Sonic Boom Shattered Crystal Review

Posted on December 12, 2014 by dreager1

I reviewed the Wii U version of Sonic Boom not too long ago. Despite the bad press it was decently good. It wasn’t great, but it was a fun Sonic game. Now it is time to see how the other half of the Sonic Boom game franchise fared. I can safely say that it held its own against previous portable adventures.

The game starts off with a bang as we see Amy dueling with Lyric. The Reptile manages to get the upper hand when Amy stops fighting to talk to Sonic over the communicator. He wants the Shattered Crystals and nothing will get in his way this time! Sonic quickly gathers up his three trusty allies (Tails, Knuckles, and Sticks) and heads off for his toughest challenge yet!

Timeline wise, this game seems to act as an alternate version to the Wii U title. We fight Shadow again because he is brainwashed and Metal Sonic joins in on the fun too. Amy is kidnapped so there are a decent amount of differences to be found, but many parts will make you think of it as the Wii U game. I give Sega kudos though for giving us a different game instead of a normal port for the 3DS.

The graphics are decent, but they aren’t as impressive as they could be considering that this is a 3DS game. The environments are pretty fun and the gameplay is actually pretty quick, but the camera can keep up. This area may still be a little underwhelming, but it could certainly be a lot worse. Shadow always looks cool no matter how the animation turn out. That being said, there are only 2-3 animated cutscenes in the game. The animation looks pretty good for those, but the rest of the events are all text based, which shows just how limited the budget was. Little thing like the fact that you can’t speed up the slow moving text during a scene will become noticeable over time.

The gameplay is pretty good though and I definitely can’t fault the game there. There are no real glitches to be found and it plays out like most other Sonic portable titles. One difference is that the characters have electro whips so that you can jump over large areas and disarm enemies. I never use it for the latter effect, but it is mandatory for the jumps. I am okay with it, but it is not really necessary. The game could have done just as well for itself with or without the item. Knuckles can dig, Tails can glide, and Sticks can fire a boomerang. These abilities help you progress through the level, but you will still want to play as Sonic for the majority of the game. He is just the most fun to play as!

One mechanic that I felt was utterly pointless was the gate system. You definitely do not need that to be in the game and it is just an excuse to get your stylus out. You simply swipe down to go from area to area, but you could have just done that with the push of a button. It’s not a huge thing, but it just makes you wonder. There are several gates in each level and they can also be found in the stage select menu.

The soundtrack is pretty uninspired and I couldn’t really recall any of them right now. They are pretty decent while you are playing, but that’s about it. I miss the good ole days of Sonic Adventure 2 Battle and Heroes. Now those games had some really good tunes to listen to during the stages. As it stands, Sonic Boom could certainly do worse though.

An interesting thing to note here is that there is only one boss fight in the game. it’s your big battle against Lyric of course and it’s a fun final boss. It doesn’t have the scope that the others typically have, but I was just glad to have a boss fight. It’s a hybrid of a racing level and a boss fight as you chase after Lyric until he turns around to fight. Then you chase him again and repeat the process. My only complaint with the fight would be in how everything is repeated. You do the same things three times in a row so the actual boss fight is around 7 minutes, but it could have been much shorter. He doesn’t even switch his attacks as he can only fire a laser, shoot a rocket, and try to hit you with his claws. Memorize the 3 attacks and you’re all set. If anything, the speed part of the level is the dicey section.

The other “bosses” don’t get to fight you in battle. Instead of confronting Shadow and Metal Sonic, you just race against them and the loser automatically self destructs or flees the scene. I’ll admit that this was more than a little disappointing, but I do like races as well. I just would have liked to have had a race and a boss fight. As mentioned earlier, the game seems to really have a set up that is very fixed. Meaning that each world has the same levels more or less…or the same kind of level. Naturally, we have the race level. There is one per world.

Next up, we have the worm races. 1 of these is featured in every world. These are only about 2 minutes and they feel more like a minigame than anything else. They’re actually pretty fun though and it’s a great way to train your reflexes. Finally, we have the platforming levels. Typically there are 2 of them per world. They’re the longest ones and they can easily take you over 10 minutes to complete the first time around if you’re not careful. They’re pretty good although I prefer the races and the worm rushes.

This is one of those games where you will really want to keep an eye on the collectables. The game forces you to get at least 30 of the 34 Emblems in order to face the final boss. So, you’ve got to get just about all of the crystals and screws to beat the game so you may as well get the final few right? We ended up with just about 100% completion as there are just a few medals left to get. The big secret for doing this is that you get to go to Amy’s house and watch the heroes dance. It’s not exactly as good as the bonuses that you used to get in the Sonic games for all emblems. (Sonic DX all emblems = Metal Sonic; Sonic Adventure 2 Battle all emblems = Green Hill Zone…etc) It almost felt like the game was mocking us..maybe the developers just wanted to have a little fun with that.

So, naturally the collectibles represent some replay value for the game. Getting all of them should buy you a little more time and then you can spend your medals at the shop to get titles and other things. There’s also a few pages of a comic to read that provides us with some backstory for the game. It’s good that these things are here since this would otherwise be one of the shortest Sonic games ever. You can probably beat it in a day or two if you put your mind to it. There are only about 21 levels and since you can beat over half of them in about 2-4 minutes…that’s not a whole lot of play time. The bulk of it will enter once you have to replay all of the levels to find what you need. I recommend seeking them all out with the map right away…so upgrade the map to its fullest potential at your earliest convenience.

Sonic and his friends are in their Boom interpretations so you should know what to expect from the rumors. Sonic is still really fast and confident. I dare say that he is one of the only characters to really not have changed that much in this series. He mocks Shadow a lot, but you can argue that he would have back in the olden days as well. He’s still a very likable character and it’s hard not to root for Sonic. Tails is also true to form and he’s still the genius of the group. His teammates don’t always appreciate this, but Tails isn’t afraid to put them in his place.

The other characters are a little more changed like Knuckles. He has really lost a lot of intelligence so that he could become the punchline for just about every joke. He has trouble forming proper sentences and you probably haven’t seen a character this unintelligent in a very long time. It can be a little painful to watch for longtime Knuckles fans. Since this is practically a parody it’s okay, but I can only imagine that it’s similar to what Pac Man fans felt when they watched the new show. Amy is more independent in this version and they try to hammer that in (See what I did there?) by having her give Lyric a good battle in the intro. She’s actually winning, which is sad for the villain, but she let her guard down, which was a pretty huge mistake in the long run. She seems pretty cool here and her character trope is better than the other allies for me.

Sticks got so much attention before the game came out, but it seems as if the franchise has forgotten about her. The TV show is the only place where she really gets to get some character development as the games try to tell you that you should already be familiar with her character. She’s known as the nutty raccoon in the forest who is paranoid and that’s basically her personality. I like the fact that she’s basically crazy and admits to this, but she really doesn’t add much to the group. We may as well have just stuck with Marine.

Eggman is surprisingly absent from the game. He just doesn’t make it and that’s rather odd. Metal Sonic is here, but he has no character and he’s just obliterated on arrival. Shadow’s role is similar to the Wii U version in the fact that he just attacks the heroes for the lolz, but he actually isn’t doing it out of free will here. He was thoroughly defeated by Lyric earlier so now he is being mind controlled. The heroes save him and he storms off until the very ending where he has his big moment. It’s pretty satisfying for his fans so I’m glad that the game had a strong ending there.

Lyric is still not a likable villain. He’s not bad by any means, but he’s ultimately generic and you have to wonder how he is a threat to Sonic at all. He has a tail to attack people with, but he’s slow and not all that strong. I wouldn’t be surprised if Lyric never appears in any of the games outside of the Boom series. Maybe he’ll be in the next Sega racing game…maybe.

Overall, Sonic Boom Shattered Crystal was a pretty fun game. I’d say that the game was a little better than the Wii U version. It felt more like a traditional Sonic game and it stayed fast paced from start to finish. Shadow looked a lot better here as well, which is a plus and the moral at the end was pretty intense. Sticks finally put two and two together and she came up with the logical outcome. The gameplay is pretty tight and it definitely doesn’t shame the Sonic name. I highly recommend checking this title out and don’t trust the rumors that it is super buggy and glitchy. The Wii U version had a little trouble with that, but it was also exaggerated on that account. The only reason why you may want to be wary of getting this game is the short length, but the game has already had a price reduction in several places so it’s certainly worth the price. Even at 40, a short, but fun game is always worth it. Take the plunge and pick this game up while it’s still new. You won’t regret it!

