Spyro 2:Gateway to Glimmer review

This was the first PS1 game I've ever beaten. Just wanted to let out I'm nostalgic for this game.

Story
Spyro and Sparx want to go on a vacation as the local weather is like Ireland right now, so they go off to Dragon Shores. However, in the world of Avalar, a group of people are trying to catch a dragon so it can get rid of the new bully in town and they get Spyro.Now Spyro has to go through the worlds of Avalar, help the people in need and kick Ripto's butt.
Very straightforward main story with likable characters and Ripto is one of the better jerk villains I know. But my favorite part is the little stories in the levels that help with expanding the worlds like and make them more alive. I'll talk them later in the presentation but in short, good start, likable characters and some good humor with some black comedy.

Gameplay
The control is the same from the last time with a few new moves you can buy later like swimming, climbing and head-bashing. The swimming is one of the best I've played, though  recommend charging to get around underwater. As for the levels, each of them revolves around getting to the exit, with a gimmick like talking to the people along the way, and a couple of challenges like flying around to light some gemlights  or learning how to spit with taking out lizards.
The challenges range from easy and straightforward to "This is hard!". One example of a hard challenge is the escort the Alchemist one in Fracture Hills, where you have to protect him from Earthshapers but the worst part is that if you didn't learn head-bash, you'll have to do it all again, so wait.
The Flights have become Speedways and are much simpler to play through as I felt like I had more to time to get everything, plus there's a bonus challenge hidden in each. And the bosses are way better than last time, each of them hard in their own way. And each fight shows each of the bosses there personalities like Gulp eating anything he gets.

Presentation
Voice acting's enjoyable, Music is catchy and memorable, love the animations and I like the sound effects. Now lets talk about what I want to talk about.
One of the best things about the game is that each level has it theme to it, with its own people, enemies, fodder, even having a flag. I personally love this as it makes each world different and while some levels have similar settings, the theme might be a complete opposite like having two cavemen levels, one is fire themed and one is ice themed.

Verdict
Even if you didn't like the first game, I still recommend this for any one with PS1-3...Hopefully 4.
9/10

Spyro the Dragon review

I was in a Spyro mood so I going to do a Spyro marathon. Starting with the first.

Story
The dragons insult local bad guy Gnasty Gnorc so he turns all the dragons into crystal, steal all the treasure and kidnaps all the eggs. However, he missed one young dragon and now he's going to kick his butt.
It's an excuse plot so there no point in talking about it.

Gameplay
The game is a 3D platformer where you collect stuff in every level. Almost every level plays the same with only a few levels having a gimmick, especially  the Dreamweaver world, which is my favorite. They're are power-ups but they're mostly to get to places you can't reach(super charge) or to defeat big, metal enemies(super flame).
While the core game wasn't perfected yet, it had enough good gameplay to hold it together, but I should two parts I have a problem with. The flying levels are too troublesome to do as one mistake can ruin a run, like an obstacle that should be the last group is the second or missing a train because you kept missing a copter. However, lets be fair. This was the first game and they improved in the sequels. The bosses however are complete jokes. I don't know if I should call them that as they are all pathetic. the only good ones were Doctor Shemp even tough he felt like a first boss and Metalhead. But once again they fixed that and I'll explain in the next game.
Also this is a nitpick but why do I have to complete one level in the first world to fight the boss but all the other worlds let go at em as soon as I get there.

Presentation
I can tell the makers were experimenting to see what they can do. Like burning some tulips or what they can do with metal, tough I would admit the metal chests look bland. I also like the sound effects, mainly the ones when you kill an enemy and the one where the druids are screaming in horror that you're next to them.
I also like that each world has it's own theme going on in everything, from the buildings to the level portals, to the dragons. and while the first few gnorcs have a pretty bland designs, they get interesting once thy start wearing outfits like the punk rockers.
However the music is pretty generic. There songs I like, Dreamweavers, but most of them are either forgettable or sound the same after a while.

Verdict
While I admit this game hasn't aged the best, it serves as an example that a not great start can make a good sequel.
6/10

May's Mysteries: Secret of Dragonville (DS)Review

I've only played five minutes of a Professor Layton game before. I say this because this is a rip-off of that series. Not saying it to bash the game, I'm just saying what it is? So lets review this on it's own merits.

Story
May and her brother, Tery get involved in a balloon accident and crash outside the town of Dragonville. Tery goes missing looking for help and May goes looking for him, and immediately realizes something is wrong with the town.
The story isn't the most memorable, but it's not bad either. As a mystery, it gives you a few clue at the start and might show a peek of it's hand before giving you some more clues or foreshadowing. I won't talk about the ending but my mind was going in a different direction, still makes sense, though I do wish they tell us what happened after instead of showing it.
As for the characters, May's a pretty goods straight-man for the characters, naturally curious about whats going on and is willing to help people. The other character don't have much personalty except for Doyle who I think is suppose to be comic relief but he didn't make me laugh nor did I like him. Although there is this one part of the story I have a problem with: you have to find an animal to get into the graveyard so May find a dragonfly and said she's gonna take care of it from now on. And when she's done with the graveyard, it's never seen again. How cruel can you be, May.

