Review: The Binding of Isaac

What do you get when you mix The Legend of Zelda and Robotron with a dash of randomly generated dungeons? Not a super violent top-down Zelda game, but the super violent top-down dungeon crawler from Edmund McMillen and Florian Himsl of the team behind brutal indie puzzler Super Meat Boy. Based off the biblical story of the same name, The Binding of Isaac is a “roguelike” top-down shooter that mixes several elements from other games with a grotesquely disturbing setting that works well. The Binding of Isaac is truly the stuff of nightmares and is not for the easily offended.

 

Sunday Roundup: 10/2/11

Only two downloaded titles come through this week as new purchases. The first is The Binding of Isaac, an indie title released on Steam from part of the creative team behind Super Meat Boy. The second is a PSN exclusive adventure-shooter Rochard, that I can only describe as the PS3’s Shadow Complex with more puzzles.

 

Review: TrackMania 2: Canyon

When I think of racing games, two distinct sub-genres come to mind: arcade racers like Crusin’ USA or San Francisco Rush and simulation games like Gran Turismo. I tend to steer toward the arcade racers for their fast, easy gameplay over the more complex gameplay of simulation racers. And then there’s the TrackMania series, which blends elements of these two sub-genres. The TrackMania series features fast paced arcade style racing, an intricate level editor, and an online hub to connect racers from around the world. With improved graphics, streamlined editing tools for novice editors, and a strong online component make TrackMania 2 a good sequel that racing fans will enjoy.

 

 

Sunday Roundup: 9/18/11

So only the one new game this week, after last weeks mega haul. It’s an unlikely genre for me, since I don’t really play racing games, but so far the game has been rather enjoyable. Let’s take a look…

 

 

 

 

Sunday Round-up: 8/7/11

Will the onslaught of old PS1 games ever end? I sure hope not. This week brought in a good batch of PS1 title, the PS2 Spyro games (for better or for worse), and a free copy of a PC game compliments of Gen Con Indy 2011. Let’s start, shall we?

 

Review: Runespell: Overture

Plenty of games have blended genres together to garner great results. Borderlands successfully mixed RPG and first-person shooting, and the Metroid series brings together action, exploration, and RPG elements. And then there’s Runespell: Overture, which combines two of my favorites: RPGs with poker. Are you ready to slay goblins with a straight flush, stop an evil witch from destroying the world by playing three-of-a-kinds, and recover from your standard RPG amnesia? As strange as it sounds, the game almost pulls off blending these two unlikely genres.

 

Sunday Round-up: 7/31/11

A new 3DS title, the original Fallouts, and the official expansion set to the first Diablo. This week’s haul of games is all over the place! With ten new entries into the collection, let’s dive right in…

 

Initial Thoughts: Runespell: Overture

I am such a sucker for the absurd games. Take Runespell: Overture for example: It’s a game that combines the grind and fantasy of an RPG with the luck and fortune of poker. Somehow, believe it or not… it actually works out fairly well.