Author Profile
- Username
- Philip_J_Reed
- Articles
- 264 (214 reviews)
- First Article
- Tue 10th, March 2009
- Avg. Review Score
- 5.5
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Review Mega Man 3 (Wii U eShop / NES)
The Blue Bomber jumps onto the GamePad
It's fitting that Mega Man 3 introduces our hero's antagonistic, cocksure older brother Proto Man, as the game itself seems to eternally duke it out with its own brother Mega Man 2 for the coveted title of Best in Series. But wherever you may fall on the question, there's no doubt that this third installment in...
Review Mega Man 2 (Wii U eShop / NES)
The Blue Bomber jumps onto the GamePad
In 1987, Capcom released the original Mega Man. It was well-received by both gamers and critics, but it was not much of a financial success. Over the course of the next year, however, Mega Man 2 was developed as a labour of love by Keiji Inafune and his team, alongside other projects that were expected to be...
Review Mighty Switch Force! 2 (3DS eShop)
The sequel, the sequel, the sequel's on fire
In late 2011, WayForward released Mighty Switch Force!, one of the first eShop titles to make significant use of the 3DS's capabilities. You took control of Patricia Wagon, a cop in search of the ostensibly criminal Hooligan sisters, and the puzzles were all based in some way around the 3D effect, popping...
Review Mega Man X (Wii U eShop / SNES)
Marks the spot
By the time Mega Man X was released for the SNES, gamers and critics were already expressing concern about the classic series feeling stale. Mega Man had become formulaic and predictable, and while the NES games were still a lot of fun, there was no denying that they didn't evolve much from title to title. Mega Man X felt like a firm...
Review Gummy Bears Mini Golf (3DS eShop)
Golfing here and there and everywhere
When Gummy Bears Magical Medallion, the game so confident it doesn't need a properly punctuated title, was released earlier this month we weren't exactly left clamoring for a sequel or a spin-off. Its controls were stiff and aggravating, its level design bland and empty, its coding sloppy and its 3D effect was...
Review Swords & Soldiers 3D (3DS eShop)
Finally facing its Waterloo
Four years ago, Swords & Soldiers made its debut. WiiWare has always been a mix of titles ranging from brilliant to terrible — with a thick middle section of "mediocre" — but Swords & Soldiers immediately established itself as a must-have. We awarded it a much deserved 9, taken as we were by its charm, its...
Review Super Mario Bros. 2 (Wii U eShop / NES)
The stuff dreams are made of
By now we all know the story of Super Mario Bros. 2: concerns about the Japanese sequel to the original Super Mario Bros. kept it from release in North America and Europe. Different reasons have been given over time, from the game being too difficult to it simply not demonstrating enough creativity to keep gamers...
Review Mega Man (Wii U eShop / NES)
Fight, Mega Man, for everlasting re-release!
By now, if you want to play Mega Man you probably already have it. It's been previously released for the Wii and 3DS Virtual Consoles, after all. But if you've somehow managed to let the game pass you by — or just aren't sure if it's worth upgrading your old Virtual Console version — we're happy to...
Review Gummy Bears Magical Medallion (3DS eShop)
Bearly playable
The product description for Gummy Bears Magical Medallion promises a "classic adventure platformer with a Gummy Bears twist". That twist, apparently, is that the game is awful. The excusably nonsensical plot revolves around the evil King Sour Berry stealing the Magical Medallion from...well, nevermind where he stole it from, or who...
Review Mega Man 4 (3DS eShop / NES)
The Blue Bomber vs The Red Menace
In 1991 the world got a fourth entry in what had quickly shaped up to be one of the NES's most popular series. This game was Mega Man 4, and expectations were high. After all, the first game laid down a solid — if static — template that resonated very well with gamers, the second game refined the formula...
Review Kirby's Adventure (Wii U eShop / NES)
Adventure time
Though Kirby made his debut a year prior on the Game Boy, it was 1993's Kirby's Adventure on the NES that cemented his appearance, his power-stealing ability, and his vast environments full of hidden secrets. Kirby's Adventure did a lot more than expand on the simple charm of Kirby's Dream Land; it earned him a place as one of...
Review Super Little Acorns 3D Turbo (3DS eShop)
Just a squirrel trying to get a nut
In early 2012, Little Acorns was released for iOS. It was a simple but charming title in which bespectacled squirrel Mr. Nibbles sought out acorns to prevent his family from starving. When we spell it out that way we realize it sounds rather morbid, but in practice it was a fun and addictive experience that we...
