[09.09.15] Review: ‘Conflicks: Revolutionary Space Battles’

Artifice Studios

Conflicks: Revolutionary Space Battles

Rating:

5 Stars

Have you ever wondered what would happen to humanity if Leonardo Da Vinci had transmuted egg yolks into infinitely-powerful metamatter in the 16th Century? If you find yourself answering that question with a resounding “yes,” as you should, then fear not for the answer has arrived. “Conflicks: Revolutionary Space Battles” is a mashup of the popular physics-based puzzle genre and the established real-time strategy formula.

After Da Vinci’s astounding discovery, the course of history has been changed forever. Hen houses, as the source of the invaluable metamatter, have now become the most essential resource in the galaxy. As henhouses sprung up all over the world and, eventually, other planets, war followed while leaders everywhere struggled to gain control over the byproduct of the greatest discovery in history. Rumor has it that even the chickens are looking to rise up and take power, and this seems highly likely with the ongoing distraction the war provides.

As one of five lead characters, you fight to bring your forces to the top. Alongside the war comes an internal battle, one of moral struggle over eternal glory and unimaginable power. During this conflict, General Wilbur Pitbottom, Brother Octavio, Léonne d’Artagnan, Kain & Kaan, and Olympia traverse the galaxy each in a unique fleet of ships. Every protagonist takes on a wide variety of characters ranging from Hildegarde Von Chicken and Marquis de Moustache to Sheriff Drinkwater and Barron Pinkblossom. The battle rages on throughout a 21 mission single-player campaign packed full of variety and entertainment. There is also friendly and competitive multiplayer if you find yourself itching for more warfare after wetting your beak in the campaign. The real question is, does all of this add up to a blue ribbon prize or one big, rotten egg?

The Fun Stuff:

“Conflicks” is as goofy and self-humoring as they come. From the opening cinematic to the final battle of the campaign, the game never loses its identity or gives up on the comedy. Beyond the goofy premise, the game is loaded with lighthearted dialogue that deserves the occasional laugh-out-loud moment. From character names to spaceship designs, there are subtle touches everywhere that remind you of the ongoing comedy reminiscent of “Monty Python.”

In fact, this theme carries over to the visual style of “Conflicks” as well. The blend of humor, time periods, and… chickens create a unique art direction only Artifice Studio, the creators of the game, could claim. The game opens with a breathtaking cinematic which sets the overall tone of the game. The game then transitions to being told storybook style with pages that emulate the renaissance-like time period it has claimed interwoven with comic book style pop art.

Speaking of the gameplay, it is as unique an experience as the rest of the game. There are four separate factions with unique ships all perfectly balanced. “Conflicks” builds upon the standard RTS gameplay but throws a major curveball with its physics-based combat. Imagine taking the mechanics of “Angry Birds Space” and overlaying it on the battle system of “Starcraft.” If that makes any sense to you, then you should be eagerly anticipating your chance to play the game.

Once you dive in, there is plenty to experience. As mentioned, the single-player campaign spans a 21 missions. For players who may be new to the genre or find themselves confused by the RTS meets physics gameplay, there is a substantial tutorial available in the options menu which will have you feeling like an expert in no time. The campaign does an excellent job of pacing as you become acquainted with the battle system and fleet of ships available. The missions feature a nice variety of changing environments and interspersed multi-enemy battles. You can change the difficulty before each mission, ensuring you will not ever find yourself bored or dissuaded by the level of difficulty. After that, the gameplay is virtually limitless with the friendly and competitive multiplayer.

There’s also a nifty “Power Progression” system that improves your experience as you play. More importantly, it rewards you for experimenting and adding variety to your attack methods. Various ships have the ability to upgrade as you fulfill unique requirements. Some conditions are as simple as finishing one character’s chapter of the campaign. Others require a significant dedication, such as finishing 1st in 200 competitive mode matches with a particular ship. Ultimately, you end up with greater range in movement, faster cooldowns, and stronger attacks.

On a technical level, the game is flawless. Everything looks great, sounds great, and runs great. Even with a modest PC, the game does not demand much to give you the full experience. As expected, it comes with recommended setting but you can customize to fit your needs without really detracting from the experience. There aren’t excessive load times or poor textures – everything just works.

“Conflicks: Revolutionary Space Battles” is the rarest kind of early access game.

The Frustrating Stuff:

The greatest letdown you will face during “Conflicks” is with the visual presentation. Although everything looks great, and there is plenty of backstory to page through for each mission, it is impossible to get away from one disappointment. The game launches with an incredible cinematic that leaves you eagerly awaiting more and then lets you down by never delivering again. Although the storybook presentation is neat, it does not have the same awe factor as the beginning of the game. It is understandable for many reasons why the presentation takes this route, but you cannot help but wonder what glorious experience we could have had if the whole game received the same treatment as the opening sequence. At first glance, the mission selection scene is incredibly intimidating and confusing. Presented with a map of the galaxy, you have an abundance of things to click on and read. You can get lost in the overwhelming amount of information before becoming acquainted with the basics and realize all you actually needed to do was just press the “start mission” button to progress to the next challenge. The rest is done for you, automatically piloting your ship to the next location before pulling up the next part of the story.

From a technical level, the biggest thing “Conflicks” would benefit from is expanded camera controls. As is, they are not bad (think “The Sims” style controls). They would, however, benefit greatly from an ability to “quick jump” between different groups. Currently, the only option is to use the F-keys to jump between individual ships based on class. This means the F1 key will take you to a random patrol ship whereas F8 will jump to the mothership. Using this method requires you to remember what ships are grouped together. It also requires multiple button presses to jump between squads until you rotate to the one you were looking for.

Again, the current controls are not bad, they are just a little sluggish when you are trying to jump between grouped squads. It would be better to use keys to sort based on the number of ships grouped together. In other words, F1 would return to the mother ship. F2 would jump to singles so you could wrangle up the stragglers. F3 could jump to smaller clusters, such as the Henships (assuming you posted a few guards nearby). This continues up to F8, which would jump you to your largest group, presumably right where the main battle is taking place. Admittedly, this is not a perfect solution either, but it would provide a little less randomness to the controls.

Currently, if you want to zoom in for a more precise flick, you are left in the blind with your other ships. The process of zooming and panning afterward is laborious enough that your ships could easily die in the time you spend trying to get to them for a rescue. This sneak attack can be thwarted by using the Enter/Return key to engage “Tac-Chickal” mode that freezes time, but this also prevents you from attacking or moving until you un-pause. While this may save your ships, it does not cut down on the amount of time needed to navigate the camera.

This becomes exceptionally important during a couple later missions. When playing as Brother Octavio, you are given the duty of protecting your brother, Antonio. He starts under your control, but you eventually lose it if you do not launch an attack quick enough for his taste. At that point, he begins to take matters into his own hands and flies around at free will, aggressively pursuing the enemy. This would not be the worst thing in the world, except that his ship takes the “defense makes the best offense” stance. Antonio’s ship only has a large circular saw around his ship’s edge and does not feature any guns or missiles. This means he can only attack by slamming into enemy ships and sits vulnerable in between flings. Another fun mission quickly diverts into the begrudged “escort mission.” A similar process is repeated later when your brother is imprisoned, and you are racing against the clock to rescue him. These mission are undoubtedly the most frustrating in the whole game, which is why it is fortunate they only last one mission each.

Bottom Line:

“Conflicks: Revolutionary Space Battles” is the rarest kind of early access game. It is a substantial package, excessively refined before its release, and features an incredibly unique premise and design. This exceptional RTS game will have you chuckling, exploring, and battling to your heart’s content. If any early access game is deserving of your money, “Conflicks” is it. In fact, it does not even feel like an early access title. It feels more complete than many recent blockbusters we’ve seen! Above all, “Conflicks” feels like the next game you need to be playing.

“Conflicks: Revolutionary Space Battles” was developed by Artifice Studio. It was released in North America as a Steam Early Access title on August 20, 2015, with an MSRP of $19.99. A preview copy of this game was provided for review by Artifice Studios

[08.4.15] Review: ‘SongPop 2’

FreshPlanet

SongPop 2

Rating:

5 Stars

The original “SongPop” came onto the scene back in 2012 and took the mobile gaming world – as well as Facebook – by storm. Capitalizing on the “Name That Tune™” formula, it was difficult to imagine that anything could go wrong. That is not to say that it did not have its quirks but, then again, nothing is perfect. If success proves anything, it proves that “SongPop” was a fantastic title that people just could not get enough of it. So when the announcement came in mid-February that FreshPlanet was working on a sequel, it did not come as too much of a surprise. However, it did leave the question of: “What exactly could be done to improve the formula?” As it turns out, “Song Pop 2” could be a pretty fantastic answer to that question.

The Fun Stuff:

Everyone loves the “Name That Tune™” gameplay. Whether it be watching one of the incarnations of the television show that spanned nearly half a decade, the rare arcade game, board game, or even just playing with your friends. “SongPop” let you put that game in your pocket and take it anywhere you wanted to go. You could challenge friends via Facebook or even play strangers. It had a lot of popular songs from a wide variety of genres, allowing the music collection to appeal to a diverse audience. All in all, it was a great experience.

“SongPop 2” only builds upon that further by expanding its already massive collection to a staggering 100,000 songs. Better yet, veterans from the original title can carry over the playlists they have purchased and use them in the new game. That is what we like to call “Fan Service 101.” The music library continues to expand with weekly updates ranging from artist-specific playlists to top R&B songs of the 1990s, all of which can be purchased with in-game currency. This means you are not penalized if you do not want to shell out some extra cash.

The standard styles of play have returned and function as expected; but a new Party Mode has been added to the mix. Party Mode is kind of liking playing a standard round of the game, except you are playing against the entire world at the same time. After you finish the ten question quiz, your score gets posted on the weekly leaderboards where you can earn rewards and fight for the top spot. Also, playing daily earns you rewards – including free playlists. You get more game content free just for playing the game. If you feel like your skills are not up to par yet, you can always utilize the new Practice Mode. Practice mode allows you to sharpen your skills while playing against the computer. It also provides an excellent opportunity to brush up on the music collection.

The one thing that did receive a major overhaul is the graphics. Richard Perez, a highly acclaimed author and illustrator who has worked with the likes of Pinterest and Coca-Cola, put his signature style on the game. You may not recognize him by name, but you will instantly recognize his iconic look that every project he has his hands in receives. From top to bottom, the game is adorable, and Perez compliments the game’s addictive and fun gameplay with a perfect presentation.

It also seems safe to assume a lot of behind-the-scenes work has been done to ensure a smoother operation across the board. Most of it cannot and will not be witnessed by players. There is, however, one very subtle, yet very noticeable change that is the perfect cherry on top of this perfectly wrapped-up-game-package of an ice cream sundae. In the original “SongPop,” while taking your music quizzes, the song would start playing, and your four multiple choice options would pop on screen for you to make a choice. At face value, nothing sounds wrong there. The problem is, every once-in-a-while, you would have a bit of lag and this would delay or inhibit your choice. Regardless of the cause, that delay is frustrating in a game with a scoring system centralizing on how quickly you can answer a question. To solve this problem, FreshPlanet has made it, so the song choices pop up just a split second before your audio clue starts playing. This allows for even faster reaction times as you have already had a brief opportunity to survey your options. Now, the original “Song Pop” had already received this tweak, and it is a tiny change, but it has a massive impact that creates a lot of satisfaction while playing.

The Frustrating Stuff:

“SongPop 2” had the advantage of being built from an already solid base product. Sometimes, screws can get loose while you are making an upgrade. Fortunately, that is not the case in the event of this sequel. Structurally speaking, “SongPop 2” is solid and glitches, bugs, or force-close errors are never an issue. The game does have some faults, though.

It has come to be expected with any modern mobile game, but the constant nagging for social media integration is tiresome. While I have no qualms connecting my Facebook account to find people to play with, there are many people out there who just don’t want to do it. Asking them over and over and over again to do it will not solve the problem – it just makes them want to stop playing your game. It is fine to ask, but perhaps add the option to silence and remove those prompts at some point?

It is awesome that “SongPop” and “SongPop 2” are free-to-play. Unfortunately, the sequel takes a step back when it comes to the paid version of the game. With the original title, you can download and play the game entirely for free. If you want, you can buy coins with real world money which you can then use to get more playlists or power-ups, and that is fine.

Then there is the VIP Status. For the original “SongPop,” VIP Status: removes advertisements, bumps your simultaneous game limit to 100 games (unlimited for Facebook friends), gives you longer audio clips, higher sound quality, allows you to challenge from any profile, and see your “best match” (based off of playlist mastering) profiles’ pictures. For “SongPop 2,” you also receive unlimited chat, unlimited “best matches,” the ability to challenge your friends’ friends for free, and the ability to use a power up to challenge on any playlist. Between the two games, it is kind of like a… premium music service and music-based dating app rolled into one. This will cost you $1.99 per week, $4.99 per month, $12.99 for three months (“SongPop 2” only), or $39.99 annually. Now, to be fair, that is about ¼ the price of an annual subscription to Apple Music, Zune / Xbox Music / Groove, Google Play Music, or Spotify Premium. That being said, you can also listen to whatever you want, whenever you want with one of those streaming services. Having a subscription service for those things just really doesn’t make sense. Then again, dedicated players will buy it, so it does make sense from a business standpoint. However, the free version of “SongPop” was complimented by “SongPop Plus” which gave you all of those features, minus the profile picture, at the cost of a one-time, $1.99 purchase. “SongPop 2” does not have a comparable option, and that is too bad. But hey, they have instigated four weddings!

