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Notes: 8 / 1 year ago
We’re Back.
Sorry for the long delay. We’re back.
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1 year ago
Crayon Physics Deluxe Review
Crayon Physics Deluxe is an indie puzzle game that requires you to use physics to solve puzzles. It’s gameplay is great and feels right even if you can’t draw a straight line and it’s a really neat concept that you’re sure to get a kick out of.
Graphics
This game’s graphics aren’t too much to dwell on. It looks about as good as the next Indie game. The background is a piece of paper and everything you make is drawn from crayon. Simple as that.
Gameplay
This is a game that requires you to use basic knowledge of physics to solve puzzles. It’s entirely up to you to complete a puzzle and it’s entirely your fault if you screw it up. Each puzzle requires you to get the red ball to the star. You can left click the ball to make it roll to the right or right click it to make it roll left, but don’t rely on this for completion of many puzzles because it doesn’t push the ball very far. Depending on how you create objects, they can be used as weights, pivot points, wheels, or ropes. An example of using some of these concepts would be making a pulley system or basic elevator. Nothing has to be done perfectly, which is why this game is so enjoyable. Each level has 3 loosely determined solutions. The Elegant Solution requires you to complete the puzzle with only one drawn object, but you can use pins (objects can be pivoted or braced with pins). The Old School Solution forbids clicking the ball to move it or drawing pins. The Awesome Solution is determined by you. Normally a level will only get you 1 star (2 stars on later islands/levels), but if you complete all three of the solution types mentioned above, you can receive an additional star. You can go back and look at your previous solutions and mark them all as awesome if you’d like, but you’ll still need to use skill to complete the other two solutions. The gameplay is solid and is this games strongest point.
Story (Concept)
Crayon Physics Deluxe doesn’t have a story. You complete levels on islands and the more stars you acquire the more islands and levels you unlock. There are over 70 levels to complete. Having 3 solutions to each level adds more challenge and replay value to the game. The game also includes a level editor where you can share and download user-created levels. Many games have tried to use physics in order to solve puzzles, but this one does it incredibly well. If you’re looking for a story, this isn’t the right game for you, but the concept is awesome and this is a great game to play casually.
Sound
There isn’t much to touch on in the sound category. There aren’t really sound effects for the things you create, but there is music constantly playing. It is pretty mellow and fits perfectly for a casual game like this. You can just as easily play without sound and feel no different when playing the game. Sound isn’t good or bad; it’s just not the most important aspect of this game.
I personally enjoy puzzle games so I really like this game. If you like puzzle, casual, or indie games, you should get this. You’ll have fun creating your own objects to solve puzzles and probably enjoy it as much as I do. The one thing I have to say that annoyed me is that I found myself using the same strategy on many puzzles. Maybe it was just the way I play the game, but other than that there isn’t anything bad to be said about this game. I don’t think it’s worth $19.99, but if you hurry you can still get it along with 13 other games from the Humble Indie Bundle at the price of your choice (the money goes to the developers, charity, or the website). You could also purchase it through the App Store if you have an iOS device.
Graphics: 8
Gameplay: 10
Story (Concept): 8
Sound: 7
Average: 8.3
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1 year ago
c-hubs asked: Hey can you guys review gatling gears? Its a downloadable title for psn/xbox live and I've heard good things about it Thanks!
Sure! I will be purchasing it soon!
-Jimmy
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Notes: 13 / 1 year ago
Infamous 2 Review
Infamous 2 is here. The long anticipated sequel to inFAMOUS has had a bumpy road with Cole MacGrath’s re-imagining but luckily things fell together just as they should have.
Graphics
Infamous 2 is a beautiful game. Textures are crisp and smooth. Buildings look like REAL buildings. Facial animations are top notch (a massive improvement from the first game). Framerate is also never a problem, and the monsters are downright disgusting sometimes because they look so good. Sony has always been known for their amazing visuals on exclusives and Infamous 2 doesn’t disappoint. Personally, I liked Empire City more than New Marais. Don’t get me wrong, the New Orleans esque city hits the mark on realism but there was just something about Empire that felt… alive. It’s not a big gripe but it stood out to me nonetheless.
