This week at GameSpace was another big one with reviews, previews and interviews on a wide variety of games. You'll find our review of Telltale's Batman game, Bill's thoughts on Miitopia as well as a plethora of other nifty articles sure to catch your gamer's eye.
Review, Previews & Interviews, OH MY!
Miitopia Review - The verdict: 6.5
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Miitopia isn’t a fantastic game, but it’s a great casual RPG for fans of the genre, and an even better introduction for newbies to the world of role-playing games. If your kid is the type who longs to go on the epic adventures they see you playing all the time, I’d recommend it for sure. If you’re looking for a satisfying RPG experience for yourself, I might wait for a price drop or go play Bravely Default again.
Peregrin - An Unexpected Journey - The verdict: 7.5
All in all, Peregrin is well worth a play through if you like a moderately paced puzzler. This game really gives you a chance to appreciate the brushstroke-style scenery and the puzzle design. With an expertly told story and an interesting protagonist, Peregrin finds itself a place as a memorable indie gem.
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Overall I hesitate to call Fictorum a bad game. Because at the end of the day I have to ask myself did I have fun playing it? I did at times. But I feel there is so much room for improvement in the game. The big point is the magic and physics, but the AI of the enemy could’ve used a boost (more often than not, they just charged at me single file). What bits I read of the story had me interested to know more, but I felt no sympathy for my character nor did I care that I was casting magic at soldiers of the Inquisition or helpless villagers. That’s the biggest thing I came away from Fictorum with, yes it was fun, but did I care about what I was doing?
One of the wonderful parts of virtual reality is that it breathes new life into simple or well-trod concepts. Gunball is a prime example of this. Outside of VR, its conceit would be much to simple to hold your attention for long. Inside, where you actually feel like you’re holding the gun, like you’re throwing a ball, and you’re judging the physics of bounce and trajectory, it’s easy to lose yourself in the minutes of the match. Gunball isn’t a perfect game. It’s simple, too short, and its narrator repeats itself too much. But mechanically? It’s got it where it counts.
You Should be Playing Community Inc.
Those minor details aside, this game is fantastic and really offers so much entertainment especially if you enjoy progressive building or economic games that have politics and whimsy you will enjoy Community Inc. Jump on in and let us know how you find it!
Batman: The Telltale Series - Enemy Within - The verdict: 8.0
By the time the first episode is over in The Enemy Within, you’re going to be left wondering just how far Telltale can push Bruce Wayne, and just how dark this series can get. It’s a fantastic example of Telltale at its best, and if you’re a fan of these games, you need to pick The Enemy Within up and get playing. If you’ve yet played the original Telltale Batman series, get it too. This one is made richer by playing its predecessor.
Children of Zodiarcs - How a Small Team Made a Tactical RPG Revival
Children of Zodiarcs is the new tactical turn-based RPG from Square Enix and indie studio Cardboard Utopia. A sublime mix of storytelling and table top RPGs, Children of Zodiarcs has quickly found a home in the hearts of many RPG fans. We met up with Jason Kim, the Creative Director at Cardboard Utopia, to talk about the game. Read on for insight on how this indie studio is one of the leading reasons behind the revival of the tactical RPG.
From Words with Friends to Lucky's Tale to Creativerse - An Interview with Playful Corp.
You may not be familiar with Playful Corp., but you’ll be familiar with their games. Many of their staff helped make Words with Friends the worldwide sensation it became. But when the team left to form Playful Corp., David Calkins (Chief Communications Officer) and the devs decided to take things in a different direction. First, there was the Rift launch title, Lucky’s Tale, and then this May the team released the F2P sandbox adventure, Creativerse. With more games on the horizon like Star Child and Super Lucky’s Tale, we sat down with David to discuss everything and anything in between.
NBA Live's the One Game Mode & James Harden as Cover Athlete
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I must admit, it’s been awhile since I’ve had a chance to sit down and play a basketball video game. Fortunately for me when I finally do get an opportunity to play some digital B-ball it’s the new and improved NBA Live ‘18. After taking a year off to reevaluate their gameplay strategy, the franchise is back to prove that it can learn from the past and improve upon its future.
Our Hands on with NHL 18's New Threes Game Mode
They say that three is a magic number. Or at least that one School House Rock song said it. But in the case of NHL 18 and its latest gameplay mode, which just happens to be called “Threes”, it’s never been truer. However, it’s not the only new feature for this year’s incarnation of the beloved hockey game franchise.
Agents of Mayhem is like Crackdown had a Baby with Saints Row & That's a Very Good Thing
Agents of Mayhem is one of my most anticipated games in 2017. From the makers of Saints Row, I’ve been longing for Volition’s new IP – a comedic, action-packed, irreverent superheroic shooter set in Seoul, South Korea. It’s a massive, content-filled open world game, but instead of controlling one character through the opus you’ll unlock, level-up, and play with a cast of at least 12 (13 if you pre-order to get Saints Row’s Johnny Gat). Each hero has their own story-based missions, their own skills, weapons, and so forth. You can only have three in your squad at once, and you swap between them with the game’s teleport technology at will. In my first few hours with Agents of Mayhem, I’m finding a single player game that’s a great hybrid between the over-the-top action of Crackdown and the shenanigans of Saints Row.
Phantomgate is a Truly Fun JRPG from Netmarble & Level9
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Phantomgate is absolutely gorgeous with a look that’s part cel-shaded, part stained glass window, and it has the VO work and music to go with the high production values. Its art direction and animation help Phantomgate feel like a unique gem in a sea of also-ran RPGs on mobile. In fact, more than once I wound up wishing Level9’s game was on my Switch of PS4 as a downloadable title.
