Category: Xbox 360 (Page 3 of 31)

GAME REVIEW: UEFA Euro 2012 DLC

May 3, 2012 / Jason Zingale

Electronic Arts has received a lot of flak over the years about the way they’ve handled the release of their World Cup and European Championship games, and rightfully so, because all they were doing before was redressing the current-gen FIFA titles and charging full price for what was essentially the same product. This year, however, they’ve smartly chosen to release their Euro 2012 content as DLC for “FIFA 12” instead of an individual disc, which will satisfy fans of the franchise despite the fact that it still doesn’t feel like you’re getting very much bang for your buck.

In addition to the basic tournament mode and a Challenge mode similar to the one found on recent installments of the soccer series, there’s also a new mode called Expedition that plays like a mix between FIFA Ultimate Team and “Risk.” To begin, you create a team, select your favorite European player to serve as captain, and receive a random assortment of reserve players to fill out your roster. As you travel across Europe competing against other teams, you’ll unlock roads to new countries, and for every team that you beat, you’re given one of their players, which you can choose to keep or reject. The first time that you beat a team, you’ll get a reserve player; the next time, you’ll get a better player; and the third time, you’ll get one of their stars.

It’s a little more difficult than it sounds, though, as losing a match will destroy the connecting road, resulting in having to play some countries more than three times. But while the risk/reward nature of Expedition adds a bit of unnecessary frustration to the proceedings, it’s still the strongest feature on “UEFA Euro 2012.” That might not be saying much considering just how little there is to choose from, but EA deserves credit for at least trying to do something different. Granted, the DLC is hardly an essential addition to the “FIFA 12” experience (especially at such a high price), but diehard soccer fans should download it anyway.

EA, PS3, Reviews, Xbox 360

FIFA 12 soccer games UEFA Euro 2012 DLC UEFA Euro 2012 review

GAME REVIEW: Bloodforge

April 26, 2012 / Jason Zingale

It’s pretty depressing to see a game as visually striking as “Bloodforge” turn out to be so terrible, especially when you consider all the hard work that was put into making it. But that’s exactly the case with this “God of War” wannabe, which is completely undone by some simple gameplay mechanics. You play as Crom, a Celtic warrior who’s given up his life of violence to live peacefully with his wife. When he returns home from hunting one day to find his village being attacked by savages, however, Crom is tricked by some cruel gods into murdering her during the ensuing battle, and now he’s exacting revenge.

For as weak as the story may be, though, it’s nothing compared to the myriad of other problems that plague the game. Though developer Climax tries to disguise these issues by wowing players with ultraviolent deaths and gratuitous amounts of blood (which serves a dual role in the game as a combat amplifier and form of currency), it doesn’t work. The hack-and-slash combat is repetitive; the variety of enemies is shockingly poor; and the jerky camera is so bad that you might want to pop a few Dramamine if you plan on playing for more than a few minutes. Those that can handle the throbbing headaches you’re bound to suffer along the way might find “Bloodforge” a little more bearable, but in an industry flooded with new games vying for your attention every week, I’d much rather spend my time on something that doesn’t actually hurt to look at.

Reviews, XBLA, Xbox 360

Arcade NEXT Bloodforge Bloodforge review

GAME REVIEW: Fez

April 17, 2012 / Jason Zingale

It seems like every year there’s at least one standout XBLA title released that is simply too good to ignore (“Braid” and “Limbo” come to mind), and this year, that game is “Fez.” But while the long-in-development indie platformer has been showered in just as much critical praise as those other titles, there’s something about “Fez” that makes it a lot more memorable, more addictive and more deserving of the recognition. Perhaps it’s because the game never stops surprising you, continuously growing both in scope and in the mind-bending difficulty of its puzzles, which in turn will make you equally frustrated and intrigued – a dangerous recipe for any gamer who refuses to call it quits.

You play as Gomez, a little white creature that lives in a 2D world; or so he thinks. After receiving a letter from a fellow villager asking to meet him one morning, Gomez comes into contact with a powerful artifact that grants him the ability to navigate the universe in three dimensions using the titular fez hat. But when a rift in space threatens to destroy Gomez’s world, the pint-sized hero must embark on a mission to collect all 32 of the golden cubes that make up the powerful hexahedron (most of which have been shattered into eight smaller cube bits) before time runs out.

The catch, however, is that although Gomez’s world is in 3D (comprised of four flat sides that can be rotated on an axis), he can still only move two-dimensionally. That means that players must constantly switch perspective using the left and right trigger buttons in order to maneuver around each level and solve puzzles. And because there are no enemies to fight or penalties for dying (if Gomez falls from a ledge, he’s promptly brought back to life), the emphasis is instead placed on exploration and discovery, of which there is enough to keep you busy for several days.

