Rayman Origins Review

With Rayman Origins, Rayman and his pals, Globox and the various Teensies, team up in a revivalist piece that marries modern platforming techniques spearheaded by Nintendo with a uniquely Ubisoft flavor. There are no gimmicks here, no motion control, no rabbids, no partially developed gameplay ideas. Instead, Ancel and his team have brought forth a fully realized, perfectly animated sidescrolling masterpiece that glories in the simplicity of running and jumping to the right, and all the complexity and exploration that this belies.

The best dishes served in a restaurant can be amazingly complex, but sometimes it is the simplest dishes with high quality and fresh ingredients that wow and delight. This is Rayman Origins, a game that is absolutely polished and wholly complete, it takes simple joy of platforming with very little in pretension, letting what is great about it argue for its quality.

The core of Rayman Origins is pretty easy to define. The plot serves nothing but to facilitate the platforming, so it’s pretty easy to ignore. What does matter, however, is the tightly designed controls. Each of the characters can jump, float, wall jump, slide, slap, and swim. It’s a control scheme that takes all of three buttons to use, and the player controls are tight and responsive. Every time you die, you know it’s a fault of the player and not the game.

I played through most of the game by myself. Like New Super Mario Bros. Wii or Donkey Kong Country Returns, the game is entirely playable by oneself. It’s actually better to play by yourself when trying to unlock those last secret electoon puzzles or collect those glowing lums to 100 percent a level. With plenty of unlockable characters and costumes, the game does a great job of incentivizing collecting doodads, something I normally hate.

However, once two or more players are involved, Rayman Origins becomes a practice in chaos. I wouldn’t call it a bad thing, as many times players will find that they can complete portions of the game easier with help (such as stacking up on each other, or sacrificing oneself to collect some lums), but for the most part the game spends its time rewarding players who troll and slap each other. If you’re trying to complete everything, go it by yourself, but for a good time with some friends, Rayman Origins stands up with Nintendo’s best multiplayer platformers.

It’s also brutally hard. While early levels pose only a slight challenge, Rayman Origins challenges players with chase levels that require perfectly timed platforming, swimming stages where death is one slight move to the left, sidescrolling SHMUP stages where the desire for a high score can ruin a perfection flown level, and bosses that can border on frustratingly difficult. The never quite feels unfair, and the respawns are fast and mostly at a fair point. Expect to die a lot, especially if you are playing by yourself and you don’t have anyone to bring you back to life. From my time with the game, just trying to survive, much less collect everything on the more than sixty stages, I can say this game is as good as, and as difficult as DKCR.

For masochists with a desire to be punished by a platformer, this should be good enough to get them playing. For slightly casual players, it’s the visuals that are really going to keep them playing. While most companies use 3D polygons to animate and fill out their worlds, even in 2D platformers, Ubisoft and Ancel has decided to return to Rayman’s roots and do a fully hand drawn, beautifully realized 2D art direction running at 60 FPS. This game is luscious and stunning, one of the most detailed and beautiful games I have played, period. It is a title like Rayman Origins that highlights the truth that style and art direction game make a game beautiful. For 15 hours I have been continually blown away by how gorgeous this game is, and from start to finish my jaw drops with every new area and every new cartoon character to interact with.

If a high attention to detail has been paid to the visuals, just as much has been applied to the music. In every stage, orchestral overtones fit the feel and mode of that particular level, and every enemy or environment interaction parlays into its own specific tone or beat. It’s an incredibly musical game, and one that is very satisfying and enjoyable to listen to.

Rayman Origins is an outstanding game, plain and simple, establishing itself as one of the best games I have played this year and one of the biggest surprises of 2011. If you are looking for retro-tinged gameplay with charming presentation, Rayman Origins is one to not miss.

[Reviewed on Xbox 360]

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Selk'bag 4G Lite Review

The Selk'bag 4G is essentially a sleeping bag, that you don't necessarily have sleep in, but instead you can wear while doing other things, like say gaming! The way it's constructed is that it keeps the heat inside, even in more than unnatural cold situations.

The outer covering is made up of soft polyester that's also water resistant, just incase you might spill your favorite energy drink while gaming into the late hours of the night. For extremely cold situations, you can even cover your head with a hood for extra added warmth. The body of the Selk'bag includes zippers that grant convenient access to various areas. The side zippers allow easy access for pockets, but where is the quick access on the front? If I need to go to the bathroom, there is no way for me to go the bathroom without fully taking it off. Sure the same can be said about an actual sleeping bag, but it's safe to say it's much easier to slip out of that, than it is out of one of these. As you can see from the picture above, the sleeves have convenient openings for when you want to pick up a controller, eat a hotdog, or do pretty much anything that requires the use of your hands.

For what it does, the Selk'bag works. It does provide an exceptional amount of heat, while leaving you pretty mobile to pretty much do anything around the house. To be fair, it's not exactly advertised to be used as a tool for freezing gamers, but rather people who like to spend time outdoors, where it usually is much colder than a gamers bedroom.

Is it something that gamers should flock to buy immediately? Probably not, unless you're living in Alaska, and any source of heat is currently unavailable to you. Though I do highly encourage for people who enjoy spending their free time outdoors, particularly in cold areas to give the Selk'bag 4G Lite a look. It works and it keeps you warm and fairly mobile.

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The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword Review (Wii)

When Twilight Princess came out, many thought that the controls weren’t really up to snuff, preferring the “classic” style of the GameCube version over the gimmicky Wii motion controls.  But there’s nothing gimmicky about how Skyward Sword plays.  Everything feels quite natural here, whether you’re aiming a weapon to take out an enemy from a distance (always trust a slingshot – or rolling bombs) or engaging in terrific combat that has you side-stepping and striking like a pro.  Combat is just part of the picture; you’ll also do a fair amount of exploring and puzzle solving – clearly a tradition of Zelda games.

