From the category archives:

GAMES

Full Circle

Halo: Reach, Bungie

by Marvin Allen
02.12.2010

The Halo series published by corporate giant Microsoft is one of the most successful franchises in entertainment history. Case in point, Halo: Reach, made over $200 million during the first day of sales, rivalling the numbers of other forms of media like the Harry Potter movies in the same regard.

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GAMES

Fighting The Lie

Splinter Cell: Conviction, Ubisoft Montreal

by Marvin Allen
21.10.2010

It’s been three years since the death of your daughter. Where are you? You’re sitting in a quaint little bistro in Malta, enjoying a latte, trying to put everything behind you. You are, for all intents and purpose, retired from the business. But something is not right. The phone rings. It’s her, an old friend, [...]

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GAMES

Same Old World, Fun Just The Same

New Super Mario Bros. Wii, Nintendo

by Marvin Allen
14.07.2010

Mario, the Italian plumber, has been a fixture in our hearts and minds since the mid 1980s. With countless video games under his tool belt, New Super Mario Bros. Wii might be new for some, but certainly old for the rest of us. If you miss the good old days of moving from left to [...]

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GAMES

Resurrection Effect

Mass Effect 2, BioWare

by Marvin Allen
03.06.2010

Previously on Mass Effect, you and your crew piled into the S.S. Normandy in pursuit of a rogue Spectre named Saren. Spectres are agents for the Citadel Council, the main governing body in the galaxy. You learn Saren is being controlled by the Reapers, an alien race that harvests other races. Saren and an army [...]

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GAMES

The Hunt for the Origami Killer

Heavy Rain, Quantic Dream

by Marvin Allen
16.04.2010

How far will you go to save someone you love? The answer should be easy. We would like to believe that we would move Heaven and Earth to protect to people we love. Then again, when faced with the actual choice, what would you be willing to do? This is the idea behind the interactive [...]

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GAMES

War As Addiction

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II, Infinity Ward

by Marvin Allen
16.02.2010

From where we left off, a Russian Ultranationalist party led by Imran Zakhaev teamed up with a Middle Eastern rebel faction led by Khaled Al-Asad. Together they acquired a nuclear weapon, and orchestrated a coup d’état of an unnamed Middle Eastern country by executing the president on live TV. Said nuke detonates, levelling a city [...]

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GAMES

Into The Mad House

Batman: Arkham Asylum, Rocksteady Studio

by Marvin Allen
26.01.2010

With the success of the recent Batman movies, a new game based on The Dark Knight was inevitable. Batman: Arkham Asylum plays to caped crusaders’ strengths focusing on combat, stealth, and the hero’s detective abilities. A Who’s Who of Batman’s greatest foes has planned a party at the asylum and Batman is the guest of [...]

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GAMES

Rocking As The Fab Four

The Beatles: Rock Band, Harmonix

by Marvin Allen
10.11.2009

The Beatles recently re-released their entire catalogue remastered to perfection. They also came out with The Beatles: Rock Band. A music game where you play and sing along to a couple dozen Beatles songs through the lifespan of their career. It can be A Hard Day’s Night working Eight Days a Week, but we all [...]

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GAMES

Rock Out!

Guitar Hero 5, Neversoft, Activision, Red Octane

by Marvin Allen
17.09.2009

The first Guitar Hero, released in late 2005, came with a toy guitar and allowed players to jam along to their favourite rock songs. Fast forward four years and almost a dozen spinoffs later. We now have Guitar Hero 5, with more songs, new ways to play, and a ton of little improvements. But is [...]

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GAMES

In the Shadows

Shadow Complex, Chair Entertainment

by Marvin Allen
09.09.2009

The Capital Building is under attack, the Vice President is dead, and the United States is being plunged into civil war. Where are you? Out on an afternoon hike with that girl you met last night. This is the world of Shadow Complex, based off the Empire series by award winning science fiction author Orson [...]

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GAMES

Fun in the Virtual Sun

Wii Sports Resort, Nintendo EAD

by Marvin Allen
04.09.2009

When the Nintendo Wii came out in late 2006, it was bundled with Wii Sports, a collection of sports-themed mini games. Fifty-million-sold later and we now have Wii Sports Resort, a sequel with more games, and better controls. But does it capture what made the first game so compelling, easy to understand, and fun?

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GAMES

Explosive Puzzler

BOOM BLOX, EA LOS ANGELES

by Marvin Allen
29.05.2009

When you hear that Steven Spielberg has designed a video game, you expect either a cheesy Indiana Jones movie tie-in, or that long-awaited Schindler’s List game about hiding refugees. Boom Blox is neither. Akin to a celebrity writing a children’s book, it’s cute, colourful and teaches a valuable lesson: explosions are fun, especially when surrounded [...]

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