Tag Archive: ray carsillo


EGM Review: Kid Icarus: Uprising

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April 16, 2012

Get ready to hate eggplant again

Many of us who grew up with the NES fell in love with the idea of a little angel who was trying to save the heavens from a nasty demon with snakes for hair. Then we played this game and proceeded to throw and smash many a controller due to what would become its legendary difficulty and would need to go to anger therapy for being turned into an eggplant over and over again.

But still, all this was part of the charm of the original Kid Icarus, and many of us wondered why we never received a true console sequel. Sure there was a Game Boy version in 1991 that was really just a dumbed down version of the original and we’d later be teased and taunted by Pit being a fighter in Super Smash Bros. Brawl. But now, finally, after so long, Pit is back to serve the goddess of light, Palutena, and save the world once again from Medusa. And Medusa has a few surprises in store for our dear Pit, including a dark doppelganger of our hero, the return of her lieutenants like Pandora, and yes, that damned Eggplant Wizard as well. At least now the eggplant thing is only temporary though (although I would’ve loved to have seen some 3D nurses).

But, although Eggplant Wizard may no longer be as infuriating as he once was (or his new cousin Tempura Wizard that can turn Pit into a shrimp), there is still some great difficulty to be had with the new Kid Icarus: Uprising. But if the normal experience should prove simple for some of you out there, you can make the game more difficult before hand by sacrificing found hearts to the “Fiend’s Cauldron” before each chapter and amp up the Intensity to a level 10 (the game starts at an Intensity level of 2). This can lead to finding bigger and better treasure in a level, but will also throw a lot more and stronger enemies at you and if you should die, you lose all the hearts you used to increase the difficulty in the first place.

Unfortunately, the “Fiend’s Cauldron” isn’t the only thing that makes the game difficult. Some of the game’s inherent difficulty also stems from the unusual control scheme. All of the action from the game stems from shooting with the L Button, moving with the circle pad, and using the stylus to aim and look. Each level is broken into two parts. The first is always an on-rails in the air style shooter where Palutena is guiding Pit’s wings and all you have to do is shoot enemies as they come on screen. This works fine with the odd controls.

The problems always arose during the second part of each level when Pit was on the ground and the game became more of a traditional third-person shooter. It was difficult to target enemies, move the camera around with the stylus, and really just figure out where you were going at any time or where you should be looking. I would have killed for some sort of Z-Targeting system like in The Legend of Zelda games (or a second joystick like every other shooter made in the past decade) just to help me keep my bearings with a lot of the foes, especially during the epic boss battles. And although the included stand does help alleviate some of the strain that comes from having to hold the 3DS so awkwardly whenever you play, it also limits you to where you can play as it only works best on a table or flat surface of some kind. Trust me, I tried it in my lap and a few other places, and tables are your best bet.

Despite this, you’ll probably be able to force your way through most of the game as long as you take it in short spurts of only a couple of chapters at a time. And because of the humorous writing and great story, you’ll definitely be compelled to finish the story mode. Not to mention, the ability to use nine different types of weapons with a bevy of options in each category really helps keep the game play from getting too boring as you get new weapons through a variety of different means.

But, here I am getting carried away with how awesome the story mode is, and I almost forgot that there is also a huge new multiplayer component to the game as well. First, you can use AR cards included with the game or Idols collected in game to duel various creatures from the game’s universe against each other with the 3DS cameras. There are also “Light vs. Dark” team-style and “Free-For-All” versus arena modes where you can battle up to six players with your own customized Pit depending on what weapons you find and use in the game.

The game is also pleasing to the eyes and ears as no two levels, in story mode or versus, look alike and take advantage of a bright and colorful design palette, and the voice acting, especially for Pit and Palutena in story mode, who fill in most of the gaps of the story with some witty mid-level banter, is simply top of the line. Add in some remixes of classic NES themes and a few new tunes as well and the audio/visual component of the game is superb all around.

When all is said and done, although the controls may be frustrating at times and take some getting used to, this is a very solid game. Great visuals, tremendous depth of game play modes, and a fully realized plot that is brilliantly executed on every level makes this probably a must have for every 3DS owner out there.