Link’s additional physical abilities mean a lot to the game as well.  No longer does he have to shoot at switches from afar, as he can climb his way up walls to snag them.  We love the way he can work his way up steep inclines.  If there’s one thing that frustrated us in any given platformer, it’s sliding up a surface, only to come back down without successfully reaching the top.  Thing of the past here.

Outside of the main quest (which I won’t spoil, because it’s dedicated Zelda territory), there’s plenty to do.  The city of Skyloft, made up of a group of floating islands, lets you travel around in style, whether you’re taking an aerial plunge from the island, zooming around on a mine cart (Indiana Jones style!), or taking flight on a giant red bird (one of the game’s more exhilarating moments).  The treasure system plays a huge part with this island, as you’ll occasionally have to complete side puzzles in order to unlock them.  Hey, the best kind of treasure is the earned kind.  (Just ask Jones – fortune and glory, kid.)

Things do get slightly tiring, to be fair.  You’ll have to make your way through certain worlds again, often backtracking and sometimes visiting familiar dungeons to locate items.  But as a whole, the game maintains a high amount of energy; it motivates you to continue onward, even during the parts that tend to drag a little bit.  The later levels are a true testament to this, including the final dungeon, which…well, I’ll let you discover it for yourself.

On a side note, I love the game save system.  It’s fairly paced, so you won’t have to worry about reaching a point where you can’t continue on any further, or get whisked back to an area, needing to clear it again.  Save often if you can, because some of these bosses will simply put you to the test. 

While Skyward Sword may be stuck in the standard definition age (perhaps we were too spoiled by that HD Zelda Wii U demo a few months back), it looks glorious.  Environments are treated with the utmost care, from the darkest of dungeons to some breathtaking wide-open fields.  The animation is superb, especially on the bigger enemies and some of the side characters.  We haven’t seen a Zelda game look this detailed since the old days of Wind Waker.  We were pleasantly surprised by this.

Equally surprising?  The soundtrack.  Wow.  Great stuff by Nintendo.  We can now easily see why they chose to do a few orchestrated concerts to hype the release of Skyward Sword.  It really does sound like a majestic piece of work.  (And if you can’t get enough of that, take a listen to the audio CD included with your game.  Great gathering of classic Zelda tunes.)  The sound effects are about what you’d expect, but they're fulfilling on their part, with lots of ambient noises and very little bothersome voicework to get in the way.

One thing to note – the controller/game package is awesome.  This WiiRemote plus, a gold-plastered controller with the Zelda logo imprinted on the front, is a thing of beauty and an absolute must for fans.  If you can track one down, we highly suggest it.

Even if you’re just stuck with the “regular” version of the game, you’ve got something wonderful in your grasp.  The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword isn’t ENTIRELY perfect, mainly due to its backtracking and occasional Skyloft hub issues (nothing serious), but the gameplay and presentation click so well that no Wii owner should be without it.  Consider this a worthwhile holiday gift to yourself.  Go on, you deserve it.

 

 

Via: The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword Review (Wii)

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Mario and Sonic At the London 2012 Olympic Games Review

You’ll choose from various characters throughout both Mario and Sonic’s universe, including familiar villains, heroes, and the occasional oddballs.  It’s a decent variety of characters, though some fan favorites may be missing.  From there, you’ll make your way through jolly, old London, completing mini-games and taking part in traditional Olympic competitions, either alone or with friends.  These include hurdles, soccer, and various others.

By completing these events and meeting certain criteria (relax, the game isn’t difficult), you’ll earn virtual achievements by way of stickers, which you can then collect in a book.  It doesn’t serve much purpose outside of showing it off to friends, however.  More unlockable stuff attached to said stickers would’ve been a pivotal addition.

Single-player is kind of a grind, mostly due to the fact that the AI isn’t entirely on its game – even in the highest difficulty – which makes some of the events a cakewalk.  That said, it certainly gets better with multiplayer, as friends can join you on the soccer field or in a fencing arena to see who fares better.  Some activities differ in quality, though.  We guarantee you’ll have more fun kicking soccer balls into goals than virtually trying to knock someone out of bounds.

What’s sorely missing from London 2012 is the Festival mode that made the Winter Olympic Games such a blast.  There, you could take on bosses, complete objectives, and work your way through what seemed like a lengthy campaign.  What’s here is just a simple hub where you go from point-to-point.  That takes out some of the much-needed charm that made Mario and Sonic work so well over the past few years.  There’s a Challenge mode, but outside of the stickers, it really doesn’t have much to offer – leading you back to multiplayer.

Visually, Sega didn’t go overboard with London 2012.  It merely sticks with what works, including cute animations and a basic set-up for each sport, which players will get into.  It hardly innovates, save for some side activities – like dodging potholes in a city street – that may put a smile on your face.  However, it feels more like a basic add-on to the first Olympic Games, rather than a solid continuation.  Sounds about the same too, with repetitive character quotes and decent (if a bit bland) background music.

If you’ve got a family that enjoyed Mario and Sonic the last couple of times around, or just want something a little more competitive than the other Wii holiday fare, Mario and Sonic At the London 2012 Olympic Games may suffice.  However, this is a series in need of a much-needed boost.  With the Wii U forthcoming, we just might get that in 2013.  Cross your fingers.

