Onelargeprawn
The first true Mario game for the Nintendo Switch is finally here, and we get a chance to review Super Mario Odyssey in all its glory. After all, a Nintendo console would not be a Nintendo console without a Mario game to go with it. Got your overalls on? Then let’s jump straight into the review.
If you’ve been paying attention to the Sonic universe, you’d know that Sonic Boom is the cartoon that featured a redesigned Sonic and his team. The launch of the series coincided with a new game series, also titled Sonic Boom. The two last year, Sonic Boom: Shattered Crystal for Nintendo 3DS and Sonic Boom: Rise of Lyric for Nintendo Wii U were not well received, but developers Sanzaru said that they had learned from last year’s mistakes. Have they? I put on my running shoes and race along to try and find out of Sonic Boom: Fire and Ice really has learned from its predecessors. Try to keep up, will you?
It’s Kirby time again! The pink puffball in back in a new adventure on the 3DS called Kirby: Planet Robobot, and this time he’s gone mecha. The world, as usual, is in trouble and it’s Kirby’s job to save planet Pop Star from the mad machinations of The Access Ark and its robotic minions. This is the first new Kirby game since last year’s Kirby and the Rainbow Paintbrush on Nintendo Wii U, so let’s find out what the denizens of Pop Star have for us.
Gravity Rush first made its appearance on the PS Vita back in 2012, and it was dubbed one of the best games you’ve never played. It featured a gravity-shifting lass named Kat in her adventures in the fictional town of Hekseville. In time for the sequel due later this year, we have a PS4 HD remaster of the game, so I got my gravity going to find out how it matches up with the original.
The newest game in the Legend of Zelda series, subtitled Tri-Force Heroes, is the eighteenth game in the series since its inception 29 years ago. Link has come a long way since that first adventure (well, they’re all different incarnations of Link, really), and now we have three Link characters all playing cooperatively together in the same adventure. Does it work well? I don my green Hylian garb, grab my bow, bombs, boomerangs, (Ed: And my axe!) and master sword, and head out into the Drablands to see what’s up.
The original Super Mario Bros. came out 30 years ago. Think on that: for some of you, Mario has been a constant: always there, always playable, and always saving a princess. The game has been through seven generations of video game consoles and more besides, and now Nintendo is giving you the chance to take control of the level design, and create the most evil, messed up platform hell ever created. Or a fun joyride–it’s your choice. If you’ve not yet heard of Super Mario Maker, then perhaps it’s time to sit up and pay attention.
Submerged is a PS4 game from the same team of developers and artists who worked on Bioshock (but not the same studio). The game’s claim to fame is that you can go about it at your own pace. I paddle about a sunken city and climb some buildings to bring you this review.
You all know by now that the bat-PC version of Batman: Arkham Knight is so bat-ly gimped that it had to be forcefully, vengefully even, pulled from the online batstores. Thankfully, I’m playing one of the decent versions. I become the terror that flaps in the night. No, wait…wrong series. I become the dark detective in the night, and prowl through Gotham’s streets to bring you this batreview of Batman: Arkham batKnight.
Platform puzzle games are a darling of the Indie development community for a good reason, among them being the nostalgia effect. They’re difficult to do well, however, and an improperly-implemented puzzle mechanic can come over as boring, fiddly, or even ostentatious. Does Nihilumbra (“nihil” from the latin word for “nothing”, and “umbra” from the latin word for “shadow”. Don’t say I never teach you anything) for the Wii U suffer any of these problems or does it bring a spot of colour to a dark world? Let’s find out.
The Yoshi’s Island series has been one of the most beloved Mario spin-off franchises to come from Nintendo. The games have had varying amounts of success, as my review of Yoshi’s New Island shows. Now we have Yoshi’s Woolly World for Wii U, and I’m going to start the review with these words: you’ll want this game.