SOL: Exodus Review

Space is boring.

Endless swaths of nothingness do not make for a compelling setting in any game. Still, the romance of space-bound dogfights is not lost in our collective imaginations. From Star Wars to the reimagined Battlestar Galactica, fighter pilots have fought alongside immense capitol ships in ways that game developers continue to try to capture. SOL: Exodus is a noble but failed attempt at grabbing the throttle, launching into space, and adding a few more kills to the side of your ship.

SOL: Exodus is a bare-bones space shooter that adds little more than a game of Asteroids. The player pilots a single fighter with the basic guns/missiles load-out, plus a blast that overheats the main guns, but fires a powerful shot. Beyond a few basic upgrades to damage, armor, and speed, what you see is what you get. The options for each battle are very limited, often resulting in chasing fighters around in circles while conserving missile use.

Each mission is cut directly from the last -- the resistant Earth military versus the terribly flat, uninteresting religious fanatics who also seem to have amassed an enormous fleet of capital ships and enumerable, and expendable, fighters. Each fighter is piloted by an angry zealot that sounds like a cartoon super-villain; it's a lost opportunity to develop interesting antagonists in the heat of battle.

Mission objectives are rarely more imaginative than eliminating the enemy force, altered only by the manner in which you do so. Small mini-games are added for functions, such as hacking into the enemy ship's systems to disable their weapons or reveal weaknesses, but performing these functions while piloting through a dogfight is irritating while also begging a number of questions.

Why am I the only ship? There are times when other fighter(s) are present, but why wouldn't this occur in every battle? Are they on a union break? Being the only ship in the field makes the player feel like a nanny rushing around handling every little situation that comes up. Failure is normally a result of not being able to do everything fast enough.

Why is the pilot of a single fighter performing complex computer hacking? Why isn't someone on the capitol ship doing that? Don't they have computers?

Flight is confusing, which doesn't help in poorly laid out levels. You are given a radar, but a 2-dimensional radar is of little help in a full 3-dimensional space simulator. Tilt up or down too far and the radar swings the enemy behind you, forcing you to use that tendency as a make-shift y-axis indicator.

Given that SOL: Exodus is an independent title, there is a lot of leeway, but Seamless Entertainment didn't make the most of the freedom of being an indy developer. Rather than take the gamble for innovation, they played it safe. Very, very safe.

What Seamless Entertainment has in ambition, they lack in polish and gameplay. SOL: Exodus fails to achieve a shade of what Digital Anvil's Freelancer did nine years ago. While only five dollars less than Freelancer's current value, its still not a better deal.

Haunt Review

When it comes to Xbox Live Arcade, the support for the Kinect is a little dense at the moment.  Granted, the market did just pick up like last year, and only one game – Fruit Ninja Kinect – has really stepped up as a must-have.  But give credit where credit is due, developers are trying to come up with innovative stuff that’s worth owning.  And with that, we present a game that fits in that category – Haunt.

Now, the game is poorly advertised – the title card and description don’t really give you too much of an idea what to expect – and there aren’t too many reviews making the rounds at the moment.  But those of you with younger gamers who love their Scooby-Doo reruns, or simply seeking out something fundamentally off-beat in their gaming, will love what Haunt brings to the picture.

In the game, you play a poor schlub who finds himself trapped in a haunted house.  How you got there is beyond us, but in order to get out, you’ll need to aid this guy named Benjamin Muldoon, or Benjy for short.  He’s been trapped a spectral world, even though he isn’t quite dead, and the only way he can communicate with you is through a series of paintings.  Your job is to track down the four “phantaflasks” that will help free him.  Again, you’re going into it knowing very little, but part of the fun is figuring things out, right?

Haunt was a collaborative development effort between Zoe Mode and Masaya Matsuura, a familiar name if you’ve played the Parappa the Rapper games.  And like those, this is an interactive exercise that younger players will appreciate, though those in the mood for a goofy mystery/adventure should get into it too.

The game works through Kinect controls, and has you searching through this big, bustling house, opening and closing doors and drawers (why do they need to be closed?) and taking alternate paths.  You’ll be using your arms quite a bit, and the game does a splendid job tracking real-time walking, which isn’t as annoying as you might think.  It’s merely in place, and you don’t even need to lift your feet off the floor too much.  Heaven forbid you'd be stuck doing a Monty Python silly walk.

Along with exploration, the game occasionally has you butting heads with ghosts in combat.  This is probably the weakest part of the game, as the Kinect recognition isn’t as smooth as it could be.  Granted, you won’t really feel mortified with a ghost killing you, but more accuracy would’ve been welcomed.