SUMMARY: A brilliantly written and executed new chapter in the long-abandoned, but never forgotten, Kid Icarus franchise that will appeal to new and old fans alike with its amazing depth and stunning visuals.

  • THE GOOD: Great action and writing throughout
  • THE BAD: Unusual control system can get uncomfortable after long periods of time
  • THE UGLY: How about a two-decade long wait for a true sequel

SCORE: 8.5

Kid Icarus: Uprising is a Nintendo 3DS exclusive.

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EGM Review: Defenders of Ardania

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None Shall Pass!

High fantasy seems to be the soup de jour in the games industry nowadays with games like Lord of the Rings, Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, Game of Thrones, Kingdoms of Amalur, etc., etc., either having just been released or are just beyond the horizon. But something that hasn’t been beaten to death is the Tower Defense genre and since high fantasy lends itself to that discipline rather naturally (think castles and stone forts), enter now Defenders of Ardania ready and willing to fill the gap. This isn’t your typical Tower Defense title though as it interestingly mixes in some RTS elements that encourage you to think both offensively and defensively as well.

As the ruler of a prosperous fantasy kingdom, your wealth and resources has obviously attracted a horde of malcontents who wish to raze you for every last coin you may have. But by implementing some serious strategy, you can weather the storm of both human and demonic foes. To ensure your victory though, you must also march your army down the enemy’s throat with wave after wave of your own soldiers.

The ideas that Defenders of Ardania throws out there are all well and good, but like so many games that try to cross-breed game play types, a failed marriage between two or more elements can lead to a bigger disaster than had a single game play style been used and failed. The Tower Defense base works fine as you place ballista, spearmen, archers, and various other well equipped fortifications around the battlefield map. Even the magic spells in your inventory work to help even the odds as space runs out quickly on the field for you to place your towers. But the RTS element is woefully under-developed as each wave you create of soldiers must walk a clear path towards your enemy’s castle and they are as mindless as the towers you place. You let them go and forget about them. So although there is some strategy there as you must pick what units to send and what paths for them to take, you can mostly forget about them after you create them and hope they carry out their pre-ordained mission.

The worst part of this is that once you create a sound enough defense, as the old sports adage of “defense wins championships” was taken to heart it seems in the game design, your enemy has typically done the same and you can’t muster the proper offense you need to win as your mindless drones march to their doom over and over again, often resulting in long drawn out matches on even the easiest difficulty settings as you try to force your way past a virtual stalemate. One nice thing about the game though is the multiplayer as when you insert human error into the equation, there is a better chance for a match to progress at a decent pace, or if a stalemate does occur, for one player to get tired and give up.

The sound is irritating as well as your narrator and chief advisor sounds like an awful Sean Connery impersonator and he may be the best of the voice actors you come across as you move through the levels. The visuals are at least bright and vibrant enough to offer some distraction from this, but there are a lot of pretty games out there I’d rather devote my thinking power to.

When all is said and done, Defenders of Ardania was a nice concept, but poorly balanced execution and a tired, unoriginal story keep this from being anything special aside for maybe some Tower Defense diehards who have been waiting for something to come along in the genre.

SUMMARY: The marriage of RTS elements with a Tower Defense base fails to work as smoothly as necessary for this game to be anything memorable.

  • THE GOOD: Beautiful, stylized high fantasy setting
  • THE BAD: RTS and Tower Defense elements don’t blend as smoothly as necessary
  • THE UGLY: Bad Sean Connery impersonator serves as narrator

SCORE: 5.0

Defenders of Ardania is available on Xbox 360 (XBLA), PS3 (PSN), PC, and iOS. Primary version reviewed was on Xbox 360.

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Hands-On: Mortal Kombat Vita

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March 16, 2012

Get Over Here!!

Something that has littered much of the Vita’s launch has been ports of popular games from last year that could easily make the transition. And fighting and racing games are typically the easiest of the easy for the bunch. So, I admit, when I heard Mortal Kombat was coming to the Vita, I just shook my head and figured “here we go again”.

But Ed Boon didn’t want that. And seeing an opportunity to play around with some new technology, wanted to make sure that there was something that made this version of Mortal Kombat a little special and differentiated it from it’s console brethren from a year ago. So at GDC, we were able to go hands on with Mortal Kombat for the Vita and the handful of new features were just enough to actually make the short list of Vita titles I’ve been excited for.

