It's something of an understatement to say that I like the Civilization franchise. I've been playing the games for a decade, and they rank highly on my list of all-time favorites. That means it's difficult for me to look at CivilizationRevolution as something outside of the norm -- which it is -- because it looks and feels in many ways like Civ. Looks (and feelings) can be deceiving, however, because this isn't Civ, not really, and that works both for and against the simplified strategy game.
There have been other console Civ titles, and they've all been lacking. The mouse-and-keyboard setup is so integral to managing a huge game that taking it to the controller has just never worked, at least not for me, and attempts to streamline the game in the past simply haven't been terribly successful. That hasn't stopped them from trying, and trying again, and with Civilization Revolution, the result is a lot better than some of the past efforts.
No, this one isn't new, and it's probably not the kind of game most of you are looking for when you browse the racks, but if there are young gamers (or Disney freaks) in your life, Disney Friends is worth a second look. It's one of those games that's mystifying in its invisibility, the sort of thing that should be advertised until we desperately hunt down the remote just so we don't have to see that damned commercial again. Instead, it slipped by with nary a wave in the pool of DS games, and that's just criminal.
If you know a younger gamer who loved Nintendogs (or one of these people), this may be a surefire recommendation. Surprisingly, it's that good. But that seems to be par for the course when it comes to developer Amaze Entertainment -- who also worked on the GBA's incredible Spyro title last year. They take old franchises and licenses that no one seems to care about, and sometimes put out gems no one notices. Not all the time ... but when they're good, they're great. And for what it is, Disney Friends is pretty great.
Anticipating a game can be a very dangerous diversion. If you have high hopes for a title, it's easier to find yourself disappointed than satisfied. This is what I was afraid of with Space Invaders Extreme; after drooling over the renovated Taito classic for months on end, I was worried that my expectations would set the bar too high. Basically, if it didn't completely blow my mind, the game was going to be a letdown.
I love Arkanoid. I purchased the NES game, with its included paddle controller, as soon as it came out in 1987. I still play it. It's still really hard, and I still think level 3 -- level 3! -- is one of the most devious and challenging video game levels ever devised. When Taito revealed that they were updating Arkanoid for the DS, I was beyond thrilled. I have been waiting for the American release of this game since last year. While I thought Space Invaders Extreme looked like a more creative update of its source material, Arkanoid DS had Arkanoid as its source material.
It's pretty good. It fails to hold up perfectly to the original, but it's pretty good.
My eyes glazed as I stared at my Nintendo DS Lite which cased the finished build of N+. N, my titular ninja avatar, braced his body as he slid halfway down a wall before springing away, using his momentum to snatch three gold coins dangling in midair. I firmly pressed d-pad left, causing him to again shimmy down the wall slowly, carefully, before again leaping for a nearby ledge. Unfortunately, my momentum wasn't enough in this instance. Though little more than a plump stick figure, I had a vision of poor N desperately straining for the tip of the ledge that was at least (at least) a good six feet away before plummeting, plummeting, plummeting -- and eventually exploding in a shower of square-shaped shards as he cratered into the ground.
I grumbled, but the fault was wholly mine, not the acrobatic N's.
"You've got what the indie scene will call the best platforming engine in Flash, ever," said David Geudelekian, producer of Metanet Software'sN+. "What N did really well was it presented this incredible platformer with 1000 levels, it was crazy difficult. N the ninja was this lithe, acrobatic guy with all the things developers had learned from other platformers. You can wall jump, you can press along the wall as you're falling to slow your descent. Because it's a full-featured physics engine, momentum can kill you, but if you use a ramp's natural curvature, you might be able to catapult yourself across the level."
In a platform game, it's important that you be able to actually move from one platform to the next. Action game? It's similarly important that you be able to fight and move, in order to progress through the game. Few people would argue those points -- so why is the text in a text adventure often less than great?
Jake Hunter: Detective Chronicles could have been a great game. The potential is there, and there are a lot of great little touches. Unfortunately, the localized script is sloppy, and that, combined with the missing cases, makes this much more a miss than a hit.
RPGs, by definition, are immersive – hence the name "role-playing game." Yet, the existence of the fourth wall in video games is an obstacle when it comes to such follies, so the software must rely on a number of charms to keep the player engrossed. The story is often the driving force behind such immersion, but gameplay is equally important so that the title is actually enjoyable, too. Factor in the visuals, controls, music, and so forth, and you realize that a lot of things must fall into place to make a truly memorable RPG.
While Summon Night: Twin Age doesn't hit all these aspects square on the head, each element is addressed to satisfaction, making Flight-Plan's title both charming and addictive. To see what works, what doesn't work, and what kind of works, check past the break and read our review.
Good news for Trauma Center fans -- if you liked the first game, it stands to reason that you'll enjoy Under the Knife 2. All the slicing, stitching, and ass-kicking potential of the first is here, and with more options lifted from the Wii version. But if you didn't like Trauma Center the first time around, the Easy mode may not be enough to tempt you into this one.
Of course, if you didn't like Trauma Center, you're probably more interested in spending your time kicking puppies, or otherwise engaged in some horrific habit. Honestly, the pain of (repeated, egregious) failure aside, it remains one of the best and most intense experiences on the handheld. Can a sequel hope to measure up? We spent a little time with the upcoming title in an effort to find out.
