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Multiplayer Game Reviews
September 3, 2010
 Land sharks? Oh great. And I thought the underwater sharks were bad enough. Time Decay is, well, interesting… In this space shooter, you take control of a UFO from Saturn. Apparently, zombie animals are being created for war, and your mission is to destroy them. Bunnies, sheep, bats, and land sharks (“air sharks” would probably have been a better term for them, since they fly) are among the zombified creatures you’ll be up against. And if you can rescue the friendly animals inside of these man-made monstrosities, that’s a bonus. To help you, there is a time decay drive on your ship. This handy gadget will slow down time so you can dodge bullets with ease. But be careful. Some animals aren’t able to move very well in real time, but Time Slow makes them go absolutely wild.
There are two bars you’ll have to keep your eyes on. The health bar (which is pretty self-explanatory) and the time decay bar, which drains when you are in Time Slow. When your health drops below a certain point, Time Slow is activated automatically, which will keep you alive a little longer when things get especially crazy. Both of these bars recharge with time, so if you get close to running out, jut find a place to hide and wait for your bars to refill.
The controls are very simple. WASD are your directional buttons; aim and shoot with the mouse. Hit the spacebar to toggle time slow on and off. It can’t get much easier than that. That makes Time Decay a great game to just hop right into without having to spend a bunch of time learning how everything works. And if these controls are still too difficult to figure out, there are sentences scattered through each levels that will explain everything. Oh yeah, and they’ll also brag about how much better Saturn is than pretty much every other planet. (Apparently, this zombie madness would never have happened on Saturn. They have laws against this sort of thing.)
One of the greatest things about this game is the music. It has a phenomenal ambient electronic soundtrack, which is made even cooler when you flip on your time decay drive and the music slows down too.
Time Decay is a very entertaining and fairly challenging space shooter with an A+ soundtrack. So get out there and fry some zombie sheep. You’ll be glad you did.
 Of course, this would never happen on Saturn. Game: Time Decay | Developer: TacticalZeppelin
September 1, 2010
 Glowing trails behind Tekeshi's eyes, somewhat realistic rope physics, and vintage pixel-art backgrounds add to the intrigue of Final Ninja. Final Ninja is an action Flash game in which you take control of Takeshi, the Final Ninja.
When the story begins, Takeshi has been in hiding for ten years after he has forsaken his life as a Ninja. His old master, Akuma, has been hunting him down this entire time, and has finally found him. Takeshi realizes it’s time to put the suit back on and get himself some sweet ninja action while ending Akuma’s reign of Ninja Master terror.
 The classic wall hop has been a staple of action games since the early days. Final Ninja looks and feels like a vintage game from the Sega Genesis era. While this may be a complaint for some people, I personally love it. I see it as a throwback to the era in which I first started gaming. Games were simply fun back then. Paper-thin plots and awkward graphics didn’t matter so much as the carefully crafted gameplay.
Controlling Takeshi is pretty simple. It follows the WASD button scheme (you can also use the arrow keys) and mouse click will cause the protagonist to toss throwing stars. Holding down the left mouse button will fire a grappling hook and rope. Like in the Prince of Persia games, you can cling to walls and launch yourself in the other direction, making scaling steep surfaces a breeze. The only real complaint I have with this setup is that using the mouse to fire the grappling hook feels a bit more awkward at times than it should.
This was a game in which I found myself impressed by some of the smaller details. One of the first things I tested for was to see how the rope works. When you hit the edge of a cliff, the rope acts exactly as it should, partially wrapping around the obstruction and causing the circumference of Takeshi’s trajectory to decrease. While this is a minor detail, it made me happy to see that the developers didn’t take an easier route by not fine-tuning these rope physics.
Another thing that impressed me was the glowing trail that always lingers behind Takeshi’s eyes. This is completely unnecessary, but it looks really cool.
While Final Ninja may not be a breakthrough in gaming, or even incredibly unique, it fills a niche that has unfortunately been left empty for over a decade. If you loved the Sega Genesis, you will thoroughly enjoy this fun little ninja game.
