Black Ops

This review is going to be about the multiplayer aspect of COD: Black Ops for the PC.


About the game:  This is your standard new fps where you control your person in a first person point of view. You have a variety of weapons you can choose to spawn with and if you look down the sights of the weapon you get better accuracy.


Controls: Your standard fps controls. Mouse fires/looks down sights. WSAD move around. Etc...

Graphics: The graphics were ok, I found Modern Warfare 2 to have much higher quality graphics, but as I understand it the graphics in black ops were very similar to world at war which was made by the same developer.

Sound:  Sound can be very important in a first person shooter and in this game it really is pretty awesome. Great music and sound effects for when you are listening for that grenade that fell near you.

Gameplay: The game borrows quite heavily from previous COD's but there is quite a bit of variety here to make it unique. 

Firstly everyone can rest easy the dedicated servers are back and its a welcome change to the system that was in place for Modern Warfare 2. While, the game had quite a few issues when it came out (see below), it was still an incredibly engaging and addicting online experience.

The game follows like MW2 where you gain experience as you kill other players or complete objectives. As you gain levels you unlock a variety of new weapons, decals, and a whole bunch of skins for your weapons. The difference here is that you pay for these rather than just unlocking them and being able to use them.

As you level you will gain these points which are used to purchase the unlockables. It is not difficult to gain points, but it will be difficult to master the variety of weapons available for purchase. The higher level you attain the better the rewards (generally true, but not always). Once you reach the max level you can choose to lose all your unlockables but gain an extra character slot this is called prestige. 

Now character slots work as follows: You can deck out a total of 5 characters (as you reach the max level you can choose to lose your unlockables you can gain an extra character slot, you can do this 5  times to gain an extra 5 character slots). with a mishmash of weapons. The thing is, that once you choose, you cannot change while in a game, this can only be done outside of a game.

Your character will have 2 weapons, a variety of grenades and what are called perks. These perks are generally something that go against the norm in the game. They allow you to hit harder or run for a longer period of time or even allow you to take less damage. 

Also, the more kills you get in a row the better the killstreak reward is. You choose these for each character slot and they range from a helpful crate dropped from sky to a seat in a chopper. You can have a max of 3 per character slot.

Challenges will help you level quicker and will not be lost when you prestige. Each weapon has a variety of challenges and as you complete one, more open up. For weapons they generally mean you need to get x number of kills with the weapon, but everything in the game has a challenge associated with it. They give you experience or unlock something new for you as you complete them.

The game has a variety of modes, but the newest and coolest mode are the wager matches where you wage a certain amount of your points and try to compete against others in some cool modes. One in the Chamber is the coolest mode, where each player is armed with a pistol with 1 bullet and a knife. As you kill others you get another bullet.

There is plenty more to the game, but you will just have to discover it all for yourself!

I had quite a few technical issues with the game but, I was not alone in having these issues. I felt that the game might have not been tested quite as much as it should have. There was quite a bit of stuttering occurring during gameplay, not to mention the fact that the game would cause my internet connection to drop. These did not stop me from playing, and I do think Treyarch worked out most of the bugs/glitches.

Verdict: Playworthy!!!

Comic Mayhem is Back!

About the game:  You create a team of worms that will have wacky voices. You play as that team and use weapons to destroy the other team. 

Controls:Seemed like the same controls of the classic worms games.

Graphics: Its a worms game, there are little worms on the screen that talk and shoot rockets, not much more to say than that.

Sound:  Awesome sounds, awesome music. 

Gameplay: The basic premise is supposed to be very humorous. You use wacky weapons combined with worms to destroy other worms. This is a throwback to the classic 2D Worms game from about 10 years ago (Worms Armageddon). There are quite a few modes here and quite a few weapons. 

The game is turn based. So to start a worm at random is chosen and you have to use that worm with his arsenal of weapons to destroy other worms. Whatever weapon you choose will do so and so amount of damage to whatever worm you are trying to destroy ( provided you hit that worm). Then the other team goes and it goes back and forth until one team is destroyed. The weapons range from the normal gernade to the crazy "holy hand gernade".

What makes the game so memorable are the wacky maps and voices the creators have put into the game. You can use the Old Man voice or the Irish voice. They all sound hilarious and there are tons to choose from. This is really what makes the game awesome. When the Old Man says "I feel like a teenager again" or "nobody loves me". You just cannot help but laugh.