One huge missed opportunity is with the power-up system. This carried over from the original title and, sadly, stayed exactly the same. There is but one lone power up for the standard single-player experience. While playing, you have the option to remove two of the choices, resulting in a 50-50 chance. With the addition of Party Mode, it received its own set of power-ups; however, there are still only two from which to choose. You can receive a score boost for answering correctly within 3 seconds or receive an overall XP boost for your match.

These options are not terrible, but it would have been nice to see some more creativity across the board. Adding the score boost power up for speedy answers seems like a no-brainer for the standard single player experience. It might need to be tweaked slightly to keep the game balanced, but it does not seem far-fetched. Why stop there? Perhaps receiving a sneak peek at your answer choices for each question could be negotiated via power-ups. If you find yourself in a playlist you do not know as well, give yourself a slight edge by getting a one-second sneak peek at the audio clue before the scoring system engages. You could throw down a bulk of power-ups to overrule a playlist selection, give yourself the chance to put in two guesses for each question, slow down the song clips and timer to receive a give-and-take style power up, or even fire back at an opponent by distorting their audio or distracting them with a live-audience style feedback applied to the music. The possibilities are endless! You could even offer an additional “game mode” by having a vanilla no-power-up match alongside the all-out gauntlet of power-up-infused gameplay.

Bottom Line:

“SongPop 2” is the perfect example of a sequel done right. You do not always need to be revolutionary; sometimes you just need to focus on what you have going for you and refine that. Then, your product moves from what you actually released to what you had originally envisioned. While it suffers the same bane of micro-transactions that many other games have succumbed to; it is hard to blame any developer for participating in a trend that is becoming almost necessary for survival. Still, they are completely optional and don’t harm or hinder those who wish to avoid them. “SongPop 2” does not have anything “game-breaking” and, while it does have some minor faults, it is nothing that could not be tweaked with future updates. Even if it does not change at all, it will still be a must-have app for music and game show lovers everywhere.

“SongPop 2” was developed by FreshPlanet. It was released in North America on July 16 for free to iOS with plans for Facebook and Android versions coming at a later date. This review was based on a copy of the game downloaded on the release date.

[03.29.15] Review - ‘Cooking Fever’

Nordcurrent

Cooking Fever

Rating:

3 Stars

It has been a very long time since I've reviewed a game; although, I’m not entirely sure that this is even a review, a public service announcement, a blog, or what. I stopped writing reviews on principle. I don’t really believe most of what is put out is “bad,” and you can see that based off of the review scores I would attach to my early reviews. A lot of gamers and developers have gone a long way to argue that video games are art, and – assuming that is so – art is a subjective matter. So if these games are going to be viewed as art, then quality is really in the eye of the creator. That’s not to say that things can’t be bad, but very few things, at least until this past year, are released completely broken. In reality, it all comes down to a difference in opinions on what people find fun, and I respect that. Just because I don’t particularly enjoy MMORPG’s doesn't instantly make all of them bad. I think there’s pleasure to be found in most any game, evidenced by my review of “Duke Nukem Forever” which was absolutely obliterated by other reviewers everywhere. “Duke Nukem Forever” might be an extreme example, but sets an important precedence. Sometimes things don’t meet expectations, other times they just might be of very little interest to you, but neither of these things make a game terrible.

In the current day where studios pump out annual titles which all try to match the financial success of “Call of Duty,” there has spawned a belief that every title released has to be the number one seller or it’s a piece of garbage. Despite the iconic words of Ricky Bobby, there is – in fact – a whole spectrum of bad to good in which things can land. Companies gauge their success on Metacritic scores, but most review sites treat a scale of 1 to 10 as a scale of 1 or 10. That’s why I dropped the scoring system in favor of simply explaining what I enjoyed and what I didn't enjoy. That same belief is what later led me to drop reviews overall. Really, what authority am I on what you think is fun? We may have similar tastes, but I would rather you experience it for yourself and make your own decision. If you’re interested in knowing what games I do like (I’m flattered, and thank you for reading!), I generally prefer to cover the things that interest me. If I don’t like it, I probably won’t talk about it as much, and what better endorsement is there than free advertising?

Enough about me, though. The reason I’m writing all of this is because of a recent experience I had with a game which was an absolute blast, until it destroyed its own experience for me. There is a parasite that has infected the gaming industry to the frightening extent in which we’ve come to accept that this is “just how things are now.” Micro-transactions have infiltrated every kind of game and have hurt or even completely destroyed many promising titles. Obviously, from a financial standpoint, micro-transactions offer unmatched benefits, but at what cost? Some games can pull it off, such as “Grand Theft Auto V.” The micro-transactions are there, but they are unobtrusive and have minimal effect on those who chose not to use them. Other games are playable, such as “Plants vs. Zombies 2: It’s About Time,” but created a very frustrating environment where you’re constantly pestered and feel penalized if you don’t buy in. Then there are games, such as the one I’m reviewing, which essentially render themselves useless you shell out some cash.

The jarring end to my playtime in “Cooking Fever” is what ultimately inspired me to write this review. I was so disappointed that I was barred from progressing through the game without grinding tirelessly or shelling out some cash. I would have happily spent a few dollars to purchase this game or even put up with intermittent advertisements since the game was a free download. What I refuse to do, however, is pay into this unhealthy ecosystem created by micro-transactions, just so I can continue to play this one game. There are other experiences out there which I would rather spend my time on, and this is why my time with “Cooking Fever” has come to an end. This is why I’m writing my first (and possibly last) review in years.

The Fun Stuff:

“Cooking Fever” follows a similar formula to the one perfected by “Diner Dash.” Serve customers, do it correctly, and do it quickly. In return, you earn some money, customize or upgrade your restaurant, then do it some more. “Cooking Fever” takes it one step further by packing in multiple restaurants with many different foods to serve while negating the seating of the customers and color matching in favor of the actual assembly of their orders. You can then upgrade your kitchen, your restaurant, and eventually buy additional restaurants to get new levels.

When you begin each restaurant, you start with simple orders. As you beat levels, you gain additional dishes to serve or different toppings and sides for the foods, such as lettuce and tomatoes for burgers, bowls of rice and soup, or fruit toppings for cakes. Meals become more complex and the number of orders increases as well. You also unlock the ability to upgrade your food and ingredients. Eventually, it becomes necessary to upgrade your food as well as your restaurant in order to earn enough money to 3-star levels, as it uses the same grading system popularized in “Angry Birds.” As you beat levels, you earn XP which allow you to level up, earn bonuses, and unlock additional restaurants. Customization is always a nice touch, so letting you pick and choose which restaurants you want to play, as well as customize your interior and kitchen via upgrades, is fantastic.

“Cooking Fever” is also very pretty, with a detailed-yet-cartoony graphic palette, reminiscent of early “Roller Coaster Tycoon” games. The restaurant environments are fun and feel like they belong in a Saturday morning cartoon. The foods themselves actually look delicious and make you want to go out and buy something similar in real life. Menus are laid out nicely, are easy to follow and understand, but are just on the verge of packing in too much information.

The Frustrating Stuff:

This style of game benefits greatly from a touch screen control scheme. On a 5” screen, however, it can be rather problematic at times. The game looks pretty, but over half of the screen real-estate is wasted on displaying the backdrop, customers, and their orders. This severely limits the playable area and makes everything very cramped. Combine that with opacity of a human finger and you’ll find there’s going to be the occasional misstep combining ingredients, which can’t be undone. It’s not game-breaking by any means, but it’s most definitely frustrating when it happens. If you have the hardware, opt into a tablet experience for this game.

That point may be moot, as there is one glaring issue with this game: the premium currency, or rather, the lack of readily available premium currency. After 3-staring every level in the first restaurant and about half the levels in the second restaurant, my progress came to a grinding halt. Even with virtually perfect runs, I could only 2-star the remaining levels in the restaurant. After burning through all of my gems (premium currency) to upgrade the restaurant and food, I bought every single upgrade possible that only required coins (base currency). Still, I could not earn enough to 3-star a level. There is a casino available in which players can gamble coins in hopes of earning gems, but after spending over 450,000 coins max-bidding at 500 and only winning gems once, I gave up.

The only other way to earn gems was to level up, which would require playing the same levels over and over again numerous times, or to earn them from the daily bonus. Gems, however, were not awarded until the 7th consecutive day played and I was only on my 3rd. The reward is also only 2 gems, and the lowest upgrade cost 10. This means I’m left with three options: hours of grinding, waiting it out for a week and a half, or buying gems. This is where my playtime came to an end, as I lost interest for having to wait days to really be able to play and progress. Perhaps it was so jarring because the game presented itself as a “play at your pace” kind of game and has the “Diner Dash” model, which traditionally would let you play as much or little as you wanted. It also could be because the currency system is set up similar to games like “Tiny Tower,” but completely bars progress instead of just slowing it like in those games. Either way, this is where the game ultimately ruined itself for me.

Bottom Line:

“Cooking Fever” was an absolute blast, while it lasted. As a free download, I highly recommend you pick it up to at least enjoy as much as you can. With the right pacing of upgrades, it might be possible to prevent getting locked up as quickly as I did; however, you will inevitably hit a brick wall at some point. If you so choose, you can always buy gems… although I strongly encourage you to vote with your money and refuse to give in to the temptations. While micro-transactions will never go away, hopefully we can fight this current trend in which they have infiltrated virtually every game released today. While I wholeheartedly believe developers deserve money for the work they have done, I don’t believe it should be paid out in a way that compromises the quality of the game.

“Cooking Fever” was developed by Nordcurrent and is available on Google Play for Android and the App Store for iPhone and iPad.

 

[03.31.13] Review: ‘Pocket Planes’

NimbleBit LLC

In 2012, NimbleBit stole our hearts with the adorable game, “Tiny Tower”. After its immense success, they took the formula and applied to a much larger venue: an airline company. In “Pocket Planes”, instead of managing the day-to-day operations of a tower, you’re in full control of an entire fleet of airplanes. You buy your planes, choose your airport locations, pick your passengers, and schedule your flights. It’s a simple enough process of push some buttons and wait, utilizing the same inherently addicting formula that made “Tiny Tower” a hit; but does the fun carry over when you massively upgrade the scale?

The Fun Stuff:

“Tiny Tower” posed the question, what could possibly be more fun than owning the next Trump Tower? Well, NimbleBit found the answer: having an armada of aircrafts at your disposure! You start small with one or two passenger planes, but as you progress, you can purchase significantly larger planes, and larger airports in distant cities. There’s also the joy of mild customization, choosing each airplane’s call sign, paint scheme, and even the outfit of your pilot. There’s also the option of upgrading both your planes and airports.

Once again, NimbleBit draws from the pristine combination of micromanagement, real-time strategy, and fine-tuned wait times that allow you to play on your own time in small increments. Once again, there’s no requirement to play, but your efforts are increasingly rewarded the more you check back. If you do have a chunk of time to play, you’re not stranded if all your planes are mid-flight. You can follow your planes and collect in-game currency that flies past your airships as an extra reward, however you’re in no way required to participate in this mini-game to be able to play. Enough money is awarded by simply managing flights properly.

The greatest improvement “Pocket Planes” makes is the implementation of the “Flight Crew”. This allows you to join up with other friends who play and fight your way up the leaderboards to earn prizes that range from more in-game currency to full on planes. There’s also a new marketplace feature where you can purchase planes or just parts of planes to construct them yourself. Buying a plane piece by piece takes longer, as not all pieces are available at all times, however if you win a piece during a competition (which run every few days), it allows you to purchase the remainder of the pieces you need, and ultimately, you can get a plane for much cheaper than buying it outright.

The Frustrating Stuff:

The biggest complaint about “Pocket Planes” comes from its greatest asset: the Flight Crews. While their implementation goes a long way to extend the life of the game, it also adds an unparalleled level of frustration. There’s no rules or restrictions to who can join flight crews, which means anybody can join up with anybody, which allows for the creation of one “master crew” who always wins. In fact, that’s not just a possibility, but the reality thanks to the online community at TouchArcade. The members there banded together to create the largest flight crew in “Pocket Planes” by a long shot, with which they dominate the competition day in and day out. While the collaboration is awesome, the problem comes from the lack of restrictions granting anyone access to the flight crew. That privilege is abused and many with no connection to the community have latched on purely to reap the rewards. Because of this, the glamor of climbing the leaderboards wears off significantly faster.

The excitement wears off quick too, as the addition of new planes nowhere near matches the excitement of new floors in “Tiny Tower” due to the lack in variety in comparison. To counteract that, there’s more than just realistic planes, which are occasionally given out as rewards. You can collect everything from a starship to a hot air balloon, which are fun, although not as effective as other airplanes available on a regular basis.

Bottom Line:

“Pocket Planes” drastically improved upon the success of “Tiny Tower” and breathed new life into the formula with its exciting improvements. If you were a fan of the latter, it’s highly recommended you give their new game a try, as you’ll delight in the fresh new take. If you have yet to join the millions addicted to this style of game, “Pocket Planes” is a perfect entry point because of its simplicity and entertainment value. No matter where you stand, it’s absolutely worth the download at the appealing price of free.