 Electricity is dangerous. Even the Final Ninja has respect for its power. Game: Final Ninja | Developer: Nitrome
August 30, 2010
 'Cause I'm freeeeeee... Free Fallin' If I had to pick only one word to describe Continuity, I’m pretty sure I would say “innovative.” This game is flat out amazing. It’s hands down one of the most creative puzzle games I have ever played. In fact, it is one of the only games I’ve given a full 5 stars to.
So what is this incredible game? It’s a puzzle-platformer crossover where you navigate through mazes. You must first gather every key in the maze, then make your way to the exit. But there’s a catch: each maze is broken up into sets of tiles, which must be moved around in order for your character to be able to move from one to the other. If the edges of the tiles don’t line up, you aren’t allowed to pass to the next one.
Essentially, there are two modes to Continuity. In one mode, you can slide the tiles around with the arrow keys but you can’t control the stick figure. In the other mode, you move the character with the arrow keys, but you can’t slide the tiles. To swap between modes, just hit the spacebar.
When the game begins, the puzzles are pretty simple, allowing players to get the feel for the game. But by the end, it gets insanely difficult. If you are the kind of person who gets headaches from thinking too hard, you probably will want to skip most of the second half of the game. And don’t even attempt the final maze. Yeah, it’s a real doozie. But personally, I like my puzzlers extra difficult, and Continuity kept me on my feet.
The music is great. No, better than great. The music is perfect. There are two songs during the actual gameplay: when you are sliding tiles, the music is eerie and “puzzle-ish” with its reverb and its bells, to put you in a contemplative mood; when you are running and jumping, there is a frantic melody that gives you a real sense of urgency. Every time you hit the spacebar to switch modes the music fades from one track to the other. Yeah, like I said, perfect.
Final words: Go play Continuity.
 Slide the tiles around to open new pathways. Game: Continuity | Developers: Elias Holmlid, Dmitri Kurteanu, Guy Lima, Jr., and Stefan Mikaelsson
August 24, 2010
 Get those birds away from that track! If you believe it’s impossible to make a game that is both incredibly addictive and so simple that it can be played using only a single button, then Epic Coaster is about to prove you wrong. Yes, you read that right, this game is 100% controlled by pushing one button. The spacebar. Press it to make a speeding roller coaster hop into the air. Now, I know that may not sound very cool, but I think you have to play this one to believe it.
Epic Coaster is a simple little thrill-ride that takes a good deal of skill and timing. You must hop the coaster over the gaps in the tracks to keep the thing moving and the passengers breathing. Your score will keep climbing as long as you keep the coaster moving. Once you crash, the game is over and you are shown your score. On top of time and distance you can score bonuses that are instantly added to your score. These are earned by scaring away birds, getting narrowly missed by low-flying airplanes, causing the tracks to sparkle, and a few other completely random ways. My personal favorite way to rack up points is the “perfect jump” bonus. In order to score this one, you must make your coaster land perfectly on the next set of track so that just the first car hits it. This can be pretty difficult sometimes, because the difference between a perfect jump and a horrible free-falling death is so tiny. If you miss the timing by a hair, you’ll send the coaster (and all its passengers) crashing into the pavement below.
 Look at that jump! That is why the word "Epic" is in the title of this game. In addition to the bonuses, players can unlock 80 different achievements. The more achievements you unlock, the higher your base score multiplier gets. So if you want to be a top scorer, you’ll need to unlock as many of these as you can.
You can view the achievement list between runs, but it doesn’t tell you how to earn them until they’re complete. But don’t worry, some of them are pretty obvious. And in case you need some hints, here are a few: earn “Stop It” by scaring away 50 birds, “Full Force” by jumping with maximum power, and “12345″ by landing 5 “perfect jumps” in a row.
If you log onto Armour Games, you can record your best score and compare it with others out there. You can also share your score on Facebook or Twitter and challenge your friends to do better.
Epic Coaster is an extremely simple game that will keep you hooked for much longer than you’d ever expect. So hop on and challenge your friends to a coaster duel right away!
 Racking up the bonuses in the middle of the night...