The game is prices modestly at $19.99 on Steam and I suggest you pick it up if you want a throwback to a classic that is tons of fun to play.

Verdict: Playworthy!!!

Flying High

About the game:  Altitude is an indie game that is hard to categorize. Steam considers it an action game, but I am not sure it qualifies. The basic premise is you choose an airplane to control and depending on the level your in you have various objectives to complete.

Controls:  Fits the game well and nothing to say here other than the controls work well for the game.

Graphics: Cartoony graphics that have a worms feel to them. Fits the game well.

Sound:  I think the soundtrack for the game works very well with an uplifting and memorable score.

Gameplay: So as was stated above you choose an airplane and then have to complete an objective. There are 3 different modes of play. Plane Ball, Base Destruction and free for all.

Plane ball is basically soccer with planes. There is a ball and you have to score 6 times in the enemy goal to win the round.

Base Destruction has you carrying a bomb to the enemy base and using it to cause damage and ultimately destroy the base.

Free for all has you going up against the other planes and trying to destroy them. Whoever has the most kills at the end of the round (certain amount of time) wins.

As you try and complete these objectives you can use your planes weapons to destroy the other planes. To help you do this there are various perks that allow you to customize your planes. These range from shooting rockets to giving you extra armor.

There are 4 different planes to choose from and each of them has strengths and weaknesses. The loopy is incredibly fast but very easy to destroy, the bomber is hard to destroy but moves slowly. The differences are pretty straightforward and mastering each of them takes time.

The game has a training mode that introduces you to the various goings on in the game. The game has no single player as everything is online. There is a leveling system where you get xp for completing various tasks and when you reach different levels you can unlock new perks or new planes.

This is a pretty unique game and very fun and addictive. It only costs 10 bucks which is a bargain.

Verdict: Playworthy!!!

Super Metroid Sequel?

About the game: This is a very interesting Metroid game. For the first time ever Samus Aran talks. In fact she is the narrator of the story and is talking all throughout. The game also uses cut scenes quite a bit to advance the story and give you some cool cinematics. The game takes place directly after the events of Super Metroid and has you going aboard a giant ship to answer a distress call.

Controls: This is where the game is very different than the Prime series, instead of using both the wii remote and nunchuk. The game only uses the wii remote. You hold it horizontally about 90% of the time and use the dpad and buttons to do shoot or jump. In this mode the camera is located behind your char, and it is a objective perspective. So you can see your whole character. The other 10% of the time if you point the wii remote at the screen you go into a first person view where you can look around and shoot your missles. It is very weird at first but once you get the hang of it, it becomes pretty fluid switching between the two modes.

Graphics: The graphics are not gonna blow you away, but I thought the cinematic's were very good. Especially the opening with Mother Brain.

Sound: I felt the sound was good and set the mood, but it did not seem as good as the classic Metroid music.

Gameplay: The crux of the game has you running around the giant space station figuring out what is going on, which is like most Metroid games. The game differs in that you are helping a team of guys who are also investigating the space station. This adds to the backstory because Samus used to be a part of this team and it adds quite a bit of tension at times between Samus and her Commander (Adam).

The way you got new weapons makes about as much sense as any normal game. You usually have to search the world and beat some boss to get an upgrade. This time around the commanding officer must give you permission to use a weapon to unlock it. Like when you have to save some team member from dying you use your grappling beam to get up there quickly.

Something else that is different than previous Metroid games is there are no health or missile pickups. The way you replenish your health or missiles is by holding the wii remote vertically and holding down A. While this might sound weird, it is quite helpful as certain bosses are very hard to beat. One of the biggest changes other than the ones previously mentioned is the addition of dodge. You can press to the right or left when an enemy is going to hit you and you will dodge in that direction. This is very helpful and quite a bit different than previous games.

There are tons of waypoints (save stations) in the game. When you get to your next one, you are told exactly where to go, unlike in other Metroid games where you have to discover things for yourself. I do not think this really took away much from the game because you really could not go to other places, the game moves you to your next waypoint because of locked doors and what not.

The story I thought was very intriguing and quite a bit different than previous Metroid games, but it still felt like a Metroid game, which was good.

If your a Metroid fan, I highly recommend the game.

Verdict: Playworthy!!!



Spoiler:   

For a big hint as to how the game plays out check out the first letter of each word in the title of the game.

Its about Fraken time...

