The Gaming Nook

Review: 10000000 for Android

2013-03-21T13:14:00.003-04:00

Mobile games are such a hard design problem to crack. How do you design a game that can be picked up for minutes at a time, give the customer some sort of satisfaction for that brief time invested, while also having enough depth they don't uninstall your game after a day. EightyEight Games seems to have crafted 10000000 to be the solution to that problem but I'm hesitant to say whether they've truly succeeded.

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Five Things You Should Know as a PAX East Virgin

2013-03-19T13:47:00.003-04:00

This Friday, thousands will descend upon Boston in hopes of playing games, meeting people and getting free stuff. Here's the bare minimum of what you need to know if you've not been before.

Incredibly Late Review: Dead Space 2

2013-03-14T09:13:00.001-04:00

I debated for a while whether doing a review for a game multiple years old had any value left for anyone but myself. It was possible my own satisfaction of putting my thoughts to paper was worth it alone. In the end I think that perhaps anyone looking to play the game in the future would still be best served by a review formed without the presence of the hype or marketing machine that comes along with most of these AAA releases. Especially considering the somewhat negative response Dead Space 3 has gotten recently, I believe now more than ever a reader can expect to get the most unbiased review possible.

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Review: Dungelot for Android

2013-03-04T13:23:00.002-05:00

Mobile RPGs must be quite difficult to create. A developer is playing to a demographic that wants an engaging experience that rewards persistence but also only has 5 minutes to spare before they put it away. The nature of the device is diametrically opposed to genre. Dungelot from Red Winter Software aims to bring both of these ideas together. But does it succeed?

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Thoughts on the Playstation 4

2013-03-01T09:17:00.002-05:00

Sony's press conference last month convinced me of one thing and one thing only: the company is willing to learn from it's mistakes. In not so subtle language they both demonstrated new (potential?) features as well as clearly displaying a humbleness learned from their past mistakes. The company finally seems to understand how people want to use their device instead of forcing them into antiquated non-existent use cases.

The emphasis seemed to be focused on speed and usability more than anything else. Instant on, instant resume, and instant streaming games thanks to the Gakai aquisition. All the things that used to be a nightmare, like patching, on the PS3 are now relegated to a completely discrete secondary chip. It's as if the featureset of the new box is totally reactionary to the criticism of the their last console. That's not a bad thing.

In terms of services provided and the actual hardware, I think we'll see parity on the part of Microsoft in the coming months so it's not all that relevant Stereoscopic cameras may be interesting but I'm sure the Kinect 2 will be just as convincing (or not). Perhaps it's taboo to say so, but it seems as though Sony is finally producing a western produced product that responds to the needs and wants of the average non-Japanese consumer. The cultures are quite different so it's refreshing to see that Sony's hubris is gone.

The information dump was rather exhaustive considering the timing of the announcement yet it left me wondering what bombs they had left to drop come E3. Sony is an experienced company and they must know they have to bring something huge to the table for the biggest show in the industry.

All in all the announcement left me pleasantly surprised and optimistic for (this division) of Sony. A new interesting featureset that addresses everyone's concerns about the difficulty of development and usability of their previous device while showing us a good assortment of future PS4 games as well as a humbleness that is in stark contrast to what the company's presented in year's past. Microsoft better have their game-face on because Sony is still here to play with the big boys.

The War is Over: Time to Crown the King of Streaming

2013-02-06T13:46:00.003-05:00

With Own3d.tv out of the picture, will Twitch rest on it’s laurels or bring E-sports to the next level?

From the Steam Sale: Mark of the Ninja

2013-01-30T06:00:00.000-05:00

I first saw Mark of the Ninja at PAX East 2011 and it grabbed my attention right away. I am usually the kind of person who likes stealth action games then plays about 50% of the game, gets stuck, and never touches it again. Mark of the Ninja is not that game; from the beginning I was sucked in and couldn't stop.

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TGN's Big List of Game's to Watch in 2013

2013-01-23T13:53:00.000-05:00

Turns out there's a bucket-load of games coming out in 2013. We all have our preferences for certain genres and developers but sometimes, regardless of our own personal biases, games deserve a look regardless. Maybe they're "important" for the new things they're trying to do, or perhaps they're just a fantastic re-imagining of a classic. Some titles have us curious just to see if the developers can keep people interested with yet another sequel We've tried to compile a list of the games we think you should be aware of. So here, in no particular order are the game's we're watching in 2013.

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Review: FTL: Faster Than Light

2013-01-15T05:00:00.000-05:00

Space... The final frontier. These are the voyages of the starship Doohickey. It's continuing mission, to explore strange new worlds. To seek out new life and new civilizations. To boldly go where no one has gone before. And blow the crap out of anything that gets in our way.

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Homefront: From the Bargain Bin

2013-01-13T10:37:00.001-05:00

It's been well over a year since THQ's high-profile shooter, Homefront, launched. The game was met with poor reviews and mediocre sales. I spent some time with this game after purchasing it from Amazon recently during one of the THQ bundle deals. Mathematically I spent less then two dollars for the game. Let's talk about this bargain bin game that is consistently available on sale for under 5 dollars. Is it worth it or is Homefront a complete waste of time?

For Homefront's launch, THQ marketed the fact that John Milius (writer/director of Red Dawn) was writing the story. I loved this cult classic. The intro scenes and pre-release screenshots of the game looked fantastic. I erred on the side of caution and decided to wait for reviews and was immediately put off by what the media had to say about it. The most glaring issue was that the campaign was very short, and ultimately mediocre.

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The Often Overlooked Archives: Gauntlet Legends (N64)

2013-01-08T15:57:00.002-05:00

Let me tell you a tale of a dungeon crawler that got left by the wayside.