Overall 7/10

Sonic Boom Rise of Lyric Review

Posted on November 20, 2014 by dreager1

Sonic Boom brought a lot of controversy with it when they first showed the character designs for this reboot. Why did America need to have its own version of Sonic and why was Knuckles so well built? These were questions that plagued the minds of many Americans as we eagerly awaited the game. Evidently, many people are not pleased with this title. It’s pretty sad since the game is a unique take on Sonic that we won’t be forgetting anytime soon. So, this is me telling Sega not to hit the panic button as the Big Red Button may be on to something. I would actually take a sequel to this title…let’s find out why!

Sonic and friends are just having fun when they are cornered by Metal Sonic and forced to retreat into a mysterious area. It’s like a big dungeon and it seems old. Unfortunately, Sonic ends up freeing the mighty Lyric from his eternal tomb. Lyric is able to fend Sonic off as he escapes to conquer the planet. To stop him, Sonic will need to gather the 7 8 ~~Chaos Emeralds~~ Crystals to stop his dastardly plans. Will the Hedgehog be fast enough or will his constant banter with his friends slow him down? His toughest challenge is now upon him!

So, this isn’t your average Sonic game. It’s a complete reboot for American Audiences to be introduced to the Sonic franchise since the last few installments haven’t exactly rocked our world in terms of sales. You’ll certainly be able to tell that it’s American since there is a lot more dialogue during the gameplay. Think Spiderman Edge of Time. The heroes are constantly insulting and putting each other down as they ultimately strengthen their bonds of friendship. It’s something that we see a lot in Pac Man or in your average, current American animation. It’s not a bad thing per say. See, it does make all of the characters act out of character, but it’s still cool in its own way. I like Sonic as the overconfident Hedgehog of the 90’s, The Epic Sonic from the 2000’s, and I don’t mind the Sarcastic Sonic from this game. They’re pretty different versions of the same character, but they all tend to work out.

A lot of people have criticized Sonic lately for being too slow. Sonic Lost World was made to be more of a platformer like Mario and this game is Ratchet and Clank style so it’s the slowest Sonic game in years. Their complaints are valid if you really miss the Sonic speed, but we can always dig out Sonic Adventure 2 Battle for that. The game desperately does try to convince you that it is a speed game though through various “Speed Segments” that pop up from time to time. It’s like in Sonic 06 where various levels would just have you power your way to the goal line between levels. However, the segments are pretty small and you can only move from side to side like in a retro speed game. The segments are pretty fun, but you can hardly say that it makes the game move any faster. The characters continue to comment on how fast that they’re going, but in your head you can just picture Sega’s PR division trying to force feed you that message.

As I mentioned earlier, I don’t mind a slower game, but my main problem was with the Hub World. You are forced to walk very slowly through it, which makes navigating very tedious. It takes a long time to get from place to place and if you wander into the wrong place you will have to teleport back to another location and begin the trek anew. Trust me…it gets old pretty fast. The Hub World certainly adds replay value, but Sonic should be allowed to run. It’s sort of his thing…Which, you cannot run in regular levels either. Walking is simply here to stay.

Each of the characters have their own gimmick. Knuckles can grab onto walls, Amy can do a triple jump, Tails can glide while over a fan and Sonic can use his homing attack to get over large gaps. It’s a classic teamwork exercise and it works decently well. It does help to slow down the pacing as you switch characters, but that’s just its style.

Lyric is the new villain here and he’s probably going to be remembered as a one and done character unless he makes another appearance on the home console front soon. He’s portrayed as a serious threat and he’s never used for comic relief, but he is just not that powerful. His design ensures that he cannot fight in hand to hand combat and he’s too slow to be considered as a real threat. Ironically, the minions may pose a bigger threat, but I’ll get into that in a moment. I’d say that Lyric beats most of the villains in Lost World, but I do prefer the final boss from that game. Maybe Lyric will grow on me if he appears in the next Sega racing title.

The soundtrack is not so good when you compare it to most Sonic games. The narration probably helped me forget the tunes since it overshadows the music, but I can’t really recall almost any of the level themes. The Hub World music is pretty generic so you won’t find the next City Escape theme there. You can tell that it has an American twist in it and it certainly didn’t help in this case.

The graphics are pretty good. They probably won’t strike you as “Next Gen” but it’s still Sonic and the colorful landscapes look great. It’s good to see that Sonic’s character model survived the Sonic Boom that hit the franchise and he still looks great. Shadow will also strike out at you when he appears and the animations in gameplay are solid. It may not be revolutionary, but I would say that it’s better than average. Sonic just needs to keep up this level!

The tributes to the golden age of the Sonic adventure definitely help to make the story more exciting in the forms of Metal Sonic and Shadow. I think the game would have been even better if they had appeared more. Shadow’s voice actor is terrible, but that’s an unfortunate side effect of the big roster change. The other voices are all pretty decent, but none of them can match the classics. Play through Adventure 2 Battle if you want true voice acting! Metal Sonic means business as per usual and he’s so much faster than Sonic that it’s pretty scary. Shadow’s chaos abilities are also as formidable as ever and he won’t be going down without a fight.

I do have to comment on the power levels since they’re a little wonky in this title. Sonic’s famous speed is all but gone as he just doesn’t move at very impressive speeds. His friends are all decently quick and Sonic’s a few steps ahead of them, but you don’t see anything to support him being massively hyper sonic to light speed levels. Eggman casually outruns him and Sonic can’t even dodge a simple energy blast. Metal Sonic’s speed isn’t even comparable to Sonic’s anymore so Sonic really got the short end of the stick.

The heroes are also pretty under powered as a few ordinary robots are enough to scare them out of their minds. Just a glimpse of Metal Sonic is enough to force the heroes to utilize their tactical retreat options. That’s always pretty sad to see since these are heroes. I don’t think that you would see Link or Samus backing off from these odds. That being said, this will make Mario fans pretty happy as they can make a better argument that Mario can win. This version of Sonic is definitely beatable.

Unfortunately, Eggman doesn’t look very good since he’s around to make Lyric look tough. Metal Sonic is forcibly taken away from Eggman, which I didn’t buy for a second. Lyric basically has control over all electronics, which is a cool ability, but Metal Sonic isn’t your average robot. Eggman does get a few good moments though and I’d say that he’s still a better villain than Lyric. It’s too bad that this game is really just trying to make fun of him rather than making him a serious threat. Technically, he should easily be able to take out Lyric with his mecha. The comic relief is just too much for him at times.

Going back to the gameplay, it’s very similar to Ratchet and Clank, but with less shooting. You’ll do a lot of punching, but you can alternate with homing attacks and ground pounds. Punching is just the most effective way to fight if you want to take out the enemies quickly. Everyone comes equipped with an energy whip to get across various sections of the game. I’ll admit that this part is rather unnecessary and just drags out the game, but at least you can use it to throw the enemies away. It’s a pretty fun game style where I just have one serious complaint.

Beating up on the villains can actually get annoying. They have a lot of invincibility moments where you have to wait until they attack to start pounding into them again. It doesn’t make them any tougher, but it certainly prolongs the battle. You’ll be fighting well over a hundred mechs by the time that the game’s over and they are especially numerous in the climax. You’ll definitely get tired of fighting them by then and you’ll want a break. The bosses are unaffected by this though as they’re all fun to challenge. Unfortunately, they are extremely easy (Either punch or throw things at the bosses…that’s literally it) but that’s to be expected. The Final Boss doesn’t have anything grand added to it, which can be anti climatic, but it’s still a good fight.

The game got a lot of attention for its glitches and bugs, but there aren’t a whole lot of them. Several cutscenes played without audio and I jumped through a wall once, but at least I was able to jump back to the screen. Also, it came in handy during one part where I tried jumping into oblivion, but ended up teleporting onto an enemy ship. Glitches can actually help out like that! The one glitch that does occur frequently is when the frame rate drops. Lagging when playing online is one thing, but you don’t typically expect that in story mode. It happens a whole lot when you’re in the hub world, but it’s also present for the field. It can be comical or annoying depending on how you look at it.

Sonic and Tails are portrayed fairly accurately compared to their real selves. They’re just a little more extreme as Tails criticizes Sonic’s jokes and Sonic likes to insult Eggman more. Amy is pretty good as she’s solidifying herself as more of a rival/ally to Sonic as she can keep up with him and she also has the hammer. Knuckles is really the only character who looks really bad here as he’s portrayed to be very unintelligent. He can’t comprehend simple sentences and he can barely think without hurting himself. I think that the writers went wayyyyyy to far there since he’s usually a pretty likable character. I think that they need to back up a little and rethink the whole situation. Shadow’s portrayal is just odd and it makes you think that they just threw him in at the last second. He attacks Sonic and his friends for literally no reason and then he backs off at the end because the heroes saved the day. Wasn’t he about to stop them from doing just that? Of course, his voice makes me naturally dislike his role, but it still did not make a whole lot of sense.

