Pads & Panels

Title: Shank 2

Platform: 360, PS3, PC

ESRB: M

Publisher: Electronic Arts

Developer: Klei Entertainment

Rating:

Review By: Eric Stuckart

Klei Entertainment’s Shank was one of the my favorite downloadable titles of 2010, not necessarily because it was one of the best games out on the market, but because it managed to do so many things right. It was stylish, looked great, played great, and despite having more than a couple of unfair difficulty spikes that came out of left field, was very, very fun.

When I heard about Shank 2’s imminent release, I was curious as to how they would improve on the formula. The sequel is a bit of a bittersweet success, because while many of the changes made were done to make the gameplay even smoother than it was last time around, it feels like it ends up coming short in other ways. It’s not enough to throw the whole game off, but there’s still a few coulda, woulda, shoulda moments that popped up in my head while playing it. (more…)

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Heavy Rain Director’s Cut makes a lot out of a little

By Bill Jones

It’s no secret that I love Heavy Rain. (Read the Pads & Panels review here.) I found it to be one of the most innovative games of the last decade, and it earned a prominent spot among our Best Games of 2010. But did it really deserve a “Director’s Cut,” as Sony Computer Entertainment recently gave it? Well, I ask – What else does it offer that the original did not already? Sony’s answer is as follows…

In addition to the original game, the Heavy Rain: Director’s Cut comprises Heavy Rain Chronicles: Episode 1 – The Taxidermist DLC, the Heavy Rain Original Videogame Score, new front-end menu and interface with built-in Move support, a series of eight “making of” bonus videos, three dynamic themes, 15 additional pieces of concept art and two bonus trailers. Let’s break this down. (more…)

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PlayStation Vita First Impresions

By Archie Easter

With the PlayStation Vita’s Feb. 22 launch date soon approaching, a new contender is being readied in the collective battle for gamer’s pockets. I recently had a chance to go hands on with Sony’s newest portable at a PlayStation Blog Social Club event hosted in Chicago, and one thing was made immediately clear: The Vita is one serious piece of hardware. (more…)

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Title: Sonic Generations

Platform: 3DS (360, PS3, PC)

ESRB: E

Publisher: Sega

Developer: Team Sonic, CriWare

Rating:

Review by: Bill Jones

After so many failed attempts to bring Sonic back to his 16-bit prominence, it feels good to be able to write that Team Sonic has finally created a Sonic game worth caring about again, a Sonic game that boils things down to what we used to love so much about the series, a Sonic that we actually enjoy racing left to right across the screen, a Sonic that successfully spans generations and make us love that blue hedgehog again. (more…)

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Game of the Year

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (360, PS3, PC)

Publisher: Bethesda Softworks – Developer: Bethesda Game Studios

The fifth game in the now well-established Elder Scrolls series, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim is a game that simply must be experienced. No other game released this year shares such a massive scope or breadth of gameplay. After an impressive initial sequence, players are drawn into a world that has a life all its own and in which the threat of savage dragon attacks looms against a backdrop of a bloody civil war.

Although players will find numerous quests available to them, it is oftentimes the random encounters in the game that are most memorable. Each is full of unique moments that will make for interesting discussions among fellow gamers, and this is truly one of Skyrim’s biggest strengths. The game succeeds in telling a compelling story but also gives the player just enough freedom to make each individual’s journey his or her own. Previous rough areas in the series, such as inventory management, have been given elegant solutions, while side quests are seamlessly interwoven in the main story. There are seemingly hundreds of places to explore. It all amounts in one of the best gaming experiences to be had. (more…)

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#2 Batman: Arkham City (PS3, 360, PC)

Publisher: Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment — Developer: Rocksteady Studios

Our Review

Batman Simulator 2.0 doesn’t disappoint, as it hits all the high spots gamers loved in Arkham Asylum and scatters them across an entire sandbox of a city to find. Rocksteady Studios is to be commended for continually getting what makes Batman fun. The double-edged sword here is – even though Arkham City is more robust than Asylum, gamers won’t get that stunning moment again where they realize that finally someone finally got a Batman game right. But the overall quality of the game is vastly improved, making it one of the year’s best. (more…)

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#3 Minecraft (PC, Droid, iOS)

Publisher/Developer: Mojang

After years in the making and developing a rabid fanbase, thanks to giving users who preordered the constantly evolving beta, Minecraft finally hit version 1.0 this year. The indie sensation gives gamers a randomly generated world to make their own. Dig up materials during the day and build a homestead and weapons to fight the monsters that show up at night, or hit up some of the dungeons and mine away for diamonds. Minecraft is whatever the player wants it to be. (more…)

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#4 L.A. Noire (PS3, 360, PC)

Publisher: Rockstar Games – Developer: Team Bondi, Rockstar Leeds

Our Review

Every year, Pads & Panels list of top games is dominated not only by quality titles but also by a special few that try their damndest to reinvent what we can expect from mainstream games. It’s no surprise that Rockstar Games has found itself perennially among those special few. This year’s offering from the publisher is L.A. Noire. In addition to a ridiculously detailed recreation of 1940s Los Angeles and a plot worthy of its name, L.A. Noire works to reinvent what we can expect from gaming by pioneering facial technology that allowed its creators to add in-depth, emotional interrogations to what might have otherwise been a simple third-person action title. The DLC support for the title cannot be ignored, but even without it, L.A. Noire would stand out as one of the year’s absolute best. (more…)

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#5 Portal 2 (PS3, 360, PC, Mac)

Publisher/Developer: Valve

Portal 2 trades the surprise of the first title for anticipation the second time around, but it manages to live up to the hype. While the plot may not be quite as a shocking, it is still funny as hell, with fantastic voice work driving things from start to finish. Portal 2 falters a little in the variety and quality of its single-player puzzles but adds a few new elements to keep things interesting. The real selling point for Portal 2, though, is its new co-op mode. Valve gives us the opportunity to prove that two minds are better than one in a series of much more complex puzzles that involve four portals, rather than two, and seek to drive apart our friendships in the process. (more…)

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#6 Saints Row: The Third (360, PS3, PC)

Publisher: THQ—Developer: Volition

The Saints Row series has long been the cartoonish alternative for gamers to the now serious and realistic Grand Theft Auto games. Every mistake GTA IV made, Saints Row: The Third fixes. Everything is over-the-top, from the missions to the weapons and the story. The level of polish elevates it from the previous games in the series. But the best part of Saint’s Row: The Third is jumping into co-op and sharing the chaos with a friend. (more…)

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