PixlBit

Lighting effects in a Mario game are still kind of weird to see.

Being the fourth entry in the series, prepending “New” to the title seems disingenuous. Despite tossing in a new power-up in the form of a flying squirrel suit, New Super Mario Bros. U is more of the same tried-and-true gameplay the series is known for. Don’t get me wrong, this is not a bad thing, but it’s hard not to feel some fatigue with the now familiar art style, level layout, and presentation. Despite this fatigue, there’s little question that New Super Mario Bros. U is the strongest title in the subseries and a fond callback to both Super Mario Bros. 3 and Super Mario World.

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The douche bag sim you never knew you wanted.

I never expected to become so enamored with a game where you inhabit the body of the hugest douche bag to ever visit the South Pacific, but it happened.  After suffering through a fairly irritating opening sequence, you eventually find that you are free to explore the Rook Islands at whatever pace you desire.  In some of my early self-paced explorations, I decided to stealthily capture an enemy outpost.  Hiding in the bushes and taking stock of what foes lay within the compound, I heard the loud roar of a tiger that charged into the outpost and slaughtered everyone inside while my knife and gun remained completely unused.  I conquered that outpost by letting the game’s systems collide and work in my favor.  These types of situations happen continuously in Far Cry 3 and whether they were to my benefit or demise, it’s always a blast to witness.  It’s these interacting systems that make Far Cry 3 a special experience that is worth playing, despite the grating narrative.

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Go on a visual, and personal journey with JD while he plays through...well, Journey!

In the post-mordem of a really tough semester, I decided to play Journey and reflect on the past few months as well as talk about my thoughts on gaming this year...and of course my opinions on Journey. Hope you enjoy!

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I present to you - the Matrix of Mediocrity

As a fan of the television series Transformers Prime, I have to admit that part of me enjoyed parts of this game that is clearly aimed for a much younger audience. Earlier this year, I got my Transformers fix with High Moon’s Fall of Cybertron, but I felt that Prime had an opportunity to do justice to a different part of Transformers lore. The universes are both part of Hasbro’s initiative to create continuity within the cannon and not only that, but a dark and grittier tone is also shared by both. After playing Transformers: Prime however, I was left disappointed.

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