At the height of the Pokémon craze, I was soaking up every single bit of monster-collecting lore that I could possibly cram into my mind.
How many games have you encountered in your lifetime that feature a stunning operatic performance followed up by the spontaneous combustion of every member of the audience?
Transformers is always a lovely childhood memory. In this day and age, though, you either enjoy them immensely and have sided with the Autobots or Decepticons, or you mourn how the films have “ruined” the classic franchise. I’m on the fence myself, as you don’t have to actually go see the movies, but they have spawned a pretty decent video game for once. Activision seems to be on a roll, publishing playable and enjoyable movie games. Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen is a fun little romp through various landscapes as part of the team, whether you’re on Team Autobots or Team Decepticons. While it isn’t without its shortcoming (that’s the state of games as we know them now apparently), it’s still a fun title to pick up, even if you plan only to stomp around as Optimus Prime or Starscream.
The Civil War has always been one of the least-explored eras throughout history, with most of our focus being on World War II and the droves of faceless Nazis we’ve driven into oblivion. Failing that, prequels are often left to rot in the gaming world, and end up as bargain bin fodder soon after their release (Contract J.A.C.K., anyone?), but this Civil War shooter stands steady on its own two feet. Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood provides some tight and entertaining Civil War shootouts, though if you ask me, it could have been a bit longer.
Guitar Hero has gone a separate route from Rock Band over the years, releasing game after game rather than creating a comprehensive music catalogue of DLC. Because of this, Guitar Hero fans have amassed quite the library of discs containing some of their favorite songs.
Damnation seemed like it may have had all its ducks in a row, at least as far as third-person shooters go. Set in an alternate-reality Civil War where America is ruled by a dictator, serving up co-op action for Xbox Live diehards, and classic Steampunk influence, it looked like quite promising. Unfortunately, muddy controls, a nonexistent cover system, forgettable characters and downright terrible graphics turn Damnation into an exercise in frustration rather than a playable game. All Codemasters could manage to get right here was the title, which is actually quite disappointing, considering their previous works have never been this horrid.
Blue Dragon Plus is a return to form for the admittedly lackluster JRPG originally housed on the Xbox 360. From Mistwalker Studios and famed developer Brownie Brown (Magical Starsign, Heroes of Mana), we’re gifted with a sequel to a story that, while it shouldn’t have received continuation to begin with, is much more engaging than its previous installment. With a focus on strategy conventions rather than tried-and-true turn-based battles coupled with some gorgeous sprites and washes of color, this is the Blue Dragon I would have preferred from the beginning.
