(board game; $24.99; 2-Players; Ages 10+; 15-20 minutes)
(five stars)
As someone who continues to explore the niche hobby of specialty board games, there is one name that constantly comes up - Kinizia, Kinizia, Kinizia. Apparently, Dr. Reiner Kinizia is one of the most prolific and successful board game designers ever, having one multiple "Game of the Year" awards.
Kinizia took on the "Lord of the Rings" license in 2000 and put out several games with great acclaim. "Lord of the Rings: The Confrontation" is a take on the two-player, deduction strategy games as seen in the classic "Stratego." Playing as either the characters from the Fellowship of the Ring, or the minons of Mordor, players attempt to either infiltrate the other player's "base" - here, either the Shire or Mordor; or try to destroy/defend Frodo.
Each character has a special offensive or defensive ability, combined with a level of attack, and special modifier cards that allows for a surprising amount of strategy in a game that's footprint takes up such a tiny amount of space. Trying to deduce which enemy pawn is which in order to maneuver your side to the swiftest victory is both addictive and deep enough to make this a mid-level thinker that can be played in less than a half hour.
The "Deluxe Version" of this game is more widely available than the smaller, original version and adds more characters from the books for a variety of play. But even with the original version, the replayability for such an affordable and travel-friendly game makes it a must-have two-player experience.
Saturday, July 17, 2010
ModNation Racers Review
(PS3; $59.99; Rated E for Comic Violence/Mischief; www.modnation.com)
(four stars)
Continuing the line of games under PlayStation's "Play. Build. Share." branding ushered in by the undeniably adorable "Little Big Planet" comes "ModNation Racers," a game steeped in the tradition of kart-racers like "Mario Kart," but with customization built for a generation of gamers raised on YouTube.
Whereas "Little Big Planet" gave users endlessly cute tools to make whatever platformer their minds and time could muster, "ModNation" provides similar tools to make whatever racetracks, cars, and drivers a copyright-infringing user could imagine and share with the rest of the "ModNation" population online.
In fact, why Sony didn't decide to capitalize on the brand and re-name this game "Little Big Racer" is beyond me. The two games' psychology is virtually identical.
Within days of ModNation going online, I managed to download exact replicas of classic "Mario Kart" levels; karts that looked like the Mystery Machine, A-Team Van, Batmobile, and the General Lee; and drivers like Spider-Man, Optimus Prime, Mario & Luigi, "Halo's" Master Chief, and Ronald McDonald.
Who knows how long Sony can allow the servers housing such infringing material to exist is anyone's guess, but while it's there- it rivals Hanna Barbera's "Wacky Races" in terms of cross-pollinating pop culture characters.
Thankfully, the fun that can be had online and off is as solid as the litmus by which all other kart-racers are judged - "Mario Kart." Powersliding turns, driving through power pick-ups, and using those pick-ups to aggressively move your way to 1st place and defensively keep you there is the name of the game. The physics feel right, the karts are appropriately zippy, and the pick-ups are familiar.
Which is just what a modern kart-racer should feel like. As much fun as "Mario Kart" can be, with four players racing together on the same couch, it lacks the level of surprise that can be gained by playing a track that no one has ever seen before because some guy across the world just created it.
"ModNation" is, unfortunately, hampered by the completely unforgivable load times between races and while entering into the different editing submenus - as well as general PlayStation software annoyance. Between having to download and update my PlayStation's firmware, yet again, only to then download and update the PlayStation Network Store, I then had to wait 10-15 minutes for "ModNation" to install to my hard drive.
Normally, I wouldn't mind a long install up-front in order to have a smooth-running game on the back end, but despite almost 30+ minutes before getting to my first race, I still have to wait five-minute loading screens between events and options. "ModNation" developers promise an update to streamline the entire process, but without faster access throughout the whole of the game, "ModNation" stalls out temporarily at the starting line.
For those who have the patience for those types of issues, though, "ModNation's" charm and family-friendly fun is a delight.
