As a party game, London Games succeeds rarely, but its implementation of recognizable (and unrecognizable) characters from Mario and Sonic is perfect. It definitely has all of your favorite characters in it, but that's not enough of a reason to play.

The game doesn't have any glaring failures, which is always good. And it made me laugh, which isn't necessarily bad. [Feb 2004, p.107]

The dark side courses through Star Wars Battlefront II, playing mind tricks on gamers to spend more money to become stronger. By the time you read this review, there’s a chance EA may change how the Star Cards or loot crates work, but at this point in time, this predatory microtransaction model Force-chokes Battlefront II’s experience. It’s a shame to see a game with such clear greatness get pulled down to these depths. Star Wars deserves better. We deserve better.

Not only is it the best Arnold or Terminator-themed game ever (which isn't saying all that much), but it's also one of the best licensed games around. [Oct 2004, p.127]

There were so many aspects of this game that showed promise, but I winced in pain as I watched each one fail to attain noteworthy heights. [Dec 2004, p.175]

Like Joey Harrington, this game is totally worthless and not worth $40. Do not buy this title. [Nov 2005, p.182]

The scares may be lacking and some of the puzzles are dull to a fault, but this studio has expertly crafted a game that lets players unravel its story in a meaningful way.

I didn't hate every second I spent with this platformer. The music is great, the early Genesis-era stages are plain and simple fun, and the Sonic 2-style special stages make good use of the handheld's 3D to gauge depth. However, the lack of worthwhile new content and sloppy level design makes the whole product feel like a rushed tie-in to the superior console version.

Heroes V still comes recommended to strategy gamers, and Hammers of Fate slickly integrates more good ideas into the game. There’s no reason not to like this expansion pack.

Is it great? Heck no. Does it offer little substance, but an enjoyable handful of thrills? It does, more often than not. [Aug 2005, p.97]

Numerous (but lackluster) courses and a local wireless multiplayer option give the game some legs, but there's not much beyond the enjoyable swing mechanic that really impresses. [Feb 2006, p.111]

Whether you’re playing the goal-based scenarios or the open-ended sandbox mode, I still can’t stop thinking of ways to design a perfect dining hall. Though the frustration of failure sometimes got the better of me, I often couldn’t wait to get back in front of Recipe for Disaster to play through several more days of this enthralling restaurant simulation.

Despite a few memorable sequences, the occasional good puzzle, and some barely adequqte multiplayer modes, Geist fails in most respects. [Sept 2005, p.106]

From action-style combat scenes to cutesy animal sidekicks to world-saving dilemmas, this is a Tales game through and through. I’m pretty sure that’s not a compliment anymore.

There’s plenty here to twist and turn your brain.

This Advanced Warfighter tries to follow along the same evolutionary path as the Xbox 360 title, but it can only make half the effort. [May 2006, p.106]

The Sims 4 is a beefier and better game with its diverse expansion packs and added content since release, but without much of that being available on console just yet, this feels like a step back from the PC version. Nonetheless, this is essentially the same core experience as the base game on PC, and it’s worth checking out if you don’t already own the game. Although the console version features some dodgy controls, it largely delivers on its promise of bringing a faithful port to the console audience.

It's never been easier to get into the competitive Pokémon scene, and playing Pokémon Champions has been a highlight of my last week. Champions seems to be designed for people like me, who are familiar with competitive battles and want an easier way to participate. However, it also makes moves to cater to completely new players and extremely seasoned players, and by trying to satisfy all three audiences, it fails to properly serve either. With minimal content and a pressure to collect Pokémon in mainline games, it works best as an additional mode for the main series. As a standalone product, it's a game confused about its own goals. And much like the in-game status condition, that confusion only hurts it in the long run.

Sure, simplistic blasitng is fun for a while, but there is no variation to the gameplay, and the bonus modes aren't different enough from Story mode to be worth playing. [Nov 2004, p.158]

MediEvil Resurrection is largely based on old hack n' slash design tropes (like collecting runes to open doors and rudimentary arena-based boss battles) that seems a bit dated in this day and age. [Oct 2005, p.154]

The word I would best use to describe Black The Fall is perfunctory. It mostly functions, but has no highs outside of the opening. It offers no narrative incentive to deal with its onslaught of boring and outright bad puzzles. I rarely finish games that make me wish I could have the time I spent with them back; Black The Fall is an unfortunate exception.

Black Rock Shooter is competent at what it does and, for the most part, entertaining to play. However, it could use a bit more polish and imagination in its design. It doesn't turn the genre on its head, but with my guns blazing through the chaos, I found a more meaningful story than I expected.

I had high hopes for the return of my favorite childhood football game. But without any meaningful new features or the NFL license to prop up the game on nostalgia value, it fails to turn in a memorable performance.

