Tales of Monkey Island: Chapter Two The Siege of Spinner Cay

This review focuses on the WiiWare version of the title. Screenshots are from the PC release of Tales of Monkey Island: Chapter Two The Siege At Spinner Cay. Originally posted on Default Prime.

     A month has passed and a new chapter for Tales of Monkey Island has hit both WiiWare and PC. The first chapter had excellent writing and proved that TellTale Games could capture the essence  of the past Monkey Island games. It still had its issues though, some of the puzzles were a bit confusing  and it didn’t really break any new ground in the point and click genre. On top of that the game had a sloppy port to WiiWare which suffered constant frame rate issues along with many other problems. Can Tales of Monkey Island Chapter 2 live up to the first chapter in the episodic series and is the WiiWare version a suitable alternative this time around?

Tales of Monkey Island: Chapter One Launch of the Screaming Narwhal Review

Orginally posted on www.Defaultprime.com. This review focuses on the WiiWare version of Tales of Monkey Island: Chapter One Launch of the Screaming Narwhal. Screenshots are taken from the PC version of the title.

     With E3’s triumphant return this year many games were lost in the hustle and bustle of announcements and demos. One title that didn’t get much attention over the E3 week was Tales of Monkey Island. The sequel to the long running point and click adventures series Monkey Island that disappeared after Escape from Monkey Island which was released in 2000. Nine years later the series returns with Tales of Monkey Island, a five part episodic adventure for the PC and Wii. Telltale Games the developer of Strong Bad’s Cool Game For Attractive People and the latest entires in the Sam and Max series took hold of the development for Tales of Monkey Island. With episodic gaming it is very important to make a good first impression. Does Taletell Games succeed in making a treasure worth searching for or should you set sail for new waters?

Castlevania Judgement Review

Originally posted on www.defaultprime.com

     The Castlevania Series didn’t make a smooth transition from 2D to 3D, Castlevania 64, Lament of Innocence and Curse of Darkness, while not bad titles, haven’t reached the level of their two dimensional counterparts. Instead of trying the same thing over and over again, Konami decided to take a different path. Castlevania Judgment is more along the lines of a one on one open ended arena fighter with various in stage hazards and items to use similar to the original Power Stone. It’s no secret that before its release Castlevania Judgment was looking to be a flawed title, Konami even gave permission to employees to remove people from the booth at E3 if they were making fun of the title while playing it. Can Castlevania Judgment waggle its way into your heart, or will you be stabbing it with a stake?

Dementium: The Ward Review

Originally posted on www.Defaultprime.com

     When most people think portable games, especially on Nintendo’s portable platforms, they usually are thought of as light hearted and are usually rated by the ESRB as “E” for everyone or “T” for teens. The developer Renegade Kid decided instead to go for a grittier game then we are use to on the Nintendo DS. Dementium has zombie like enemies, cheap scares and dark corridors that are all so common in many other survival horror titles. With the limited capabilities of the DS it seems unlikely that a game could reach the levels of a console survival horror game. Will Dementium: The Ward keep you awake at night, or will it quickly put you to sleep?

Punch-Out!! Review

Originally posted on www.Defaultprime.com

     After it’s disappearance for over 10 years the Punch-Out Franchise has finally returned. While many were overjoyed by the return of a old franchise many asked how much would change and could a game like punch out provide enough depth and game play to make it worth the full $50 value? While Nintendo promised that there would be enough content to justify your purchase, you can’t really trust the word of the one who’s trying to sell the game. Should Nintendo have left this franchise out of the ring, or can Punch-Out justify its place in the ring.

GUN Review

A reminder that this review is based off the Gamecube version of GUN. Other version may vary in quality and content.

Activision is probably one of the biggest money power houses in the video game industry. Instead of making new franchises Activision is focused on milking series like Guitar Hero with as many as four different Guitar Hero titles announced for the end of this year. The developers who currently makes these titles inside Activision is called Neversoft, previous developers of the Tony Hawk series.  Neversoft has constantly slaved away at making yearly entries of the Tony Hawk franchise and seasonal entries in Guitar Hero franchise, but back in 2005 they had the chance to create a new IP. What came out was GUN, A Wild West third person shooter. Did Neversoft prove that they could hold their own as a developer of a new title, or should they continue slaving away at making these hollowed out franchises.

Tatsunoko Vs. Capcom Import Preview

Originally posted on www.Defaultprime.com

     Tatsunoko vs Capcom is the latest in the vs. line of games. For a long time it had very little chance of being released outside of japan due to licensing issues and the fact that Tatsunoko’s characters aren’t very popular outside of Japan. Americans and Europeans are finally getting their hands on Tatsunoko vs Capcom later this year. We must thank Capcom for putting so much work into getting this game overseas, After going throguh what was basically licensing hell. Some how Capcom was able to get all the characters except one over into the North American and European version of the title. The question is, was it worth all the effort, or were fans just clamoring for the fact that we didn’t receive the title?

Mega Man 3 Review

Originally posted on www.Defaultprime.com

     Mega Man needs no introduction. The blue bomber has been destroying Robot Masters ever since the NES days and has been on almost every console since in some form. Mega Man holds the most titles released in a single franchise. While it may be controversial to how good Mega Man titles are today, many will say that the original Mega Man titles are the best. Mega Man 3 is in this group of praised titles. Is it really a great title, or are people basing their opinion off nostalgia?

Sony’s E3 Conference

-11:09 It’s starting~!

-11:10 Intro video showing off some content like FFXIII, Bayonetta, Uncharted , Ratchet and Clank, Brutal legend, god of war, heavy rain, little big planet for PSP and etc.

-11:12 Jack Tretton, Presidnet and CEO takes the stage. Joking about leaks.

- 11:15 Modern Warefare 2, Final Fantasy XII, Ratchet and clank, Heavy rain and rock band beetles are some of the great titles already announced for the playstation 3.

-11:16 Sony willcommited to the PS2 as long as there is a demand.

-11:17 Playstation 2 will get 100 new titles this year. Mentions how Playstation 2 users may 2eventually move onto be Play Station 3 users.

Nintendo E3 Conference

-9:02AM Nintendo could be starting up any minute now! Have a Pepsi Throwback ready to take a swig for all the good news~.

-9:03 Montage of already avalible titles with people in thier living rooms playing Wii/DS

-9:05 Cammie Dunway takes the stage. Starts talking about how Video Games is one of the biggest forms of entertainment now. Out ranking most entertainment industries.

-9:07 Promises surprizes for the show. Starts talking about mario, and a montage of all the Super Mario titles starts playing…

-9:08 Speaking of moving mario into the 4th dimension. Promising that New Super Mario Brothers for Wii is a new way to play mario never before and Bill trinen takes the stage to explain it.