Archive for the ‘Action RPG Reviews’ Category.
The Zone is a harsh mistress, as all who’ve followed the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. games can attest. GSC Game World’s adventure-heavy shooters borrowed from both the real Exclusion Zone and works of related science fiction to present a unique, beautiful, and deadly environment. The games featured their own hazards to the player: technical instability, a steep difficulty curve, and unforgiving gunplay. With Call of Pripyat, however, GSC has pulled off the impossible and delivered a stable, well balanced, and surprisingly complete entry into the series. Though still far short of perfection, Pripyat’s take on the Zone is fascinating and rewarding in ways that few other games are. Continue reading ‘Blurring the Line: S.T.A.L.K.E.R. – Call of Pripyat – Staff Review’ »
Borderlands presents an interesting mash up of First-Person Shooter and RPG elements, which eventually come together to produce a unique sort of combat system with a lot to offer. Unfortunately, a clunky interface, flatlined plot, and a certain monotony when it comes to environments drag the game down significantly, becoming glaring issues towards the end of the game. On the whole, Borderlands is a solidly built game, and it works well for gamers looking for something a little bit different, but it’s not a particularly compelling or amazing title. Continue reading ‘Borderlands – Staff Review’ »
If you played it to completion, the safe money says you’re not forgetting Bioshock anytime soon. 2K’s recent entry into the hybrid role-playing/shooter genre is sometimes a victim of its own hype, but it never lacks for imagination and proves a fun, engaging journey all the same. Bioshock 2 brings us back to the crumbling city of Rapture, evolving the gameplay in all the right places. Sadly, the plot never quite has the legs to stand on its own, and it seems to keep forgetting that the story of Rapture – and its extremist founder Andrew Ryan – is the more interesting one. Continue reading ‘Blurring the Line: Bioshock 2 – Staff Review’ »
Say what you will about Bioware, but they take no task lightly. By any measure Mass Effect was an epic affair, and topping that in a believable fashion – while integrating the characters and choices that made the first game meaningful – must have posed nearly countless problems for the team. To say they pulled it off is a gross understatement; Mass Effect 2 is a vast improvement over its predecessor in nearly every respect and a superb middle chapter in the series. Continue reading ‘Mass Effect 2 (PC) – Staff Review’ »
As far as games go, a sequel is simply the second game in a series. A good sequel properly follows up the first game’s events. A great sequel takes the good in the previous game and builds on it while improving or eliminating the bad. By this measure, Mass Effect 2 is definitely a great sequel.
Continue reading ‘Mass Effect 2 (Xbox 360) – Staff Review’ »
The main features of Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of the New World are an engaging and solidly balanced combat system, and a somewhat overbearing and at times saccharine story. In this, it is a fairly typical Tales game. That isn’t to say ToS:DotNW is a bad game — on the contrary, the game is quite well constructed — merely that it comes off as a bit derivative, particularly where the story is concerned. ToS:DotNW does try a number of new things with the series with varying levels of success, but overall, it’s unlikely that anyone who already has an opinion about the Tales series will find their position swayed one way or the other due to this game. Continue reading ‘Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of the New World – Staff Review’ »
The Legend of Zelda franchise is one of the oldest action RPG series out there, and it is unique in that it has consistently offered a similar experience, whether it is played on a console or a handheld. Zelda is and always will be all about exploring dungeons, finding hidden items, and then using them to solve the puzzles within. It is this core experience that brings players back again and again, some in spite of the similarities from game to game and some because of them. When the franchise made the move to the DS, many questioned whether it could work with its all-stylus control scheme. Phantom Hourglass silenced many a naysayer, but sadly, Spirit Tracks does not have the same punch that its predecessor had. Continue reading ‘The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks – Staff Review’ »
Since the release of Kingdom Hearts II, many players wondered what Roxas’s time in Organization XIII was like. Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days answers that question: it was like being a real-life cubicle worker, a cog in a corporate machine that grinds away at its work. It’s almost like “Walt Disney presents Office Space.” And like Office Space, it’s at its best when things start to unravel.
Continue reading ‘Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days – Staff Review’ »
Dragonica Online is a very solidly designed game which is unfortunately marred by some of the same issues that have plagued other free to play MMOs for years now. It offers arcade-style beat-’em-up combat that makes the game genuinely entertaining to play, and provides a wealth of activities for players who are interested in more than mindless grinding, but it also has some significant issues with its level curve, as well as some unpleasant balance issues. On the whole, Dragonica Online is a good choice for those looking for an unusual and active online game, but it doesn’t deal with the pacing issues unique to online gaming any better than most free to play MMOs. Continue reading ‘Dragonica Online – Staff Review’ »
When it was announced, Dissidia: Final Fantasy sounded like an interesting concept: a fighting game starring Final Fantasy characters. At first glance, you might think it is the spiritual successor to Ehrgeiz. You’d be wrong. The only thing this game has in common with that PS1 brawler is the inclusion of Cloud and Sephiroth among the cast. Make no mistakes about it. This is an action RPG at its finest, and for fans that have dutifully played the first ten Final Fantasy games, it’s chock full of nostalgia and gameplay that will keep you coming back. Continue reading ‘Dissidia: Final Fantasy – Staff Review’ »
With virtual Alaska, Pittsburgh, Point Lookout, and a better endgame behind it, Fallout 3 has set its sights a bit higher – literally – with its latest DLC. Putting a big twist on a previously unmarked encounter, Mothership Zeta is essentially a lengthy, linear shoot-em-up quest in the vein of Operation: Anchorage. While the setting is novel and it contains some memorable setpieces, it’s crippled by balance issues, overlong segments, and, of all things, plot holes. For all its atmosphere, Zeta can’t shake the feeling of wasted potential. Continue reading ‘Fallout 3: Mothership Zeta – Staff Review’ »
I’d like to start this review with a caveat. Normally, I don’t review sequels unless I have played the previous game. This time, however, I’m reviewing Fable II as someone who never played Fable. Though I won’t be able to tell what’s an improvement or a step down from the first game, I’ll be able to present the perspective of someone who is new to the series.
