Review Redux: Pac-Man Championship Edition DX

Here's a review from way back in 2010, with the crazy convoluted review system I came up with at the time.

Review Redux: SteamWorld Dig

These days, I typically avoid anything with "dig" in the title because that implies that the game has some sort of crafting component. Show me a guy with an axe and you basically show me the door. I saw SteamWorld Dig on the 3DS eShop last year and completely ignored it. In the interim, I actually read what the game was about and became pretty interested. When I heard there would be a cross-buy version for the PS4 and Vita, I jumped right on it and got a PS+ discount to boot!

Review Redux: Infamous Second Son

The transition from Xbox to PlayStaion has been weird. It’s a transition I think many of my fellow gamers have made. For me, as the last generation went on, I found myself finding the PlayStation exclusive games more and more appealing. So when I got a PS4 I almost felt obligated to jump right in to the system’s biggest franchises. Second Son is basically the first big release since the launch of the system in November 2013. Needless to say that most of us would buy anything at that point. I got my copy having seen a few bits of gameplay but not really knowing what to expect. It was Killzone, you see, that blew me away at the console’s announcement event. The first seconds of the game are off putting, but then everything changes.

Review Redux: Shovel Knight

The year was 198X. A small but dedicated development team was creating the ultimate NES game that drew from the most popular titles of the time while introducing some innovative new mechanics. Mere weeks away from shipping, the team came into work and their game was gone. Not a trace of it was found. No concept art, no music tracks, no design documents, no computer files. Nothing. Fast forward to 2013. New development studio Yacht Club Games asks for $75,000 to create a game called Shovel Knight. But Yacht Club held a dark secret. They didn't use the money to create Shovel Knight; they used the money to build a time machine. And with that time machine, they traveled back in time to 198X and stole the development materials for Shovel Knight, modified it to run on modern platforms, and took all the credit.

Super Mario 3D World Review

I want to love this game. I really do. I can only assume it's for this reason that I picked up the game at all. See, 3D World is the sequel to 3D Land on the 3DS, a game which I also didn't care for. I guess a part of me wanted that game's problems to be fixed, because I really wanted to love 3D Land in the same way. Reading other reviews, you'd think Super Mario 3D World is one of the best games ever made. Sadly, this isn't the case. 3D World is, for lack of a more eloquent way to put it, not very good. Of course, I realize that I am in the minority with maybe about five other people on earth, but hear me out.

Pikmin 3 Reveiw

Every so often, you play a game that reminds you why you love video games in the first place. Pikmin 3 is one of those games. Brimming with Nintendo magic, Pikmin 3 instills a sense of wonder and discovery into every moment that few games today can achieve. If you own a Wii U, you're going to want this game. If you don't, well maybe now's the time to buy one.

Review: Mutant Mudds

Available for 3DS eShop ($8.99), iOS ($4.99), PC ($9.99), Steam (coming soon), Wii U eShop (coming soon)

Mutant Mudds is a game I really want to love, but I hate it. I hate that I hate it, but that's just the way things are.

Review: Metal Gear Rising

I don't know about you, but I play action games to feel like a total badass. By that standard, Metal Gear Rising is the greatest action game ever made. It's certainly my favorite ever. Action games have had a great legacy in the 21st century from Devil May Cry to God of War to Bayonetta. All of those feel like the appetizer compared to this game. Platinum has a reputation for being the best action game developer for a reason. Bayonetta was some great, crazy fun (and I'm looking forward to the sequel) but Revengeance takes it to the next level. It's crazy, it's over the top, and it makes you feel like a badass in ways you've never experienced before. In fact, I'd say that Metal Gear Rising isn't even an action game. No, it's a badass simulator. 

Review: Halo 4

Folks, it's the moment you've all been waiting for! The very first game critique, and for Halo 4 no less. Prepare your body.

Review: Tower of Heaven

The GameBoy graphics are simple, yet strangely effective.

How did I miss Tower of Heaven when it came out two years ago? How did I miss it again when it was ported to flash with extra content last year? I may be late to the party, but this party is so damn good that I don't care. A lot of us here missed this gem, so the logical conclusion is that it flew under many a radar. Well, I'm here to introduce you. This is Tower of Heaven, and he is a work of art.

Say Hello to the New Review Layout!

As you may or may not know, I famously (well, I'd like to think so, anyway) created the review system for both The Players Republic and Twinfinite. If you'd like, you can read about it here. I never actually got to use this system over here at Installation 04, but the more I think about it the more I dislike about it. The execution, in my opinion, still needs work. So I've decided to streamline, reorganize, and birth a whole new review layout based on my original system. This will be used in all future reviews here at I04, and I think readers will really dig it. As always, I'm on a mission to write the highest-quality reviews around. Details lie beyond the break.

Game Review: Halo Reach

**Please read about the new review policy first.**

Halo Reach is both the beginning and the end of an era. Nearly ten years ago, Halo Combat Evolved launched with the original Xbox. For better or for worse, it changed gaming forever by single-handedly carrying the Xbox through it’s launch and altering the very core of the FPS genre. Halo 2 added online support and helped to make Live what it is today. Halo has always been an influential franchise and Bungie does it again with Reach. Some changes are subtle and some are grand, but the guys at Bungie really gave this one their all. It is, after all, their final Halo title before they move on to their new ten-year deal with Activision. Halo is far from dead, but this is the last time Bungie will be behind it. You have to wonder whether Microsoft will put as much love and care into the franchise as Bungie has, or if they’ll milk it till the udders are raw. We can only hope for the former.