Overall, Sonic Boom is a pretty fun game and a nice start to a new section of the franchise. It certainly has its share of flaws, but the first title in a series usually needs some work. Just look at Sonic Spinball and Sonic DX or Mario Golf and Mario Galaxy. Those may not be relevant examples, but they’ll still cause you to think. The bugs aren’t quite as numerous as you may think and the gameplay is ultimately fun, which is the important part. Hopefully they can just portray Eggman a little tougher in the sequel and make Sonic a whole lot faster. This is definitely a solid title to buy and you can expand your Wii U collection at the same time! Also, if you want some hype for debating sites, “Nobody has ever dodged my Spin Dash before!” will be a good line to remember when people try to say that someone’s reaction times are enough to stop Sonic. It just won’t work against good ole Lyric.

Overall 7/10

TimeSplitters Review

Posted on September 19, 2014 by dreager1

It’s time for a new series to join the ranks of the blog! Starting a game series always fills you with a lot of emotions because you are about to be thrown into a whole new world! Who knows what dangers lurk around the corners and which games will end up becoming instant classics. TimeSplitters is an FPS with a sci-fi theme so let’s see how this plays out.

What does FPS mean? Basically, this game is a first person shooter similar to Call of Duty. It’s not your average shooter though because it has an arcade feel to it. So, the gameplay is very quick and you’re always on the go. Tactics aren’t really going to save you from getting blown apart so my best advice is to just run at the villains. Simply fire before they can fire back as you dash towards the goal. There are 9 levels in Story Mode and each one can be beaten between 30 seconds to 4 minutes. According to the play time, I took a little over an hour to beat it.

“So what happened DReager1…did you hold back?” Well, that’s the logical assumption to make since the game should have only taken me around 36 minutes to beat considering my epicness. The big twist is that I’m not very good at FPS games. Don’t get the wrong idea! I could still take just about anyone out in this kind of game, but I simply can’t deal with the sniper gun. That’s the level that I tried around 40 times before finally completing it. Over 40 times!! Even if the levels are short, that’s certainly going to keep the clock running and I eventually just muscled my way through. It was tough, but no level can hold me at bay for long. There is technically a plot, but it’s only in the booklet or on the cover. The actual game doesn’t really have one so I won’t really address it here.

Once you are done with the story mode levels, you unlock Challenge Mode. I believe that there are around 18 challenges so that should buy you some more time and we can’t forget about Arcade Mode! The game also goes up to 4 players, which is pretty good since multiplayer is a must in any FPS. People don’t spends thousands of hours playing Call of Duty and Halo for the story mode…they play it for the huge online battles! Likewise, you’re bound to have a lot of fun in multiplayer playing this game since competing is always fun.

The soundtrack is decently good for this game from what you can hear. Amidst all of the shooting, you’ll likely only remember the main menu theme. It’s pretty good, but I would have liked to see some other themes as well. Of course, when you beat a level in under a minute…you may not be giving it enough time to really get going.

The graphics are pretty decent for this game. The character models don’t look too blurry or anything like that and you can clearly see where to go next. Considering that lighting is typically a problem on my TV, it was impressive to be able to see everything. The level designs are a lot of fun and my favorite level is easily the mansion. Surprisingly, the future levels tended to be the least imaginative. Maybe I just didn’t like playing as the robot, but it wasn’t quite as exhilarating as being in that huge mansion.

First Person Shooters have been one of my least favorite genres. I used to really not like them and part of the reason is that you really can’t focus on the scenery in those. You’re always looking at the screen through the barrel of your gun and it can be tricky. I’ve grown more accustomed to them over the years though, but my skills are still a little behind since I rarely play them. I enjoy the game’s fast pace since it helps it feel a little more like your typical third person game. If you are just entering the FPS world, this may not be a bad place to start!

Overall, This is a pretty fun game. You’ll definitely enjoy it if you like the FPS genre and there are a ton of characters to use. It may not matter so much to some fans since you can’t really see the character during the game, but a lot of them have some pretty intriguing titles. “PeakABoo Jones” comes to mind. The only reason why you would want to think before you purchase this game is the duration. 1 hour for story mode isn’t a whole lot of time and considering that Challenge Mode is double (2 hours) the time and Arcade Mode is likely another hour, you’re not looking at a very long game. Still, the going price for it is very low and you must count the multiplayer replay value as well. Simply put, you’ll enjoy this game more if you have someone to play it with. I would still recommend it if you are by yourself too of course, but then you’ll want to make sure that you don’t mind short games. (I usually get thrilled to see a short game since I have so many on the back burner.) I can safely say that the sequel is naturally on my list now since it can only improve and it’s on the greatest console of all time….the GAMECUBE! It’s supposed to seriously give you the chills so I look forward to that. As far as creepiness goes, the zombies/TimeSplitters in this game were pretty intense. I hope that there is more of a plot in the sequel since it should help to make the story mode a little more interesting. We do need to raise the stakes right? Maybe you’ll keep this review in mind for the next rainy day so that you can have this game at the ready. It’ll be like watching a quick scary movie to pass the time by.

Overall 7/10

Yoshi Topsy Turvy Review

Posted on August 30, 2014 by dreager1

Yoshi has always been a pretty solid supporting character for Mario. He’s a trusted ally who is always ready to help the plumber whenever the hero is in a tough spot. I am definitely glad to see that Yoshi has gotten several games. We had fun with his adventure with Mario on the GBA so a Yoshi solo game should be fun as well right? I’m happy to say that it was definitely a blast and it’s a very unique Mario game thanks to the tilting feature.

The game opens with Bowser going on the attack once again. Using his magical spells, Bowser makes pretty short work out of the opponents. They just don’t have what it takes to defeat these guys. Mario and friends are busy somewhere else to it’s up to Yoshi to save his island. Before he can accomplish such a feat, a new character with unlimited power throws the whole island inside of a book. Yoshi will have to quickly adapt and take out Bowser himself if he is ever to get this being to let him out. It’ll be Yoshi’s toughest adventure yet, but he’s definitely ready for it!

The gameplay is what you would expect from a Mario side scroller right? Well, I’m happy to say that this is not the whole story. I’d be just as happy as the next guy if this played out as the next Super Mario World or Advance, but it’s good for Yoshi to be able to distinguish itself from the famous plumber. There are the usual 2D side scroller elements to be sure, but with a few new twists. The first one is the fact that there is the new tilting feature. You can walk on walls as they become the ground when you tilt the Game Boy. You can use this feature to jump higher, move obstacles out of the way, and much more. Using the tilting feature is all about strategy and it also makes the usual actions like jumping and walking a little more strategic.

Yoshi’s famous boots are back as well and it’s fun to jump on the enemies. I forget if his boots will allow you to stop on spiky enemies or not, but it’s a nice addition. Of course, you can always choose to eat your opponents, which is Yoshi’s most iconic attack. As with most Mario games, there are 6 worlds. There aren’t any bonus levels that I’m aware of, but given that this is like the Mario games…I wouldn’t be surprised if there was one for getting all of the Gold Medals. The 6 worlds vary in length. The last world had as many as 12 levels in it while the first only had 3. It’s a nice balance though and the game will definitely last you for a decent amount of time on your initial playthrough. (That’s before we even begin to count the replay value factor! Not bad if I do say so myself!)

As you play through the game, you will notice that there aren’t many boss fights. There is actually only one boss fight in the entire game and you also get a level where you have to avoid Bowser’s flames. Pretty tricky stuff eh? I’ll admit that the game loses some minor points by tossing out the bosses, but not enough to make it drop in the overall rating. The actual levels are still very fun.

Each level has a goal. There are the levels where you have to run to the goal, levels where you collect eggs, defeat enemies, spare enemies, and so on. It makes the levels a little more challenging since you can’t just worry about getting to the end. Each level has 4 sections as well, which helps to make them a little longer. Some levels even have two goals at once, which can really make you work for the win. Clearing the goals will give you a silver medal and you can earn a Gold if you really over performed on the requirements. Getting the golds can definitely be tough and you’ll really have to play the level a lot to get a feel for how you should go about completing it.

The graphics are pretty nice and I can definitely say that they are a cut above the King of Fighters game. They are still using sprites, but everything looks so neat and colorful. This is definitely what I want to see from a big Nintendo game. You can tell that they put the necessary effort into it. The drawings look pretty decent as well. The game may not be ready to challenge something like the New Super Mario Bros just yet, but we’re getting there.

The soundtrack is very good as well. This is to be expected for any game that is related to the Mario series. The stage themes are pretty soothing and they help to enhance the experience. Admittedly, they may not be that memorable, but it doesn’t take away from the fact that they are still some very good tunes. The sound effects are all iconic at this point and you’ll have fun zipping from one place to the next. This game definitely holds up pretty well in all aspects.

