The original SteamWorld Dig was an indie darling that seamlessly fused together elements of Dig Dug, Minecraft, and Metroid. Having it loaded up on my 3DS, I powered through that game with joy while on a train ride to Montreal. Years later, the sequel is here with a new protagonist and some new tricks up her sleeves.
Mario Golf on the Gameboy Color did something very cool that pretty much every other entry in the series has overlooked. More than just a golf game, it incorporated story and role-playing elements as a means of spicing things up. During my time with that game, I felt truly invested in the trials and tribulations of an aspiring golfer trying to become the Mushroom Kingdom champion due to having an impact on my character’s story arc and development of his abilities. Almost two decades later, Sidebar Games picks up the torch on the golf RPG concept with Golf Story and runs with it.
Mario has seemingly traveled everywhere. He’s ventured through the Mushroom Kingdom on numerous occasions, explored the fever dream world of Subcon in Super Mario Bros. 2, and even trekked through space more than once. Where else is there for Nintendo’s plucky plumber to go? The Big N’s answer to this conundrum can be found in Super Mario Odyssey.
The NES Classic is a novelty time capsule of gaming during the 1980s. Yes, there are some all-time classics on there, but most of those games haven’t aged well. The same cannot be said about the Super NES Classic. This cute mini console packs a punch with a 20-game lineup that is not only some of the best the SNES could offer, but many of these titles are still glorious gaming experiences today.
On paper, this should be a home run. Does the package as a whole live up to its incredibly high expectations?
Years ago, Disney ended the licensing of its video game rights to third parties in order to focus on making its own games in-house. While it was the decision that gave life to Disney Infinity and Marvel: Contest of Champions, it was also the move that prematurely ended the Marvel vs. Capcom 3 series. Once the game disappeared from store shelves and digital distribution channels, it seemed like the series was never coming back.
But like the Phoenix (who isn’t in the game yet), Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite rises from the ashes to bring tag-based fighting action to the masses. Curiously missing a #4 in its name, it’s omission is clear once you see some of the dramatic changes that make it stray from the 3v3 format of yesteryear. Is this game still worthy of the Mahvel name?
When internal images and documents surrounding the marketing of Mario + Rabbids: Kingdom Battle leaked, I shuddered a little bit. From the core concept of mashing these two franchises together, to the corporate speak used to make the game sound cool, I had my concerns that this had disaster written all over it. Then E3 happened and perceptions changed again. Taking these two franchises and putting them in an XCOM-style turn-based strategy game made the product even weirder, though it also looked like it had potential to be something special.
In a year where Nintendo has continually surprised us, they, along with Ubisoft, surprise us yet again. Mario + Rabbids: Kingdom Battle is a great game.
At a recent visit to Snakes and Lattes, my wife and I discovered the Pokemon Master Trainer Game from Milton Bradley. Apparently, this is the third edition of the game, the first of which came out in 1999. 2-4 players will go on a journey to prove that they’re the very best, like no one ever was.
Paleontologists in the late 1800s made great strides in learning about many of the different dinosaurs that existed in the past. However, their methods for accumulating fossils weren’t always ethical in nature. The Great Dinosaur Rush is a 2-5 player game about that experience, as you’ll dig up bones and discover dinosaurs, even if that means you need to do shady things in order to get the most credit.
The original Splatoon was a bold new step for shooters. Nintendo found an innovative way to make a compelling shooter where precision accuracy wasn’t a requirement. As such, it was a fresh experience that a wide variety of players could enjoy.
By virtue of Splatoon 2 being a direct sequel, it was never going to shock the world in the same way its predecessor did. On top of that, Nintendo hasn’t done too much to shake up the core formula. What it may lack in surprise it compensates for with refinement.
A murder has taken place in Hong Kong. You and your group of investigators have been assigned to the case, but someone on your team is the murderer. Can you pinpoint who in your ranks is the murderer, along with the how they did it and the evidence that proves it was them?
In Third Person 