Cash Cow, a matching game, proves that sometimes all that’s needed for a good app is tried and true gameplay with a fresh spin. A port of the PC version released a year ago, there’s no doubt the iPhone offering is the superior version. Touting slicker gameplay and even increased content, well, it’s from Chillingo, so polish is practically guaranteed. (more…)
This week I break down the latest holiday reviews including Assassin’s Creed II, Crystal Alliance and a pair of PSP Minis games that are definitely ones to look out for.
Check it out on ZTGD.
Branded as a castle defense game, the game is advertised as “a cross between Guitar Hero and Metal Gear Solid”. For shame. The developers would have been better off controlling expectations by not comparing it to two of the most popular gaming franchises to date. How exactly is this game like either? Well, there is a guy with a mullet and bandana. (more…)
The Wrap-Up returns after the long holiday to breakdown the latest reviews including two expensive pieces of hardware and of course the latest games including LittleBigPlanet, Way of the Samurai 3 and of course Modern Warfare 2.
An action-strategy RPG, the story goes that four crystals and that many heroes are the last hope for the town of Thaladon. In a mysterious land where monsters rule, you command the heroes – with conveniently complementary talents – in an effort to take down the unstoppable hoard and reunite the crystals before Thaladon is lost to darkness forever. (more…)
I like indie games, and – like some others its ilk – liking WhipCrack requires perseverance. The early missions are laborious tutorials that teach you controls and basic gameplay mechanics. Tedious, yes, a problem complicated by the less than enjoyable gameplay. This might be alleviated if your sense of humor happens to match the tone of the game (mine doesn’t). If, however, you are part of that niche audience that finds their gaming heart won by the quirky offering, then by all means, crack that whip. (more…)
From the same folks that brought you and your kids JumpStart: Pet Rescue comes JumpStart: Escape from Adventure Island in all the kid-friendly trappings of an educational game for a slightly older audience – 5-9 years old, that is. Opening with a high flying adventure sequence that has an airship losing altitude and crash landing into an island (not nearly as fraught with trauma as it sounds) you child’s avatar is greeted by a friendly kanagaroo that explains that the island is chock full of helium tanks that will get you airborne again. These tanks that the islanders have in bountiful supply, however, must be purchased with sand dollars earned by completing tasks, or lessons and mini games. (more…)
This week I break down the latest collection of holiday madness including Ratchet and Clank, Dragon Age: Origins, Dark Nebula and of course Wii shovelware.
Brought to you by 1337 Game Design, the effort behind Dark Nebula is spearheaded by the lead designer of Battlefield 2, which almost makes the level of polish to the environments, controls and interface unsurprising – almost. Dark Nebula is a great looking game, and I love and appreciate the amount of effort that has clearly gone into the title. At about an hour’s worth of game time it’s a notably brief offering, but not without replay value. Frankly, I’m not sure what people’s demands are for a .99 title, perhaps we’re all a bit spoiled by the AppStore budget pricing. (more…)
This week I make up for lost time with coverage of two GTA games, Tekken 6, DJ Hero, Borderlands and a ton of other games as fall rush continues to dominate.
There are few things better than an indie game, and I delight in forays into the unexpected, yet here I am loving every inch of Ratchet and Clank which is, well, expected. Ratchet and Clank adheres to certain rules like a wacky universe, goofy monsters, and weapons that are equal parts doom harbinger and harlequin. A Crack in Time effectively does everything Ratchet fans demand from an action platformer, and more, with a dash of open world and whole lot of revolutionary notions of “sidekick”. That’s what A Crack in Time is about really, challenging your perceptions of Clank, and what that means for “Ratchet and Clank”. (more…)
Fare City: First Shift is a line drawing game for your iPhone at the low, low price of .99 making it unique, well, not at all. That’s not to say Fare City doesn’t have some great things going for it, it’s just that at this point in the genre, it’s going to need to be dancing elephants. It’s a good product, for which I offer my line-drawing stamp of approval. Whether this is the line drawer for you will be a matter of taste, and whether you’ve already spent .99 ten times over on the other games of its ilk. (more…)
This week I break down the latest reviews on ZTGD including Uncharted 2: Among Thieves, LostWinds: Winter of the Melodias, A Witch’s Tale and so, so much more.
Swingaling, an elusive furball with feline traits and a very stretchy arm, takes center stage in this title from Pocket Monkey Games. Players must guide the swingaling as far through the forest as possible by latching onto branches and avoiding foes. The Swingaling is a little creepy in its bright-eyed naivete, leaping through the canopy like an agile lemming. That’s a-ok, so long as he haplessly flings himself onward in my quest for high scores. That’s really the only objective here, attaining brag-worthy distance and posting it to Open Feint. (more…)
The sixth episode of the Wrap-Up covers a handful of reviews including Brutal Legend, NBA Live 10, Osmos and a host of others.
Thanks for watching, guys!
I’m Community Manager and Admin for the NewsBoiler Network, home to N4G, TechSpy, AnimeShinbun, FilmWatch and 11×2. I also write for network editorial site, ZTGD.