AttackZach

Mirror's Edge is at it's best in it's native element: a graphically astounding marvel featuring a tried, but interesting, story, with realistic freerunning influences. Unfortunately, a crumby combat system drags down the game all but too uncommonly, and the short length seems to cut everything off a little too short. That said, Mirror's Edge is an experience unprecedented in gaming today. You play as Faith Connors, a "runner" in a dystopian city where she finds herself caught up in a sinister plot. The story is mildly fascinating and the characters stick with you, but honestly there's nothing new here. What you're playing for is the gameplay. You run, jump, slide, and zip through gorgeous environments. It's up to you to keep your momentum moving to make smoother tricks, making for a fluid experience. It's a lot of fun most of the time, but in some situations it's difficult to figure out just what you're supposed to do. This makes it quite a bit more frustrating. Of course, the absolute worst part of the game is the unfriendly combat system. You can't carry a gun unless you take it off someone or pick it from their corpse. It's a stiff mechanic that isn't helped by the relentless difficulty. If you're hit twice with the gun, you're dead. Having to retry action sequences over and over again is painstaking and honestly unfun. But, as a FPS Platformer, Mirror's Edge truly performs. It's visually pleasing, delectably smooth and backed by a pretty good story. It's a short game, but in its entirety, save for the combat and "puzzle" scenes, is a beautiful piece of art - that's also fun to play.

"Trials and Tribulations" is the best of the Phoenix Wright trilogy. You play as the titular "ace attorney" Phoenix Wright who, with help from his psychic friends, unearths the secrets of the cases and clients he defends in court. The riveting drama is creative and unforgettable, much more so than the prior games. There are two types of gameplay: investigation & court. Investigation is the weakest of the two, often confusing and drab. But after gathering all the necessary evidence, you are thrown into a thrilling battle royale of wits and logic. Presenting evidence and cross examining witnesses is always fun, and the reward is never short of exceptional. If you're a fan of story driven games, and don't find some of the more dull moments in investigation, this game is for you.

This horror classic sets the stage for future psychological video games as well as breathing new life into a literally dead genre. It's unique visuals and storyline create an atmosphere that even years later hold up against current video games and is stil just as scary. Set in a fog ridden town of Silent Hill, Harry Mason, a writer on vacation, searches desperately for his daughter after loosing her in a car crash. As he explores the ghostly town, he meets an intriguing cast of characters who slowly help to piece together the town's mythos as well as the mysterious disappearance of his daughter. The story is complex and fascinating, always sure to keep you 100% fascinated. As you explore through the town, Harry encounters several monsters (who honestly do look more than a little dorky) that he'll have to use all his resources and wits on to kill before he himself is killed. This is the major fault of the game: the controls. Harry is near impossible to control and walking in the way you want him to can be even more terrifying than the monsters creeping around town. The combat feels slow and clunky, which actually works well and encourages players to run rather than fight. As much as I like this mechanic, when you are forced to fight bosses and such, it becomes frustrating instead of engaging. Ignoring the few problems with the controls and combat, Silent Hill is ultimately a rewarding and interesting experience you won't soon be forgetting.

The shallow fighting game will be enjoyed by hardcore fans, but anyone else will be mystified by its sheer lackluster gameplay. There isn't enough content for a $40 pricetag, especially in the terms of characters. There is are three or so standard modes of "story" (there really isn't any, if you're wondering), arcade, and versus. They're all more or less decent, but get into the the gameplay and problems arise. Firstly, the two character swap out of place and useless. It's actually reallllly annoying, and can drag down any good match. The backdrops are poorly done and uncreative, just like the rest of the game. It's still fun... kinda... but the constant sticky controls, icky graphics, and lack of desirable content just makes it another mediocre installment in the capcom fighting franchise.

Meet Catherine, a hybrid of confusing puzzle platforming and Japanese dating sim from the developers of the Persona saga. It is the antipathy of unconventional, loaded fully with a cast of unique and compelling characters, Catherine stuffs you in the role of Vincent, a commitment fearing slacker who finds himself forced to choose between a bodacious blonde, or his loving long term girlfriend. Similar to Atlas's other games, you can interact with the rest of the cast during the daytime, and play the core gameplay. The people you talk to and choices you make can affect the game later, an interesting mechanic that is unfortunately all too obvious. In the evening, Vincent finds himself climbing a horrific tower created from blocks, escaping his intermost fears praying to find the top. The puzzle is frantic and difficult, but only sometimes frustrating. When you do fall and die (which kills your character in real life, too), you never feel like you're being punished. Instead, you're just driven to try and try again. Solving the puzzle is always rewarding. The story is well though out and compelling. The twists are incredibly unexpected and keep you on your toes. This is all assisted by the exceptional voice acting, that made me genuinely care about each character. My only complaint is how little control you have, though you're guaranteed so much. Your choices don't really affect Vincent until the tale end of the game, which is disappointing. Nonetheless, it's a unique and adult experience you won't be forgetting anytime soon.

Persona 3 has been one of the most influential JRPG's of our time, successfully rebooting Atlus's most promising franchise. Since then, it's spawned an anime, a sequel, an expansion, and a whole legion of fans. Now, the expansive game spawning at least seventy hours, has brought itself over to the PSP. But it's not just a simple port, no, P3P brings an entirely new scenario where you play through as a female protagonist, opening new story paths and "social links". Which brings us to the mechanics of the gameplay. While there have been some cuts to make it more apt for the hardware (for example, travelling has been cut down to using a cursor, and the anime scenes have been removed to just stills), it doesn't affect the game TOO much. Sure, I did feel a bit more limited than the first time around, but it wasn't a make or break function. You play as a normal teenager in a Japanese high school, forcing yourself to juggle academics with your social life and free time. As you forge friendships and relationships with others, your strength in the second portion of the game, dungeon crawling through a seemingly endless tower and fighting monsters, increases. It's an interesting mechanic that works quite smoothly. What's even better than that is the fantastic plot. Never was I bored or uninterested in the venture which follows your character through about one year of his life at his new school. When he (or she) is recruited by the S.E.E.S. extracurricular club (which in secret fights monsters in the tower of Tartarus), he/she discovers that an impossible hour of time begins between one day and the next. It's very well done. Match all this up with beautiful graphics and soundtrack, and you have an enthralling experience unlike anything you've played before.