Gameplay
This is mostly a puzzle game with every character you meet having one to solve. These range from pretty easy to very clever to HOW WAS I SUPPOSE TO KNOW THAT!! The puzzle above  gave me so much trouble and the hints didn't help so I had to find the answer online. Of course, if there's a puzzle giving you too much trouble, you can just do a few bonus puzzles to get hint points, which not only give at least two hints per puzzle(some aren't that helpful), and for fifteen hint points, you can skip the puzzle.
Beside the logic puzzles that involve putting the piece in the right place or writing the answer which are good few of the puzzles, there are also hidden object challenges where you have to find all the objects on a list which I like and a good few of the bonus puzzles are hidden pictures which I don't like.
Also, there are ryhtem games which are the games boss fights. These games require to listen to the music and repeat it depending on the stylus like a simple tap for a short not to holding it with a long one. you can do a practice to see how what to do but what to do but when you play for real, you really need to pay attention to the notes as missing one can put a dent in your score. You ignore a few notes as long as you gt the points to win.

PresentationThe music is a joy to listen to. Not the kind I listen to on its own but it's fine for trying to solve the puzzles. The only one I didn't like was the theme for the Underworld because it was too quiet for me. The rhythm game  music however is all good as you pay attention to repeat the song.
The art style is one off the things that will get a lot of praise from me as I always been a fan of this kind of art design, in fact I think the character design are more memorable than characters themselves. Though I am annoyed that the game and the cover spoil what Midnight Guards look like. We hear about them a lot but we never see them, except for one part and they actually look intimidating.
And finally, the few cinematic we see. The voice acting is okay, nothing bad that will make you you're ears bleed. The animation looks awkward however, I can't tell if they're using 3D or 2D but it just looks wired.

Verdict
Despite being a rip-off, this is a pretty decent game. The one I got was for the DS but I think you can get t on Steam now.
7/10

Ratchet and Clank: Q-Force Review

This may be the last Ratchet and Clank I'll review, not because I haven't played the other games. It's just I don't want to repeat myself and basic gameplay is the same throughout the series. My advice, try the first game and if you like that, get the rest of the series if you want. However, this game is probably the only one I suggest you skip because it's not that good.

Story
It's a quiet day for our trio of heros and Captain Qwark is dying for some action when a masked super-villain calls them and says he's disabled the defense system on THREE planets and has lured invaders to attack. Now it's up to the Q-Force to save the day again.
The one good thing I can say about this story is that the villain felt betrayed for Qwarks actions in the original trilogy and no longer believes there's no such thing as heroes. Other than that, there's nothing here. No character arcs, no emotional scenes or drama, heck, Ratchet and Clank aren't that important to the plot. Though I wouldn't mind it if it was a Qwark story.

GameplayWhile this is still a third-person platform shooter, it's also a tower defense game. You have to get money to but defenses for your base and you have to hack point no the map to get weapons. And every so often, an invasion will occur that you'll have to deal with before you can continue the mission. And I don't like.
Not only that I don't like weapons and money aren't kept for every level, but the constant need to go back to you base to deal with some goons can get annoying real fast. Especially if you were almost at a node and you had to go back and deal with the goons on the other side of the map and then the enemies guarding that node respawn. Also, I would've like a RYNO or any ultimate weapon to deal with the big enemies easier.
While I don't mind length, this game is way too short, with only five levels and 3 maps(I'm not counting the last level as that felt like a real level). And all the levels are the same: get key nodes, restore defense system,  defend base. Rinse and repeat. Also, there's no real penalty for death. You only lose if the base is destroyed.

PresentationThe R&C games have fared quite well graphicly on the PS3, although this game has a noticeable frame-rate drop. The enviroments are nice as always and the voice work is great as always. Still doesn't help it. I don't care for the music either.

Verdict
This game is pointless filler. If you skip it, you won't be missing out.
4/10

Ratchet Gladiator Review

 

“Would you lose your lunch if you had to sit through another reality dating show? Is your “Blargs Gone Wild” scratched from overuse? Then it’s time to turn that dial, to something a little more...Dangerous. Time for some real action. IT’S TIME TO BLOW S&!% UP!” Gleeman Vox

Story

Ratchet, Clank and Al get kidnapped by minions of Gleeman Vox and now have to compete in his reality show to survive.

That’s pretty much it. It’s propably the simplest of the R&C plots. No twist, no grand reveals, just another adventure for our favourite mechanic and his celebrity robot friend. Vox is also one of the smallest scale villains in terms of serious threat. Yes, he was still a madman that needed to be stopped, but he focused on his sales and media than say; destroying the galaxy for selfish needs.

Before I started this review, I lookd on TV tropes and it said that this is a “Darker” game and while the game is more focus on the shooting this time, the story isn’t that dark. Ratchet and Clank always had that black, slapstick comedy like that commercial where we see all those scientists get injured or kill.

Gameplay

Before you begin playing, I recommended picking a control scheme you are comfortable with as you don’t have Clank playing with you this time and the default controls might feel awkward at first. Also I never played the multiplayer with any one so don’t expect any comments on that. Although I will that the levels are clearly design for multiplayer as well.

The levels are divided in into missions. Each can be either: kill all the enemies, get to the exit or capture some points. There also some bonus missions that you can do to get points and go further in the game like race against the clock, do a mission with a handicap, get a certain amount of points and many others.

You can get about ten guns like dual pistols, a mine-launcher, a frail or one of the better nuke weapons, but you can also get omega mods like acid, brainwashing, mini-bombs and the traditional morph. This time is the last three and pigs, and every time you level up a gun, you get an alpha mod which can increase your ammo count or area of effect.  With this, you can customise your guns any way you want like a grenade launcher that turns enemies into farm animals. Of course some mods don’t work with every weapon.

And finally; the vehicles.  There are four in this game: The hoverbike has a machine gun and goes fast. The landstalker is a tank on spider legs. The Puma is a jeep but can’t jump. And the hovership is difficult to steer. At least the levels you use them in play to their advantages.