“Pocket Planes” for iOS

“Pocket Planes” for Android

Pocket Planes was initially developed by NimbleBit LLC and was optimized for Android by Mobage. It was released in North America on June 14, 2012 (iOS) and September 22, 2012 (Android) and is not rated by the ESRB. This review was based on an Android copy of the game.

Anthony Ortale writes news and reviews on behalf of Examiner.com. He does so much gaming in his spare time, it’s practically a full time job! If you like what you read here, please subscribe to his articles! You can also follow Tony on Twitter, or become a fan on Facebook! If you ever have any questions, comments, or concerns, feel free to email Tony any time at ortale.anthony@gmail.com, he’d love to hear from you

[12.08.12] Review: ‘Style Savvy: Trendsetters’

Nintendo

Style Savvy: Trendsetters

Rating:

5 Stars

I’ll admit, when I first got “Style Savvy: Trendsetters” I was a little taken back. This wasn’t my usual kind of game, and I wasn’t really sure what to do with it. Nintendo has been doing a huge push recently to make sure girls know that the 3DS is for them too. One of the titles being marketed for that campaign currently is the aforementioned “Style Savvy: Trendsetters”, which is how I wound up with a copy to review. Not knowing too much about the game, I was going in completely blind, and perhaps that was for the best.

“Style Savvy: Trendsetters” is a game all about creating outfits and running a little clothing boutique. It features over 12,000 clothing items and accessories that can be mixed and matched to create various styles of outfits. You’ll be in charge of purchasing inventory for your store, helping customers pick out items or full outfits to purchase, and socializing with customers and other key people throughout town. If you so choose, there are even fashion competitions to enter.

The Fun Stuff:

If you’re a gamer who likes to customize, you might find this game intriguing. With so many different combinations possible from so many items, it’s a customizer’s dream. Not only do you get to create outfits for customers, but all items purchased for the shop are also delivered to your home so you can use them to create an outfit for your own character. You do get to customize the appearance of your character as well as pick the appearance of your house and boutique.

As you do positive things through the game, you gradually fill up a happiness meter which, when full, causes different things to happen in the game. Sometimes a new shop opens in town and other times a new clothing line will move into the buyer’s center. It’s a nice little rewards system in the game that gives you something to work towards so the game doesn’t become stale.

The Frustrating Stuff:

Although the clothing choices are plentiful and there’s a considerable amount of options for customizing your house and boutique, the number of choices for creating a character are relatively basic and minimal. You also don’t have the option of choosing to play as a male character, which is a little unusual since this game was the first in the series to introduce male customers and outfits for them. That being said, there probably are far fewer guys playing “Style Savvy: Trendsetters” than there are girls.

If the lack of a male character wasn’t enough proof that it’s being marketed mainly to younger girls, there’s the awful in-game dialogue as supporting evidence. Let’s just say that if “Style Savvy: Trendsetters” was a movie, it wouldn’t be winning an award for Best Screenplay. The story is incredible plain and simple, and the dialogue can be downright painful at times to someone who is used to a much deeper, more mature and developed story. That being said, it’s also quite obvious that “22-year-old male” probably wasn’t the developer’s target audience, so with that in mind the content is rather appropriate.

Bottom Line:

I actually had a blast playing “Style Savvy: Trendsetters”. As a fan of “The Sims”, it felt very reminiscent of that series. It’s kind of like creating your house and Sim over and over again. If you enjoy creating custom characters in games and think you have a knack for fashion, this is definitely the game for you. However, if you’re looking for a lot of action or in-depth storytelling, stray far far away from this game as it’s not meant to satisfy either of those needs.

Style Savvy: Trendsetters was developed by syn Sophia & Nintendo SPD and was published by Nintendo. It was released in North America on October 22, 2012 with an ‘E’ rating from the ESRB and an MSRP of $39.99. This review was based on a copy of the game provided for reviewing purposes.

Anthony Ortale writes news and reviews on behalf of Examiner.com. He does so much gaming in his spare time, it’s practically a full time job! If you like what you read here, please subscribe to his articles! You can also follow Tony on Twitter, or become a fan on Facebook! If you ever have any questions, comments, or concerns, feel free to email Tony any time at ortale.anthony@gmail.com, he’d love to hear from you

[11.13.12] Review: ‘Medal of Honor: Warfighter’

Electronic Arts

Medal of Honor: Warfighter

Rating:

4 Stars

After rebooting “Medal of Honor” in 2010, it came as no surprise when Electronic Arts announced a follow-up title for this year. Totting the tagline “the only realistic shooter this holiday season”, it gave itself a lot to live up to; however, its predecessor proved that if any game could do it, “Medal of Honor” would be the brand. Once again, Danger Close worked closely with Tier 1 Operators, relying on them to actually write the story for the game, so they could pull from their own experiences and create the most authentic game possible.

The Fun Stuff:

Realistic it is, starting with the cut scenes. Just like “Battlefield 3”, there is an optional HD graphics download you can install, and it’s highly recommended that you do. The cut scenes are drop dead gorgeous. Occasionally, you’ll probably find yourself questioning if it’s live action or not. The graphics carry over into the game too. Although not quite as jaw-dropping as the CGI, they’re still beautiful and push the Xbox 360 to its absolute limits. Sound mixing is, once again, fantastic too which adds to the realism.

“Warfighter” also utilizes the Frostbite 2 engine, allowing for destructible environments in all the right places to add another subtle touch of realism. Wood shatters from grenade explosions and small chunks of the wall will chip away when grazed with bullets. It really shines during the door breaches. The coolest part is you can unlock multiple unique breaching animations so you can destroy that door in any way you please. Whether you decide to place a charge and blow the door to smithereens or take a tomahawk to the doorknob, it all happens in excruciatingly beautiful detail. You can spend all the time you want looking at the details too, because there isn’t any intel or collectible item you have to find during the campaign. For that, gamers everywhere rejoice.

There’s more to “Warfighter” than just shooting things. From time to time, you’ll find yourself behind the wheel – and it’s a surprisingly pleasant experience. One mission in particular, titled “Hello and Dubai”, has you driving for the entire mission. Don’t worry though; it’s anything but a chore. During one segment, the mission actually felt a lot like the ‘Burnout’ series, as it required you to take down enemy vehicles pursuing you. The driving is smooth and used just to the right amount that it’s always entertaining and never annoying.

The multiplayer has been overhauled too. You now always have a buddy who you can rely on for ammunition and healing, as well as temporary tactical advantages when they get killed. It still follows the FPS standard of kill streaks, ranking up, and unlocking new things, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing as they’ve essentially become established components of any successful shooter. It’s actually a good deal of fun, and should become even more interesting next month when a new map pack tied in to the “Zero Dark Thirty” movie is released.

The Frustrating Stuff:

Unfortunately, though, for everything that “Warfighter” has done right, it seems they’ve done something wrong too. Despite the incredibly beautiful graphics, it seems they forgot – or simply ignored –the concept of “dynamic lighting”. In a game that’s going for realism, this is something that probably shouldn’t be overlooked. There’s nothing sillier and more disappointing (in a ‘realistic’ game) than realizing that your character is incapable of casting shadows, as is anything and everything else passing through lighted areas.

Taking another step away from realism, it sees the A.I. have gotten an intelligence upgrade –but not in a good way. The A.I. in the previous “Medal of Honor” were pleasantly realistic in terms of how they acted with you. Unfortunately, they’ve gained god-like intelligence on the hardest difficulties like in the rival “Call of Duty” series where the enemy knows exactly where you are before you even show up. On the bright side, you companions are equally intelligent and still just as capable of killing enemies for you like they were in the previous game.

Although having the ability to choose how you want to breach an area is really awesome, you’ll soon realize it’s purely cosmetic. No matter how you enter, it always turns out the same. Oh, and a very large majority of the time, there will conveniently be exactly 4 bad guys behind the door. It starts to feel repetitive pretty quickly.

Speaking of repetitive, be prepared for yet another training session running through airplanes. There’s even an achievement tied to completing the course with a quick time – something that should feel a little familiar to fans of the “Call of Duty” series… or pretty much any other modern first person shooter for that matter. To add to the awkwardness, this training actually takes place after completing the first mission, which throws you straight into the action and expects those unfamiliar with shooters to just deal with it. There is one awesome thing about the training facility, though. Without giving away anything about the story, it’s safe to say they do actually tie it in to the story in a very neat way.

Bottom Line:

For anyone who was a fan of 2010’s “Medal of Honor”, this is a must buy. For everyone else mildly interested, it’s probably still worth picking up if you can find a decent sale on it. The story and beautiful cut scenes are definitely worth experiencing. If you don’t want to divide up your time between multiple first person shooters this holiday season though, you’ll probably want to pass over this title as there are much better titles worthy of your $60 this season between “Black Ops II” and “Halo 4”, depending on which series you align yourself with.

Medal of Honor: Warfighter was developed by Danger Close Games and was published by Electronic Arts. It was released in North America on October 23, 2012 with an ‘M’ rating from the ESRB and an MSRP of $59.99. This review was based on an Xbox 360 copy of the game purchased on the release date.

Anthony Ortale writes news and reviews on behalf of Examiner.com. He does so much gaming in his spare time, it’s practically a full time job! If you like what you read here, please subscribe to his articles! You can also follow Tony on Twitter, or become a fan on Facebook! If you ever have any questions, comments, or concerns, feel free to email Tony any time at ortale.anthony@gmail.com, he’d love to hear from you

[10.13.12] Review: ‘Spec Ops: The Line’

2K Games, Yager Development

Spec Ops: The Line

Rating:

5 Stars

Between 1998 and 2002, eight games in the “Spec Ops” series launched across the PlayStation, Dreamcast, and Windows PCs, almost all to relatively abysmal reviews. So why would anyone want to revive a dead series, a full decade later? Who knows, but 2K Games apparently had a good reason to. Together with Yager Development, they take you on a journey to Dubai with an elite Delta Force team, headed up by Captain John Walker. They’re doing reconnaissance after a wave of horrible sandstorms left the city in ruins and the 33rd Battalion of the United States Army stranded within. The 33rd, led by Colonel John Konrad, were running an evac operation when things went south. After invoking martial law, the 33rd was publicly disavowed for treason and the city was declared a “no-man’s land” by the United Arab Emirates. Captain Walker finds evidence that the 33rd staged a coup d’état against Konrad, and suddenly the reconnaissance mission turns into a rescue mission.

The Fun Stuff:

“Spec Ops: The Line” is absolutely gorgeous, in a beat-up and run-down kind of way. It all starts with the start menu which is a panorama of Dubai. As it turns out, it’s also the launching pad for the game in more ways than one. As soon as you start the campaign, you’re immediately in the action. Without even cutting, the camera pans and suddenly you’re in a helicopter firing a mini gun. Even under such dire consequences, the city of Dubai is breathtaking. Throughout the game you’ll weave in and out of, walk up to the edge of, fall through, and zip-line between many of the towering buildings around you. You’ll be traversing the buildings and interacting with them in some incredibly unique ways.

This is all thanks to the star of the game. No, I don’t mean Captain Walker – I’m talking about the sand. In an article for Official Xbox Magazine, the developers stated that they intended to “do for sand what ‘Bioshock’ did for water.” Because of this, you’ll find yourself interacting with sand constantly throughout the game. Unfortunately, the majority of it is scripted, but it’s still a thrill to use. Often, you’ll be able to shoot out a wall or window, causing a towering bank of sand to come pouring in, smothering enemies or entire areas, allowing you to now access places you previously could not. Although the game throws it in your face a few times, there are still plenty of opportunities where the ability to do so is left for your discovery. Explosions will also cause clouds of sand to puff into the air, temporarily blinding nearby enemies, which is another nice touch.

It’s a darn good thing that happens too, because you’ll need to stretch every grenade as far as you possibly can. The same can be said about ammo. If you thought ammunition was scarce in “Dead Space”, wait until you play “Spec Ops: The Line”. On the hardest difficulties, headshots are a must, and you’ll often have to rely on giving your squad mates attack commands to help conserve ammo. The greatest thing about “Spec Ops: The Line” is that it almost feels more like a survival horror game than a third person military shooter.

Despite the incredibly drab and generic title, “Spec Ops: The Line” has a phenomenal story. As Colonel Konrad’s name alludes to, it draws heavily from Joseph Conrad’s novel “Heart of Darkness”, or for you movie fans, “Apocalypse Now”, a Vietnam War era adaptation of the book. Without giving away too much of the story, it’s safe to say the game presents you with multiple difficult moral decisions and will pull you deep into the universe of “Spec Ops: The Line”. The story is so spectacular; you’ll want to play through it immediately again afterwards.

The game demands a second play through, both because of the story and the achievements. Thankfully, there are no multiplayer achievements, and none of the achievements are too ridiculous or difficult to get. In fact, it’s possible to 100% the game with just two play throughs.

The Frustrating Stuff:

There’s more to the game than just the single-player story, though, much to Yager’s dismay. 2K Games required a multiplayer component to the game, which its developers weren’t too happy about. According to Cody Davis, lead designer at Yager,

"It sheds a negative light on all of the meaningful things we did in the single-player experience. The multiplayer game's tone is entirely different, the game mechanics were raped to make it happen, and it was a waste of money. No-one is playing it, and I don't even feel like it’s part of the overall package - it's another game rammed onto the disk like a cancerous growth, threatening to destroy the best things about the experience that the team at Yager put their heart and souls into creating."

