FatalExcursion

It's free to play, so I can't complain much, but this is simply a F2P model that does not work, and with Sony publishing Tribes Ascend it's no surprise. It plays out as what you'd expect, you can level up normally (and rather slowly), or go the Pay to Pave option and obtain gold to buy market items, perks and skins. It's not with this that the game becomes broken, though many weapons become more and more overpowered with each consequential update that supposedly fixes these problems. It's the fact the disbalancement of F2P v P2P players becomes overwhelmingly clear through the horrible in-game matchmaking, which ends up pitting players with low points against MVPlayers most of the time. That being said, the pros of Tribes come from it's insanely fast-paced gameplay, intense objective-based modes, and unique graphically-stirring maps and designs. Cons quickly appear in minor, but overwhelmingly apparent doses still. The interface is clunky, OP weapons have not been fixed or have been made worse, and with many other problems surrounding matchmaking and gameplay, Tribes: Ascend loses its grand appeal in the first few hours, but still delivers to Tribes fans and those looking for a new skill-based shooter not unlike Quake. Given time, I'm sure that these problems will be ironed up, but the problem still lies in why they released the game when the beta clearly needed attention to fixes as well.

An explosive mix of sandbox madness and an excellent narrative with dialogue leaves this over the top monster **** surprisingly down to earth. The writers handled this in a top-notch fashion. If you can create a powder keg like Saints Row The Third, and make it still packed in with tongue-in-cheek dirty humor, as well as giving the characters dialogue that makes every mission such as going through a cyber universe to take down a cyberlord geek who takes the form of a f***** dragon with swords as a normal day in the life of a Saint. Seriously, I want to congratulate these guys for bringing literally everything in the game to create this space of immersitivity; you feel like a bada**, you have homies that you actually care about, (or hate), and a great array customization (for an action game) that gears you up to take on any situation leaves me pleasantly surprised. So, looking for zombies to kill with a sonic blaster? Maybe riding a hoverbike through the streets searching for sex dolls? Calling your Saint army to take on a challenge, or just to piss off the law and gangs of Steelport? Either way, Saints Row: The Third delivers in the most outrageous ways possible, but it works, and that's the great thing about Volition's **** travesty, depends on how you look at it...

A charming escape from floaty FPRPGs to a world that is charmingly reminiscent of Morrowind and Fable, but pushed to the peak with a solid story, a great palette of color and design, and smooth, satisfying, and fast-paced combat. Though it doesn't hold the holy grail for any epic RPGs, it held my attention for a while, clocking in at almost 40 hours (more than I can say for Skyrim). A problem noted though, is that most of the side quests didn't feel fleshed out enough. Some of the backstory is covered through these side quests, and I wish that more of the lore was introduced as I progressed. The skill trees are smartly executed, though somewhat lacking in customization in the end run. The ability to change your 'Fate' allows for a lot of experimentation in picking your favorite class, or creating one all on your own by interchanging points between multiple ones. But, leaving with a final con, I wish more weapons and creatures were introduced; it's a decent amount of diversity for an RPG, but after seeing the same enemies over and over, while using the same weapons, just upgraded, it gets tiresome. All in all though, everything leaves you satisfied if you're open to this game style; it's not Skyrim, and neither is it the Witcher, rather, it reintroduces a colorful new world with old homages to classic fantasy, while reinventing some cliches as well. I hope to see this world expanded, either with Copernicus, or with a sequel all on its own.

Dead Island's strong points lie not in its story, but in its unique gameplay that provides some of the most intense combat in a zombie game, requiring you to watch your teammates backs, and they to protect you as well. With the crafting of diverse weapons, a mixture of more in-depth Dead Rising crafting, and Borderlands-esque weapon modification system, and a beautiful and dangerous world to explore, and tons of skill combinations to experiment with in combat, this game provides a thrilling experience that's both horrifying and satisfying at the same time; a near-perfect zombie-survival experience.

A brilliantly realized world, a perfect mesh of realism and cyber-fantasy to create a stunning story that has kept me gripped in my playtime. The gameplay variety gives you many options, and though some are more limited and challenging than others, it still gives you an experience that allows you to do what you want, as long as you reach the objective some way. I do admit, there are cons, being some poor voice acting in sections, and some animation issues with characters, but these small dishes never draw away from the main course. Just, overall, I was hugely amazed by this game; it gives everything you could want from an RPG, and more.

This game has some interesting design choices, and against all odds, "I like And Yet It Moves" a lot. The use of gravity-changing gameplay to maneuver through unique levels and solve mind-boggling puzzles defines this game among others, as it utilizes this with a sort of simplicity and complexity at the same time that really makes me favor this game against others such as VVVVVV. Though at some points frustration will frenzy you, I feel that the style and addictive level and exploration this game provides will keep you entertained for a couple of hours, as any well done indie game should.

Not by any means a bad idea, but the fact that gameplay is somewhat marred with bugs and huge curves in adjustment to new weapons, enemies, etc. pushes me away from reaching the core of Hammerfight. It does provide a nice atmosphere, something definitely drawn from steam-punk roots, but with a flawed mouse (utilizing limited physics) mechanic backing it up, being that its the only way for movement, I can't help but not favoring Hammerfight by any means.