Lightning Reviews

I've been working on and off on a secret project so I don't have the time to write full reviews; however, for some guidance, here are a few fast reviews that I was planning on making large:

Bioshock 2: 8

Rapture comes to life again with beautiful coloration and an exciting adventure. The dual-wielding is a nice touch, but until the very end, the game lacks the emotion of the first game. While the first game is better, this is a welcome return to Rapture and a solid sequel. I also think the multiplayer is fantastic. The online is basically Modern Warfare 1 made Bioshocky.

Red Dead Redemption:

As a massive fan of the first game, I waited for this game since 8th grade. I was very let-down by the single-player. It was severely overhyped because of the "sand-box" aspect. Yes, the sand-box is brilliantly executed. Yes, a lot of work was put into the game. For me, however, singleplayer is about the missions and not your free-roam. Free-roam gets boring, so it's the missions that move you along. The missions were dull, too long, not enough shooting, and at times, very stupid. I recall at least 4 quests that involved herding cattle, and some that involved following dogs around for 10+ minutes to kill one guy. I spent more than 50% of this game riding my horse to different locations, and 30% frustrated at the repetitiveness of each quest. Instead of sticking to Red Dead Revolver's innovation, Rock Star took GTA's missions and forced them into the Wild West. I also hate the "bounty system" because it doesn't make sense. If someone insults me, takes a gun out, tries to shoot me but fails, and I attack back, why am I the criminal? Why should I have to escape from the police when the outlaw was trying to kill me? If I fight back, I lose honor and prices at shops go up. If I don't, I die, have to start over, lose all my money, and takes a smaller honor hit. Great choice.

The online, however, is different. The online takes the singleplayer and strips it of missions and honor-hit of , leaving you with a world where you are free to wreak mayhem without any fears. Even better, you do it with any player that wants to join your possee. The multiplayer games are boring because weapons are pre-set, and the locations are the same as singleplayer.

This game could have been a 10, but lack of innovation docks it to a 6.5 for me. The free-roam takes it up to a 7.5, and multiplayer to an 8. This one is tricky to review because the game has great and horrible aspects. So if you enjoy free-roam, you will love this game. If you are like me who wants solid-missions, wait for a price drop.

FIFA World Cup: 10

Granted that the ratings for sports games aren't the same as ratings for other games, but this game is perfect for a sports game. It has nothing wrong. I'm not a soccer fan and I love it.

Review: Super Mario Galaxy 2

*Note* Sorry this took so long to get up. It's been finished for a bit, but I spent the last day in the hospital.

Super Mario Galaxy 2 is, more or less, the definition of a great game. Don't call it Super Mario Galaxy 1.5 Everything about it is polished and executed perfectly. I'm not sure if any game has achieved this level of perfection before, but certainly no Mario game has. Since Mario is usually at the top of its class, I think it's safe to say that Galaxy 2 is one of Nintendo's finest games ever. Is it better than Mario 64? Most would say it's not because Mario 64 is classic. Honestly? Yes it is. It's the culmination of everything that worked in past Mario games. Even the 2D ones.

Review: Tatsunoko vs. Capcom

Tatsunoko vs. Capcom is an excellent fighting game. If you own a Wii, pick this one up. That being said, let's look at why it's so awesome.

MicroReview: Chime

Holy McSnarf! The 700th post! Huzzah! Hard to believe, eh? Let me tell you, this will be the most relaxing 700th post ever. Why? Because Chime is the most relaxing game ever. Ever.

Review: The Passing DLC

So I just played through "The Passing." Yup, I actually completed it since my last post. How is it? Is it worth 560 Microsoft Points? Find out ahead.

Afterthought: Left 4 Dead 2 Review

Did I ever review this game? I don't think so. I mean, I finished it a while back but I think I just plain forgot. Anyway, here it is if you care to read my opinion.

Network

Dear Readers,

I recently watched a film titled "Network". The actors in it do a great job of portraying the ideas of their characters. Its a satirical film about the television industry, but can be applied to any media form. It even though it was released in 1976 its message still holds true today. It points out and exagerates ideals that newer generations and the media seem to hold. It is slightly disturbing in its accuracy and portrail of how the media is run. If I say much more it will give away the film, but please, take the time to go rent and watch this movie. And before you blow it off as being ridiculous, think hard about it.

Review: Borderlands

Having played Borderlands with all four characters for quite a good number of hours, I finally feel I can properly review it. The last game developed by Gearbox Software was Brothers in Arms: Hell's Highway, the series the company is known for. Like Obsidian, Gearbox is more known for its ports of games such as Halo for the PC, Half Life for some consoles, and for sequels to series nobody wants to continue such as Counter-Strike. Frankly, I wasn't expecting too much from Borderlands, but if you haven't gotten the idea from us giving Borderlands our Best Offering Of The Year award, it's pretty good.