Truth be told, the multiplayer isn’t horrible, but it’s nothing exhilarating or ground breaking either. There’s not much reward for playing through it, and those who have already spent a lot of time in it have a significant advantage over those just starting out, thanks to the XP-based unlock system. It’s also nearly vacant of players and a victim to proximity mine spamming.

Its sad time had to be wasted on the development of multiplayer, because it likely prevented what could have otherwise been a nearly flawless game. Despite the gorgeous presentation and awesome soundtrack, the enemies do suffer from repetitive character models. The voice acting in the game is stellar, with the exception that the script manages to drop more f-bombs than the movie “Inside Man”. There was also the occasional glitch, although they were typically just amusing and certainly never game-breaking.

Bottom Line:

“Spec Ops: The Line” is probably one of the most underrated games of 2012. Despite the generic title, it sports an outstanding story and a very refined game. There’s one thing that’s for sure, Yager knew exactly what they wanted and they did a fantastic job of crafting it. If you appreciate a story-driven single player experience, this is the game for you. Don’t expect much replay value out of the multiplayer, though. If you’re looking for rinse and repeat military shooting, go elsewhere, because “Spec Ops: The Line” made sure it stood out from the bunch.

Spec Ops: The Line was developed by Yager Developement and was published by 2K Games. It was released in North America on June 26, 2012 with an ‘M’ rating from the ESRB and an MSRP of $59.99. This review was based on a copy of the game purchased after the release date.

Anthony Ortale writes news and reviews on behalf of Examiner.com. He does so much gaming in his spare time, it’s practically a full time job! If you like what you read here, please subscribe to his articles! You can also follow Tony on Twitter, or become a fan on Facebook! If you ever have any questions, comments, or concerns, feel free to email Tony any time at ortale.anthony@gmail.com, he’d love to hear from you

[09.06.12] Review: ‘Lollipop Chainsaw’

Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment

Lollipop Chainsaw for the Xbox 360

Rating:

5 Stars

When was the last time you could say a video game actually made you laugh out loud? If you have yet to experienced Suda51’s latest game, you may find yourself searching for a while. However, those who have played “Lollipop Chainsaw” can answer that question with ease. “Lollipop Chainsaw” is an action hack and slash video game similar to “X-men Origins: Wolverine” that’s “bursting with Sex, Blood, and Rock ‘n’ Roll”.

It’s a big day for 18-year-old Juliet Starling. It’s her birthday and her family is about to meet her boyfriend Nick for the first time. Oh yeah, and there’s an impending zombie invasion. After meeting Nick in the park, he’s bitten by a zombie, leaving Juliet no choice but to cut off his head with her chainsaw. After he awakes, he discovers he’s somehow still alive, and now just a severed head attached to Juliet’s belt. She reveals to him that she’s actually a zombie hunter. Together, with the help of the rest of Juliet’s zombie-hunting family, they take on the hordes of zombies that have overrun San Romero High School. Sound crazy enough for you?

The Fun Stuff:

“Lollipop Chainsaw” is just an all-around entertaining package from start to finish. The presentation is fantastic. The main menu, along with the pause menu, is designed with a comic book feel. Once you’re in the game itself, the whole setup feels very reminiscent of some of the best arcade hack-and-slash games of the 80’s and 90’s. To go with it, some of the best songs from that era adorn the soundtrack in all the appropriate places. Bearing that in mind, the game screams cheesy goodness. There’s nothing quite like riding around on a combine mowing down zombies while listening to “You Spin Me Round (Like a Record)”.

As far as difficulty goes, you can make it as easy or hard as you like. The control scheme is fairly simple, and although there are a lot of combos, they too are simple and it won’t take anyone too long to grasp. The gameplay follows a pretty simple formula that also won’t be difficult for new users or veterans alike to understand. There are a few extra quirks, mostly in the form of achievements, for dedicated fans that wish to perfect their game; however, no one will be stunted by the occasional mistake.

The Frustrating Stuff:

The game is short, by nature, although it’s not too terrible of a thing. This is the kind of game you’ll want to replay to try and beat high scores. It’s also worth replaying for all of those “wait, did they really just say that?” moments. The only time where replay gets really annoying is when you get stuck at a particularly difficult checkpoint and have to listen to the same jokes over and over. Likewise, going into the “Chop and Shop” in game store is hilarious the first time, until you realize that Juliet isn’t going to shut up and “Lollipop” plays on loop nonstop. These are the only areas where the game could have used a little more variety and polish.

Bottom Line:

Just like the game’s protagonist, Juliet, “Lollipop Chainsaw” is short but sweet. It’s an absolute blast to play whether you wish to challenge yourself on the harder difficulties, or just do some mindless zombie killing on the easier ones. At about 6 hours playtime on an average difficulty, replaying is a must to really get your money’s worth, but you can also use that time to gather up achievements, none of which are too terribly difficult to collect.

Although it doesn’t really feel like a full-fledged $60 release, there’s plenty of entertainment to satisfy about a $35 price point. If you find a sale around that point, definitely grab a copy because this is one crazy experience you don’t want to miss – assuming you’re of age, that is. Much like the aforementioned “X-Men Origins” and another great title “Mafia II”, ‘Lollipop Chainsaw” definitely earns it’s “M” rating.

“Lollipop Chainsaw” was developed by Grasshopper Manufacture and was published by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment in collaboration with Kadokawa Shoten. It was released in North America on June 12, 2012 with an M rating from the ESRB and an MSRP of $59.99. This review was based on a copy of the game purchased on the release date.

Anthony Ortale writes news and reviews on behalf of Examiner.com. He does so much gaming in his spare time, it’s practically a full time job! If you like what you read here, please subscribe to his articles! You can also follow Tony on Twitter, or become a fan on Facebook! If you ever have any questions, comments, or concerns, feel free to email Tony any time at ortale.anthony@gmail.com, he’d love to hear from you

[08.17.12] Review: 'Pixel Blocked!'

Daniel Truong

Pixel Blocked

Rating:

5 Stars

'Pixel Blocked!' is a brand new game from Daniel Truong, an indie developer out of Vancouver. Hailed as This unique puzzler finds inspiration from the popular pastime 'Picross' and blends it with mechanics from the popular 'Bust-A-Move' series and a little dash of 'Tetris'. Of course, it adds a few twists of its own and wraps it all up with a nice 8-bit inspired presentation.

Featuring over 180 puzzles across 3 difficulty levels, players are faced with an incomplete 'pixel image' and are challenged to fill in the remaining blank spots by shooting blocks onto the grid while doing so with as few moves as possible. It sounds easy, but as the levels progress, it can become really taxing on the mind. Not to worry though! Your struggle will be rewarded with additional game modes, backgrounds, characters, and 'Awardments'.

The Fun Stuff:

‘Pixel Blocked!’ is a fast paced puzzler that’s really easy to grasp and play, but very hard to perfect. The concept is incredibly simple: finish the pixel image. It’s this kind of simplicity that makes the game incredibly addictive. The controls are minimal and easy to learn so anyone can pick it up almost instantly. There’s plenty of content to go around too. With so much to unlock, it keeps you hooked as you try to unlock a new character or background.

The puzzles are grouped into four categories, designated by difficulty. They unlock in succession upon completion of 50% of the previous group. Once a group is unlocked, every single puzzle within the group is instantly available and can be played in any order. This is great for when one particular shape is really giving you trouble. You can simply pass it up and come back later to try again. It’s likely you’ll find yourself using this strategy frequently, as staring at the same shapes again and again can get rather taxing. You’ll swear a particular puzzle is impossible, give up, try again tomorrow, and easily find the solution. Somehow, this never grows old though because the game wraps you in its spell and demands you finish every puzzle.

Perhaps it’s the charming design, which follows the suit of the ever-popular ‘Minecraft’ with its “less is more” graphics. Everything is pixelated, as the name suggests, and everything looks fantastic. Everything is straight forward. Blocks that look cracked crumble, blocks that have magnets snag blocks that try to pass by, and the solid metal blocks are permanent. The soundtrack adds to the nostalgic feel as well. Despite being completely original, you’ll feel like you’ve heard all the songs in various games from the 8 and 16-bit era. The sound effects are also in character with the soundtrack, often tricking you into thinking they’ve been ripped right out of other classic games.

The Frustrating Stuff:

The whole game is frustrating, incredibly frustrating! However this is one of those very rare instances where that’s not a bad thing. Perfecting ‘Pixel Blocked!” takes an unbelievable amount of dedication. If you’re going to attempt to get a gold ranking on both moves and time in every puzzle, the game demands perfect reflexes and practically memorizing solutions. It’s the fist-clenching, controller-throwing, explicative-inducing kind of frustration. What’s so special about ‘Pixel Blocked!’ is that, much like ‘Super Mario Bros.’ – the later levels, not the first few that everyone beats – or the slightly more recent ‘Demon Souls’ and ‘Dark Souls’, it throws your failure right in your face... yet has you crawling back for more and more.

Bottom Line:

If you like puzzle games, nostalgia, or painstakingly difficult yet addictive games, you’ve found your next gem. Anyone with the slightest interest should definitely pick it up because it’s easy enough for anyone and everyone to play. You don’t have to be in the elite group crazy enough to perfect the game to play, because simply completing the puzzles is enough to still experience the game to its full potential. Be warned, though, after a short time with ‘Pixel Blocked!’ it’s charm will have you locked in and wanting to 100% it, so maybe you should consider purchasing a wrist strap for your controller, grabbing an otterbox for your phone, or putting a barrier between you and your monitor.

Pixel Blocked! was developed by Daniel Truong and was independently published. It was released in North America on July 20, 2012. This review was based on an Xbox 360 copy of the game provided by the developer for the purpose of reviewing.

If you're interested in checking out 'Pixel Blocked!', you can visit the website here to purchase it for PC, DRM free, or download the game from the appropriate link below:
Xbox 360 (trial)
Xbox 360 (full game)
Windows Phone 7 (free)
Windows Phone 7 (full game)

Anthony Ortale writes news and reviews on behalf of Examiner.com. He does so much gaming in his spare time, it’s practically a full time job! If you like what you read here, please subscribe to his articles! You can also follow Tony on Twitter, or become a fan on Facebook! If you ever have any questions, comments, or concerns, feel free to email Tony any time at ortale.anthony@gmail.com, he’d love to hear from you

[07.12.12] Review: 'Amazing Alex'

Rovio

After taunting us with nothing but vague details on their new game, Rovio has finally launched their next big hit "Amazing Alex" for iOS and Android today. As expected, it launched with a $0.99 price point and comes packed full of levels. There's a fantastic tutorial, tons of items to utilize, and four different locations to play in. They've even added a level builder to keep the fun going after you've beat the initial 100 levels 'Amazing Alex' launched with and essentially provided limitless content as users can upload their created levels and download other's creations. It certainly sounds like they've found the formula for success.

Rovio

The Fun Stuff:

People like physics-based puzzle games, and Rovio has proved that already with the immense popularity of their "Angry Birds" series. Thus, they've decided to stick to the genre that's treated them so well, and that is definitely a good thing. The concept of setting up Rube Goldberg machines is an absolute blast, and to compliment that, Rovio has developed top-notch physics for the game. It's not to say that everything is perfectly realistic; but rather that everything act and reacts the way you would expect it to in one of their games. Balls bounce, towers topple, balloons lift things above them... there simply are no awkward surprises.

The number of items in the game is astounding too. Everything from trap doors and bowling balls to RC monster trucks and mechanical punching fists. Even the evil pigs from "Angry Birds" make a cameo as a piggy bank. Every object's behavior is self-explanatory, and you'll rarely find yourself doing a trial-and-error test run on just one particular object to try to understand how it works. Instead, you'll just grab and place each object like you've been doing it your whole life.

Each new location adds additional objects to the puzzles, and gives you the opportunity to gather more for your own collection in the "My Levels" section. As you complete sections and earn stars, you'll unlock additional items which can then be used to build your own custom levels to share with the world. It gives you a chance to flex your creativity in a different way while simultaneously garnering the pleasure of stumping your friends with your top-notch puzzle designing skills.

The Frustrating Stuff:

The downside to the level creator is the restrictions Rovio has placed on users. Instead of being able to design levels and pick challenges freely, you're restricted to one mission goal: collect three stars. This means you can't have any of the secondary objective such as getting a particular ball into a basket or popping all the balloons on screen. This is somewhat of a disappointment seeing as that's really the foundation of the entire game and was the basis of its back story:

From cleaning his room to battling cardboard robots in his backyard, Alex creates amazing chain reactions to get the job done.

Apparently, the key to cleaning his room is picking up all the stars he dropped. As far as what collecting stars has to do with battling cardboard robots, not even the best "Amazing Alex" puzzle solvers can figure that one out.

There is only one other frustrating thing about "Amazing Alex", but fortunately it's rather nit-picky. When attempting to rotate objects, you need to make sure there's enough space for them to rest at the angle you want them to finish at, otherwise the object will just reset to it's original orientation when you let go. On the earlier levels, it's not much of a problem because there is plenty of free space to rotate the objects in. In the later levels though, things get much more crowded, and you'll occasionally find yourself having to disrupt sections you've already placed perfectly just so you can make a minor tweak to another item causing problems.