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Game: Epic Coaster | Developer: Knigg
August 19, 2010
 Explore the cave, kill baddies, and find treasure. The Enchanted Cave is an interesting little flash adventure in which players are given a quest to see how deep into the cave they can explore. The main goal is to see how far down you can get without dying, but each maze contains monsters to kill and treasure to plunder. While seeking out every treasure chest isn’t completely necessary, you’ll want to loot as many as you can since many of them contain items that are useful on your quest. Inside the red chests you’ll find armor upgrades, potions, spells, and a pair of escape wings that allow you to warp out of the cave and end your quest. (You can always start a new quest, keeping some of the things you’ve earned on previous quests.) Yellow chests are much rarer and contain artifacts. Artifacts are the real deal. You definitely won’t want to pass them up. While most of your items will vanish upon using the escape wings, artifacts will always remain. And some of them are pretty useful, like pieces of armor and new swords. Besides chests, there are gems that offer permanent boosts to your stats.
 Hmmm. This floor seems a tad bit easy. The treasure seems alright though. I sure hope this isn't a trap... On the first floor, and every floor that ends in a 9 (9, 19, 29, etc) there is a shop that will give you money for any items you don’t want and sell you things you’d rather have instead. And reaching a shop is sort of a checkpoint: every time you discover a new shop, the floor on which you start your next quest gets deeper. For example, if you make it to the store on the 29th floor, the next time you start a quest you’ll begin on the 19th floor. If you make it to the 39th floor, you can start at the 29th. And so on. This is pretty helpful, since The Enchanted Cave gets very perilous very fast. In fact, on your first quest you probably won’t make it to the 20th floor.
This game has 100 floors, many of which are challenging enough to frustrate even the most hardcore gamers. That makes this a game that will take a considerable amount of time to get through. Basically, The Enchanted Cave is a lot of game for free. You can’t really beat that.
 Which way to go? Should I try to get all the treasure, or should I just skip it and head for the next floor?
Game: The Enchanted Cave | Developer: Dustin Auxier
August 17, 2010
 Oh, how I love blasting zombies! I don’t know what it is, exactly, but there is something about zombies that has always intrigued me. So when I saw Zombies Took my Daughter! on the main page of the Kongregate site, I had to try it out. This cartoonish Flash shooter tells the story of a man who has lost his daughter, Anna, in the city. Whilst searching for her, he runs into a few tiny snafus. Like the fact that the city is completely overrun by zombies. And that it is scheduled to be nuked in 36 hours. The hero must scour the city in order to find Anna before the zombies do, or before the bomb is dropped. This gives players a sense of urgency, as the time remaining is constantly displayed in the corner of the screen.
You are basically given free range of a city that is randomly generated every time you play. There is a main map with 25 locations on it. You can use the subway to get around, but be warned that every time you do, you lose an hour or two. Every location has 5 city blocks that can be searched, and most of these contain at least two rooms that can be searched. That means there are almost 250 rooms in which Anna could be hiding. But don’t fret. Some of the rooms have clues as to where Anna has not been, most of them have powerups and weapons, and a few of them contain survivors who will lend you a hand by blasting some zombies for you.
 Taylor and Brunner don't look like dudes who would survive very long during the Zombie Apocalypse, but who am I to judge? The weapons in this game range from incredibly useful (shotguns, molotov cocktails, and RPG launchers for the more pragmatic gamer) to the extremely bizarre (teddy bears, guitars, french loaves, and a slew of random items that you can use to bludgeon zombies to death). Unfortunately, there are no cricket bats, which would have been an awesome homage to one of my all-time favorite films. (Shaun of the Dead, in case you haven’t seen it.)
The graphics are cartoony and colorful, the music is eerie, and the gameplay is a perfect blend between mysterious (while you work at piecing together clues you find around the city) and action-packed (while you are running for your life and slaughtering zombies). However, I do have one complaint. There is a bug that allows the entire city to be searched without Anna showing up. The developer made this claim: ‘The notorious “100% and no daughter” bug has been FIXED (really, finally, at long last, 100% fixed. it will never trouble you again.)’ I played the game after this statement was released and still encountered the bug on my second time through. (On my first run, I ran out of time and was nuked along with the city.) But at least the developer is willing to attempt to fix the issues that are brought up during gameplay, which is pretty cool. Many larger game developers don’t care about their products this much. And I was able to find Anna on my third attempt, which proves this bug doesn’t always happen.
Zombies Took my Daughter! is a great way to spend some time, and the fact that the city is randomly generated boosts its replay value immensely. If the “The notorious “100% and no daughter” bug gets fixed permanently, (and I’m fairly confident it will be soon) this will be an incredible game.
