Posted by Gary Hodges at 2:04 PM Jun 19, 2008
Ryu doing what he does best: flipping out and killing people.
Ninja Gaiden II
Developer: Team Ninja / ESRB Rating: M / Price: $59.99
Game On wasn’t around to review Ninja Gaiden when it hit the original Xbox in 2004, but it’s probably for the best – I probably would’ve written “An awesome, brutal, majestic action masterpiece” and then filled the rest of the space with crude crayon drawings of ninjas because really, there’d be nothing else to say.
It’s easier to spend a column talking about Ninja Gaiden II, which, in some ways, isn’t a good sign. The original set the bar so high, it’s not just the competition that now falls short; now the game’s own sequel suffers in comparison. It’s certainly not bad, not by a long shot: it’s just as intense, fast, flashy and challenging as fans would hope. But the lack of polish – coupled with an equally disappointing lack of ambition – makes the final product not quite as laudable as its predecessor.
Read more "Bloody Good (But..." >>
Posted by Gary Hodges at 9:31 PM Jun 05, 2008
Protip: Everything you see here is moving and can kill you… Good luck!
John Edwards might see Two Americas, but as a simpleminded little game enthusiast I’m more preoccupied with America’s Two Wii Owners. One is the Nintendo fan, the same cat that bought a GameCube, the Nintendo 64, every incarnation of the Gameboy – in short, the gamer who buys any console Nintendo releases and sports a Mario or Zelda title. The other Wii owner is the so-called “casual” or “non-gamer”: the fad-chaser, the dabbler; girlfriends, grandparents and soccer moms who snatched a Wii because of the novelty, and only really use it to play Wii Sports, Wii Play, and Wii Fit. They’re most Wii owners, the “Wiijority”.
I know Castle of Shikigami III is not for the Wiijority; unfortunately I’m not sure it’s for the Nintendo fans either. The Wii just isn’t the right home for it, thus it seems destined to vanish from store shelves and not in the good way.
It’s a shame, because it’s actually a fun little game.
Read more "If a hardcore game..." >>
Posted by Gary Hodges at 6:41 PM May 13, 2008
In Soviet Russia, trunks stuff bodies in you!... eh, that one doesn’t really work, does it?
Reviewer's note: This is my unabridged review. The standard 600-word variety is available at any Village Voice Media site.
If you read a review the way I do, you’ve already skipped down and read the score, and now you’re back up here to see what the hell my problem is.
All I can say is: Peace, brother. Grand Theft Auto IV is a fine game, with tons of content and all the great moments you’ve come to expect from the series, from high-speed freeway chases against traffic to the hookers that come with a GTA-patented, baseball-bat-assisted money-back guarantee. The story is engaging, the city meticulously detailed and massive, and the game’s lead – Slavic heavy Niko Bellic – not only has a sort of nihilistic charm, he finally solves the riddle of what Boris Badenov would sound like getting a blowjob.
Never has an 8 looked so low as when applied to this, the crown prince of modern gaming and the biggest release of 2008 (if not this entire console generation). But by the same token, never has a 10 out of 10 looked so high – and so inordinately generous – as when applied to the flawed Grand Theft Auto IV.
Read more "Same Ol' M.O.: GTA4..." >>
Posted by Gary Hodges at 8:32 PM Apr 30, 2008
Inside the car: The only way to drive.
When the first trailer for Star Wars: Episode I hit theaters, hardcore SW fans bought tickets for the movie it was in front of, watched the trailer, and then walked out – essentially paying full price for a fraction of a final product. (Even more hardcore, the movie they had to buy tickets for was Meet Joe Black.)
Superfans are willing to do that sort of thing – heck, I did it – but most recognize it’s not a very good deal. Similarly, diehard racing fans will be happy for a glimpse of what’s to come with Gran Turismo 5: Prologue, but as for the majority of gamers… well, they’ll see it’s just buying a slice for the price of a whole pie.
Read more "Less Is Less: A..." >>
Posted by Gary Hodges at 1:13 AM Apr 23, 2008
"Oh, and you were 'Girlfriend of the Year'?"
First of all: God bless Atlus. As a publisher devoted to bringing obscure little Japanese gaming gems to the West and the much-needed heir apparent of Working Designs, Atlus is pretty much the only hope for gamers who crave oddball, strange, or downright niche titles from the Land of the Rising Sun.
(In fact, one of the greatest releases they've made so far hit shelves just yesterday: Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 3 FES, a sort of director's cut of one of the best Japanese-style RPGs to come to the PS2, well, ever. If you like the genre at all, you want this game.)
Really, Atlus is the closest thing we have to an underground label in gaming, something we so desperately need… which is why I’m not going to totally crucify them for Baroque.
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Posted by Chris Ward at 5:15 PM Apr 19, 2008
Matching flesh wounds: kind of disturbing. 6" bellybuttons: very disturbing.
If you don’t remember a game called The Typing of the Dead, you’re not alone.
Released on the failed Sega Dreamcast system, this gory, hilariously titled arcade-style shooter was in many ways exactly like its popular counterpart, The House of the Dead. But instead of aiming a gun at the screen, players fired by typing non sequiturs -- “Smeg Head,” “Potato Man,” etc. -- on the keyboard. When typed quickly and accurately, the corresponding letters blasted bloodthirsty corpses with a kind of Alphabet Ammunition not seen since Bert and Ernie went 187 on a motherfuckin’ cop.
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Posted by Gary Hodges at 10:33 AM Apr 10, 2008
What? No helmets with horns? ZERO OUT OF TEN!
It’s nice when a game comes along that pleasantly surprises you. I admit, I judged Viking: Battle for Asgard by the screenshots, writing it off as yet another one of those grimy, violent games so plentiful that they’re almost their own category: the “Bloodletting in Brown Clothes on a Cloudy Day” genre.
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Posted by Jeff Shaw at 7:11 AM Apr 02, 2008
By Chris Ward
As a kid, I spent countless hours thumbing through a dog-eared copy of The Guinness Book of World Records, determined to find just the right stupid human trick to vault me into freak-show history.
Turns out I didn't need to waste all those years stretching my neck with metal rings; I could have just popped in The Legend of Zelda and beaten it in under 30 minutes.
Read more "Game On: Guinness..." >>