About the game: The sequel to the best RTS of all time? I think that says it all. This review is going to be about the single player experience. In Starcraft there are 3 races the Terran humans (which this single-player game is all about), the Protoss (Aliens with awesome tech) and Zerg (disgusting insect creatures like the "Bugs" in Starship Troopers).

Controls: The controls are upgraded since the original and are that much better.

Graphics: These graphics will not be the best you have ever seen, but they certainly have some wow factor to them. The cut scenes are tops as in all Blizzard games, and the interlude in game scenes are also high quality.

Sound: The music/sound is tops as in all Blizzard games. The music has that epic feel to it when your in the middle of some insane mission or lulls to a slow symphony.

Gameplay: This is the is the RTS of the future. The game has the feel of the original game but with many upgrades. Though you only get 1/3 of the story, it feels like a "complete" RTS.

In the standard RTS you have a base and have to farm resources in order to build buildings and units. Then you use these units to beat the enemy (whomever that may be). The game deviates a bit from this at times as you might have to escort people to a destination or you might have to defend for a certain amount of time, but the standard is still the standard even in this game.

This portion of the single-player is the Terrans and your old friend Jim Raynor is back looking older, wiser and still flying on a huge battleship he stole in the first game.

The game has an epic single-player story but it includes many RPG elements. For example when your not doing a mission you can wander around the ship your flying on. As you walk around you can talk to people touch various things and it might give you some information or it might advance the plot a little.

One of the best things blizzard did is include units in the single-player campaign that aren't in the multi-player. This makes for a real unique experience as you will be using your medics and firebats to heal and burn. As you complete missions you will get a currency that can be used to upgrade your units and even hire mercenaries. You also can find these Protoss and Zerg artifacts that will allow you to make permanent upgrades to your base. Like you can get turrets on top of the bunkers or even build a building that slows down the Zerg.

Mercs are a super cool feature, basically they have their own building and after a cool down you can summon them to the battlefield in small numbers. What makes them awesome is that you can summon them instantly so they can help you out in a pinch. Especially in some of the very hard missions that occur later in the camapign.

The storyline for the game is pretty straightforward and I will not spoil anything but you do get the opportunity to play as another race other than Terran.

The game has some surprises along the way and it really is an epic feel, the only let down was that when your done with the game you have to wait another year (or more) for the next installment.

This really only brushes the surface as to how good the game is. If you have not played the original, I suggest you go and get it and at the same time buy this for when your done.

 

Verdict: Playworthy!!!

An Original Jewish Themed Card Game

About the game: In case you do not know this, I have been working on a card game with a couple friends. We have been working on it for about a year now and we are in the process currently of getting it produced. Its a simple blind bidding card game. Oh.....its called "Cholent, The Game!" and its the most original Jewish card game to hit the market in years..

Components: The game is a card game pure and simple. The game will come with 160 cards when it hits stores later this year.

The cards are seperated into 5 categories:

Recipe Cards
Shuk Cards
Ingredient Cards
Gelt Cards
Chevra Cards

There is also a cholent pot card to signify whose turn it is.

Artwork: I will link the game at the end of this post to show off how awesome the artwork really is.  I think seeing the artwork will speak for itself.

Gameplay: The game is very easy to understand but takes some strategy to master.

To start shuffle each of the decks and place them face down in front of everyone. Each player is then dealt a recipe card which is kept secret until the end of the game. Lastly, each player takes 4 gelt cards and 1 chevra card into their hand.

The youngest player then takes the cholent pot and turns over the top card of the shuk deck. Each shuk card will have an immediate effect and will initiate a bidding phase which works as follows.

1) The player who turned over the shuk card takes the number of ingredients indicated on the card and places them face up next to the ingredient deck.
2) Each player takes gelt cards equal to the number of ingredients being bid on.
3) Each ingredient is bid on separately in the order they were turned face up.

Bidding works as follows:

Each player decides how many gelt cards to use, and everyone simultaneously turns them over at the same time. The player with the highest total wins the ingredient.

After each ingredient is bid on, the cholent pot passes to the left and the next player starts the process over.

Now your probably telling yourself that it sounds interesting, but where is the awesome? This is where the chevra cards come in. These are special one time use cards that will help you get the ingredients you need.

