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Most Recent: Reviews
Super Crush KO Review: A Pretty Great Pastel Puncher
Vertex Pop is a developer that first appeared on my radar in 2015 after the release of their debut game, We Are Doomed. The excellent twin-stick shooter used a graphical style reminiscent of paper cutouts to build its unique world, and paired it with the chill soundtrack that helped slow down the often frantic action.
We Are Doomed was followed two years later by Graceful Explosion Machine, a side-scrolling shooter that cemented the papery look and relaxing tunes as something of a house style for the developer, while also breaking out as one of the first big “Nindies” on the Switch.
That house style is once again on full display in Super Crush KO, a classically-styled beat ’em up that’s been drenched in Vertex Pop’s signature pastel palette. (more…)
Posted in PC, Reviews, Switch
Tagged Super Crush KO
Jamestown+ Review: Get Your Bum to Mars
Final Form Games is a small developer based out of Philadelphia, and they originally released Jamestown, a vertically-scrolling “neoclassical” shooter, for the PC in 2011. Three years later, they brought their game to the PS4 as Jamestown+, adding a pair of bonus levels and several new ships.
But here we are in 2019 and it looks like the game is finally ready to reach its “final form” (or rather, how the developer “originally intended” to release it). That’s because the development team will bring Jamestown+ to the Switch this week with even more updates and improvements. (more…)
Wilmot’s Warehouse Review: Probably Not An Accurate Warehouse Simulator, But Absolutely A Blast
Wilmot’s Warehouse is a delightfully refreshing take on the puzzle genre. You – Wilmot – need to take deliveries, organize them in your warehouse, and deliver them. Sounds easy, right? Did I mention there are 200 different items you’ll need to organize, and most everything is timed? Oh, and you are a white square with a cute smiley face, and all the items you have to organize are the same size as you, just with different, colorful images on them? And that you can unlock a helper named Borky?
Well, buckle up. Wilmot’s Warehouse is simultaneously soothing and stressful – and I had a hard time putting it down. (more…)
Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 Review: Party Like It’s 1964
Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 is a slightly different game than I was expecting. I thought it was just going to be a simple party game with an interesting, nostalgia-driven Story Mode. What I didn’t realize was that it was also a game that would teach me a lot about the Olympics, Japanese interest and pride in the Olympics, and facts about both the 1964 and upcoming 2020 Games in Tokyo. Oh, and it was fun, too! (more…)
Posted in Reviews, Switch
Tagged Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020
Fire Emblem: Three Houses Review: The Perfect Game for Fire Emblem (and Persona) Super Fans
I spent a lot of time in the world of Fire Emblem: Three Houses this Summer. Like, a lot.
I’m a big fan of the Fire Emblem series, and I also love the Persona series, and Three Houses seemed like a perfect marriage of those two game types. Add to that recipe a game that is played on the Switch, and my ability to play anywhere while also enjoying a big screen experience when I wanted it was satisfied.
I want to say it wasn’t perfect, but I’d be lying to you, to myself, and worst of all, to my house leader, Claude von Riegan. (more…)
Posted in Reviews, Switch
Tagged Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Catherine: Full Body Review: Not Everything Improves With Age
Catherine: Full Body is a remaster of 2011’s Catherine, a bizarre and somewhat infuriatingly difficult game that I reviewed back then.
The remaster introduces a new character, Rin, and calls this new storyline a “love square” instead of the original game’s “love triangle” between Vincent, Katherine, and Catherine. It also adds in some different mechanics to the block puzzles. But is all of this enough to warrant a full remaster of the game – other than to introduce it to a new generation of potential fans? (more…)
Blazing Chrome Review: An Excellent Homage to Contra III and an Even Better Side-Scrolling Shooter
During this year’s E3 Expo, Konami shared the good news that they plan to resurrect the Contra franchise this Fall with Contra: Rogue Corps. But after eight long years in limbo, the publisher has decided to once again ditch the franchise’s traditional side-scrolling action for an overhead viewpoint and a wildly over-the-top art style. Sometimes, this has worked out well for Contra (2004’s Neo Contra instantly springs to mind), but other times… not so much.
There’s still a few months to go before we get a chance to test out Rogue Corps’s final form, but JoyMasher wants to fill the gap with a game that should please everyone looking for another dose of Contra-fueled nostalgia. The Brazilian developer recently delivered Blazing Chrome on all your favorite digital storefronts, and it’s a side-scrolling shooter that faithfully recreates the grungy post-apocalyptic vibe found in a lot of early 90s shooters (with most of its inspiration coming directly from Contra III: The Alien Wars).
While Blazing Chrome might not be an official new entry in the Contra canon, as an homage it gets almost everything right. (more…)
Tetris 99 Review: Nintendo Transforms the King of Puzzle Games Into Battle Royale-ity
How do you talk about video games in 2019 without mentioning the “Battle Royale” genre? While players have been fighting to be the last one standing since the early 90s, it’s obvious that games like PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds and Fortnite have transformed how people play multiplayer games.
But it was only a matter of time until Nintendo entered the fray and shook up the “Battle Royale” genre with their own take. The consolemaker has never been quick to react to gaming’s biggest trends, but their unique style has been moving the conversation around games in wildly divergent directions for decades. They zig where others zag, and we’re all better off for it.
Which brings us to Tetris 99, a 99-player variant of the popular puzzle game that’s now available to download through the Nintendo eShop. (more…)