There are at least 5 different mini games to unlock in this title. There was one that was already unlocked when I got the game, but I don’t know how to unlock the others. Maybe I need to get all of the Gold Medals and all of the Eggs to get them. That definitely adds to the replay value and just trying to get all of the Gold Ranks will take some time. Moreover, the gameplay is a lot of fun so you may want to just have fun going through some of them without worrying about the goals.

Now, did the tilting actually improve the game? Well, it was an interesting effect and it did make the game more unique. It’s hard to say whether it actually helped or not though since I still would have had a lot of fun without it. The tilting was just there and it added another dimension to the gameplay. It definitely didn’t make it worse and I actually prefer it to the new concept of motion based gaming. It’s too bad that the whole tilting thing basically died out. I guess it’s because you can tilt while using motion controls anyway.

Overall, Yoshi Topsy Turvy is definitely another great sidescroller from Nintendo. I still find the regular Mario games to be more fun, but it’s a very tried and true formula. It’s good to see Nintendo taking some risks with the tilting effects and Yoshi deserved to have another title for himself. It’s not every day that we see the happy dinosaur take on Bowser! Trust me, Yoshi is not to be trifled with. “Yoshi was not amused” is one of the final lines in the game and Yoshi’s expression is pretty fierce in that instant. This dinosaur definitely has the bite to back up his bark. I definitely recommend this to any gamer and especially to Nintendo fans. Don’t let the tilting effect scare you away since it’s done pretty well. This game has enough content to keep you busy for quite a while and the most important part is that it’s just fun to play. It’s easy to just pick it up and try out a few levels at any time. This is why the Mario games have gotten so popular over the years. This definitely makes me a little more excited to get Yoshi’s new 3DS game!

Overall 7/10

Sega Superstars Tennis Review

Posted on August 19, 2014 by dreager1

It’s time to review a PS3 game that I’ve had on the backburner for quite a while now. This is a game that I got for 5 dollars at Gamestop and that’s always a pretty good bargain for a game. We can’t underestimate how good a PS3 Sonic game can be after the big one in 2006. So, I stepped into the game world and witnessed some great gameplay, but a story mode that left much to be desired.

See, the “story mode” in this game is called Superstar Mode. Instead of making it your typical career mode like in most tennis games, this one was totally made up of minigames. That’s strange right? It may be appealing for a little while, but there are so many levels in Superstar mode that it can get tedious. There is the occasional match or tournament, but mostly your tasks include things like: Shoot the balls into the portal, Shoot the moving objects, Shoot the ground to alter the path, etc. Minigames can be fun because they are short and sweet as they distract you from the tough story mode. The point is lost when there is no main mode. There is a separate tournament mode in the game, but it’s more like Super Smash Bros’ tournament mode.

So, Superstars mode wasn’t really that enjoyable for me. It definitely could have been handled a lot better. The cast of characters isn’t very impressive either. There are around 20 characters in the game and you typically expect a little more than that. Mario Power Tennis had a similar amount and that came out many years ago. (Of course, it was on the Gamecube so that could explain why it was so great) The cast isn’t terribly important since everyone will want to be Shadow or Sonic, (Or at least, I always want to play as them) but more options would have been preferable. I guess Sega didn’t want this to be thought of as Sonic tennis in the end so they quickly stopped themselves from adding more of them. Otherwise, Metal Sonic would have been a pretty great addition to the cast.

The gameplay for the main games is essentially the same as Virtua Tennis. (Which is a very good thing) I assume that you are familiar with the rules of tennis. After that, you really have a good understanding of the gameplay. Each character has a super move that can be used once in a while. Sonic’s allows you to transform into Super Sonic. You gain a lot of speed and all of the balls that you hit will gain a pretty mean spin. It’s important to lunge for those balls right away since they can be impossible to hit once they really get going. Sonic’s super attack is pretty cool, but I’m not familiar with most of the others. I typically finished off my opponents before they could use theirs. I definitely find the gameplay to be pretty enjoyable. It’s a lot more technical than Mario Power Tennis and that can be a good or bad thing. There are definitely pros and cons to both styles. This one is more realistic, but you could really feel the power behind the blows in Mario Tennis. I’m a pretty big fan of both types of gameplay so I’m fine either way. Tennis is likely second to Football when it comes to sport gameplay.

The graphics are decently good. The character models look pretty great and almost as if they were ripped from the 2006 game. They were definitely very well done..at least for the Sonic characters. Others like Alex The Kidd and Nights didn’t look quite as good, but they were good enough. The backgrounds and effects were pretty standard. Not bad though and you could still tell that you were playing a PS3 game. I suppose that’s all I can ask for from a sports spinoff anyway.

The themes in the game are decently catchy. I found them to be a little limited, but it sounds pretty good when you’re actually engaged in the matches. Again, I would say that it was pretty standard. Perhaps I’d give it a 6/10 at the most. The soundtrack gets you in the mood to play tennis and that is the main goal for the soundtrack.

In terms of replay value, Sega Tennis does a fine job. It’s mostly be default since it is a tennis game and it has a multiplayer option. Playing against someone else will always be fun in this style, which is why I say that this game has replay value. Otherwise, there really isn’t much to do once you beat Superstar mode. The computers will become pretty easy for you at that point and there is nothing else to unlock. If you don’t have anyone to play with, then I would consider this game to be more of a 6. (Or a high 5) It should also be noted that this is one of the games that came out before the Playstation 3 began to add trophies to every game. That also takes away a chunk out of the replay value.

Overall, This game is not going to last you for a very long time. The counter says that it only took me 2h:30m to beat the game. It definitely took me longer than that, but I guess the loading times really add up. The only way that this game will help you in the long run is if you take the game up on its multiplayer option. Superstars mode can only last for so long after all and it’s not very enjoyable. The rest of the game is pretty solid though and the gameplay is the important part. The game is currently going for less than 5 dollars so that’s also a good reason to go for it. I would recommend Mario Power Tennis more than this one so I have to give Nintendo the win this time. There’s no reason why Sega cannot improve though so I’m looking forward to their next tennis game. It’ll be fun to compare the racing title to Mario Kart as well someday.

Overall 7/10

Centipede Infestation Review

Posted on August 12, 2014 by dreager1

It’s time for another action packed Wii game! I’ve been on a roll with this console and Centipede Infestation was definitely the next title on my list. I mainly bought this game because it was supposed to be similar to Alien Syndrome and also because the title is pretty intense. I got it for a cheap price, but it’s a very fun game that I would highly recommend for the Wii!

The plot revolves around Max, The Bug Slayer. Earth has been overtake by Centipedes and other insects and all of the flowers and plants have died. One day, Max meets up with a girl named Maisy who is able to grow gardens. She needs to head back to her main base of operations, but getting back there will be dangerous. Max decides to escort her there since he may as well and they decide to go. What dangers will befall these two along the way!?

The plot is pretty simple. The game explains towards the end how this all happened and I feel bad for the Government since it sounds like they were taken down pretty quickly. The situation is effectively hopeless for the heroes since they would need to destroy all of the insects to win back the Earth. Max basically accepts this so he just goes around destroying as many as he can while having fun. He does take a lot of pride in his work after all. If there were more heroes, then they would have a chance. Essentially, destroying large insects can make a garden grow immediately, so Max just needs a few resistance fighters with him and they’d be okay. It would be an Attack on Titan situation where they try to protect a little land and slowly move to conquer more. It would take a while, but it’s basically the only option still available for the humans.

Max is the main character and he’s pretty cool. He has accepted that he is the only person brave enough to fight the insects and he has become pretty skilled at it. Give him a blaster and the insects don’t stand a chance! He befriends one of them, but things get a little dicey for Max and the ending is quite tragic. At least he didn’t mean to shoot, so that helps Max in my book. He’s not an all star character, but he makes for a good lead.

Maisy is the main heroine and she’s really the only form of civilization that we get to meet. Everyone else is hiding out at the town. Maisy runs a garden business and she goes across the planet planting them. The apocalypse has slowed down her business, but she still tries to make time to plant some new ones. She’s a pretty solid character and she always tries to keep Max in check. I’m hoping that she picks up a gun and decides to help more in the sequel.

There’s also a ghost kid who meets up with Max after he is separated from Maisy. He has a different name than Max technically, but I believe that he is supposed to represent Max’s kid self. Unfortunately, I can’t say that he’s very likable. He mostly tries to verbally take shots at Max whenever he can and he’s constantly taunting the poor guy. No, the ghost kid definitely wasn’t up to snuff and he ran once the going got tough.

The gameplay is basically the same as Alien Syndrome. In case you haven’t played that (excellent) game, here is how it works. The gameplay is overhead (Although not completely overhead) and you’ve got the blaster. Some levels are very enclosed as if you are in a boxing ring and you have to destroy all of the insects to win. They’ll keep coming out of the bushes and you have to keep your finger on the trigger. You can also stomp, but that’s only useful for the underground monsters and it leaves you wide open for attack. The Wii remote can make things a little dicey, but it works out decently well for this game. It doesn’t hinder it as much as it would hinder other games and I still found the gameplay to be a lot of fun.

