I knew nothing about the Adventure Time animated series before I picked this game up; rather, I was led to it by good reviews and rumors that it featured gameplay reminiscent of the NES classic Zelda 2: The Adventure of Link. Well the reviews were correct and the rumors were true. This is a nice little game and it does indeed remind me of Zelda 2. Much like that game you are given a large-ish, top-down overworld to explore and the perspective changes to a side-scrolling, action RPG while in towns and dungeons, and while fighting enemies. It's a little short (I beat it in around 7 hours), and it's kind of easy (it's based on a cartoon, after all), but it plays great and it has loads of charm. Since playing this game I have watched a couple of episodes of the series and I suspect that fans of the show will appreciate the game's silly storyline, snappy dialog, and copious appearances by a host of regular Adventure Time characters. And speaking of the show, I have to say that while I found it witty, the characters seem to talk a lot of shit to each other. I wonder if that's the kind of message we should be sending to our kids? Seriously, the characters in this universe never miss an opportunity to tell each other how stupid they are or how bad they smell. Still, I liked this game quite a bit, and shit, how could you not dig a game that features THIS scene?
Grade: B+
Playstation All-Stars Battle Royale - PS3
It's Sony's version of Smash Bros....but we all know that by now, right? What you may not know (and why would you unless you know me personally) is that I've never cared for Smash Bros. all that much. I know, I know, people LOVE that game, but it just didn't grab me. It's a great concept; gather your system's most beloved characters into a fighting game and let them duke it out, but I just found it to be too chaotic and imprecise, and I hated the weird floaty controls. So, what's up with Battle Royale? Does Sony tweak the formula enough to draw me in? In a word, yes. Unlike in Smash Bros. where victory is achieved by knocking your opponents out of the fighting arena, kills in Battle Royale come from landing regular attacks, building up a "super" meter, and finishing your opponents with a devastating coup de grace. The whole affair feels tighter, more fast paced, and more visceral than Smash Bros. Having said that, I must admit that the Playstation brand simply does not feature anywhere near the number of iconic characters as Nintendo does. Parappa, Kratos, Jak and Daxter, that horrible flaming clown from the Twisted Metal games...alright, but after that it's kind of slim pickings. Not that that's an actual deal breaker, but the lack of compelling characters DOES diminish the appeal somewhat for me. I'm not the biggest fan of fighting games in general, and I honestly don't know how long this game will hold my attention, but I enjoyed Battle Royale and I recommend it to any Playstation gamer looking for tighter, more finely tuned Smash Bros. style romp.
Grade: B+
Professor Layton and the Curious Village - DS
What a neat puzzler this is! Professor Layton and the Curious Village takes Myst-style point and click adventuring and tosses in loads and loads of puzzles. Logic puzzles! Word puzzles! Number puzzles! Every time you turn around, BAM, another puzzle! This game drew me in with its murder mystery storyline, its large number and wide variety of challenges, and its cast of quirky yet likable characters. It has a good sense of pacing as well. You can play it for a few minutes and solve a puzzle or two, or you can settle in for a few hours and engage with the story and the various built in mini-games. Either way, solving the puzzles becomes addicting and you feel a genuine sense of accomplishment when you find the solution to an especially tricky one! Fair warning: some of the puzzles may have you tearing your hair out in frustration! If you're not so good at math, for example, you may find a number of the challenges to be particularly bothersome! The game doesn't leave you high and dry, however, as it allows you to exchange "hint coins" found during your journey for clues to the various puzzles. Plus, you know, we have Google now. All around, Profesor Layton is fun, charming, challenging, occasionally frustrating, and ultimately rewarding.
Grade: B
Mario Tennis Open - 3DS
So, I like these Mario tennis games. I like the Mario golf games better, but this is tennis. Pick your favorite character from the Mario universe and hit the courts! I wish there was a career mode and more RPG-like character progression, but there isn't, it's just tennis. Well, that's not entirely true, there are a couple of fun-ish mini-games here as well. One of them sort of lets you play Super Mario Bros. by volleying a tennis ball against a wall. Online matches let you take your game to a human opponent, and that's cool and all, but, you know, tennis. I guess what I'm saying is that Mario Tennis Open is a solid tennis title, but it's ultimately kind of shallow. I want another Mario Golf game, Nintendo! We haven't had one since the days of the Game Boy Advance! Get on that shit!
Grade: B-
Retro City Rampage - PSN
It's 8-bit Grand Theft Auto! Nice! Though I've grown weary of GTA games in recent years, this retro styled gem takes the basic GTA formula, strips it down, and makes it fun again. Driving, shooting, missions, challenges, and enough video game and pop culture references than you can shake a stick at. The guys from Epic Meal Time even make a cameo! One complaint: the characters are kind of tiny. It doesn't detract too much, but it's kind of difficult to see shit sometimes. Otherwise, thumbs up.
Grade: B
Jetpack Joyride - PSN
I know that this is more of a mobile game than a console game, but I played it on Playstation 3 so I'm going to talk about it, dammit! So, like a lot of mobile games, there's really not much to Jetpack Joyride. It's an endless runner in the vein of Robot Unicorn Attack. Fire up your jetpack and dash to the right, collecting coins and avoiding missiles and electric zappers while going for distance. There is some skill involved, but the game gradually picks up speed as you go and it's only a matter of time before you crash, burn, and begin again. Collect enough coins and you can exchange them for new jetpacks, powerups, and other buffers, or fuck it, spend some real world cash and just BUY yourself some coins. I don't play a lot of mobile games, but I understand that these sort of microtransactions are relatively common in the mobile arena. I get it. With so many choices in the app store people move on quickly from simple games like this, and as a designer you have to lure them in at a low price and get them to spend a few bucks on top of that before the next app comes along and you lose everyone. I could divert here and debate the impact that new video game pricing models are having on game design, but that's a rabbit hole I'm not willing to go down right now. In general, I don't mind it too much if game designers engage in a little "pay to win" action in single player experiences like this, and the good thing about Jetpack Joyride is that you don't need to spend any additional money in order to have a good time with it and see everything it has to offer. It's actually fun for awhile; the little missions, the extra vehicles, the cool theme song, and the built in achievement system helps keep you motivated. In fact, by the time I finished all the achievements I had acquired most of the available powerups as well as most of the jetpacks, all without spending any additional money. All told, I spent a very amusing 7-10 hours with Jetpack Joyride before I was ready to move on. Not bad for a free PSN download with one button controls.
Grade: C+
Mega Man 10* - PSN
*See all reviews for Megaman 1 - 9.
Grade: A
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