Haunt has a pretty good presentation for a downloadable game.  The house is fun to rummage through, whether you’re wandering upstairs or shining your flashlight around.  The lighting is dynamic, especially when a ghost appears on screen, his spectral Slimer-like apparition intact.  And some of those Muldoon paintings are rather funny…not anything you’d find in a museum, but funny nevertheless.

As for audio, this is the best part of the game.  Along with music and sound effects that really involve you, there’s the voice of Muldoon, which is provided by Double Fine’s own Tim Schafer.  And he really gets into his role, much like Stephen Merchant did with Wheatley back in Portal 2.  He nails it, and it leaves us wondering why he doesn’t provide audio input for more games.  Can you imagine him being an argumentative bot in Portal 2 DLC?  We could.

Zen Pinball 3D Review

Zen Studios has been mastering the pinball game for quite a few years now, between its continuous table releases for both Pinball FX on Xbox Live and Zen Pinball on PlayStation Network.  It’s really starting to branch out to a wider audience with the release of Zen Pinball on iOS and the game’s arrival on the Nintendo 3DS this past week.  Does the third dimension add something diverse to this game?  Or is it a distraction?

Well, like Crave’s Pinball Hall of Fame: The Williams Experience before it, Zen Pinball does get a slight boot from the addition of a third dimension, as it actually feels like you’re sitting in front of a real machine, seeing the ball coming down the lane so you can prepare for shots.  It can be slightly distracting if something bigger is happening on the table, like the gigantic robot moving its arms in Earth Defense, but the game comes with multiple view options, so you maintain control for the most part.  The only time we felt like we were losing track was when multiball was activated, and a default wide view was used.  Other than that, we experienced no problems from a technical standpoint.

Visually, Zen Pinball performs admirably.  The 3D layouts are fascinating, each with their own themes, skill shots and special areas to gain mega points.  And little markers come up to show you just what kind of point value you earned from each shot, without getting in the way of the action itself.  Some of these pinball table designs are pretty neat, too.  Excalibur definitely has a medieval flavor to it (even if the warrior won’t shut up about the might of the sword – yeah, we get it, buddy) and we dug the old-school sci-fi vibe of Earth Defense, as it reminded me about the classic Mars tables that Williams used to make in its pinball heyday.  Even if you turn the slider down to 2D, you’ll like the presentation this game is packing.

What’s more, the game is conveniently laid out across both screens.  You see the pinball action happening in 3D on the top screen, while the bottom displays both the LCD screen for that table (complete with classic light-ups and score display) and indications through the online leaderboards.  (More on that in a second.)  Kudos to Zen Studios for keeping it simple.

While the game doesn’t have the most in-depth leaderboards we’ve seen, it is quite competitive.  You’re given constant reminders about where you stand on a leaderboard, such as a point value that needs to be reached before you move up a place or how you’re faring against friends you’ve got registered.  While the pop-ups happen more frequently than expected, they are good reminders that keep you flipping for that high score.

Zen Pinball only comes with two modes.  You can jump right into a single player session for high score boasting, or jump into Hot Seat, where you play along with friends and pass the system around when it’s their turn.  Nothing major, but it works for party play, and keeps things competitive on a local scale.

The game comes with four tables, a decent value for $7.99, but the lack of any major licensed tables from, say, Marvel or other companies, is slightly disappointing.  There is some variety here, but we expected at least one of the major tables from Marvel Pinball to show up.  Don’t fret, though, as more are on the way via downloadable content over the next few months.  We’ll keep you posted.

NFL Blitz Review (Xbox Live Arcade, PlayStation Network)

Football games are way too damn serious these days.  Sure, they’re entertaining, but some players may not be prepared for the onslaught of statistics and simulation rules that both Madden NFL 12 and NCAA Football 12 bring.  So it’s nice to see EA Sports lighten up a bit and bring back a gridiron game that refuses to take itself seriously – NFL Blitz.

If the name sounds familiar, it’s because Midway originally released Blitz in the arcades back in the 90’s, including such over-the-top antics as players catching on fire and ridiculous hits that would send a normal person to the hospital.  As it did with NBA Jam: On Fire Edition, EA Sports retains most of the energy that made the original game click, while adding some new features that are sure to spark an interest in the football community, even though we’re in the playoffs.

Most of the features of the original Blitz remain intact for the remake.  Offensively, you’ve got to gain 30 yards within four downs to head downfield, eventually shooting for the end zone on run and pass plays.  Defensively, you’ll need to use your utter strength to stop the other team from gaining yards.  Do enough on either end and you’ll earn turbo energy.  Reach capacity and you’ll be “on fire”, with unlimited energy for a few seconds.