Review Dillon's Rolling Western: The Last Ranger (3DS eShop)
Spinning in place
It's been just over a year since the release of Dillon's Rolling Western, an interesting spin — pardon the pun — on the tower defense formula, starring a steely armadillo prone to communicating through loaded silence. As you can see from our review at the time we liked it, though not without reservations. Now we have a sequel,...
Review Naruto: Powerful Shippuden (3DS)
He's a laugher, not a fighter
The first thing that's going to strike you about Naruto: Powerful Shippuden is the super deformed art style. After all, Namco Bandai has plastered it everywhere, so it must be quite proud of how it turned out. That's probably a smart move, because the visuals rank among this game's main strong points. It's only when you...
Review Mega Man 3 (3DS eShop / NES)
Sibling rivalry
It's fitting that Mega Man 3 introduces our hero's antagonistic, cocksure older brother Proto Man, as the game itself seems to eternally duke it out with its own brother Mega Man 2 for the coveted title of Best in Series. But wherever you may fall on the question, there's no doubt that this third installment in the classic franchise...
Review ATV Wild Ride 3D (3DS eShop)
A game of hills and valleys
Bringing online racing to the 3DS eShop in any form is a pretty ambitious undertaking, but we'll say up front that ATV Wild Ride 3D gets that part exactly right. In our experience the online racing is fast, smooth, and reliable. As far as that goes, we genuinely couldn't ask for anything more, and the simple fact that it...
Review Wheel of Fortune (Wii U)
Worth a spin?
Since its debut in 1975, Wheel of Fortune has been an early evening staple in homes across America. Its engaging simplicity has had viewers shouting answers at their television sets for almost 40 years now, and the tension stirred by a spin of its titular wheel has been felt by everybody rooting either for or against any given...
Review Rise of The Guardians: The Video Game (3DS)
A bad game gets an even worse port
When it comes to a portable version of a recent console game, there are two approaches developers can take. The first is to create a brand new experience, independent from the original. The Sonic Colours team did this, and we're glad they did; instead of one great game we got two, and the portable version was...
Review Yoshi (3DS eShop / NES)
Soft boiled
Mario's loyal dinosaur companion Yoshi may have made his debut in the Super Nintendo classic Super Mario World, but one year later Nintendo gave him his own title on the rapidly fading NES. That game was Yoshi, and it's now come to non-Ambassadors on the 3DS eShop. It's a falling block puzzler, which is a genre every video game...
Review Rise of The Guardians: The Video Game (Wii U)
A legendary failure
In Rise of the Guardians: The Video Game you take command of a small army of characters, each of whom is designed around a childhood legend. You have characters based on Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, the Tooth Fairy, the Sand Man, and Jack Frost. They are coming together to fight a common evil: the sinister Pitch, who wants the...
Review Dig Dug (3DS eShop / NES)
Slightly soiled
In 1982, Namco released Dig Dug. By that point in time the company had already cemented its place in the gaming history books with enduring classics like Pac-Man and Galaga. Their younger brother Dig Dug never quite reached their heights of popularity, but it's still quite fun in its own right. As with many early arcade games, your...
Feature Video Game Characters Looking For Love
Looking for co-op partners
Last year we brought you a collection of dating profiles we happened to find online, which belonged to some of our favourite video game heroes! You wouldn't expect lightning to strike twice, but since it's Valentine's Day and miracles do happen, we thought we'd spend some more time combing through the darkest recesses of...
Review Mega Man 2 (3DS eShop / NES)
Get Equipped With an All-Time Classic
In 1987, Capcom released the original Mega Man. It was well-received by both gamers and critics, but it was not much of a financial success. Over the course of the next year, however, Mega Man 2 was developed as a labour of love by Keiji Inafune and his team, alongside other projects that were expected to be...
Review Family Party: 30 Great Games Obstacle Arcade (Wii U)
Obstacle to fun, maybe
If you were to poll gamers at large and ask them what they felt were the worst things about the Wii, chances are you'd hear "waggle" and "bad minigame collections" pretty frequently. In fact they often went hand in hand, and Family Party: 30 Great Games Obstacle Arcade is trying its hardest to make sure both of things carry...
