July2016
Review Conveni Dream (3DS eShop)
An inconvenient truth
When I was a child, I once told my mother that I wanted to work at a gas station when I grew up. I don't know why this was my aspiration at the time, and I don't remember my mother's response, but I never did live up to that goal. I went on to do other things: I went to college, worked a few different retail and customer...
May2016
Review Super Strike Beach Volleyball (3DS eShop)
The Family that Plays Together
You wouldn't be wrong in thinking that the art in Super Strike Beach Volleyball looks familiar. You also wouldn't be wrong in thinking that the art looks like it was ripped completely from games such as Family Tennis 3D or Family Fishing. Make no mistake, this latest all-ages outdoor sport title is part of the Arc...
January2016
Clean cut
Do you consider yourself a samurai among slicers? Do you leave no pizza asymmetrically divided in your wake? Then Slice It! might have a challenge made for you. The goal of Slice It! is straightforward. Each puzzle provides a shape or design that the player must cut into a certain number of separate pieces using full cuts from one side to...
December2015
Review Radiohammer (3DS eShop)
Hammer time
Between retail full-lengths like Hatsune Miku: Project Mirai DX, Theatrhythm Final Fantasy: Curtain Call, and Rhythm Thief and the Emperor's Treasure, and eShop singles like HarmoKnight and Dedede's Drum Dash Deluxe, the 3DS has put on quite a sh
Review Family Fishing (3DS eShop)
Fins with Kin
As the house of Guilty Gear and BlazBlue, Arc System Works is perhaps best known for its fighting games, but over the past few years it's also been quietly churning out a series of arcadey eShop sports games starring a multitalented Japanese family. Billy and his hyper-competitive clan have already brought charming, thoroughly decent...
October2015
Review Dragon Ball Z: Extreme Butoden (3DS)
Not so extreme
Outside of Super Smash Bros., it feels like there's something of a gap in the 3DS library when it comes to fighters, so the overseas arrival of Dragon Ball Z: Extreme Butoden is a welcome one. A 2D, sprite based brawler that features characters and storylines from the perpetually popular manga and anime property, it's a solid if...
September2015
Review Brave Tank Hero (Wii U eShop)
War, war never changes
Oh Brave Tank Hero, you were not a great game on the 3DS. For those of you who missed the review, ultimately Brave Tank Hero was a mediocre affair on the portable system - the flawed game design and an array of oversights ruined what could have been a good title. Now, Natsume has released the game for the Wii U eShop; will a...
Review Gotcha Racing (3DS eShop)
A delight at every turn
Gotcha Racing is about as simple as racing games come, but it's far more addictive than most. The concept is derived from Japan's Gachapon capsule toys — small, highly collectible toys that usually go for about 100 yen apiece. It's this concept that drives the heart of the game. When you first start Gotcha Racing you'll be...
August2015
Review Brave Tank Hero (3DS eShop)
As Salvatore from Wind Waker would say… "Splish!"
In Conker's Bad Fur Day, there is a chapter towards the end of the game called War. In that chapter there is one small section in which the protagonist squirrel has to get inside a tank and storm the Tediz's base. Brave Tank Hero is somewhat similar to that section of Conker's BFD, in the sense...
Review Ninja Usagimaru - The Gem of Blessings (3DS eShop)
Block Ninjutsu
If there's anything that movies, television and games have taught us, it's that ninja are deadly. Give them knives, blow darts, ninja stars and swords and they're virtually unstoppable. Ninja Usagimaru - The Gem of Blessings proves that they don't need any of those things to be vicious. Give a ninja a simple addition of a block to...
Review Swords & Darkness (3DS eShop)
Alone in the darkness
Side-scrolling hack and slash games fall into a tricky genre. It's such a simple concept at its core, but it can easily be ruined by something as basic as poor controls or lack of originality. Swords & Darkness, the latest in the genre to make its way to the 3DS eShop, is an unfortunate example of what happens when little...
January2015
Review Family Tennis SP (Wii U eShop)
Not without its faults
If there's one thing that Arc System Works - with this game published by Shin'en Multimedia - can't be accused of, it's of sticking to one genre. Over the years it has displayed a competent ability to develop quality beat 'em ups, side scrolling fighters and even racing games, such as Final Lap, a game that dates as far back...
September2014
Review BlazBlue: Clone Phantasma (3DS eShop)
Small brawl
There's always excitement in the air when a new fighting game hits the streets. These days, especially with the upcoming release of Nintendo's premier brawler, it's easy for lesser-known releases to get swept under the rug. Some fighting franchises are big among niche groups of gamers, but this means that great titles often get...
