Reviews Archive

13

Trials Evolution review (XBLA)

By
Steve Melton
– April 19, 2012Posted in: Featured Reviews, Reviews, XBLA Reviews

Trials Evolution was developed by RedLynx and published by Microsoft Studios. It was released April 18, 2012 for 1200 MSP. A copy was provided for review purposes.

Oh RedLynx, how are we supposed to get anything done when you release such addictive games? We logged close to a hundred hours into Trials HD, and grew a three day beard trying to complete the expert tracks. Looks like we’ll have to quit our jobs, because now Trials Evolution is out.

Evolution builds on everything that’s great about Trials HD. For the uninitiated the premise to to ride a motorcycle over obstacles and to the finish. The left and right triggers control the throttle and brake while the left thumbstick controls the rider’s balance. It’s a simple yet incredibly addictive formula that RedLynx started back in 2000, and Trials Evolution is the latest and greatest installment in the series.

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3

Skullgirls review (XBLA)

By
Todd Schlickbernd
– April 13, 2012Posted in: Featured Reviews, Reviews, XBLA Reviews

Skullgirls was developed by Reverge Labs and published by Autumn Games and Konami. It was released on April 11, 2012 for 1200 MSP. A copy was purchased by the reviewer.

What happens when a talented artist with tons of characters designs and a fighting game pro with a character-less fighting engine meet up? Skullgirls happens, that’s what! Skullgirls, a true labor of love, set out to defy expectations of fighting games and provide a solid engine. Fighting games have given birth to a number of strange mechanics over the years, and a lot of the games themselves are strange. For instance, Skullgirls lets you view hitbox and hitstun data in training mode, which you can access straight form versus mode! Variable team sizes are balanced, and it’s impossible to accidentally hit the pause button mid-fight.

Skullgirls takes place in The Canopy Kingdom which is home to the Skull Heart, and the tournament for its acquisition. There’s evidence of a very deep, rich story and environment, though only the surface is touched in the game. Each character has a different reason to go for the Skull Heart, which, if acquired, grants one wish. However, if the wish is even slightly impure, it comes out corrupted, and the wisher becomes the Skullgirl.

Suffice to say the story is actually pretty cool, and props to Reverge for actually telling one, but that’s not the focus. Skullgirls is all about the fighting, casual or competitive, so let’s see if it stands up to the greats.

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12

Fez review (XBLA)

By
Andrew Crews
– April 13, 2012Posted in: Featured Reviews, Reviews, XBLA Reviews

Fez was developed by Polytron and published by Microsoft/Trapdoor. It was released on April 13, 2012 for 800 MSP. A copy was provided for review purposes.

A few years ago Fez started making noise in the indie game scene as a game that had the potential to create a sense of immersion that would rival even the most cherished indie titles like Braid or Limbo. Polytron took their time with the game but now that Fez has finally released on XBLA, it’s clear that their time was well spent. Creating a game that forces gamers to truly think and explore these days is a fairly tall order. But Fez does just that. A sense of adventure and exploration accompanied by the classic 8-bit look will leave gamers swearing they have gone back in time to era they grew up in. An era where subtle clues were left behind for gamers to discover and slowly piece things together providing a true sense of accomplishment. An era where things may have initially looked simple but were far more complex once properly studied.

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3

The Splatters review (XBLA)

By
John Drawdy
– April 11, 2012Posted in: Featured Reviews, Reviews, XBLA Reviews

The Splatters was developed by SpikySnail and published by Microsoft Studios. It was released on April 11, 2012 for 800 MSP. A copy was provided for review purposes.

The Splatters is a bright and lively twist on the puzzle genre. The object is to use blobs of paint to smash into “bombs” of the same color. Getting to all these bombs is where things start becoming tricky. You’re forced to slide, bounce, rewind and splatter you blob around each level. In each stage you start with a specific number of colored blobs and bombs all spread around the board, making you have to think two, three, or even four steps ahead of yourself at times. One of the major focuses during each level is combos; combos are how you will complete a level within said amount of moves (blobs) as well as how to increase your score. The Splatters will feel familiar on many levels like control, but is definitely designed to stand out on its own.

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3

Pinball Arcade review (XBLA)

By
James Heiger
– April 7, 2012Posted in: Featured Reviews, Reviews, XBLA Reviews

Pinball Arcade was developed by FarSight Studios and published by Crave Entertainment. It was released on April 4, 2012 for 800 MSP. A copy was provided for review purposes.

 

Pinball Arcade is bringing a new feel and set of priorities to the XBLA pinball landscape. Long dominated by the venerable Pinball FX2, there is now another choice on the market that both borrows from the latter while striking out in its own direction as well. Having already developed the highly regarded Pinball Hall of Fame: The Williams Collection, FarSight is no newcomer to the genre. They have brought their expertise to craft a game that accurately recreates classic pinball tables. The resulting product is one that will feel immediately familiar to veterans but distinct enough to warrant its own release.