A lot of what made last year’s console Mortal Kombat great in the first place remains like the tight combat and story mode. But now there are special Vita-centric challenge towers that utilize the touch screen, like a fight where blood splatters on the screen with each hit and you have to wipe it away to see, and special new mini-games modes to go along with classics like Test Your Might. We were also told of an expanded ‘Krypt’ to show off some behind the scenes of the development of the Vita version.

The challenge tower was the first thing we looked at and to go along with the blood splatter mission, there was also a mission where you had to catch falling ‘koins’ by tapping them before they hit the ground and a juggling contest where you would tap missile launchers to bounce a falling ‘kombatant’ around and keep them from hitting the ground. The promise of even more missions and another challenge tower promises a lot more longevity to this new game. Not to mention one mission where you can play as Shao Khan…

The next thing we looked at were the two new mini-games: Test Your Slice and Test Your Balance. Test Your Balance takes advantage of the Vita’s built-in gyroscope and has a character balancing over a pit filled with blades, acid, or some other instant kill trap. Not only must you balance your character for a certain amount of time, but random body parts from previous balancers who failed will be thrown at you, trying to knock you into the pit below and adding an interesting challenge to this game that was a lot of fun.

But what was most surprising was Test Your Slice, which is basically Fruit Ninja, but with a Mortal Kombat flair. Instead of cutting fruit, you’ll be slicing apart brains, hearts, and skulls just to name a few body parts. There are also a few characters’ heads with special abilities, like Sub-Zero’s freezes the stage, thrown in as well. Just make sure to avoid the bombs. This, too, was a lot of fun and made great use of the Vita’s touch screen.

The most impressive part of the game though may have been the local connection we ended up trying out. Not a hint of lag with the inputs impressed me more than any other multiplayer feature for a Vita game to date as I used my preferred Sub-Zero to best my opponent’s Noob Saibot in three rounds. And what was really phenomenal was I then pulled off Sub-Zero’s classic beheading/de-spining Fatality by using the touch screen. Yes, Fatalities are easier than ever now as with a quick simple rubbing of the screen back and forth over my opponent and his head was my latest trophy for my wall.

All in all, this was easily the most impressed I’ve been with a Vita title to date, as even though it’s a port, it offers enough new features to keep old fans happy and hopefully brings in even more newcomers with its portability. And we can’t forget that it also features PS3 exclusive roster character Kratos and all the DLC characters as part of the package so I can’t wait to really put this fully through its paces when it releases sometime this Spring.

And if you want, the reveal trailer is embedded below for your convenience. FIGHT!

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EGM Preview: LEGO Batman 2: DC Superheroes

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Where Does He Get Those Wonderful Toys?

We all kind of know what to expect from the LEGO series of games now, whether it’s Indiana Jones, Pirates of the Caribbean, Star Wars, or Harry Potter. But with one branch of the LEGO franchise, Telltale Games has decided to be a bit different this time around. Yes, LEGO Batman 2: DC Superheroes looks to be the biggest and best game in the LEGO universe yet and from the demo we saw at GDC, anyone who is fan of LEGOs will not want to miss out on this title.

It’s hard to know where to start with this one as there is so many new features added in that differentiates this game from all those that came before it, but we’ll begin with the story. In a plot that reminded me of the Adam West Batman, the Joker has crashed the Gotham Man of the Year Awards, angry that HE wasn’t this year’s recipient. Thought to have been locked away safely in Arkham Asylum (yeah right), Batman knows he must get to the bottom of it and realizes Joker had help. Lex Luthor busted Joker out for reasons still unknown and so Batman realizes he needs some help. Enter the Justice League.

Now we don’t know how deep the roster is for the JL, but knowing the LEGO series, I don’t see them pulling out any stops with this and so we can expect a lot more than just Green Lantern, Cyborg, and Superman, who were just a couple of the members we saw briefly in action during our demo. And Superman’s entrance was epic in how he drifted down from the sky set to his movie theme, much how a lot of LEGO Batman’s scenes have Danny Elfman’s classic 1989 score in the background as well.

