Rayman has had an interesting history. His first game was a critically applauded 2D platformer in the mid-90s, while his second outing (released back in 1999) is widely considered one of the best 3D platformers. After that, Ubisoft’s unofficial mascot had a little trouble finding his way. Rayman 3 had some praise go its way, though maybe the fact that Rayman’s original creator, Michael Ancel, had little to nothing to do with it prevented it from reaching its full potential. Then enter Raving Rabbids, a game that was originally to be a vast 3D platformer that was to take advantage of the Wii’s capabilities, but ended up as nothing more than a hash of (uneventful) mini-games after rushed schedules (which led to another Ancel departure). While the Rabbids went on to success in their own series, Rayman himself was left in the dust, appearing only in the countless remakes of Rayman 2.. This is what Rayman Origins, which sees Ancel’s return to the series, hopes to rectify. But is Origins the boost Rayman needs to get him into the realms of relevance? Or does the limbless hero not have a leg to stand on (couldn’t resist, sorry)? Read more
Sonic Generations serves as SEGA’s “20th birthday present” to their most iconic character, Sonic the Hedgehog. To celebrate these twenty years, Generations looks to combine elements from Sonic’s glory days in 2D with those of his 3D games of inconsistent qualities. Recent Sonic games have been picking up steam after years of hedgehog mediocrity, but does Generations continue to bring Sonic back into the spotlight for a memorable 20th anniversary? Or is it a repeat of the blue hedgehog’s 15th anniversary “present?”
WWE ‘12 is the newest game based on WWE, and looks to ‘reboot’ the WWE video games after years and years of the Smackdown vs. RAW series. But does this reboot bring all the right tools to breathe new life into the series? Or did it take a few too many chair shots?
Batman: Arkham City is the sequel to RockSteady’s critical darling, Batman: Arkham Asylum. The original was a breath of fresh air, a comic book-based video game that not only did justice to its source material, but was a genuinely fantastic video game through and through. In fact, I’ll go ahead and hail Arkham Asylum as my favorite game of 2009. As such, Arkham City certainly had a lot to live up to, and to deliver. But does Arkham City have what it takes to better its impressive predecessor? Read more
2010 saw many, many great video games (though it also had its share of disappointments). In fact, its gaming output furthered how awesome of a year in entertainment 2010 was (there were a lot of great movies as well, as well as the Bed Intruder Song). 2010 proved to be a standout year in interactive entertainment, and provided some of the very best games of the current console generation.
Keep in mind I can’t play every major game released (they can get really long!), so some fan-favorites might not appear here, but I hope to experience them when I get the chance. But Bayonetta isn’t here because I didn’t like it.
Anyway, with all of the great games released in 2010, there were some that stood above the rest. For me, these were those games (plus honorable mentions). Read more
My Yammie Awards continue with the best in gaming of 2010! Yes, it’s probably past award season by now, but I don’t care. As was the case with my movie awards, my award for best game will be presented in am upcoming “top ten countdown” post. This is a celebration of achievements such as “best visuals” and “best music.”
Without further ramblings, here are my Yammies for the video games of 2010! Read more
"It's like the Brady Bunch, only with Marvel and Capcom, and they're fighting, and it's nothing like the Brady Bunch."
Marvel vs. Capcom 3 is the long-awaited third installment in Capcom’s crossover fighting series that pits characters from their various games against the super heroes (and villains) of Marvel comics. Believe it or not, but it has been over a decade since Marvel vs. Capcom 2 (though Capcom has made other crossover fighting games since then, like Tatsunoko vs. Capcom), which means this third installment had some expectations. But is Marvel vs. Capcom 3 a fight for the ages? Or is it not so super? Read more
