I was spending the day out of town when I came across a gamestop that I have never been in before.  Being a frugal shopper, I decided to take a gander into their bargain bin.  Hovering over the countless array of Madden and Grand Theft Auto titles I carefully perused the selection until my eyes picked apart every spine and price tag.  As I was getting up to leave I noticed a familiar name and lettering on one of the cases.  Pulling the game out I realized my eyes were not fooling me, and I was holding a copy of Maximo: Ghosts to Glory for a mere $2.99. Read more… »

This week in I am, I get twitchy with Left 4 Dead‘s new survival mode, in which myself and three other players must hold out as long as possible against an endless horde of infected. Things get tricky as we’re assaulted by dozens of enemies at a time, often including multiple boss infected per wave. Hit the jump for a play by play of the action, multiple instances of gender confusion, and a few examples of what not to do during a zombie apocalypse.

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Valkyria Chronicles is arguably one of the best and most overlooked games on the PlayStation 3. If you own a PS3 but don’t own Valkyria, do yourself a favor and give it a whirl as it’s one of the hidden gems the PS3 has to offer. Now if you’re like us who played and loved the game, then you were also excited when Sega announced all three Valkyria Chronicles DLC packs will be coming to the west.

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You’ve come to a moral crossroad, one leads to the path of virtuous, self-righteous glory. The other, a dismal path of thievery, death and destruction. Only one may be chosen, which do you follow? A superb concept for nearly any genre of video game.

A concept, however, that has never truly been accomplished. Morality is not as simple as good or evil, an aspect that seems to have been lost over the past 10 years since the release of BioWare masterpiece, the original Baldur’s Gate (and subsequent sequels). Even though there were more specifics tied to your choices in BG, a true “moral compass” feature has yet to be done correctly. Read more… »

Once upon a time Lucasarts made games that didn’t have the Star Wars name plastered all over them. It was a simple time, filled with laughter and bright colours, quick wit and intriguing puzzles. While it seems that time is long gone, we can still look back fondly upon these games, hoping that one day they will be revived in a blaze of glory.

Games like Day of The Tentacle, Grim Fandango and most importantly, the Monkey Island Series. The Curse Of Monkey Island to be precise, the 3rd superb game in the series,often regarded as the strongest out of all 4. Hit the jump to find out more!

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As aspirations go being the winning triple point score word in a tie-break game of Scrabble may not ever appear on the pages of an English student filling an hours worth of support-teacher led lesson detailing what they want to be when they grow up, and anyone wishing that to be so may well find themselves being slowly squeezed out and ostracized by their peers until they eventually end up on the evening news being named as the one responsible for all the people shaped chalk outlines in the school gym.

Having seemingly failed sniper school and being bereft of Glock, controversy has instead gone for a complete make-over, and now stands as a powerful but misunderstood tool in the world of selling and marketing. Need to shift something really quick and get the money to Fat Tony before you lose your toes? Get a backdrop, a bucket or two of blood and a lady of questionable, but affordable, morals and shove the whole thing on a billboard and breathe a sigh of relief as the sales stave off the equestrian wake-up call pencilled in for the morning. Read more… »

When’s the last time you had to close your DS because your friends walked in on you playing Pokemon? Have you ever been caught by your girlfriend playing a particularly racy anime game? Guilty Gaming is a new feature that chronicles my sometimes guilty-pleasure related gaming habits, which could include anything from games that are universally hated by critics and gamers alike, or titles that most people wouldn’t be caught dead playing.

Say hello to Hello Kitty in: Sanrio Smash Ball. Read more… »

Don’t you just always admire a game that attempts something new and fresh in their respective genre? Whether or not the risked venture is a success or failure, I always commend such an effort.

That brings us to Suikoden 3, an RPG from Konami that not only attempts to reinvent the wheel; it attempts to reinvent the hovecap, the axle, the engine, the airbag…the whole damn car! And, while I commend the effort, it’s a textbook example of the phrase “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” Read more… »

Video games are thrilling to me because of their diversity as a medium – beyond being simply a game, they can function as a toy (Electroplankton), a competitive sport (Street Fighter), an interactive story (Ico), or even a piece of literature (RPGs). I doubt many gamers will disagree with me on these points; however, our enjoyment of a game as literature is stilted, and the problem may be in part due to us gamers. The problem? Gamers are far too spoiler-phobic, and it prevents gamers – and even game critics – from ever talking about a story in depth.

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In what many call the first cinematic video game experience, Metal Gear Solid truly sets the mold for immersive gaming experiences to come.  Combining an involved plot with white knuckles stealth action, you were truly made to feel like a pawn amongst the powerful.  This peon like role was only exaggerated by the dire mission, in which you were surrounded by trained killers.  One slip up and you were spotted, and that could mean certain death.  That is, until one particular item turned the rules of engagement inside out. Read more… »

Call Of Duty 4. Famous for its still extremely popular multiplayer and short but action packed story line was a game which set the bar for console shooters in terms of multiplayer ranking and set pieces in single player.  Amongst the high praise for the multiplayer the main let down of Call Of Duty 4was that the single player was a short lived experience.  And it was… but on Veteran, Call Of Duty 4 made Oblivion look short.

May be some spoilers after the jump. Read more… »

DSi Ware is one of the advertised features of the 3rd generation DS – the DSi. DSi Ware are applications and games downloadable from the DSi store accessible by connecting your DSi to the internet via WLAN. Some of these applications are free and others cost DSi points, which are available for purchase from your local game store. Nintendo points can also be purchased and converted to DSi points (or Wii points).

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