Latest Reviews
It stings
By this point in time Nintendo has cleanly put the Wii U in the rearview mirror; virtually all support has transferred over to the Switch from both first- and third-parties, and few are looking back. Even so, some games are still trickling out on the Wii U eShop; one such release is Hive Jump. Though Hive Jump presents some interesting...
Review Eba & Egg: A Hatch Trip
A mislaid game
In the waning months of the Wii U, it’s interesting to see that developers are still making software for Nintendo’s system. While most of the big guns - including a good portion of 'Nindies' - move on to bigger and better things, there are smaller projects making quiet and unassuming appearances on the older hardware. One such...
Review Absolutely Unstoppable MineRun
Absolutely forgettable
There were quite a few odd releases on the Wii U eShop during its heyday, but even in these twilight years we still seem to be getting some real eyebrow raisers. Absolutely Unstoppable MineRun is the latest of these. Somewhat of a mix of an autorunner and a precision platformer, you'll quickly notice graphics were probably...
Clear skies and minimal turbulence
Shoot-em-ups are at the very core of what video games are all about. From Space Invaders to Galaga, Raiden and beyond, their simplistic design and addictive gameplay have an enduring appeal that keeps players coming back for more. Polish developer Infinite Dreams stepped into the fray way back in 2004 with its...
In space, no one seems to tip
Are you tired of dead-end, earthbound employment? Do you long to break free of the crushing gravity of workaday life? Are you finally ready to float freely in the high-salary stratosphere? Well, dear reader, if you're dead set on those lofty goals, we don't have anything to offer; but if you're after a more modest...
Repetitive Evil
The original Resident Evil was primarily responsible for creating the term "survival horror", and although for a while it seemed like Capcom had forgotten its roots there's no denying that the company created something incredible. It's no surprise, then, that other companies tried their hand at survival horror games too - Konami...
Bullet heaven?
Bullet hell shooters - also known by fans as "shmups" - are a niche genre due to their often extreme difficulty. Hucast Games and 2Dreams' Ghost Blade HD aims to be a shmup for everyone, and is largely successful at easing new players into the experience. Ghost Blade HD is a vertical, top-down game in which the player controls a ship...
Arcade-style pew-pew
Gradius will forever be considered a definitive game in the shoot 'em up genre, held up as a key example of what makes these kind of games truly special. It's a game familiar for its iconic NES version, of course, but the release of the TurboGrafx-16 iteration on the Wii U Virtual Console is a welcome one - after all, it was a...
A nice day in the garden
Sometimes it can be nice to simply relax with a peaceful, calming game, that doesn't demand great skill or dedication. That is exactly what Plantera delivers. It is centred around growing a garden and selling produce in return for money, with which more plants and animals can be bought, and so on. The gameplay isn't...
Shady stuff
The Wii U eShop has played host to some wonderful indie titles over the years, and despite the console's impending retirement there's still room for another sleeper hit to offer a charming send off. With its distinctive art-style, intriguing level design and enigmatic story, Toby: The Secret Mine seemed set to impress when first...
Review Zombie Brigade: No Brain No Gain
Brainless
A Miiverse post for Zombie Brigade: No Brain No Gain wrote, "Better than Meme Run." That's about the nicest thing that can be said about this horrendous title from Cypronia. An endless runner that you will want to end after about five minutes, Zombie Brigade is in the upper echelon of terrible eShop games. And to be clear, that's not a...
Not so amazing
Do you remember that mesmerising screen saver from the '90s? The one that was an endless loop of twists and turns through a red brick maze? Well, Mega Maze is sort of like that, except everything is blue or white and it's just not all that entertaining. Mega Maze is exactly what its name implies; a game about solving mazes. There's...
It's time to break some balls
Spheroids has a simple plot that is well-suited to a platform adventure game. Giant alien blobs known as "the Spheroids" are attempting to take over the world, and it's up to a brave Canadian boy named Lucas - with the assistance of a crazy scientist known as Otto - to save the day. Based in a comical science-fiction...
More like meh-slapunk
The Shmup genre is one that was quite popular in the halcyon days of pre-3D gaming, but it seems that the addition of the extra dimension largely rendered this style of gaming obsolete. Nowadays you may see new entries every now and then, but it seems that many are simple games designed for smart devices, or are otherwise too...
Would you prefer to walk off a ledge?
Sleepwalking can be dangerous. It can result in people exiting their homes in the middle of the night and falling off a ledge. Back to Bed by Bedtime Digital Games plays on such fears by introducing us to Bob the sleepwalker and his subconscious guardian named Subob - a four legged creature that must guide him...
