ablindkid

This throwback to Pro Skater's glory days is a value-packed, but ultimately disappointing experience. .The new HD levels look great, the soundtrack is one of the best to date and plenty of unlockables and new tricks will keep players busy for quite some time. Unfortunately, the core gameplay mechanics are unpolished and flawed. Controls are clumsy and inpercise and certain elements such as the quick recovery feature and special moves are poorly presented with little to no explanation on how the are supposed to be used. Multiplayer is another problem area. The matchmaking is horrible, I failed to connect to a single match. As much as I tried to ignore the game's flaws and ride the wave of nostalgia, I can shake the feeling that the Pro Skater franchise is dead in the water.

REAL STEEL is to Xbox Live Arcade what dog **** is to fine cuisine. It has absolutely no redeeming value. The moves and combos are clunky and rudimentary, the singleplayer is bland and everything; and I mean friggin EVERYTHING costs extra. This game is a shameless attempt to cash in on the movie license; and judging by the fact that its one of the most downloaded games on XBLA, it's doing just that. 1/10, and that's only because my console didn't explode when I started playing it.

I really didn't find this game very fun at all. It functions well, but the campaign is laughably generic. The competitive multiplayer isn't very fun or exciting and requires you to earn unlocks for just about everything. The only part of the game I enjoyed was Beast Mode, an addictive gametype that turns wave based horde mode on its head. But although I had a great time chopping up COGs with a giant cleaver, this relatively small addition wasn't enough to justify keeping this game for very ong.

Make no mistake, this game is one of the deepest titles you can get for $15. However, this isn't to say it doesn't have its flaws. Possibly the best feature of the game is the customization of gadgets, weapons and costumes, allowing a level of character customization that puts games like Call of Duty to shame. Though there are onl a few maps and gametypes currently available, more will likely be added in future DLC. As fun and action-packed as it is, Imposters is really held back by its own matchmaking and party systems. Playing with friends is unintuitive at best and non-functional at worst. Thanks to the disconnect-happy, matchmaking system, you'll frequently find yourself waiting for long periods of time before getting into a game, that is if you manage to connect at all. Though the Imposters certainly manage to impress, they will soon wear out their welcome if the matchmaking situation isn't fixed quickly. 8/10

Magic 2012 is a solid game that is better than it's predecessor in every way. There are several fun game modes o choose from, and a decent, if not overly-similar selection of decks. The graphics are as simple as you'd expect from a card game and the music is a vast improvement over the last Magic title (which was ear-splittingly awful). However, online matches tend to drop, and AI difficulty can be inconsistent, so I have to ding the game a point or two on that count. However, replayability is where the game really shines, with several hours worth of battles and challenges, plus regular DLC, it will keep you coming back again and again. Overall this game gets an 8.5/10 (rounded up) and recognition as one of the best values on XBLA.

I picked up Minecraft well into the beta about nine months ago. Overall, I have been pleased overall with my gameplay experience. Minecraft has an insanely huge game world that lets you do whatever the heck you want. With a plethora of gamemodes and solid multiplayer, it is a great all around offering. Unfortunately this game is VERY demanding in terms of hardware, especially RAM. Don't even think about running this game with less than 4GB as it will be very laggy even at tiniest render distances, While there are various Java fixes that can be used to help you get the most out of the game, the steep RAM requirement keeps it from being as accessable and fun as it should be. However, if your computer has the minerals to run it, Minecraft is an innovative, top-notch experience that shouldn't be missed.

Naughty Bear is a great character in a sub-par game. My main gripes are that the camera **** and you're playing the same level over and over. That said, the Ultra Kills are visceral and satisfying if not a tad repetitive. Overall this game gets a 6. I really hope the developer doesn't abandon this series, but gives us a sequel that has a bit more to it.

The six year wait is finally over, and the jury is out on the fifth installment of the TES franchise. Skyrim is the definitive 21st century Action RPG. This time the battle goes to Skyrim where your character is released into the open to fight dragons and fight a bloody civil war. The action is fun, smooth and bloody, with intuitive menus and controls that work wonderfully on an Xbox. The progression system works well though I would've liked to see more class **** graphics are much better this time around, but you really need a 1080p television to get the best textures and smoothest edges. There's also the occasion graphical bug or AI pathfinding issue. Overall, Skyrim has some small issues, but I still cannot think of any gamer I wouldn't recommend this to... 9.5/10!

Fable III is a very good game, however it i a step back from the greatness of Fable II. The story is great and deals with issues like revolutions, ethics and class struggle in a way that is offbeat and humorous. Some of the characters are great, but there are some stinkers too (like the one you get to play). Combat is smooth and the acrobatic finishers are brutally entertaining. However, I have a bone to pick with the lack of weapon variety and the lack of a convention save system and inventory. NPC interactions have also been dumbed down. I won't give away the ending, but it really, really ****. Overall this is a good game, but one that made me want to play Fable II in lieu of playing through it a second time.

A sheer disappointment in comparison to Double Helix. It's generic and unpolished. To make things even worse, the developer decided to strip away the interesting and unsettling gore systems of the last two games in favor of buckets of faking looking blood and limbs that fly off and subsequently disappear.

This game took a step back from MW2. The campaign can be fun, but isn't quite as epic as Modern Warfare 2 or even World at War. I don't like the currency system in multiplayer, or the decrease in the number of levels, but thats just me. I never really played Zombies much but on all accounts it's quite good. In the end, I just got tired of it and traded it in.

If you're looking for a shooter with depth, complex metaphors or even a coherent plot, look away now. But if you're looking for $15 of gory, mindless fun, this is your game. I agree that linear, simple to a fault and as subtle as a brick wall, but it has good graphics, varied weapons/enemies and enough blood to fill the Gulf o Mexico. It looses points for lacking an autosave function competitive multiplayer that is anything more than an afterthought. But moderate gripes aside, this game is still a better value than 80% of the junk in Xbox Live Arcade.

Dead Island is interesting, unconventional and incredibly disappointing. The visuals are great, combat is (usually) responsive and fun, plus you can level up your character. Unfortunately, the story and gameplay become frustrating and repetitive a few hours in, and the glitches certainly don't motivate you to keep playing. Co-Op with friends is fun as long as you keep your characters the same level. However you and your friends will probably end up having the most fun laughing at the crushingly generic plot. Dead Island isn't bad, hell it may even be worth a rental or a bargain bin purchase, but there are far better alternatives out there.