Bottom Line:

Rovio has done it again with "Amazing Alex", creating yet another puzzle masterpiece. It's an incredible blend of overcoming challenges while simply having fun. Creating the complex chain reactions is so intuitive and entertaining, people of all ages will find themselves as engulfed by the aura of "Amazing Alex" as they did with "Angry Birds." Just like those titles, at $0.99 it's a complete steal when you consider the amount of content packed into the game, and with free future updates planned, you'd be a fool not to join in the fun.

Download Links:

Google Play - Lite Version / Full Version
Amazon AppStore - Lite Version / Full Version
iTunes - Full Version

Amazing Alex was developed by Rovio. It was released in North America on July 12, 2012. It's available on iOS and Android. This review was based on an Android copy purchased on the release date.

Anthony Ortale writes news and reviews on behalf of Examiner.com. He does so much gaming in his spare time, it’s practically a full time job! If you like what you read here, please subscribe to his articles! You can also follow Tony on Twitter, or become a fan on Facebook! If you ever have any questions, comments, or concerns, feel free to email Tony any time at ortale.anthony@gmail.com, he’d love to hear from you!

[06.13.12] Review: ‘Medal of Honor (2010)’

Electronic Arts

Medal of Honor (2010) for Xbox 360

Rating:

4 Stars

With rebooting and re-releasing proving to be all the rage these days, Electronic Arts decided they would try the same with the insanely popular “Medal of Honor” series. Despite technically being the 13th game in the series, 2010’s release of “Medal of Honor” uses the exact same name as the original game released back in 1999. That’s where the similarities stop, as everything from the logo and developer to the characters and story has received a complete overhaul.

In 1999, the single player campaign for “Medal of Honor” was set during World War II and was developed by a studio known as “DreamWorks Interactive”. Now under the new name “Danger Close Games”, the studio has decided to modernize the game with a campaign set in Afghanistan during the year 2002. The developers wanted their game to stand out from the rest of the pack by bringing the most authentic experience possible. To facilitate this, “EA” brought in several consultants from the United States military and also based the game partially on real-life operations.

To allow “Danger Close Games” to focus on the authentic storyline, “EA” called upon another one of their studios to develop the multiplayer portion of the game. “DICE”, famous for their work on the “Battlefield” series, was in charge of everything multiplayer for better or worse. It also appears as if they had some creative influence on the single-player campaign, because many key features that are synonymous with the “Battlefield” series shine through heavily in the single-player mode.

There is a lot of history and prestige backing “Medal of Honor”, but does this all add up to a great game?

The Fun Stuff:

The first thing you’ll notice after jumping into the campaign for “Medal of Honor” is how amazing the guns are. It’s not that they’re fantasy weapons or are way over-powered, it’s that they feel so much more real than other games. In most shooters, the guns look real enough, but firing them just isn’t that satisfactory. When you start unloading bullets in “Medal of Honor”, you’ll feel the most satisfying ‘punch’ behind your weapons, which no other game to date has matched. Everything about the way they fire feels perfect: The recoil displayed on the screen, the rumble feedback from the controller in your hands, and, best of all, the incredible sound effects that rip through your speakers and make you nervously glance over your shoulder for attackers.

Perfect sound effects aren’t good enough though, because without proper balance, they’d be left undiscovered and unnoticed. Luckily, the sound-mixing in “Medal of Honor” is unmatched as well. Explosions, dialog, music, and other ambient sounds all blend together perfectly to make you feel like you’re standing right in the middle of the chaos. When a grenade explodes next to your character, the screen becomes hazy and disorienting while sounds are muted almost entirely by a high-pitched ring.

If characters walk away, sound fades out naturally. If they walk into corridors, sounds echo and bounce around. Perhaps the most peculiar attention to detail in the sound comes from characters communicating via their com units. If you listen carefully, you’ll notice you can hear both the sound of their voice crackling over their headset as well as their normal voice being projected from the character model directly in front of you. It’s this absurd – yet welcomed – authenticity that helps bring these battle scenarios to life right in front of your eyes.

Fortunately, sound wasn’t the only thing “EA” was referencing in their promise to deliver the most authentic war experience to date. In-game cut scenes feel like they’re pulled straight from a documentary. The only downside is the ones in first person mode don’t ever show any signs of a weapon in your hand, so you feel more like a camera man filming the documentary than the soldier you transition into at the end of the cut scene. None-the-less, the cinematics are exhilarating and aid the realism.

Then there’s the artificial intelligence in “Medal of Honor”. Like everything else, the AI also has a significant element of realism, both with squad mates and enemies. Having allies in shooters can be frustrating thanks to poor AI’s. Cover will be blown, shots will be blocked, and missions are constantly failed thanks to the idiotic tendencies of these computer controlled teammates.

This, however, is not the case in “Medal of Honor”. Not only do your squad mates move and post up intelligently, they’ll lob a grenade with great accuracy. The most satisfying role they play throughout your trials and tribulations is in killing enemies. That’s right; they will actually kill bad guys for you! These extra characters are treated like real soldiers with real abilities instead of being used solely as pawns in a story who couldn’t shoot water if they were on the bottom of the deep end in a pool.

Not only do they fire on the bad guys, but they actually draw fire from them too. One of the most frustrating aspects of playing through the rival series “Call of Duty” is the way enemies treat you. They shoot you and only you, and also have a god-like ability to locate you before you even enter their territories. Enemy AI in “Medal of Honor” has been stripped of that ability to help amplify the realism. You won't be fired on immediately after walking around a corner, and you can actually flank enemies and sneak up on them while your computer-controlled squad mates are drawing their fire like previously mentioned.

Another exciting characteristic of the enemy AI is the way they react to bullets. Even those with Kevlar armor don’t just absorb shots like a magic bullet sponge. Instead, if you hit them in the chest with a rifle, they’ll get knocked over backwards like they took a punch from Muhammad Ali. Likewise, those who take shots to the arm or leg will cry out in pain and reach for the damaged body part. They may even stumble over or just drop the grenade they were about to toss. If you land a headshot, it will always be an instant kill, and you’ll know it thanks to a little icon that pops up at the bottom of your screen.

There are many other small details that make “Medal of Honor” feel realistic as well. À la “Battlefield”, the environments in the game are destructible to a certain degree. Another nice touch is the ability to grab ammunition from your squad mates if you run low. Make sure you listen to their callouts in battle though, because if they say they’ve run out of ammo, they mean it, and you won’t be able to resupply from them so you’ll need to conserve your ammunition the best you can. With patience, this can be done thanks to an overly-generous aim-assist in single player when you scope in. To balance this out though, it has to be after a complete scope-out followed by a minor delay; so you can’t just pump the trigger and abuse it like in many other shooters.

The Frustrating Stuff:

“Medal of Honor” attempts to keep things exciting by frequently changing up what you’re doing. Throughout the campaign, you’ll jump between four characters:

- Rabbit: A U.S. Navy SEAL
- Specialist Dante Adams: A U.S. Army Ranger Specialist
- Deuce: A Delta Force sniper specialist
- Captain Brad “Hawk” Hawkins: An Apache Gunship gunner

This frequent change is detrimental to the story in “Medal of Honor”. Although it creates lots of variety, this variety makes it difficult to have emotional ties to any of the characters in the game, hindered further by the extremely short lifespan of the campaign, which clocks in at roughly 6 hours even on the hardest difficulty. Despite the near constant action in the game, it can sometimes be a challenge for “Medal of Honor” to keep your attention.

In an attempt to make up for the short campaign, “Danger Close Games” offered an additional game mode known as “Tier 1 Mode”. Sadly, this will likely only be utilized by those who want lots of replayability from the single player portion and those who have a love for “Hardcore” game modes. “Tier 1 Mode” is essentially a level by level time-trial for the single player campaign with an all-or-nothing attitude. The problem is there's no way to hurry through any pre-canned animations that characters have nor is there an option for allowing yourself to continue on from a checkpoint when dying while accepting the time spent retracing your tracks as a penalty for dying. Instead, if you die, you have to start the mission all the way over with a new timer.

While this may be welcomed by those who want the more difficult experience, it’s also a deterrent to those who aren’t seasoned veterans of shooters and may have struggled with campaign. There’s also no additional reward gained outside of one achievement for completing all levels under par and the chance to top the leaderboards.

Multiplayer is a solid experience, assuming you like the “Battlefield” multiplayer, although there are a few minor details that left a little to be desired. The most notable from a gameplay perspective is the inability to go prone online. It exists in the single-player campaign but somehow is absent once you head online. Another concern rises for ‘completionists’ who are seeking to 100% this game. There are quite a few achievements tied to multiplayer, and although they’re nothing necessarily too difficult to complete, many are nearly unattainable at this point simply because the multiplayer servers are almost entirely deserted.

Bottom Line:

“Medal of Honor” is definitely short and sweet, but the realism is unrivaled by any military shooter to date. The replayability is short-lived due to the nearly non-existent online community, but don’t let this overshadow the exciting single-player experience the game offers. If multiplayer is all you’re looking for, you’re best off purchasing “Battlefield 3” as you’ll find a nearly identical game but with a much more active and dedicated community. Those who like a well put-together single-player first person shooter experience shouldn’t deprive themselves just because of the length. Thanks to a “Platinum Hits” re-release, “Medal of Honor” is now available at a much more appropriate and affordable price given the current status of the game. More so, if you have no interest in the multiplayer, feel free to pick up a used copy for even cheaper as there’s no need to pay the premium to get an online pass.

Medal of Honor (2010) was developed by Danger Close Games and DICE, and was published by Electronic Arts. It was released in North America on Oct. 10, 2010 with an “M” rating from the ESRBand an MSRP of $59.99. This review was based on a copy of the game purchased after the release date.

Anthony Ortale writes news and reviews on behalf of Examiner.com. He does so much gaming in his spare time, it’s practically a full time job! If you like what you read here, please subscribe to his articles! You can also follow Tony on Twitter, or become a fan on Facebook! If you ever have any questions, comments, or concerns, feel free to email Tony any time at ortale.anthony@gmail.com, he’d love to hear from you

[06.01.12] Review: 'Sniper Elite V2'

Rebellion, 505 Games

Sniper Elite V2 for Xbox 360

Rating:

5 Stars

Back in 2005, a small studio from the UK named Rebellion released a game that was an instant cult hit. Sniper Elite caught the attention of sniping enthusiasts and gamers alike, and fans desperately wanted a sequel. Seven years later, they’ve finally got their wish… sort of. Not actually a direct sequel, but really more of a reimagination, Sniper Elite V2 hit the scenes on May 1, 2012 in the states.

Set during World War II, Officer Karl Fairburne is on a mission to eliminate the scientists involved in the German V-2 rocket program. He’ll also have a few run-ins with the Soviet Army and quite a few other German Snipers. Going at it alone, it’s a lot to take on, made more difficult by the twists and turns he uncovers throughout his journey.

This third-person-shooter focuses on stealth gameplay and a hefty dose of sniping. If you’ve got the guts to take it on, there’s even realistic physics to deal with. Bullet drop and wind will affect trajectories; and all the while you’ll need to remember to watch your heart-rate and steady yourself by kneeling or lying down. Sniper Elite V2 can be as challenging as you want it to be with the ability to choose a custom difficulty level by determining which factors you want to take into consideration and which you’d rather ignore. No matter how you decided to play, it’s time to dust off the old Springfield.

The Fun Stuff:

In a game that’s supposed to be somewhat of a sniping simulator, it’s important they do sniping justice. Having to account for bullet drop, wind resistance, and the trajectory of moving targets is a key part of the appropriately titled “sniper elite” difficulty level; and it’s exactly what makes Sniper Elite V2 so exhilarating. Nothing is more satisfying than putting all of these key ingredients together and landing the perfect shot. All of these physics are done very consistently and after playing for a while, you’ll find yourself drifting into a nice rhythm where what was once “random guess work” becomes instinct.

The best snipers look for cover to conceal themselves as much as possible while still finding small areas they can squeeze shots through. Those with a keen eye and steady hand can find themselves landing shots between broken floorboards, the axle and body of a truck, or through a hole left by a single missing brick in a wall. What’s most shocking is if you twitch off to the side slightly, your shot won’t make it to its target.

All of these narrow passageways were neatly crafted and are not simply the result of sloppy work by the artists. As you explore the remains of bombed-out Berlin, you’ll find just how perfectly crafted all the hit boxes were for items in the environment. The attention to detail is simply stunning. This level of detail is carried over to the rest of the game mechanics as well. With the right physics in play, you can find your miscalculated shot turned into a winning headshot as it careens off the roof of the car the enemy was using for cover and banks straight into their skull. Bullets can also be stopped by the body of an LMG but still pass through a thin wood board or the canvas of a covered vehicle. With all of these things combined, getting kills suddenly changes from a chore to a reward, which is amplified by the most exciting trick Sniper Elite V2 has up its sleeve.

When a particularly difficult or gruesome shot is made, it’s accented by the incredible slow-motion x-ray kill cam. Time slows down as you watch your bullet zip across a courtyard, through a window, and straight toward your enemy. Right before entering the body, portions of your next victim become see-through so you can watch in excruciatingly graphic detail all of the damage you’re about to inflict. As the bullet passes through the neck, you can watch it rupture the trachea and shatter the spine before tearing out the backside and continuing on. Likewise, vital organs will be punctured, brain matter will be splattered, and fragments of the skull will be blown away. None of this is canned either, so a headshot doesn’t always cut to the same video over and over again. The slow-mo also gives you the chance to appreciate more of the life-like details applied to the bullet. After passing through the body, you may notice that the bullet has become deformed and its trajectory has changed.