Oddly enough, you aren’t able to decorate a home of your own. You have to live vicariously through your clients as you apparently live out of a car. Happy Home Designer may be fun for people who are ravenous over home design, but without the additional Animal Crossing elements, I never felt like I was putting down any serious roots or working toward a larger purpose.

FacebookPost TwitterTweet EmailEmail CommentComment Frogwares has made a name for itself with wannabe detectives through a run of imperfect-but-entertaining Sherlock Holmes adventure games built around deductive reasoning. However, the developer’s interest in this unique brand of puzzle-solving extends beyond the world-famous consulting detective. The Sinking City is Frogwares’ latest and most ambitious adventure game to date, setting players loose in a Lovecraftian open world with a journal full of twisted cases. The expanded scope and greater emphasis on action introduce issues, but as a whole, The Sinking City still presents a mystery worth unraveling. Players take on the role of Charles Reed, a private detective whose horrific visions have brought him to Oakmont, the titular sinking city ravaged by a mysterious flood and the supernatural terrors it has unleashed on the beleaguered population. As you undertake cases for various influential families and factions, Reed is quickly ensnared in Oakmont’s politics and power struggles. Like everything in Oakmont, no case is ordinary or straightforward, such as helping the rich and strangely simian Robert Throgmorten track down his missing son, or investigating a faction of fish-like Innsmouthers whose generous food donations to starving citizens may hide an ulterior motive. Once again, Frogwares exhibits a deep understanding and appreciation for the source material, touching on many of the tenets of Lovecraftian horror while weaving its own unique tale. You gather clues from various locations and crime scenes, and then piece them together through deductive reasoning to solve each mystery, much like the Sherlock Holmes games. You may find yourself with only a name or a scrap of a letter to go on, and it’s up to you to figure out how to proceed. Perhaps searching through patient records at the hospital will give you another lead, or cross-referencing dates and locations in the local paper might turn up another witness. These player-driven puzzles and deductions are the heart of The Sinking City, and are just as entertaining and rewarding without the deerstalker and calabash pipe. This time around, some of the deductions are also subjective, requiring you to make a call and live with the consequences. Is that character a cold-blooded murderer, or was he possessed by some cosmic horror (a real possibility in Oakmont) and not responsible for his actions? Should you turn him over to the authorities, or let him go free? The consequences of your decisions aren’t particularly far-reaching from a narrative perspective, but they are often memorable, and your inability to get through every case without getting your hands dirty fits with the grim world and themes. While Reed himself remains a bland and forgettable cypher, the evolving mystery behind Oakmont’s curse and its eventual fate kept me engrossed for the long run. While that world-building and atmosphere is where The Sinking City really shines, traveling around said world isn’t as fun. Getting from one area of the city to the next is a time-consuming process, often requiring hopping between roads and boats to get where you’re going. And you always have a lot of places to go; in addition to the aforementioned hospital and newspaper headquarters, you’ll be visiting the police station, city hall, and library to drum up more leads, and it’s not always clear which location you need to visit. Fast travel helps with this process, but it isn’t particularly fast, requiring you to first find and run to a phone booth, then wait through a lengthy load time. As you’re traveling to various locations, eldritch monsters occasionally spring up, leading to survival-horror combat. Simply put, the stiff and sluggish gunplay is not fun, and frustrates more than it excites. However, the grotesque enemy creatures introduce an ever-present threat and tension that heighten the Lovecraftian world you’re exploring. Ultimately, The Sinking City’s combat is a necessary evil that I’m glad Frogwares included, even if its implementation leaves a lot to be desired. The Sinking City also suffers numerous technical problems. In addition to the long load times, screen-tearing is a persistent distraction from exploring Oakmont’s creepy locales on console (Frogwares says it’s working on a patch to correct this), and uneven voice performances and cutscenes also take their tolls on the immersion. The main quest is a little too long for its own good, but those who can overlook the game’s shortcomings will find a wealth of solid side quests to keep them hanging around. The Sinking City shares all of the same problems of Frogwares’ previous games, but it also capitalizes on the same strengths. Reed’s cases offer up surprising twists and memorable moments, and flesh out a twisted world and cast of characters that I enjoyed learning about. The combat and repetition may elicit the wrong kind of madness, but fans of Lovecraftian horror should still consider visiting The Sinking City.

The nine maps available aren’t nearly enough, the lack of rankings and leaderboards provide no incentive to hone your skills to perfection, and the extremely meager offline options drag everything down.

All of this represents good progress for the franchise, but while NASCAR Heat 2 adds racing series, rivalries, and other features, it misses an opportunity to make them meaningful and expand the actual scope and excitement of the game.

It's not "World of Warcraft", but it's still a lot of fun. [Jun 2006, p.115]