Activision was kind enough to send us over Crash Mind Over Mutant for the Wii and DS. For you right now I have the DS version review, and Kevin should have the Wii version done very soon. Next on my review agenda, the new James Bond, which I am hoping to have done by the end of next week….hopefully.

First I would like to say I never played the last Crash game that involved mutants. With that said I just well come right out and say it, Crash: Mind Over Mutant is a simple game. I found myself jumping and double jumping through level after level of pretty much the same thing over and over again. Don’t get me wrong, there are a few things to do besides jumping around like a Kangaroo. You can collect little orbs that they call “mojo.” Once you collect enough mojo, you can transform into Super Crash. Your speed and attack power increases. There is also the ability to hi-jack monsters/mutants of all different skills: Electric, Flower power, just to name a few.

(more…)

Nintendo fans, the wait is over!  de Blob offers one of the most unique platforming experiences ever and delivers hours and hours of Van Gogh-like mischief.  Painting everything in sight may seem like a simple task, but the developers at bluetongue have come through with an adventure that’s sure to give even the hardcore gamers a challenge.

The story for de Blob starts with the I.N.K.T. Corporation taking over Chroma City and sucking all the color out of the entire city.  With the entire city in dull grays, in comes your character, de Blob.  You are part of the Color Revolution to bring color back to Chroma City.  With the help of other de Blob’s unique abilities and other color revolutionaries, you must once again restore Chroma City back to a colorful utopia.

(more…)

Last Tuesday morning, I picked up my copy of Star Wars: The Force Unleashed, even after seeing many mediocre reviews for the game.  I’m not usually deterred by what game critics say about a game and I couldn’t help my urge to swing the Wiimote around in crazy patterns to ‘unleash’ the force.

One of the first things Wii owners will notice about the game, is it’s lack of visual polish.  The game runs in 16:9 widescreen with decent visuals, but the Wii can definitely do better.  It looks like they used PS2 graphics with barely any added particle effects except for maybe some of the cutscenes and the lightning.  Despite the lack of visual flare, I couldn’t stop playing through the many areas in the Star Wars universe we’ve come to know and love.

(more…)

Ahhh, its that time of year again. The time to fantasize about being the best you can be, and taking your team to the Super Bowl. Yes it is Madden time. It has been twenty years since the first Madden graced our consoles, and during those twenty years we have seen great improvements in the game, not just graphically but game play as well. Hit the jump to read my review.

(more…)

Top Spin 3 is a game that has a lot of potential, especially with a system like the Wii.  Wii Sports Tennis set the bar really high for a fun, interactive experience, and Top Spin 3 aims to provide a more realistic approach to tennis for the Wii.

I was really looking forward to playing Top Spin 3, because Wii Sports Tennis is one of my favorite games on the Wii right now.  The game perfectly uses the Wiimote to give a fun, and surprisingly deep level of gameplay for such a simple concept.  Top Spin 3 is definitely marketed more towards the hardcore gamer because of the control scheme and gameplay they adopted.

(more…)

Alone in the Dark is a franchise that has been around a long time.  The series recently debuted on next gen systems, Wii included.  The game is a third-person action/adventure that follows a very large, episodic storyline.

The game starts out with you waking up in the middle of, what looks like an examination room.  The opening cutscene sets up the beginning of the story where these large cracks or fissures are appearing all over the place.  As the player, your only job during this cutscene is to continuously blink your eyes using Down on the D-pad to clear your vision as you’re trying to gain your bearings.  This can get a little monotonous, but thankfully it doesn’t last long.  I don’t want to ruin the storyline, but suffice it to say Central Park plays a key role as it was built to hide something ‘big’.  Your job in the game is to survive, but also figure out what the hell is going on.

(more…)

Note: These images are from the European and Japanese versions!

It’s been a long time in coming, but the Nintendo DS Browser is now available for both the DS, and the DS Lite (there are two versions because of the difference in size of the GBA slot on the DS and Lite).

To start off, the US version of the browser has a bit more compatibility with Javascript and Flash than the Euro and Japan versions of the browser.  The browsing interface is well designed for the space that’s available on the two screens.  The bottom screen is used for all the input and the top screen allows for some extra viewing area.