There are power ups to be found across the levels and they range from increasing your fire power to nuclear explosions that can defeat any enemy in one shot, except for bosses of course. My favorite power up was the laser blasts, but the explosions are a close second. Picking your power ups can be a tactical decision because they only last for a few seconds and you can run out of space as you can only have 4 different ones at once. Picking up something that just leaves you vulnerable like the acid bombs could get in the way of a solid laser pick up.

There are 40 levels in this game. That’s a solid amount, but they are pretty short so you should be warned. Each level may be 2-5 minutes long so you can roughly finish the entire game in 2-4 hours. That is a little short, but it still does have a lot of levels and there is an achievements system as well. I ended up earning most of them and I almost got a Gold Medal in each level. That definitely would have been pretty cool and I just missed a handful towards the end. There is also hard mode and insane mode where you can really see if you have what it takes to stop the insects. I haven’t given them a try, but they definitely sound like a lot of fun. The levels could be a little easy at times so this is just what I need!

The graphics are decent. I do applaud the fact that there are voices for the characters and the cutscenes appear after every level. We also get completely animated cutscenes once in a while. The animations can be a little retro and more like a really old cartoon, but I’m just glad that they were there. The graphics may be a little underwhelming, but you really won’t notice all that much while you’re busy blasting aliens. That is the important part to the game after all.

The soundtrack is all right. There aren’t many different tunes in the game, but the ones that are there are decently catchy. You’ll likely enjoy them as you are crushing the bugs and then forget about them afterwards. That’s good enough for me since they aren’t bad tunes and they won’t hamper your experience. I would prefer for the tunes to be more memorable, but we can’t have it all.

Overall, This is a very good game for the Wii. 40 levels is a solid deal and the plot is pretty sound. They put more effort into the cutscenes than one would expect and the main characters are pretty good. The game never gets repetitive and it’s very easy to just pick it up and play. I actually took a break from it for several months and it was still just as fun when I jumped back in. I would definitely be up for a sequel and that would be a lot of fun to experience. Now, was this game quite as good as Alien Syndrome? I would say that it is slightly inferior to Alien Syndrome because the choice of weaponry is more limited and there is no level up system. I did love those after all. Of course, this game does have a level select and it has a Lot more replay value. Both games definitely have their pros and cons so it is a very evenly matched battle. Nonetheless, I definitely recommend checking this one out! After all, who doesn’t like a game where you have to fight giant insectoids!?

Overall 7/10

Nerf N-Strike Double Blast Bundle Review

Posted on July 19, 2014 by dreager1

This is another one of the beauties that I snagged at the 5 dollar bin over at Gamestop. See, this game is a steal because it was a little less than 5 dollars and it brings the original Nerf N-Strike game as well as the sequel. You have to admit that two full fledged (Under 10 levels in the second one) games for such a low price is pretty great. The second game improves upon the first one and it’s a game that you’ll want to check out.

I guess I’ll talk about the first game first. It should be noted that the game originally came with a blaster and the sequel came with a red lens, but you don’t actually need them. It just means that you have to get the codes wrong and trip the alarms in the second time every time such a situation pops up. It means more danger for the player, but I’m sure that you could handle such a challenge right? Let’s hope so!

Back to the game. It all starts off when a kid by the name of Shane is playing with his friends at the arcade. He loses the (rigged) level and goes home only to find out that he has been selected to join the Nerf N-Strike team. B.O.B. tells him that he must defeat the other combatants in order to climb to the top of the ranks. Unbeknownst to Shane, B.O.B. is also goading the other combatants to defeat him. Whether it be through threats or insults, B.O.B. makes sure to get the job done. Can this kid fresh out of the arcade really defeat these trained (semi) professionals in a game of Nerf? To do this, the kid must infiltrate each of their hideouts and destroy the high scores at each minigame. Sounds like fun eh!? Let’s just say that B.O.B. may not be as heroic as he seems.

Nerf N-Strike Elite’s plot is a lot deeper and it has a more cinematic feeling. Jackal has decided to round up the team once again because a certain villain has returned and he feels like it’s their duty to stop him. Shane is arguably still the main character even though Tango is the one on the cover. The heroes join forced and take out their new Nerf Blasters. Only one group gets to walk away this time!

The gameplay for the first game is a little different from your typical shooter. There are 4 rooms and each room has 5 minigames. You have to beat them to proceed to the next room. We do have the classic FPS feel during the final minigame of each section, where you shoot all of the robots who oppose you. You cannot move as that happens automatically and you just focus on the shooting. It’s pretty fun and they did a good job with the mechanics until the final level. The other minigames are fun variations of the style. One of them involves shooting boxes out of the ring until you come across a purple one and you shoot it to win. Another one has you only aim at robots of a certain color. My personal favorite one is where you have to shoot boulders into a soccer goal/pool table. There’s also one where you have to shoot the boulders 5 times to blow them up without hitting the red ones. There are a few others, but that’s mainly the jist of it. There aren’t many actual FPS levels where you’re on an adventure, but the minigames are actually pretty fun so it’s all right.

The gameplay for Game 2 is more straight forward. Picture your average FPS game except that the game characters move for you. You just aim for anything that moves as you go through the adventure. I didn’t have the accessories with me so I had to incorrectly guess every password to let the villains come, which would let me go past once I defeated them. That’s all right and it doesn’t make things that much worse. I will say that the first game was infinitely tougher than this one, but the second does have difficulty levels that you can adjust to make the game harder. I’m sure that on Elite mode it would end up being even more difficult than the first game.

Shane gets the most character development from all of the characters. He’s pretty full of himself in the first game and he really rubs it in whenever he wins. He insults his opponent’s skills and he loves to hear himself talk. He does make the tough calls when it counts though as seen in the ending. In the second game, Shane has become a natural born leader and he’s an expert with a gun. He now believes in teamwork and he never leaves a man behind on the job. He’s essentially Duke from G.I. Joe in the second game. I’m not sure why he changed so much, but he is easily the best character in both games. His heroics rival Mario’s!

Tango is the army member of the group. In the first game, he’s a no nonsense fighter. He makes a lot of puns about his name and he proceeds to put up a decent fight against Shane. In the second game, he represents the strong, but not smart character. It’s a pretty big change and one that is a little hard to embrace. He’s scared of elevators and a few other things, but he does have the strongest (Nerf) gun in the group. Tango is a good teammate to have on board, but it’s hard to say that he’s likable.

Komodo is the first opponent that you face in the Nerf game so he’s also the weakest. From all of the characters, he easily gets the least amount of character development. I can’t say that I recall too many things about him and he’s just easily forgotten. He does have a pretty great moment in the second game though. After the most emotional moment in the franchise where someone betrays them and their hometown is about to be nuked, Komodo says “This is the best day of my life!” after seeing a cool rocket. That’s….a little insensitive to say the least since everything that they know was about to be wiped off the face of the Earth. Maybe it’s all just a game to him.

Jackal is one of the more intriguing characters. By that, I mean that he had the biggest accent. He’s always talking about how he hunts alone and “My grandfather used to say that one person starts the game and another one bags it. Watch as I bag this one.” It’s actually a pretty great saying, but the way that he says it is more humorous than threatening. (Which is what happens to most of the dialogue in the first game) His personality does a 360 in the second game as he gets a pretty huge plot twist that you may not have seen coming. I didn’t either, but the odds of any of my readers playing the game is low so you may not get to experience it. That’s pretty sad if you really think about it.

Raven is another one of the kids who was selected for the Nerf N-Strike team. She loves to remind her opponents that getting beaten by a girl is a pain that will never fade. She loves to use the girl power angle to humiliate her foes as much as she can when defeating them. In the second game, she’s mostly there to taunt Tango and she is the one who lets the villain know that the heroes are now N-Strike Elite members. She doesn’t get as much character as some of the others, but she is consistently around to help out when the going gets tough.

B.O.B. is the recruiter from the first game. His threats know no bounds and he’ll do anything if it means that he’ll get a new fighter for the N-Strike. His methods go a little far and one of the members gets suspicious when two of the kids disappear. B.O.B. can’t have that now can he? He doesn’t mind being frank with the heroes as he lets Shane know that he will not be able to defeat Tango. After Shane defeats Tango, it gets pretty personal and B.O.B. lets us in on a startling fact…this isn’t a game anymore! As a boss fight, B.O.B. is pretty impressive.

In the second game, he is more of a pawn than a strategic mastermind. He gets a big power up in the form of a giant robot, but is that really enough to defeat a few Elite agents? The boss fight in the first game was actually very difficult and it took me a handful of tries, but that was mainly due to the gameplay and the fact that I got a pretty bad gun. The second game smoothed out the gameplay a whole lot so the battle was a cakewalk. I definitely won’t be forgetting B.O.B. though.