May2014
Review Arc Style: Baseball 3D (3DS eShop)
Take me out to a real ball game...
Arc System Works' latest casual sports title, Arc Style: Baseball 3D, contains the same extensive customisation options of Arc Style: Soccer!! 3D, but it also retains the sluggish, repetitive gameplay and adds some new issues to boot. There is fun to be had in the local multiplayer and even the single player...
February2014
Review ARC STYLE: Solitaire (3DS eShop)
Forever alone
If you've ever had a) a computer, b) a deck of cards, or c) a grandmother, then the odds are good that you've had some exposure to Solitaire. At a relatively low-price point, ARC STYLE: Solitaire aims to bring that hot solo card-arranging action to the 3DS eShop. We would have thought that such a simple game in combination with a touch...
October2013
Review Family Bowling 3D (3DS eShop)
Pins with kin
If you were fortunate enough to grow up near a bowling alley, you might have fond memories of family outings full of comically unappealing shoes, embarrassing bowling stances from certain members of your clan, and slipping spectacularly on finely polished floors at least once. You probably didn't get to throw a twelve-pound ball at a...
Review Family Table Tennis 3D (3DS eShop)
Family, friendly - fun?
After developing something of an unenviable reputation on WiiWare, Arc System Works' Family series of sports games has been reborn as a dependably decent option on the 3DS' eShop. Following on from Family Tennis 3D and Family Kart 3D, Family Table Tennis 3D is the latest in the line, and while it isn't quite up to the...
August2013
Review Family Kart 3D (3DS eShop)
A familiar feeling
Fresh off the court from the surprisingly fun Family Tennis 3D, the world's most competitive family returns to the 3DS eShop to hit the racetrack in Family Kart 3D. Developed by Arc System Works - yes, they of Guilty Gear and BlazBlue fame - this is a simple, straightforward kart racer that fails to stand out from the crowd, but...
July2013
Review Deer Hunting King (3DS eShop)
Oh, dear
Is there something about the 3DS that screams out to developers that it just might be the ideal platform for arcade shooters? Maybe it’s the 3D effect that adds simulated depth to in-game environments, or maybe it’s the touchscreen which is seemingly built for aiming a crosshair? Whatever the case may be, the 3DS has seen at least a...
August2012
Review VectorRacing (3DS eShop)
Lines and lines and lines and lines and lines!
There's an episode of Family Guy in which Peter Griffin attends a production of Uncle Vanya. Partway through the play he stands up, bored out of his mind, and shouts, "for crying out loud, somebody throw a pie!" That's more or less how we felt playing VectorRacing. VectorRacing is the epic tale...
July2012
Review Family Tennis 3D (3DS eShop)
A good second service
Arc System Works, most fondly known for the Guilty Gear and BlazBlue series of 2D fighting games, also dabbles in the casual sports genre with its Family series for WiiWare. Those titles generally haven't been very well received, but the series' first entry into the eShop, Family Tennis 3D, is a happy reversal of that trend...
March2012
Review Arc Style: Soccer!! 3D (3DS eShop)
Like real soccer, it's better with friends
Hoping against hope to sweep the award for most cumbersomely titled game in the eShop, Arc Style: Soccer!! 3D is here, and it's brought with it a slew of impressive options for customisation. Unfortunately, the gameplay seems to have been sacrificed on their behalf. As with just about any sports game, Arc...
September2011
Review Defense of the Middle Kingdom (DSiWare)
Middle of the road
Many games take the history of Asian nations as their focus, from the Japanese combat-based Samurai Warriors series to the Romance of the Three Kingdoms games, which use the warring kingdoms of first-century China as their basis. The newest to enter the ring is Defense of the Middle Kingdom, which also focuses on the latter's...
June2011
Review Pro Jumper! Guilty Gear Tangent!? (DSiWare)
There is no tagline for a title like that
If you’ve never been confused by a video game’s title, now’s your chance! With all of its punctuation and absurdity, Pro Jumper! Guilty Gear Tangent!? is easily one of the most interesting titles on the DSiWare service. As the name suggests, this is a spin-off of the Guilty Gear series of fighting...
Review Double Dragon (3DS eShop / GB)
Streets of Joy
Double Dragon begins with Marion minding her own business when she is confronted and kidnapped by three thugs. She can remain calm, though. It's not because the cartoony visuals give the abduction a Donkey Kong vibe (even with a punch to the gut) – it's because her boyfriend is professional bottom-kicker Billy Lee. Based on the...
