Everything about Madden NFL 25 reminds me that this is a free-to-play game. And that’s why I hate it so much. EA, in its quest to take every single one of its franchises and shove it into a free-to-play model that often doesn’t work for the game in question at…
Read MoreCalling Sonic Labyrinth one of the less beloved titles in the Sonic the Hedgehog franchise is something of an understatement. A frequent contender for worst game in the series during fan discussions, Sonic Labyrinth makes its debut on the 3DS to virtually zero applause. Yet in some perverse way, it…
Read MoreVariety in video games is usually seen as a good thing. People appreciate varied character creation tools, varied gameplay activities, and varied skill trees; these all fall under the banner of positive things we like to see in a game. However, I propose that variety can also be seen as…
Read MoreHave you read Matt’s masterful review of Europa Universalis IV? If you have, I’m pleased to award you a permanent +0.15 modifier to your Administrative Power and a congratulatory text message from me. If you haven’t, do it now and receive a one-time bonus of +0.3 to your Diplomacy rating.…
Read MoreThe idea that games can be art continues to be a problematic one when it comes time to actually discuss games as art. The issue I’ve seen over and over is that any game that dares to push boundaries and ask questions of its audience tends to be derided rather…
Read MoreEscape Reality. Live the Fantasy; that’s the slogan plastered on the back of the box. It’s also the statement of intention for Square Enix, who desparately needed this complete remake of the original Final Fantasy XIV to work and to engage people on a very deep level to the point…
Read MoreI thought it would be tough to follow on from Rayman Origins. That game brought Rayman into the era of HD gaming in spectacular style, with the gorgeous Ubi-art framework creating a vibrant world and a standard of animation that hadn’t been seen previously – even Nintendo’s studios have struggled…
Read MoreI get that Divekick is meant to be more parody than in-depth game, but I also didn’t find myself laughing. With that said, the premise is an interesting exercise in minimalism. Just how far down can you reduce the fighting game, in terms of both buttons and complexity, while maintaining…
Read MoreMars: War Logs is one of those games. If you hadn’t played it, and relied on the vast bulk of the reviews out there on the game you’d get the impression that it’s a shortish, generally ugly game hampered by its minimal budget when compared to Bioware and Mass Effect.…
Read MoreAs an optimist, I have to believe that at some point in the development of Summer Carnival ’92: Recca, a soft spoken member of the team finally mustered up the guts to ask whether the game was going to be too fast for the average player. After playing the finished…
Read More