Matt Cullen
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COGConnected Latest Reviews
I like to consider myself an experienced gamer, having played all sorts of games at all types of difficulty. Once and a while, though, a game comes along that is so challenging it has me raging and spewing obscenities… yet I cannot put it down. This is one of those times. Let me introduce you to Titan Souls. My first experience with the game was at PAX East (Boston) in March, where I had some hands-on time with it in demo form. The demo was short, but gave me a tantalizing taste of the game, wanting more – but would the finished game satisfy, or just leave bad taste in my mouth?
Your pulse is racing, you are tightly strapped into your seat, sweat starts to roll down your forehead, and you question your sanity for being where you are as you start your climb… then after the ever-so-slightest of pauses, you are suddenly falling at great rates of speed and hit with G-Forces that jet pilots experience daily. But you’re not a pilot – you are an amusement park rider. New from Frontier Developments (the studio behind the Roller Coaster Tycoon series) is ScreamRide, which focuses solely on the thrill-rides with a scientific spin. You will be both the rider and the creator of fiendishly fast and furious rides… but will it leave you feeling the adrenaline rush you seek, or just feeling queasy?
Back when the Xbox 360 was released I loved checking out games in the arcade section of the Xbox Live Arcade store. Our household quickly became addicted to a twin-stick shooter called Geometry Wars. It was fast, flashy, and very addicting to try to reach even higher scores. A sequel was released a few years later that was just as fun. Eventually other games drew our attention away from the game while the developer was bought up and eventually closed by their new owners. Fast forward to present day, we have the Xbox One with impressive hardware inside of it and a new area for arcade game. Rising from the ashes is a new Geometry Wars, aptly titled Geometry Wars 3: Dimensions. This game has been brought to us from a new developer, Lucid Games, and published by an old name brought to back life, Sierra. Can this game live up to its ancestors or will it be just a ghost of its former self?
My first experience with Guacameele! was a few years ago at PAX East, where I was able to meet and interview a few of the developers of the game. At that point I really didn’t know much of the game, but after getting some time with their floor-demo, I was instantly in love. The game was released soon after on the PS3, and I enjoyed every minute of it deeply. Now a freshly-updated version has been launched with a bunch of delicious new upgrades to sink your teeth into.
Having played a lot of role playing games over the years, I’m used to seeing a familiar formula: you take on the role of a young hero (often with amnesia) who suddenly has the chore of saving the world from an evil force threatening to destroy or take over the world. The characters you would associate with would typically be the noble kind and would do anything to help you out.
Spending most of my childhood in arcades I saw a lot of fighting games come and go, from various Street Fighters, to Tekken, SNK Fighters, and Mortal Kombat, but there is one fighting series that holds a special place in my heart. I don’t know why it does exactly. It could have been the stylish graphics for its time, the bass-thumping high-energy soundtrack, or the intense action. Whatever the reason Killer Instinct was my “go-to” arcade machine back then. A sequel was released a few years later that also caught my interest, but nothing lasts forever. As the years passed by arcades closed one-by-one, and my once-favourite game faded away. Nintendo released versions of Killer Instinct for the SNES and N64, but it somehow just wasn’t the same. Fast forward to present day, a reborn Killer Instinct has been released exclusively for the Xbox One. I got chills when I saw the trailer for it for the first time at E3, but will it live up to its legacy and my fond memories of the series?
Once upon a time in the 90’s there was a videogame developer called 3D Realms. They were in their prime with hits such as Duke Nukem, Blood, Rise of the Triad, and a little first person shooter called Shadow Warrior. Fast forward to today, their most popular games legacy lives on in remakes and re-releases: some have failed (cough Duke Nukem cough), and some have been remade from the ground up. Shadow Warrior falls into the latter category, thanks to the work of Flying Wild Hog. It is more a “re-imagination” of the world and the main character from the original game than it is a full remake.
Many who enjoy the thrill of action and war in video games will head towards the newest and most popular first person shooters, but there are others who enjoy the more tactical options that the real time strategy genre offers. Company of Heroes 2 by Relic Entertainment is a fine example of this.