Via: Mario and Sonic At the London 2012 Olympic Games Review

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Centipede: Infestation Review

The game stars a bug hunter named Max, who has made it his mission to eliminate giant bug after giant bug following a worldwide infestation. He runs into a girl named Maisy, and together, the duo sets out to eliminate bugs, discover several personal secrets, and find themselves. The whole thing is a bit cheesy, and the subpar cutscenes are rife with questionable dialogue, cliches, and sexual tension between Max and Maisy. The story doesn't get in the way, but after actually playing Infestation, I came away with the notion that it was pretty unnecessary.

Gameplay consists of running and gunning in small environments. The first few levels are fairly confined, but as you progress, you encounter longer stages and big boss battles. The basic formula never really changes, though, and throughout your adventure, you basically just have to kill all the bugs that appear onscreen. Thankfully, as simple as that may be, there are a few added elements that keep things from getting boring. Ammo pick-ups grant you different types of projectiles such as ice, flame, and laser bursts; they last you a limited time but can really help you out when you begin encountering the bigger waves of enemies. There's also a stomp attack that helps create some space between you and the stronger bugs, all the while splattering weaker critters to bits. These little additions to your arsenal go a long way in making Infestation a fun shoot 'em up with a touch of variety.

You can control your character using either the Wii Remote and Nunchuk combo or the Classic Controller. Using the Wii Remote/Nunchuk control scheme, you move around with the analog stick, select ammo power-ups in one of four slots using the D-Pad, and shoot baddies by aiming at them with the Wii Remote and pressing the B button. Alternatively, if you use the Classic Controller, you guide your character with the left stick, select from your collected ammo pick-ups with the face buttons, and shoot in different directions with the right stick, making the whole thing play out like a twin-stick shooter. Both control schemes work incredibly well, and I would definitely recommend trying out both to see which one fits your play style best. As a fan of twin-stick shooters, I ended up playing the majority of the game using the Classic Controller.

Infestation isn't a very long game. You can get through the entire campaign--which consists of 35 levels and five boss battles--in under five hours. There are Normal and Hard difficulties, though, as well as an unlockable Insane difficulty. There are also hidden characters to unlock and in-game achievements, but what really gives Infestation some replay value is the addition of local co-op. Two players can take on the entire campaign together, making for a much more enjoyable experience. At $30, it would be difficult to expect too much more out of this package.

Though Infestation is a fun romp overall, it's incredibly simple. There's not much variety in the gameplay, and this translates over to the visuals and audio. Though the game is by no means ugly, it's overly simple and a bit uninspired. As far as the soundtrack goes, you won't hear any memorable themes here, but a few of them may get stuck in your head after listening to them a few times.

Throughout my playthrough of Infestation, I found myself having a lot of fun. It took me roughly four hours and 45 minutes to get through the entire game, and in that time, I was treated to a shoot 'em up experience that was stylistically retro, all the while updating the Centipede series in proper fashion. The twin-stick shooter design of the game was enjoyable and nicely paced, and while it is super simple, Infestation is a nice little game to sit down and play through, especially if you've got a buddy to blast some bugs with.

Via: Centipede: Infestation Review

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Rune Factory: Tides of Destiny Review

The scenario I described is just one of the many problems that Rune Factory: Tides of Destiny has holding it down. It's fitting that there are such characters in the game to truly terrify you, because the entire experience is enough to send you crying into your pillow, much like I imagine the little boy I just mentioned does on a nightly basis.

Last year around this time, I reviewed Rune Factory 3: A Fantasy Harvest Moon for the Nintendo DS. I awarded it a great score of 8.5 / 10, and I listed its intuitive and engaging farming, simple yet entertaining combat, interesting story, and sheer depth as great reasons to pick it up. The only real problem I had with the game was that it wasn't exactly groundbreaking for the series. As Tides of Destiny drew closer to its launch date, I was excited to get a console follow-up to the game I invested so much time into in November and December of 2010.

I happily popped in my review copy of Tides of Destiny for the Wii and awaited yet another grand adventure rife with exploration, hack-and-slash combat, and some fun farming. Sadly, all of my expectations were crushed, much like the emotions of that little boy in Tides of Destiny who lives with the priest and I imagine returns to his tear-soaked pillow every day. The game got off to a slow start, which I kind of expected, but as I spent more time with it, it hardly seemed to speed up. Tides of Destiny is an exercise in boredom and monotony, and that's due to one constant element: character interaction.

In Rune Factory 3, you interacted with characters within the village and did favors for them via a job board. There were different activites for you to engage in, many of which were pretty fun. Of course, these jobs weren't the focal point of the experience. Rune Factory 3 featured an underlying string of dungeons that you needed to clear in order to fully progress through the game. Tides of Destiny is quite the opposite. Here, there are dungeons for you to explore, but in order to reach these dungeons, you first need to complete several tasks posted on the job board. Not only are these tasks annoying fetch quests, but they repeat too often, forcing you to do the same thing over and over.

The reason I stated that character interaction is the basis of the game and the very reason the game is so boring is because you need to communicate with the boring citizens of Tides of Destiny constantly in order to unlock new job requests. Talking to them and giving them gifts is a great way to get them on your good side, and the more you interact, the closer you'll get to them, which in turn means you'll unlock more jobs that will eventually lead to the game's dungeons.

Have you ever had those moments with a game where several hours pass and you think to yourself, "Hmm ... I haven't made much progress. Am I doing something wrong? What the heck do I need to do next to keep the game's story going?" Well, the first several hours with Tides of Destiny were like that for me. I spent several in-game days doing absolutely nothing. In Rune Factory 3, I would talk to people, farm, do some level grinding, and engage in all manner of activites, which resulted in my character tiring out before the day ended. In Tides of Destiny, I found myself with hardly anything to do, so I would frequently send the protagonist to bed by 2PM.