Gameplay
Cole doesn’t mess around. Over half of his powers are given to you right at the start of the game. This is a big relief to me. To cut corners most developers would take his powers away and make you regain them but Sucker Punch not only included the old powers right from the get go, they added twice as many for you to upgrade. Now, you might be saying to yourself “There are only so many buttons on a controller, so how many of these attacks will I actually use?”. The answer is All of Them. The way that this works is by pushing the left arrow on the D-Pad the game pauses and a menu of the four face buttons comes up (X,O,Square, and Triangle). As long as you hold the left directional arrow the menu will stay open. You hit the corresponding face button to assign an attack to each face button. The system works extremely well and it keeps the gameplay seamless. Explosions are massive, the jolt of electricity pouring into someone is always satisfying from beginning to end. Another twist is that Cole can either gain fire based or ice based powers in addition to his electricity ones depending on morality. I’ll cover more of that in the next section though.
Story
The story of Infamous feels like it was crafted by a master team of comic book writers. Everyone familiar with Infamous knows that the story is based on choices. What this means is that you will always be given choices of weather to make your missions easier (Bad) or making sacrifices for the greater good (Good). This wasn’t fleshed out so much story wise in the first game but this time around the story drastically changes with your actions. So much that it really is worth playing through twice. I don’t want to talk about much of the story but basically Cole and Zeke learn of some new available powers down in New Marais and Cole needs the powers to fight The Beast (The end of the first game reveals most of this and luckily there is a recap in the second). It all fits together nicely and I was never bored with the story.
Sound
Sound is also great in Infamous 2. When there isn’t dialogue sad music will pick up softly to put you in the right mood for the moment and when there is dialogue the music cuts out to help you focus on the stellar voice acting. It all works really well and kept me in the right mind set throughout the whole game.
Infamous 2 is a true improvement in every way over the first game. It is one of my favorite games and I recommend it to anyone with a PS3. I am aware that 99% of the people reading this probably already own it but for the small number of you who don’t… Do yourself a favor and buy, not rent, buy this game.
-Jimmy Champane
Graphics: 9.0
Gameplay: 9.5
Story: 9.0
Sound: 9.0
Overall Score: 9.2 -
1 year ago
Braid Review
Braid is an indie puzzle game. It has very unique gameplay mechanics along with a visually stunning art style. It’s not flawless though. Some levels can seem impossible and in doesn’t take more than a few hours to beat the entire game. Despite these setbacks, I found it thoroughly enjoyable.
Graphics
For being an indie platformer, this game is beautiful. The colors are vibrant and the levels are aesthetically pleasing. The environments look amazing and differ slightly in each world. Backgrounds look like watercolor portraits. The characters in the game have a realistic feel and design to them despite being 2D. It’s a great looking game and something you need to see for yourself to fully enjoy.
Gameplay
Braid has gameplay similar to the classic Super Mario Bros. games, but is also nothing like the Mario games. Some of the enemies behave similarly and even resemble other enemies from Super Mario Bros, but other than that, the gameplay is entirely different. The game requires you to have good reflexes to an extent, but Braid allows you to reverse time, which allows for error. Each world has a different feature that changes gameplay. At first, in the second world, you can only simply reverse time. The third world also allows this but adds glowing green items and enemies that aren’t affected by reversing time. The fourth world puts a twist on time control and makes moving left reverse time, while moving right progresses time. The fifth world creates a shadow of your character that can alter the environment while your actual character can do something different. Finally, the sixth world allows you to drop a ring that slows time depending on your (or enemies’) distance from the center of the ring. Each of these effects is unique and necessary to the world it was introduced in. The gameplay is, in my opinion, the most enjoyable aspect of Braid and you’re bound to enjoy it too.
Story
The story is pretty interesting and has many deeper meanings than just seen on the surface. You play as Tim and you’re searching for a princess who has been taken by an evil monster. Each world starts with a series of books that describe Tim’s thoughts and feelings. The story may sound similar to the story of the Super Mario Bros. games, but it has a much deeper meaning and the end makes the game worth it. I’d like to go more in depth, but I’d probably end up spoiling the end.
Sound
Braid has a wonderful soundtrack. The music ranges from chipper to melancholy depending on the mood of the world. Most songs consist of memorable string melodies that compliment the game’s art style and entire gameplay experience. One thing I found cool about the music is that it plays in reverse when time is reversed. Sound effects are good, but other than that there isn’t much else to say about sound.
If you play Braid, you’re likely to enjoy it. If you like platformer or puzzle games, I recommend you buy this game. It may seem short and difficult at times, but don’t let that discourage you from trying it out. It’s available for purchase on the Xbox, PS3, and PC.
Graphics: 9
Gameplay: 9
Story: 9
Sound: 8
Average: 8.8 -
Notes: 3 / 1 year ago
Red Dead Redemption Reivew
Red Dead Redemption is a great game and a must have for all console gamers. This game is more than just “Grand Theft Horse” it’s a compelling story about John Marston and his journey home. It’s a game that is special and one with a story deep enough to tug your heartstrings in a way not seen these days.
