Psychonauts First Impressions

I buy a lot of charity bundles. I figure that if I don’t play video games all too often, I might as well amass a digital collection and donate to good causes. This gives me an incentive to try out video games I might otherwise not pay attention too, which is a shame given some of the titles I own. On one summer night I downloaded through my Humble Bundle library an action platformer from a developer I greatly admire and played through the first level or so. It might be too late to be relevant since I already started soon, but it’s still August, so I am finding time to talk about Psychonauts, Double Fine’s first retail video game release.

Lufia 2 First Impressions

The summer season is upon us, and the regular video game releases slow for a while. Some fill in the gap by purchasing discounted games on a digital distribution service and engaging in a community metagame to win prizes. Others raise money for charity by showing off how to complete games as quickly as possible, sometimes by breaking the game entirely. A while ago I noticed one video game site was doing a sort of book club by asking people to play through old Japanese developed console role playing games and discuss them at set times. The event inspired me to get a hold on an old out of print Super Nintendo game that, after playing for about an hour, I can say that I really should have picked it up earlier.

Brütal Legend First Impressions

Last year I attended an event called Day of the Devs in San Francisco. A company named Double Fine teamed up with other local video game developers for a showcase for upcoming games. It was cool seeing stuff that would not normally be stocked on retail shelves, and it was a chance to get a game I bought years ago to be signed by Double Fine founder Tim Schafer. Since I need to catch up on my game backlog, here’s an explanation of why I liked the first experience with the last full priced retail game Schafer’s studio produced.

Barkley 2 First Impressions

With May and a change in season approaching, it’s time to give an update on my video game playing habits. Unfortunately, the only title of note recently has been Bravely Default, so I need to pull some information from months past. The first article on this blog dealt with a demo I saw at a convention back in 2012. While I have not traveled far for a games expo, I did attend the Game Developers Conference this March and checked out an independent developers section separated from the main expo floor. I backed this project this Kickstarter, and it’s about time I talk about my impressions of a build of Barkley 2.

Bravely Default First Impressions

The blog has been silent for a while, but I have been keeping up with gaming news. Playing the new titles I purchased need to wait for more pressing issues, but I still sit down for a session once in a blue moon. Other times I try out a game only to find out that I am obsessed with it to the point that I want to write about it before I go any further into the adventure. For a recently released Japanese RPG on the Nintendo 3DS, I find myself in this situation. I better write about it before defaulting on more important obligations.

Enslaved First Impressions

Before Naughty Dog and Sony Santa Monica released their action titles for the PlayStation 3, a studio in the United Kingdom brought an action game to the system. The title showed promise of what the developers at Ninja Theory were capable. I was pleased to hear that the next title from the company would be a multiplatform action adventure title based on an ancient Chinese epic. While the acting and story engaged me during the first few chapters I played, my experience with other action titles of this generation left me thinking that Enslaved: Odyssey to the West was a good but not great video game in its genre.

Ghost Trick First Impressions

In previous articles I mentioned how much I enjoy adventure games. I have beaten all of the Ace Attorney games that have been released in North America to this point. The creator of the series decided to work on something different after finishing the fourth Ace Attorney game. I spent some time playing that standalone adventure, and I would like to talk about the refreshing experience I got when playing Ghost Trick.

Bioshock First Impressions

Irrational Games is one of the best development studios out there. In 1999 they made System Shock 2, a hybrid first person shooter/role playing game set in a creepy science fiction universe, and even now many consider it to be a challenging game with immersive environments, an engaging story, and a sense that the player’s choice uniquely affects how you actually play. Bioshock as a spiritual successor maintains that engagement and atmosphere years later in a completely new environment. A brief stint with the beginning of the game is evidence enough of that.

Ratchet and Clank First Impressions

Over the past few years, the market shifted from character-based platformers to multiplayer shooters. One developer, Insomniac Games, has offered games from both genres on a regular schedule. While Resistance is a solid sci-fi shooter, I prefer the more family friendly cartoon world of Ratchet and Clank.  Some insight on the choice might be gained if I talked about my initial experience with the series debut about a rogue space mechanic and his robot sidekick.

Alpha Protocol First Impressions

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Role playing games are one of my favorite genre of video games. When I’m not min-maxing my character stats, I can spend hours just exploring the world and talking with the characters in it. I was looking forward to Obsidian Entertainment’s original product ever since they got the Game Informer April 2008 cover story. Unfortunately, the game finally released in 2010 to a mixed critical reception. I picked up an Xbox 360 copy of the game for $5, and I just tried to play through a few of the beginning missions to see why people on the internet claimed Alpha Protocol was a much better RPG experience than the action-heavy Mass Effect series for instance. I sort of understand why the game didn’t provide the action people were expecting, but like other Obsidian-developed titles, I really enjoy the writing that puts the narrative above others for a mature title.

Batman: Arkham Asylum First Impressions

As part of a charity drive, I was asked to donate some of my video games to a local organization to reward youth for bringing in contributions. I always seem to have some video games enclosed in their wrappers, and one of the games I gave away was Batman: Arkham Origins for the Xbox 360. I figured I messed up because I preordered the collectors edition that included a DVD copy of a movie that I could have acquired on Blu-ray if I preordered the PS3 version of the game. Either way, I still have not finished the other Arkham titles, so I figured I should talk about my experience with them before trying out what appears to be a more mediocre sequel in the franchise.

Phoenix Wright Ace Attorney Dual Destinies First Impressions

The law has been a passion of mine, so Capcom’s Ace Attorney adventure game series is a franchise I pay close attention to. North America did not get the last Ace Attorney game localized, though, as they see the games as niche titles, and it was a spin-off anyway. Recently Capcom released the fifth game in the main series, Phoenix Wright Ace Attorney: Dual Destinies on the Nintendo 3DS eShop. I am happy to report that new look is a return to form for the courtroom adventure, and I was pleasantly surprised to see Phoenix Wright back in action.

Rayman Legends First Impressions

Title Screen for Rayman Legends

Nintendo is set to release its new console on Sunday. The main drive of the new Nintendo product is that the controller has a tablet screen. I got the chance to play some of the new system’s upcoming titles at an invitation event called the Wii U Experience. While I enjoyed the standard Mario platformer at the event, one game in particular surprised me. The demo of Rayman Legends showed me what a third party mascot-driven platformer would feel like on Nintendo’s new system.

Shadow Complex First Impressions

Shadow Complex XBLA Cover

I really enjoy adventure games. There’s just something about exploring the unknown that makes me want to sit down hours for a time and enjoy the experience. These days people are interested in shooters, so one Xbox Live Arcade title seeks to deliver both an action adventure and an action shooter.

Harold First Impressions

Harold Game Logo

When I went to this year’s Penny Arcade Expo, I was on the hunt for unique gems on display at the main hall. One game in particular caught my eye behind the dance stage Harmonix had set up for their upcoming game. Let me talk about my experience with the demo of Harold.