You have to pay 3 gelt to get one, and there is no limit to how many you can have, but a smart player will know better than to spend all his gelt on chevra cards. A hand with no gelt is like a Cholent with no ingredients. Just like you need ingredients to make a cholent, so to here you need gelt to get the ingredients for your recipe.

If your interested in the official rules, head on over to the website and check them out.

My Thoughts: Of course I am a bit biased when it comes to this game, because I designed it, but I know a good game when I see it and I think we have a winner here. I feel so strongly about it, my friends and I created a company and are trying to get it produced. We currently have a website, facebook page, board game geek page, and are trying to raise funds through kickstarter.

If you have not heard of kickstarter, it is a website that allows people to donate money to your cause. Of course, you give some sort of reward in exchange for the money. In our case we are offering pre orders of the game, t shirts, a cool sketchbook and more!

If you have any questions, comments or anything at all do not hesitate to contact me.

 

Verdict: Playworthy!!!


Website
Kickstarter
Board Game Geek

"3D" Puzzles should only be this much fun

About the game: This game is just like the first Picross, but with 3D puzzles. You get some sort of square, rectangular shape and you have to carve out the item.

Controls: Touch screen makes the game pretty awesome. Being able to slide and turn the item in circles plus being able to mark or destroy cubes makes the game pretty easy to control.

Graphics: Nothing special, your standard DS graphics.

Sound: The tunes are catchy and add a little bit to the game.

Gameplay: The game starts out by explaining the basics. You first get some rectangular shape. The shape is made up of smaller cubes with numbers on them. This is a 3D shape so you can maneuver the camera all over to see all around the shape in question.

You then learn how to destroy and mark cubes. You destroy the cubes by pressing up on the d-pad and touching the cube in question. You mark a cube by pressing right on the d-pad and touching the cube in question. This makes sure you do not destroy a cube by accident.

The numbers on the cubes represent how many good cubes there should be in that row/column. Supposedly the game never requires you to guess, but I have found otherwise. The tutorial does a very good job of giving you some hints and tips to figuring out the numbers.

The more cubes you destroy the more you see of the item your carving out. If you destroy a cube that is part of the puzzle you get a strike. 5 strikes and your out. When you destroy your last cube, the puzzle will auto go into a little animation and you will get a number of stars depending on how well you did. If you do not get any strikes you get a star, if you beat the puzzle within the recommended time you get another and as long as you beat the puzzle you get another. So, you can get a total of 3 stars per puzzle.

As long as you complete the puzzles, you will unlock more puzzles. There are quite a few puzzles to unlock and they get harder as you go along.

This is one of the best puzzle games I have played in a long time. The game just keeps you coming back for more and more. I have powered through all the easy and normal puzzles and I am now onto the hard ones.

 

Verdict: Playworthy!!!

A sequel worth "punishing" yourself over

About the game: You play as either the female or male protagonist and are trying to escape earth. You have to fight your way out of course and this is no easy task.

Controls: There are a ton of options for this game, but I chose the wii remote and nuchuck and I do not see how any of the others could top it.

Graphics: The graphics are not bad, but they are not Super Mario Galaxy quality. I think it becomes very impressive when there are a crap ton of enemies on screen and there is no fps issues.

Sound: Some catchy tunes. There are voice overs for the characters, but the story really is not the games strong point. It is really all about the game play.

Gameplay: "Sin and Punishment: Star Successor" is the sequel to the awesome Sin and Punishment. If you have not played the original, I recommend head on over to the VC and download it right now. Its a fantastic game that was out for the N64 but never made it to the states, until now. After you have downloaded it then you can sit down with "Star Successor". I say beauty because this game is just so much fun.

The game is a 3d rail shooter, like the great "House of the Dead" series. You can move from side to side on the screen (even flying up in the air), but the game will automatically move you forward to the next area. 

There are thousands of enemies to destroy and you have the choice of characters to destroy them with. I played as the female character because her ability is to lock onto targets, which you would think would make for an easier game. But, I can tell you right now this game is not easy, even on easy!

The whole point of the game is to escape the world you are on and along the way you will destroy tons of enemies. Every time you destroy an enemy your score multiplier will go up. If you get hit it will go down. Sounds easy, but its not so easy to avoid the barrage of fire that appears on screen. 

Also, there are tons of bosses that are some of the best I have ever seen in games. These bosses are no easy feat to beat and will take many continues to finally destroy.

The game is not very long, but the online rankings will keep you going back to stages that you did not do well on, to try and achieve a high score.