Graphics
Red dead redemption is a great looking game on both Xbox and PS3. The sunsets look so close to reality you might want to just stop and stare. Also towns feel alive with bustling people and they look like pictures in your grandparent’s photo albums. It’s a great looking game one of the best that Rockstar has released. Horses move realistically and people have real physics to them. There is a cool feeling to dragging someone behind your horse and seeing them flop around. There was a lot of work put into making the environments seem real and you can tell. Mexico looks like Mexico and the “Old West” feels like the Old West. The only thing missing is Clint Eastwood, but John Marston fills his shoes nice and snug.
Gameplay
Gameplay is compiled mostly like the Grand Theft Auto series you know and love. A cool new addition to the generic third person shooter is the Dead Eye aim where time slows down so you can place your shots better, much like Max Payne’s Bullet Time, and F.E.A.R.’s Slow-Mo. Its a tactic not seen very often in shooters but is a welcome addition to this one. The gameplay pairs well with the story to prove a fast paced adventure.
Story
The epic story is what Rockstar is known for, and RDR is no departure. It’s one of the main draws of the game and you will see why right from the start. The story can get a little slow in the Mexico section but I implore you to get past this play. It’s varied in how you move through it in the good variety of missions from a train robbery to a stealth mission through an army base. it keeps you playing to see where the story goes and you meet some great memorable characters along the way. It leads to a sad conclusion but very satisfying as a whole its one of the better Rockstar stories and that is a real accomplishment on their part.
Sound
Sound is great in every Aspect. You will feel like you’re in real shootouts sometimes and even feel the trains coming by right before you see them. Its great overall and fits perfectly with the rest of this great experience.
Overall this is defiantly a game worth playing and one you should not miss. It’s got stellar story, graphics, gameplay, and sound and is overall one of the best games ever and definitely sets a new standard for Western Games.
- George Fresard
Graphics: 10
Gameplay: 10
Story: 10
Sound: 10
Average Score: 10
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1 year ago
Rant
Companies who get mad about pirated games don’t realize that when Gamestop, Blockbuster, Best Buy, and many others sell used games it’s essentially the same thing. The Company (EA, Activision, Microsoft) makes no money from used game sales. So why don’t they just get over it already and realize that they aren’t always going to make money on their games. Everyone deserves to play someones work of art and the ridiculous price tags we see these days on games don’t help. So there ya go. Suck it Game Publishers.
-Jimmy
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Notes: 2 / 1 year ago
LittleBigPlanet Review
If you own a PS3 and haven’t at least played LittleBigPlanet, there’s something wrong with you (no offense meant). Some “hardcore” gamers may think this game is stupid and that only babies play it, but it is an incredibly fun game for everyone to enjoy. The story is cute, the soundtrack is great, it is aesthetically pleasing, and has really smooth gameplay.
Graphics
LBP is a beautiful game. All objects have unique textures that don’t ever look blotchy or blurry. The colors are vibrant and make the game look great. Different objects are made out of different materials and the graphics of the materials look like they would in real life. Objects can be made out of anything from plastic to sponge and they all look stunning all the time. Things like fire and water look great. Lighting of levels is fantastic and really helps set the mood of the situation you’re in. I could keep telling you about how great the game looks, but you get the idea.
Gameplay
This game’s gameplay is stupendous. The controls and physics are done really well. Movement as Sackboy is smooth. Jumping and falling is spot on to real life physics and need to be in order to pass some of the obstacles. There are certain materials that you can grab and hold onto. Sometimes you need to pull triggers, while other times you need to hold on for dear life to glide over a lava pit. As I said before, you can get stickers, objects, costumes, etc. that you can use to customize your character and pod (your pod is your home which is also the game menu). One remarkable part of this game is the level editor. You can create levels similar to the levels used for story missions if you know what you’re doing. There are many tutorials that explain every feature included in the level editor. You can also upload your levels to the online community where others can describe and rate your levels. The online community is very friendly and, in my opinion, is the most fun part of the game.
Sound
I would say that this game’s soundtrack is my favorite of any game. Every song is enjoyable and fits the time each is played in the story. The music can also be put into user-created levels, which to me was a really neat edition. In addition to the amazing soundtrack, the sound effects aren’t bad. Items in the game all make the noises that they should. Each enemy has it’s own sound, which helps to differentiate them. The sound effects are realistic and the soundtrack is remarkable.