If you happen to know what (or who) a Pevensie is, you've probably either dabbled in the readings of C.S. Lewis or watched the blockbuster Narnia fims. You should be familiar with the formula by now, though: with a big movie comes a video game. The existence of The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian for the DS and other platforms is to be expected.
Those of you who fell in love with C.S. Lewis's magical world probably want to experience it in any way possible. Of course, you also want to have fun while doing so. With games like these, fun is never guaranteed, and as I made my way through Prince Caspian, I clung onto that careful caveat.
Despite the fact that Nintendo's own Crosswords DS will no doubt outsell USA Today Crossword Challenge, due to the "Nintendo" on the front (and the Gamestop-exclusive release of USA Today), Destineer, developer Mercury Games and original engine developer Sanuk Games should feel very lucky that Nintendo released their own crossword game when they did.
It means that, in the DS crossword genre at least, Destineer can claim superiority over Nintendo. It may not have the extra modes that Crosswords DS does, but it is a much more pleasant crossword experience.
It was hard not to look forward to Drone Tactics. Not only are strategy games easy to love on the DS, but anything with giant stompy robots that are also bugs is an attention-grabber. But that's a tough area to break into; the SRPGs in the DS library are just so darned good that any newcomer needs to have something special on offer. Are the insects in Drone Tactics enough of a draw?
The answer is, unfortunately, a little more complicated than a simple "yes." At times, Drone Tactics really shines, but it takes a little time and effort to get there.
Puzzle games usually offer more bang for their buck than most other types of software. Since many in the genre are relatively easy to design, they're often budget titles, too. But whether or not they come cheaply, you can expect to invest a lot of time in any good puzzler. Games like Picross DS, Professor Layton, and Tetris DS -- which are all very different, and yet reside in the same genre -- continue to keep me occupied despite the months (or years) that have lapsed since their release.
As a crossword lover, I naturally expected Crosswords DS to have the same appeal. Adding anagrams and word searches to the formula made the game seem even more delectable, and I gleefully anticipated being sucked into a puzzle-packed experience. As it turns out, though, this first-party title didn't meet my expectations -- in fact, it didn't even come close.
The revival of adventure games on the DS is great news for gamers, but it can make things tough for developers like Austrian outfit Sproing, whose Undercover: Dual Motives will be competing with prestigious genre stablemates such as Ace Attorney, Hotel Dusk, and Professor Layton and the Curious Village. With the likes of Gyakuten Kenji, Jake Hunter, and more Layton on the horizon, the competition isn't about to get any easier.
In other words, we DS-owning adventure fans are a spoilt bunch, which means it takes something special to impress us. And, as hard as it tries, Undercover: Dual Motives isn't it.
Strategy RPGs aren't exactly rare on the DS -- some people might even argue that the genre is too plentiful on Nintendo's handheld (though this writer would beg to differ). Regardless, it's always nice to see something refreshing in an SRPG, which is why I was looking forward to playing Rondo of Swords. Having heard of its unique gameplay system, I wanted to see if this title would force me to think differently and not rely on strategies I was used to.
At the same time, though, I was a bit apprehensive. While change can be a good thing if it's implemented correctly, it can often feel forced if it's not. Moreover, one reason that strategy games don't differ at their core is because the formula works. Can throwing away such tried-and-true methods really lead to an enjoyable game? Just mosey on past the break to find out!
2008 is shaping up to be an incredible year for the DS, and not because of old franchises. Zelda, we love you. Final Fantasy, we think you're great, and you'll probably dominate a good portion of our summers. But the first half of the year belongs to the new guys. After playing Professor Layton and the Curious Village, we thought we'd seen one of the most wonderful DS games to date, and that's true. But when it comes to sheer innovation, The World Ends With You blows it right out of the water. Anyone looking to create an ARPG or anything with stylus-based action controls should study The World Ends With You, because -- no exaggeration -- nearly everything here is done right.
Of course, almost nothing's perfect, and that includes this game. Most of the few flaws here are visible right from the beginning; that, combined with the unusual look and the fact that it's a new IP, may turn some gamers off. Don't be one of them, because this one is worth playing.
No, this one isn't new, and it's probably not the kind of game most of you are looking for when you browse the racks, but if there are young gamers (or Disney freaks) in your life, Disney Friends is worth a second look. It's one of those games that's mystifying in its invisibility, the sort of thing that should be advertised until we desperately hunt down the remote just so we don't have to see that damned commercial again. Instead, it slipped by with nary a wave in the pool of DS games, and that's just criminal.
My eyes glazed as I stared at my Nintendo DS Lite which cased the finished build of N+. N, my titular ninja avatar, braced his body as he slid halfway down a wall before springing away, using his momentum to snatch three gold coins dangling in midair. I firmly pressed d-pad left, causing him to again shimmy down the wall slowly, carefully, before again leaping for a nearby ledge. Unfortunately, my momentum wasn't enough in this instance. Though little more than a plump stick figure, I had a vision of poor N desperately straining for the tip of the ledge that was at least (at least) a good six feet away before plummeting, plummeting, plummeting -- and eventually exploding in a shower of square-shaped shards as he cratered into the ground.
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_thumbnail.gif "Nassau")
_thumbnail.gif "Arlus")
_thumbnail.gif "Phicra")
_thumbnail.gif "Millisar")
