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January 11, 2010

Review – Silent Hill: Shattered Memories

Filed under: Reviews — Tags: , , , , — Jamie Love @ 8:56 pm

Silent Hill: Shattered Memories
It’s been nearly ten years since Silent Hill 2 set the bar for the series, largely owing to the work of Takayoshi Sato, who soon after vanished over the Western horizon leaving a faint scent of J.D. Salinger on the air. The game’s presentation and treatment of a psychologically driven narrative has cast a shadow of expectation over every subsequent release, causing a fair amount of confusion concerning the best direction the series might take.

While there has been some experimentation and deviations from the formula, recent entries in the series have suffered trying to meet those expectations, as much a victim of the legacy as any game that becomes a prisoner of previous accomplishments.

So I very nearly let Shattered Memories pass me by, assuming there was nothing a re-imagining of the original Silent Hill could offer, particularly on the Wii.

But since I’ve been forced to reconsider my stance and find myself suggesting the game is one of the most important releases of 2009, we should probably have a chat about it.

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January 10, 2010

Review – Kenka Bancho: Badass Rumble

Filed under: Reviews — Tags: , , , , , — Jamie Love @ 3:59 pm

Kenka Bancho Badass Rumble
Kenka Bancho: Badass Rumble wears its intentions in the title, which works well since its sleeves are busy flapping in the wind from the force of the blows it works to put in the player’s face. Like a few other games this year, it aims to be the Bancho of power fantasy gaming, but unlike so many other contenders it also comes with a balance of humor, sub-culture, and pacing that gives it the upper-hand for an uppercut.

It’s a game I very much want to enjoy as much as the previous paragraph suggests I should. But against the enthusiasm of friends and other editors, there are fundamental flaws that make any long term affection difficult even while elements of the experience demand attention.

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January 4, 2010

Review – Castlevania: The Adventure ReBirth

Filed under: Reviews — Tags: , , , , , , — Jamie Love @ 7:26 pm

Castlevania The Adventure ReBirth
Spending time with Konami’s rebirth of Castlevania during the holidays has reminded me that new releases in the series don’t deserve an official seal of approval until I find myself confronted by a fairly simple objective, died multiple times trying to achieve said goal, and tossed the controller in anger.

Since this occurred several times last week, we’re good to revisit the Belmont clan and discuss all things short of my issues with gaming rage.

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Review – PixelJunk Shooter

Filed under: Reviews — Tags: , , , , , , , — Jamie Love @ 9:03 am

PixelJunk Shooter
Talking about the physics of a videogame, or at least the way in which elements and objects physically react to the player, leaves me thinking of pop cans rolling down hallways, the splinters of wooden crates, or bodies flailing before flopping on the ground – and afterward if stepped on. I think of little eccentricities that mean to draw me into a world made more convincing by their presence, subtle additions that nourish the reality of the world within the game.

If said game avoids confronting me with an endless series of puzzles meant to force my appreciation of the effort, so much the better.

Beneath the shooter exterior, PixelJunk offers a subterranean world of environmental puzzles as a focal point, distinguishing itself with a playground of experimentation that directly drives the solutions and pushes the player forward. It isn’t a world made more realistic because of the physical elements within it, rather a world made more compelling and interesting because of the depth found in the interaction between elements that the player is allowed to interact with and manipulate.

What we’re left with is a game that is at all times inherently playful, a sensibility sadly missing from so many current releases.

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December 21, 2009

Review – The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks

Filed under: Reviews — Tags: , , , , — Jamie Love @ 9:26 am

The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks
My first GDC glimpse of Link traveling into view aboard a train provoked a knee-jerk reaction that caused the word “gimmicky” to slip passed my lips. And though the impulse was earnest, it was a poor descriptor considering that the industry is at least 90% gimmick, with the remaining 10% left to fight it out between inspiration and other mysterious elements.

It was also an inadequate word to describe the way Nintendo is altering the legacy earned by The Legend of Zelda to date, which isn’t changing simply because new installments involve different modes of transportation in Hyrule, but because the emphasis on that concern shifts the entirety of the experience along with the significance of one of the industry’s most treasured franchises.

But let’s start out on a more solid footing by restating the obvious and acknowledge that The Legend of Zelda is the industry’s example of the oldest story in our possession. For the most part, each new entry to the series is a retelling of the hero’s story, told to new generations with subtle variations regarding the how and why to represent evolving sensibilities and ideas, but always anchored by a idealized image of human development. Though Spirit Tracks deviates with a more specific attempt at placing itself within a timeline, the game still takes advantage of the formula that furnishes the series with this reputation, failing to recognize the burden of responsibility and expectation the brand carries.

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December 14, 2009

Review – Might & Magic: Clash of Heroes

Filed under: Reviews — Tags: , , , , , , — Jamie Love @ 8:40 am

Clash of Heroes

Despite the low profile release, and a name only someone with a shirt reading Dungeon Master could love, Capybara’s DS entry into the strategy genre stuffs more game up my stocking than I’d anticipated this season.

Sitting alongside recognizable brands on the store shelf, you’d be forgiven for going a tad cross-eyed reading the title Might & Magic: Clash of Heroes. The game is filled with the knights, elves, talking trees and evil hell spawn the title brings to mind. And while I don’t intend to undermine the effort but probably will anyway, such elements are just window dressing for a game more focused on proving Capybara an undisputed leader in creating addictive gaming experiences.

It’s not like I’d accuse Capy of having a shtick or suggest that the game repeats an established formula. But there’s definitely an emerging sense of familiar sensations attached to their work, and fortunately for us this is a good thing.

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December 13, 2009

Review – Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia

Filed under: Reviews — Tags: , , , , , , — Jamie Love @ 11:50 am

Review Castlevania Order of Ecclesia
When Koji Igarashi appears with that iconic whip on his hip, he wants us to believe that he IS Castlevania. But considering how the series has developed through recent handheld iterations, I often wondered why he would want to perpetuate that idea. And then when I initially heard that Order of Ecclesia would be radically different BECAUSE you play as a female character, I wondered if I should get back to that novel I’ve been working on from time to time.

I wasn’t alone in my early disinterest, which may well serve as Konami’s theme for 2008. But finally taking the time to play Ecclesia, I’ve discovered an immense void between what Konami PR focuses on and what the game actually achieves. Perhaps games can’t be properly explained with words. Perhaps developers do a poor job explaining their creations, having worked in the absence of a journalism that presses for the rationale behind creative decisions. [Honestly, can you believe no one questions these statements?] BUT, as a favor to Konami, for a nominal charge, I present the following marketing assistance;

Order of Ecclesia is a glorious Bitch-Goddess.

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