Review: Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts and Bolts

Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts and Bolts is a vehicle creation/platform game for the Xbox 360. It was developed by Rare. It is the third Banjo-Kazooie game; the last two were on the Nintendo 64.

Banjo and Kazooie piloting a basic vehicle in the first level.

Review: Sam and Max: The Devil's Playhouse

Sam and Max: the Devil’s Playhouse is an adventure game for the PC, Macintosh, and PlayStation 3. It was developed by Telltale Games. It is the third “season” of Sam and Max. It was originally released episodically and then rereleased as one game; this review will treat it as a complete game.

Sam and Max having a conversation with Grnadpa Stinky. The player always several choices of dialogue when talking to someone.

Review: Red Faction: Guerilla

Red Faction: Guerilla is a sandbox game for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC. It was developed by Volition Inc. It is the third game in the Red Faction series, but the first one to be a sandbox game and not a first person shooter.

Alec Mason joyriding around Mars in a stolen truck.

Review Dead Space: Extraction

Dead Space: Extraction is an on-rail shooter for the Nintendo Wii. It was developed by Visceral Games. It is the prequel to Dead Space, which was on the Xbox 369, PlayStation 3, and PC. It will apparently be appearing on the PlayStation 3, which as of this writing has not happened yet. This review is based on the Wii version.

Two necromorphs advancing on the player in a service tunnel.

Review: Saints Row 2

Saints Row 2 is a sandbox shooter for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC. It was developed by THQ and Volition Inc. It is the sequel to Saints Row.

The Boss and Johnny Gat punching out some dudes in their hideout's basement.

Review: MadWorld

MadWorld is a beat-‘em-up game for the Nintendo Wii. It was developed by Platinum Games and published by Sega.

Jack faces off against one of the game's stronger enemies.

Review: Dead Space

Dead Space is a survival horror/third-person shooter for the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and PC. It was developed by EA.

Isaac Clarke on the command deck of the Ishimura.

Review: Mirror's Edge

Mirror’s Edge is a first person platform game for the PC, PlayStation 3, and Xbox 360. It was developed by DICE and Electronic Arts.

Faith jumping over a huge pit. Note the lack of health bar and other indicators.

Review: The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks

The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks is an action-adventure game for the Nintendo DS. It was developed by Nintendo.

Link's train travelling along the Spirit Tracks, and the overworld map showing where he is going.

Review: Lost Planet: Extreme Condition

Lost Planet: Extreme Condition is a third-person shooter for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC. It was developed by Capcom.

Wayne travelling through a frozen over city.

Review: Shadow Complex

Shadow Complex is an action-adventure Metroidvania game that can be downloaded off of Xbox Live. It was developed by Chair Entertainment and Epic Games.

Jason in a firefight somewhere deep inside the base.

Review: Ninja Gaiden II

Ninja Gaiden II is an action game for the Xbox 360. It was developed by Team Ninja and Microsoft. It is the second Ninja Gaiden game for the Xbox. It has gotten a rerelease for the PlayStation 3 called Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2.

Ryu, inbetween killing hoards of enemies.

Review: Kingdom Hearts: 358/2 Days

Kingdom Hearts: 358/2 Days is an action role-playing game for the Nintendo DS. It was developed by Square-Enix and h.a.n.d, in collaboration with Disney. It the fourth Kingdom Hearts game and is set between Kingdom Hearts and Kingdom Hearts II and alongside Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories.

Roxas and Axel in the middle of a fight. The bottom screen shows the map and how close the player is to completing the mission.

Review: Tomb Raider: Underworld

Tomb Raider: Underworld is an action-platform game for the PC, PlayStation 3, and Xbox 360. It was developed by Crystal Dynamics and Eidos Interactive. It is the third Crystal Dynamics Tomb Raider game and the ninth Tomb Raider game overall.

Lara Croft climbing down a massive ruin.

Review: Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 4

Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 4 is a role-playing game for the PlayStation 2. It was developed by Atlus. It is the fifth in the Shin Megami Tensei series.

The new student arriving at his school. Note how the game keeps track of the time of day and the weather.

Review: Tales of Monkey Island

Tales of Monkey Island is an adventure game for the PC, Macintosh, and Nintendo Wii. It was developed by Telltale Games and LucasArts. It is the fifth game in the Monkey Island series, but the first game to be worked on by Telltale Games.

The player looking over Guybrush's inventory on Flotsam Island.

