Spoilers for Transistor ahead! Don’t read on if you haven’t finished the game and want to keep those last moments a complete surprise.
Let’s talk about Transistor. It’s a game I love, but not entirely for the reasons I expected to. At first, I found myself put off by its combat and story that seemed to constantly keep you far enough away to learn anything. Slowly but surely the pieces began to fall into place, revealing a late game section that began to change things dramatically. But this isn’t about those moments. This is about two characters and most importantly how Supergiant managed to turn an unorthodox relationship into the game’s greatest strength.
As with Bastion before it, there are plenty of worthwhile moments prior to its ultimate conclusion, but its conclusion is, ultimately, what matters most. READ MORE
Everyone does Top 10 Games lists. The problem with those? Usually, they’re full of games that earn a place because of nostalgia or industry significance. Here at Snackbar Games, we like being a little more practical: if you’re looking to just have fun, what games should you pick up and play today? This time, we profile Microsoft’s first console effort: the Xbox.
Crimson Skies: High Road to Revenge
While many consider Namco’s Ace Combat series to be the king of the flight combat games around this time, the Xbox version of Crimson Skies is a force to be reckoned with. Ported over from the PC and simplified with console controls in mind, this “dumbing down” of the arcade-style flight game actually made it more fun as a result, creating one of the most fast-paced flight games on a system without many other options. – Andrew Passafiume
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The world of data visualization is in many ways a novel one for games. I mean, to a certain extent, all games are is data visualization, but it’s never really drawn inspiration from these infographics precepts in a significant way. Metrico developer Digital Dreams saw that hole in its own data and sought to fill it with a game that is both visually arresting and mentally demanding.
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The longer I write this column, the more often I hear one specific bit of feedback: “Graham, this stuff sounds cool and all, but I like actually knowing what’s going on when I play games.” Fair enough! The language barrier can be overcome, but it’s never without sacrificing some degree of comfort and comprehension. But I can help you too, dear skeptical reader. We’re just going to have to turn our gaze across the other ocean. READ MORE
I’ve written about LAN parties before, but I’ve never been to anything like this. The International 2014, the championship tournament for Dota 2, was held in Seattle from July 18 to 21. It was easily the biggest spectacle in competitive gaming. It was certainly the most lucrative, as the collective prize pool was over 11 million dollars, with the winning team taking home almost half of that. But how was the event? Was it successful? What does it mean for gaming? And, of course, how did it make me feel? READ MORE