Story
The story isn’t anything to get too excited about. There were originally eight creators who filled the world with their collections. The Collector, One of the creators, went rogue and began stealing the creations of the rest of the creators. You eventually get to face The Creator, but the best part of the story is everything in between. There are various levels with completely different obstacles and environments that give the game substance and enhance the overall experience. No two levels feel the same. You can unlock stickers, objects, bonus mini-games, etc. for the player (Sackboy) to enjoy. The levels get progressively more difficult but not impossible and never become a bore. The actually story isn’t something to get caught up with, but some of the elements of the story make it awesome.
If you’re thinking about getting this game, do it. If you’re not thinking about getting it, you should look into it and give it a chance. It’s a fun game for everyone and a great game to play at parties or similar gatherings. Everything about this game was awesome and I don’t have much to complain about other than the just decent story. I recommend this game to anyone with a PS3. Plus it’s one of the free games on Sony’s Welcome Back program.
Graphics: 9.5
Gameplay: 10
Sound: 9.5
Story: 8.8
Average: 9.5
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Notes: 9 / 1 year ago
Rockstar Reviews!
We all just got L.A. Noire so in honor of Rockstar, the three of us will be reviewing Grand Theft Auto IV, Red Dead Redemption, and L.A. Noire. We’re not entirely sure who will be doing what yet, but we’ll be releasing them around the same time, so be excited for reviews of these great Rockstar games!
-Sean
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Notes: 12 / 1 year ago
Midnight Club: Las Angeles Review
If you’re looking for an incredibly fun and well made racing game, Midnight Club: Las Angeles is for you. Rockstar developed it so you know it has to be awesome. While this game’s story may be pretty insignificant, it has stunning graphics and flawless gameplay.
Graphics
In all honesty, this is one of the best looking racing games out to date. Every car looks great, although some look a little bit boxy and unreal. The cityscape is stunningly beautiful. It has a full 24-hour day and night cycle along with dynamic weather. Everything around you looks fantastic when you’re flying through a race. In general, every aspect of this game’s graphics is just fantastic. When you’re not moving, textures may seem a little blurry up close, but you’re almost always moving so this shouldn’t be an issue for anyone. It’s a very good-looking game for being an open world free roam racing game.
Gameplay
This game’s gameplay sets it apart from other racing games. Generally, when I play a racing game, I always feel like the car is impossible to handle. This may make the game more realistic, but you don’t feel that way at all when playing Midnight Club: L.A. The cars move fluidly and never feel impossible to handle (unless you have an absolutely dreadful automobile). There are races similar to most racing games like group races, one on one races, time trials, etc. There are also some collectibles and extra challenges like jumps off of ramps spread throughout the city. Weaving through traffic is fun and many times necessary to do to keep up in races. Drifting in this game is great. While drifting, you always feel like you have control over the car. Cars have mass, which is nice because you can definitely tell that a super fast exotic sports car is lighter than a sturdier luxury or tuner car. Every car is upgradable and there are different classes of cars. As you do more races, you earn more experience and money. The Rockstar Social Club gives you benefits for doing specific tasks. It’s a great edition, but after spending two weeks completing every task only to get an Audi R8 and finding out that it’s not so great, you’d kind of feel pissed off (personal experience…). The gameplay is amazing and is the main reason that I liked this game the most out of the more recent racing games.
Sound
The sound effects are great. Whether it’s the screech of tires as you drift around a corner or the hum/growl of an engine as you accelerate, all of the sound effects are incredibly accurate and help make the game more enjoyable. Most Rockstar games have great soundtracks and this is one of them. There are a variety of genres of music with different stations that you can switch through until you can find your favorite one. The sound effects and soundtrack are generally great.
Story (Content)
There isn’t much of a story to this game. You play as this guy who gets his name out to the local racers and builds his way up to the top. There is almost no character development. Sometimes when you do important story races, you get to see Cutscenes, but they aren’t very good looking and don’t really contribute to the “story” at all. The story isn’t great, but the way the game works is. You have choices to do races on the side or for the story. Every race is different and doing side races helps a lot because you can get more money for better cars or upgrades and you receive extra experience. The game is set up really well despite its lack of a story.
I’m not too big a fan of racing games, but this game was thoroughly enjoyable. Everything besides the story was done really well and made for a fun game with high replay value. You can go back to this game whenever to do some extra side missions or find collectibles. I recommend this game to anyone who likes racing games. If you are a fan of Rockstar games, you’d probably enjoy this game.
Graphics: 8.5
Gameplay: 9.5
Sound: 9
Story (Content): 8
Average Score: 8.8
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