Presentation

Not much has changed since the last game. Just a different design for the menus and HUD as usual. Ratchet got some battle armour this time and while I don’t it, I don’t like the helmet. The levels all have a different look to them like one is a robot grave yard and after that is a swamp. We even go to Orxon from the first game again and it’s a lot less green which might be a good thing.

Enemies also have distinct look to them and while some of them have some changes, it still the same enemy. It’s if a swarmer has a three spikes or a tail, etc it’s still a swarmer.

Verdict

If you loved those arena levels in R&C’s 2 and 3, then you’re going to enjoy this. Plus vehicles.

8/10

MGS4: Guns of the Patriots review

So, Metal Gear Solid 4. This was the game, beside Little Big Planet, that I was looking forward to on the PS3. While I liked and played it a lot when it came out, when I got the trophy patch and played it again, it wasn't as good as it came out. Buy why?

Story
Old Snake is aging rapidly so he agrees on a hit to kill the ghost of Liquid Snake, possessing the body of Revolver Ocelot. Not only that, but he has to die with a changing world, new weapons of warfare and a system that keeps check on everything on the battle field.
This is a hard game to talk about story as this relies on the previous games so I'll give a pro and con list on my thoughts but in short: It's the most boring of the Metal Gear plots. I know it's suppose dark and everything's going to hell, but 's so boring and I didn't care what was going on and the exposition is so long and tedious. Now the list. SPOILERS

PROS:

• I liked Sunny and Drebin(ad his monkey sidekick).
• The Patriots being a group of rouge AI is pretty cool.
• Raiden becoming the Cyborg Ninja made sense.
• Glad that most of the surviving cast had role no matter how small.
• That scene at the end of Chapter 3 with Liquid is awesome. Best scene in the game.
• The bit about changing the discs was one of the only bits I smile.

CONS:

• Why are nano-machines the answer for all almost all the superpowers?
• While the bit with Psycho was fun cool back, what was the point of bringing back from the dead?
• I didn't like Naomi at all.
• This game ruined Paramedic for me and she was my favorite member of MGS3's support team.
• Ed and Jonathan have nothing to do and could be replaced by generic soldiers.
• The Beauty and the Beast unit are my least favorite goon squad in the series.
• The cut-scenes are too long.
• It's okay to kill you main character Hideo.
•  What was the point of those fake commercials at the beginning.

If there are other things I do or don't like, I probably forgot it or I just don't care

GameplayWhile this a stealth game, it also has some elements of a third-person shooter which isn't too bad and makes sense as enemies can still kill you easily and whole war theme the levels have makes you want to be more careful. While don't like the streamlined stamina meter because I have trouble figuring out how to decrease at times, I liked the octo-camo as all I have to do is just lie down and my camo changes instantly. Saves the hassle of going into the menu. You can also help the rebels fight back as it can help you get through sections easier.
As for the Drebin system, I don't care much for it. I just use the guns I found instead of the store brought ones. It's only problem is that there are no chaff grenades in the store and you need chaff grenades. Another problem is that the weapon inventory is so small compared to Snake Eater as in that game you can have at least ten weapons available while here you can only equip five, but that's not trues as the handgun and M4 will be placed in their slots automatically so that leaves three. Also I rarely used the Mk.II.
I also found the boss fights to be pretty dull with only three good ones; Laughing Octopus, the Metal Gear fight and Liquid Ocelot, the middle one being the best. Also, the fact that every chapter ended with a big action scene. I know that all the other games had a big acton scene, but those were at the end of the games(and before any asks, they are the jeep(MGS), the gunfight(MGS2) and the bike(MGS3)) and I got bored of them after a while. Except for chapter four as that was awesome.
However, the biggest problem I have is the final level, or lack there of. Sure, you get ONE sneaking section and TWO boss fights and a long corridor, but in reality, it's mostly a very long cut-scene and I just didn't care and I starting. I was thinking about actually finishing the game again for this review but I just got so bored with it that I just left it at the final boss and called it a day.

Presentation
While I don't that much for realistic graphics, this game really shows the potential the PS3 had at this moment in time. And the voice acting is great as always. Music, I'm not to keen on as there was only one original song I liked which was the GEKKO theme.

Verdict
I was thinking about giving this game a seven but since the story completely covers the game-play, I have to take points off.
6/10

Last Dream First Impressions

Since I'm almost done on the first continent, I'll talk about what I think about my first thoughts.

The game is an traditinol RPG, made RPG MAKER VX ace, and I know this as I have the trial version and the game uses the already made assets. Not that I'm complaining. You have eight classes to pick which are Knight, Monk, Hunter, Enginner, Theif nd White, Black and Gray Mages. My party consists of a White and Black Mage, a Hunter and an Enginner. Besides the different abilities like the Hunters slow or the magic of the Mages, some classes can affect the overworld in different ways like the Hunter being able to use chocobos and the engineer being able to use tunnels.
From what I hear, this game is huge. and with all the places I found on the first continet alone, I think I agree. It's also a bit non-linear as you can complete dungeons in any order as soon as you find them. At the start for example, you have to go to an old castle to save someone. You can do that or go into the sewers to get a few items and kill some monsters. After that, the rest of the continent opens up, with the main objective being to get a boat in the capital an there re two ways to get there: Take the long way around the continent or go through the dangerous forest. I don't have much to say about the story since I'm still very early on in the game.
One the more unique parts of the game is the level up system. You get SP from enemies or finding orbs in chests or shops that you can use to by skills that unlock as you level up. But that's not the unique about the level system. The unique thing is that when you level up, you get points to spend on you stats. The game does tell you which stats your classes should focus on but you can customize your party any way you want. Of course some stats are more expensive than others.

