Kezins

C64 Games: Spelunker (Video)

kezins — Wed, 29 Dec 2010 20:22:17 +0000

Review: Dragon’s Lair II: Time Warp (DSiWare)

kezins — Tue, 28 Dec 2010 20:26:13 +0000

Dragon’s Lair was a LaserDisc video game published back in 1983. The game featured awesome animation by Don Bluth and was a one-of-a-kind arcade game at the time. The game came out during a generation of sprite graphics, so it really stood out from the entire crowd. The game was basically more of an interactive movie that tasked you with pressing the correct button quickly enough every few seconds. This may sound easy, but the game was quite a challenge to beat. Over the years, Dragon’s Lair has been re-released on numerous platforms with varying degrees of success. While it will always be a classic in my mind, the numerous releases have started to wear thin.

Time Warp is very similar to the original game, but it’s on a much smaller screen and the events of the game are told in a linear fashion. There’s a few interesting parts of the story such as trips through the Garden of Eden and Wonderland. The story isn’t much to write home about though. This game relies on constant action, which can become a little tedious after a while. It’s unfortunate, but I don’t think many people will consider this game a classic for various reasons. The story is slightly interesting, but mostly non-existent.

The best thing about Time Warp is the visuals, but they fall short primarily due to format limitations. The animations are well-done, but nothing stands out as “great”. Visual hints in the game are extremely hard to catch, making the game quite difficult in parts. I would love to have seen this game on the Sony PS3 or Xbox 360 instead of playing it on a portable system. This type of game will probably never be successful as a portable option.

The game has two modes, but they aren’t much different from one another. The Director’s Cut option simply changes the ending scene of the game. There’s no difficulty options in the game, but you can add infinite lives. Due to visual limitations, the game can be extremely difficult in parts, yet very easy in others. These problems make it to where your experience with the title doesn’t flow very well.

In The End…

This is a game that simply never had a chance. Due to system limitations, it would never live up to the original experience. The graphics are good, but not quite as good as they should be. There’s simply not enough here for fans of the series and definitely not enough for newcomers. Avoid this game!

Score: 3/10 (Bad)

‘Dead Space 2′ Demo Impressions

kezins — Tue, 28 Dec 2010 18:05:27 +0000

Survival horror games have been a favorite of mine since the original days of Resident Evil. Dead Space hit the scene in 2008 and may be the greatest survival horror game ever released. I assumed that the game would be extremely hard to top, but from the looks of the DS2 demo, I might have been wrong.

Instead of being stuck on a ship, this time you are at the city of Sprawl. After exploring the Church of Unitology (not a safe haven btw) and some of Sprawl, it became apparent that Dead Space 2 will have plenty of interesting content for players.

The story features Isaac Clarke, an engineer fresh off his adventures from an abandoned mining ship in Dead Space. Clarke is now at the city of Sprawl attempting to stop a group of mysterious creatures known as “Necromorphs”. In addition to fighting Necromorphs, it also looks like you might be going up against a human faction as well.

A lot of people are probably wondering what changes were made for Dead Space 2... From the short (yet good) demo, the primary change seems to be the environment. It also looks like there will be new weapons. During the demo, you get a chance to use a new javelin gun that impales enemies easily. The demo also included a very short zero-gravity sequence that was more impressive than what you found in the original game. The audio in the demo was just as impressive as the original. All in all, it looks like they have set up an excellent environment for a survival horror adventure.

All in all, the game feels very familiar to the original, so you’ll be able to pick up right where you left off. With a new environment, new weapons, new enemies and a more realistic zero-gravity experience, this game should be an instant classic.

I’m looking forward to finding out more about the church and the plot that it is a part of. Dead Space 2 hits shelves on January 25 and I definitely plan to check it out.

10 Most Anticipated Games of 2011

kezins — Tue, 28 Dec 2010 14:01:54 +0000

2010 was a great year for gaming, but 2011 looks even better. I’ve gone through the list of games coming out in 2011 and have narrowed them down to a list of ten. The following games will more than likely be my favorites next year (in no particular order):

Kingdom Hearts: Re:coded (Nintendo DS)
Valkyria Chronicles 3 (Sony PSP)
Little Big Planet 2 (Sony PS3)
No More Heroes: Heroes’ Paradise (Sony PS3)
Deus Ex: Human Revolution (Sony PS3, Xbox 360, PC, OnLive)
Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (Sony PS3, Xbox 360, PC)
Dead Space 2 (Sony PS3, Xbox 360)
Crysis 2 (Sony PS3, Xbox 360, PC)
Witcher 2: The Assassins of Kings (Xbox 360, PC)
L.A. Noire (Sony PS3, Xbox 360)

Final Fantasy VII: Tifa’s Theme Violin

kezins — Tue, 28 Dec 2010 01:13:38 +0000

Mario Party 2: Luigi Wins By Doing Absolutely Nothing

kezins — Tue, 28 Dec 2010 00:33:35 +0000