These close-ups aren’t the only thing that look nice either. The rest of the game has beautiful graphics and have certainly come a long way from what the first Sniper Elite looked like. Environments have much richer detail, and everything just looks so much sharper. Enemies seem very copy and paste, but they’re not really intended to be the highlight of the game. The graphics are just as nicely crafted as the core mechanics of the game.

The Frustrating Stuff:

Despite beautiful graphics, the rest of the game’s presentation is somewhat lacking. The story is fairly weak at best and the supporting characters are anything but memorable. There’s no CGI cut scenes between missions and the soundtrack creates nice accents and compliments to the gameplay, but doesn’t demand you download a copy of your favorite tracks. All of this is really OK though, because it’s overshadowed by the outstanding gameplay and sheer level of excitement generated by landing the perfect shot.

What’s most disappointing is the lack of ability to sit down on the couch with a friend and play a little co-op just like you could with the original Sniper Elite. It’s made even more frustrating thanks to a misprint by a first party on the box art that claims its 1-2 players local. Unfortunately, co-op is only supported online at the moment, although there have been rumors that local play will be added in a later update.

Bottom Line:

In a category that seems incredibly oversaturated, you really have to do something special to stand out. Sniper Elite V2 does a fantastic job by passing on the traditional staples of the modern shooter and bringing out the best of your problem-solving skills. The game really forces you to throw away the run-and-gun tactics instilled in most gamers thanks to games like Call of Duty by severely crippling your ammunition supply for your side arms. At first, it may seem like a burden, but with time it’s obvious that they’re just coaxing you in the right direction for playing the game with stealth as your main weapon.

One taste of the game and it’s easy to see that already, Sniper Elite V2 has carved out a spot in the list of best games of the year. Unfortunately, those willing to try it out seem far and few between, so it’s likely that it’s going to be the number one sleeper-hit of 2012. Before you’re quick to dismiss it as just another shooter or budget game, try out the demo available on Live and PSN. Rebellion has put together one heck of a teaser, and it’s sure to get you hooked.

Sniper Elite V2 was developed by Rebellion and published by 505 Games. It was released in North America on May 1, 2012 with an M rating from the ESRB and an MSRP of $49.99. This review was based on a copy of the game provided courtesy of 505 Games.

Anthony Ortale writes news and reviews on behalf of Examiner.com. He does so much gaming in his spare time, it’s practically a full time job! If you like what you read here, please subscribe to his articles! You can also follow Tony on Twitter, or become a fan on Facebook! If you ever have any questions, comments, or concerns, feel free to email Tony any time at ortale.anthony@gmail.com, he’d love to hear from you

[05.07.12] Review: 'Split/Second'

Black Rock Studio

Split/Second for Xbox 360

Rating:

5 Stars

Have you ever gone down to the airport with all of your luggage packed, ticket in hand, only to find out that your flight actually left two hours ago? That’s a classic case of being in the right place, but at the wrong time. The good news is you’re not alone. It happens to tons of people all the time. Sometimes, it even happens to video games, and that’s the case with Split/Second. This racing game, surprisingly published by Disney Interactive Studios, was released roughly two years ago to what most would consider mediocre sales. Despite great reviews, the game's poor performance ultimately led to the closure of the developers, Black Rock Studio, the same studio that brought you Pure back in 2008. Split/Second was brave enough to take an incredibly unique spin on the already popular battle racing genre.

Seeing as you’re surrounded by established hits such as Mario Kart, Burnout, Twisted Metal, and Flatout, it’s a tough enough field to make a name for yourself in. What’s even worse for Split/Second was the fact that many other blockbuster games were being released around the same time. Alan Wake, Red Dead Redemption, and Mod Nation Racers were all making their debut, while many other hits such as Modern Warfare 2, GTA IV, and Borderlands were all rebounding with DLC packs. Sadly, Black Rock just couldn’t gain any ground despite their unique take on the concept.

The thing that makes Split/Second so special is the way the game is set up. It takes place on a remote man-made island built explicitly for the purpose of a hit reality TV show, Split/Second. Throughout weekly episodes, racers make their way around tracks on the island rigged with block-buster-action-movie-like explosions. As you drift, draft, jump, and skillfully navigate the island, you fill up your power play meter, which grants you access to the set pieces.

Remember that plane you missed? It’s a good thing, because it’s about to come crashing down right in front of you. Next thing you know, the radar dish comes rolling across the track, and then the highway explodes beneath you, and suddenly you’re in an underground tunnel with an all new path for the race track. There are barges to blow, towers to topple, and bridges to break all in the name of pure adrenaline fueled racing.

The Fun Stuff:

Let’s face it, blowing stuff up is an absolute blast, no pun intended. That’s why Hollywood spends so much on creating larger-than-life explosions for movies. Admit it, when you were a kid, half the time you spent ‘playing baseball in the backyard’ was actually spent trying to light something on fire or setting off the rest of the Fourth of July fireworks that ‘mysteriously’ went missing. It’s something everyone loves doing, and that’s what makes Split/Second so much fun! It gives you the opportunity to blow lots of stuff up. It’s the most important part of the game, thus consequently - and fortunately - it’s the part it does best.

The set pieces in the game range from small cars parked on the side of the road exploding to entire buildings toppling over. The power plays, as they’re called, are broken into two categories. The smaller ones, such as the cars or shortcuts, are indicated by a blue notification icon and only require one-third of the aforementioned power play meter to be full. The other category, which requires a full power play bar, is denoted by a red icon. These are where the game really shines.

Some of them are attacks on a grand scale, such as a giant dump truck being dragged across a bridge causing support beams to crush the other races. Others are course-altering explosions. Entire sections of a highway are blown out, giant towers fall across the racetrack, or half of a dam crumbles forcing you to drive up on top of it. These changes are sometimes even layered multiple times on the same track. Should you time everything perfectly, it’s possible that you’ll end up driving three very different laps around the same course. There’s nothing more exhilarating than narrowly avoiding a Boeing 747 as it crashes down right over you.

If you grow tired of blowing up other racers, there are a few other game modes to soothe your palate. One pits you against all of these explosions as you race for the fastest time with everything blowing up around you. There’s also a mode that has you avoiding missiles launched from a helicopter above you to rack up the highest score possible. A similar mode has you attempting to avoid explosive barrels being launched out of the back of semi-trucks while simultaneously attempting to overtake them. There are others which are slight variations on these modes, such as the classic elimination style race where the person in last gets eliminated when a timer hits zero and one that allows you to fire missiles back at the helicopter attacking you.

The Frustrating Stuff:

Unfortunately, despite all of these awesome, multi-leveled explosions and the numerous race types, there’s one thing that is severely lacking in Split/Second. You can choose what you play, where you play, and what you drive with… but you can’t choose how you play. Not even the number of laps can be adjusted. With that in mind, it’s also no surprise you can’t personalize your car beyond the paint color.

Another thing you’ll likely notice while racing is that some of the tracks overlap in sections, or at least sit near each other. It’s a shame there’s no way to define a custom path around the tracks that do interweave for even more fun. Better yet, there could have been a track editor allowing you to customize your own path and your own explosions!

Bottom Line:

It’s clear that Black Rock put a lot of work into the game. From the gorgeous car models and stunning explosions that flawlessly resemble their Hollywood counterparts to the games upbeat original soundtrack and the pre-show or post-show cut scenes that really make it feel like a TV episode, no detail of the presentation was left untouched. All of the fun continues while the challenge is amped up when you take the races online against 7 other human opponents.

From start to finish, this game just screams adrenaline and keeps you on the edge of your seat. It’s a shame that the planned sequel was canceled because the slight imperfections this game had probably would have been fixed. Those imperfections shouldn’t keep you from experiencing Split/Second; however, for some, it may be a game best served up with some friends around. With the likelihood that it’s now at about a $19.99 price point, anyone who even vaguely enjoys arcade racing games should pick this one up.

Split/Second was developed by Black Rock Studio and published by Disney Interactive Studios. It was released in North America on May 18, 2010 with an E10+ rating from the ESRB and an MSRP of $59.99. This review was based on a copy of the game purchased after the release date.

Anthony Ortale writes news and reviews on behalf of Examiner.com. He does so much gaming in his spare time, it’s practically a full time job! If you like what you read here, please subscribe to his articles! You can also follow Tony on Twitter, or become a fan on Facebook! If you ever have any questions, comments, or concerns, feel free to email Tony any time at ortale.anthony@gmail.com, he’d love to hear from you

[04.12.12] Review: 'Tiny Tower'

Mobage

Tiny Tower for Android

Rating:

5 Stars

After taking the iPhone by storm, Tiny Tower finally made its way to Android courtesy of publisher and social gaming platform Mobage. It’s Sim Tower meets Farmville topped off with some beautiful pixelated graphics and inherently addictive gameplay. Your ultimate goal is to build a thriving community contained entirely within one skyscraper. Maintain your shops and take care of your ‘bitizens’; and you’ll be on your way to a successful tower. With a design so simple and obvious, you’ll be smacking yourself wondering why you didn’t come up with it first! But does addictive gameplay translate to quality game content?

The Fun Stuff:

Sim Tower may have been more of a cult hit, but there’s no denying the power simulation game had through the late 90’s and early 2000’s. Tiny Tower manages to pull the best parts of those simulations games with the exhilarating theme of Sim Tower. What could be more exciting than owning the next Trump Tower? The idea of building that next empire was something that everyone could relate to, and once it was available in game form, everyone latched to it. The developers of Tiny Tower recognized that and did an excellent job of tapping into that natural human desire and giving you the perfect opportunity to satisfy it.

They also recognized the spell that games such as Farmville has had over everyone. Micromanagement and real time strategy themes are interwoven with extensive waiting times that allow, or rather require, you check back frequently to maintain your items. What’s most satisfying about Tiny Tower is that there is no requirement to play. In games such as Farmville, if you don’t tend to your crops within a certain amount of time, the crops will wilt and your entire harvest will be lost. Sure, this may be true in real life, but what they seem to fail to realize is that Farmville isn’t real life, it’s a video game. Tiny Tower’s developers were kind enough to acknowledge that you may, in fact, have a life, and thus whatever task you perform will be patiently awaiting your arrival whether it be 6 hours or 6 weeks later.

This is incredibly satisfying as it allows you to play on your time, not theirs, and this makes any game infinitely more desirable. It allows you to play as little or as much as you want. Of course, there is incentive for playing an extended period of time, but if you only have a couple minutes to pop in, you can restock some items and maybe build a new floor, then head back to reality and let everything happen in the background. Should you choose to stick around, you have a few options. There is constantly people that need elevator rides, for which you will be tipped a generous amount of coins. You may also be occasionally graced by the presence of a V.I.P. who can instantly fill empty apartments, cut down on construction or stocking time, or increase sales to a floor either by directly purchasing all of an item or just attracting lots of bitizens to the floor. There’s also a “Where’s Waldo” type game that challenges to find a bitizen in your tower for various ridiculous, but goofy, reasons.

Although some of Tiny Tower’s charm comes from its pixelated graphics – a sort of throwback to gaming juggernauts of yesteryear – the majority of it comes from all the other intricate details woven into the fabric of the game. There are numerous costumes you can adorn your citizens with, various missions to complete, and plenty of in-game achievements to collect. There’s even a tiny little social network you can check called BitBook, which will give you an idea of your bitizens feelings in regards to things taking place in the tower. Should you choose, you have the power to rename all the apartments and stores to whatever you please. All in all, it gives you a true sense of community inside your tower and gives you the drive to make it as successful as possible.

The Frustrating Stuff:

The frustrations with Tiny Tower are rather… tiny. The most obnoxious quirk is also its greatest asset – the long time spent waiting for things to happen. It does give you the courtesy of setting many things to process and then leaving to take care of other things in real life, however as you get into the later levels of the game, the wait times are almost too much. Around just level 50, you’re looking at about a 24-hour wait for construction of a new floor. That’s an entire day of your life, should you choose not to speed it up with ‘Tower Bux’, one of the in-game currencies. When you have a strong desire to complete something in the game, this extensive wait time can be incredibly frustrating. Still, it’s necessary for the basic mechanics of the game.

There’s also no ability to play offline. At first, this detail may go overlooked, seeing as we’re in a world that’s constantly connected however there are some concerns with a set up like this. The first of which is that no technology is perfect, and occasionally signals are lost and networks go down. This completely bars access to the game, albeit probably not for an extended period of time. There’s also concern for those who are just trying to save precious battery life. Being constantly connected to the internet can put serious strain on your battery, regardless of whether it’s the cellular network or WiFi. Fortunately, Tiny Tower itself uses virtually no battery itself, especially in comparison to any other game on the market which eats your battery alive.

The only other thing that will have you steaming up your screen is the aforementioned search-and-find game with your bitizens. More often than not, the guy or gal you’re looking for has conveniently wandered out of sight on the screen. This is ok when you have just a few floors, as it challenges your memory; however, once you’ve built tons of floors, the expectation that you memorize every single bitizens’ location is entirely absurd. You’ll find yourself having to make multiple passes up and down the tower before they walk back. Alternately, you can just start clicking on each floor one by one until you make your way to them.