Halt and swap fire
It's an exciting time in the games industry. There are AAA games from big publishers, mid-tier downloadable games and even tiny indie experiences, all of which have the potential to be memorable, interesting experiences. Midnight Status has the makings of one such experience in Swap Fire, a first person shooter with an interesting...
It's got soul, man
Soul Axiom is a spiritual successor to Master Reboot, a rather decent and interesting Wii U eShop title from Wales Interactive. They're not directly tied together, but thematic and stylistic crossovers deliberately nudge and wink at those with experience of the previous release, while Soul Axiom also goes its own way. Ultimately,...
Review Radiantflux: Hyperfractal
Become a master hacker and uncover the truth
In any crime-ridden story, hackers are often depicted as a quick solution to a series of complicated problems. Sometimes in these plots they willingly cooperate with law enforcement, but often they are portrayed as social outcasts who are leading the fight against huge corporations and government...
Fun for the whole family
Have you ever experienced a moment when you've attempted to draw an object or animal and your family or friends identify it as something else? The odds are very good as, in a nutshell, that's what Pictionary is all about. Scribble, by indie developer Bear Box Media, is essentially an enhanced digital version of the classic...
Good enough to avoid being exiled
Metroidvania fans have had some great luck over the past few years; with solid indie titles like Guacamelee! and Axiom Verge, a once-quiet genre has inched back into the spotlight. Though the game's description claims that Exile's End isn't a Metroidvania game, it should indeed be counted in that category. Let's...
Hold onto your handlebars
Of the sports games in the N64 era, Excitebike 64 feels left out of conversation more often than siblings such as Wave Race 64 and 1080° Snowboarding. Perhaps its release later in the console's life cycle didn't give it as much time to gain traction in people's memories, or maybe it's drowned in the limelight of its...
Review Octocopter: Super Sub Squid Escape
What has tentacles, spins and shoots missiles?
In an unlikely but plausible(?) scenario an octopus and a submarine have lost their way and sunk to the bottom of the deep blue sea during an epic battle. With the octopus still latched onto to the spinning watercraft, the two enemies must now unite in order to escape from the deadly depths. This...
Steer clear
Retro Road Rumble is neither retro nor a rumble, but at least it takes place on roads. The concept behind it is very much like Crazy Taxi; drive from point to point in the time allotted to gain points, with some music to keep you company. The difference is that it's presented in an isometric view, with visuals far worse than the 1999...
Not a magic dragon
The font of this bold title would have you believe this game is about the most edgy of dragons out there; it encourages visions of a hardened, battle-weathered hero. Tales of Yore. Destruction. Wings of Magloryx has these elements, but the game's executed too poorly for it to matter. Dragons - benevolent or nasty - should be the...
Defy gravity
Gravity+ by Nitrolic Games is a puzzle title for the Wii U eShop that's all about gravitational pull; the plus sign featured in the game's title makes reference to the game's use of the directional pad to manipulate gravity. In reality, you are actually just rotating the game's maze-like environments in multiple directions in order to...
Review Blasting Agent: Ultimate Edition
Everything old is new again
A recipe for a good old-fashioned shooter is actually quite straightforward. Take a vaguely sinister terrorist organisation with a remote base of operations (genetic experimentation is always a plus), stir in a brightly pixelated art style, sprinkle weapon upgrades, and always serve with a buff hero who shoots before he...
The '70s just called, they want their game back
Just the other day, this writer happened to encounter a page loading error on Google Chrome and got an opportunity to play that hidden dinosaur platforming game, where the T-rex has to jump over rocks and cacti as it runs through a desert. You know the one. This 'game' is simple, something that's just...
You can check out any time you like, but you can never leave
Though it seems all too likely that history won't be too kind to the Wii U, it's difficult to dispute the fact that it has been the couch multiplayer console of the generation. Aside from featuring highly polished iterations of classic Nintendo franchises with games such as Mario Kart 8...
Classic game, now with added flaw
There was some F-Zero-related DLC for Mario Kart 8 and a mini-game in Nintendo Land, but disappointingly the Wii U has not proven to be the console where the series made its return with a brand spanking new game. Whilst hopes for a new entry in the series must now switch to future hardware, Wii U-owning fans of...
(Don't) Do the twist
Kickstarter has given budding game developers a chance to shine that never existed in the early days of gaming. Twisted Fusion is one of the most recent titles to be supported by the service, but does it fare well from its crowdfunded roots? Let's find out. We're a little light on story in Twisted Fusion. The main character,...