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3

Anomaly Warzone Earth review (XBLA)

By
James Heiger
– April 6, 2012Posted in: Featured Reviews, Reviews, XBLA Reviews

Anomaly Warzone Earth was developed by 11 Bit Studios and retails for 800 MSP. It was released on April 6, 2012. A copy was provided for review purposes.

 

Anomaly Warzone Earth takes the tower defense genre and turns it on its ear. Instead of placing towers and picking off enemies you are thrust into the difficult scenario of finding a way to run the gauntlet. In the not so distant future aliens crash to earth and tough times ensue. A small convoy of soldiers must infiltrate and investigate the destruction. Anomaly Warzone Earth is an updated version of the iOS title that delivers new features to make it worthy of a XBLA release.

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0

Diabolical Pitch review (XBLA)

By
Ryan Reynolds
– April 4, 2012Posted in: Featured Reviews, Reviews, XBLA Reviews

Diabolical Pitch was developed by Grasshopper Manufacture and published by Microsoft. It was released on April 4, 2012 for 800 MSP. A copy was provided for review purposes.

When the gaming world learned that Suda 51 and Grasshopper Manufacture were developing a game that would utilize Kinect, taste buds quickly started to tingle. Grasshopper is known as one of the most creative and stylish developers out there, so the prospect of their minds working with the new technology had many buzzing with anticipation. The final product, Diabolical Pitch, is as wild and fantastic as everyone had hoped. In Diabolical Pitch, you take on the role of a professional baseball pitcher who is struck down with injury at the peak of his career. Shortly after this tragic turn of events, our protagonist decides to visit a theme park. It is here that our hero is greeted by a cow in a shirt and tie who enables our hero to throw again. This gift however, comes with a price. McMillan must make his way through this dark and twisted carnival, which is filled with horrors. Mostly just life sized dolls that resemble strange animal-human hybrids. Armed only with his pitching arm, McMillan must take it to this marionette army of zoo animals if he ever wants to return to Hall of Fame form. This is where our strange adventure begins.

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7

Wrecked: Revenge Revisited review (XBLA) + Highway to Hell (DLC)

By
Todd Schlickbernd
– April 4, 2012Posted in: Featured Reviews, Reviews, XBLA Reviews

Wrecked: Revenge Revisited was developed by Supersonic Software Ltd. and published by 505 Games. It was released March 28, 2012 for 1200 MSP. A copy was purchased by the reviewer.

Wrecked: Revenge Revisited is a shared screen combat racing game from the creators of Mashed and Micro Machines V4. In Wrecked, players vie for the lead on relatively short circuits, with an eliminator line chasing them. Anyone caught by the eliminator line is, you guessed it, eliminated. During the race corners are dangerous, as anyone who has taken geometry will tell you the line will cross a lot of distance on the outside corner. Power-ups litter each map and vary greatly, combining with the high speed racing to form a pretty darn chaotic game.

The game has 24 single player missions with set goals to beat and medals to earn, and that’s it for single player content. The game sports four player offline and online multiplayer and customization options for vehicles as well as race rules, and an XP system which grants players more customization options as they play the game. There are six tracks across which players will turn and burn, and four cars (all of which play identically) to choose from.

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3

Real Steel review (XBLA)

By
John Carson
– April 1, 2012Posted in: Featured Reviews, Reviews, XBLA Reviews

Real Steel was developed and published by Yuke’s Co., Ltd. It was released on December 14, 2011 for 800 MSP. A code was provided for review purposes.

Like its big-screen brother, one would have a fair amount of skepticism going into the game adaptation of Real Steel. However, unlike the film you will most likely find frustration rather than dumb fun. That’s a shame, really. There actually is ample potential within Real Steel, but issues that seem small at first end up ruining everything in the long run.

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9

South Park: Tenorman’s Revenge review (XBLA)

By
Andrew Crews
– March 31, 2012Posted in: Featured Reviews, Reviews, XBLA Reviews

South Park: Tenorman’s Revenge was developed by South Park Digital Studios/Other Ocean Interactive and was published by Microsoft Studios. It was released on March 30, 2012 for 800 MSP. A code was provided for review purposes.

South Park games have generally been good over the years. South Park Rally, South Park: Chef’s Luv Shack, and even South Park: Let’s Go Tower Defense Play! have all been solid titles leading one to think that when adopted in to a different form of entertainment, the brand would be presented with the same attention to quality that shows in each weekly episode. Sadly that is not the case with South Park: Tenorman’s Revenge. You’ll probably crack a brief smile during the opening story book cinematic, but shortly after that you’ll likely be filled with rage, frustration and absolute disbelief.

If you’re not familiar with South Park storylines, then all you really need to know is that Eric Cartman and Scott Tenorman pretty much hate each other. As a prank that started with Tenorman swindling Cartman out of $10, the rivalry quickly spiraled out of control as it lead to Cartman ultimately tricking Tenorman into eating his dead parents. Now Tenorman is back for his revenge and this time he has taken one of the most prized possessions from Eric Cartman, his Xbox 360 hard drive.

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