Interacting with characters only takes so long, and given just how boring they all are, I found it hard to approach them and watch as they made small talk with me. The game's story, which revolves around a guy named Aden, who has the soul of his best friend Sonja stuck in his body, isn't bad, and it could have made for some sweet conversations. Instead, the whole thing is a boring mess full of annoying dialogue.

That said, I could have handled a bad story and bad characters, but it's the gameplay that really bothers me. The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask was a game that was centered on its side quests. Story progression relied heavily on these additional objectives, but the game managed to make such a design feel engaging and incredible. Tides of Destiny also relies on side quests, but they're so tedious that the game never truly picks up. Even when you do reach the dungeons, it's hard to really enjoy them because they're not as interesting as those in Rune Factory 3. Since you rely on Rune Points to do anything from fighting to fishing, you constantly find your RP meter running low. So stock up on health and regeneration supplies, and don't forget to grind.

Farming wasn't complex in Rune Factory 3, but it was fun. Tides of Destiny brings back this series staple, but it makes it feel ridiculously uninspired. Farming is overly simplistic, and it's not a major part of the experience. There's something kind of wrong with that, because this is a spin-off of Harvest Moon. Farming should be at least a semi-integral part of these games, and because it's worked so well in the past, it's frustrating that such an enjoyable aspect has been stripped down... like that poor little boy in the church at the hands of that jovially sinister priest.

You can still tame monsters and take them with you, and it's highly recommended that you do. A few extra hands in battle certainly help, even if the combat is strictly reliant on button mashing. You can also craft items such as weapons, which requires you to complete mini-games and use up that ever-precious RP meter. These aspects of the game are decent enough, but when you take into account everything else that's wrong with Tides of Destiny, it's hard to get much if any enjoyment out of it whatsoever.

Visually, the art style in Tides of Destiny is certainly nice to look at. Cool colors adorn the land, characters have a nice anime aesthetic, and there's charm practically everywhere. The sound design is also pretty sweet, though songs can loop a bit, especially since you spend so much time running around town, talking to people and fetching items for them. The Wii version of the game is a lot less impressive than the PlayStation 3 version, but that's to be expected, and I won't fault the developers for that. It's that damn gameplay that makes me pass judgment on them.

At first, I thought I couldn't stay entertained with Tides of Destiny because I wanted to go back to the insanity of Saints Row: The Third. Then I thought it was because I've got a copy of The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword that I've only spent a handful of hours with, and I'd really like to return to that soon. I honestly felt that I may not have been giving Tides of Destiny a fair shot, but after sinking more hours into the game, I realized that I had every reason to hate it. Not only is this game a disappointment, but it's a total letdown, especially when you consider that Rune Factory could and should be a much more important series.

You will spend a lot of time playing Tides of Destiny, but most of that time will consist of boring character interactions and even more boring side quests. The little fun that there is to be had here is offset by the sheer lack of depth in the game. Tides of Destiny could have been such a grand action RPG, but it's a shallow experience that launched during a time when there are so many other games that are far more worthy of your time.

Oh, and there's also an old alcoholic dude who thinks he's everyone's grandpa, so there's that.

Via: Rune Factory: Tides of Destiny Review

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The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword Review (Wii)

When Twilight Princess came out, many thought that the controls weren’t really up to snuff, preferring the “classic” style of the GameCube version over the gimmicky Wii motion controls.  But there’s nothing gimmicky about how Skyward Sword plays.  Everything feels quite natural here, whether you’re aiming a weapon to take out an enemy from a distance (always trust a slingshot – or rolling bombs) or engaging in terrific combat that has you side-stepping and striking like a pro.  Combat is just part of the picture; you’ll also do a fair amount of exploring and puzzle solving – clearly a tradition of Zelda games.

Link’s additional physical abilities mean a lot to the game as well.  No longer does he have to shoot at switches from afar, as he can climb his way up walls to snag them.  We love the way he can work his way up steep inclines.  If there’s one thing that frustrated us in any given platformer, it’s sliding up a surface, only to come back down without successfully reaching the top.  Thing of the past here.

Outside of the main quest (which I won’t spoil, because it’s dedicated Zelda territory), there’s plenty to do.  The city of Skyloft, made up of a group of floating islands, lets you travel around in style, whether you’re taking an aerial plunge from the island, zooming around on a mine cart (Indiana Jones style!), or taking flight on a giant red bird (one of the game’s more exhilarating moments).  The treasure system plays a huge part with this island, as you’ll occasionally have to complete side puzzles in order to unlock them.  Hey, the best kind of treasure is the earned kind.  (Just ask Jones – fortune and glory, kid.)

Things do get slightly tiring, to be fair.  You’ll have to make your way through certain worlds again, often backtracking and sometimes visiting familiar dungeons to locate items.  But as a whole, the game maintains a high amount of energy; it motivates you to continue onward, even during the parts that tend to drag a little bit.  The later levels are a true testament to this, including the final dungeon, which…well, I’ll let you discover it for yourself.

On a side note, I love the game save system.  It’s fairly paced, so you won’t have to worry about reaching a point where you can’t continue on any further, or get whisked back to an area, needing to clear it again.  Save often if you can, because some of these bosses will simply put you to the test. 

