If there's one thing that 2KGames wants you to know about NHL 2K9, it's that the game is going to be accessible. Are you a casual hockey fan who wants to get into the game, skate, and score? 2K9 has you covered. A hardcore hockey fan who can't master the arcane, knuckle-busting control schemes of years gone by? 2K9 will take care of you. Want to manage a team through an entire season and win the Stanley Cup? Want to play online with all of your buddies in a variety of game modes? Want to analyze hockey games and create highlight clips of your exploits? All of these things have a home in NHL 2K9. 2KGames thinks it's a safe bet to say that if you're a hockey fan, no matter what you love about hockey will have a foothold in this year's edition.
I really used to enjoy pinball in my not-really misspent youth. I wasn’t the greatest player in the world, so I didn’t generally earn extra balls, and my quarters only stretched so far. I was excited about getting some pinball action on the Wii where I could play as long as I want and not go broke in the process.
Galactic Civilizations 2, the 4X strategy title published by Stardock, has been an utter revelation. For a so-called "indie" title in a so-called "niche" genre, it's done remarkably well: The original budget of about $1 million has spawned more than 300,000 sales and an eight-figure income thanks to a stream of good reviews and plenty of word-of-mouth success.
As a child, I never got into comic books, or as people like to call them today, "graphic novels." They just never appealed to me. With this in mind, people will probably say I do not know anything about the Hulk, who was recently placed into a DS game by Sega this year. All I know about the Hulk is that Bruce Banner got hit by some radioactive rays that transforms him into the Hulk whenever he gets exceedingly angry. Now he's on the run from the U.S. Army, looking for a cure before being sent to a foreign planet and battling his way to beneficent grand dictator, which takes place before causing World War III. At least, that is what Wikipedia told me one night in my sleep. I also briefly remember a movie from the 1980s, and the only major thing I remember is when one of his friends holds a big Norse hammer in front of himself and screams, "THOR!" This then makes said god materialize.
Any game will have the problem of walking the steady line of balance by maintaining hype to rational levels and beating out skepticism by delivering the goods when the time comes. Guitar Hero hasn't received as much ire for each subsequent release as other franchises, as rhythm-based games usually just have to focus on good soundtracks — or to many rabid fans, just new songs — and less about introducing new gameplay mechanics. You might think Aerosmith would have it easy riding on the coattails of the Guitar Hero name alone, but like any robust fan base, the game has a mountain of subtle obstacles it has to overcome to deliver and stifle any number of cries the fans may have about a peculiar sidestep for the Guitar Hero series.
In Aquaria, you control Naija, who initially just sings to the fish in her favorite thinking spot. She also suffers from retrograde amnesia and desires answers to why there is no one else around. From there, she decides to explore the rest of her world to obtain those answers. Along the way, she will learn different songs that will alter her shape, which is required to fully explore the world of Aquaria.
Perhaps one of the most "controversial" games of the past three, four years is not actually a game that takes place in Liberty City. Perhaps it is a game about a brutal man, two blades and improperly clothed lady parts. Maybe I am being too indirect; I am describing one of the most overhyped and well-loved games of 2005. That game is God of War.
I've never played a game quite like Gold Miner Vegas. The closest I've come is the time my daughter talked me into dropping some coins into one of those "claw" games you see sometimes in stores and restaurants — you know the ones where you guide the claw around the then drop it onto a toy, hoping to pull something to the exit chute to give your little darling? Yeah, I've never won anything at that game either.
I'm not sure if it's just me, or there is a severe shortage of thoughtful tycoon games out there lately? It was just a few years ago that just about every game company was pumping out low-quality, unoriginal and just plain old boring tycoon games. Since Rollercoaster Tycoon is one of my favorite games, I have always looked closely at the genre, but after a few times burnt, I do tend to be more cautious of which tycoon clones I'll dig my hands into.
Back in 2001, a little game known as Ico was released. And it was good. Critics loved it, while most gamers ignored it. Fast-forward four years, and you have its spiritual successor: Shadow of the Colossus. Does it sate the craving Ico fans have? Does it hold up to all of the hype? But basically, does it hold up as well as Ico?