When it comes to gameplay, EA Sports keeps it simple, and it works so fundamentally well   The pass plays are solid, as your highlighted receiver automatically lights up so you can see if they’re surrounded or not, and the offensive moves during runs, like spins and shoves, are ideally inputted.  Defensively, the hits are excellent to pull off, as your guy goes diving across the field like a cougar pouncing on its prey.  The tackles are outstanding, as players are driven to the ground with a great deal of ferocity.  The only thing missing is the late hits, namely the leg drops and flying elbows that you could perform on a guy after you bring him down.  Apparently, the NFL can’t completely shake the idea of sportsmanship, despite the fact this is an arcade title.

Along with quick match-ups, both online and off, NFL Blitz also retains the cool code entry system before match-ups, so you can activate cool power-ups such as a chrome-colored ball or cosmetic changes to your players, including the return of the Big Head.  If you don’t know the codes, don’t worry; playing through Elite League gives you the chance to earn them through career match-ups, along with other bonuses, such as the Ultimate Team-like card packs and other goodies.  (Your progress is tracked through online leaderboards, so you can see how you’re doing compared to your buddies.  Great feature.)

If you’re in the mood to unlock NFL Blitz’s best bonuses, check out Blitz Gauntlet.  Here, you’ll face off three with three particular teams before facing a Boss Team, comprised of a fantasy style player, such as lions (no, we mean actual lions, not the Detroit Lions) and zombies.  Conquer them and you unlock the team for use in the game.  Though they don’t all have the best stats, some of these teams are worth checking out.  Ever see a zombie Tebow look-alike?

Visually, NFL Blitz maintains the status quo when it comes to rough-and-tumble football.  Though it’s hard to tell one authentic stadium from another (they mostly look the same), the animations are fantastic, with players flying everywhere and celebrating after intercepting or scoring in the end zone.  The menus are clean and easy to navigate, and old-school players will recognize some of their favorite plays from the original game, including the all-too-easy-to-use Da Bomb.

As for the audio, the music leaves a slight bit to be desired, though it is tuned to what worked with the original Blitz, so we don’t mind it too much.  The sound effects are fun, with lots of “thuds” and “oofs” to make the aura of arcade football come to life.  Last but not least, Tim Kitzrow deserves praise for returning to the commentator’s booth, providing upbeat feedback as you play through your match alongside an equally enjoyable cohort.

VVVVVV Review (Nintendo 3DS)

Many of you may not remember it because it was dominating back when video games were just picking up steam, but nothing beats the old-school days of the Commodore 64.  Playing retro-looking games while establishing ideal gameplay skills and spending hours finding secrets never got old.  Hell, there were some instances we actually preferred it over the Atari 2600.  But those days are over.  Still, some developers remember those days just as fondly as we do – including the lunatics behind VVVVVV.

Originally released back in 2010 for PC and Mac, this platformer has made a successful transition to the 3DS shop, available for a somewhat reasonable price of $7.99.  If you’ve been waiting for a solid downloadable title, or just something to kill time with until the next great game arrives, this is definitely the one to go with.

In the game, you control Captain Viridian, a simple looking dude who finds his ship on a collision course with some strange teleport.  He barely escapes with his life, but his crew members aren’t so lucky, as they’re scattered across a vast, trap-filled map.  The Captain takes it upon himself to rescue them, though he’s got no weapons to speak of, nor can he bop enemies on the head Mario-style.  The only ability he is able to use is a temporary switch in gravity.  With a tap of a button, he can go from walking on the floor to the ceiling, and back again.

When you first start VVVVVV, it’s simple enough, so you get an idea of how the gameplay works.  It’s easy to get into, but after a few stages, you’ll realize how vitally important precision is.  Hitting a spiked floor with even the slightest touch by the Captain’s foot kills him, so you have to be perfect in some areas.  (Luckily, the game comes with unlimited lives, so you can keep trying without severe punishment.)

As you proceed through the map and find crew members, you’ll find bigger and badder challenges awaiting, including randomly moving enemies that require timing to get around and walls that automatically bounce you back, making movement even trickier than you could’ve expected.  As you proceed, you can also unlock bonus levels, which really test your abilities to an even greater effect.  We love it.

Yeah, it’s tough, but you’ll find satisfaction when you finally beat a challenge, only to come upon another one that pushes you to think even further.  Kudos to the developers for throwing in sparingly helpful checkpoints, so that you don’t have to start all the way back at the beginning.  We hate when a game does that.

While VVVVVV isn’t the kind of game that takes advantage of the 3D layout (it’s about as effective as, say, Kirby’s Adventure, with cosmetic touches), it does look great when it comes to recreating the Commodore 64 vibe.  Characters are simply designed, but smile-inducing, especially the captain, who boasts a stupid grin throughout most of the game – unless when he’s dying, of course.  Then it’s all frowny.  The level design is diabolical and tricky, but that just adds to the fun.