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The Gaming Nook Live: League of Legends

2013-01-04T12:30:00.000-05:00

The Gaming Nook will be streaming League of Legends games all Friday night after 7PM EST. Please join us for some debauchery and mediocre skill with Jim, Brian and Jason this evening. The stream will be embedded here as well as available on Twitch. There will be drinking involved so cover you children's ears.

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Worth Playing: Frog Fractions

2013-01-03T09:27:00.003-05:00

Alright, listen. I want you to take 20 minutes out of your day and go and play Frog Fractions. Just trust me on this one. Saying more would ruin the the point of playing the game. All I will say, is the game is not what it seems and perhaps can inform game design for other indie developers. Lessons can be learned from this little flash game. If nothing else, you will enjoy the music and nostalgia. Thank me later.

Review: Hotline Miami

2012-12-21T12:10:00.001-05:00

Hey Kids, want to go on a trip? How about a psychedelic murderous rampage against some gangsters with a variety of weapons while wearing a pig mask? Hope you're not shy about stomping guy's heads into a wall and slitting peoples throats! Welcome to Hotline Miami!

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The Often Overlooked Archives: Dungeon Keeper

2012-12-17T11:25:00.001-05:00

Dungeon Keeper launched in the United States on June 26th, 1997. I don't know how, at ten years old, I came across this garish, vile, and extremely fun game, but I did and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Its unique game play has left me craving games like it. Sixteen years later and I still like to boot the game up once and a while just for old times sake. Dungeon Keeper was well received when it was launched back in the 90's but through the years I've often brought it up in conversation and no one seems to remember it. What about the game made Dungeon Keeper continuously stick out in my mind? Why did I love it so much?

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Air Patriots Review

2012-12-08T10:29:00.001-05:00

Amazon game studios was introduced and launched their first game “Living Classics” for Facebook back in August of 2012. In November Amazon followed up with their first Mobile App, Air Patriots. I've been playing through the different maps and seeing what the game brings to the table. Amazon is already a part of my every day life. Can they break through into the game development world and become even a greater part of that life?

XCOM: Enemy Unknown Review

2012-12-06T08:17:00.000-05:00

The re-release of XCOM: Enemy Unknown on Steam was my first experience with an XCOM game and I was pleasantly surprised with what I found. A deep turn based strategy game with some aspects of city simulation thrown in with a decent story that really keeps you hooked. Let's take a look at why this game is in my opinion a must own, not only a fans of the XCOM series, but for fans of strategy games in general.

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The Often Overlooked Archives: Shadowrun

2012-11-29T11:57:00.001-05:00

Titles flop for a variety of reasons. Unrealistic expectations, bad release day timing or misrepresentative PR among other reasons can lead to quality titles getting a bad rap. I've decided to start a new series of posts to shed some light on past titles that I believe didn't get the attention they deserved. Let me start with a little game called, Shadowrun.

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Black Ops 2 Multiplayer: The Beast I Love to Hate

2012-11-20T05:00:00.000-05:00

I'm still playing it. I don't know why sometimes. That's a lie, I sure as hell know why. My stupid pavlovian response to not only seeing XP and Levels pop up on my screen but intermittently getting score streak rewards. But is it really worth it?

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Pushmo Review

2012-11-14T05:00:00.000-05:00

I'm not usually one for puzzle games but the positive word of mouth around Pushmo led me to purchase it before going away for the weekend. It turns out 6.99 buys you a lot of game these days and isn't indicative of the quality. For what it's worth, Pushmo may be just a plain better game than most 3DS retail releases.
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Halo 4: Review

2012-11-12T09:58:00.002-05:00

In 2010 Bungie announced that they were leaving Microsoft and signing a deal with Activision, therefore leaving Halo behind. Soon after it was announced that 343 would be taking over the Halo franchise and making another trilogy. This caused a lot of anxiety among fans of the franchise. After playing though Halo 4 it is clear that there are still somethings to be concerned about, overall the core of Halo is alive and well. Read on after the break to see my full thoughts.

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Liberation Maiden Review

2012-11-05T05:00:00.000-05:00

Looking to dodge missiles and shoot the flashing weak spot on enemies while piloting a President's flying Mech? Then Liberation Maiden may be the downloadable 3DS shooter for you.

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Dishonored Review

2012-10-31T05:00:00.000-04:00

From the first gameplay trailer, Dishonored intrigued me. The art syle, atmosphere, gameplay, and overall story that I viewed peaked my interest. I recently completed my first run through of the game and can't wait to play it again. I haven’t played a game like Dishonored for a long time and usually stealth action games are not my cup of tea. For me to be drawn into a genre I usually don’t play at all, the game has to be captivating, and Dishonored surely delivers. Read on for my thoughts on the game, the good and the not so good.

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Make a Choice: Halo 4 or Black Ops 2

2012-10-29T11:14:00.001-04:00

The epitome of first world problems. There are too many good games coming out in too short span of time and I don't have time to play all of them. Furthermore, with two of them being multiplayer focused shooters I'm not sure I want to play both simultaneously I've already made my peace with the fact that Assassins Creed 3 will have to wait but trying to get to a point where at least my close friends think I'm mediocre at a FPS requires dedicating yourself to one game. How is one to choose?

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Dungeon Village

2012-10-24T19:42:00.002-04:00

With my recent conversion from an iPhone to the Samsung Galaxy S3 (which is great by the way) I've come across a few great games in my short time with the phone. Dungeon Village is one of those great games. Dungeon Village is City Sim/RPG available on both Android and iPhone. The object of the game is to build a village in which characters of the world can live in while exploring dungeons, collecting items, battling monsters all while helping your village grow. This highly addictive game is well worth the $5 price tag and once you start playing you'll find it almost impossible to put it down. I apologize in advance for your new lack of productivity.

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