Review: Mario and Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story

Mario and Luigi: Bowser’s Inside Story is a role playing game for the Nintendo DS. It was created by Nintendo and AlphaDream.

An exmaple of a in-game battle.

Review: Ratchet: Deadlocked

Ratchet: Deadlocked is an action game with platform elements for the PlayStation 2. It was developed by Insomniac Games. It is the fourth game in the Ratchet & Clank series.

Ratchet in the middle of an arena battle.

An Explanation for the Person 3: FES Review

I feel like I should explain the Persona 3 review a bit more.

I started playing Persona 3: FES in 2008. At first it seemed like an okay RPG. The dating simulation part was okay, the story was okay, the characters were okay, and the fighting seemed reasonable enough.

But then the combat became more difficult. Bosses started to feel more unfair. I was spending more and more time running around the Tartarus trying to make enough money to buy equipment so I might stand a chance against the next boss.

At least I think that is how it went.

Meanwhile the story was not getting any better, nor was the characters. But it was impossible not to grow a little attached to them and their stupid story after spending so many virtual days with them.

Around hour fifty I realized I wasn’t having any fun. But I did not want to stop because I did not want those past fifty hours to be for nothing.

After another fifty hours and a disgustingly unfair final boss and I had beaten the game. I actually did a crazy laughter thing after I had finished it. But unfortunately I still had that damn epilogue, and I wanted to know the entire story.

So I started it, even though I did not really care about the characters too much. I learned quickly that this epilogue was the worst parts of the combat without any good parts. After a couple of bosses I quit, since it was clear that this was going to take a while. I still don’t get how people found time to beat this game before me.

I stopped for a while but eventually tried playing again only to get frustrated again and stop. This continued into 2009, as I became more annoyed by the game but unwilling to let it go. I forgot about what happened in the main game.

In mid 2009 I decided on a more systematic way of finishing it. I would fight a boss, and then play another game. This worked an eventually I beat it in 2010.

When I wrote the review I had to look up some things to remind me what happened in the main game. Boss fights appeared differently, but the same tediousness remained the same. That is why I felt like the review missed some things.

I didn’t cover the AI, which even now is still spotty in my mind. I know the bosses’ AI sucked, but I’m not sure why. I know that the allies’ AI sucked because, while it was nice that they learned what attacks did not work, they could not learn when to heal people properly.

Long story short, Persona 3 is awful game that is extremely addictive. I would recommend avoiding it at all costs, it’s not worth it. I’ll probably get Persona 4 because I’m already sucked in, but if anybody ever reads this I would advise you to stay away.

Review: Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 3 FES

Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 3 FES is a role playing game for the PlayStation 2. It was developed by Atlus. It is an updated rerelease of Persona 3 with an extra epilogue titled “The Answer”.

A party about to enter a dungeon.

Review: Ace Attorney Investigations: Miles Edgeworth

Ace Attorney Investigations: Miles Edgeworth is an adventure game for the Nintendo DS. It was developed by Capcom. It is the fifth game in the Ace Attorney series.

What it looks like when Miles Edgeworth is going over a witness' testimony to find errors.

Review: Assassin's Creed 2

Assassin’s Creed II is an action game with some stealth elements for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and the PC. It was developed by Ubisoft.

Ezio Auditore de Firenze on top of a church in Venice.

Review: Torchlight

Torchlight is an action role playing game for the PC and Macintosh. It was created by Runic Games and Perfect World Entertainment.

The player character fighting a group of skeletons in a dungeon.

Review: Professor Layton and the Diabolical Box

Professor Layton and the Diabolical Box is a puzzle game for the Nintendo DS. It was developed by Level-5.

An easier example of one of the hundreds of puzzles the player will have to solve.

Review: Bayonetta

Bayonetta is a third person action game developed by Platinum Games and published by Sega. It was made for the PlayStation 3 and the Xbox 360, though apparently the PlayStation 3 version has severe loading problems.

Bayonetta fighting a massive angel with the end result of a combo attack.

Review: Assassin's Creed

Assassin’s Creed is an action game with some stealth elements. It was developed by Ubisoft for the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and the PC.

Altair, after the player had just completed a sidequest in Acre.

Review: Condemned 2: Bloodshot

Condemned 2: Bloodshot is a first person action game with survival horror elements for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. It was developed by Monolith Productions and Sega. It is the sequel to Condemned: Criminal Origins.

The whole game is in first person, but usually the player has to get up close and punch out enemies like this one, instead of using firearms.