A game is defined by the experience that provides the player with. Really, that’s what it comes down to and so the goal of a designer is to craft the precise experience desired for the players who will be on the other side. 2009 gave us a whole lot of good games, and I’m not … Continue reading »
Feb
04
I’m Charmed by Little King’s Story
Little King’s Story, Cing / Town Factory (XSeed Games / Marvelous Entertainment) Wii, 2009 I’m not entirely sure what the aspirations for Little King Story were, but it certainly doesn’t present itself as a AAA title. In fact, it’s not. Instead, it’s a humble title that found its way onto North American store shelves in … Continue reading »
Jan
24
Regarding the “Golden Path” in Fable II
Fable II, Lionhead Studios (Microsoft Games Studio) Xbox 360, 2008 Rather than looking at each element of games, especially ones with as much to them as Fable II, I’m going to focus on one or two particular aspects. For this post, I’m going to look at the wonderful golden dust trail presented to the player … Continue reading »
Nov
17
Punching Dinosaurs?
Jurassic: The Hunted, Cauldron HQ (Activision) PlayStation 3 (& Xbox 360, Wii, PS2), 2009 Remember Turok? Pretend you don’t and Jurassic: The Hunted will satisfy that childhood dream within you of hunting dinosaurs with modern day weapons. Really, that’s all you do here. Simple concept, done before, and not really done better. Oh, and you … Continue reading »
Nov
09
Bug Juice
Deadly Creatures, Rainbow Studios (THQ) Wii, 2009 Somebody was sitting around and decided that it’d be cool to be a tough, sentient arachnid that went around beating the crap out of other bugs and small animals. Then someone else decided that such a game should be voiced with Billy Bob Thorton. Rainbow Studios decided to … Continue reading »