I think this is one of my favorite games so far this year and I would recommend it to anyone looking to have a good time.

 

Verdict: Playworthy!!!

Star filled Adventure

About the game: Bowser steals the princess. You have to save her and to do that you need to get stars. Instead of going to Rosalina's ship now you get your own ship and use it to go from world to world/level to level.

Controls: Just like in the first Galaxy. You use the wii remote and nunchuk. You use the control stick on the nunchuk to move, you use A on the remote to jump, B on the bottom of the remote to shoot star bits and lastly you shake the wii remote to do a spin.

The controls work very well for the game and the sensitivity is just right.

Graphics: The game has some of the best available on the Wii.

Sound: Even better than the first game, there are some classics that have been brought back and that will make any Mario fan squeal with glee.

Gameplay: The game is the same as every Mario game. The princess is kidnapped and you have to rescue her from Bowser. You get a ship at the start and have to make your way to the center of the galaxy. Along the way you will get tons of stars and tons of fun as well. Oh one more thing.... Yoshi is in the game too. He is here in all his 3d glory and hes a blast to ride.

I think what set this game apart from the first Mario Galaxy is the sheer awesomeness each and every level provided. Every level there was something new and original that surprised me.

This game provided me with so fun that I could not put it down and had to get all those 120 stars (which I did). I am now working on the 2nd part of the game which is another 120 stars that have to be found.

I do not think I can talk enough about how great this game is.

 

Verdict: Playworthy!!!

A Torrent of Fun

About the game: This is your normal vertical scroller shooter. You control a ship and shoot enemies, while racking up lots of points.

Controls: The stylus is not used instead you use the D-Pad and B and A.  B shoots your main weapon and A uses your special weapon.

Graphics: The graphics are pretty good for the game. Some cool 3d worlds, but graphics really are not a big part of the game.

Sound: Some decent tunes that are catchy. Keeps the mood and tone of the game.

Gameplay: What makes the game interesting are the 2 different types of ships you can choose from.

Firstly, you have the easy ship where you are basically invulnerable. You have a special ability that turns bullets into torrents. This way once you use your special ability which in turn uses some energy, you can then use the torrents they leave behind to refill your energy. The biggest part of the game is using the special ability at the right time to turn bullets into torrents. The only way you can die as this ship is if your energy bar runs out and then you get hit.

The other ship is for experts. The special weapon is much harder to use and you are not invulnerable. Any hit will destroy your ship. As of this writing I still have not completed the game using this ship.

There are also 2 different modes you can play with (4 modes total 1 with each ship). Pattern mode which like galaga the enemies come in a specific pattern so you know whats coming next. Also a random mode, so you will have no idea whats coming next.

Something that has been sorely missing on most DSi games but is included in this one is online leaderboards. This adds some competitiveness to the game and makes you want to get in the top 10. You are also able to watch the replay of the top 10 people in any of the modes, which can allow you to learn some strategies.

This is a very fun game and super cheap. Its not very long, but these games never are. The point of the game is to keep you playing so you can get a real high score.

 

Verdict: Playworthy 

3D without the Glasses

About the game: The game is pretty straightforward. You are helping this animated character complete this story. You have to find the words in each stage in order to move on.

Controls: Very spotty. I started playing and everything seemed to work well. After awhile, I am not sure if the light wasn't right or the game just doesn't like me this became a nightmare.

What is supposed to happen is as you move the camera moves in the game which allows you to look all over the screen. This becomes a nightmare because the game just is not as responsive as you want it to be.

Graphics:  Very Impressive. This is what you want to see. The puzzles pop out at you and the effect is very impressive.

Sound: Some catchy tunes that do not impede the game at all.

Gameplay: You take a picture of yourself to start. Then you enter a stage where you have to find various letters/pictures hidden all over.

What makes this unlike other puzzle games is that the game uses head tracking. This is the reason you take the picture. You are looking at a 3d area and you have to move the camera around to sometimes actually make the letters/pictures appear. 

The game sounds solid, but as I said under controls it falls way short. The camera is just too spotty and it makes what should be a very enjoyable experience a painful one.

Verdict: Not Playworthy!

Fun for the whole family!

About the game: Pandemic is from Z-Man games and its considered a Co-Operative game. Everyone works together instead of against one another. It came out in 2008 and there is even an expansion out for the game.