 Work your way across the map, searching every nook and cranny. Your daughter has to be somewhere... Game: Zombies Took my Daughter! | Developer: Nerdook
August 14, 2010
 Crazy Wizard in Creepy Castle is a throwback to some of the first video games we played. It’s a 2D plat former in which you play a gnarly old wizard who has been all but forced to check out this old castle of dark magic. It’s a simple game with cute images and a classic opening. There is a certain amount of humor involved but I don’t think it was added intentionally. Instead you deal heavily with the prospect of jumping over flames that magically attack you, bats, and pikes that fall from the ceiling to do you damage.
If you have never actually played one of these games the movement may be a little daunting at first. The character you control doesn’t actually walk, he more slides around and the slidin g effect can completely mess up the timing of your jumps and dodges if you’re not expecting them.
My favorite thing about this game has got to be the music. It was a great fit to the way the game itself was playing out and ultimately it’s what kept me going when I was considering giving up. Myself, not being someone who actually played more than one of these games when she was little, had a tough time with a lot of the movement and game play. Of course, this means I called in my ever present husband in order to ensure that you guys got a well rounded review.
My husband had to take a moment to adjust himself to the “old ways.” After a few…I want to say hard won hours, but honestly, it was less than ten seconds… After that embarrassingly short amount of time he was all set. It took him about that much time to not only get where I was but surpass me as well, which is always fun to watch. During his game he made mention to the fact that the game wasn’t the best he had played but at the same time and under the same consideration, it was not the worst either. He thought it was a good game for what he expected. He also noted that it’s a straight forward, easy game to follow. If you ever don’t know which way to go you can pretty much just go straight and find your goal with little difficulty.
Everything considered, I would really suggest this game not only to people who played these games in the past but ones who didn’t as well. It’s a great one to slip into the genre with: fun, simple, and oddly charming.
Game: Crazy Wizard in Creepy Castle | Developer: LPS Inc
August 12, 2010
 Run, Turnip, run! Action Turnip!!! (yes, the exclamation points are necessary) is a flash game that has you take control of a turnip and do stuff. Not a whole bunch of stuff, really, just run and shoot. Or both. It depends on which mode you decide to play. In Run ‘n’ Gun Mode, you must shoot things as you run. Turnip is constantly running no matter what you do, so you just have to use the directional keys or the WASD keys to move him around on the screen. Spacebar will make him jump and left click on the mouse will make him shoot. Simple, right?
There are sweet powerups that give you different abilities, or else they’ll just distract you. It’s a mixed bag, really. Some will change the screen to a different color, and some will give you boosts so you can use a rocket burst of flame to make Turnip jump higher. And if you score a combo by shooting enough enemies in a row, you’ll be rewarded with a change of scenery.
The other mode, Turnabalt Mode, just has you see how far you can run without falling off something. Just like in Run ‘n’ Gun Mode, Turnip keeps on running. You click either space bar or left mouse button to make him jump. If you fall off a cliff the round is over and you are given a score. In both modes, the ultimate goal is to score as many points as you possibly can.
Now, this sounds like a really lame game. I know. But the funny thing is that it’s not. It’s actually pretty addictive. You’ll be surprised at how long you spend trying to beat your own top score. The visuals are quaint and hand-drawn, which makes the game simply fun to look at. And the music is awesome! There is a retro-style 8-bit track that plays in a loop. It’s extremely repetitive, but extremely catchy. In fact, you’ll probably have it stuck in your head for hours at a time.
Action Turnip!!! is the perfect blend of simplicity, weirdness and good music. It’s truly stripped down to the basic elements of classic gaming.
 You get this sparkly rainbow mode by scoring a sweet huge combo. Game: Action Turnip!!! | Developer: Raitendo
August 2, 2010
 When pinball was a big thing in the town that I lived in I could never force myself to get into it. Don’t get me wrong, I have always been aware of the kind of excited energy that surrounds the game, I just couldn’t understand it. It’s a very easy concept, you have two buttons and you watch a ball. Still, when you play, you can easily forget that you only have two buttons and everyday gravity is doing most of the work. It is fun, if not a little simplistic.
