Jet Grind Radio is a cel-shaded Dreamcast game in which I found myself rollerblading around the city, doing tricks and collecting spraypaint so I could tag specially marked locations. The game really seems to be about speed. Because I’m rollerblading, I can’t just stop whenever I want. The levels are designed so I can tag while blading past things. In this way I sort of just flow through the level; however, the police disrupt this flow. They chase me around, forcing me to put enough distance between myself and them so that I can tag without them stopping me. It reminds me a bit of Mirror’s Edge. It features an assortment of electronic music. It reminds me, at least in style, of The World Ends With You, although so far the music has been more mellow. It seems fun so far and is worth trying.
(I forgot to post this a while ago!)

This weekend I had the joy of playing Three Dirty Dwarves for the Sega Saturn! It was my way of paying respect to the Saturn on Saturnday, the first Saturday after Dreamcast Day, 9/9 (in honor of the Dreamcast’s American launch on 9/9/99). It was truly a great example of gaming from its generation.
First I had to hook up the RF adapter, complete with coaxial cable attached to a splitter via duct tape. This both ruined my ability to watch television and also added a gentle, fuzzy interference to the game. Inadvertently, my gaming was given a classic feel!
Three Dirty Dwarves opened with a wonderful cut scene that looked like an 80s cartoon. It was amusing and relaxing and even made me feel a bit nostalgic. The cartoon gave the back story of the game; four genius children are being held by a military weapons contractor (or possibly the military itself) for a super soldier project. They’re all in one room playing a tabletop RPG similar to Dungeons & Dragons. In their game, three dwarves are searching for a portal to our world. They find it and end up entering out world in Al’s Sporting Goods. Thinking the things for sale there are weapons and armor, they equip themselves and set off to save the children. While the three cut scenes in the game are in a great cartoon style, during gameplay Three Dirty Dwarves uses large, excellent looking sprites. In addition, the game features fun rock music that seems to fit very well.

 
For the most part, the game plays like a normal beat ’em up. You control one dwarf with the other two following. At any time you can switch dwarves. Each plays slightly differently. One can throw baseballs in the air and hit them in rapid succession at enemies. This has a slight delay as he throws the balls before hitting them. One throws bowling balls and pins. The attack is rather slow, but the bowling ball can hit multiple enemies. The third shoots a shotgun. This happens immediately, but there’s a reload time afterwards. When the dwarf being controlled is damaged, he gets knocked out and control passes to another. Hitting the knocked out dwarf will allow him to become playable once again.
Enemy design is varied both in looks and weaknesses. The dwarves fight orcs, a dragon, mutant babies, robots, and more. Many enemies are simple to defeat, but many require timing attacks or watching for patterns. Still others require being hit in particular ways to be defeated. Between the normal beat ’em up levels are stranger levels. One has the dwarves running in a circle fighting an enemy in the middle. On screen the game is still 2D; running left or right causes the background to scroll so it appears that the dwarves are running in a circle. Another level is baseball themed. Each dwarf must score a run. Enemies are in the field while the dwarves are at bat. One button causes the dwarf to run from one base to the next, and one causes the dwarf to hit the ball. The batter won’t run unless the previous dwarf has made it home. You can aim the ball at enemies in the field to defeat them although they do respawn. When the path is clear, the dwarf is able to safely run to the next base. This was a particularly fun level to me.
Another great level is the obligatory mine cart level! How many early games had such a level? It seems like a lot of games in this genre feature a mine cart level or some similar level on rails featuring speed. These levels are much more varied today, but I think you can still see games with levels that fulfill the same purpose. It was amusing to find such a cliché level in the game. Don’t get me wrong though; it was fun! Because of enemies and obstacles on the track, you have to blast your way through and have a fast enough reaction time to jump over holes in the track.
One level had the dwarves riding a wrecking ball. This was a 3D level, with the wrecking ball swinging back and forth toward the background. A building contains a dragon breathing fire towards the dwarves. By holding left or right, you can control how the wrecking ball swings. Eventually you’re able to do enough damage to the building that it falls.
Three Dirty Dwarves was very enjoyable, and I’m surprised I don’t see it recommended more when people look for Saturn games to play. I’m glad I stumbled upon it. To add to the classic gaming feel, I even had to leave my Saturn on over night because there wasn’t a save feature. I can’t remember the last time I had to do that! This is a classic I’m sure I’ll play again and recommend to others!

