I’m dead. This honestly doesn’t surprise me anymore, as I’ve done so at least ten times within the past hour. To be fair, “Spelunky” is a fairly challenging platformer, one that I’ve discovered takes time to learn and play. As such, I’m reserving my right to review the game at a later date…namely so that I can spend some time getting better at it first. If you’re curious (or simply morbid enough) to watch me fail spectacularly as I learn the ropes, you can do by watching the gameplay videos below. Enjoy!
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I seriously have yet to meet anyone who doesn’t find pandas to be the cutest thing on this planet…that is, except maybe for those who have said no to “Panda Cheese”. “Takenoko” (which means, Bamboo Sprout) puts players in the role of courtesans who must not only feed the emperor’s panda, but manage an ever-growing bamboo plantation. Players earn points for satisfying the emperor’s requests, as well as for feeding the panda and catering to the wishes of the gardener. Will you assist the gardener in growing specific patterns of bamboo, or will you just let the panda devour it all? The choice is yours…though my money’s on the panda.
After a fairly successful experience with the video game adaptation of “Elder Sign: Omens”, I decided to take another plunge into the world of H.P. Lovecraft. Only this time, I’ll be trying to form words with the available letters without going crazy. The trick lies in both the length of the word, as well as how many angles are present in the letters used to form said word. Who will go insane and who will manage to escape the funny farm by the skin of the teeth? Only time (and perhaps a few visits from Cthulhu) will tell…
Like “Trivial Pursuit”? Like “Star Trek”? Perhaps you should take a gander at “Star Trek: The Game”, which was published back in the early 1990’s. I had a copy as a kid, but I was admittedly more interested in firing phasers than I was answering some quote unquote “silly” trivia questions. Last night (1/3/14), I pulled this game out of mothballs to see if it was actually any good. I’d tell you to buckle your seatbelts and prepare for warp speed, but those of us who watch “Star Trek” know that the former seems to have been cut from the budget.
Post-apocalyptic games don’t always have to involve zombies, and that’s exactly the kind of setting that “Survivalistic” entails. In this easy-to-play collectible card game for two people, you’ll be doing your darndest to keep your clan alive by providing them with food and water. While you’re attempting to grow your clan, the other player will be trying to ensure that their clan reigns supreme. Will you lead your clan to victory by growing it so large that your opponent will have no choice but to give up, or will you opt for a more aggressive approach? Before we take a look at this game in further detail, I’d like to thank William Connor Mandry from Mandry44’s Games for providing me with a review copy.
Editor’s Note: I was informed on 2/28/14 that the game was redesigned based on reviewer and customer feedback. I’ve updated the text in this article to reflect the new rules. Time permitting, I’ll update the pictures and video as well.
You wouldn’t think it, but flying is actually pretty complicated. I found that out the hard way after crashing twice during the same takeoff. It was clear to me that after the first ten minutes, a review would be a long ways off…namely due to the fact that the learning curve is a bit on the steep side. You have no need to fear though, for I have opted to share my experiences for entertainment purposes…namely because most people enjoy watching me rage while playing a game. You’re welcome.
“Monopoly Empire” wasn’t the best thing to have ever crossed my path, but it was good enough of a “Monopoly” spinoff to receive a thumbs-up from the kids. “Monopoly Millionaire” is the next spinoff that I chose to pick up on a whim and luckily, it was on sale for fifteen bucks (down from the normal twenty to thirty dollars) at my local K-Mart. Instead of trying to build a tower however, players will be racing to reach a net worth (cash-wise) of one million before the others do. How does it stand up to the other “Monopoly” variants on the market, you ask? Keep reading to find out!
As a loyal “Left 4 Dead” fan, I was immediately intrigued by the premise behind “PAYDAY: The Heist” and its successor upon their release, even though I hate clowns with a passion. They offered a four player cooperative experience…though instead of fighting off zombies and wiping off boomer bile, you were robbing banks and the like. With that being said, I was a bit turned off by the rumors regarding their single player modes…enough so that I convinced myself to wait until a price drop before picking them up. With the recent Steam holiday sale slashing “PAYDAY: The Heist” by ninety percent and “PAYDAY 2” by fifty-five percent, I managed to grab both for just under fifteen bucks…not a bad haul (pardon the pun) if I may say so. It’s important to note that I started playing “PAYDAY 2” first and thus will be reviewing it first (because I can)…though time permitting, I’ll cook a review up for “PAYDAY: The Heist” as well.
Hey fellow gamers!