While Skyward Sword may be stuck in the standard definition age (perhaps we were too spoiled by that HD Zelda Wii U demo a few months back), it looks glorious.  Environments are treated with the utmost care, from the darkest of dungeons to some breathtaking wide-open fields.  The animation is superb, especially on the bigger enemies and some of the side characters.  We haven’t seen a Zelda game look this detailed since the old days of Wind Waker.  We were pleasantly surprised by this.

Equally surprising?  The soundtrack.  Wow.  Great stuff by Nintendo.  We can now easily see why they chose to do a few orchestrated concerts to hype the release of Skyward Sword.  It really does sound like a majestic piece of work.  (And if you can’t get enough of that, take a listen to the audio CD included with your game.  Great gathering of classic Zelda tunes.)  The sound effects are about what you’d expect, but they're fulfilling on their part, with lots of ambient noises and very little bothersome voicework to get in the way.

One thing to note – the controller/game package is awesome.  This WiiRemote plus, a gold-plastered controller with the Zelda logo imprinted on the front, is a thing of beauty and an absolute must for fans.  If you can track one down, we highly suggest it.

Even if you’re just stuck with the “regular” version of the game, you’ve got something wonderful in your grasp.  The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword isn’t ENTIRELY perfect, mainly due to its backtracking and occasional Skyloft hub issues (nothing serious), but the gameplay and presentation click so well that no Wii owner should be without it.  Consider this a worthwhile holiday gift to yourself.  Go on, you deserve it.

 

 

Via: The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword Review (Wii)

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Mario and Sonic At the London 2012 Olympic Games Review

You’ll choose from various characters throughout both Mario and Sonic’s universe, including familiar villains, heroes, and the occasional oddballs.  It’s a decent variety of characters, though some fan favorites may be missing.  From there, you’ll make your way through jolly, old London, completing mini-games and taking part in traditional Olympic competitions, either alone or with friends.  These include hurdles, soccer, and various others.

By completing these events and meeting certain criteria (relax, the game isn’t difficult), you’ll earn virtual achievements by way of stickers, which you can then collect in a book.  It doesn’t serve much purpose outside of showing it off to friends, however.  More unlockable stuff attached to said stickers would’ve been a pivotal addition.

Single-player is kind of a grind, mostly due to the fact that the AI isn’t entirely on its game – even in the highest difficulty – which makes some of the events a cakewalk.  That said, it certainly gets better with multiplayer, as friends can join you on the soccer field or in a fencing arena to see who fares better.  Some activities differ in quality, though.  We guarantee you’ll have more fun kicking soccer balls into goals than virtually trying to knock someone out of bounds.

What’s sorely missing from London 2012 is the Festival mode that made the Winter Olympic Games such a blast.  There, you could take on bosses, complete objectives, and work your way through what seemed like a lengthy campaign.  What’s here is just a simple hub where you go from point-to-point.  That takes out some of the much-needed charm that made Mario and Sonic work so well over the past few years.  There’s a Challenge mode, but outside of the stickers, it really doesn’t have much to offer – leading you back to multiplayer.

Visually, Sega didn’t go overboard with London 2012.  It merely sticks with what works, including cute animations and a basic set-up for each sport, which players will get into.  It hardly innovates, save for some side activities – like dodging potholes in a city street – that may put a smile on your face.  However, it feels more like a basic add-on to the first Olympic Games, rather than a solid continuation.  Sounds about the same too, with repetitive character quotes and decent (if a bit bland) background music.

If you’ve got a family that enjoyed Mario and Sonic the last couple of times around, or just want something a little more competitive than the other Wii holiday fare, Mario and Sonic At the London 2012 Olympic Games may suffice.  However, this is a series in need of a much-needed boost.  With the Wii U forthcoming, we just might get that in 2013.  Cross your fingers.

Via: Mario and Sonic At the London 2012 Olympic Games Review

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Centipede: Infestation Review

The game stars a bug hunter named Max, who has made it his mission to eliminate giant bug after giant bug following a worldwide infestation. He runs into a girl named Maisy, and together, the duo sets out to eliminate bugs, discover several personal secrets, and find themselves. The whole thing is a bit cheesy, and the subpar cutscenes are rife with questionable dialogue, cliches, and sexual tension between Max and Maisy. The story doesn't get in the way, but after actually playing Infestation, I came away with the notion that it was pretty unnecessary.

Gameplay consists of running and gunning in small environments. The first few levels are fairly confined, but as you progress, you encounter longer stages and big boss battles. The basic formula never really changes, though, and throughout your adventure, you basically just have to kill all the bugs that appear onscreen. Thankfully, as simple as that may be, there are a few added elements that keep things from getting boring. Ammo pick-ups grant you different types of projectiles such as ice, flame, and laser bursts; they last you a limited time but can really help you out when you begin encountering the bigger waves of enemies. There's also a stomp attack that helps create some space between you and the stronger bugs, all the while splattering weaker critters to bits. These little additions to your arsenal go a long way in making Infestation a fun shoot 'em up with a touch of variety.

You can control your character using either the Wii Remote and Nunchuk combo or the Classic Controller. Using the Wii Remote/Nunchuk control scheme, you move around with the analog stick, select ammo power-ups in one of four slots using the D-Pad, and shoot baddies by aiming at them with the Wii Remote and pressing the B button. Alternatively, if you use the Classic Controller, you guide your character with the left stick, select from your collected ammo pick-ups with the face buttons, and shoot in different directions with the right stick, making the whole thing play out like a twin-stick shooter. Both control schemes work incredibly well, and I would definitely recommend trying out both to see which one fits your play style best. As a fan of twin-stick shooters, I ended up playing the majority of the game using the Classic Controller.

