Reviews

Mario Tennis Aces Demo Impressions

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Back in the 90s, I had a torrid love affair with Mario Tennis on the Nintendo 64. Finding a brilliant balance between realism and arcade action, I played this a boatload with family and friends. However, I jumped off the bandwagon not long after the criminally-overlooked Game Boy game, which featured a brilliant blend of sports with RPG mechanics. From the Gamecube version and beyond, Nintendo expanded the wacky factor by giving players special shots that undermine the balance of gameplay in favour of the player who has the power shot handy.

At first, I thought the new special shot system in Mario Tennis Aces would be the most egregious yet, as players gain access to a highly-targeted shot that’s controlled from a fist-person perspective. Having played the demo, this new shot, along with the other improvements made to the game, make it the most intriguing entry in the franchise yet.

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Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon Review

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My fandom for Castlevania is a relatively recent phenomenon. Despite having played a few games in the series over the course of my lifetime, none of them really clicked with me until I spent an extended period of time with the original game on the NES Classic. While this epiphany occurred well after the Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night Kickstarter ended, I jumped in just in time for Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon.

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Sushi Striker: The Way of Sushido Demo Impressions

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Originally presented as a Nintendo 3DS title, Sushi Striker: The Way of Sushido will also be released day-and-date on the Nintendo Switch. Admittedly, the game hasn’t been on my radar, but I like puzzle games and there’s a free demo available now on the Switch. Does Nintendo have a sleeper hit on their hands?

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Pokemon Ultra Sun/Ultra Moon Review

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Previously, Game Freak took us to the island-based Alolan region for Pokemon Sun and Pokemon Moon. Before putting a bow on this era of the franchise, we put on our beachwear one more time explore Pokemon Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon. Not having played Sun or Moon prior to this, I can’t really give you a sense of how different this new entry is in comparison.

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Early Nintendo Labo Variety Kit Impressions

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Sometimes, wacky Nintendo is the best Nintendo. From the Wario Ware series, to Elite Beat Agents, to the world-shifting Wii Sports, their free-thinking approach can blaze the trail for others to follow. On the other side of that same coin are duds like Wii Music, the Wii U, or the e-Reader; ideas that couldn’t overcome their own insanity. By virtue of including cardboard into the mix, the Nintendo Labo put itself on the fast track to one of those two extremes.

Having now made and played with three of the five Toy-Cons in the Variety Kit, I think I have a better idea of where it fits on that scale.

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enKo Products AV to HDMI Converter Review

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With TV technology continually improving, it becomes increasingly difficult to play your old games. Many modern TVs simply don’t have the old RF or composite inputs anymore. While I still have a TV or two that does, I had no way of capturing that footage onto my computer.

After trying to use the composite functionality built into the Elgato Game Capture HD (which didn’t work for me initially), I stumbled across the option of converting a composite AV signal to HDMI. The marketplace is filled with no-name products that range wildly in price and performance, so getting one that was a right mix of both proved difficult. Eventually, I decided to go with the enKo Products AV to HDMI Converter. This proved to be a mistake.

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Beyond Baker Street Review

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Sherlock Holmes is a popular guy in the world of board gaming. Not only does the franchise lend itself well towards mystery themed games and puzzle solving, but Sherlock Holmes as an intellectual property is mostly in the public domain, allowing game designers and publishers to make games about the world’s best detective.

Beyond Baker Street is one such game. Playing as a team of investigators, 2-4 players will team up in order to solve a case faster than Sherlock Holmes can. Do you have what it takes to get to the bottom of things?

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Oxenfree Review

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Stop me if you’ve heard this one before. A group of teenagers get together for a night of debauchery in a secluded area before twisted and horrific things begin to happen. Even in the world of video games, this premise has been done before by Until Dawn on the PlayStation 4.

Oxenfree by Night School Studio puts its own twist on the teen thriller by shifting the perspective. In this game, you watch the action from a 2D side-scrolling view. While it does give the game a unique look, it’s not the only trick the game has up its sleeve.

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Life is Strange: Before The Storm Review

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Before Max returned to Arcadia Bay, there was the dynamic duo of Chloe and Rachel. Life is Strange: Before the Storm is a three-episode prequel set during their heyday as friends. As much as I enjoyed the previous game, there appeared to be a lot going against this one.

Set in Arcadia Bay while Max was off in Seattle, it appeared that the game’s core mechanic of time travel wouldn’t be present. Also, the studio behind the original game was off elsewhere, while a different team created Before the Storm. On top of that, the original voice of Chloe, Ashley Burch, was unable to reprise her role due to the actor’s strike at the time of development. Was this poised to be a disaster?

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SteamWorld Heist Review

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Before the release of SteamWorld Dig 2, Image & Form expanded on the SteamWorld franchise with a 2D turn-based strategy game. SteamWorld Heist is that game. Set in space, you control a team of robot space pirates as they venture through the galaxy, oftentimes finding themselves caught in gunfights within enemy ships. Is this a secret gem in the SteamWorld series?

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