So if anyone's interested in this game, look up some more detailed review or look for gameplay footage in case it's not your cup of tea. But from me, this game is a recommendation.

Mario n Luigi: Partners in Time

"BACK TO ADVENTURE!" Stuffwell (Partners in Time)

This was one of the games I was looking forward to on the DS. I loved Superstar Saga and this one had the babies, and I like the babies.  While it's not bad, I just don't like compared to other Mario games.

Story
Years ago, an alien race called the Shroobs have invaded the Mushroom kingdom and are converting it to their own creepy needs. Meanwhile, Professor E.Gadd has created a Time a machine and Princess Peach wants to give it a test drive. So of course things go wrong and the Mario Bros. get attack by the Shroobs and find a hole in time. There they meet their baby selves and together, must defeat the Shroobs.
I find the story to be a waste of ideas. The biggest problem is that the time travel feels like a complete gimmick as it's hardly used in the story it's only there just so you can play with the babies. While Baby Bowser is a villain in the story, regular  Bowser feels shoe-horned in for a boss fight. Even Kamek, one of my favorite Mario villains is quickly removed from the plot after his fight.
The Shroobs are also a disappointment and I was looking forward for them. They are just a generic evil alien race and the reason they leave their home is never fully explained. There's also a plot hole very early on that only exist so that the characters can go forward.

GameplayLike the last game, you control Mario and Luigi with the A and B buttons but now you can control the babies with the X and Y buttons. The adults are stronger in battle and can spin jump and turn into a ball and the babies are weaker than the adults and can go into small places the adults can't go. While this isn't bad, I don't like getting the babies to fight.
The combat has improved a bit with the hammer defense having time before giving out and the introduction of a combo jump, plus the enemies take full advantage of the top screen as some enemy moves are telegraphed on the top. However, I'm mix on the bros items. You can stock up on these items and use them in battle. However, this leads to my biggest problem with the combat which is the game wants you to use these items, even if you don't want to. Sometimes you'll fight a large number of enemies or enemies with lots of health and the best way to deal with them is to use  bros item. And most of them aren't that good as there are only three I used: the canonballer, the trampoline(best move) and the copy flower. Another problem I have is that you can only use the hammers with the babies But I admit that's a nitpick.
But the biggest problem of the game is how there's nothing to do. Sure there's collecting beans and that slot machine but thats it. Superstar Saga had several mini-games, a few side-quest, some secret areas and mini levels and even a hidden surf track. There's nothing in this game. And I don't like the hub in this game. Peach's castle feels more linear than it should and beside sealing beans for badges, there's nothing. Compare to the hub in Superstar Saga which was also linear but was filled to the brim with secrets. I don't even like the final boss in this game.

PresentationAt least I can say that the art is good. The sprites are well done and I liked the design of the Shroobs but I will admit I felt that some the Shroob enemies felt like ripoffs of Mario enemies. I do like that the sprites are allowed to be as big has they have to be instead of being force to be smaller. Unfortunately I don't like the maps as they make the areas feel smaller than they should be.
The music is good although are some track I don't care about. I don't like the battle music or the Shroob theme but I really like Thwomp Volcano and Toad Town. This also has my favorite boss track in the three MnL games I played.

Verdict
I don't think I'll play this game again. It's just an underwhelming sequel with wasted potential. And I dislike wasted potential.
6/10

MGS3: Snake Eater review

This is my personal favorite of the series. Not only that, it's one of the few games that's almost perfect in it's genre. Why? Let's talk.

StoryNaked Snake of the FOX unit is sent to Russia to retrieve a scientist called Sokolov from a test site. It turns out, Sokolov is forced to work on a weapon called the Shagohod. However, Snake's mentor, The Boss, defects to the Soviet Union, injures Snake, takes Sokolov and gives a GRU coronal called Volgin a pair of miniature nukes. However, on a whim, Volgin, for no reason, nukes a lab and puts the US and USSR  on the brink of war so a week later, Snake must go back, find Sokolov, destroy the Shagohod and eliminate the boss.
This is my favorite story in the MGS series. While there are some dark elements to it, like the whole having to kill the mother in your life, there's a more fun and light-hearted side to it, like meeting EVA and having her trying to seduce Snake. Plus this ending is one I freely admit I cried or at least get teary eyed. Although this last point isn't important, I like that at some points you can look around the scenes with the R1 button and see some of the background details.
I also like cutscene pacing as they are more spaced out and if you want to skip them, the  amount of skipping is kept to a minimum.

GameplayThis game takes place in a variety of locations, for example, you start in a forest and go to a red, run building. To help you, you can use camouflage to help blend in like green camo for the forest and orange camo for the ruined building. You also need to find food,  like snakes or birds,etc ,as you have a stamina bar which slowly drains as you go through or if you if you have to heal. Of course you need to heal injuries as some attacks or environments will damage you so you can't fully heal so you have to fix them. However, this leads to the game's only real flaw which is to do any of this stuff, you have to open the menu, go to the section you want and do all the things you need to do. I don't have a problem with this myself but depending on how you play, you might be doing this constantly.
Speaking of playing, almost every area has number of ways of to approach them like sneak your way with being seen, take a back door or vent or just the simple kill everyone in sight with head-shots. This also applies to the boss fights as each of them as more than one way to kill them. I need to play MGS4 again but these are my favorites. The example I'll give will be the Ocelot Unit. In the other games, the enemy boss fights are just gun fights. In this one, you have hide and take out each member as stealthy as possible.I also like that some events can change how later levels will be like or how long turn off the game will affect you and certain things around you.