It was brought to my attention that “Dad’s Gaming Addiction” is in the running for being one of the “top board game sites in the world”. If you are a regular reader or simply enjoy visiting my site from time to time, then please take two seconds to visit the below website and vote to kick us up a few notches.
http://www.boardgamelinks.com/links/sites
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Thank you kindly!
I’ve been playing “Cities XL 2011” off and on for the past few years, having first acquired it through “Impulse” (which now sports the “GameStop App”). I wasn’t sure what to make of “Cities XL 2011” at first, though my first impressions of it at the time was that it bore an uncanny resemblance to “City Life” released back in 2006. Having done a little research for this article, I wasn’t surprised to learn that Monte Cristo was the publisher behind both games. At any rate, I decided to dive back into this title, namely due to the unsatisfied taste that the most recent “SimCity” left in my mouth. The question remains: “Is ‘Cities XL 2011’ better than EA’s most recent and controversial “SimCity” release?”
With Christmas being right around the corner, I admittedly don’t have the time to write a full-blown review of “Zoo Tycoon 2”. To be fair, this game was released in 2004 and chances are if you haven’t played it by now, you’re not going to. Still, I do want to give some credit where it’s due, as I’ve spent countless hours constructing and tearing down zoo parks like the Tasmanian Devil. In its day, it was indeed a fantastic game and holds up surprisingly well despite its age. It doesn’t have a widescreen option, for example, but what it lacks in functionality it makes up for in content. For the record, I own both the core game and two of the four expansions (Marina Mania and African Adventures).
I had two strikes going against me when I purchased this video game adaptation…one for never having played the board game and two for not being familiar (at all) with any of H.P. Lovecraft’s work. I know, I know…shame on me, I guess. Still, there was a certain charm about the board game, even if a lot of the gameplay mechanics seemed a bit complex. I bought the video game adaptation ($14.99 as of 12/22/13) mainly to see if I should drop twenty-five bucks plus on the board game. Worse case scenario is that if I don’t like it, I’d only be out fifteen bucks…seemed like a reasonable deal. After playing a few games, I’ve discovered that I have a love/hate relationship with “Elder Sign: Omens”. Why? So glad you asked…
I admittedly lack the pencil and paper RPG gene, even though I love dungeon crawlers…how odd is that? As a full-time accountant who also doubles as a full-time dad and the occasional games journalist, this is partially understandable. It can be hard sometimes to just sit down and play a game of “Chess”, let alone spend hours flipping through pages to try and create a character. “Dice Crawl”, I’m pleased to say, is perfect for my busy lifestyle. “Dice Crawl” is a dungeon crawler currently seeking your support on Kickstarter (as of 12/21/13), sporting plenty of dice and supporting up to four players. Before we take a sneak peek at what this game has to offer, I’d like to quickly thank Alyssa Faden from SoulJar Games for providing me with a prototype copy. It’s important to stress that prototypes are not usually representative of the final product, making everything featured below (including the rules) subject to change.
“Dungeon of the Endless”, in its current state (as of 12/21/13), isn’t so endless. The game is currently in an Alpha state and available via Steam’s Early Access page, featuring a total of three levels in which to get your feet wet. Crossing a tower defense and a dungeon exploration game, I must admit, is a pretty neat idea. You’ll start with two heroes and your crystal, which you must protect at all costs. While you can move your heroes from room to room, time actually doesn’t progress until you explore a brand new room. In effect, you have both a real-time strategy and turn based mechanic working at the same time.
So, I finally buckled down and purchased “Starbound”, a game more like “Terraria” than I originally thought. My son even mistook the game for “Terraria” as he was walking by and didn’t believe me when I told him that no, I wasn’t playing “Terraria”. While “Starbound” looks and feels like “Terraria”, there’s a bit of “Darkout” in there too in the form of an in-game crafting menu. To sum up “Starbound”, you’ll find yourself on a ship without fuel and must beam down to an alien planet to find more. Like “Terraria”, you’ll discover trees, ore, aliens, and other things on a two-dimensional plane. Unlike “Terraria”, you’ll be able to travel to different worlds and decorate your starship & your home planet to your liking, and more.
Some of you may have heard of the game, “Tsuro”…if you haven’t, you’re missing out. Calliope Games, the maker of “Tsuro” and the more recent “Tsuro of the Seas”, is back with a new family-friendly card & dice game titled “Roll For It!” In this particular game, players will be rolling dice and attempting to match them with the cards laid out on the table. Players who match all of the dice on a card get to place it into their score pile. Before I get into specifics however, I’d like once again thank Ray Wehrs from Calliope Games for sending me a review copy.