Components: There are quite a few components but they are easily organized

- Giant pieces for each player
- Cards for every city
- Different colored cubed tokens to represent the diseases
- Role Cards
- Cardboard pieces representing each of the diseases.
- Little houses representing Research Stations

Gameplay:
The game is pretty simple. You as a team have to cure the four diseases.

Each player takes a role (one of 5), and a piece to represent their role. After the board is set up with the random diseases on x number of cities. Play begins with the person who was most recently sick (a cute addition).

That player can take up to 4 actions on his turn.

Actions:
Moving - Moving a few spaces or flying to a city.
Treating disease - Removing 1 cube of any color from a city your in
Curing disease  - Discarding 5 cards of the same color
Build a research station - Discard a city card, placing a station on that city
Passing cards to another player - Must be in the same city as is on the card

Once that player has taken his actions, he draws 2 cards from the player cards and turns over a certain number of infected cards. Play continues in this way throughout the game.

This is a co-operative game though so everyone is working together to win. You talk with each other to explain what you think will be your best move and then do it. You cannot show each other your hand (other than in your first game). This makes it more difficult to communicate what you have, but its not a huge hurdle.

The Roles all bend some rule in the game, like the Medic can treat all of one type of disease on a city as one action. The Research can give other people cards without having to be on a specific city.

What makes the game interesting is when an epidemic card is drawn from the player cards. At this point a bunch more diseases are put out and the infected cards are put back at the top of the deck. Also the outbreak counter is moved and the infected counter is moved.

The game ends if any of these 3 things occur:

-There are no more cards to draw from the player pile.
-The outbreak counter reaches the skull
-There are no more cubes of a specific color disease to put on the board.

You only win the game if you as a team discover all 4 cures.
 
My Thoughts: This is the perfect family game as everyone is working together. The game comes with 3 levels of difficulty and having only beaten the first level 2 times, I can say the higher levels will be extremely difficult.

The game does not move super quick but its since everyone is involved on every turn this makes it more involved. Also there is an expansion that adds a bit more to the game including making one of the base roles a bit better.

Cost: It costs about $35.

Verdict: This is one of the most unique and fun games I have played. It is very Playworthy!.

Flight Control

About the game: Flight Control is a semi newly released title for download on the DSi. It was previously on various Apple devices.

The premise of the game is you are an air traffic controller and you have to guide all the air vehicles that appear on the screen to a runway or somewhere to land. If you crash the game is over.

Its a casual game that can be played in 2 min but can go for however long you can last.

Controls: You use the stylus to pick an air vehicle and then draw a line to a runway. Pretty simple and intuitive.

Graphics: Nothing special.

Sound: The sound/music of the game has a light feel to it. Like not too intense but it fits the game well.

Gameplay: The game is pretty simple. There are various levels that you choose from. Once you have chosen that level you keep playing it until you lose.

Each level takes place in some area and you have to guide the aircrafts to a runway. This is very simple and easy to start but when you get 12 aircraft on the screen at once, it can get very hectic.

The aircraft will vary from level to level and thats what makes the game interesting. The more successfull landings you pull off the higher your score. 

The only thing the game is missing is a high score list with online capabilities. It have been nice and easily added it seems. Something pretty sweet that I find nice, is you can speed up the gameplay to make it go quicker when there are only a few aircraft on the screen at once.

The game was 5 bucks which is not exactly cheap but is not too bad for how long you can potentially play the thing.

Verdict: Playworthy  

Is it a Small World after all?

As everyone knows I am a pretty avid Videogame player, as evidence by this blog. To go along with that I also enjoy boardgames quite a bit. Not the casual type of boardgame/cardgame, but the real ones. I am going to change it up a little by reviewing a board game. So bear with me while I review:

About the game: Small World is a reimplementation of an old game called Vinci by the same creator (Philippe Keyaerts). I never did play the game, but I heard it was a bit more complicated that small world but still very fun.

The story behind the game is there is a world that is too small for the vast amount of races. You play as a race that you pick and use troops to conquer the board. Each race comes with a random special power that will help you do a variety of things.



Components: The game comes with a ton of components. Here is just a small list of them

Boards x2

Cardboard cutouts x 40

Troops (what you use to conquer regions) x too many to count

Other pieces
Victory coins that come in denominations of 1,3,5,10 also too many to count

Thankfully the game comes with a nice box to store it all.
Even with that box it is a pain to take out the troops. I have been looking for a good replacement that is not too expensive and have been unsuccessful at this time.