Infestation isn't a very long game. You can get through the entire campaign--which consists of 35 levels and five boss battles--in under five hours. There are Normal and Hard difficulties, though, as well as an unlockable Insane difficulty. There are also hidden characters to unlock and in-game achievements, but what really gives Infestation some replay value is the addition of local co-op. Two players can take on the entire campaign together, making for a much more enjoyable experience. At $30, it would be difficult to expect too much more out of this package.

Though Infestation is a fun romp overall, it's incredibly simple. There's not much variety in the gameplay, and this translates over to the visuals and audio. Though the game is by no means ugly, it's overly simple and a bit uninspired. As far as the soundtrack goes, you won't hear any memorable themes here, but a few of them may get stuck in your head after listening to them a few times.

Throughout my playthrough of Infestation, I found myself having a lot of fun. It took me roughly four hours and 45 minutes to get through the entire game, and in that time, I was treated to a shoot 'em up experience that was stylistically retro, all the while updating the Centipede series in proper fashion. The twin-stick shooter design of the game was enjoyable and nicely paced, and while it is super simple, Infestation is a nice little game to sit down and play through, especially if you've got a buddy to blast some bugs with.

Via: Centipede: Infestation Review

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Rune Factory: Tides of Destiny Review

The scenario I described is just one of the many problems that Rune Factory: Tides of Destiny has holding it down. It's fitting that there are such characters in the game to truly terrify you, because the entire experience is enough to send you crying into your pillow, much like I imagine the little boy I just mentioned does on a nightly basis.

Last year around this time, I reviewed Rune Factory 3: A Fantasy Harvest Moon for the Nintendo DS. I awarded it a great score of 8.5 / 10, and I listed its intuitive and engaging farming, simple yet entertaining combat, interesting story, and sheer depth as great reasons to pick it up. The only real problem I had with the game was that it wasn't exactly groundbreaking for the series. As Tides of Destiny drew closer to its launch date, I was excited to get a console follow-up to the game I invested so much time into in November and December of 2010.

I happily popped in my review copy of Tides of Destiny for the Wii and awaited yet another grand adventure rife with exploration, hack-and-slash combat, and some fun farming. Sadly, all of my expectations were crushed, much like the emotions of that little boy in Tides of Destiny who lives with the priest and I imagine returns to his tear-soaked pillow every day. The game got off to a slow start, which I kind of expected, but as I spent more time with it, it hardly seemed to speed up. Tides of Destiny is an exercise in boredom and monotony, and that's due to one constant element: character interaction.

In Rune Factory 3, you interacted with characters within the village and did favors for them via a job board. There were different activites for you to engage in, many of which were pretty fun. Of course, these jobs weren't the focal point of the experience. Rune Factory 3 featured an underlying string of dungeons that you needed to clear in order to fully progress through the game. Tides of Destiny is quite the opposite. Here, there are dungeons for you to explore, but in order to reach these dungeons, you first need to complete several tasks posted on the job board. Not only are these tasks annoying fetch quests, but they repeat too often, forcing you to do the same thing over and over.

The reason I stated that character interaction is the basis of the game and the very reason the game is so boring is because you need to communicate with the boring citizens of Tides of Destiny constantly in order to unlock new job requests. Talking to them and giving them gifts is a great way to get them on your good side, and the more you interact, the closer you'll get to them, which in turn means you'll unlock more jobs that will eventually lead to the game's dungeons.

Have you ever had those moments with a game where several hours pass and you think to yourself, "Hmm ... I haven't made much progress. Am I doing something wrong? What the heck do I need to do next to keep the game's story going?" Well, the first several hours with Tides of Destiny were like that for me. I spent several in-game days doing absolutely nothing. In Rune Factory 3, I would talk to people, farm, do some level grinding, and engage in all manner of activites, which resulted in my character tiring out before the day ended. In Tides of Destiny, I found myself with hardly anything to do, so I would frequently send the protagonist to bed by 2PM.

Interacting with characters only takes so long, and given just how boring they all are, I found it hard to approach them and watch as they made small talk with me. The game's story, which revolves around a guy named Aden, who has the soul of his best friend Sonja stuck in his body, isn't bad, and it could have made for some sweet conversations. Instead, the whole thing is a boring mess full of annoying dialogue.

That said, I could have handled a bad story and bad characters, but it's the gameplay that really bothers me. The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask was a game that was centered on its side quests. Story progression relied heavily on these additional objectives, but the game managed to make such a design feel engaging and incredible. Tides of Destiny also relies on side quests, but they're so tedious that the game never truly picks up. Even when you do reach the dungeons, it's hard to really enjoy them because they're not as interesting as those in Rune Factory 3. Since you rely on Rune Points to do anything from fighting to fishing, you constantly find your RP meter running low. So stock up on health and regeneration supplies, and don't forget to grind.

Farming wasn't complex in Rune Factory 3, but it was fun. Tides of Destiny brings back this series staple, but it makes it feel ridiculously uninspired. Farming is overly simplistic, and it's not a major part of the experience. There's something kind of wrong with that, because this is a spin-off of Harvest Moon. Farming should be at least a semi-integral part of these games, and because it's worked so well in the past, it's frustrating that such an enjoyable aspect has been stripped down... like that poor little boy in the church at the hands of that jovially sinister priest.

You can still tame monsters and take them with you, and it's highly recommended that you do. A few extra hands in battle certainly help, even if the combat is strictly reliant on button mashing. You can also craft items such as weapons, which requires you to complete mini-games and use up that ever-precious RP meter. These aspects of the game are decent enough, but when you take into account everything else that's wrong with Tides of Destiny, it's hard to get much if any enjoyment out of it whatsoever.