Continue reading ‘Fable II – Staff Review’ »
Nobody could envy the task set before Harvey Smith and Ion Storm: following up on the surprise success of Deus Ex. If they changed too much, they would risk losing what made the game special, but if they changed too little the series could stagnate. Unfortunately, the changes Invisible War brings to the table are too often damaging in comparison to its predecessor, and some of the changes make little sense on their own. Invisible War does deliver a compelling adventure, to a point, and brings a few neat ideas to the table, but it fails to meaningfully follow in Deus Ex’s footsteps and makes too many of its own stumbles along the way. Continue reading ‘Deus Ex: Invisible War – Staff Review’ »
Valkyrie Profile 2: Silmeria has an impressive set of credentials to recommend it. Possessing a high-energy, yet tactically challenging combat system, an unexpected epic symphonic soundtrack, some truly impressive visuals, and a sharp, well written story, Valkyrie Profile 2: Silmeria is a remarkable title which should appeal to a wide variety of gamers. However, those expecting an experience similar to Valkyrie Profile: Lenneth will be disappointed, as most of the gameplay mechanics that made it so unique have been gutted or outright omitted. There are also a few problems with stiff animation, poor lip sync, and a bit of excess deus ex machina late in the plot, but the game offers an entertaining and thought-provoking take on the Valkyrie Profile world to those willing to accept the changes it makes to the series. Continue reading ‘Valkyrie Profile 2: Silmeria – Staff Review’ »
It takes a certain kind of person to look at Fallout 3’s Capitol Wasteland and say “Well, that’s pretty desolate and inhospitable, but I think we could do better. Get the guys together, we’re making another add-on.” How Bethesda wound up at Point Lookout, Maryland, is anybody’s guess, but what matters is Point Lookout is easily the biggest and arguably the best downloadable content for Fallout 3 to date. It’s not perfect by any measure, but it gets within shouting distance at times and comes as an easy recommendation to anyone who liked the original game. Continue reading ‘Fallout 3: Point Lookout – Staff Review’ »
When Devil Summoner: Raidou Kuzunoha vs. the Soulless Army was released in the winter of 2006, it seemed to be a bit of a black sheep for the Shin Megami Tensei series. The game was much more about the alternate history detective story at the core of its plot than it was about the more traditional mythological influences of the series, and although the combat system still focused rather strongly on exploiting elemental weaknesses, the fact that it was action-based rather than turn-based made the game feel quite different from the normal SMT title. Devil Summoner 2: Raidou Kuzunoha vs King Abbadon brings the Devil Summoner sub-series a bit more into line with the overarching feel of the SMT series, but still retains most of what made the first game interesting. In short, Devil Summoner 2 is a solid improvement on the series. Continue reading ‘Devil Summoner: Raidou Kuzunoha vs King Abbadon – Staff Review’ »
The path to recovery begins with the simplest but hardest action a person can take: admitting they’ve done something wrong. So some applause is in order for Bethesda, who finally saw fit to take another crack at Fallout 3’s ending after the near unanimous criticism it earned. The ending was one of the few truly uncontested blights on an otherwise excellent long-awaited sequel, and that Broken Steel addresses this weakness goes without saying; the game is unquestionably better for it. Whether Broken Steel hits the right notes on its own, however, is another matter. Continue reading ‘Fallout 3: Broken Steel – Staff Review’ »
Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles was an interesting experiment back in the days of the GameCube, a system known for its multiplayer prowess. Though the game could be played solo, it was clearly intended to be played with friends, but it came with one tiny hitch. In an effort to promote the GBA and the ill-fated GBA link cable, multiplay required separate GBAs with cables for each player. When the series made the move to the DS, Ring of Fates improved the situation tremendously by providing a game that could be enjoyed solo or with friends, but the multiplayer required a local connection. The third attempt, Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Echoes of Time, is a valiant attempt to get it right, but in the end, it still falls short. Continue reading ‘Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Echoes of Time – Staff Review’ »
The Red Menace might have had enough nukes to saturate every square inch of the United States, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that they did. The Pitt, a downloadable questline courtesy of Bethesda, suggests just that; the Capitol made such a meaty target that the Soviets didn’t spare a direct strike for a nearby industrial center. As it turns out, they didn’t really need to: what once was Pittsburgh now crawls with gangs, disease, feral mutants, and oppressed workers living at the mercy of a cruel despot and his army of hired thugs. A hijacked radio beacon calls the player’s attention to the plight of an escapee from what is now known as The Pitt, and the adventure begins. Continue reading ‘Fallout 3: The Pitt – Staff Review’ »
The Ys (pronounced like the word ‘ease’) series has had a long and successful career in Japan with the seventh numbered entry announced, several remakes, and at least two spin-off games. Until recently, the only Ys titles ever translated for North American release were 3 and 6. Atlus decided to change all that by bringing over Legacy of Ys: Books I & II, a DS remake of the first two games. Continue reading ‘Legacy of Ys: Books I & II – Staff Review’ »
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