Presentation
This is the nicest looking of the games in my opinion. I love the environments, and absence of music really makes you feel like you're hiding in an actually jungle or mountain or whatever. When there is music, it's very, very good. The alert theme is very well done and I love the boss tracks. I personally like Ocelot's, Fear's and Fury the most but the others are great too. And the voice is once again top notch. Yes, they don't sound Russian but they have this throw away line that explains so any language can bypass the accent no problem.

Verdict
I don't give these away lightly, but despite it's flaws, it earns:
10/10

Heavy Rain Review

 
(Almost forgot about this one)
This is hard game to talk about, mainly because it wants to be treated as a movie instead of a game. So I'm gonna be lazy and just list  Pros and Cons of it.

Pros

- The Quick Time Events are surprisingly good. mainly the fight scenes and the origami trials.
- I enjoyed it when we're using Norman's future glasses.
- The identity of the killer surprised me.
-The cartoons in the background are funny.
- It's short.

Cons

- The prologue and tragedy is so forced.
- Maddison is pointless fan-service.
- The young boys sound terrible.
- Story isn't that great.
-Forgot to mention that moving the play is terrible because you have to hold down R2.

If you want some advice, rent it or borrow it from a friend. If it's your kind of game, then go ahead and buy it.

5/10

MGS2: Sons of Liberty review

"Yeah! I haven't had any field experience, but I was part of the Army's Force XXI trials! I was trained by video games!" Raiden(hiimdaisy's Let's Destroy Metal Gear Again)

Story
2 years after MGS1, Snake finds out about a tanker that's containing, METAL GEAR RAY! But enough about that. The story really takes place 2 years after that where Dead Cell and some Russian mercenaries have taken over an oil clean-up site called the Big Shell and have the president hostage. Now Raiden must go in, stop the terrorists and save the president.
Lets get the obivouis out of the way; No I don't hate Raiden and I never did. I use to dislike his girlfriend, Rose, but she didn't bother me this time. I would complain about about the cutscenes, but mine only real complaint about them is that some of the more important ones take place in Codec when you're  face to face with them. They say it's to prevent ease-dropping but we them talking out loud in the parts of the scene where they're not in codec. but that's a nitpick.
As for the story itself. I don't mind it...up til the final area. It's not bad, it's just a bit to out of place for me. You probaly have your own opinion on the ending section, but it's just off. I do have a question for anyone who's played it: Who do you think is the villain?
Gameplay
The gameplay has improved greatly over the years in development. The aiming mode makes gun-fighting and bosses more enjoyable, the hanging allowed more places to hide while the roll was an effective dodge move, although not a good jump and now you can get through the game without killing anyone. The bosses were also a decent challenge and some of them were even fun, my favorite being the Harrier. There's also a part in the game early on where you have to dispose of bombs which was pretty good and I'm glad they made mission of them in the update version.
I heard that this game was hard for some people but I found it easy. If there's an optional challenge I did like, it was the dog tags. The idea is that to get the bonuses in the game like stealth or the bandana and wigs, you have to collect dog tags by holding up the guards and point a gun to their face. And if they resist, shoot them in an arm or a leg.
if there's one problem I have is that the game feels smaller than it actually is. I think it's we don't get to explore half of Big Shell due to story reasons, which could have be been fixed by making you go the long way around.
PresentationGraphics are good. The main models look well animated, although I noticed that in some scenes, characters will have crab like hands. While the enemy models aren't that bad, every other model that doesn't have a mask has a hideous face. Seriously, try the casting thester with a background model in a speaking role. You'll see how bad they are.
As for the music, while the music is very good when we hear it and the boss tracks are some of my favorites, most of the game is completely silent. The  voice  acting is also well done but I'm not sure if the Russians have proper accents or not.
One final note about the final area. The main problem is that the atheistic of it being are sci-fi is one of the reason I don't like it. I even don't like the arena where you fight RAY. Good fight but I have no idea where I am. Some other dimension.
Verdict
This is a solid sequel that improves all the gameplay and makes it more fun. And while I do have a few nitpicks, I still recommended.
8/10

Metal Gear Solid review

The thing about the first game of a series is that it's rarely the best in a series.Although technically this isn't the first Metal Gear game, it it the first one in 3D. So lets see if it's aged well.

Story
I'm not gonna go to deep into the story in any of these games as there are people who already picked apart all the little details of this games story. But'll give a brief description along with my thoughts on them.
FOXHOUND and the Genome Army have taken over a nuclear disposal site called Shadow Moses and will launch a nuke unless they get the body of the greatest solider ever: Big Boss. Solid Snake, fresh from retirement, is sent to save a pair of hostages and stop Snake's evil twin brother, Liquid Snake.
I found the story to be pretty simple with some nice twists and enjoyable characters. I don't have many problems with the story, it's too stragiht forward to dislike. Plus the cut-scenes aren't that infamously long... yet.

