Dead Space 3 demo impressions and interview with Visceral Games’ Steve Papoutsis
The Dead Space 3 demo, available via limited exclusivity now with a public release through PlayStation Nework and Xbox Live next week, was quite a thrill. Internal tweaks were probably in place, but from a pure-content point of view it seemed identical to the sequence I saw several months ago at E3. Most of what struck me then still holds true now, namely: – The wintery atmosphere of Tau Vol...[Read More]
Earth Defense Force 2017 Portable
Earth Defense Force 2017 defied conventional wisdom. When it was debuted as a $40 Xbox 360 title in 2007 it looked like a game released in 1999, played as if wasn't properly tested, and pretended online multiplayer didn't exist. A cursory glance revealed traditional budget-priced title willingly accepting its condemnation to bargain bins everywhere. Here's the thing; in spite of itself and everyth...[Read More]
Labyrinth Legends
There isn't anything inherently wrong with disposability. Taco Bell is disposable. Greeting cards are disposable. Paul Walker's entire career is disposable. All of these things can be enjoyed for small moment in time before being inevitably forgotten. When it comes to videogames if you pay sixty bucks for a game it sure as hell shouldn't be disposable, but if you drop the barrier of entry below te...[Read More]
Flap Jaw Space [BARF MODE JAPAN]
With Chris Stone out of town Eric and Steve welcome back our second favorite special guest, Mark Shepherd. Mark recently spent two weeks in Japan, mostly hustling the locals at arcades, and is loaded with stories about that and other cultural weirdness. Mark’s friend Mika, who acted as Mark’s international parent/guardian on said trip, also makes an appearance. ItR...[Read More]
Anarchy Reigns
Too weird to live, too rare to die.
Eric Layman’s top ten videogames for 2012
My ten best games for 2012. This list is subjective! Previous years: 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 Spelunky Derek Yu / Xbox Live Arcade Spelunky made me feel like a kid again. As a relatively normal middle class child of the 80’s, my parents bought me a Nintendo Entertainment System and a couple of games a year for Christmas or my birthday. Maybe because I was eight, possibly becau...[Read More]
Karateka
Response Time.
Hitman: Absolution
“Live each day to its fullest” was one of the more literal takeaways from Groundhog Day. Phil Connors had to relive the same day over and over until he became a moral human being. This idea frequently translates to game design in the form of repeated trial and error. You try something, you make a mistake, you learn from it, and, eventually, you get it right. As of late trial and error ...[Read More]
The Walking Dead: Episode 5 – No Time Left
Previous reviews: Episode 1: A New Day | Episode 2: Starved for Help | Episode 3: Long Road Ahead | Episode 4: Around Every Corner. This review is written with the assumption you’ve played previous episodes! We just started screaming. Not five minutes of No Time Left had passed before my fiancé and I were mentally assessing and vocally rejecting the cruel fate that was unfolding on screen. T...[Read More]
Freakyforms Deluxe: Your Creations, Alive!
Children are often garbage disposals of interactive entertainment; give them any game and they will devour it. This doesn't, however, imply that they will fail to notice when they've been given actual garbage as opposed thoughtful, creative games. In this regard Freakyforms Deluxe: Your Creations, Alive! is unabashedly intended for younger gamers and founded on an admirable premise, but ultimately...[Read More]
Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed
Sega’s Ostensible Nostalgia Induction Contraption
Persona 4 Golden
It's fitting that Golden was chosen as the extended title for the Vita edition of Persona 4. Between Revelations, Ascension, Redemption, and a host of other banal supplements, it's becoming difficult to tell just what in the hell you're buying. Golden, on the other hand, is a double entendre that references Golden Week, a holiday-filled week in Japan, and also highlights Persona 4's fixation with ...[Read More]