Even realizing this I could never wrap my head around why my little brother and his friends would spend huge amounts of time, energy, and money battling with those old stand up machines. It wasn’t until I was sitting on facebook with nothing to do that I started playing this game and realized how amazing pinball could really be. It is one of those seemingly easy games that can surprise you with its complexity.
Now, I usually like to start on what I thought of the visuals, and this game has been done beautifully. Its clarity makes you feel like you are actually looking down at the top of one of these machines from the comfort of your own home. The mechanics are also really smooth and easy to learn (only three buttons, as you would expect), and they flow beautifully. There is none of that lag between you pushing your button and the screen registering it. It is a highly responsive game.
 Just like with physical versions of pinball there is some skill required here as well. The company who made this really took the time to ensure that gravity is very much a factor while you play. That being said, “flapping,” that is, simply mashing the two pegs wildly, assuming you’ll be able to prevent the ball from falling in, is not going to work. There is a certain finesse required to get the most out of your time and the game.
Sony also took the time to bring out that group element I talked about earlier, where my little brother’s friends would huddle around the machine for hours, by connecting it to Facebook and giving it that perfectly suited social medium. I would say that this is a game that anyone can appreciate. It’s fun, simple, exciting, visually pleasing and you even have the option of playing against the scores of your friends for the more competitive amongst us. Their profile photos even show up in the game as well.
All in all, it is beautifully done, masterfully programmed, and easy to find and play. There is really no reason not to play it. It is equally great for when you only have a few minutes to waste and for when you have a few hours to kill. So try it out!
Game: Emusicon Pinball | Developer: Sony
July 25, 2010
 Fluttabyes (pronounced “butterflies” but with a “Fl”) is one of those games you unwind with. Family casual, it’s cute, brightly colored, and couples with the kind of music you expect to hear at the end of a Noggin show. It’s a pairing game which allows you to “free” butterflies by basically making families of more than four. Now, with bejeweled and the various bubble copies of bejeweled you either play with a sliding action in which you are given a block of items and forced to pair them up by switching pairs about or clicking on pairs as they appear. In fluttabyes you replace one butterfly with another (and the occasional ladybug) in order to make these sets; which, in my opinion, makes the game much, much easier but also takes out some of the challenge. The game doesn’t have a win, lose, or draw feeling to it, instead it’s more…you always win; it’s just how much you win that is the question.
Now, I’m never going to label games “kid games.” The reason being is that I frequently run across games that are marketed towards children that are actually interesting and challenging enough to hold the attention of an adult. Goddess knows how long I spent on that darn Hello Kitty Adventure game trying to find all the strawberries for my stupid shortcake. This game sort of falls into that category. I’m not entirely sure who they made the game for, but it’s found this wonderful niche that I feel is neglected: games for adult children. As it is, I did end up buying this game from my niece. She’s all of eleven and while I like to pretend that as an adult I am far superior in my gaming capabilities, saying so would be a lie. She and I paired up and each did a set and for whatever reason, be it because she’s an evil genius, or she somehow cheated (I’m going with evil genius), she kicked my butt here. So, yes, it’s a little bit dinky for adults but there’s still a certain amount of strategy and quickness that is required to beat and continue to beat your personal bests repeatedly.
All in all, I would definitely put this game on the list of things you should try if you’re just looking to relax and have a good time. It’s not very challenging but you can sit down, play a few rounds, and feel as if you accomplished something, albeit somewhat minor. It’s still time well spent. Fun for the whole family.
Game: Flutterbyes | Developer: Red Chain
July 22, 2010
Now, just reading the synopsis for Beat Hazard had me psyched. I really love games that take something from the player, and incorporate it into the mechanics. It shows that the developers and the people who came up with the idea in the first place really care about the people who spend time on their game. Yes, I’m all about the personalization.
Beat Hazard is an arcade style shooter game. As the player you control the flow of the enemies and your own ship depending on which kind and style of music you decide to play while playing. So, if you want a nice, mellow atmosphere while you shoot down enemy crafts you’d plug in something with a slow wind. I’d suggest Norah Jones. If you’re pumped up and ready to roar at your screen like a banshee you’d probably like something a little faster, with drums and a screaming singer you don’t really understand. I used Avenge Sevenfold.
