Reviews

All New X-Men Vol.1: Yesterday’s X-Men Review

JettLeave a comment

All New X-Men Vol. 1: Yesterday's X-Men

Following the events of Avengers vs. X-Men, Professor X’s group of mutants have hit a new low. Charles Xavier is dead, while Cyclops, Emma Frost, Magik and Magneto are working together to start a mutant revolution. At a loss for next steps, a passing comment from present day Iceman sparks an event that will break the spacetime continuum. Through the use of time travel, the original five X-Men come to the present to stop Cyclops from completing his misguided plan. This fateful event is a convenient way for All New X-Men Vol. 1: Yesterday’s X-Men to relaunch the franchise while acknowledging everything that came before. Yet it’s also a risky fictional device to use, as any missteps can undermine and tarnish the entire timeline.

Continue reading →

Rocksmith 2014 Review

JettLeave a comment

I owe a lot to the original Rocksmith. With its help, I achieved my lifelong dream of being able to playing the guitar with some form of competency. Sure, I have a long way to go before I can rock a sold out stadium, but I’ve developed a foundation of knowledge and skills to play music today with a clear road map for growth that I can follow with or without the game. Case in point, I was able to learn the song 22 by Taylor Swift without any assistance from the game, which I think was a huge milestone in the development of my guitar skills.

With that said, that original Rocksmith didn’t make the learning process as seamless as it could have been. On a fundamental level, it was a good teaching tool trapped in a bad video game, as its traditional career mode ended up hampering the learning process for players of all skill levels. This time, Rocksmith 2014 cuts any pretense of trying to be the next Guitar Hero to instead focus on being the best guitar teacher it can be.

Continue reading →

Mario Kart 7 Impressions

JettLeave a comment

There once was a time when I thought that the Mario Kart franchise would always be the king of kart racing video games. Some of its entries are all-time classics, while the rest were still better than any of its contemporaries. But then Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing Transformed happened. Featuring crazy tracks, a deep single player campaign and transforming vehicles that fundamentally changed this kart racer into a jet and hover boat racer too, that game took the genre to new heights.

Mario Kart 7‘s big new feature is also air and water racing…sort of. You can glide off of specific jumps and drive under water, though the implementation of it here pales in comparison to Sonic’s latest outing. Unfortunately, besides that, there isn’t much here that you haven’t experienced upwards of six times before.

Continue reading →

Forbidden Desert Review

JettLeave a comment

Forbidden DesertPandemic made a fantastic first impression on me. Since that fateful first try, the game has become a favourite on board game night while inspiring me to look for more games of that flavour. After weeks of research, I picked up Forbidden Desert. Some may know it as the direct sequel to Forbidden Island, but the immediate connection is the fact that this is the latest game from the designer of Pandemic. While this is another co-operative adventure, does it do enough to step outside of its spiritual successor’s shadow?

Continue reading →

Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe Impressions

JettLeave a comment

It was only a matter of time before Mortal Kombat tried follow in the footsteps of Marvel vs. Capcom. Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe may not have the same ring to it (or make that much sense), though it didn’t necessarily have to. Even though this game came out before Street Fighter IV revitalized the genre, it managed to sell well in its own right.

Years after NetherRealm evolved their formula twice over with the Mortal Kombat reboot and Injustice: Gods Among Us, now is a really odd time for me to play this for the first time. While it’s not necessarily worth going back to play this now, the game isn’t without merit.

Continue reading →

Hotline Miami Impressions

JettLeave a comment

Hotline Miami grabbed my attention immediately with its retro art style, gritty story and phenomenal music. Having won me over on style, I wanted to get into this game in the worst way to see where it went. But then the reality of its gameplay set in.

Continue reading →

Blokus Review

JettLeave a comment

photo 1(3)

At first glance, it’s easy to dismiss Blokus as some sort of board game knock-off of Tetris. In actuality, this blocked-based experience shares virtually no resemblance to the classic puzzler beyond the look of its pieces. Instead, this is actually an awesome strategy game that’s easy to pick up with a ton of depth.

Continue reading →

Girl Fight Demo Impressions

JettLeave a comment

When fighting games first went mainstream in the 90s, there were a slew of knock-offs that were simply trying to cash in on the craze. I can rhyme off Ballz, Clayfighter and Star Wars: Masters of Teras Kasi as a few games that fit in this category, though there are dozens – if not hundreds – of other half-baked fighters looking to make a quick buck. While I only played the demo for Girl Fight on Xbox Live Arcade, I’m pretty sure you can add this to the list.

Continue reading →

Fluxx Review

JettLeave a comment

Fluxx is a game whose presence is ubiquitous. Practically every board game store I’ve been to carries this as well as the game’s many variants and expansions. Since it’s being widely distributed, it must be good, right? It also doesn’t hurt the game’s cause that I’ve generally read favourable things about the game online. On one fateful date night at Snakes and Lattes, we gave this one a shot.

Continue reading →

Legendary: Fantastic 4 Review

JettLeave a comment

Legendary: Fantastic 4Playing with your favourite Marvel superheroes and villains is clearly Legendary’s big draw. Having said that, the more I play the game, the more I appreciate the characters I don’t know or actively dislike. For instance, I dislike Hawkeye, but I think he’s great to use in the game thanks to his useful abilities.

I used that logic to justify my purchase of the Legendary: Fantastic 4 expansion. I don’t care much for Mr. Fantastic’s side of the Marvel universe, but the cards bring all-new elements to the experience. Are these gameplay benefits enough to overcome my indifference towards the Fantastic 4? More importantly, is this 100-card “small box” expansion worth it when the 350-card”big box” expansions like Dark City provide a much better cost-per-card value?

Continue reading →