I was surprised when I loved Flight Control HD on Steam. It’s an up-port of an iOS game, and I didn’t expect it to hold my attention very long on the PC. iOS games are designed to be played for 10 minutes while you’re waiting for the train or when you’re stranded at a family function miles and miles away from your PC and/or consoles. It didn’t matter. I’ve played over 200 games of it, and it’s still in my regular Steam rotation.
Quarrel is shaping up much the same way. It’s an up-port of an iOS game that showed up on XBLA this week (though this version was made first), and I can’t stop playing it. Scrabble and Risk are two of my favorite board games. Combining them and throwing them on XBLA is a match made in heaven, and I can only hope that the multiplayer base remains strong on this one. READ MORE
Retro revivals are great. I love to death that the classics are being introduced to current gaming audiences by means of a fresh coat of paint and fleshing out the original game without betraying the original premise. Bionic Commando ReArmed, Lode Runner and Rush ‘N Attack: Ex Patriot are enough for me to confidently say that this movement has been a successful one. Now, Choplifter HD brings the number of quick and easy-to-defend classics made new that everybody should play to four. READ MORE
Typically, when a classic game finds its way to modern consoles, the port is quick and the extras are minimal. The recent release of Sonic CD, however, deviates from that unfortunate standard. There have been many compilations full of Sonic games over the years, but they have typically included Sonic the Hedgehog, Sonic 2, Sonic 3, and Sonic and Knuckles. (Occasionally Sonic Spinball is also included, which is a personal favorite of mine.) What all of these games have in common is that they were released for the Sega Genesis, while Sonic CD was released for the ill-fated Sega CD. If you didn’t have one, you are no longer missing out, because Sonic CD was easily the best game released for the add-on unit. READ MORE
10. The Ico and Shadow of the Colossus Collection
Some people will claim this entry is a cop-out for two reasons: first it is two games, and second: both of them are PS2 natives. These two games are good enough to get nominated again on the PS3. Both are absolutely amazing experiences that go beyond gameplay. The story that Team Ico manages to communicate with little to no spoken dialog is amazing. If you enjoy puzzle games at all and haven’t played these two then you owe it to yourself to track down a copy of the dual pack. The best the PS2 had to offer is presented on this one disc. READ MORE
Everything about Telltale’s Jurassic Park feels like an homage to the original film. The characters would have worked in the movie, the situations genuinely feel like examples of how a day in Jurassic Park plays out, and the story, despite having to carefully step around the story of the film, is engrossing and would have made a better sequel than JP2 did. There are a few problems, but my love for the source material and Telltale’s great treatment of it was more than enough to overcome them. READ MORE