Which brings me to my next observation: maybe it’s not as important for the majority of gamers out there, but Beat Hazard’s makers were kind enough to put a huge strobe warning at the beginning of their game. As someone who plays with the disability of missing out on a lot of games for those exact problems I was really touched by the fact that they were so considerate as to give more warning than the tiny one on the back of the box they’re required to put on all games.
At any rate, the game is visually impressive. The graphics run smoothly and they’re aesthetically pleasing, which is always important…well, to me. The fact that the game uses your music to decide the rhythm of the game is relaxing, even when you are playing a song that is faster. It’s the anticipation. You know what’s coming; you know which parts of the game are going to be super intense and which you can relax on. So, in that aspect I have to say that as much action as there is in this game I’d also have to plug it under casual because it can be damn relaxing. This game is highly recommended.
Game: Cold Beam Games | Developer: Beat Hazard
July 21, 2010
 Here we see a truck smashing through some buildings. Destructo Truck
Do you like smashing things and driving a truck? Do you like that one type of level from that game where normally you race around the city, but in this one level you have to cause as much destruction as possible? Well then this game may be for you. Because this is basically a 2-D version of that level.
Gameplay
Gameplay is very, very simple. Your truck starts at the top of a ramp. You have countdown lights and it is your job to press the go button when the line hits the green lights. Then your truck zooms down the ramp. If you have a rocket, you can also fire these at this point. That, really, is the extent to which you play the game.
Your truck zooms down the ramp, gets launched into oblivion, and then starts smashing into houses, propane tanks and barns. It gets ugly. There are bugs and detritus flying everywhere. Luckily for you, though, you get money for smashing all of those things. Money which you can use to upgrade your truck so you can smash things even better.
 Here we see a truck going down the ramp. Good for you truck. Technical
I screwed up my first two launches because the game skipped right when it was time for me to press the go button at launch time. So, that kind of sucked. But other than that, the game is very well put together. I am a dude, so I may be predisposed to liking things that explode. Seriously, I knew I was going to like it even when I read the title.
One thing that kind of bugs me is that you have to wait until the end of the run to find out how much damage you have caused. Yeah, that’s something you really shouldn’t complain about, but at the very least they give you the option to just skip over it all and find out the final tally.
Final Verdict
Fun Game. I like to launch the truck, and then do some work, only to alt-tab back to the Destructo Truck screen to find out how many buildings I smooshed. Neat graphics, they make excellent use of scale. And the physics, as far as trucks bouncing off of houses goes, was pretty straightforward.
Game: Destructo Truck | Developer: Mochi Media
July 20, 2010
 Want my last gem? How about a flame jet to the face instead? Yeah, that's what I thought... If you’ve ever played one of those games where the “good guys” sneak into the lair of the “bad guys” and steal their stuff, you may have wondered about the moral implications of this. I mean, just because they are orcs and demons, does that really give you the right to march in and take their treasure? Sure, they’ve probably burned down your villages, slaughtered your cattle, and eaten the souls of your fellow townsmen, but hey, it’s stealing for crying out loud! Don’t be such a jerk.
 The control panel is simple. Just click on a structure to build it, or a spell to cast it. Cursed Treasure: Don’t Steal My Gems! is a tower defense game that allies you with orcs, demons, and the undead. Waves of heroes will “Leroy Jenkins” towards your secret stash in order to steal your gems, undoubtedly on some selfish quest to level up and gain money to buy epic weapons which will later be used to conquer you. So you may as well stop these bastards right away, before they have a chance to get too powerful.
The game is very easy to play. Just click on the structure that you want to build, then click the spot where you’d like to build it. However, there is a catch: orcish dens can only be built on forest tiles, crypts of the undead can only be built on snow tiles, and demon temples can only be built on rocky tiles. Also, if there are trees on a tile, you’ll have to use your deforestation spell before you can build anything there.
Once you get your initial structures built, waves of heroes will start pouring in. As your buildings attack these heroes, they gain levels and can be upgraded. Oftentimes, the difference between winning and losing is knowing where to build and when to upgrade.
You also have magic at your disposal. Use it to chop down trees, give your buildings a frenzied boost, or hurl meteors from the sky. Be careful though, every spell costs mana, and you will run out of mana very quickly if you keep on button mashing.
