Full Reviews Index
Destroy All Humans: Path of the Furon Review (X360)
The original Destroy All Humans was a fairly entertaining romp through classic 1950’s sci-fi clichés where alien probes, mind reading, and pop culture references made for a pretty funny game. It was rather shallow, however, and the jokes and gameplay wore out their welcome surprisingly quickly. That was fine for one game, but here we are a few years and two sequels later and DAH just isn’t interesting anymore. Read our full review of Destroy All Humans: Path of the Furon right here.
Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts Review (X360)
Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts represents a pretty significant risk for Rare and Microsoft. It is a bright, cute, cartoony game on a system full of dark grisly shooters. And it is a very different game than what fans of the previous Banjo-Kazooie games might be expecting. But, just like the studio’s Viva Piñata before it, this risk paid off in the form of one of the best looking, most creative, and most fun games on the Xbox 360. Find out more right here in our full review.
Prince of Persia Review (X360)
Prince of Persia makes the jump to next-gen with a re-imagining of the franchise. There are no Sands of Time here, and instead there is a new Prince and a new world to explore all wrapped up in some of the most gorgeous and unique looking graphics we’ve seen in a long time. Every aspect of the game has been polished to a high shine, and Prince of Persia is truly one of the best games of the year. Find out more right here.
Tomb Raider Underworld Review (X360)
Tomb Raider Underworld is easily the best Tomb Raider game yet. But it is not without some issues. It really speaks to the core experience, though, that we shrug off a wonky camera and occasional glitches and happily continue playing in spite of them. Tomb Raider Underworld is a game that is pretty much an extra layer of polish away from being one of the best games of the year. Find out more right here in our full review.
Left 4 Dead Review (X360)
Zombies (zombie-like creatures at least) and co-op shooting, is there anything better in the world of videogames? Point me towards the undead, give me a gun, and get the heck out of my way. Left 4 Dead delivers a co-op/survival experience with relatable characters in realistic “Main Street, USA” locations and captures the essence of the best scenes in every zombie movie ever to create an amazing experience you’ll want to play again and again. Find out more right here.
Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3 Review (X360)
With three fairly good real-time-strategy games already under its belt for the Xbox 360, EA LA pretty much has the genre nailed down on the consoles. Its latest game, Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3, tweaks the already finely tuned gameplay to near-perfection and pairs it with unique and fun to use factions to create an amazingly well crafted RTS game. It also offers a bit more depth and challenge that C&C3 offered, which is much appreciated. Find out more right here in our full review.
Sonic Unleashed Review (X360)
Sonic Unleashed is 50% high speed, ring collecting, loop-de-loop running classic Sonic perfection and 50% slow, clunky, bland combat that is completely out of place and spoils the fun. It is not as if the combat levels are all that bad, but compared to how great the speed levels are it is hard not to be disappointed. Sonic Unleashed is easily the best Sonic game we’ve had in quite a while, but it could have been so much more. Find out all of the details right here.
Call of Duty: World At War Review (X360)
How do you follow what is arguably one of the best first-person-shooters ever? By imitating it as closely as possible, that’s how. And that is exactly what Treyarch has done with Call of Duty: World At War. It takes the amazing multiplayer, great controls, and amazing gameplay of COD4: Modern Warfare and tweaks and spins it (and takes it through a time warp back to World War II) to create a new adventure that is every bit as solid as its predecessor.
WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2009 Review (X360)
After SD vs. Raw 08 was pounded by reviewers, developer Yukes took those criticisms to heart and tried to remedy as many of them as possible for this year’s release. For the most part, they were successful and WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2009 is a much better game overall than the first two Xbox 360 WWE titles. There are a couple of hiccups, but wrestling fans will find a lot to like here. Find out all of the details right here in our full review.
Need for Speed Undercover Review (X360)
Need for Speed goes back to its roots with Undercover after last year’s ProStreet experiment failed pretty miserably. Undercover brings back the police chases, open world city, and arcade-style gameplay that made previous titles in the series, and in particular Most Wanted, hits. Does Need for Speed Undercover recapture that old NFS magic? Find out right here in our full review.
Mirror's Edge Review (X360)
Mirror’s Edge is, at its core, a relentless pursuit of perfection. It is all about getting from Point A to Point B as fast as possible, but there are a hundred variables in between and you have to figure out the fastest way through them. A perfect run gives you a great sense of satisfaction and accomplishment. A failed run can leave you frustrated and angry. Mirror’s Edge delicately balances fun and challenge to craft a unique experience that is among the best games of the year.
James Bond 007: Quantum of Solace Review (X360)
The James Bond film franchise has been effectively rebooted with a more realistic tone and a great leading man in Daniel Craig and now the Bond videogame license is looking for a fresh start as well. Activision has the license now, and for now at least it seems like it is in capable hands. Quantum of Solace looks and plays great thanks to the use of the Call of Duty 4 engine as its foundation and is solid overall. Find out if it is worth your $60 right here.
Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe Review (X360)
Gamers were skeptical of Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe when it was announced, but as more videos and information were released (and you can’t discount the “Dark Knight effect” since everyone loves Batman and The Joker again), that skepticism turned to hopeful optimism. It wasn’t the “DC” half of the equation that had people worried in the first place, however, and despite a cool theme and solid roster of characters, MK vs. DC is still a Mortal Kombat game under all of the fluff.
