In Memoriam - Ophidian Wars

(week of March 21st, 2010) Pretty strong week this past week - it's worth having a look at the recent releases. But here's two that I enjoyed the most: Avatar Bumper Cars (80 MP) Sometimes it can get annoying when a trend starts to peak and the bandwagon starts to get full. Yes I am talking about Avatar games - that's me, Debbie Downer. Avatar games seem to have natural appeal to those who value their avatars and like the big-headed cartoony look, so we've seen a flurry of them come out lately. And I get it, I do. One other common theme is that the gameplay in avatar games is almost always very very basic. The avatar becomes the hook (and succulent bait), and the graphics, and then it's a matter of picking a simple theme and gameplay mechanic. So when an Avatar game works for me, it's usually because the simple gameplay mechanic is well-executed and enjoyable. Breaking through the opening unintentional negativity, the reason I chose Avatar Bumper Cars this...

( week of March 14th 2010) Here's my picks of the week. Ninja Chop Review (240 MP) Oh where to begin. Fine, sue me - I am giving this a shout out partially (just partially!) because it involves a busty female cartoon protagonist karate chopping milk bottles. It's entirely gratuitous and a little bit genius - come on, you know it. I experienced 15-20 minutes of good fun here, often because I couldn't believe what I was seeing and was laughing my ass off. You play as the aforementioned busty Asian karate student and the goal of the game is to chop as many milk bottles (up to five) as you can in one swipe. Successful strikes cause the milk bottles to shower your character with "milk" and gain experience, which allows you to change into new unlockable clean outfits. Well, that is until you inevitably shower yourself with more milk ("oh jeez, more milk on my blouse?"). Ninja Chop does have some other things going for it. Visually it's quite pleasing wit...

Format change! As many people know, the sheer volume of XBLIGs is massive and unending. It's like a clown car. Well sometimes clowns are not funny, or flat out scary, or want to eat your face and that's why I'm here. I want to hook you up with the funny clowns and keep you away from rotten snaggle-toothed clowns that appear by your beside in the middle of the night wanting to "juggle" (massage apps). I can't play with all of the clowns, nor do I want to, but I can use my level head to navigate the clown army for you. Long story short, each week I am awarding two games (new releases from that week) the "Try It Or Die" award. The award will go to two games that I think you need to try because they are standout titles - cream of the weekly crop. (week of March 7th 2010) Mega Monster Mania Review (80MP) I nearly overlooked this one because like some of you I judge a book by it's box art (cover) and am not the most patient soul on the planet. Thankfu...