The most stunning aspect of the demo though was the central HUB world. Instead of being restricted to the Batcave like in the first game, all of Gotham, including landmarks like Wayne Tower, Amusement Mile, and the Botanical Gardens, are fully realized in a LEGO 3D environment that you can explore by flying around with Superman or one of the other JL members or drive around in one of Batman’s preferred vehicles. This also leaves a lot of opportunity for teaming up as we special LEGO blocks that could only be picked up by Batman, but needed Superman to melt special gold grating first with his heat vision.

And Batman isn’t alone on the power front. Much like in the first game, him and Robin see brand new specialized suits appear for certain situations. We saw Batman’s Electricity Suit, which makes him immune to electricity and can power up machinery, his Sensor Suit that makes him invisible to security cameras and can let him see through walls, and his Power Suit that gives him rocket launchers and limited strength abilities. We also saw a pair of Robin suits where Robin channels shades of both Tim Drake and Dick Grayson in his Acrobat Suit, which includes a bo staff and the ability to do Prince of Persia style flips from poles and his Hazard Suit which allows him to put out fires and swim underwater.

We were also told that a few new additions were inspired from critiques of previous games on the fan forums. These include mid-level saves for the longer levels, split-screen for when playing in co-op mode to allow for more individual player freedom, and for the first time ever in a LEGO game, voice actors. Yes, finally all the heroes and villains of the DC LEGO-verse will speak. There was no reveal of who the particular voice actors were for each character, but it was hinted at that fans would not be disappointed.

Honestly, I went into this meeting at GDC and had my mind blown by the differences we saw between the first LEGO Batman and this new game and the idea of exploring LEGO Gotham had me a lot more excited than I thought it would. It made me feel like a kid again and I think that’s what has always been part of the appeal of the LEGO games and already with an early build, this game has succeeded on that front for me. Now it’s just a matter of trying to develop some patience before LEGO Batman 2: DC Superheroes’s Summer 2012 release.

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EGM Preview: The Secret World

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The Truth is Out There

In December, we here at EGM previewed The Secret World in our MMORPG issue of EGMi (Issue 76 if you’re curious to go look) and the excitement we felt then only carried over into a new demo we were able to get at GDC last week. And although it may have been pushed back from an April to June release, The Secret World shows they are pulling out all the stops when it comes to trying to be competitive in the subscription based MMO world.

If you need a little refresher, The Secret World is shaping up to be a cross between The X-Files, Fringe, and some obscure Norse mythology where you play as an agent from one of three very distinct and different secret organizations. The Templars are based out of London and have that old world charm and are zealots when it comes to hording power and control. The New York based Illuminati believe that only the strong survive. And the Korea-based Dragons, who we finally saw in action at GDC, worship and all its causes, including lust, jealously, and other kinds of extreme emotion.

The mythology is really where the action comes from as while playing your part for your respective organization, you have to try to hold back demonic forces that are trying to cross over into the real world and help out folks who are clearly in over their heads. Part of what is breaking down the dimension doorways and what not is something called the Filth, which we saw what happens when there is a full-on infestation of this stuff. People are completely consumed and turned into walking monstrosities when they make contact with the stuff and it is up to you tapping into some crazy powers and weapons to help drive it back.

Something else we saw in our original demo was when you are first brought into the fold of your respective organization is that you live the last moments of a life, flashback style, that came into direct contact with the Filth. At GDC, we saw a level that took that a step further as we were transported back to pre-colonial America and had to fight off a monstrous dragon-like creature and much like the Cthulhu type creature we faced off against back in December, you need a full-team before taking on any dungeon master as these creatures do monumental amounts of damage.

It should be interesting to see how well The Secret World can do in the AAA MMORPG space to compete against titles like World of Warcraft and now even Star Wars: The Old Republic as the market continues to move towards a free-to-play stance for the most part. But one thing is for certain, the concept is definitely there and I can’t wait to go hands-on with a finished product.

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Transformers: Prime Announced by Activision

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THE BUZZ: Activision and Hasbro have announced Transformers: Prime, a video game based off The Hub TV show and that will be available exclusively on Nintendo’s Wii, 3DS, and DS platforms this fall.