Guilty Gear 2: Overture Review (X360)
You have to admire Arc System Works for trying to step out of its comfort zone and do something different with the Guilty Gear series after cranking out so many revisions of its great 2D fighting game, but Guilty Gear 2: Overture was a step in the wrong direction. It can’t decide if it is a Dynasty Warriors clone or a RTS game, and the mash-up of genres combined with an awful story and so-so presentation make it hard to love even for Guilty Gear die-hards. Find all of the details right here.
Battle Fantasia Review (X360)
Battle Fantasia is a 2D fighting game that seems to not really know who its audience is. On one hand, the gameplay has fairly easy to learn moves and flashy special attacks that make it fun and accessible for all gamers, but on the other hand the characters and presentation are aimed squarely at hardcore fighter and anime fans. The result is a game with a solid gameplay base, but characters that players might find hard to really get behind. Find out all of the details right here.
MotoGP 08 Review (X360)
The MotoGP series of games have been surprisingly successful despite the brutally difficult simulation-style gameplay and the fact that the sport isn’t terribly popular in the U.S. THQ and Climax Studios handled previous games in the series on the Xbox 360, but MotoGP 08 moves on to a new publisher in Capcom who tasked developer Milestone to try to take the genre to never before seen heights. Does MotoGP 08 continue the success of its predecessors? Find out right here in our full review.
Gears of War 2 Review (X360)
CliffyB said months ago that Gears of War 2 was going to be “bigger, better, and more badass”, and now that we have spent some time with it we have to agree with him. This is a bigger and better game in every single aspect. The campaign feels more epic and is filled with jaw dropping moments. The multiplayer has been beefed up with new modes, and the addition of Horde mode as well as a training mode means that Gears 2 has plenty to offer both on and offline. This is simply a great game.
Scene It? Box Office Smash Review (X360)
Scene It? Lights, Camera, Action was one of the best party games on the Xbox 360 thanks to the easy to use “Big Button Controllers” and the fact that movie trivia is something that pretty much everyone is good at. The sequel, Scene It? Box Office Smash, improves on pretty much every aspect of LCA which makes it pretty easy to recommend. Even better, if you already have the controllers from last year you can pick up Box Office Smash by itself for $40. Find out all of the details right here.
Rock Revolution Review (X360)
Remember all of the kids that like to pop up in Rock Band or Guitar Hero discussions and tell you all about how Konami invented the genre with GuitarFreaks and DrumManaia and should get more credit? Well, now you can tell those kids to kindly shut up because Konami’s first attempt at bringing their “expertise” in the genre to the mainstream is a pretty miserable failure. In a world where GH: World Tour and Rock Band 2 exist, Rock Revolution just can’t compete.
Guitar Hero: World Tour Review (X360)
Guitar Hero III was a good game but a bit rough around the edges as new developer Neversoft had to learn on the fly how to make a decent music game. With a year of experience under their belt, they are back to take another crack at the genre. And, boy, they are ambitious this time around. In addition to the guitar gameplay we all love (with far better charts), GH: World Tour also includes drumming and singing as well as a few other nifty features. Find out all about it right here.
Spider-Man: Web of Shadows Review (X360)
Spider-Man: Web of Shadows starts off promising with nice visuals, interesting combat, a decent web swinging mechanic, and a cool story. And for the first couple of hours, Web of Shadows is pretty darn fun. But then it all starts to go downhill. The missions and combat become repetitive. Glitches and issues start popping up. And swinging around New York just isn’t fun anymore. Find out all of the details on the highs and lows of Spider-Man: Web of Shadows right here in our full review.
Far Cry 2 Review (X360)
Far Cry 2 is a bit of a tough nut to crack. It is a gorgeous looking, solid playing open world game with amazing physics that packs plenty of stuff to do. But it is also kind of oddly paced and occasionally brutally difficult game marred by some iffy design choices. You do eventually figure out the game’s quirks, and when you do Far Cry 2 is an incredibly fun game, but it may not be for everyone. Find out all of the details right here.
Fallout 3 Review (X360)
And now for a GNR news update. After years of waiting, Fallout 3 has finally hit store shelves. It isn’t the same type of game as the first two entries in the series, but it also isn’t a hardcore shooter and it certainly isn’t just Oblivion with guns. It is a great mix of satisfying exploration, bloody combat with gruesome enemies, and a great story in an awesome setting that will grip you for 40-50 hours. It is an amazing game that we highly recommend. Thanks for listening, children!
FIFA Soccer 09 Review (X360)
After years of steady improvement, EA’s FIFA Soccer series has finally put everything in order and is easily the best soccer game on the market. In years past we had great presentation and plenty of features and modes and licensed teams, but the gameplay was lacking. In FIFA 09, however, every single aspect is as near perfect as you could hope for. It looks gorgeous, packs plenty of stuff to do, and plays like a dream. Find out all of the details right here.
Fable II Review (X360)
Fable II is a gorgeous looking, funny, satisfying game that is a worthy sequel to the original Xbox title. But at the same time it is also filled with glitches and strange design decisions that leave you scratching your head. The good far outweighs the bad, though, and in the end Fable II is a solid experience that we highly recommend. Find out all of the details right here.