Gameplay
Hate to say it, but the controls haven't aged well. The basic gameplay is fine, with you trying to sneak past guards and hide in a box in a corner if you get spotted. The controls on the other hand are awkward. The amount of times I started a crawl when I thought I could roll, were annoying, the guns were troublesome to use and the hand fighting....okay that was okay. It's fun breaking people's necks. Most of the weapons you get are very situational, for example: The sniper Rifle is only really needed for the fights with Wolf.
If there's one thing that deserves praise, is the fact that the game loves to break the fourth wall in places, like in the fight with Mantis. It's just a fun detail that has to be mentioned. Speaking of which, for everyone who downloaded this game and don't have the box, the codec number for Meryl is 140.15. Fourth wall gameplay there.
Presentation
Despite the dated graphics, they have a charm that I love. The music is good, but my favorite is not any of the sneaking music or the combat themes, but the credits song. I find it to be the  most memorable song in the whole game. The best part of the presentation is the voice acting. Even if you don't like the writing, the voice acting is solid even is solid even to keep your finger away from that skip button.
VerdictWhile the gameplay is't as good as it use to be, it's still a decent game and everything else helps it get to the level we all know and love.
7/10

Ratchet and Clank 2: Going Commando Review

"What?! Even the computers are charging us? That's it, this galaxy blows!"

There are a decent number of Ratchet and Clank games. Four on the PS2, two on the PSP, three on the PS3 with three downloadable adventures(which can also be bought in stores, thanks for the consideration Insomniac.) a crossover with Jak and Sly and many others I might have forgot. But I won't be reviewing all of them, mainly because I'll just be repeating myself. Out of all the games, I only stuff to talk about for three games: Going Commando, Gladiator and Q-Force. Lets talk bout Going Commando first, one which I have weird feelings for

Story
After Ratchet and Clank's fifteen minutes of fame, the Megacorp CEO, Abercrombie Fizzwidget, kidnaps them and wants Ratchet to rescue an experiment that was stolen by a thief while Clank gets a job as an account. Now Ratchet must save the fluffy ball of fur before it's too late.
This is one of the harder games to talk about, not because it's overly complicated, but because the story is in the 'clever in hindsight' category. I will talk about a few points though.

• I liked the thief and Thug-4-Less because the thief was slapstick gold and T4L  were a bunch of fun, dumb brutes.
• There's a cute girl infobot, which they never used ever again.
• While not the funniest of the series, this one has some of my favorite jokes

Gameplay
This game is the start of many elements for the series. First is the level up system, where your health and guns gain experience as you kill enemies. You have to use the gun in order to level it up which is a big plus as a problem of the first game is that I never used any weapon besides the wench. You can also get five weapons from the first game for free if you have the save data for it. You also get more health from killing enemies but also from a few helix's, two of which can be the hardest items to get in the whole game.
This is also the first game with the arena, where you do series of battles, each with a certain condition like one weapon only or don't get hit. These are simple compare to Arenas in later games, but this is a great first impression. There are also space ship levels, which they never did in this again. Which is having an open area to fly round in as you do one of four missions per levels. I like these levels but strangely the space races were easier than I remember. Also they're bike races which I also like although they can get repetitive.
As for gadgets, you get a tractor beam to move some pillars, a hypnotic device to control hypno-bots, a thermal gun that turns water to ice and vice-versa and our old friend the slingshot. The slingshot also gets a new friend with the dynamo which turns on machines and holograms that you can use as platforms, and I do mean friend as the next, the gadgets have a baby called the hypershot. If there's anything I didn't like, I didn't like hacking mini-game and the Clank levels are the weakest. There's one robot that you only use once just to lift a block.

PresentationVoice acting's good. Ratchet's got a noticable voice change, one he keeps for the rest of the series and all the other voice acting do a job well done. That's probably the only applause I'm gonna give it as everything else is not bad, but very lacking. The music is very bland for my taste with only three songs standing out, Oozla, the arena boss theme and the final T4L boss theme. The art is also very dull to me, as most of the levels take place in grey factories. Even the level that has hellish red skies looks bland.

Verdict
I think I figured out why I don't like this game compared to others in the series. I just don't like the galaxy it takes place in. Like an a person who just smiles and  waves and you have this irrationally dislike for them. It's not a favorite but I can't deny it's good.
8/10

Lego Star Wars: Complete Saga(DS) Review

Before we begin, I just want to say that you should NEVER BUY "LEGO STAR WARS 2" FOR THE DS. It's a broken, incomplete mess that I feel sorry for anyone who bought it. The only good thing about it was the character creator. Now that that rant's over, lets talk about this successful port.

StoryIt's all the "Star Wars" movies so if you've seen the movies, you know the plot to it. The game is an abriged version of the six movies although most of the plot is told through text scrolls at the beginning of each level. I would say that final boss is simple but very good.

GameplayThe game is a puzzle-platformer where you control two to eight characters to solve puzzles and fight enemies. There are, in my opinion, three classes: blaster, light-saber and droid, which are also divided into sub-classes : blaster has normal, bounty hunter and short, Light-saber has Jedi ad Sith and droids have C3-PO and R2-D2. The Bounty hunter and Sith are better than the others of their class as the Sith can use any force object and open storm trooper doors and bounty hunters can use explosives and can open BH doors, although you still need the droids to open their doors.
You get all the classes you need during the story but you can collect studs to buy more characters ad even some special extras like multipliers and bigger weapons, but you need to find the red bricks that unlock them first.This along with competing levels, collecting everything gives you gold bricks which do absolutely nothing but add to 100%.
As for the vechile levels, I really like them. They're top-down shooting sections and with one exception, because it's a decent race, that are simple but let you go at your own pace as you go left and right and even turn around and go backwards. There are a few other sections where you constantly go forward which don't last too long.
You can also buy some mini-games that use the touch screen, you unlock from the red bricks which you can get gold bricks by getting a very high score or getting to the end. These include:
Deflection:A pretty challenging mini game where you use a light-saber to deflect lasers. It's so challenging it's the only one with a practice mode.
Focus: Very simple game of keeping everything in a circle. Forgettable
Kamino: a touch the buttons in order game. I'm not a big fan of these games as they keep adding more to the sequence than I can remember, but I was able to mange it.
Evasion: A fun little game where you dodge asteroids and collect points. I like it.
Levitation: A good game where you move C3-PO through a tunnel avoiding storm-troopers and collecting yoda's to stay in the game. It does get harder but it's gradually so it's good.
Grevious: A straight forward game where you go through a course to collect points. Also pretty forgettable.
Pit-stop: A series of smaller games where you have to complete them as fast as possible. I'm a bit mixed as I like it but I dislike the first game as the matching parts game can really eat your time.
Activation: A collection of the four door mini-games which are touch falling blocks in order, match the pairs, touch all the same blocks in order and match a circle of blocks in order. You're bound to get some practis at this during free-play.
There's also a character creator but i rarely play as my character.