Ninja Gaiden II is basically Devil May Cry without that special flare or spark that made Devil May Cry such an awesome series. NG2 is fun, it’s just feels a bit generic and recycled. It feels tremendously like DMC. Like all 3D hack and slash games, you run around slashing at enemies. When you kill enemies, glowing orbs called Essence appear. Picking them up plays a small audio clip that sounds almost identical to picking up orbs in DMC. Finding various objects, such as a key card that is used to unlock a door no more than ten seconds away from the card itself, causes a screen to pop up just like in DMC showing the object and giving a brief description. The sound effect even sounds like DMC! There are things that look like altars that act as save points, and statues that act as shops, selling regen items, powerups for weapons, and Life of the Gods pieces. You can also Life of the God pieces in the levels. Collecting nine of them will permanently increase your health – just like blue orbs in Devil May Cry! You’re also forced to use items immediately after finding them. Yes, this is done quite often in games, but that’s really not an excuse; this game makes you use it within ten seconds of finding them! I’m not just talking about the key card I mentioned earlier either. The game is fun, and I’m sure fans of Devil May Cry would enjoy it (besides possibly being angry if they’re not just fans but are fanboys). However, if someone is interested in playing Ninja Gaiden II and hasn’t played the Devil May Cry, I would recommend playing DMC instead.

Call of Duty: World at War was a pleasant surprise from Treyarch. While Treyarch’s Call of Duty 3 was a disappointment, World at War, built on Call of Duty 4’s engine, followed Call of Duty 4’s formula as well. It feels extremely similar to Call of Duty 4, which is great, but adds little. While not ground-breaking, World at War is basically Call of Duty 4 set in World War II.
The American campaign follows the war in the Pacific against the Japanese. This was a very nice change from previous Call of Duty titles. Japanese soldiers have a very different AI from German soldiers. They will hide in trees, hide in pits, wear camouflage, complete with shrubbery, and even run at you in an attempt to stab you (similar to dogs in Call of Duty 4). These levels were very challenging for me, and I liked them less than the levels pitting me against the Germans. Even so, it was nice to see this small change. I look forward to more changes like this in the future as long as the core game stays the same. The Russian campaign plays similarly to previous Call of Duty games in the World War II setting. You follows Russia’s push into Germany and their ending of the war.

 
During these two campaigns, you also get the chance to play as a gunner in a plane and as a tank. Both of these missions are very fun. World at War also introduces flamethrowers and molotovs. Both the flamethrower and molotov make small camps of enemies a breeze. The flamethrower also allows you to burn down tall grass in which the Japanese often hide. You can also use it to set fire to the trees in which Japanese snipers hide. The game looks great, and the war feels very dirty and gritty. The voice acting is good, and the small scenes before each level are very cool. These give the date, some background information about what’s happening, the location, and real footage of World War II. Being reminded that this war really happened and real soldiers experienced it is one of my favorite parts of playing a World War II shooter.
Some of the aspects about the ending remind me of how Call of Duty 4 felt. I’m not spoiling anything; it isn’t plot. It’s just the feeling I got from experiencing the endings. Also, periodically through the game the AI glitches and leaves enemies running into a wall or doing something similar. It doesn’t happen too often, but it’s noticeable. In addition, Treyarch seems to have noticed that players enjoyed the Call of Duty 4 scenes in which control was limited. In these scenes, movement was restricted due to the character being restrained, but the player could still look around. World at War features this mechanic over and over. There isn’t really anything wrong with this, but it felt like the game wanted the player to be impressed with it. This was a cool mechanic in Call of Duty 4, but it isn’t new anymore. I don’t have a problem with it. In fact, I believe it should be used whenever it makes sense to restrict movement and not the ability to look around. However, it isn’t new, and it felt overused in World at War.
After completing the game, Nazi Zombies, which is similar to Gears of War 2’s Horde mode, is unlocked. In this mode, the player is stuck in a room with barricaded doors and windows. Zombies approach and attempt to break through the barricades. Players earn points for repairing barricades and shooting zombies, getting more points for headshots than body shots. These points can be used to buy upgrades or access new areas of the base. If the player touches a zombie, it’s game over! The gameplay itself in this mode is really cool; however, it spooked me out a bit playing it. If only they weren’t zombies!
World at War also features cooperative play, which is very nice to have. Unfortunately, I did not get a chance to try it. It allows four people over Xbox Live or two people locally. I’m a big fan of local coop play and am glad it was included.
World at War didn’t introduce anything amazing to the genre, but it is a very fun shooter. It really does feel like Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare with the setting changed to World War II. It also features coop, new weapons, Nazi Zombies, and of course the Pacific battles. Treyarch really redeemed themselves after Call of Duty 3. If you’re looking for a game as amazing as Call of Duty 4 or are expecting World at War to really push the first person shooter genre, you’re going to be disappointed. However, if you’re looking for a good World War II shooter that actually shows the fighting in the Pacific for once, you’ll probably enjoy World at War.