(four stars)
Continuing the line of games under PlayStation's "Play. Build. Share." branding ushered in by the undeniably adorable "Little Big Planet" comes "ModNation Racers," a game steeped in the tradition of kart-racers like "Mario Kart," but with customization built for a generation of gamers raised on YouTube.
Whereas "Little Big Planet" gave users endlessly cute tools to make whatever platformer their minds and time could muster, "ModNation" provides similar tools to make whatever racetracks, cars, and drivers a copyright-infringing user could imagine and share with the rest of the "ModNation" population online.
In fact, why Sony didn't decide to capitalize on the brand and re-name this game "Little Big Racer" is beyond me. The two games' psychology is virtually identical.
Within days of ModNation going online, I managed to download exact replicas of classic "Mario Kart" levels; karts that looked like the Mystery Machine, A-Team Van, Batmobile, and the General Lee; and drivers like Spider-Man, Optimus Prime, Mario & Luigi, "Halo's" Master Chief, and Ronald McDonald.
Who knows how long Sony can allow the servers housing such infringing material to exist is anyone's guess, but while it's there- it rivals Hanna Barbera's "Wacky Races" in terms of cross-pollinating pop culture characters.
Thankfully, the fun that can be had online and off is as solid as the litmus by which all other kart-racers are judged - "Mario Kart." Powersliding turns, driving through power pick-ups, and using those pick-ups to aggressively move your way to 1st place and defensively keep you there is the name of the game. The physics feel right, the karts are appropriately zippy, and the pick-ups are familiar.
Which is just what a modern kart-racer should feel like. As much fun as "Mario Kart" can be, with four players racing together on the same couch, it lacks the level of surprise that can be gained by playing a track that no one has ever seen before because some guy across the world just created it.
"ModNation" is, unfortunately, hampered by the completely unforgivable load times between races and while entering into the different editing submenus - as well as general PlayStation software annoyance. Between having to download and update my PlayStation's firmware, yet again, only to then download and update the PlayStation Network Store, I then had to wait 10-15 minutes for "ModNation" to install to my hard drive.
Normally, I wouldn't mind a long install up-front in order to have a smooth-running game on the back end, but despite almost 30+ minutes before getting to my first race, I still have to wait five-minute loading screens between events and options. "ModNation" developers promise an update to streamline the entire process, but without faster access throughout the whole of the game, "ModNation" stalls out temporarily at the starting line.
For those who have the patience for those types of issues, though, "ModNation's" charm and family-friendly fun is a delight.
Transformers: War for Cybertron Review
(Xbox, PS3, Wii; $59.99; Rated T for Violence; transformersgame.com)
(two and a half stars)
Here are things that are awesome:
Robots.
Vehicles.
Things that become other things.
Combining all three things that are awesome - Robots that become Vehicles - would make for a triple-threat of awesomeness. And the mythology of the Transformers - the evil Decepticons, lead by the Kim Jong Il of robots Megatron, fight to destroy the noble Autobots, lead by the fearless Optimus Prime - make for a can't lose Circle of Cool.
So how is it that everything bearing the "Transformers" name since 1985, when the real "Transformers: the movie" was released, is just so... meh?
I'd say it's because I'm no longer a 10 year-old boy, but my re-watching of the classic '85 flick proves me wrong. That movie holds up and is awesome (plus, fun fact: Orson Well's last movie). Clearly, "Transformers" is timeless, but only in the right hands.
Developers, High Moon Studios, recognize that and try to do the mythos justice with "Transformers: War for Cybertron," but come up short by creating a by-the-numbers third-person shooter that feels it was made about five years ago. No innovation in gameplay is here, nothing unique to take note of, and nothing that warrants more than a weekend rental. By no means is this a bad game, just wholly mediocre.
Taking place before the events that lead to the Autobots crash-landing on Earth, "War for Cybertron" focuses on the beginning of civil war between Autobot and Decepticon. For those geeked out about "Transformers," "War for Cybertron" is canonical and signed off as the way it all went down by license-holder, Hasbro.
