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  • Dracula 5: The Blood Legacy Review
    Reviews
    • PC
    Dracula 5: The Blood Legacy Review

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    The fifth game in Microids' Dracula adventure series, Dracula 5: The Blood Legacy picks up right where Dracula 4: The Shadow of the Dragon left off. Ellen thinks she's found the 16th painting in the Vambery collection, the one rumored to be a portrait of Dracula himself. Are the nightmares she's having part of her worsening illness, or is this painting more than just oil on canvas?Dracula 5: The Blood Legacy employs the exact same interface as previous games in the series. Click and hold the mouse button to look at your surroundings, turning in any direction with the free-moving point of view. When you see something worth investigating, simply click on it. Movement from area to area works in the same fashion, with the cursor changing to indicate when you can travel. To use items, click the menu button tucked away in the bottom corner of the screen, double click the item, and then click where you want to use it. Conversations take place with simple dialogue trees, offering just the right number of choices to make you curious without overkilling on the interactivity."At first glance, some of the puzzle solutions might seem a bit obtuse in Dracula 5: The Blood Legacy, especially if you're coming from a casual gaming background. They require you to think logically and experiment with everything at your disposal. No hint meters or talking clue companions to help you out, just old-fashioned detective work. In addition to combining inventory items and exploring your environment for objects to use, Dracula 5 features a handful of mini-game puzzles to work through. Nothing too out of the ordinary - just some panel buttons to organize and codes to crack.
  • Broken Sword 5: The Serpent’s Curse – Episode 1 Review
    Reviews
    • iOS
    • PC
    Broken Sword 5: The Serpent’s Curse – Episode 1 Review

    By

    If the holiday gaming season has left you feeling a bit bloated, now's a great time to deflate with some indie fare that recalls a simpler time in the pastime's history. A time when solving problems meant clicking on every square inch of the screen with your mouse, or taking abuse from a goat.Broken Sword 5: The Serpent's Curse - Episode 1 should make old-school adventure game fans crack a smile, though that merriment will give way to a frown of concentration in no time. The title, funded by a highly successful Kickstarter campaign, reunites old friends George Stobbart and Nicole (Nico) Collard, and gives them a fresh new conspiracy to dive into. While the Templars took the spotlight in previous games, Nico and George now find themselves tangled up in a plot involving the Gnostic Gospels and a stolen painting that gives off unsettling, almost blasphemous, vibes."As is the case in previously-released Broken Sword games, getting ahead in The Serpent's Curse is all about interacting with your environment. Either Nico or George walks from scene to scene (the story flips between the two viewpoints) and investigates curiosities by putting their virtual hands all over them. On occasion, they may find an item that can be collected and used elsewhere. Is there a shiny object of interest just beyond the grille of an air conditioner vent? That would be a perfect time to use that paperclip you happened to pick up earlier, don't you think?
  • Space Hulk Review
    Reviews
    • iOS
    • PC
    Space Hulk Review

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    Sci-fi tactical combat affair Space Hulk is widely acclaimed as one of the most atmospheric board games ever made. It's also commonly recognized as begging for the video game treatment, and yet in the 25 years since its release, all we had were some live-action titles and fan homages. The latest developer to tackle the licence is Full Control, and after a buggy PC release, the game has come to mobile.The action is set amongst the tight corridors and tiny rooms of a derelict spacecraft, where heavily armed Space Marines square off against limitless hordes of slavering alien horrors called Genestealers.  There's a series of missions with varied objectives like retrieving data collection devices or burning strategically important terrain points."Mechanically, it's mostly classic turn-by-turn, action point based tactics: nothing inspirational there. But there are two features that catapult the game into classic status.First, a breathtakingly simple double whammy of hidden information: the Genestealers are never sure how many action points the Marines have, and the Marines are never sure how many Genestealers are on the map.Second is the twisty, claustrophobic nature of the maps. Rather than the open worlds smattered with scenery typical of the genre, Space Hulk takes place in spidery networks of tiny rooms interconnected with one-space wide corridors, dismal with choke points and ambush sites.
  • SteamWorld Dig Review
    Reviews
    • iOS
    • PC
    SteamWorld Dig Review