Trine is a hack-n-slash, puzzle platformer set in a fantasy world. While the graphics are 3D, the gameplay itself is sidescrolling and 2D. The setting is absolutely gorgeous with dungeons, lush plant life, water, and more. In Trine you must sometimes overcome puzzles, usually in the form of figuring out how to reach a particular place. The undead will try to stop you and are fought in a typical hack-n-slash method – run up and hit them with a sword!
Three characters are presented to the player, the Thief, the Wizard, and the Knight. Each has different abilities that allow the player to solve puzzles in different ways. What’s interesting about Trine is that the player can switch between any of the three characters at any time (provided the character still has health). Each character has his or her own life and energy bars. The Thief can shoot arrows and use a grappling hook to reach high places or to swing. The Wizard can create crates and planks (usually used to help reach something, press a button, or as a counterbalance) and can levitate and move objects. The Knight can perform melee attacks with his sword and hold up a shield to protect himself. Many puzzles can be solved in different ways with different characters. This was of particular enjoyment to me because while trying to solve a puzzle I sometimes die, leaving me the two other characters to solve it and forcing me to rethink my solution.

 
The music and sound effects are appropriate and nice, and the voice acting is great. The characters don’t speak much, but it’s nice when they do, and the narrator does a superb job at telling the story like a fairy tale. The writing is nice, and the story more than sufficiently supplies motivation for the game.
Adding more depth to the game, Trine also features experience which can be collected. Each level has a set amount of experience, and when collected, experience is applied to all characters equally. When the characters level up, the player is able to pick skills to improve. In addition, equipment can be found in the levels. The player chooses which character to give the give the equipment, providing the chosen character with a bonus.
Trine features simple, enjoyable combat, fun puzzles, a beautiful setting, and an interesting mechanic (character swapping). These are all aspects of a great game, so it’s no surprise that I’m impressed with Trine.

WarioWare: Snapped! is the latest entry in the WarioWare series, and was a launch title for DSiWare. I was pleasantly surprised with how much fun the game was! The DSi is placed on a table and opened so that the camera points at the player’s face. The games are all controller solely by moving your head and hands within the camera’s view. The microgames, which are what the minigames are called in the WarioWare series, were all fun, and I did a lot of laughing while playing with my friends. One game has a wet dog controller by the player. The player must shake wildly to get the dog to dry off!

 
I did have some issues at first getting the camera to recognize me. At my desk, the game said it couldn’t distinguish between me and the background. I tried again later while at a restaurant and had the same result, although my friend was able to play. When I got home I tried again at my roommate’s desk and the camera saw me perfectly. You definitely have to be in good lighting conditions for the camera to operate correctly. You also need to make sure other people do not enter the camera’s vision.
Unlike the abundance of characters in the other WarioWare games, Snapped! only has four characters. Even with multiple tries needed for some levels, I still completed the game in under a half hour. I don’t think I see a lot of replay value besides using it as a tech demo for camera games for my friends, but WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Party Game$! for the GameCube was the only one I did replay because of the excellent multiplayer.
Each character has different microgames to play. Three of them are for one player, and one is for two players despite not actually specifying that. In addition to the cartoony graphics on screen, a gray blob represents what the camera sees so that the player can align himself or herself. The microgames involve moving your head and hands to particular locations, swatting things, grabbings thing, and other various activities. The game is able to detect when you open and close your mouth, which is used in one of the microgames. I was also surprised to find out that the game can tell when you turn head to the side. At the end of each character’s set of microgames, video or playfully edited snapshots of the player are shown. These range from small movies with simple stories starring the player to fun little photos that seem like the type that would come from photo booths.
In addition to the microgames corresponding to the four characters, the credits is also a game. The names scroll down the screen, and the player moves his or her head to cause a rollercoaster to collide with the letters. The more letters you get, the more points you get. At the end your photo is taken and your score is saved and displayed on the title screen.
At only 500 Nintendo Points ($5), I found it a worthwhile experience. I’d be very happy if Nintendo published more small, cheap, downloadable WarioWare games!