There are two browsing modes to choose from, SSR mode and Overview mode.  SSR mode is the default and just condenses everything from a website onto the two screens.  Then you have to scroll down to find what you need on the site.  It’s a very similar interface to how mobile phones handle websites, which is not the best browsing experience.  The browser also gives the option to turn off images to speed up loading even more.

Speaking of speed, the browser is really quite fast.  I have cable internet with a wireless-g router, and I was browsing some pretty large websites quite fast.  Nintendo’s flash website ran very well on the browser.  It looks even better when viewed in ‘Overview mode’.  The Overview mode allows the whole website to be displayed as it would on a computer screen, but you use the stylus to move a zoomed-rectangle around the site.  This rectangle makes a zoomed-in view appear on the top screen to see what all is on the page–very cool!

The browser offers all the other features you would expect: favorites, search by Yahoo!, back, forward, etc.  If you’re really on the road a lot, then the DS browser is a pretty slick setup—especially if you don’t have a laptop

Sonic and the Secret Rings for the Wii sets out to change people’s minds about the Sonic franchise for next-gen systems. Just a few months before the Secret Rings release, SEGA released Sonic the Hedgehog for 360 and PS3 which received a critical reception. Reviews were abysmal for the game and people thought the Sonic franchise had lost its luster since making the 3D transition.

When you first play Secret Rings, you’ll notice a totally different storyline and gameplay to that of its 360/PS3 counterpart. SEGA worked independently on this game and tried to build it from the ground-up on the Wii. The game takes advantage of the Wiimote for all of Sonic’s moves. Tilting left and right will make Sonic move side to side, and thrusting forward will allow Sonic to do a jump dash at enemies. The controls can feel slow and clunky at times, but they (surprisingly) get better as you progress through the game.

The storyline is set in an Arabian Nights world complete with deserts and many other exotic locales. One of the first things you’ll notice about the story, is the number of cutscenes and voice-commentary that accompany it. The game allows you to skip all the cutscenes, but you can miss out on some important story items. The voice-acting is one of the worst in video games that I’ve heard. It was almost imperative for me to skip all the cutscenes since I couldn’t stand the voice actors or the dialogue. Also, the in-game music is the worst rock music I’ve heard and it repeats itself over and over throughout the menus. If you have a stereo or iPod handy, now’s the time to use them.

(more…)

Developed by EA Sports BIG, SSX Blur aims to set the standard for snowboarding games on the Wii. SSX Blur is a change for the series in many ways, especially the fact of the controls on Wii-exclusivity. Normally, SSX games are multiplatform titles and EA usually doesn’t focus on a single system for the series. I’m glad EA did depart from their multiplatform past, and I think EA is too from the great reception it has received at retail.

Starting off, you’ll find you have many game modes open to you. The Tutorial mode is definitely one to try before you take to the slopes in the Career mode. The Tutorial goes through all the basic moves including carving, jumping, and even more complex maneuvers like Uber Tricks. The game does have a learning curve, but it usually only takes 30 minutes of play-time to get used to carving and the basic moves. Uber Tricks, on the other hand, take a lot more work to land. The Uber Tricks require some fast precision. It involves ‘drawing’ on the screen various symbols for executing different Uber moves. Some of the symbols are basic drawings like a circle, while others require both hands. Doing Uber moves in the Tutorial are much easier than in the regular game because you aren’t required to fill your Uber meter up. It keeps the meter up as a handicap for getting used to the Ubers. The real test will come when you encounter the Career mode.

(more…)

What started out as a series of tech demos, has turned into a compilation of games complete with a free Wiimote. Wii Play is not as verbose as Wii Sports even those it has more minigames. The 9 minigames are as follows: Target Practice, Find Mii, Pose Mii, Table Tennis, Laser Hockey, Billiards, Fishing, Charge!, and Tanks!

Wii Play really focuses on helping people get used to using the Wiimote. The minigames highlight pointing, tilting, and general motions with the Wiimote. Wii Play also allows for Mii characters to play and gain medals in each of the minigames. Most of the minigames are very simplistic and really don’t offer too much of a challenge. Other games like Tanks! and Billiards offer pretty deep experiences. There are tons of levels and difficulty in the Tanks! minigame and Billiards offers a truly innovative Pool experience.

(more…)