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    One of my favorite Nintendo 3DS games of the year has made the surprise transition over to PC, meaning that those people who don't own the latest Nintendo handheld can finally see what all the fuss is about. SteamWorld Dig really is as fantastic as you've heard, and it is very much in your best interest to grab a copy as soon as possible.Imagine the world of Terraria, crossed with the ability-collecting nature of the Super Metroid series, and then coated in the most gorgeous HD visuals for good measure. SteamWorld Dig will engross you from start to finish, and most likely you'll need to dedicate an entire evening to the experience, since it's rather difficult to pull yourself away until the credits have rolled.You are an old mining steambot called Rusty, and you've been left at an old mine out in the middle of nowhere by your late uncle. Upon arriving, you discover that the town of Tumbleton, where your mine can be found, is rather empty and desolate. You also discover, however, that your mine contains oodles of wonderful secrets and treasures - and you begin to use these treasures to help Tumbleton grow into a town to be proud of.When you start out, all you have is a rusty old pickaxe that can barely smash through rock. However, as you dig deep into the randomly-generated underground caverns, you begin to dig up treasures and resources which can be sold in town - the money can then be used to buy upgrades and powers for Rusty, such that you can dig even deeper and find even more exciting bits and bobs.
  • Reviews
    • iOS
    • PC
    Skulls of the Shogun Review

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    Before now, developer 17-Bit's masterfully fun Skulls of the Shogun was limited to the world of Windows Phone 8. For those of us who enjoy cleverly executed turn-based strategy titles and are iOS people, this was a travesty. But just when it seemed we might have to travel to the mythical, skeleton-heavy afterworld of Feudal Japan and forcibly bring the game back with us, it hit other platforms like Xbox Live Arcade and Steam. Things looked up, as we spent our days looking at screenshots and dreaming of the day that such a ridiculously charming game might make its way to our chosen devices. That day has come.You are General Akamoto, a Samurai General who, whilst reveling in the spoils of a recent and particularly glorious victory, is felled by the razor sharp blade of a foe. The next thing you know, you're little more than a floating skeleton. Spirited away to the afterlife, Akamoto is shocked and chagrined to learn that between him and an eternity of bliss is a line of fellow dead soldiers. It is estimated that from the point of entry, 2,000 years will pass before our hero arrives at the gates of the true afterlife; and so in true Samurai fashion, he chooses to fight his way to the head of the queue instead."But it won't be easy. If the line seemed bad, the guardians of the afterlife are worse (and no less annoying than standing around like a goon behind who-knows-how-many other skeletons). And though Akamoto will recruit any number of fellow soldiers who range in class from simple infantry and horse-riding bad-asses to snarkily clever archers, there is no end in sight to the obstacles standing in his way.
  • Mystery Case Files: Fate’s Carnival Review
    Reviews
    • iOS
    • PC
    Mystery Case Files: Fate’s Carnival Review

