E3 is our Super Bowl. It’s our Christmas, New Year’s Eve, Halloween and birthday all rolled into one. Even if no games actually are released, it’s a huge spectacle that results in thousands of journalists making their pilgrimage and reporting on thousands of different games. Who is making what? What looks fun? What looks terrible? Are there any surprises? I can’t tell you how giddy I get before each major conference; whether terrible or fantastic, each requires a huge amount of unnecessary analysis. Making fun of the awful presenters. Breaking down trailers scene by scene. Making bold, inaccurate predictions that won’t have any fallout, because well, how could you possibly have known that Game X would be terrible and that System Y would sell like hotcakes?
I’m getting off track already. See, that’s what E3 does to you. It gets you impossibly excited about the sheer quantity of game updates, new games and hilarious sound bites that it makes it difficult to focus on the task at hand. READ MORE
I may not have been able to go to E3 with Graham and Shawn, but my local Best Buy was cool enough to host Nintendo’s E3 Experience, bringing four playable demos of upcoming Wii U games. Being the incorrigible Donkey Kong Country nut I am, nothing stopped me from getting my grubby paws on Retro’s latest. READ MORE
Sonic has had a long and winding past, but after the celebrated nostalgia of Generations, it’s time for the series to once again look forward. Sonic Lost World, a Nintendo-exclusive entry in the series, is trying the little-bit-of-everything approach. READ MORE
It’s a wonder that The Neverhood managed to exist in the first place. A claymation point-and-click adventure by Earthworm Jim creator Doug TenNapel, it’s one of those games that reek of commercial failure. But the financial prospects didn’t faze Steven Spielberg, who of all people decided to fund the game.
Artistically, the money couldn’t have been better spent. READ MORE
We all have a game or game series we go back to from time to time simply to play casually for relaxation purposes. Sometimes, after a hard day at work or a troubling study session, you need something simple to enjoy. For myself and many others, that series is Animal Crossing. It never demands a lot of your attention, and yet it somehow always manages to get as much of it as possible. The formula has never changed drastically from game to game, and yet each title adds something special to keep you coming back for more. Animal Crossing: New Leaf may not be the most innovative or groundbreaking game around, but sometimes playing it safe is all you need. READ MORE
