Take a break from fighting over that last Zhu Zhu hamster for your little one and warm up next to this week’s Reviews Spotlight.
We have one of the most kick-ass Wii games — it’s Nintendo’s standard bearer reborn — plus more on Assassin’s Creed 2 and the surprise hit/Diablo-clone Torchlight. We also have some critical reviews of DJ Hero and Rogue Warrior — two games that don’t quite hit their marks. And we’ve got another Wii title in the Spotlight this week — an entertaining (and cheap!) game built on 8-bit nostalgia. We’ve even got a couple of retro reviews of classic Super Nintendo role-playing games.
Why is this the shopping edition? We’ve got less than two weeks until Xmas! Bitmob community-approved games make great gifts.
Is This Italian Plumber’s Wii Adventure Really New?
By Brian Shirk
Nintendo draws from the Mario trough Nintendo whenever they need a surefire hit. Part of what makes New Super Mario Bros. Wii fresh and exciting is the four-player multiplayer. Casual gamers might get a huge kick out of this feature, but Brian says, “Other players will be more of an obstacle than the courses themselves, unless they’re highly skilled players.” As an overall experience, however, Brian does like the game. “The core gameplay is a quality experience that any fan of Mario who isn’t tired of the series will want to experience.”
Assassin’s Creed 2 Review
By Eric Majkut
Reviews for Ubisoft’s new adventure are positive — and a little surprising considering the missteps of the first game. Ubisoft addressed almost all of the issues of its predecessor in Assassin’s Creed 2, starting with the setting. “Running across rooftops or fighting city guards in dark, dank alleyways is made all the more immersive by the painstaking detail put into these locations.” A game with heavy action is only as good as the controls, and plenty of work went toward fixing those as well. “Considering the freedom of movement that you’re given in the game, I’m truly thankful for the obvious work that went into getting the controls working as well as they do.”
Assassin’s Creed 2 Review: I Heart Italy
By Frank Anderson
Continuing those good vibes from Erik’s review, Frank agrees that the improvements over the first game are stunning. “Underneath the surface lie a million tiny changes to things like pacing and depth that serve to make Assassin’s Creed 2 my game of the year and a game that I would hold up as one of the most improved sequels in the history of games.” Frank enjoyed the new control scheme as well. “Ezio also has a much more refined move-set that allows for stunning assassinations from much greater distances than Altair could have even dreamed of in the first game.”
Rogue Warrior: Making Other Games Shine
By Davneet Minhas
A headline like this leaves little doubt how Davneet feels about Rogue Warrior. To make his point, Davneet explains a few of the things that make this game less than stellar. “Surprisingly, the gameplay and the graphics are both far from being Rogue Warrior’s worst aspect. That honor goes to the expletives Marcinko spews every few seconds.” Davneet has an even lower opinion of the story. “I realized the ineptitude of Rogue Warrior’s script early on and at no point during my play-through was I convinced to reconsider my decision.”
Rant Review – Rogue Warrior Single-Player
By Kevin Zhang-xing
Kevin shares Davenet’s feelings on Rogue Warrior. He says that the game is a bit repetitive: “No matter how a firefight starts, it goes down the same way. Whether the enemies unimpressively break through windows and start out guns blazing, you shoot what’s in front of you and that’s it. It’s mindless generic FPS action….” Here’s the “good” news: “The monotonous gameplay may sound bad, but it’s OK, because the campaign ends in just 2 hours!” This game sounds like a lump of coal in a Christmas stocking.
Tired of Using Your Opposable Thumbs? Then Get Your Scratch On!
By Brian Shirk
Reviews for DJ Hero are mixed, but fans of music games enjoy having a new fake instrument to pound on (even if it’s a turntable and not really an instrument). Brain tabs the music selection as one of the game’s high points. “DJ Hero is the most diverse music package to be released on a video game console. In this music game, you’ll find hip hop, rap, rock, electronica, classical, and all other sorts of dance music.” It’s a pretty expensive buy at $120, but as Brian says, “If you wait until its price drops to $80 or so, it’s a good buy — if you enjoy music mash-ups from a variety of genres.”
DJ Hero Review: Too Niche to Cut It
By Christopher Traslaviña
Christopher has a different take on the music in DJ Hero. He agrees the soundtrack is huge, “But that’s the problem. The soundtrack will astound you, but only if you’ve got a taste as eclectic as the flavors of Ben & Jerry’s.” Another thing the game seems to have going against it is that it is more of a single player game. “Further, the game doesn’t have the party crowd draw like Rock Band or recent Guitar Hero games do. There is a solitary peripheral to play with.” That aspect of the game could make it hard to enjoy in a room full of people who like to participate in the fun.
Torchlight Review
By Ultan O’Connell
In case you are unaware, if you do a Google search for Diablo clones, Torchlight is at the top of the list. As Ultan puts it, “Despite bringing almost nothing new to the genre, it does refine it to the point of perfection.” For fans of dungeon crawlers, that is definitely good news. Is there enough fun in the game to keep people already familiar with this type of game? “It is jam packed with optional quests and extra dungeons and the randomization of the dungeons makes no two playthroughs the same.”
Can Torchlight Illuminate Diablo’s World of Darkness?
By Brian Shirk
Brian agrees that Runic Games has taken Diablo-style games to the next level. “This action-RPG actually manages to imitate Diablo so successfully, that you’d think it was a sequel if you weren’t paying attention to the title.” A bold statement considering how well-loved the Diablo series is by fans. What aspect of the game does Brian seem most impressed with? “One of the best aspects of Torchlight is its impressive character development system.” Read Brian’s in-depth review to see how the game will make action-RPG fans very happy.
Bit.Trip Void Review
By Callum Rakestraw
Bit.Trip Void is the third game in a WiiWare series that sounds like a winner for fans of old-school gameplay and music. One of the things that make this installment different from the first two is how manipulation of The Void adds points to your overall score. “This adds a risk-versus-reward element to the game, which adds a whole other level of challenge to the already difficult series.” Another new addition is checkpoints that, according to Callum, make it “definitely an easier game in comparison to its predecessors.”
The Soul of this Blazing Hot Action-RPG Still Burns (Soul Blazer SNES Review)
By Brian Shirk
Soul Blazer, like Dragon Quest and ActRaiser, is one of the titles that put Enix on the map before it joined forces with Square. This game is more than your standard action-RPG. Brian says, “As you can imagine, Soul Blazer must have felt quite fresh in 1992. Sure, it borrows a few concepts from ActRaiser…you restore towns, but in a much different manner.” Many aspects of the game make it a great experience, and one of those is character customization. “Part of your enjoyment from Soul Blazer will come from equipping various tools that will allow you to travel in the dark, walk on ice, and survive deadly flames, but it’s also fun engaging in battle with the game’s thick enemy roster.”
Was This RPG Doomed from the Beginning? (Lufia & The Fortress of Doom SNES Review)
By Brian Shirk
Lufia is a classic RPG, released on the Super Nintendo when that system didn’t have very many titles like it. The story is pretty straightforward: “Despite the abundance of clichés in the opening portion of Lufia, it’s one of the RPG genre’s greatest beginnings.” Unfortunately, the game has some pretty huge flaws. “The amount of dungeon crawling in Lufia is beyond absurd — the game really could have benefited from more dialogue, better pacing, and a gameplay tuneup.” Read Brian’s full review for a deep explanation why this game did not quite live up to other RPGs released before it.