EGM’S TAKE: “Transformers: Prime” is a hugely popular show on The Hub and so it is no surprise that a digital extension of that brand would be made at some point. The timing for the release of the game is also ideal as it will go hand in hand with the release of Fall of Cybertron, offering Transformers fans on all systems an option of some sort when looking to get their Robots in Disguise fix.

With Arcee, Bumblebee, Optimus Prime, Ratchet, and Bulkhead all confirmed to be playable in the game, fans should get a good amount of variety in terms of action set in the Prime universe. Also, it has been said that you will have to cultivate the relationships between the Autobots and their three human friends from the show as Team Prime looks to take down Megatron once and for all.

The game is being developed by Now Production for the Wii and 3DS and Altron Corporation for the DS version. If you would like to see the reveal trailer, feel free to check it out below!

What do you folks think? Does it make sense for Nintendo to take the cartoon oriented Transformers game? Would you rather play this game or Fall of Cybertron if you could only have one? Let us know what you think with comments below!

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EGM Review: Shoot Many Robots

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Robots Hate Your Freedom

Very rarely can you gather the entire concept of a game just from the title alone. But publisher Ubisoft’s and developer Demiurge’s Shoot Many Robots does just that as the title simply says it all. You play as P. Walter Tugnut, a redneck who has been stockpiling weapons and beer for years in his RV just waiting for the robot apocalypse. And then one day it actually happens. After destroying his beloved pick-up truck, Tugnut knows his day has come to Shoot…Many…Robots.

As soon as I started playing the game, I felt like I had been transported back to a childhood arcade where I was still feeding quarters into Metal Slug as I was given this somewhat cartoony, but still modern enough looking hero, with a bevy of weapons and an even larger horde of enemies to take on in classic side-scrolling fashion. And when I say there is a large horde of enemies, I’m easily talking 20-30 robots on screen at once, and 200-300 robots per level. And I used everything from conventional weapons like assault rifles and bazookas to some more sci-fi inspired weaponry like freeze guns, to grind the gears of these gyro driven automatons into dust.

An interesting dynamic thrown into the entire game though is an RPG-like leveling up system where Tugnut could unlock new weaponry and armor that allowed him to slide, double jump farther, carry more health restoring beer, or, of course, do tons more damage. This reward system helped keep the game play satisfying as you mowed down the metal monstrosities.

Unfortunately, even with these unique features throw into the old-school side-scrolling dynamic that Shoot Many Robots gives us, it can get monotonous as you work through three or four stages per level and you just keep taking down the same robots over and over again for the most part. The look and sound of the game is rather dull and lacks the vibrancy you’d prefer in this kind of game to help keep your senses stimulated considering the monotonous game play. And with no real story to tie everything together, this is more a true arcade game in every sense, but this could turn off players who prefer a deeper experience.

There were also times where I wish I could upgrade the individual weapons with laser sights or other goodies as the aiming function was clumsy at best. More often than not I found myself trying to jump or slide into a better position, or use the bullet reflecting melee technique, rather than aiming as I couldn’t tell half the time where I was shooting.

There is also a steep difficulty curve with Shoot Many Robots as after the first couple of levels the robotic horde gets to the point where they can easily surround and start to engulf you. Mid-chapter checkpoints do help alleviate frustration in many instances, but it seems whenever a new foe or environmental hazard is introduced, you will likely meet your doom as you try to figure out what to do about them while still beating back the blade-wielding ankle biters that make up the majority of the robotic force as the game just keeps throwing more and more bad guys your way and barely gives you a chance to breath.

Aside from the mid-chapter checkpoints, the game does have another arcade staple fortunately that can assist you as well and that is 4-player co-op. Having three of your friends come on board so you can have a redneck death dealing parade and leave a swath of robot carcasses in your wake does help a lot and co-op like this always makes this style of game a better experience in the long run.

Still, I think that even with its strong positives and nostalgia inspiring experience that Shoot Many Robots is best served in short, but fun doses. This doesn’t seem like the kind of game you’ll sit down for three consecutive hours for. Instead, maybe just grabbing a friend for 30 minutes before tackling a more hardcore game seems to be the right speed for this title. But if old-school side-scrolling arcade shoot ‘em ups are your thing, Shoot Many Robots definitely hits all the right buttons considering it’s $10 (800 MSP) price tag.

