Shank Review

Posted by Matt Purslow at 4:32pm on August 26th, 2010

The second 2D scroller available this week is Shank; downloadable from both Xbox Live Arcade and PlayStation Network. A bloody action beat-em-up, can Shank stand out from the already star-studded crowd of downloadable titles released this summer?

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PlayStation Network | Reviews | Xbox Live Arcade

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Scott Pilgrim vs The World: The Game Review

Posted by Matt Purslow at 3:36pm on August 26th, 2010

This year’s Xbox Live promotion, Summer of Arcade, has certainly been filled with some pretty superb titles. From the artsy Limbo to the madness of Monday Night Combat, there’s been something for all tastes.

This week we get another two great-looking 2D side-scrollers, first of which is Scott Pilgrim vs The World: The Game.

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PlayStation Network | Reviews | Xbox Live Arcade

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StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty Review

Posted by Matt Purslow at 6:08pm on August 12th, 2010

It’s been twelve long years since we last heard from the Terran military, but at last Blizzard’s highly anticipated non-World of WarCraft title drops onto the surface of our little planet. But is it everything fans have hoped for, or over a decade on has the universe of StarCraft lost its shine?

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Blizzard | PC | Reviews

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Limbo Review

Posted by Matt Purslow at 6:48pm on August 5th, 2010

When you first download Limbo, its noir art style and dot-eyed child protagonist is likely to push you one of two ways. You’ll either be drawn in by its Tim Burton sensibilities, or be turned away by its apparent pretentiousness. So is Limbo a game for high society pompous gamers, or genuinely something special?

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Reviews | Xbox Live Arcade

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Monkey Island 2: LeChuck’s Revenge – Special Edition Review

Posted by Matt Purslow at 6:53pm on August 1st, 2010

If you’re a gamer who would consider themselves seasoned or a little ‘old school’, then there’s no question that you’re familiar with Lucas Arts’ Monkey Island series. Arguably the most loved and critically admired of the 1990’s graphic adventure game boom, Monkey Island 2 has received a make-over for the 21^st century.

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LucasArts | PC | PlayStation Network | Reviews | Xbox Live Arcade | iPad | iPhone

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Blacklight: Tango Down Review

Posted by Jereme Puik at 7:24pm on July 29th, 2010

Blacklight: Tango Down is a first person shooter too eerily familiar to this side of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare. It’s an online only multiplayer focused shooter with all the features you could expect out of one. There is no single player campaign and thus leaves you with very little vested interest in the games maps and weaponry. Every aspect of the game will bring you a very good sense of déjà vu thanks to Activision’s blockbuster title. There is an experienced based leveling system, weapon unlocks, similar controls and even a co-op mode to help you take on the computer AI. Let’s take a deeper look into the game and see how it looks.

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Reviews | Xbox 360 | Xbox Live Arcade

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Dragon Quest IX Review

Posted by Chris Holmes at 3:18pm on July 20th, 2010

Having never played a Dragon Quest title before, I was a bit apprehensive about giving this one a go. It’s the ninth title in a well-established series with its own niche and well-carved out audience, supposedly not fitting for newbies. Or so I was told. However, I was pleasantly surprised to find that DQIX is a game with such simplistic gameplay that I was sucked away from my editorial duties for this very site due to severe addiction.

It all started when I chose my little character and got him setup and into his journey. What followed was a trip through what can only be described as an epic adventure. It may not be the quintessential Japanese RPG, but its so feature complete and really does feel like a full console title in the palm of your hand. Level-5 and Square Enix really have worked hard on this one to make it accessible. The closest thing I normally get to a Japanese RPG is Pokemon, which is a series that has made trade-offs to appeal to a western audience. DQIX doesn’t dilute itself to appeal to these shores, but aims to entice us through other means.

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Level-5 | Nintendo | Nintendo DS | Reviews | Square Enix

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Toy Story 3 Review

Posted by Jereme Puik at 8:29pm on July 8th, 2010

We’ve said it for a very long time; movie-tie in games suck. No matter which way you try to spin it, movie-tie in games usually end up flopping out. There are ones that are so bad you wish they never saw the light of day, (I’m looking at you Iron Man). There are some rare exceptions though that makes you wish studios would take note. What may come as a surprise to some is that these are games based off of kids movies and to top it all off; Disney/Pixar movies at that. Read more below for the rest of the review.