Gameplay: The game is pretty simple to explain, but hard to master and there are complications when it comes to how certain races/powers work together.

Everyone starts with 5 victory coins and there are 5 races/powers sitting on the side of the board. If you pick one at the top of the line then you just take it. If you pick one at the bottom you have to put a victory coin on each of the ones you passed over.

After you have picked your race you get the number of tokens equal to the total written on the race/power pieces.

First Turn:
Your first time conquering something, you have to come in at the edge of the board. You have to pay 2 tokens, plus however many tokens are on the region you wish to conquer.You place the required number of tokens on the region. From there you have to conquer adjacent regions always paying 2 plus the number of tokens on the region.

As your final conquest if you do not have enough tokens you can roll a die that has 3 blank spaces and a 1,2,3. If you roll successfully you take over that region. If not you place your troops in one of your other regions.

At the end of your turn you can spread out your troops into your regions in any way you want. You then take victory coins equal to however many regions you have.

And thats it.

Obviously, this is not taking into account the various powers/races. You can get quite a few more victory coins depending on your combo. Or quite a few less as well.


Subsequent Turns:
On your next turn you have 2 options. You can either conquer more territories or you can go into "decline".
To conquer you take back any excess troops you have on your regions (leaving one on each region you control) and then go about conquering more regions. You can also take back all your troops and start over, but you have to re conquer the regions you abandoned.

Going into decline is what makes the game interesting. By going into decline, you put your power at the bottom of the stack, you turn over your race card, and you flip over 1 token in each of your regions and discard the rest back to the box.

On your next turn you can choose a new race/power combo, and still collect victory coins for as long as your in decline race is on the board.

My Thoughts:
The game is real fun and there is quite a bit of strategy involved. "Do you go into decline?", "Do you conquer more regions?" etc..

The game can take quite a bit if your playing for the first time, but subsequent games can go pretty quick. I also liked that they give you 2 different double sided boards depending on how many players are playing. If your not into the risk type of game, this game is not for you. If you are looking for a good time with lots of thinking involved this is the right game for you.

Cost:  I bought it for about $40, it retails for $50.


Verdict: This is a very unique game and one that will definitely see more playtime. Playworthy!

Grill off with Ultra-Hand

  
Its been awhile since I posted, but since a few of my friends have been creating new blogs, I decided to pick this up.

On a whim, I decided to buy this from Club Nintendo after reading about it on www.kotaku.com. It was only 80 coins which is a pretty small number compared to what most stuff from Club Nintendo cost.

About the game: The game is a pretty basic casual game. You are an Ultra Hand which is an extendable claw type device. Your sitting in front of 3 bbq's and your job is to take the food that is on top of each of the bbq's and plate em. You have to extend the claw, grab the food, retract the claw and drop the food onto a plate.

What makes the game interesting is the "Just Right's".

Controls: The controls are pretty intuitive. You hold the Nunchuk and Wii Remote Vertical and when you bring them far apart the Ultra Hand extends. When you bring them closer together the Ultra Hand retracts.

Holding down the A grabs and holds the food. Letting go of A drops the food. These controls work pretty well and if you get into a rhythm you can go pretty quick.

You can also control the fire with the B button or the Z button.

Graphics: I was not expecting much here, but they are a cutesy type of graphics. There is some detail with the fire and lightning, but nothing too spectacular.

Sound: This makes the game pretty fun. The sound/music has a good beat and gets your heart pumping as you get closer to a big number with the "Just Rights".

Gameplay: The game is pretty simple, but its the "Just Rights" that make it more interesting. The food will sit on top of the bbq and after about 5sec (depending on the food) the food will get bigger. This is the point in time where you want to grab it. The more consecutive "Just Rights" you get in a row the more points you will get and the more hectic the game becomes.

Something that also makes the game interesting is that you can control the strength of the fire on the bbq. You can either leave the fire alone, or you can make it blazing which cooks the food quicker.

The game ends if you leave food on the bbq for too long or if you drop it.There is a High score list, but its only your scores not anything from other people on the Internet.

Verdict: Playworthy  

Ultra Hand is a pretty fun game for so cheap. The only thing I would have loved to see was some sort of online interactivity. Even if the high score list was able to connect to other players, that would have been better than nothing at all. Even without the online connectivity the game is still very addicting and fun.