SUMMARY: A frantic side-scrolling shooter reminiscent of classics like Metal Slug that may become tiresome in long intervals, but is more than enjoyable in short bursts.

  • THE GOOD: Fun, frantic action in an old-school arcade style
  • THE BAD: Even mindless mayhem can get tedious at some point
  • THE UGLY: Rednecks with guns are always a scary proposition

SCORE: 8.0

Shoot Many Robots is available on Xbox 360 (XBLA), PS3 (PSN), and PC. Primary version reviewed was on Xbox 360.

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EGM Review: Mass Effect 3: From Ashes DLC

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The Cycle Repeats

In Mass Effect 2, we learned a lot about the Prothean race, the beings that took the Reapers head on in the last cycle and fell to the wayside from their robotic onslaught. They then went extinct after their last resort, cryogenic sleeping pods, malfunctioned due to power failure. But what if one was to miraculously survive?

The Mass Effect 3: From Ashes DLC answers that question, and just like Liara, my reactions were very similar in that they were along the lines of “Oh my God, a real life Prothean! Amazing!” Javik, a Prothean general who was supposed to usher in a new cycle of dominance for his race, is now the last of his kind after his pod is discovered by colonists on Eden Prime, always a hot bed for Prothean activity in the Mass Effect universe. And his story and added dynamic to the team fits in very well after you rescue him from Cerberus, who are after him for their own nefarious means.

The problem with the DLC though mainly revolves around the price. You paying $10 (800 Microsoft Points) for literally only an hour of content in terms of missions and maybe an extra half hour worth of unique conversations aboard the Normandy and CItadel just seems really steep. The pack also features some new costumes for your other squad mates, but with no difference in terms of bonus attributes from the armor that ships with the game, it’s all just cosmetic. So really, I just can’t help but keep thinking to myself that is this is just another ploy to squeeze a few more dollars out of the players.

The way Javik is worked into the story and how he plays just like any of the other characters with his own unique powers and abilities is very well done. But it just seems like this DLC pack was cobbled together. And now that Bioware has decided to step into the multiplayer realm, to include a DLC pack without any sort of multiplayer content at all should irritate a lot of folks who have really embraced the mode, even if Mass Effect will forever be seen more as a single player experience.

So at the end of the day, you have to appreciate how good a character Javik is, but when you drop $60 for a 30 hour campaign, it just doesn’t seem to add up to get only another 60-90 minutes when you drop another $10 and so I just don’t see this DLC being worth the price considering how little it really affects the game overall. DLC stands for Downloadable Content…so where’s the freakin’ content?!

SUMMARY: This is a great story and new character, but he should have just been included in the game in the first place, not a $10 Day 1 add-on.

  • THE GOOD: Dynamic new character that fleshes out your roster
  • THE BAD: $10 for an hour worth of content, next time EA and Bioware should buy us dinner first
  • THE UGLY: The Prothean redefines the term ‘four-eyes’

SCORE: 5.0

Mass Effect 3: From Ashes DLC is available on Xbox 360, PS3, and PC. Primary version reviewed was on Xbox 360.

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EGM Review: Mass Effect: Infiltrator

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Rebel with a Cause

While Commander Shepard is taking on the Reaper threat head-on, there are many individual stories happening in the galaxy about the struggle and strife of the galaxy’s citizens, both within themselves and with outside threats. Mass Effect: Infiltrator explores one of those stories. You play as Randall Enzo, a Cerberus agent who will fulfill his masters’ wishes at any cost. As long as it’s non-human, Enzo has no remorse in taking it down, whether heartless Geth or Turian Raiders. He is a soldier through and through…until Cerberus goes too far and uses his best friend, Inali, in one of their twisted experiments. Now, pushed to the edge, Randall looks to take revenge the only way he knows how…by putting a bullet in his problems.

Fans of the Mass Effect universe will the see the immediate appeal of this game as you get to get behind an assault rifle and use some biotics to take on both familiar and new enemies specific to the game in a portable form for only seven dollars. The controls are a bit difficult to get used to at first as you obviously lack joysticks, but you will soon be mimicking the patterns of the console basis for this game as your left thumb moves you around and your right serves to aim, and remember this is easier, of course, on a larger iPad screen than a pint-sized iPhone.