Bottom Line:

If you haven’t downloaded Tiny Tower yet, you should. It’s an absolute must-have for your phone, and the best part is it’s completely free! It’s a masterpiece and sits right up there as one of the best games to ever grace the portable platform. The addictive gameplay will constantly have you coming back for more, and seeing as you can’t really ‘win’ Tiny Tower, the sky is the limit!

Tiny Tower for Android

Tiny Towerfor iPhone

Anthony Ortale writes news and reviews on behalf of Examiner.com. He does so much gaming in his spare time, it’s practically a full time job! If you like what you read here, please subscribe to his articles! You can also follow Tony on Twitter, or become a fan on Facebook! If you ever have any questions, comments, or concerns, feel free to email Tony any time at ortale.anthony@gmail.com, he would love to hear from you!

[03.03.12] Review: 'X-Men Origins: Wolverine'

Activision

X-Men Origins: Wolverine Uncaged Edition

Rating:

5 Stars

X-Men Origins: Wolverine, the movie, released to audiences in May of 2009 with much box office success; and, of course, much like all other successful box office hits, it had to have a video game counterpart. Now most of you are probably about to click that little red ‘x’ in the corner of your browser at this point, because if there is one thing that gamers know, it’s that perhaps since the Sega Genesis days, there has not been a worthwhile video game adaptation of any film.

Not to say that everything before that era was a success, because in all reality, movie-based video games are generally a rushed and unfinished piece of junk that was hurried out to meet the official release date of its movie counterpart so that tons of unsuspecting parents can waste their hard earned cash because their kid is infatuated with the film and wants anything and everything with the film’s name on it. This, of course, explains the situation that led to the production of E.T. – The Extra Terrestrial for Atari back in 1982. Hailed as not just the worst movie-based game, but often the worst video game of all time period, this frustrating little cartridge of fluff has caused gamers to resent the majority of licensed material and immediately dismiss it as trash.

But what if things could change, what if they could be different? What if, by some bizarre change of events, X-Men Origins: Wolverine, the game this time, was actually good? It’s quite obvious that would be the goal for any developer, and if there was ever a company to take movie-based video games to the next level, it would be none other than Raven Software.

Perhaps one of the most underappreciated studios of the last 20 years, Raven has had their hand in developing quite a few fantastic titles that just sadly didn’t quite make it for one reason or another. Never-the-less, they do an outstanding job of creating games that are well refined and look insanely beautiful, and X-Men Origins: Wolverine is no exception. Raven is such a perfect choice too, as they’ve already had their hand in a few popular superhero games, such as Marvel: Ultimate Alliance, and even a few X-Men specific ones too, like the X-Men Legends series. If there was a studio that already knew the ins and outs of Wolverine, it would have to be these video game veterans.

X-Men Origins: Wolverine is a fantastic story-driven, hack-and-slash, action-adventure game. The story is a loose combination of the film’s main storyline blended with an original plot created by Raven themselves. It draws heavy inspiration from the original comic series, which is excellent as it furthers the argument that this game was intended to be fan-service in its purest form, and not simply a bargain-bin, gimmicky cash grab. What’s most astounding about this game is that many people say the game is better than the movie it’s based on! But what do random people know about games and movies right?

Well, if anybody should know what it’s like to be Wolverine, it would have to be Hugh Jackman. Hold on to your seats, because he agrees that the game is better. Not necessarily in terms of straight quality, but rather he appreciates the opportunity the game has to dive further into the story because its time constraints aren’t as strict as the movie’s. He was so in love with the script Raven created, he actually managed to have some of it added to the film.

"In fact I was able to bring some of the lines of dialogue from the game script into the movie, because I liked how well it was written,” Jackman told Yahoo!. This is great, but then again it could just be an excellent marketing department at work. Does this game really live up to its hype?

The Fun Stuff:

The key to being successful on a game like this is pleasing the fans, because they’re going to make up the largest majority of those who will buy your game. After 4 successful movies, it’s hard to imagine anyone else playing Wolverine; and when you’re basing one thing off another, you really want to stick to the source material as closely as possible. That’s why it’s quite refreshing to find that Hugh Jackman reprised his role as Wolverine for the voice acting in this game, as did his counterparts will.i.am, Liev Schreiber, and a few others. That’s not where the fan service stops though.

As previously mentioned, Raven did a lot of work making sure to relate their original story line to the comics, including bringing in characters that didn’t make appearances in the movie and further developing the stories of those who did. There are also bonus costumes that can be unlocked which allow you to dress Wolverine in some of his most iconic suits, such as his classic yellow and blue, or the black and grey X-Force Wolverine outfit. There are even some references to things outside of the Marvel Universe, such as a hidden hatch that should please fans of LOST and a cake in one level which is clearly designed to look like the one in Portal.

Now of course, creating something that appeals to the fans doesn’t necessarily equate to a successful product either, as it needs to appeal to the masses so that others will purchase it. The easiest way to do this is to build a fundamentally sound game. Raven achieves this with some incredibly fluid movements and minimal bugs and glitches. The ease with which Wolverine flows around the screen really gets you into the game and makes you feel like you are Logan, skillfully taking down enemy after enemy. The controls are dead simple so that anyone can simply pick up and play. For those who appreciate a bit more than button-mashing, there are also some more complicated combinations you can learn to really tear apart your enemies; and of course there is the countering system to master as well, for those who are truly dedicated to a flawless performance. Between all this and the special attacks, you can really shred your enemies.

Speaking of which, a large portion of believability is seeing. If you really want to see with your own eyes that you’re Wolverine, this game provides that opportunity with some of the most intense violence in any modern game. This intensity lies in the accuracy with which you’re able to dismember your enemies using your claws. Swipe at their knee and you’ll chop off their leg and watch them stumble over. Cut off an arm and blood will spurt out as they scream and stare at the empty space where their arm used to be. Chop off a head and you can watch it roll away as their body lifelessly drops to the ground.

As you can tell just by what you’ve read here, this game is incredibly graphic and earns it’s ‘M’ rating with ease. If you’re worried about getting queasy though, keep in mind that you’re not right in the action. The game takes a bird’s eye point of view, so you’re witnessing most of the action from a pretty distant place. The realism is toned down significantly just because of this distance factor, and it goes from witnessing gruesome life-like dismemberments right in front of your eyes to watching your kid cut into Playdoh figures because he wants to make something new. Despite the excruciating detail in the violence, most of it is simply lost because of the viewpoint.

The biggest highlight for X-Men Origins: Wolverine is easily in the cut scenes. Developed by Blur Studio, these scenes will have you second-guessing your eyes and forgetting that you’re actually in the middle of a video game. Blur has done CGI work a long time, and although you may not realize it, you’ve probably seen a lot of their work. Once you’ve seen it, you understand why, because they create the most breathtaking visuals that often are mistaken for actual film clips rather than computer rendered graphic sequences. These beautiful cut scenes are the sole reason that everyone needs to experience X-Men Origins: Wolverine. Look up a trailer, or download the demo… the point being, you need to at least see the opening sequence for the game because the art they have crafted is some of the finest to ever grace a video game.

The Frustrating Stuff:

The only thing that X-Men Origins: Wolverine really suffers from is something derived from the nature of hack-and-slash games. Repetition hits you hard when it comes to the enemies in Origins. Despite the great surprise of appearances by villains and foes that didn’t make the film, many of them show up over and over again. Then again, the speed with which you eliminate them makes it all seem like the same faceless attacker in spite of the vast differences in enemy types. Even the mini-boss battles are so repetitive it becomes rather tiresome. Instead of coming up with more powerful and unique enemies, the solution to raise the difficulty level across the entire game is to just throw more of the same thing at you. Fortunately, though, the ability to upgrade Wolverine and unlock new attack combos is enough to make the stale and repetitive encounters feel fresh and exciting.

Bottom Line:

At first glance, X-Men Origins: Wolverine sends up flairs for bargain bin material. Despite now being located in most stores value section, that’s a reflection purely on the length of time the game has been out and in no way signals lack of quality. It’s definitely something that every X-Men or hack-and-slash fan needs to play at some point. If you’re an avid fan of either, it’s deserving of a purchase. Even after beating it, you’ll get random cravings to slice up bad guys as Wolverine; and no game has done it better. If you find yourself on the border, either try the demo first or consider it as just a rental. Regardless of your choice, it’s something every gamer needs to experience. It will definitely change your outlook on movie based video games as a whole.

X-Men Origins: Wolverine was developed by Raven Software and published by Activision. It was released in North America on 05/01/2009 with an M rating from the ESRB and an MSRP of $59.99. This review was based on a retail copy of the game purchased after the release date.

Are you a fan of movie-based video games staring Hugh Jackman? Check out RedGoateeRob's awesome review on Van Helsing for PS2!

Anthony Ortale writes news and reviews on behalf of Examiner.com. He does so much gaming in his spare time, it’s practically a full time job! If you like what you read here, please subscribe to his articles! You can also follow Tony on Twitter, or become a fan on Facebook! If you ever have any questions, comments, or concerns, feel free to email Tony any time at ortale.anthony@gmail.com, he’d love to hear from you!

[02.29.12] Review: 'Alan Wake’s American Nightmare'

Remedy Games

Alan Wake's American Nightmare

Rating:

5 Stars

There’s a lot riding on the success of Alan Wake’s American Nightmare. It has the potential to revolutionize the gaming industry as we know it. As the follow up to the original Alan Wake, 2010’s survival horror hit, it has high expectations to meet in order to please the fans. With those two goals in mind, the big question everyone wants to know is whether or not Remedy successfully accomplished either.

The Fun Stuff:

Alan Wake’s American Nightmare is definitely a nice dose of Mr. Wake. There’s plenty of 50’s and 60’s Americana, flashlight & gun dual-wielding action, and some psychological sci-fi storytelling to go with it. The story isn’t incredibly original but if feels right at home in Night Springs – the town/TV Show where the game takes place. It’s simple but well told. The narration is also a nice touch that really makes you feel like you’re starring in the Twilight Zone parody.

To make things more immersive, the game has upgraded to live-action cut scenes and videos. Seeing as you’re staring in an episode of Night Springs, the mini-episodes are absent from the game. Without giving any of the story away, it will suffice to say that random TVs found in-game do still have a function and you’ll be pleasantly surprised to find that what you find on them is also live-action like the cut scenes. Manuscript pages found around the map have also received a minor upgrade - should you decide to ‘read’ them - with a rendered cut scene that verbalizes everything for you as opposed to static text that you scroll through as was found in the original game.

In addition to the live-action cut scenes, some new weapons and a new game mode have made their way into the game too. The most creative weapon is the nail gun, which the developers have proudly exhibited on the Arcade Box Art for the game. It’s not much different from the SMG in the game but you do get the satisfaction of seeing the nails stick out of your enemies. The additional game mode cashes in on the ‘horde mode’ craze that has swept so many games lately. It was probably unnecessary but it’s hard to deny the addiction of taking down wave after wave of bad guys. Altogether, these upgrades breathe some fresh air into the game.

The Frustrating Stuff:

The biggest surprise with Alan Wake’s American Nightmare comes from the core gameplay. Alan Wake was a supernatural-psychological-horror-survival-third-person-shooter. That’s quite the mouthful, and maybe it didn’t quite taste right because American Nightmare has a subtle difference. It still retains the supernatural, psychological, and horror elements but swaps out the survival aspect in favor of a more fast-paced action style.

One of the most telltale signs of a survival game is the necessity to conserve ammo. Although you don’t exactly have a bottomless clip in American Nightmare, you’re still most likely safe unloading that lead to your heart’s content. Found frequently throughout the game are ammo boxes that regenerate in a matter of minutes. For fans, this is rather disconcerting because the survival elements were a nice challenge and just felt right in the game.

This overabundance of ammo makes the game so much easier and why Remedy would make the change is puzzling. Perhaps they felt it was necessary if American Nightmare was going to have a legitimate chance against the current powerhouse Call of Duty whose campaigns are often characterized as having fast paced action strung between numerous large, thrilling set pieces. Although it may not be the gameplay Alan Wake fans know and love, there’s no doubting it’s still a lot of fun and will probably entice more gamers to try it out.

Bottom Line:

Alan Wake’s American Nightmare is a fantastic follow up with just the right amount of tweaks to keep things fresh and exciting. Although some diehard fans might be disappointed with the faster-paced, less strategic gameplay, many new fans will be drawn in by its streamlined appeal. This also isn’t a true sequel to the game and Remedy has already acknowledged they do have an Alan Wake 2, or whatever it will be called, in the works. Whether the sequel will stick to the original gameplay or adapt to the newer style is unknown but there’s no doubt it will be a quality game. Until it’s out though, Alan Wake’s American Nightmare is the perfect appetizer to keep any fan’s cravings on standby and a must buy for anyone interested.

Alan Wake’s American Nightmare was developed by Remedy Games and published by Microsoft Studios. It was released in North America on Feb. 22, 2012 with a T rating from the ESRB and an MSRP of $15.00. This review was based on a copy of the game purchased on the release date.

Anthony Ortale writes news and reviews on behalf of Examiner.com. He does so much gaming in his spare time, it’s practically a full time job! If you like what you read here, please subscribe to his articles! You can also follow Tony on Twitter, or become a fan on Facebook! If you ever have any questions, comments, or concerns, feel free to email Tony any time at ortale.anthony@gmail.com, he’d love to hear from you!

