Graphically, this game isn't as crisp as the EA titles, though I would say Activision did well to represent all possible sponsors to give this a better sense of realism and the game does have a lot to work with for future years.

Until the Last Plane can be addictive in short bursts once you figure out its intricacies and best strategies, but there’s a lot of repetitiveness. Even with a few different mission types and objectives, you’re just constantly doing the same menu options repeatedly. The $12.79 (CAD) price does seem a little high given the lack of leaderboards, and while it does feel a bit underwhelming, it’s easy to complete on autopilot once you have the best strategies figured out.

Overall, Gods Will Fall was a rather decent experience. I won't lie; I wasn't a fan of gameplay in the beginning, most likely due to not being taught enough, and even now I'm not their biggest fan. However, for a player who is looking for something that will not hold your hand at all and drop you in a random cave with a bunch of enemies to kill, rinse and repeat... then Gods Will Fall may be your kind of game. If you are going to go ahead and give Gods Will Fall a try, you'll have to keep an open mind regarding its mechanics. I don't know about Gods falling, but I sure know I fell more than I'd like to admit. Nevertheless, I kept trucking along and trying different approaches. For now, I'll put my spear away and let the others go first.

While the game in its essence is a side scrolling adventure, the frustrations of combining poor gaming controls with a lackluster HD graphic remake and next to nothing audio work make the 1200 MS point price tag an undisputed rip off of the gaming community.

Ship Graveyard Simulator 2 is oddly addictive and satisfying, even for how specific and niche the setting is. While there’s no narrative at all, there’s something quite relaxing by causing destruction to these vessels. Many will see Ship Graveyard Simulator 2 as tedious and repetitious, but I kept telling myself “just one more ship”.

It has some good things going for it, and is a relatively interesting take on arcade pinball, but it’s just so damned short and lacking in many departments.

While a good majority of games like these are associated with being more ‘pervy’, as you’re generally trying to uncover pictures of scantily clad women, you can tell that Mokoko X was more adult in design (it does have an adult patch on Steam) given the girls poses and some of the suggestive dialogue, it’s a fun time waster and brings me back to playing games like these back in the arcades in the early 90’s, but I can foresee many wondering what type of game this is and who would enjoy it. Possibly wait for a sale, but I'm glad to see this genre make a return.

I really do appreciate what KSP does and offers, as there’s no other experience like it. If you’re patient enough, can deal with the unintuitive and non-friendly controls, have a ton of time and patience, then there’s a ton of value here for you. Sure the walls of text aren’t the best tutorial, isn’t user friendly, and the controls will take days to get the hang of, but there’s no denying the level of simulation KSP can achieve, I just wish this Enhanced Edition was even more enhanced and much more user and controller friendly.

While more interactive encyclopedia than traditional game, Little Mouse’s Encyclopedia has a beautiful aesthetic with an emphasis on learning about nature along the way. For what it’s worth, my daughter said she would have scored it at 7 for its “cute art and mouse”, but by the last area even she was skimming the fact cards and wanting to go back to her regular games.

As much of an ode Taxi Chaos is to Crazy Taxi, the experience feels incredibly lightweight and unfulfilling thanks to understocked options as well as the quickly tiresome nature of it all. More vehicles and characters are needed to spruce up the gameplay, as well as new locations and passengers who don’t repeat the same few lines over, and over, and over again. All told Taxi Chaos has the ingredients to be a really cool Crazy-Taxi-aping jaunt, but unfortunately this one is worth little more than a squirt of ketchup and mustard in both eyes from one of New Yellow City’s hotdog vendors.

2Dark seems to suffer from an identity crisis, unsure if it’s trying to be more of a stealth game or lean towards horror roots. I was impressed by the very dark and mature subject matter, especially since 2Dark holds nothing back, adding to its atmosphere, but certain design choices seem odd or simply in bad taste. It’s a gritty tale surrounded by average gameplay, and even though it has some serious hindrances, I think that some will find the stealth gameplay engaging and fun, but for the average gamer many of the mechanics behind 2Dark are 2Difficult to deal with.

I really do think there’s something unique here under the hood, but it feels like it just never came together in the way that was originally intended, which could be for many reasons. While I’m on the fence about recommending a purchase given the situation that is still yet unresolved, I’m not factoring any of this into the final score, simply judging it on the experience I had playing from start to finish, one that I was glad when the credits rolled instead of feeling accomplished due to its repetitiveness.

I can’t wholeheartedly recommend spending full retail price for Nickelodeon Kart Racers. Those with children, or a really fond nostalgia for the channel and its TV shows will probably find fun and hours of gameplay here, but even with four player (local) multiplayer, there’s not enough here to really justify an approximately $50 (CAD) price tag. Nor is the game all that great. It’s simply half-decent, but surpassed my honestly low expectations and ended up being more enjoyable than I thought it would be.

Fans of the sport will surely enjoy seeing their favorite teams and drivers, but there’s not much weight to that novelty here for the rest of us. I went into NASCAR Heat 2 with an open mind, hoping to be won over, and possibly even becoming a fan of the sport; neither of these really happened and I found that unfortunate. At the end of the day, NASCAR fans will find something to like here for sure, but for gamers as a whole, I'm not quite sure that this would fill their need for a racing game nor be an experience that would help them to understand, or even enjoy, what NASCAR may have to offer.

