I like Gratuitous Space Battles a lot, so I was surprised to find that Gratuitous Tank Battles didn’t really live up to my expectations. I was expecting the same sorts of mechanics and progression with ground units instead of spaceships, and if that’s what I’d gotten I would have been perfectly happy. There is a lot of similarity between the two titles, but where Gratuitous Space Battles is all sandbox and building blocks, Gratuitous Tank Battles changes things up and turns the whole thing into a tower defense game that never feels quite right. READ MORE
While we do our best to anticipate what will make us excited before the show starts, it always changes. Here’s a look at what made us psyched at this year’s expo.
Borderlands 2: Looking at my save files recently, I have poured more than six whole days into Gearbox’s Borderlands. That’s four times through the main campaign, and at least twice through all of the DLC packs. I’ve got the loot chest preordered, and can’t wait to take the new Siren Maya through the wastes of Pandora. Every video I’ve seen of Borderlands 2 makes it look like exactly what I want: more guns, more story, and new characters. The fact that my wife and I will be able to play together in our living room while running with my best friend across the country is just icing on the cake. Now all I need is to clear off some shelf space for the swank Marcus bobblehead I’ve got coming, and I’ll be ready to lose myself in Pandora all over again. READ MORE
Shin’en is continuing its efforts to port its WiiWare library to the 3DS eShop, following Fun! Fun! Minigolf TOUCH! with a port of the relatively-popular Art of Balance. Oh, and there’s touch control, so it’s called Art of Balance TOUCH! Because you TOUCH! it!
Seriously, though, the game works really well on the system. READ MORE
This is the debut installment of Multitap, writer Graham Russell’s new column about traditional multiplayer and co-op gaming.
There are lots of games out there that let you jump in with your friends and play around. Those can be a heck of a lot of fun. If you’re looking for something a bit more cerebral, though, nothing’s better than a co-op game with some planning and strategy. READ MORE
Batman: Arkham City was among my favorite games of 2011. Everything that worked in Batman: Arkham Asylum was added to, and that’s all I really wanted. The combat is more satisfying, the explorable sandbox is larger, the challenge rooms are more varied, and there are more villains and mooks for Batman to punch in the throat. Anybody else considering developing a superhero game needs to play both of Rocksteady’s Batman titles, take notes, and hope to deliver as good a product. READ MORE