If you manage to complete a level without a single hero so much as touching one of your gems, you will earn a “Brilliant” rating for that level. This can be pretty tough on a lot of levels though, so you may end up playing the same levels over and over in order to accomplish this.
Cursed Treasure: Don’t Touch My Gems! is addictive, and its fifteen levels are enough to keep you playing this one for quite a while.
 The spaces with flags on them are high points. Build here to increase the attack range of your buildings. Game: Cursed Treasure: Don’t Touch My Gems! | Developer: IriySoft
July 15, 2010
 Flamethrower! Time to BBQ some bad guy. The Final Death Wish tells the story of a cartoon character, simply named HERO, who is sent on a mission by his creator. The artist who drew him (Called the ANIMATOR) lost his special paint brush, the one with which he drew HERO and a whole slew of bad guys. HERO must fight through all of these baddies and break into the Generic Fortress of Clicheness, where the brush is hidden. The good news is that before the brush was stolen, the ANIMATOR had drawn an arsenal of weapons that HERO can use on his quest: everything from chainsaws to shotguns to lasers. There is even a flamethrower, if you’re into that sort of thing (I’m more of a shotgun man myself). The bad news is that the ANIMATOR is a complete jerk. Talking with him will always result in a mix of snide cynicism, sarcasm, and sometimes he’ll even reveal his sadistic glee at watching HERO go through hell to get the brush back.
 4 8 15 16 23 42 - Lost references are always good. As you progress through the game, you will earn gold for killing baddies. You can use this gold to purchase new guns, armor, and gadgets that will help you progress through the game. On top of gold, you’ll also earn experience for HERO and for whichever weapon you are using at the time. When HERO levels up, you get to pick a new perk, like meteors that fall from the sky to kill baddies, higher ammo count for your weapon, more health, a double-jump skill, and way too much other stuff to list. When your weapon levels up, you’ll get a preselected reward, usually more ammo and more damage to baddies. And these aren’t the only ways to earn special perks. Every level has a bonus challenge (beat the level in 20 seconds, beat the level without jumping, kill all enemies with a certain weapon, etc.) which gives you extra gold, and sometimes it even ups your stats.
Oh yeah. Slow motion. Can’t forget about that. If you press the F key, you will enter slow motion mode where, like Neo from the Matrix films, you can dodge bullets with ease. You have a focus bar on the lower right side of your screen, and this shows you how much slo-mo time you have left.
 Watch out for those little tanks. They hurt. The Final Death Wish is a fast-paced shooter with a very nice selection of weaponry, and tons of violence. If you like shooting things, and you can deal with the ANIMATOR’s constant insults, this is definitely a game for you.
Game: The Final Death Wish | Developer: Arkuni
July 14, 2010
 I think I’ll open by simply saying that I ended up buying Echoes. It was beautifully done, a game that was at once fun and aesthetically pleasing as well as engaging. I loved the music as well as the way everything looked. The transition pages (the pages while the game loads) were decorated with charming ads of the other games made by this company.
Echoes is a game that I guess is kind of like Pac man. You run around set paths and find gems while other things walk around. If you end up running into or touching any of these other things you lose life. The strategy of the game comes from the fact that the “things” in this case are actually echoes of where you stepped before. They follow your paths and move like you do. In this way the game is also a lot like the old game Snake.
Echoes is wonderfully addictive. It’s the kind of game that you can play for hours without ever getting bored. The concept that it represents (dodging enemies and gathering gems) would get old quickly but for the inventive efforts of the creators. The game isn’t as straight forward as you would first think. Instead you are given different power ups and the game zones themselves are changed so that you are always learning new ways to meet your goals.
Once you purchase the games you unlock all the features you would expect from a arcade type game.  You can gather trophies as well as play against your friends. The scores are kept not only based on how quickly you get through the mazes and gather all the gems in order to complete the levels. There are also challenges you can complete. The more time you spend playing the game the more trophies you are bound to gather.
All in all, Echoes was wonderful. It’s easy to learn and fun for the entire family. Even when it’s difficult to get to the next level you’ll find yourself having a great time. You won’t spend too much time raging (though I don’t want you to get the wrong idea: the game is appropriately hard), and you might just forget to be angry when you’re having so much fun.
Game: Echoes | Developer: Half Brick
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