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    Despite being the tenth game in the long-running and hugely successful HOG series, Mystery Case Files: Fate's Carnival is actually a sequel of sorts to the fourth game in the franchise, 2007's Mystery Case Files: Madame Fate, as it marks the player detective's return to Madame Fate's carnival and all of the mystery and wonder that is swirling around inside. But while the carnival setting itself might seem rehashed on paper, this time around everything in Madam Fate's world just seems so much livelier, and Elephant Games packs on the content and inventive puzzles to match. I hope you picked up a carnival day pass and have your pockets lined with tickets, because you're going to be enjoying your time at this spooky fair for quite a while!Truth be told, I didn't feel like there was much of a story to accompany the action of Fate's Carnival at first. The player detective simply shows up at the titular carnival and references repeatedly through the dialogue that you had been there once before on a previous case. The majority of the game will simply involve your silent character moving through the carnival, and saving various carnies in distress: like the Amazing Larry, who's somehow found himself irreplaceably sawn in half, or the Strong Man, who's found his muscles being pushed to their limit in a hellish gauntlet of sorts. There's also the occasional scare or two, which actually made me jump in both their sounds and execution."However, that's certainly not to say the story never heats up as more mysteries and evil forces gradually get introduced, and that it doesn't lay the foundation for all sorts of carnival magic and wonder to crop up along the way. You'll also be given a spooky ghost cat by Madame Fate at the start of the game, who will help by reaching certain items that are well out of your reach, or scaring bats and attacking fish for your own personal gain: just like any good ghost cat would do. This adds a unique component to the exploration segments of the game, as you'll often forget that the ghost cat is exactly what you need to solve a puzzle when you've exhausted all other options in your inventory.
  • Reviews
    • iOS
    • PC
    Castle of Illusion Review

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    Before we get into this, a disclaimer: This reviewer has never played Castle of Illusion Starring Mickey Mouse in its original release for the SEGA Genesis/Mega Drive. As such, no comparisons to the original game are to be found in this review, and it will only be judged on its own merits. That said, this iOS port of the Xbox 360/PlayStation 3/PC remake is good. Quite good, in fact, and perhaps surprisingly so. Platformers can be hit or miss on the iPhone, especially when they weren't originally made with the system in mind; and when they fall, they can fall hard.Such is not the case here, though. While not perfect, Castle of Illusion still works well in the palm of your hand, and almost feels like it's been optimized to compensate for its shortcomings. The biggest issue we had was with the controls, which feel a bit sticky when you try to move in just about any direction except to the right. This provides a bit of a problem when you need to duck, or worse, when the left-right portions change to full-on 3D movement, which the game does seamlessly otherwise."Even so, the game doesn't seem to have a standard lives system, as such games from the era of the original typically did. On occasion, including near the start, you might run into a situation where it feels like a checkpoint would be handy, but for the most part, they're frequent and the lack of lives means you can continue trying as much as you need to in order to get it right.
  • The Shivah: Kosher Edition Review
    Reviews
    • iOS
    • PC
    The Shivah: Kosher Edition Review

    By

    If my spirituality could be depicted as an animal, it'd be a mutt-dog with two crooked legs. My mother is an Orthodox Jewish convert from Irish Roman Catholicism. I was raised as (and identify as) a Jew, but I still had enough exposure to Christianity to notice some key differences between the faiths. Notably, Judaism doesn't adhere to a single interpretation of the Bible, and Rabbis are the kings of question-asking as a consequence. It's this small, but important distinction that drives the story - and indeed, even the gameplay - of The Shivah: Kosher Edition.The Shivah: Kosher Edition is a mobile port/remake of The Shivah, a 2006 point-and-click adventure title for PC. The game stars Russell Stone, a troubled rabbi who heads a failing congregation based in New York City. Suddenly, a windfall: the rebbe receives word he's been willed enough money to pay off his debts and keep his synagogue open. However, his benefactor is Jack, a former congregation member who departed angrily after Stone refused to bless the marriage between Jack and his non-Jewish wife."As Stone tries to get to the bottom of why he was bequeathed the money, he quickly learns that Jack was mixed up in some pretty bad business. He begins piecing things together, and comes across more than a couple of moral dilemmas on his spiritual journey.The Shivah: Kosher Edition purposefully looks and plays a good deal like Sierra's stable of classic adventure titles, especially the Monkey Island series. Rabbi Stone needs to explore his surroundings thoroughly in order to find clues, which includes interacting with people (and making sure you say just the right thing), taking note of obituaries and photos, and even hacking into fellow Jews' computers. Eh, it's just a schmear of privacy invasion.