation's console war would probably be decided very, very early in the life cycle, with the Xbox One having little chance of catching up. I'm not saying this is the cure all, and will drastically tip the sales scale in the other direction. MS still faces an uphill climb in that regard. The only difference is now they have a much needed bandage for the wound from Sony's early, heavy shot. The wide appeal this title has will be a tipping point for people on the fence about which machine to adopt right now. Currently, I don't believe the PS4 has an equivocal "killer app," nor is one known to the public in these pre-E3 2014 months. As much as a game can be a system seller nowadays, Titanfall is, undoubtedly.
Professor Layton and the Azran Legacy succeeds as a wonderful finale to the Layton series and the strongest title in the prequel trilogy. If you've enjoyed any of the previous games, this will certainly satisfy your puzzle solving needs. Though it's not necessary to play the previous titles in the trilogy, it's recommended as this game pulls together events from the previous two titles. All-in-all, the Layton series has been and will always be a wonderful break from some of the more established gaming formulas. Recommended.
The perfect way to play Resident Evil 4 requires a time machine back to its time and place in 2005. For many of us this arrangement is impossible, and Resident Evil 4 Ultimate HD Edition defaults as the best way to enjoy a modern classic. The entire package aches for better consistency between its original modes and suite of upgrades, but these are minor complaints; from a historical standpoint or modern approach, Resident Evil 4 remains one of the finest ways to survive horror.
A great game as is, although it has a few very patchable issues that could really put it over the top.
Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare is a skeleton made of borrowed ideas, but its bones are wrapped in a body of earnest tomfoolery and relentless positivity. It functions best as a sanctuary for disenfranchised shooter players, the equivalent of a safe place where it's OK to be weird and goofy amidst the tension of a competitive game. The most interesting thing about Garden Warfare is there may be enough of an affected crowd to actually make it all work.
You will find some joy in the action and some sort of satisfaction in killing tons of enemies, but if you're looking for something with any rich substance to it at all, Strider may not be enough of a good experience for you. The game's gameplay structure and design is too unstable to make Strider great. Having said that, the nostalgia might be enough to hook you, and the $14.99 price tag might help all the flaws that Strider brings.
You might be tempted to overlook Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze, but if you did, you'd be missing out on an excellent platforming title with tons of style and polish. While it's true that it doesn't explore a lot of new territory, iteration within a genre is only bad to the extent which creativity and permutation are not applied. In other words, if it's fun and feels fresh enough, it was worth the effort—and Tropical Freeze is every bit as enjoyable as its Wii predecessor.
Jazzpunk projects exactly what its eccentric name implies; a hilarious adventure with an unwieldy rhythm and paradoxically predictable narrative-uncertainty, all of which draws fuel from a seemingly endless source of energy. Jazzpunk may share its mission with the likes of Incredible Crisis or LSD: Dream Emulator, but as the titular flag bearer for its invented style, it's now the standard. Jazzpunk is so jazzpunk.
Expressed in modest trappings, Nidhogg quietly aims to recast the mold of a competitive fighting game. A deliberate lo-fi aesthetic and input limited to the absolute basics cleverly mask engagement as hardcore and contemplative as any of its peers. By opening its boundaries past the usual static fighting arena, Nidhogg transforms from another one-on-one fighter into something more akin to a goal-oriented sport. It's a fighting game simplified without feeling dumb, a multi-staged combat arena with no particular advantages, and as much a battle of wits as an all-out brawler. Nidhogg is an almost-perfect competitive game.
It’s my understanding that previous One Piece video games have established a positive reputation both among the series’ fans and the gaming community. If that’s the case, it’ll be better for both parties to ignore this title and hope outsiders will do the same in hopes of preserving that standard.
Playing and enjoying Octodad: Dadliest Catch seems to require an active narcotic influence; however, thanks to deliberately obtuse controls and a conscious sense of humor, even the most capable operator will inevitably render their invertebrate avatar a hilarious mess of tentacles and destruction. In a game like this there's careful line between frustration and elation, and Octodad walks it (or slides down, falls along, slithers against - whatever) with appreciable balance.
A sort of diamond in the rough perhaps, in that Daedalic did a fine job with many aspects of Blackguards, yet a handful of problems, certainly some more crucial than others, and yet all patchable, keep the overall experience stunted.
Bravely Default: Where the Fairy Flies is a bit of a return to form, albeit hopefully the rule rather than the exception when it comes to Square-Enix’s future. It is surprisingly adept at fusing classic RPG ingredients with novel refinements, and plus, it wields a story which at first appears traditional but eventually grows horns and attacks you. Its shameless implementation of 90s-era mechanics and design does mean that participants will need to have a love for conventional JRPGs—and perhaps a bit of patience to endure the homogeneity of the first part of the game—but beyond that, Bravely Default is a great experience.
Definitely the best version of Tomb Raider and it shows exactly what the new generation of consoles has in store for us in the very near future.