Nov 27, 2011

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim is a momentous achievement, not just for video games but the broader entertainment industry at large.  Ignore the rough edges and persistent but minor glitches – there are so many elements packed into this one title that it’s capable of satisfying almost every human compulsion for hobby and leisure enterprises. Looking for an...

Nov 27, 2011

For all of the hubbub surrounding Skyrim’s commendable strides towards supporting a fluid transition between types of play, one major avenue has been effectively neutered: talking.  Unlike its distant cousin Fallout, there are precious few situations in this game you can talk yourself out of.  Everyone hostile wants to fuck you up on sight, no questions...

Nov 17, 2011

Super Mario 3D Land is a promise fulfilled, a grand demonstration of what the 3DS is capable of, and a glorious mashup of Mario tropes throughout the franchise’s storied history. The 3DS launched half a year ago with the intention of bringing gameplay to a new dimension.  Flashforward a few months and we are met with the release of Ocarina of Time (3D), and...

Nov 17, 2011

The real problem with Super Mario 3D Land is that it doesn’t try hard enough to distinguish itself, and in the process, fails to stand out and inspire. Sure, the platforming is solid, the controls are tight and precise, and everything is polished and shiny from the ground up – this is Nintendo, after all – but the game pulls from and references nearly...

Nov 14, 2011

Batman: Arkham City is the perfect video game sequel.  I’m being literal here.  I can’t count the number of things this game does right, and I am the most formidable counting device short of a Batcalculator; I went to college. First, Arkham City carries over all the strengths of its predecessor.  Arkham Asylum’s cinematic visuals, goth-noir ambience,...

Nov 14, 2011

How do you guarantee success for the highly anticipated sequel of an extremely successful title?  Easy.  Just make the same game over again. Batman: Arkham City amounts to a collection of recycled conventions tenuously strung together by a threadbare plot. The game follows a structural convention that goes back about as far as gaming itself.  You travel...

Nov 10, 2011

At first glance Modern Warfare 3 is the biggest, baddest, iron balls toting first person shooter of this generation. You won’t believe some of the sequences the campaign throws at you, or the ridiculous plot that gets saddled with suspension of disbelief responsibilities. Jaws will drop, no question. Step out of the cave though and you’ll a set of aging,...

Nov 10, 2011

For the uninitiated, Modern Warfare III is pretty much what you’d expect from a finely polished, blockbuster first person shooter. Shit blows up. Dudes grimace. Guns are the coolest. The entire concept of pacing is completely thrown out the window in favor of whisking you across the globe from one epic set piece to another. Everything you experience is white...

Nov 8, 2011

Popping in this game coming fresh off of Dark Souls was quite a shock, for plenty of obvious reasons but in particular the effect of dying.  Whereas death is a (very) commonly undergone game mechanic in Dark Souls, dying is one of the only ways Uncharted 3 will briefly pull you from the immersive world.  When contrasted to the highly context sensitive,...

Nov 8, 2011

When Uncharted 2 dropped it was termed an unqualified success for many excellent reasons, not the least of which was its momentous leap forward from its prequel.  The spectacular improvement instantly catapulted the franchise out of the cozy confines of “solid PS3 exclusive” to such stale turns of phrase as “system mover” and “game of the year...