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Disney | Reviews | Xbox 360

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Crackdown 2 Review

Posted by Chris Holmes at 2:39pm on July 5th, 2010

The original Crackdown was deemed as a tour de force of modern day gaming, a collectathon/superhero game for the 21st Century, according to some folk. However, some elitist gamers thought it was extravagant mainstream tosh. Unfortunately for them, sense prevailed and they were categorically wrong in terms of common public opinion. Crackdown was awesome, and even those that simply brought it to get into the Halo 3 beta came to appreciate the gem that they had in their possession.

Crackdown 2 once again takes place in Pacific City. Only this time, the place has got a bit out of control. A new gang called the Cell has taken most of the city from the Agency, and a charming mutant race called the Freaks come out at night and control most of the streets into the twilight hours. It’s fair to say things aren’t going according to plan for the agency, which looked safely in control by the end of the first game and were set for world domination. If they want to create a new world order, they’re not going the right way about it.

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Microsoft | Reviews | Xbox 360 | Xbox Live

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Lego Harry Potter Years 1-4 Review

Posted by Jereme Puik at 8:13pm on July 4th, 2010

Traveller’s Tales has been in industry for years and when they discovered you could bring LEGO adventures to console systems, it was a gold mind idea. They debuted with Lego Star Wars and since then have created many Lego games based off of different popular series. Some of which included Batman and Indiana Jones and most recently their next project, of Harry Potter. Here, Traveller’s Tales brings us Lego Harry Potter: Years 1-4. The game details the events of the first four books of the series as it’s presented in the films with references from the books as well. Read more below as we take an in-depth look into what makes this an adventure.

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LEGO | Reviews | Xbox 360

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Naughty Bear Review

Posted by Chris Holmes at 6:27pm on July 1st, 2010

If you were to ask most gamers about Naughty Bear, they would say they saw trailers for the game on their favourite sites and that it looked fun. If you were to ask someone who’s actually played the game, they would have a different story to tell. The thing is, Naughty Bear is a victim of its own PR. Trailers and press releases hyped up a game about a bear going about doing naughty things (no way), but cleverly, didn’t actually show gameplay.

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505 Games | PlayStation 3 | PlayStation Network | Reviews

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Singularity Review

Posted by Chris Holmes at 2:15pm on June 28th, 2010

Raven Software are an odd bunch. They crank out games at a good pace, but all their titles seem to miss that little bit of polish or spark that could shift them into a different light. One example of this is Quake 4. It was playable, but it just didn’t feel right and ultimately it failed to match up to the Quake name. Following that, they made Marvel: Ultimate Alliance, X-Men Origins: Wolverine and Wolfenstein, which were all enjoyable but again there was no crazy thrills or anything that would create that gratifying feeling of enjoyment we crave.

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Activision | Raven Software | Reviews | Xbox 360

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Transformers: War for Cybertron Review

Posted by Jereme Puik at 1:21am on June 28th, 2010

The Decepticons are ready to rage war against the kind-hearted Autobots who look to destroy everything that is evil about the Decepticons in Transformers: War for Cybertron. It’s a new take on a license that has certainly seen better days since its past releases. Its mission is to take players into the classic days of Transformers with its look and feel. Does it strike gold or is meant for the junkyard? Brace yourself as we put our feet in the shoes of both the Autobots and Decepticons in this War for Cybertron.

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Activision | Reviews | Xbox 360

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Blur Review

Posted by Jereme Puik at 8:35pm on June 23rd, 2010

If you’ve ever wondered when someone was going to make a game where you merged real life cars with power-ups from this side of Mario Kart, you’ve finally got your answer. Bizarre Creations have given us Blur, a game that has taken real life cars and given them power-ups that you would swear you’ve seen in Mario Kart. The fusion of these two oddities made way for an exhilarating racing title with plenty of depth to keep you busy for more then a few hours. Another element that takes a keen eye to pick up on is the experience system that seems to be inspired from Call of Duty: Modern Warfare and integrated into the entire game. What comes out of it is a pulsating race for experience to earn you fans, prizes and more cars. But what else does Blur have to offer that everyone else doesn’t? Read on to find out.

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Reviews | Xbox 360 | Xbox Live

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Aqua Panic Review

Posted by Chris Holmes at 10:50pm on June 19th, 2010

Aqua Panic is a weird game. On one hand, I want to enjoy it. Its mix of cute Lemmings-like gameplay and pastel-shaded aesthetics should result in something special, but it just doesn’t get me involved as much as Lemmings. Let’s back up a little bit and explain Aqua Panic. Essentially, you have to modify and change a 2D environment in order to get your fish from the top of the screen to their goal at the bottom. To do this, you get stuff like explosives, harpoons and other such tools. There are also in-level elements such as snails that allow fish to go throw and drop out under them.

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PlayStation 3 | PlayStation Network | PlayStation Store | Reviews

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