“Fez” is both incredibly simplistic and maddeningly complex, but how much time you choose to invest in the game is completely up to you, as there are many secrets to unlock, some of which can’t even be solved on your first playthrough. The game’s success doesn’t just hinge on the clever design and gameplay mechanics, though, but also on a more basic level as a giant love letter to 8-bit gaming, with visual and musical references to “Tetris” and “The Legend of Zelda,” and a fantastically nostalgic soundtrack by Disasterpiece that’s simply the icing on the cake. Though the game is plagued by a surprising number of bugs for a title that’s been in development as long as it has, “Fez” is so damn unique and charming in just about every way that they’re pretty easy to ignore.

Indie, Reviews, XBLA, Xbox 360

Fez Fez review

GAME REVIEW: The Splatters

April 14, 2012 / Jason Zingale

It’s difficult to imagine a game like “The Splatters” existing without the runaway success of “Angry Birds.” Although it shares some DNA with a few other games as well (namely, the “Worms” series), SpikySnail’s physics-driven puzzler owes a lot to the Rovio action-strategy game. Both titles are pretty similar in style, only instead of flinging birds at green pigs, you’re launching candy-colored blobs across the screen in an attempt to disarm bombs. The liquid that bursts out of the Splatters when they explode must match the same color of the bombs in order to be successful, with an assortment of unlockable moves at your disposal to maneuver around obstacles, reach strategically placed bombs and increase your score through combos.

Though “The Splatters” would probably be more suitable on a mobile device, there’s more than enough content (including three game modes and a feature called Splatter TV that lets you share clips with your friends) to warrant its inclusion on Xbox Live Arcade. But while “The Splatters” is a lot of fun to play at first, it eventually becomes a little monotonous as the challenges and uninspired maps start to bleed into one another. You probably wouldn’t notice it as much if you were just playing a few levels on your phone, but in its current form, that lack of variety is the crucial difference between a good game and a great one.

Reviews, Xbox 360

The Splatters The Splatters review

GAME REVIEW: Kinect Star Wars

April 4, 2012 / Jason Zingale

When Kinect was announced for the Xbox 360 a few years ago, one of the first questions on nearly everyone’s mind was whether we might finally get a “Star Wars” game that would let fans act out their fantasies of being real-life Jedi Knights. The device’s motion sensor controls seemed tailor-made for the “Star Wars” universe, so it didn’t come as much of a shock that Microsoft already had a game in the works. Now that “Kinect Star Wars” is finally here, though, some fans might be upset to discover that it didn’t turn out the way they imagined. Although you do get to wield a lightsaber and toss enemies around like ragdolls using the Force in Jedi Destiny – a short but enjoyable story mode where players assume the role of a Padawan on a mission against the Empire – it’s only one of many different modes available.

Jedi Destiny is without a doubt the most fleshed-out of the bunch, but while it certainly delivers on the wish fulfillment aspect of the game (there’s nothing quite like taking down an entire army of droids with a swift swipe of the hand), the controls aren’t always precise, leading to a number of frustrating moments. Still, it fares a lot better than Duels of Fate, the only other lightsaber-related minigame on the disc, which is essentially a stripped-down version of the campaign-based combat that follows the same repetitive formula of blocking, battling for position, and attacking your opponent until he’s defeated. Also included is a solid Podracing game that’s only real downside is that it’ll make your arms feel like Jell-O after just a few laps, and a shallow but fun twist on the arcade classic “Rampage” where you take control of a Rancor and wreak havoc on popular locales like Mos Eisely in virtually every way possible.

The final piece in the “Kinect Star Wars” puzzle is also the strangest: a gonzo version of “Dance Central” called Galactic Dance Off that features “Star Wars” characters busting a move to spoofs of popular songs like Gwen Stefani’s “Hollaback Girl” (“Hologram Girl”) and Jason Durelo’s “Ridin’ Solo” (“I’m Han Solo”). It sounds like a bad April Fool’s joke or something you might see on an episode of “Robot Chicken,” but it’s actually quite amusing in a weird sort of way. Though it’ll likely receive plenty of backlash from fans still complaining about Jar Jar Binks or who shot first, the dance mode adds to the whole party game experience; and for better or worse, that’s what “Kinect Star Wars” aims to deliver. It might not have the replay value to warrant a purchase, but there’s enough here to keep you and your friends entertained for the weekend.