Stalker: Shadow of Chernobyl did not feel like a very good game. It’s dark and ugly, and it felt like a bad mod. The interface was designed badly and was not as responsive as it should be. It had the same feel as the Hellgate: London interface, only Stalker’s interface belongs to an uninteresting game. The game is a first person shooter and role playing game. An accident in Chernobyl yields radiation that causes strange effects to the surroundings. You play as some sort of hunter or explorer. The area around the accident, known as the Zone, is off limits; however, people known as hunters go in anyways looking for strange artifacts. You have amnesia and have one mission in your PDA at the start of the game to kill a particular person. The game is very boring visually, and the a lot of the graphics are just bad on top of the boring colors. Using the interface is annoying. From what I saw early in the game, dialogue was pretty boring too. I did not find this game worth my time to explore further.

Warfare Incorporated would be a fantastic game even if it was not a cell phone game and is my favorite iPhone game. In this RTS, you play as a young miner for the ACME corporation named Andy. You discover a secret on a new planet, but the rival corporation OMNI as well as the Free Radicals find out about it also! There’s only one campaign, played as Andy, which is different than a lot of PC RTS games. OMNI and the Free Radicals have the same units and buildings, which is a little disappointing. The game plays well with many different types of levels, including levels in which the goal is to wipe out the enemy, mine, stealthily infiltrate, and destroy waves of incoming enemies. The graphics and sound are nice, and the storyline is interesting and provides great motivation. I’ve loved this game for years on Palm OS devices, and it continues to be excellent on the iPhone with touch controls. You can download new mission packs from within the game, adding a lot of replayability to the little RTS. There seems to be two different styles of on screen dialogue, and I don’t know why. I feel like the game should only use one style if there isn’t a precise reason why some messages use a particular style. There are occasional grammar errors and unpolished dialogue, but the problems are minor.

 
The gamplay is similar to many other RTS games. In order to create new units or buildings, you need to have enough Galaxite mined. You also must have enough power generators to power your buildings. The more buildings you create, the more generators you’ll need. Warfare Incorporated has three identical factions with ten building types, seven vehicle types, and four soldier types. Unit selection is done my creating a rectangle on screen using two fingers. There isn’t a way to switch between different groups quickly, which is a feature present in most PC RTS games. Each time you want to select troops, you have to reselect them manually. This does get in the way of playing. There are three difficulty settings, all available to be chosen from the first time Warfare Incorporated is launched. Depending on how well you do in a level, you could get promoted one or more ranks. This allows you to see how well you did overall after finishing the game. The game also comes with challenge maps for an extra test of skill after finishing the main game. These are also available from the beginning if you want to play them without playing through the main campaign.
After discovering the secret on the planet Icarus, players can take advantage of it to change the strategy of battle. Of course, enemy factions can also take advantage it. I’ll refrain from saying exactly what it is because it would spoil the game, but it is an interesting feature. The game has many save slots, so you don’t have to worry about saving at a point that is impossible from which to recover. The game will also continue right where you left off if you press the Home button to exit the game. It’s a great game that I’ve enjoyed playing through multiple times. Warfare Incorporated really is a fantastic game and by far the best game on the iPhone!

I had been looking forward to playing Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction when I obtained a PS3, and recently I finally had the opportunity to try it. It feels like a classic 3D platformer (can we call something from the 5th generation ‘classic’ yet?) but with polish that the genre doesn’t normally receive today. It has a lot of running around, jumping, and shooting. It also has little need for precise aiming or hiding it under cover, keeping the classic, action feel. As you kill enemies and blow up boxes, gears will appear on the ground that you can collect to power up. I’ve only played the first level and a little of the second, but the first level was just gorgeous. The graphics are great with a fantastic futuristic city. There were lots of colors with tall buildings and flying vehicles stuck in traffic high in the air. The character designs are cute and cartoony. Ratchet looks like a bipedal cat, Clank is a little, silver robot, and the enemies I’ve fought so far have been little slime/worm things inside mech suits. I’m looking forward to playing more of this!