I simply couldn't get immersed in this game. By far, it is beyond your average FPS title, but what it delivers has been executed so many times, and shows all too noticeable in the gameplay. From what I can tell, the story is superb, and graphics are on par for the gruesome visuals, but again, the impression of what I got from the gameplay kept pushing me away. Decent, but not standout.

Of course many are offering this experience as a cheap knock-off of Minecraft's success, when in fact, its a powerhouse of an indie game, and surpasses Minecraft's core experiences by far. At most, similarities found in the games are their crafting systems and the possibility of some freeform building, which differ greatly when comparing both expieriences. But by offering an intense 2D sandbox expierience that offers a multitude of mobs, an old-school RPG expierience, tons of biomes with secrets located in the skies and underground, and an evergrowing slew of updates providing diverse new items, power-ups, weapons, and enemies, Terraria delivers with astounding gameplay that still leaves me addicted to this date. Re-Logic, well done.

"inFAMOUS 2" has everything that fans could want out of a sequel to the original. With astounding design in every medium, fast-paced electric gameplay, and a epic karmic storyline that will astound and intrigue you 'till its conclusion, this game has now garnered my respect into being one of the best PS3 exclusives that the system has to offer.

While a suprisingly addictive multiplayer package of tons of options, the overdistribution of premium content in the form of weapons, hats, and progression puts this acclaimed game at an average for me. But overall, TF2 is unique with its graphical prowess, gameplay, and stylized combination of design.

[SPOILER ALERT: This review contains spoilers.]

Valve are legends of the gaming industry, no doubt about it. For those who are complaining that the game didn't go towards YOUR expectations, you're missing out on an obvious nominee for Game of the Year. Continuing the innovative gameplay and story from the first game, Portal 2 expands the story tenfold into an epic journey through the history of Aperture and the AI struggle over control and power. Gameplay is top-notch, and each campaign feels complete and entertaining despite their short **** you're a pro at Portal. And of course, graphics are phenomenal in presenting the haunted remnants of Aperture, and Sound Design is great. Oh, and the sarcasm and humor are still there. So, if you want the greatest experience of gaming this year, Portal 2 will be your buy.

Though seemingly underated in the terms of popularity within a RPG franchise, this blend of Final Fantasy/Etc vs. the Disney Universe provides a unique expierience within examples of intense fights, complex but intriguing storyline, and a total sense of difficulty within simplicity that allows for some of the best gameplay I have ever expierienced. Literally a standout title among others.

Clean, brain-munching fun, which meets the criteria for insane zombie chaos and humor all wrapped into one little gore-filled gift of entertainment. If you can't enjoy a little shuffle of the feet and the squealing of a 50's teenager as he runs away in fear from your undead legion, then you're "brain-dead"...yeah, its horrible. Not this game though.

This game is a masterpiece against general belief. Its twisted vision of environments of the past provides a perfect backdrop to the intense gameplay that surrounds the battlefield each minute, both hardcore but forgiving with a balanced sense of squad gameplay. Many say its linear, but not any more linear than a daily dose of any other mainstream commercial game. The final touches provide a creative and self-preserved plot that pushes you foward, and a provoking sense of sound design and graphical achievements with dark artistic values. Though not for everyone's taste, Clive Barker, Codemasters, and Mercury Steam have indeed provided a worthwhile vision of a truly horrific fantasy that provides a whole new level of gaming.

A generally underrated game, and though much of it could be developed to a higher degree, its haunting atmosphere, edgy gameplay, and mysterious plot makes a ripple that's worthwhile among the scattered assortment of apocalyptic titles in the media industry today.

"Borderlands" is indeed flawless by blending in hardcore FPS action, and gritty RPG elements, to create a gun-loaded, definitive odyssey through the harsh and strangely humorous world of Pandora, full of psychotic...well, psychos, mindless bandits, mutant plasma worms, feral skags, and legendary bosses. Literally thousands, even millions, of guns are at your disposal, along with the specialties of each of the characters to choose from, ranging from a fatal bird of prey, a rage-filled knuckle barrage of fury, a supportive turret of aid and destruction, or even a stealthy, and mysterious power of seductiveness and death. Cooperative play also provides tons of fun with three other players, and with this masterpiece, you'll enjoy every bad*** moment of it.

Gritty, immature, and down-and-dirty fun. When any other game tries to take itself seriously and ends up with this outcome, you know something is up. When a dirty space rebel, a cyborg comrade with wisdom and struggling rage, and a trash-talking commando chick is tossed up into a blender with mutants, killer plants, and cannibalistic freaks, you get the same outcome, but for a reason. If you want mindless fun, with dozens of epic and creative ways to bring a humiliating death to the average low-life, "Bulletstorm" is your game.

In general, there is a huge gap between multiplayer and the single player campaign. Multiplayer, though made linear by imbalancement of stealth and armor powers, also provide minor diversity with smart map layouts and the overall reliance on solid teamwork. Yet, turning to the single player campaign, it seems just lackluster in all. Fanboys will hate me for this, but since I haven't played the first one, which many others haven't, I just don't feel any dedication to the storyline to be entertained or enjoy its simplistic continuation to its presumably intelligent first entry. Graphics are indeed a new tier for technical advances, but I base a game on its entertaining gameplay, storyline, how stand-out it is among general releases. In all, I saw potential for this new entry into what was proposed to be the next epic franchise, but I'm in an overall disappointment at how linear, repetitive, and how the powerful presentation quickly died down in a matter of minutes.