[02.26.12] Review: 'Radiant HD'

Radiant HD for Android

Hexage, Ltd.

Rating:

5 Stars

Amazon blasts in with another free game, Radiant HD, as the free app of the day for Feb. 26, 2012. This game is all about nostalgia and retro mystique clearly drawing inspiration from the classic Galaga series. It mixes in some modern aspects and graphics that are a fantastic tribute to the games of yesteryear. If you’re a fan of retro gaming, this is a modern take on it at its absolute finest.

The Fun Stuff:

Despite running on far superior devices, the developer still chose to go with pixelated images to add to its nostalgic charm. They also give off a vibrant neon glow similar to the graphics in Geometry Wars. Even the ‘cut scenes’ are rendered in the same way they would be had the game been developed 20+ years ago. They’re very brief, often have cheesy and predictable dialog, and are forgo voice-acting altogether. All of it feels right at home and you probably won’t even miss them while you have your head wrapped in Radiant HD.

The gameplay is some of the best on the Android platform. Most games attempt to utilize both a joystick and fire button. Radiant HD ignores these all together by introducing auto-fire and requiring you only to control your ship. The joystick is also scrapped in favor of general touch zones. Touching the left side of the screen moves you left and touching the right side moves you right. It’s intuitive and comfortable, seeing as your thumbs are already resting in those areas while playing the game.

As a nice addition, Radiant HD allows you to upgrade your weapons either by earning credits or picking up power-ups while playing. It breathes new life into the game without being enough to actually ruin it.

The Frustrating Stuff:

The only thing that really seems out of place in Radiant HD is the fact that the game has been made somewhat easier. Not by the aforementioned power-ups, but rather by the fact that your ship doesn’t blow up when any of the enemy ships fly into you. Instead, they apparently fly above or below because your spaceship is completely intact after they pass. This might be because of the more compressed screen space on a phone. The arcade cabinets had much more height to them allowing plenty of time to shoot things or move out of their way. After a while, this feature will probably grow on you in the later levels.

The most disappointing aspect is the lack of a save feature. Everything has to be played in one sitting. This means that if you suddenly need to check an email or Google something, the second you hit that ‘home’ button on your phone, all data is lost. Hopefully, this feature will be added in at a later date, but until then this game is only worth playing if you have some time on your hands.

Bottom Line:

Radiant HD is a blast from the past which is extremely well done. Those who grow up playing any of the arcade classic vertical shooters will be thrilled with the new life this game breathes into an otherwise dead genre. By all means, get your hands on this today for free if you can. If you’ve missed the sale, it’s well worth forking over the $1.99 if you’re a fan of these types of games. It’s well designed and so much thought was put into each and every detail. You’ll become so immersed in its world, you’ll get confused trying to figure out where to put your quarters.

Radiant HD was created by Hexage Ltd and is Amazon’s free app of the day for 2/26/12. It typically sells for $1.99

Anthony Ortale writes news and reviews on behalf of Examiner.com. He does so much gaming in his spare time, it’s practically a full time job! If you like what you read here, please subscribe to his articles! You can also follow Tony on Twitter, or become a fan on Facebook! If you ever have any questions, comments, or concerns, feel free to email Tony any time at ortale.anthony@gmail.com, he would love to hear from you!

[02.14.12] Review: 'Bag It!'

Hidden Variable Studios

Bag It! for Android

Rating:

5 Stars

Amazon bagged another game for the free app of the day for Feb. 14, 2012 with Bag It!. It’s a new-comer on the market and the first game out of Hidden Variable Studios, but don’t count it out quite yet. It’s climbing the charts quickly despite being only a few months old. The puzzle genre is oversaturated, but Bag It! Brings something fresh to the table with its unique gameplay and adorable graphics. This game challenges you with the mundane task of bagging groceries but does so with specific challenges in mind. It might sound like a complete bore however its instant success make it seem likely you’ll be in for a nice surprise. Take a little Tetris, throw in a little Toy Story, add a dash of the travel-game classic Rush Hour and you’ve got yourself Bag It!.

The Fun Stuff:

“If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” is a common saying and it makes a lot of sense, however there’s certainly nothing wrong with a little innovation from time to time. One of the greatest things about Bag It! is the original gameplay. It’s incredibly refreshing to play something so different and so well designed for a change. The app as a whole is very well refined and it’s likely you won’t run into a single problem while playing. Graphics are outstanding across the board whether you’re in the menus or playing the game.

Each food item is given a character with unique personalities and appearance. The background music creates a nice ambiance when blended with the sound effects and it’s the perfect environment for puzzle solving. If you ever find yourself getting frustrated with the puzzles and want to let off a little steam, you can unlock a different mode where your challenge is to crush as many items as possible. There’s also an endless bagging mode and a puzzle mode where many items are already bagged for you, however you have to move and rotate them to add in the last few while not allowing a single item to be crushed.

The Frustrating Stuff:

If we’re going to be nitpicky with Bag It!, there are two more neutral things to gripe about. It has OpenFeint integration – which some people use and love, however others who don’t will probably find it annoying. Likewise, it’s a game that requires you to play to unlock all of it. You can’t just jump straight to any level or any game you want. Again, some people prefer this method because it gives you a reason to play a game. Others will likely find this frustrating when they just wanted to jump in and get a quick fix on a random level.

Bottom Line:

Bag It! is, hands down, the best game to hit the market in quite some time. This is definitely a game that can appeal to anyone and everyone. Drop everything and take advantage of this free deal today, unless you’d rather wait to pay and support the developers – it’s much deserved for this masterpiece. If you missed out on the deal of the day or don’t own an Android device, it’s 100% worth paying for and downloading.

Bag It! was created by Hidden Variable Studios and is Amazon’s free app of the day for 2/14/12. It typically sells for $0.99. It’s also available for $0.99 on iTunes and from Barnes & Noble for the NookColor.

Anthony Ortale writes news and reviews on behalf of Examiner.com. He does so much gaming in his spare time, it’s practically a full time job! If you like what you read here, please subscribe to his articles! You can also follow Tony on Twitter, or become a fan on Facebook! If you ever have any questions, comments, or concerns, feel free to email Tony any time at ortale.anthony@gmail.com, he would love to hear from you!

[02.08.12] Review: The Simpsons Arcade Game

Konami

The Simpsons Arcade Game

Rating:

5 Stars

The long awaited console port for The Simpsons Arcade Game has finally arrived after 21 years and for just $10, fans can get all they want of America’s favorite yellow family. If you grew up anywhere near an arcade in the 90’s, you’ve probably spent many an allowance on the coin-operated arcade cabinet, hoping that someday you could buy one of those cabinets for yourself. Well, now you can in a sense. That’s because The Simpsons Arcade Game is out now on Xbox Live and the future Sony Entertainment Network. As an added bonus, PlayStation Plus subscribers can get the game free.

This classic side-scrolling beat-‘em-up has Homer, Marge, Lisa, and Bart on a quest to save Maggie who’s been kidnapped by Mr. Smithers and Mr. Burns after a diamond heist gone wrong. The story is a little bizarre, seeing as Mr. Smithers isn’t exactly known for robberies or wearing a cape for that matter, but it’s the Simpsons, so who really cares? This game came out during an era where there wasn’t time to develop a story because you were probably trying to beat the game while your parents finished their dinners. The main users also didn’t have enough quarters to afford enough game time for an in-depth story, so with the likes of Crus’n USA, Galaga, or Pac-Man, players became used to the idea of just simply accepting the story for what it was. This time around it’s not really about the story either but rather the supreme feeling of nostalgia that this game will stir up for repeat players.

The Fun Stuff:

As mentioned, there’s nothing that matches the fond memories The Simpson’s Arcade Game will bring back for those who grew up playing the game. If you can still vividly picture it in your head, you’ll be pleasantly surprised that the game is an almost 100% perfect reproduction of the coin-op classic. The developers for the console port, Backbone Entertainment, did a fantastic job of recreating the game with an attention to detail down to the pixel. Every sound effect and cut-scene is brought back exactly as you’ll remember it, as does the soundtrack which sounds so much better through your TV than it did on the old, run-down arcade cabinet.

The developers also realized the advantages to keeping things simple. You can control your character with either the joystick or d-pad, and use just one button each for jump and attack. If the default button choices (A for jump and X for attack on Xbox or X for jump and Square for attack on PlayStation) don’t feel right for you, you can remap them to suit your taste via the settings menu. Speaking of customization, there are also tons of options for playing the game, including 4 difficulty levels, 4 different game modes, and the possibility for local or online gaming. Of course, you still have the option of choosing between the 4 original characters as well.

Beating the game with each of them unlocks a unique reward as well. They’re not much, but they’re still a nice gesture. Depending on whom your Simpson of choice is, you’ll unlock a sound test, music test, character pictures, or a brief history of the development of the game plus a couple images of promotional art from the original release in 1991. The best item you can unlock is actually the Japanese Rom for their original arcade cabinet.

The Frustrating Stuff:

It’s been sought after for many years, and ironically it’s also one of the most frustrating parts of the game. Not because it was designed poorly or has some sort of flaw, but rather because it brings a startling revelation. The Japanese Rom is actually considerably easier than the American version. The Japanese version adds in multiple weapons such as a nuke and Smither’s bombs. There’s also more food scattered throughout the game including some fruit that randomly pops out of nowhere. Yet the only changes to the gameplay are minor alterations to a couple bosses’ attacks and a slightly different ending, which is really more of a presentation tweak.

The only other complaint will come from diehard fans who will notice the smallest details that are missing, such as damage that came from the first boss belly-flopping to the ground. There’s nothing that truly breaks the game though so the lack of inclusion, although disappointing, is minor and hardly relevant. There’s plenty of accurate game replication and bonus material to keep any fan happy.

Bottom Line:

It may have taken over two decades, but it was well worth the wait. This console port of The Simpsons Arcade Game is exactly what the fans were begging for and a little bit more. Detail was the key, which explains why the quarters modes have exactly 40 credits: 40 quarters = $10, the price of the game. Regardless if you’re an old expert at this classic beat-‘em-up or just a fan of The Simpsons who is new to the experience, it’s one you’re not going to want to miss. This is some of the best arcade gaming out there and an all-around fantastic representation that’s about as close as you can get to the real thing.

The Simpsons Arcade Game was developed by Backbone Entertainment and published by Konami. It was released in North America on Feb. 3, 2012 for Xbox Live Arcade and Feb. 7 for PlayStation 3 with an E10+ rating from the ESRB and an MSRP of $9.99.This review was based on a Xbox 360 version of the game purchased on the release date.

Anthony Ortale writes news and reviews on behalf of Examiner.com. He does so much gaming in his spare time, it’s practically a full time job! If you like what you read here, please subscribe to his articles! You can also follow Tony on Twitter, or become a fan on Facebook! If you ever have any questions, comments, or concerns, feel free to email Tony any time at ortale.anthony@gmail.com, he’d love to hear from you!

[01.12.12] Review: Airport Mania 2: Wild Trips

Reflexive Entertainment

Airport Mania 2: Wild Trips for Android

Rating:

5 Stars

Your eyes aren’t tricking you, Amazon really is offering two free apps today! In addition to the educational game What's Different?, you can also pick up Airport Mania 2: Wild Trips at no cost today only! This sequel to Airport Mania: First Flight aims to build on the wild success of its predecessor by taking you to crazy new locations and delivering the same solid gameplay that has made the series so popular. This time-management game is hoping to do the same thing Diner Dash accomplished, only using cute airplanes instead of restaurant patrons. With over 10 different airports to play on and 40 awards to collect, this game will absorb a large chunk of your time, and it’s worth it.

The Fun Stuff:

This game is really the complete package. The graphics are both cute and exceptional, featuring cartoon character like airplanes with faces and personalities. The planes will express the pain or delight of their passengers both with visible and audible cues. The sound effects in the game are also fantastic; the roar of planes flying overhead and landing blend nicely with the background music. The game runs smoothly and controlling things feels very natural and just simply makes sense.

Of course, the key to making you feel at home with a game’s controls is an excellent tutorial and Airport Mania 2has the perfect tutorial. Not only does it take you through the basics, but it also forces you to use advanced techniques such as combo multipliers and queuing things up. Once you’ve got the tutorial down, you even get your diploma and then you can hit the runways freely!

The Frustrating Stuff:

This doesn’t really count for anyone who hasn’t downloaded the app yet, but for those who had already been playing for a while, they were greeted by a horrible surprise when they installed the last update: everything was gone. Unfortunately, the developers made a mistake and anyone who updated lost all their data, but the mistake has since been corrected so don’t worry about updating or installing now. Other than that though, there really aren’t other gripes about this app.

Bottom Line:

Airport Mania 2: Wild Trips is one of the best games to grace the Android platform in quite some time. Even the loading screen is adorable with its little seatbelt progress bar! This is by all means an absolute rush-as-fast-as-you-can-and-grab-it-while-it’s-free app, but even if you aren’t lucky enough to grab it now, it’s definitely worth the 99 cents to pick it up any other time because this game is pretty much a guaranteed addiction. If you haven’t played any time management games before and you’re unsure whether or not you’d like them, there is the original game’s little brother, Airport Mania Free which will give you a light taste of the paid version. Now what are you waiting for, get out there and grab this while you can!

Airport Mania 2: Wild Trips was created by Reflexive Entertainment and is Amazon’s free app of the day for 1/12/12. It typically sells for $0.99