The graphics for the first game are all right I suppose. The character models are a little sub par and that doesn’t really change for the sequel. Things just don’t look like they should for a big Wii game. The sequel does look a lot better. The difference is night and day between them and it helps that I played the second one immediately after the first game. Everything suddenly looks like it’s in HD and they put a lot more thought into the backgrounds. The second one’s graphics are actually very impressive and they can easily hold up to any of the other big Wii games.

The soundtrack isn’t really that impressive. I forgot just about all of the themes immediately after I finished playing the games. There isn’t really anything in it that likely took them a while to compose and I wouldn’t be surprised if it was all free domain music. The themes aren’t that important in a shooter since your shooting will likely drown it out anyway, but it can definitely help. Just look at the Metroid Prime games as a shining example of this.

The bundle has a decent amount of replay value, but I would’t call it an exceptionally large amount. In the first game, you can continue to break your records in the minigames until all of your medals are Gold Rank and you can try to unlock all of the guns. In the second game there are a lot of weapons to buy and upgrade for each of the characters so it should take at least 20 playthroughs to get everything. Personally, I’m not That dedicated to getting all of the items so I would never even consider if, but why not right? The actual story mode for game 1 is 21 levels and assuming that you beat them all in a single shot, it should only take 4-6 hours to complete. The second game is even shorter with 8 levels and they’re very easy. That game should take you 3-4 hours or maybe even less. Overall, counting the bonus content, it’s still a decent amount, but the second game’s story is a little disappointing level wise. 10 is really the minimum amount that I find acceptable for a video game.

Overall, This was a pretty fun bundle. From the 5 Dollar bin, I would say that it beat Flingsmash, but lost to Geometry Wars. It also managed to beat Roogoo somehow. This is easily worth the 4 dollars since it has a lot of content. Either game works as they’re both good for different reasons. The first game was fun for the minigames while the second one has some really great animation and the plot is really there. The first one had a loose plot with some cutscenes before each boss battle and for each intro, but the second one has a deep and cohesive plot that continues for the whole game as the heroes try to save their town. If you’re looking for plot then the second title is for you and you’ll love the first one for gameplay. Either way, this is a steal and you can show the world that Nerf guns can hold up against giant robots bent on world conquest!

Overall 7/10

The Sly Collection Review

Posted on July 8, 2014 by dreager1

This is a fairly large game time wise and it’s also a memorable one. It was the final game that I got to complete on the old PS3 (Game 1) and then I finally got to go back to it on the newer one. Three whole video games in a single package is a very good deal and the price was right. I enjoy the Ratchet and Clank series as well as the Jak titles so I was sure that Sly would be fun. As expected, it was an enjoyable experience.

The first game is Sly Cooper and the Thievius Raccoonus. We are introduces to Sly, Bentley, and Murray as they make a pretty solid team. They’ve been friends for many years and are known for stealing artifacts and having fun on vacations. Now, they’ve uncovered a lead onto the gang that took out Sly’s parents and stole the Thievius Raccoonus. The trio decides to recover the chapters from the respective gang members and take down the leader. It will be tough, as a special agent by the name of Carmelita Fox is hunting them and she won’t stop until Sly’s behind bars. Looks like Sly Cooper is in for a rough ride!

The first game’s gameplay is unique as the next two games go for a more traditional route. In this game, you have to avoid detection as you make it to the goal. One hit will essentially finish Sly off so you have to be careful about how you handle it. The stealth part is pretty interesting and it’s like playing as Spiderman Noir in Shattered Dimensions, but without all of the athletics and webbing. That’s not to say that Sly isn’t athletic though. You will have to use his skills to jump from place to place and hang on to a ledge when needed.

It is pretty novel gameplay, but I am glad that they ended up switching it. I believe that stealth works best when you have it for a few levels as opposed to the entire game. Having to re do an entire section because you were spotted can be pretty rough. The game was a solid start to the series and Clockwerk made for a powerful adversary. The story is good and the banter between Sly and Carmelita was in top form. The replay value for the game isn’t incredibly high, but getting the Platinum and finding all of the bottles/clues will take a little extra time.

The second game’s plot picks up from the first since someone has stolen the parts to Clockwerk. Sly remembers how dangerous that foe can be and the gang must quickly get ready so they can find the culprits and stop Clockwerk from being revived. Will they be able to do this? Meanwhile, a new face joins the police force by the name of Constable Neyla. Together with Carmelita…they may finally be able to take out the Cooper gang!

This is where the gameplay becomes finalized for the franchise. There is still a lot of stealth involved, but not as much since you can afford to just tackle your opponents. It’s not really advisable for large groups, but it’s still an option. Sly now has a health bar and it feels a lot like the original Jak game. No guns, it’s just classic hand to hand combat with some athletics. I’m a fan of the gameplay and it’s good to see how the series has progressed. Of course, I would love a laser gun, but it’s not completely necessary.

The third game takes place after a long time has passed since the previous installment. The gang has parted ways and things had been going slowly. Then Sly finds the ancient base of his ancestors and a villain by the name of Dr. M is heading there to get the treasure. Sly will need to bring his old partners back to the team while also recruiting a few new (and old) faces to help with the task. It’ll be the toughest mission yet, but Sly is ready! Carmelita isn’t far behind and she’s ready to take Sly down for the count.

This one experimented with a lot of concepts. We got to control a pirate ship and board other ships to steal a lot of money. This is great for when you need some money to buy everything in the shop. The gameplay could be a little on the tricky side for this mode, but it was pretty fun. There are also airplane battles, which are handled very well and car battles, which are just as exciting. You also get to play as the Panda King and shoot fireworks at the opponents. Dimitri gets his own level where you scuba dive and get to see some action. The Guru’s gameplay involves possessing the enemies and causing them to ram into something or get corralled somewhere.

Carmelita also gets her own gameplay where the game becomes a third person shooter. It’s naturally not as well developed as PN03 or Star Fox, but the gameplay is still fun. Beyond that, we still have the usual Bentley programming game and the Murray smashing part. Sly’s gameplay is also true to form and there is one boss fight that suddenly transforms the game into DBZ. You get to charge with immense speed at the boss and blows are exchanged. It was a very entertaining boss fight and maybe the best (Or top 3 anyway) in the trilogy.

Aside from the three games, we also have a few minigames. They weren’t very memorable and I only gave them a quick try so I could snag the trophies. (Well, I would have played them anyway, but only once a piece) They are relatively basic and you should have no trouble getting solid scores on them. They’re entertaining enough, but they don’t add to the replay value because you won’t really find yourself replaying them. One or two shots per game is typically enough to feel satisfied.

Sly is the protagonist of the Sly Collection and he’s actually pretty cool. See, he actually does flirt with Carmelita and some of the other characters, but he’s always classy about it. It’s more of a game to him and he never goes too far. It’s just light banter and both parties know it. So, instead of having a forced romance subplot or a James Bond character, we get a very interesting hero. He is a thief, but he (typically) only steals from those who have already stolen something. Calling him a hero may be a stretch, but he does bring many criminals to justice Batman style. He always has a few comebacks at the ready and he basically made the series. I can safely say that the trilogy wouldn’t have been half as good without him as the lead character.

He continues to improve throughout the trilogy and he’s essentially a master by the second game. He may have been a little nerfed in the third game since he couldn’t take out the giant mech, but it happens. I didn’t care for his decision at the end of the third game since it was almost a bit of a betrayal to his friends. One scene cannot negate a whole trilogy of solid acts so Sly is still one of the better protagonists in gaming. He’s an example of a romantic who doesn’t let it bog him down. The Cooper Gang is his creation and they shall go far.

Bentley is the tactical member of the group and he makes all of the plans. He gets a small subplot where he starts to get a little jealous of Sly, but luckily he snaps out of it in time so I won’t count it as a negative. His voice is catchy and it’s the most memorable part of his character. He does get into a romance, which was pretty unnecessary and not very enjoyable. It definitely helped to drop him and this occurred during the third game. (Along with Murray’s drop) His gadgets are interesting, but he’s not not a very intriguing character. He just doesn’t have any traits that make him stand out (apart from the voice) and he could easily be replaced with any other genius. Sly is definitely the one carrying the group as far as personality goes.

The Murray started out as a solid character for the first two games and then he went downhill fast. He’s the opposite of Sly in that he’s not very smart or cunning and he never has a good comeback at the ready. He makes up for this with his fists and he’s the power hitter of the group. (I would easily take Sly in a fight against him though) He likes to refer to himself as The Murray and that’s why I liked him a lot. Then, he decided to abandon his fighting methods thanks to The Guru and he started a lot of meditation. So, most of his lines in the third game were pretty annoying since he wasn’t a convincing pacifist and most of his “wise” sayings just weren’t funny. He has a classic rage moment at one point where he turns back into the original “The Murray” but it came a little too late. He still beats Daxter, but Murray definitely dropped as far as characters go.