It’s clear that Broken Pieces was a passion project by the team, and while some aspects were wonderful, there was an equal amount of frustration along the way as well. You can expect anywhere from 5 to 10+ hours depending on how much you want to explore and how much backtracking and aimless wandering you do, and while the $31.99 (CAD) may seem a little high, it has potential to be a cult hit with its quirky charm.

Roguelikes are meant to be played over and over as you slowly make overall progression each time. This works when the gameplay is addictive and you’re constantly teased with the next upgrade to feel more powerful. While great for short sessions with a run or two here and there, Nova Strike is perfectly serviceable, but with only a couple Chapters to complete, it doesn’t feel as though it will have a long shelf life in my played rotation. Not bad by any means, it simply feels like a generic shump, though the $10 USD price tag is about right for what you get content wise.

On one hand, I applaud the passion that developer Gears for Breakfast approached this project with, and admire their enthusiasm. However, on the other hand, I have to be honest and admit that I didn’t have much fun with this game. Although A Hat in Time was crafted with love, and has some good moments, it’s overwhelming and obtuse, and lacks cohesion, polish and great gameplay.

It's the kind of driving game you'd find yourself pumping quarters into in a bar, and the only downside is that the kind of gamer that would get the most bang out of this title can't get into bars – or around that Mature ESRB rating, either.

I am sitting here, looking at it, and feeling kind of shafted.

The biggest offender in what affects this games overall experience is its repetitiveness. Sure new enemies are introduced often, but the one hit death mechanic can become quite frustrating. Having a dozen near useless abilities doesn’t help either when you learn which few overpowered ones to save up for instead. Unless you are longing for those Scorched Tank days from way back when, you may want to 'spear' clear until a decent sale.

The Town of Light’s narrative is incredibly heart wrenching, and at times very disturbing and difficult to watch without eliciting some sort of emotional response. The ending I received will be remembered for quite some time, and I appreciated the short live action summary once the game was concluded, but that made me realize something very important; The Town of Light would have been much more engrossing and powerful as a short film instead of a game, it simply feels like the wrong medium for such a tale.

If you’re a super fan, then it’s an obvious purchase as you’ll get to race as your heroes, but strictly speaking as an objective view to the game as a whole, it’s hard to look beyond the glaring issues, even more so if you don't follow the sport.

At the end of the day, Bright Memory is a bit of a tough one to score. I went in not knowing much of anything about it, and would be lying if I said that I didn’t end up having some fun with it despite its faults. Still, regardless of how impressed I am by the fact that only one man developed this thing, there’s not a lot to it that stands out. It’s dated, it’s buggy and it’s beyond short. Still, it can be pretty fun if you temper your expectations and understand that you’re not going to get a lot for your money.

Vampire: The Masquerade - Swansong is sure to be enjoyed by fans of the genre who will enjoy their time with a narrative heavy experience. At the same time, seasoned RPG players might have higher expectations than they will receive from Swansong. To be more specific, if you're a fan of tabletop RPGs or have pre-existing knowledge of the predecessors then I'm not sure Swansong will be for you. I have overall enjoyed Swansong despite all my complaints as it has a well thought-out storyline and great mystery to it, which ultimately is what truly kept me interested in continuing the journey but it is quite expensive when not on sale.

While many might find a point and click adventure like this mundane and basic, it’s a widow into the past, showing how far gaming has come in such a short period of time. While some might find the length disappointing, it’s at least priced to match at just a few bucks. If you’re not a master at puzzle games, you might get an hour or so of gameplay out of it, but for most others, Without Escape will easily be beaten in a single sitting.

Just like the character of Gollum, I’m a bit split on how I feel about the game. I do believe that there is a really great game hidden in The Lord of the Rings: Gollum. It’s clear that the love for the character, lore and the world are there in its DNA. The dialogue between Gollum and Sméagol was enjoyable and well done. Although slightly graphically dated, the world was quite beautiful when you weren’t underground (which was the majority of the game). The issues arise from the mechanics of the platforming and puzzle sections just not being finished. I simply can’t recommend this game at full price. Also speaking about price, an extra cost is associated if you want the lore compendium and elvish voice acting. This is paid DLC and really should have been included in the base game. Sadly, this wasn’t the precious game I was hoping for.

I think back to all of my all-nighters and sleep-overs of a time long past, where my friends would come-a-knocking with their Dr.Pepper and their Doritos, and we’d stay up until the birds came out playing all of the best multiplayer games you can think of. This is a role which I just can’t see Marooners filling for today’s kids.

Overall, Dead Age isn't my cup of tea. The only part of the game I found was decent was the fight scenes, as that had the most action. I feel like gamers who like strategy games will enjoy its premise though. The concept of Dead Age is fantastic, I just feel it fell a little flat. What I was expecting and what Dead Age provided was a large enough difference where I feel I won't play it again. That being said, I'd like to move on from this camp and see if I can find something else down the road.