Here at Gamezebo, we review what are usually referred to as "casual" games. Despite the fact that we're constantly looking behind the scenes for a better name to describe the emerging wave of quick and accessible videogames, a simple fact stands: the games we review a vast majority of the time are going to be in the $20 and lower price range and are aimed at a general audience. So why, you might ask, am I reviewing a full-priced hardcore sequel to a game from 2000?
To put it bluntly, there's not much meat on the DragonCraft strategy bone. It's a pretty game, and at first glance it looks like there's a lot to do here, but it doesn't take long to realize that you're not the one giving the orders, you're following them.
The best thing I can say about The Last Stand: Dead Zone is that I was playing it at the very moment of Diablo III's long-anticipated release and found myself reluctant to stop. That's partly because there wasn't much point to trying to log in to Diablobecause of the server load, but also because ConArtist's fourth entry in their Last Stand series surprised me at every turn. It succeeds as both as a strategy game and a roleplaying game, and it's a gritty example of how to give aging social conventions new relevance. Perhaps most importantly, it's a game for people who doubt the legitimacy of Facebook as a gaming platform.
Princess Emma has gone missing, and once-loyal knights conspire to seize power while all manner of bandits and beasts terrorize the kingdom! It's not yet in beta testing, but the upcoming KingsRoad, a Diablo-esque action-RPG epic set in the troubled fantasy realm of Deveral, already looks amazing. Players will battle enemies and collect gold and treasure in a world that spans forests, mountains and more - and yet it's all entirely Flash-based and takes place in a browser.
Three years is a long time to wait for a follow-up to a hit mobile game, but in the case of Ravensword 2 it may very well be worth it. Screenshots of the upcoming iOS action-RPG are absolutely stunning, as the game takes full advantage of new technology like multi-core CPUs and Retina displays to generate the kind of visuals you'd expect to see from a contemporary console RPG.
In some ways you could say Mighty Monsters is a game about reaching a pinnacle. Perhaps the pinnacle. In a way that no one else has. Because while on one hand your challenge is to capture monsters, you also have a deeper calling: to train them. In order to do so, you'll travel broad expanses in a fervent search - all the while looking for the mystical power both inside the monsters and in yourself. Also, so what if those were just rephrased lyrics of the Pokemon theme song.
Welcome to the quick start guide for Ravenshire Castle: a sequel to the popular Facebook games Ravenwood Fair and Ravenskye City. Build your castle and sneak into the castles of your rivals and loot them of their treasures.
If you're wondering why Gamezebo's a little late in its coverage of the release of Ravenshire Castle, the answer's simple--for a couple of days, I was unable to do anything past the third or fourth quest thanks to a bug that prevented new missions from appearing. That in itself speaks of the obstacles surrounding the game's release, and as I've ventured into the castle itself and beyond, I'm surprised to find less threatening shortcomings at almost every turn. It's a shame, really, since there's a good game lurking behind all these issues, and Ravenshire Castle goes to great lengths to prove that there's still room for innovation in an aging genre.