PresentionThe sounds and music are all from star wars so if you like them there, you'll might like them here. the graphics are not the best but there servicesable as I can tell each detail on the LEGO models. The cut-scenes have suffered a bit for being on the DS as they're mainly animated with stills. They are well done and are better than them using the ingame models(Believe me, I know) but most of the humor the LEGO games are known for are lost.

Verdict
This is a well done remake port ad more than makes up for disaterous previous DS version.
8/10

Shovel Knight Review

"Shut up and take my money." Philip J. Fry (Futurama)
The game almost everyone is saying is one of the best or THE best of 2014. And it's true! 10/10. No spoiler, it's that good. But I can't leave you at that. No that be unprofessional. So lets talk about why the game is great.

Story

Shovel Knight and his love, Shield Knight were once brave heroes who went on adventures. One adventure led them to the Tower of Fate where a dark amulet took Shield Knight, sealing the tower and leaving a grieving Shovel Knight alone. Some time later, an evil Enchantress opens the Tower and her Order of No Quarter take over the land. Now Shovel Knight must defeat the Order, get to the tower and hopefully find Shield Knight.
This story is simple but very good. Shovel Knight is a well done hero, who is willing to talk someone down from fighting, but will fight if provoke or if the person deserves it. For example, every time he faces Black Knight, Shovel is always the one who doesn't want to fight.
Speaking of bosses, the Order of No Quarter are just awesome. Each of them of their own quirks and styles in both fighting and the way they talk. There are also NPC's in the village and other places that each have their own character and stand out, from the frog who likes puns to the different shopkeepers.
One of the best parts of the story is the loss Shovel feels for Shield. Some nights, Shovel will have dreams of Shield falling from the sky and you have to catch her and every time you almost catch her, the dream ends. And this is in gameplay too. it really made me want to save her. And that ending. Beautiful.

Gameplay

This is a 2D platformer that inspiration from NES games like DuckTales and Megaman, but it does it's own thing with it. You shovel is used as a weapon, dig up dirt for gold,open chests and secrets, pogo off enemies and other uses if you can buy the upgrades like having a ground attack at full health. There are no lives so when you die, you lose some of your money, which you can get back if you reach where you died but you can't die or you lose it. This isn't a big deal later but early on you want as much money to buy stuff.
Speaking of which, the relics you find are very useful. Besides the Ichors which can use Trouple potions, you have ranged weapons like the wand, anchor or sphere, the knuckles, locket, mobile gear and dagger can be use to get through obstacles and make sections easier. Never had  much use for the coin though.
The levels themselves are pretty challenging, each with their ow gimmicks like falling chandlers or using snow to cover spikes. The bosses are also a good challenge, even weak little Tinker Knight can be a hassle if your facing them for the first time. My favorites were Mole Knight and Specter Knight. There are also optional levels and bosses that appear on the map at times and even a level you have to pay for.

Presentation

I wasn't around around for the NES era, I was a DOS man, so I don't have much thought on the NES graphics. That being said, I think Shovel Knight looks great. All the colors stand out and the sprites and scenery are nicely detail. The animation of most characters and objects is well done there was only one time i had no idea on what I was looking at.
Music is great. it's pleasant on the ears and is differently fitting and memorable. If I was to pick favorites, I pick the Lich Yard theme, the Explodatorium theme, the Stranded Ship theme and Shield Knights theme. Also the wolfs sound and look adorable.

Verdict

If you need more convincing, check out anyone else who's reviewed the game. but if you're a platformer fan, you should get it already.
10/10

Kingdom Hearts: Final Mix Review

"As you move closer to the light, the darkness grows."

Story

Sora and his friends, Riku and Kairi, get separated when his home get's attacked by the Heartless and is given a key-shaped sword that has the power of locking and unlocking everything and being a sharp,pointing thing. Donald and Goofy are tasked by King Micky to find this keyman and use him to find the King while Sora searches for his friends. And Disney adventures ensue.
This game is a good starting chapter for a story. While it's a full story, it has little setting pieces like a little talk about how destructive keyblades are or who can have a heart, which is a big deal in this setting. The Disney worlds are mostly good but there are a few that annoy me, mainly the Atlantica world because of Ariel. The biggest warning I can give to this is nothing to do with spoilers but that writing can be very cheesy with all this talk about hearts and light and friendship. There are also a few new scenes in the final mix.