Carmelita is Sly’s biggest rival and they always get to share a lot of epic dialogue. She makes sure that the police are in top shape and she has risen to a very high position. Her skills with a blaster are definitely worth mentioning and she’s able to take down the bosses that even gave Sly’s gang a tough time. I do miss the days when capturing Sly was her only goal, but the ending is happy for her. A little too much romance if you ask me though. It’ll be interesting to see what her role is in the next game. She’s definitely an integral part of the franchise and her rivalry with Sly is what makes the banter so much fun.

Dimitri is easily one of the more unlikable villains, but it seems like he was well received by the fans so he got to return for the third game. It’s too bad because I just don’t see why he is supposed to be cool. He spends some time flirting in the third game, which isn’t cool and his only good scene that I can recall is the fact that he didn’t succumb to Sly’s black mailing attempts. Beyond that, he’s just another enemy who turns into a hero and then forgets to have any significant character development. I’m hoping that he won’t return for the next game.

The Guru is easily one of the most annoying characters in the trilogy. The fact that he only makes sounds and then everyone can understand him is a trend that I really don’t like. (Just look at Bumblebee) This way, the characters get to say things like “Whoa, impressive thinking Guru” or “I like the way you think Guru” It’s a cop out because we don’t know what he is actually saying and I just can’t root for him. He’s supposed to be immensely hardcore based on the reactions from the characters, but I need to hear it to believe it. His subplot just wasn’t enlightening and he prolonged the game just so that he could be at one with nature. Yeah….that’s a no go for me.

Penelope is one of the new members to join the gang in the third installment and she’s all right. She beats most of the other new recruits, but I couldn’t get myself to become a fan of hers. She’s also pretty smart and she has her remotely controlled vehicles, which makes for solid gameplay. That being said, I just can’t get behind the forced romance subplot between her and Bentley. It didn’t do wonders for any of them…that’s for sure.

The Panda King started out as one of the big villains in the first game. His boss fight was pretty fun and his flame attacks were brutal. He made for a solid villain and he was definitely one of the more memorable bosses. After that, he became a hero in the third game and changed his ways. That’s where he went downhill for me. His new meditation personality was too similar to Murray’s change and he just wasn’t believable. I have to agree with Sly that it’s a little hard to overlook his deeds from the original title. His mannerisms can also be a little tough and you just wait for his scenes to be over. In the end, I’m definitely not a fan of him anymore.

Clockwerk is the big boss from the first game and he shouldn’t be underestimated. The Cooper Clan has feared him for many generations and that’s because of his overwhelming power. The boss fight was pretty interesting and it was fun to test my metal (get it?) against his. His character is solid and he kind of reminded me of Unicron. Maybe it’s just his commanding demeanor, but he’s a solid villain and easily one of the most memorable ones in the franchise. It would be no stretch of the imagination to say that he is my favorite villain in the franchise and it will be reasonably difficult to pass him.

Muggshot is an example of a hardcore villain who stayed as a villain. He appears in the third game and I believe that he was in the original as well. He’s pretty hardcore and we get to witness a battle between him and Carmelita. He has a lot of muscle power while Carmelita is good from long range. I have to admire his raw power and there aren’t many fighters who could take him down for the count. He’s not an amazing villain, but he’s good enough and he has no annoying gimicks. He just works to pound his opponents with simple (yet effective) brute strength. That’s my kind of villain.

Constable Neyla is the new face on the police staff and she’s the only one to get any development aside from Carmelita. I can’t say that she’s very likable because she’s the reasonable, heroic officer. She doesn’t mind teaming up with Sly if it means that they will nab the culprit and she’s just not as fun as Carmelita. Her fighting skills aren’t quite up to par either and you have to wonder why she didn’t just grow up to be a nameless officer like the others. She also seems to be tricking Carmelita…could she have a secret agenda?

The Contessa is one of the bosses in the second game and she’s mainly memorable because she’s involved in a rather large (but expected) plot twist. She’s pretty crafty and she can also engage in classic fisticuffs when necessary. Her design was interesting and the boss fight was pretty good. There’s not much more to say about her, but the Contessa isn’t someone that you want to mess with. Her hypnotic machinery can be powerful and she takes no prisoners.

General Tsao isn’t a likable villain by any stretch of the imagination, but I really did like his boss battle so he deserved a mention. Dueling with him in the forest was good, but the battle on top of the forest was in a completely different league. That’s a battle that I won’t forget and the developers definitely had fun implementing the new gameplay. Personality wise, this guy definitely didn’t rank. He was likely a one shot character so I don’t need to worry about him appearing again.

Doctor M is the big villain from the third game, but he’s easily the most dull compared to the previous two final bosses. He just comes out of nowhere and I have to say that the evil scientist character is really getting old at this point. No…it is already old! He does have a mech to help him out, but the boss fight isn’t terribly fun and trying to finish it in a short time can be brutal. (But worth the trophy) I really could have done without him and he didn’t add anything to the franchise.

It’s also fun to see how the graphics have changed from game to game. The first game is very bright and definitely more cartoony than the other two. I actually think that it looked the best from the three and it’s just fun to look at. The second installment gets a little darker, but you can also see how much newer it is. The third one is basically as modern as it will get and the character models look solid. The graphics are technically “better” I suppose, but the first game still looks the best to me. I just won’t be forgetting that art style!

One bonus that occurs from older games getting to the PS3 is that we can get trophy support! The trophies for all three games are very reasonable and I obtained all three Platinums. I have to say that I’m pretty proud of this and the developers did a solid job. Some may say that the Platinums were too easy, but they were tough enough to present you with a mild challenge during the third game. The minigames also contain trophies, but no Platinum comes along with them. Ah well, you can’t win em all. Either way, this could be another incentive to buy the collection. Who doesn’t want to add three more Platinums to the collection?

The soundtrack for all three games is a little on the generic side. Sly’s main theme from the first game is pretty memorable, but that’s about it. Ratchet and Clank typically doesn’t have a lot of memorable tracks either so it may just be a company thing. (Although Jak’s was pretty solid) It could be argued that I was so into the game at that point that I couldn’t hear the music, but I’m sure that I would have remembered a dynamic boss theme. Well, at least the music isn’t bad.

I do have to say that the ending to the third game isn’t that good. One can definitely see how it didn’t get a sequel for so long, but it really feels like Sly gave his teammates the short end of the stick. It’s almost a tragic ending if you didn’t believe their happy stories at the end. I definitely wasn’t satisfied with such a conclusion, which is why I can’t wait for the next one. The Cooper Gang must never be allowed to split up!

The big question is…could the Sly series defeat Jak or Ratchet and Clank? Well, I would still take both of those series over this one, but they’re a little more out there and the guns advantage almost makes it unfair. Ratchet is the best main character from the three, but Sly’s partners beat the counterparts from the other series. It’s fun to compare the three series and it does appear that Sly has outlasted Jak. Maybe it’ll end up giving Ratchet and Clank a run for their money eventually. (The film is coming out soon for both series after all. Can’t wait to see them compete!)

Overall, this was a fun trilogy and it holds up well against the famous Mario Galaxy series. Completing all three games and getting the Platinum definitely means that you are getting a lot of value for your purchase. Replay value is not an issue and you’ll be glad that you purchased the game. The graphics are good and the banter between Sly and Carmelita can be pretty awesome. The rest of the dialogue is typically well done as well and the writers must have been very focused when working on it. The levels can get a little repetitive in the second and third games, but it’s really not bad and nothing compared to the DS Prince of Persia game. Bentley’s levels are scarce, but I love the Pac Man/Galaga levels where you have to destroy the viruses. The first game allows you to free roam through the levels and the third one has a lot of challenges that are fun since it is basically a way to replay any minigame or stage. Fans of the platforming genre should greatly enjoy the game and the writing is superb as well. All in all, you can’t help but give the collection a thumbs up!

Overall 7/10

Green Lantern Rise of The Manhunters Review

Posted on June 17, 2014 by dreager1

This was one of the highest games on my list. I’ve wanted it for ages since it had such easy trophies and it was a superhero tie in. They may not be known to be all stars, but they’ve always been fun for me and the gameplay is guaranteed to be good. It’s a tried and true formula that is very hard to wreck. 3D fighting can be spectacular or it can be good. Very rarely is it ever bad. The game was essentially as good as I expected!

The plot is pretty basic so that the emphasis can be on the action. Hal Jordan is still learning the ropes on how to be a good Green Lantern when the Manhunters attack. Hal realizes that their plan is a little deeper than a simple attack and he is going to have to find out what their ultimate goal is before they destroy OA. Not to mention that there may be someone leaking information to these villains. It’s going to take everything that Hal has and more…but he’s up for the challenge.