Players begin on the Decepticon side of the war, with Megatron and two other Decepticons pursuing 'Dark Energon' which will be the key to augmenting Megatron's power and taking Cybertron for himself. Play involves a three-bot squad moving through environments that are long enough to take advantage of the ability to transform into vehicle mode, but beyond getting from point-A to point-B quicker, Vehicle Mode is fairly useless. This is especially a shame for the portions of the game played as a fighter jet, where a great use of dog-fighting and stationary sniping should have really be explored; or for unique car chases.
The art style of the game is good, if it didn't look all so blended in together. Each classic Transformer is envisioned as a good mix between the "G1" Transformers from the 80s and the Michael Bay awfulness of the recent movies. Unfortunately, in going for an edgier look to the characters and Cybertron as a whole, High Moon Studios makes everything look washed out - chocking the environments so full of metal makes distinguishing the enemies from the backgrounds a challenge in itself.
Online multiplayer shows some promise, using the squad-based, experience-leveling mechanic of "Call of Duty" to unlock new weapons and perks. But the lack of an actual cover mechanic, makes this third-person shooter more chaotic than enjoyable.
For those who can't get enough of those Robots in Disguise, "War for Cybertron" is worth a look for some of the cleverness in the mythos; but perhaps only after the pice is slashed by $30.
(two and a half stars)
Here are things that are awesome:
Robots.
Vehicles.
Things that become other things.
Combining all three things that are awesome - Robots that become Vehicles - would make for a triple-threat of awesomeness. And the mythology of the Transformers - the evil Decepticons, lead by the Kim Jong Il of robots Megatron, fight to destroy the noble Autobots, lead by the fearless Optimus Prime - make for a can't lose Circle of Cool.
So how is it that everything bearing the "Transformers" name since 1985, when the real "Transformers: the movie" was released, is just so... meh?
I'd say it's because I'm no longer a 10 year-old boy, but my re-watching of the classic '85 flick proves me wrong. That movie holds up and is awesome (plus, fun fact: Orson Well's last movie). Clearly, "Transformers" is timeless, but only in the right hands.
Developers, High Moon Studios, recognize that and try to do the mythos justice with "Transformers: War for Cybertron," but come up short by creating a by-the-numbers third-person shooter that feels it was made about five years ago. No innovation in gameplay is here, nothing unique to take note of, and nothing that warrants more than a weekend rental. By no means is this a bad game, just wholly mediocre.
Taking place before the events that lead to the Autobots crash-landing on Earth, "War for Cybertron" focuses on the beginning of civil war between Autobot and Decepticon. For those geeked out about "Transformers," "War for Cybertron" is canonical and signed off as the way it all went down by license-holder, Hasbro.
Players begin on the Decepticon side of the war, with Megatron and two other Decepticons pursuing 'Dark Energon' which will be the key to augmenting Megatron's power and taking Cybertron for himself. Play involves a three-bot squad moving through environments that are long enough to take advantage of the ability to transform into vehicle mode, but beyond getting from point-A to point-B quicker, Vehicle Mode is fairly useless. This is especially a shame for the portions of the game played as a fighter jet, where a great use of dog-fighting and stationary sniping should have really be explored; or for unique car chases.
The art style of the game is good, if it didn't look all so blended in together. Each classic Transformer is envisioned as a good mix between the "G1" Transformers from the 80s and the Michael Bay awfulness of the recent movies. Unfortunately, in going for an edgier look to the characters and Cybertron as a whole, High Moon Studios makes everything look washed out - chocking the environments so full of metal makes distinguishing the enemies from the backgrounds a challenge in itself.
Online multiplayer shows some promise, using the squad-based, experience-leveling mechanic of "Call of Duty" to unlock new weapons and perks. But the lack of an actual cover mechanic, makes this third-person shooter more chaotic than enjoyable.
For those who can't get enough of those Robots in Disguise, "War for Cybertron" is worth a look for some of the cleverness in the mythos; but perhaps only after the pice is slashed by $30.
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