Gameplay

The game is an action RPG with a party of three. Not much to say about the combat, it's pretty simple with very little thought needed until later in the game. Camera is pretty sensitive at times and makes some fights and jumping sections awkward.  I know many people hate the water level but once you get use to the controls of going up and down, it's not so bad. I don't have much else to except it's simple and fun.
There are also little space section between worlds that also very simple but the final mix added missions to them to encourage you to make new ships as some missons require a type of ship part. Also added in the final mix was not only a hard boss but new enemies that you have to find and beat to get items for crafting. I wouldn't mind as it makes you see the enemies but some of them aren't fun to fight, the worst being a mushroom you have to use stop on and then hit him as many times as you can before it wears off, and it's annoying as gnats in a swarm.  do like the the robot one and the black ballad was a fair mini game.

Presentation

The graphics are pretty good as the Disney characters don't feel out of place ext to the anime Square characters. Music is good, voice acting is good, everything's good. However I do have one big nitpick: Why are most of the enemies recolored. I say that because most of them aren't even that good and the fact that most of the new enemies are also recolours. One of worst was the search ghosts which use to have white heads but now they are orange for some reason which I don't understand.

Verdict

If you want to start with the Kingdom Hearts series , nothing is better than the one that started it.
8/10

Hexen: Beyond Heretic Review

"Greetings mortal. Are you ready to die."

-Korax

Story

Korax(the second Serpent Rider) has taken over the world of Cronos and has corrupted it's leaders. Now one of three heroes must go kill Korax and save the land. Once again I have nothing to say except that Korax actually insults you in every hub. I like that.

Gameplay

The game has three characters you can play as: the Cleric, the Mage and the Warrior.
The Cleric starts out pretty bad with a weak weapon but soon gets some of the best weapons and the flask can really destroy groups if used right.
The Mage is my favorite as he has good range with weapons and while I didn't like he's ultimate weapon, his other weapons can carry you.
I didn't finish the Warrior as while he does have a good starter weapon, I knew I wasn't gotta have fun with cause I like range in my FPS.

One of the unique gameplay features is that the game use a hub system. Every hub is divided into several levels and you have to go back and forth to pull switches and find keys. While I don't mind this as it encourages exploration, there's no way of no knowing what the switch did and you might have to be lucky in finding the level that has the next key or switch that you have to get and you might get lost.

You have twelve weapons in the game, but each class has four. a starter that use no ammo, a blue and green weapon, I called that they use blue and green ammo and the ultimate weapon which can only be used when you find the three parts to it. The enemies, while simple, are varied and can be difficult if you don't know what you doing. Ex. you first fight with two headed goons that just wack you with club, but in the same level, you meet flying imps that rapidly fire fireballs, and these things tend to appear in groups. and these are the foes you start with.
The inventory is still here with some old toys like the health potion and the one that turns enemies into animals(this time pigs.) and new ones like the flask which is a different bomb for each class and one toy that can summon a MAULOTAUR!!
Also, there's jumping and some minor jumping parts.

Presentation

Don't care much about the music, it's just there. The art design and presentation however is great despite being dark and brown and grey. Each level has a different theme to it and you can tell where you are by knowing what design it is. In the first hub, each level portal is surrounded by the textures you see in the level, but when you see fire themes and textures in the ice level means there's a portal to the fire level nearby.
This is both a minor and major point both there's a lot a little details added like destroying glass leaves some shards on the ground or when you overkill a grunt, his club will be laying somewhere away from the corpse. Heck, even the way some doors open is pretty cool for a DOOM engine game.

Verdict

I like this game and while I would personally give it an nine, the lack of direction holds it back so instead it's:
7/10

Assassin's Creed 2 Review

"Nothing is true. Everything is permitted."
This is a series my brother's big into but I had little interest in. Since the trophy data is in my PS3 system and I wanted the Upoints so lets what  we got.

Story

You play as Desmond Miles. A man who's used as a plot device for the main story about Ezio Auditore, an Italian man who discovers his father is an assassin and joins them to uncover a plot that could change Italy as he knows it.
I don't have any major problems with the story. Ezio is a fun guy and I can see why he's popular, being a badass while having a sense of humor. There are also some other memorable characters like Leonado and that army guy in Venice, but most of them are very bland and forgettable, especially the villains, who I felt were built up but every hit felt like an anti-climax, except for the big bad himself and the young brat who antagonizes you early on.
Another problem I have is that I don't feel the passage of time. It's suppose to happen over the course of several years but it feels more like months.

Gameplay

I'm not a huge fan of gameplay. I felt the combat was unresponsive and had trouble with it, although you can hire people to distract the guards which I started to use after a while. It is cool to stab some when they're not looking. I really didn't like the free running parkour stuff mainly because while simple to do, is very to mess up. Numerous times was running around, having a bit of fun when I suddenly grab onto a wall. This s the main reason I rarely went up the roof tops unless I had too and I really hated the races. Also, there's one optional dungeon where you have to use a move you never used and was very annoying.
Speaking of the side quests, they're varied enough like beat-up husbands, delivering mail and collecting feather. I didn't do that many assassination missions mainly because the one I found were mainly kill all the enemies and I don't like the combat. I know there are ones where you get to find a target but I only found one. You also get to upgrade a town to get discounts but that's nothing big.
This is a personal thing but I didn't feel like I was falling when I did those leaps of fate. I got the feeling of falling when I thought  will break every bone from jumping as far way from hay as possible.

Presentation

I can not deny the fact that this game is gorgeous. You can tell they put alot of effort in the scenery so you can climb all over it. Musics there, nothing special. And the voice acting... Now the actors are not that bad, they sound Italian to me with no voice that makes me rip my ears. My problem is that the writing switches between English and Italian and it gets annoying after awhile. Yes it's nitpicking but it really bugs me.

Verdict

I don't think I'll bother catching up with this series. Yes it's a good game but it's not my thing.
7/10