You get plenty of practice to get used to this mechanic though no matter your iOS format as the game has an arcade on-rails shooter feeling as you move from area to area picking off your enemies one by one as they slowly march towards your position and you duck behind a conveniently placed piece of cover. This can get boring quickly and only the thought of enjoying a decently developed spin-off story in the Mass Effect universe will drive the more hardcore players forward in many cases as the casual Mass Effect fans may fall to the wayside.

Something else that might push people to finish this game though is the fact that Infiltrator can link to Mass Effect 3’s “Galaxy at War” feature. A cheap gimmick to help sell the game, I know, but if you’re determined to avoid the ME3 multiplayer for various reasons, this might be another way to help your galaxy readiness and for you to get the best ending if you’re willing to shell out more cash. I would have loved to have uploaded my specific Randall at the end of the game though instead of just the special Cerberus intel I collected. All in all though, Infiltrator looks and sounds great and is a solid purchase for diehard Mass Effect fans as it gives you about 4-5 hours worth of original content that might give fans flashbacks of Mass Effect 2 as you look at things again from the other side. Newcomers and casual fans of the series will likely want to steer clear though as this is definitely not the best way to experience the Mass Effect universe overall.

SUMMARY: An interesting spin-off to the main Mass Effect universe, only the most hardcore of fans will look past the repetitive on-rails game play and iffy controls.

  • THE GOOD: Unique adventure that ties in nicely with the Mass Effect universe
  • THE BAD: Repetitive on-rails game play, hit or miss touch controls
  • THE UGLY: Randall Enzo’s biotics infused face

SCORE: 7.5

Mass Effect: Infiltrator is exclusive to the iOS format.

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Hands-On: Johann Sebastian Joust

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Tally-ho!

There were a lot of great moments at GDC. From the parties to the panels, GDC was a huge learning experience for me and definitely something that anyone interested in game design or the industry in general should look into attending one day. The conference also has a modest show floor to show off games, especially of the Indie variety and I admit, my personal highlight of the show may have been when I stumbled into a ring of people forming an impromptu arena for what became a hot topic of discussion at the show: Johann Sebastian Joust.

This indie game isn’t a video game in the most traditional sense. In fact, it has no video at all unless you YouTube videos of people playing it in the middle of the street. You see the only thing that Johann Sebastian Joust requires really is a PS3’s wireless connectivity and everyone who wants to play, two player minimum and seven player maximum, needs to bring their own PS Move controller.

After activating your Move, the sensor ball will turn a specific color. Your objective is to jostle the other players physically enough for their sensor to turn red, signifying their elimination. The sensitivity of the Move controller also changes depending on the tempo of the music. The music, of course, always being Johann Sebastian Bach’s “Brandenburg Concerto”. The faster it plays, the less sensitive and the slower it plays, the more sensitive.

I played 10 matches of Johann Sebastian Joust, winning all my matches but one, and that was because I was against the idea of roughhousing with a girl I did not know…or pay for. Johann Sebastian Joust appealed to my competitive gamer nature in ways that few games can actually hone in on nowadays while working perfectly with the music set up. The game also forced you to think outside the box in some instances.

My first victory came when I hid my controller in my coat pocket, and when the last man standing assumed he was victorious, I went up to him and pushed him aside for the victory as he forgot that only when the sensor ball flashed multiple colors did it mean he was truly victorious. I also used my coat as a shield in one match and actually won another match by default as a competitor kicked me in the stomach (seriously, dude went all Kung Fu on me), but all his hectic motion caused him to eliminate himself before he even touched me. My favorite though was when it was down to two of us and I yelled “Hey look at out behind you!” and my opponent turned around and let me tap his sensor ball (I actually got an ovation for that one as people were shocked the guy fell for it).

Describing it can only do the game so much justice though, so below is one of the promotional videos for the game. Considering though this likely is only going to be a few dollars on top of the price of a PS Move controller, I think this could easily be the best PS Move game yet if enough people find out about it. Of course, the only drawback is you might need to move your PS3 outside to make sure you have enough space for the game. But if you have the space, this was easily the most fun I had on the floor of a show in a long time and was more than worthy of its 2012 GDC Innovation Award and cannot wait until it becomes readily available everywhere.

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