Visually, the art style in Tides of Destiny is certainly nice to look at. Cool colors adorn the land, characters have a nice anime aesthetic, and there's charm practically everywhere. The sound design is also pretty sweet, though songs can loop a bit, especially since you spend so much time running around town, talking to people and fetching items for them. The Wii version of the game is a lot less impressive than the PlayStation 3 version, but that's to be expected, and I won't fault the developers for that. It's that damn gameplay that makes me pass judgment on them.

At first, I thought I couldn't stay entertained with Tides of Destiny because I wanted to go back to the insanity of Saints Row: The Third. Then I thought it was because I've got a copy of The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword that I've only spent a handful of hours with, and I'd really like to return to that soon. I honestly felt that I may not have been giving Tides of Destiny a fair shot, but after sinking more hours into the game, I realized that I had every reason to hate it. Not only is this game a disappointment, but it's a total letdown, especially when you consider that Rune Factory could and should be a much more important series.

You will spend a lot of time playing Tides of Destiny, but most of that time will consist of boring character interactions and even more boring side quests. The little fun that there is to be had here is offset by the sheer lack of depth in the game. Tides of Destiny could have been such a grand action RPG, but it's a shallow experience that launched during a time when there are so many other games that are far more worthy of your time.

Oh, and there's also an old alcoholic dude who thinks he's everyone's grandpa, so there's that.

Via: Rune Factory: Tides of Destiny Review

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Rhythm Heaven Fever review

Rhythm Heaven Fever tasks you with pressing the A button or the A + B buttons in rhythmic fashion, whether you're copying on screen movements or just following the beat, it helps if you're in any way rhythmically inclined, otherwise you might have a hard time keeping up with the game, especially as you keep unlocking more challenging levels.

The basic layout of the game is quite simple. You start off with one song on a big grid and as you complete it, you unlock more and more. There are always four songs that belong into one tiered level, and then the fifth is a remix which combines all the previous ones together into one, much harder song. Depending on whether you hit all the beats correctly or stumble a few times can mean the difference between a gold medal, a passing grade, or a failure. Getting a gold medal then qualifies you to perfect the song, though you must wait on the game to signal it first. As you're playing, you'll be told that a certain level can be perfected, and you have three tries until you have to try again a later time. These perfect runs truly test out your nerves as even one little hiccup in your rhythm can cost you that perfect result.

The aforementioned Remix levels take the cake as far as creativity go. Utilizing the previous four levels' gameplay styles and combining them in a way that it makes one complete song is always a joy to see, and once you master the remix, you'll find yourself wanting to do them again and again, if only just to listen to the awesome songs.

An example of some of these rhythm games can involve a high flying badminton match, where you must keep hitting the shuttlecock back and forth between you and a computer opponent to the beat. Various visual and sound cues indicate whether the shots change up so you know when to change up the beat as well. It's a hard concept to explain but certainly this video might help you understand it better.

What's great about Rhythm Heaven Fever is its sheer amount of songs you can play through. There is truly a lot of variety here and if you like quirky sounding songs, you're going to feel right at home here. As always, us in the US are robbed of the amazing original Japanese soundtrack, as most of the sound cues, and lyrical songs are changed to English, but thankfully the translations are just as entertaining.

There are a lot of extras in the game as you progress, such as little mini games to serve as a distraction, and that is indeed what they are. From a musical pullback car, to an endless game of beat matching, or even a mystery game which requires you to look out for codewords around the game, and then input them into your cellphone to solve crimes, these will entertain for a bit, but you won't find yourself playing around with them a whole ton, and instead you'll be constantly trying to better yourself in every song.

Visually the game looks amazing. It doesn't use any 3D visuals, and instead relies on caricatured characters and bright colors. In fact some of these levels are so minimalistic that they might only include a hand flicking a pea on one side and a fork trying to catch it on the other. This is not a knock on the game's graphics, instead it just goes to show you don't need flashy unreal engines to produce an entertaining game.

Like I said before, Rhythm Heaven Fever will certainly not appeal to everyone. It's so Japanese that unless you consider yourself an Otaku or you're just extremely into any rhythm game imaginable, you will most likely look at this game with a quizzical face and ask yourself "What did I just watch??" Rhythm Heaven Fever would have been hard to recommend had it stayed $50, but at its new price of $30, it's a must buy for anyone that enjoyed the previous game on the DS, or anyone with a sense of rhythm.

Via: Rhythm Heaven Fever review

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The Kore Gang: Outvasion from Inner Earth review

You start out as a girl named Pixie who happens to find a giant robotic suit with special abilities. It is up to you to stop all hell from breaking loose when the evil Krank brothers, who live at the center of the earth, attempt to invade the rest of the planet. You eventually run into a young kid named Madboy and his dog Rex. You must guide the three heroes through 32 stages as you try to save the world.

At first glance, The Kore Gang looks a lot like an old school 3D platformer. The game has bright visuals and a few charming worlds. The colorful aesthetic is definitely good, but it's hard to bestow a ton of praise on the game's visuals when taking into account just how drab the whole experience is. Yes, The Kore Gang looks pretty good, but it is in no way a good game.

The most glaring issue I had with The Kore Gang was the abysmal camera. Back in the days of the Nintendo 64 and the PlayStation, we had a number of 3D platformers that suffered from camera issues. Some of my favorite titles from that generation were no strangers to pesky camera angles and odd wall-sticking. The Kore Gang somehow manages to provide a camera that's ridiculously unstable. And the camera controls--which are mapped to the D-pad on the Wii remote and can alternatively be used by holding down the Z button and moving the onscreen pointer--aren't all that helpful, especially when the camera gets locked at a certain angle. Considering The Kore Gang was in development for quite some time, there's just no excuse for this level of unpolished game design.

