• Review,  Video Games

    Review – Snatcher

    I can’t say I have the best relationship with Hideo Kojima. On one hand, I respect him as a creative force. On the other hand, he’s an excruciatingly awful storyteller. The Metal Gear series can, at the best of times, be an entertaining experience, but then it stops, lurches in your direction, and vomits exposition directly on your shoes. And…

  • Video Games

    3 More Games for the Christmas Season

    Last year, we compiled a list of some holiday games that aren’t always brought up around the holiday season. There’s a packed month of reviews ahead, a lot of them related the Christmas in some way, but I still wanted to cram another one of these articles here. If you’re like me, and like playing games themed to the season,…

  • Review,  Video Games

    Review – Batman Returns (SNES)

    Tim Burton’s take on the Batman franchise was so rad. I mean, the movies are as goofy as hell, but between the excellent performances from the cast, and the awesome set design and atmosphere, they’re a sight to behold. The second movie, Batman Returns, also serves as an excellent alternative Christmas movie to people who prefer to avoid the good…

  • Review,  Video Games

    Review – Snake’s Revenge

    It seems that, these days, the once adored NES port of Metal Gear is often looked on less fondly than it once was. A reputation tarnished, perhaps by the rediscovery of the MSX version by western audience. The NES exclusive follow-up, Snake’s Revenge, on the other hand, has always maintained a less-than-stellar reputation. Developed as an NES-only sequel and targeted…

  • Review,  Video Games

    Review – Mega Man X8

    I could not have predicted things would turn out this way. I count Mega Man X as one of my favourite games, and to see the series take a gradual slide into atrociousness has been hard to experience. The SNES trilogy was fine, and the Playstation trilogy started out decently enough, but by the time I hit X6, my spirits…

  • Review,  Video Games

    Review – Pikmin 2

    The launch of Pikmin was a reasonable success for Nintendo, especially considering it was a new license. It wasn’t quite the numbers that Mario Sunshine or The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker pulled, but it did push over a million, so that’s nice for it. In 2004, it was time for a sequel, which would take the form of the appropriately named  Pikmin…

  • Review,  Video Games

    Review – Pocky & Rocky With Becky

    I’ve been revisiting the Kiki Kaikai series as part of research for another article I wrote. While digging up details on some of the games I know less about, I encountered the fact that the sole Gameboy Advance game in the series, Kiki Kaikai Advance — otherwise localized as the bizarrely named Pocky & Rocky with Becky — was released…

  • Review,  Video Games

    Review – Mega Man X7

    A long time ago, I picked up a pack of Mega Man X figurines from a department store I worked at. It came with X, Zero, Vile, and some robot who I’ve never seen or heard of before. This turned out to be Axyl, and the reason I’d never heard of him before was because he first appeared in Mega…

  • Review,  Video Games

    Review – Pikmin

    Nintendo has maintained a reputation as a company that never releases new properties. The common thought is that they only constantly rehash their staples: Zelda, Mario, and some others that variables that change over time. That’s never been very accurate, and it seems to be a little less repeated these recent years, but to demonstrate how long this belief has…

  • Review,  Video Games

    Review – McDonald’s Treasure Land Adventure

    McDonald’s, being the ubiquitous fast food chain in the United States, is quite the low hanging fruit. It is most associated with perpetuating obesity by dealing in food that is almost entirely fat and salt with no nutrition in between. I mean, they’re a corporation, which means, by law, their first priority is pleasing their shareholders, and they legally can’t…