The gameplay is what you would expect from a superhero game. It’s essentially a duplicate of the Thor game that came out for the PS3 a while back. The way that they fly to the next area and land is about the same as well so it almost feels like they had the same developers or reused part of the game. (Like how Daniel X and Ultimate Spiderman feel identical for the DS) This is not a bad thing since I know what to expect. You can unlock a lot of different constructs to use in the game. Luckily, most of them are pretty useful so you can keep on switching weapons or just find one that you like and stick to it. The Mech suit and the Gatling Gun are definitely two of the most fun weapons to use.

The graphics are pretty average for Green Lantern. It’s decently low for a PS3 game, but it’s good enough. I’m not expecting Final Fantasy for this game anyway. As long as the graphics aren’t downright terrible like Chaotic…then I’m all set. They really tried to match the character designs to the movie counterparts. I’m pretty cool with that and it is helpful for those who just finished the film. There is a brief fight scene at the end of the game, which was a welcome surprise since we don’t get a whole lot of those in cinematic anymore. I shall skip the soundtrack section because there essentially isn’t one in this game.

The trophies for Green Lantern are a cake walk. It’s definitely one of the easiest platinums that I have (almost) obtained. I should officially have it by the end of the day since I just need to finish two more levels. There are no outrageous trophies that will require a lot of grinding unless you start the game on hard mode. Then you’ll have to replay a lot of levels, but it’s short compared to the kind of grind that you see in Bleach or White Knight Chronicles. One of the great things about having trophies is that it gives Green Lantern some much needed replay value.

After all, Green Lantern barely keeps itself from being too short because it has exactly 10 levels. The ground levels can take a while, but the flying ones are completed very quickly. One of the trophies requires that you buy all of the items and that will likely take a little over 20 levels. So, that means that you’ll basically be playing the game twice and then retrying an extra pair of levels. I am so glad that Green Lantern has a level select since it’s much more efficient to just replay the level that way.

While the gameplay is pretty fun since it’s a classic 3D beat em up; I did have some complaints with it. For one thing, defeating the enemies was a little too time consuming after a while. This is especially noticeable during the second play through as you just want to blast through it, but you have to beat the enemies first. You also can’t turn the camera around, which was an interesting twist. I can’t say that I was very fond of this.

While all of the characters were essentially in character, Hal Jordan could be a ltitle irritating at times. In an attempt to make him hardcore, Hal Jordan constantly says “What the —-” and “How the —-” over and over and over again. It really feels artificial because he is completely overreacting. There’s one cutscene where that is essentially all that he says. When he charges up it is interesting because Hal only says “In Brightest Day…In Blackest Night” before yelling to beware his power. The only problem is that his voice dies down every time when he says the blackest night part so it feels like they tacked in the last part at the end. Hal also suspects that there is a traitor, but he acts as if it’s his idea right after Kilowog voiced these concerns. It isn’t to steal his credit either; it just seems as if Hal forgot that he said that. Anyway, it’s not a terribly large complaint and it shouldn’t affect your gaming enjoyment all that much.

Overall, Green Lantern is a fun game. That’s really the bottom line. It’s not going to be remembered as an all star, but I also won’t remember it as a boring game that I couldn’t wait to finish. The gameplay was solid and the story was interesting enough to keep me occupied. The only reason why one would want to be hesitant of the game is the fact that it only has 10 levels, but that’s not a bad number. It’s the minimum amount of levels that I would consider acceptable…but it is still acceptable. Finding a few scattered collectibles and obtaining the trophies fixes this as well. I definitely recommend this to all gamers who are looking for a nice action game.

Overall 7/10

De Blob Review

Posted on May 29, 2014 by dreager1

De Blob always looked like it would be an intriguing experience. I typically never saw the original game in stores, but the sequel was always around. Luckily, I found this one in Gamestop’s 5 dollar and under bin along with the Casper game. It looked decently fun so I quickly got it and it was worth the 2-3 dollars that I spent. It’s surprisingly fun, but the timer takes away from the experience. It’s time to beautify the world!

The plot involves a corporation known as INKT. They have enslaved the world and taken away all of the color. Everyone must now live in black and white, which is no fun for the city dwellers. What about having fun and getting ready to pwn anyone that tries to get in their way? Unfortunately, that won’t be happening. The heroes are forced to call in the Blob! The Blob has some pretty unique abilities and he’s able to absorb the colors that he touches and then spread them to other objects. It’s up to him to take down the entire army of INKT that has taken over the world. He may be outnumbered over 1000-1, but the Blob has heart as well as allies. Time to rock and roll!

The gameplay is very unique and it’s actually a lot of fun. As the Blob, you just have to roll around and bang into things to paint them. I’d have fun coloring in all of the buildings and freeing the citizens, but you can also hit billboards and small objects. (Trees for example) Along the way, there are also a bunch of missions to get into and some of them are mandatory to complete the level. They are broken down into different kinds of missions. Green missions mean that you have to color in objects with certain paints. They’re the most difficult ones in my opinion and I usually avoided them. After all…I already painted the buildings; why do it in another color? Blue missions require you to run after the flares and get to the goal line. It’s basically a race against time. Orange missions are combat. Just take out the enemies. Finally, grayish/yellow missions mean that you’re going to take down a big enemy strong hold or building. Those require a lot of points so it can be a tough job, but it’s rewarding to see such a big transformation.

Fighting against the enemies can be a little uneventful. Just shake the wii remote and take them down! This works for every kind of enemy. Some of more defense than others, but it’s always the same formula. So, De Blob revolves around running, jumping, and swinging the Wii Remote around. I’l admit that it really made me miss the Gamecube remote. This game would work so much better with that control scheme. (Luckily, the sequel is on the PS3!) My wrist was hurting by the time I finished the game from all of the jumping. I don’t know how I made it through Barrel Blast. (Although I still plan on purchasing it someday)

While I did enjoy the gameplay; there was one factor that really took away from the experience. The timer that was in each level. This meant that you couldn’t take your time and finish every mission in the area. The worst part is that you have to start from scratch if you complete it. I was expecting to be able to go back into the level to have fun (Because I believe that you can do this in the sequel) but the levels go back to scratch. There is a free roam mode, but there’s nothing to do there since it doesn’t affect your completion% or have any big statistics. That was my big flaw with the gameplay and it means that you may not want to bother going through the levels again. Imagine spending over an hour on one level to get the 100% and then the timer runs out. Game Over!

One of the game’s weak points was definitely the Story Mode. None of the characters are particularly likable and the graphics are pretty underwhelming for the cutscenes. The worst part is that it’s just not interesting. The story is pretty much a parody, but they could have still made the characters fun to root for. I can’t say that I’m confident in the sequel’s chances for a solid cinematic experience.

The graphics for the gameplay are still average at best. They aren’t bad, but they could be much better and I’ve seen Gamecube games that could give it a run for its money. (The better Gamecube games crush this one in graphics of course…) The soundtrack is very good. It’s not monumental, but it fits the tone of the game. The music is typically very refreshing and it works subtly in the background. Aside from a terrible lyrical song that played in one of the moods for Blob, the rest of the pieces that I heard were solid.

There are 10 levels in the game and each one takes around 30 minutes to complete. If you decide to complete all of the missions in the 10 levels, then you can possibly double that time. 10 levels is the bare minimum to what I would call acceptable length so the game does well on that account. For replay value, this game does have a multiplayer mode, but I haven’t tried it yet, which is why I didn’t review that part. This game will last long enough to be considered a good purchase. (Unlike Casper’s 15 minute game)

Overall, this game is fun to try out. Considering that it’s under 3 dollars, I don’t see why you wouldn’t want to give it a shot! Painting objects may sound boring, but it can actually be pretty interesting and you are helping to reclaim the world from the INKT army. The characters are all Sonic rip offs, but they’re not terrible. They just aren’t likable. De Blob could be the game for you and now you can claim that you know which two colors turn into green when mixed!

Overall 7/10

	Anonymous on Invisible Woman vs Molecule…
	jhg195 on Batman vs Zatanna
	dreager1 on The Man in the Moon Revie…
	Anonymous on Sonic Dream Team Review
	Anonymous on The Man in the Moon Revie…
	Anonymous on The Alain vs Leon fight should…

DReager1.com

The Ultimate Fighting/Review Site

Category Archives: 7 Star Games

Sonic Boom Shattered Crystal Review

Sonic Boom Rise of Lyric Review

TimeSplitters Review

Yoshi Topsy Turvy Review

Sega Superstars Tennis Review

Centipede Infestation Review

Nerf N-Strike Double Blast Bundle Review

The Sly Collection Review

Green Lantern Rise of The Manhunters Review

De Blob Review

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this: