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August2011

  • Review Let's Golf! 3D (3DSWare)

    Pitch perfect?

    Gameloft's Let's Golf! 3D may be the first third-party 3DSWare title to download, but it's not the company's first swing at portable pitching and putting: DSiWare has the original Let's Golf!, so this new outing has to bring more to the table. In some ways it delivers, but it doesn't quite hit the pin. For one thing, you're getting a...

March2011

  • Review Asphalt 3D (3DS)

    Screeching fault

    Gameloft’s racing series is something of a DS staple, with Asphalt: Urban GT launching with the original dual-screened console, a sequel, and then Asphalt 4 available on DSiWare. The French developer is certainly getting some mileage out of the Asphalt name, and now with the 3DS comes Asphalt 3D, a sadly middle-of-the-road affair...

August2010

  • Review Crystal Monsters (DSiWare)

    You don't want these monsters in your pocket, but they're still fun to have around

    It's usually clear within the first few minutes of playing a new Gameloft game which franchise it's been "inspired" by. Not breaking tradition, the same holds true here, with Gameloft's latest bearing a very strong resemblance to none other than the Pokémon...

July2010

  • Review Soul of Darkness (DSiWare)

    Castlevania called - it wants its game back

    No game publisher has released more games on the DSiWare service than Gameloft. And while the company has received a wide range of review scores among their various DSiWare releases, no one can argue that they've brought some quality games to the service in the short time it's existed. Soul of Darkness...

  • Review Date or Ditch (DSiWare)

    Ditchfest

    Don't be fooled by the level of choice suggested by Date or Ditch: this is a strictly linear game with even less depth than its vapid title suggests. Another converted mobile game from Gameloft, Date or Ditch puts you in the shoes of a male or female protagonist who must decide which of three love interests to settle down with. Gameplay...

June2010

  • Review Hero of Sparta (DSiWare)

    God of War for cheapskates

    Gameloft is often panned for making games that look, play and feel similar to other titles, and its latest is no exception. Taking obvious inspiration from Sony's God of War series, this is a fairly linear 3D beat 'em up with a Greek mythology theme. As King Argos, who has washed up on a beach somewhere and lost his entire...

May2010

  • Review Ferrari GT Evolution (DSiWare)

    Drivers may want to exercise caution

    Ferrari GT Evolution is a decent arcade-esque racing game. It looks quite good, handles well and has enough gameplay variety to keep things interesting, but you'll have to return to certain tracks far too many times before progressing to warrant a stronger recommendation. The meat of the game is Career mode, in...

April2010

  • Review Earthworm Jim (DSiWare)

    A slippery customer

    Like previous platforming conversion Rayman, Earthworm Jim is something of a missed opportunity. Fondly remembered by many gamers from its original outing on Mega Drive and Super Nintendo, Earthworm Jim was a welcome antidote to the huge numbers of cutesy animal platformers with its bizarre attitude and plenty of character...

March2010

  • Review Gangstar 2: Kings of L.A. (DSiWare)

    Sample the sweet taste of crime

    If you weren't interested in Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars but still hanker for some big city crime drama, you might be drawn to Gameloft's latest DSiWare release, Gangstar 2: Kings of LA. Taking the GTA template to a download title and offering it all for 500 Points should be a pretty sweet deal, but once you've...

  • Review Real Football 2010 (DSiWare)

    Slick as a parrot

    With last year’s successful Real Football 2009 under its belt, Gameloft has dusted off its downloadable footballing franchise and slapped a new number on the end. Taking the control systems and fast, arcade-style gameplay from its predecessor and polishing it up, RF2010 is at once the definitive football game on DS and a real...

  • Review Zoo Frenzy (DSiWare)

    Another odd mix of different genres from Gameloft

    Gameloft is rather fond of porting their back catalogue to Nintendo's download services. This time, however, it seems that they've created an entirely new game specifically for DSiWare. An odd mixture of simulation and strategy, with some light RPG elements thrown in for good measure. The premise is...

February2010

  • Review Let's Golf! (DSiWare)

    Par for the course

    On DSiWare, we very recently saw the release of A Little Bit of... Nintendo Touch Golf (Or True Swing Golf Express in North America), a slightly cut-down version of the retail game bearing the same name. We thought it was very competent, and as such felt that the "golf game" gap on the service had been filled. But here...

  • Review Legends of Exidia (DSiWare)

    DSiWare's first RPG doesn't set the bar too high, but it's still quite enjoyable

    It's a bit odd that we haven't seen any DSiWare RPGs until now. You'd think that with the service's portable nature and the genre’s wealth of retail releases, it would be a perfect fit. Apparently developers think otherwise! Gameloft is known for their frequent...

January2010

  • Review The Oregon Trail (DSiWare)

    The most fun you can have with dysentery

    For whatever reason, The Oregon Trail in its various incarnations, whether on DOS or an Apple II, holds a special place in the hearts of American gamers. Maybe it's because of the balanced risk/reward system and simple resource management. But more likely it's because The Oregon Trail was one of the few...

December2009

  • Review Me and My Dogs: Friends Forever (DSiWare)

    Pure bred or pure mutt?

    Me and My Dogs: Friends Forever is a curious title: it's unashamed of its Nintendogs roots, but rather than simply following the leader of the pack it earnestly tries to make its own mark. It's a virtual pet sim, focused on raising a small pack of puppies and training them for various competitions. The game is set in a small...

  • Review TV Show King 2 (WiiWare)

    A significant improvement over a trivial predecessor.

    One of the very first Wiiware titles at launch gets a much-needed sequel in TV Show King 2. The original was a decent trivia vehicle that we thought was okay, if somewhat overpriced for what it offered. There was so much room for improvement that we were glad this got a second chance. But is...

  • Review Miami Nights: Life in the Spotlight (DSiWare)

    If only fame were this easy

    Sometimes a game’s theme song tells you everything you need to know about what you’re about to get yourself into. For Gameloft’s Miami Nights: Life in the Spotlight, it’s a circa-1996 MIDI instrumental tune that sounds suspiciously like Reel 2 Reel’s “I Like To Move It,” a senseless dance song so shallow...

November2009

  • Review Castle of Magic (DSiWare)

    Is this the magical platforming experience fans have been waiting for?

    If it's one thing the DSiWare service needs more of it's platformers. The folks at Gameloft must have sensed this when they decided to port their iPhone platforming hit Castle of Magic over to the service. Since one of the main complaints about the original iPhone release was the...

  • Review UNO (DSiWare)

    Gameloft deals DSiWare a decent hand

    This DSiWare release of UNO marks the card game's second appearance on Nintendo platforms within a few weeks, but does it hold up better in pocket format than its recent WiiWare release? As you'd expect, your cards appear on the bottom screen with the top screen showing the play area. Playing your cards is a...

  • Review UNO (WiiWare)

    Gameloft WiiWare card games, take two!

    Like many American board games, Uno was started by your average Joe making sets in his house and selling them to friends and neighbours before getting picked up by a big outfit and made into a classic. It's a fun social game that's been around for nearly 40 years now and is played around the world. Given the...

October2009

  • Review Ghost Mansion Party (WiiWare)

    Less party, more pooper.

    Mini-game collections are becoming a dime-a-dozen on the Wii console as of late, and with Halloween coming up, it comes as no surprise to see an aptly-themed release that's packed to the gills with yet another round of fairly standard mini-game fare. But at a lofty 1000 Wii Points, is this haunted board game release good...