Unfortunately, the issues don't end with the camera and its hideous control. For a game that attempts to deliver a great 3D platforming romp akin to Nintendo 64 classics such as the legendary Super Mario 64, The Kore Gang falls horribly, horribly flat. The three characters control decently, but even that aspect of the game is marred with questionable design choices. Pixie's double jump is most certainly useful, and Rex's quick running ability is a godsend. The issue here is that every level is hampered by odd platform placement. If you mistime a jump, you may land all the way at the bottom of a stage, which results in frustratingly mundane backtracking. And because a lot of the levels are completely devoid of landmarks and unique features, it can be easy to get disoriented.

Every level has different objectives that you need to fulfill to move on. Whether you're searching for key-like items or collecting specific objects (such as metal bananas for a giant robotic monkey), you'll always have to fulfill a mandatory set of prerequisite actions before you can progress. That's fine, but it's the boring nature of a lot of these objectives and the monotonous layout of most of the levels that keeps The Kore Gang from ever being interesting. Even despite the fact that each character has unique abilities such as Pixie's grappling hook which is used to access high platforms, Madboy's different punch attacks, and Rex's eavesdropping technique, the game never fully develops into something special that makes you care about these varied abilities.

If there's one thing aside from the cheery visual style of The Kore Gang that I kind of enjoyed, it's the game's humor. The whole thing is geared for the kiddies, but every so often the game manages to enter adult territory, delivering witty one-liners that parents playing with their children are sure to get and chuckle at. One of the final scenes, in particular, almost made playing through this hideously bad game worthwhile. What can I say? I'm a sucker for bleeped out censoring. And before you call me out on being a spoiler-revealing jerk, just know that you're probably not going to play this game anyway.

Ultimately, I couldn't stand The Kore Gang. Yes, the visuals were charming for the most part, and yes, the game had a few funny moments, but even then, I would never recommend this game to anyone. For the minor good qualities it has, The Kore Gang is full of bad gameplay elements and terrible mechanics. Its appeal designed for kids still isn't enough for me to say that you should go out and buy this title for the little ones in your family, unless of course your goal is to shield them from actual good games. The Kore Gang attempts to provide a good 3D platforming experience, and while it's obvious that the game was made with good intentions, it's impossible to deny the fact that this depressing 3D platformer fails on almost every conceivable level.

Via: The Kore Gang: Outvasion from Inner Earth review

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Fishing Resort review

You start out by selecting a character and editing him or her. There's no Mii support, which is odd, so you're stuck using Mii-like characters instead. Once you pick a character, it's off to the game's first tutorial. Thankfully, this is a short sequence that teaches you the basics of fishing. There's really nothing to it. Simply press the A button, tilt the Wii Remote back, and then launch forward to send your line into the water. After that you have to play the waiting game in the hopes that the fish will bite.

Reeling in your game is simple, too, but there are different layers that make it pretty fun. Once you see and hear that fish bite, you need to give the Wii Remote a quick upward flick. After you do that, you must rotate the Nunchuk rapidly to simulate the act of reeling in the fish. You'll see a tension meter at the top of the screen, and when it starts to enter the red, you have to ease up on the reeling so you won't break the line. Additionally, the game prompts you when you need to tilt the Wii Remote to maintain control of the rod and the fish.

There are certainly a few intricacies that keep the gameplay of Fishing Resort from being overly simplistic. That element carries over to the game's world. There's a surprising amount of things you can do. You can talk to other characters and fulfill certain tasks such as fetching their loved ones and delivering items. You can enter competitions and catch certain types of fish that are requested on bulletin boards. You can also get on a kayak and head out to deeper water to see what type of fish await you.

Additionally, you can visit different resorts such as beaches, lakes, and swamps. These different places make for a nice change of scenery, and there are different fish within every resort. Not every locale is open to you right away, so you'll have to be sure to catch plenty of fish and complete objectives to earn points and increase your rank. Points can be used to move to different resorts, rent kayaks, participate in bulletin board events, and upgrade to new fishing gear.

Unfortunately, despite these neat little nuances, Fishing Resort is exactly what its name implies: a fishing game. Chances are if you don't like fishing games, or don't care for fishing in general, you probably won't find much enjoyment in this title. Though it's definitely deep at a certain level, there are a bunch of moments where nothing is happening. You'll be waiting for that fish to bite, but you'll get nothing for long stretches of time, or you'll lose fish and realize you need to upgrade to a new tackle box with better equipment.

Fishing Resort has a nice, cheery look to it that's on par as far as what you would expect from a fishing game on the Wii. There are smooth visuals and nice colors, but there's nothing particularly outstanding about the game's graphics. The same can be said about the sound design. There's plenty of calming, natural sound, but nothing will blow you away. Then again, this is a fishing game that's actually kind of relaxing, so you can't really expect it to blow you away.

Ultimately, Fishing Resort does a good job of providing fishing fans with a slow-paced yet entertaining experience. There are online rankings for individuals who take digital fishing seriously, and about 200 fish for those who want to challenge themselves and collect every creature in the game. Fishing Resort is a niche game, and while it's certainly good at catering to its niche, it's a game that most Wii owners probably won't care for. I had some fun playing the game, but I can't say Fishing Resort was a memorable experience. It's simply a fishing game that works, and some people will probably like it.

Via: Fishing Resort review

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