Pac-Man Championship Edition DX Review

Smart modifications to the series formula and addictive gameplay make DX the best, most frenetic take on Pac-Man yet.

The Good: Fast, frenetic gameplay is incredibly enthralling; new modes add a nice dose of variety; plenty of courses and visual styles to choose from; beautiful visuals and catchy music.

The Bad: Leaderboard integration is a tad cumbersome.

The old saying, "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" is something that could easily apply to Pac-Man's winning formula. After all, thirty years after its initial release and still people play it? That says more about the game's quality than anything a critic like me could (that didn't stop me from trying, though). Namco obviously still saw some room for improvement, though. How else would we be blessed with the Pac-Man nirvana that is Pac-Man Championship Edition DX?

Building upon the foundation of 2007's Championship Edition, DX takes everything -- the bright, neon visuals, the frenetic, out-of-control speed of the action -- and expands on it in just about every way possible. Though some leaderboard oddities mar the competitive side some, what DX accomplishes make it the best, most varied, and all around enjoyable Pac-Man iteration yet.

Just Cause 2 Review

There's plenty glimmers of greatness here, but each is soon overshadowed by a myriad of mechanical annoyances.

The Good: Physics-defying grappling hook is endlessly fun to use; using chaos as a means of progression is as awesome as it is ridiculous; huge world to explore with plenty of collectibles to find.

The Bad: Vehicle handling is far too touchy; gunplay doesn't feel satisfying; horrid story and characters; numerous mechanical oddities bog down the experience greatly.

If there was any way to best summarize Just Cause 2 it would be thusly: Thrilling, but mostly aggravating. Just Cause 2 attempts to deliver a huge playground of destruction that offers limitless entertainment, and though it mostly delivers on that premise, numerous rough edges cause it to stumble through varying degrees of annoyance. There's plenty of fun to be had, of course, which Just Cause 2 is able to deliver in spades, but the majority is overshadowed by its inconsistent quality.

Paper Mario Review

An excellent blend of depth and simplicity make Paper Mario an easily accessible and enjoyable role-playing experience.

The Good: Gameplay is perfectly balanced for veterans and newcomers; fun cast of characters and witty writing make for an enjoyable story; interactive combat makes battle more involved and engaging; only $10 on the Virtual Console. 

The Bad: Creative use of the visual style is criminally absent; text is hard to read on HDTVs.

When Paper Mario was released in 2001 for the Nintendo 64, it not only delivered a fun, lighthearted role-playing game supported by a very simplistic mechanical approach, it also set the stage for all the other Mario-themed RPGs to follow, going as far as to use gameplay concepts introduced here. That's probably why Paper Mario still holds up incredibly well today. Offering a fun and refreshing take on the long-standing narrative of Mario games past, along with some excellent, inviting mechanics, Paper Mario manages to deliver a robust RPG experience that caters to veterans and newcomers alike.

Kirby's Epic Yarn Review

Charming, beautiful, and all kinds of adorable: Kirby's Epic Yarn is a pure joy to experience.

The Good: Gorgeous visual style is used to good effect in gameplay; charming story; co-op's a blast, if a little frenetic; healthy dose of variety.

The Bad: No real challenge to speak of.

Aesthetic gimmicks aren't often something Nintendo uses as a hook. The Paper Mario games (and The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker, to a lesser extent) are the exception to that rule, obviously, but Mario's also they're go-to guy for experimental material. Kirby must be the back-up choice, though, since they're latest aesthetic experiment -- the world of textiles -- stars everyone's favorite pink ball, Kirby, in what is easily the most adorable videogame ever conceived by mankind: Kirby's Epic Yarn.

Well, they do say that honesty is the best policy...

...but somehow I don't think they meant it to be applied this way.

It's no secret that the Wii has seen countless knock-offs since its launch in 2006, with such notable cash-ins as the not-at-all-subtle Vii, and, now, the Wireless 60 and its detrimental warning for consumers that basically destroys any chance at the system gaining any sales.

You mean this isn't an Xbox 360?!
(Photo courtesy of Joystiq)

For those who can't read the text in the photo, it reads, "Dear valued customer: please note if you are looking to purchase or own an Xbox, Playstation, Nintendo Wii or equivalent, this product does not compare or compete with these technologies. Wireless 60 is a family entertainment console great for ages 5 and up." Yeah, I'm sure that makes all the difference for those blindingly thinking that they're getting one of those aforementioned consoles.

I can appreciate they're attempts to stay honest -- there's not nearly enough honesty in business these days -- but in this case I think it may have been more helpful to not inform potential customers that what they're getting is essentially a cheap knock-off of another console (no offense). It did provide a good laugh, though, so that's something, I guess.

Sources: Siliconera, Joystiq

PS2 gets integrated into new HDTV

Ultimate (or almost, anyway) convenience,
right there.

I guess it was inevitable given Sony's involvement in the TV market, but the company yesterday announced a new high definition television that has a PlayStation 2 built right into its base. Talk about convenience, eh?

Aside from the PlayStation 2 ports -- controller and memory card slots, USB ports, Ethernet port --  the TV is outfitted with access to on-demand media through Bravia Internet Video via its own Ethernet port, four HDMI ports, component, VGA and SCART connections. The TV is only available in the UK, however, with no immediate plans for release elsewhere.

Not a bad deal, I must say. Definite good choice for a console to integrate given the vast library of games available for it.

One small reservation, though: Won't PlayStation 2 games look a bit, I don't know, bad when displayed in 720p resolution when their native resolution is half that? The PS2 wasn't exactly known for its HD capabilities, after all. I can't imagine them making the jump very smoothly, especially since only a handful of games support the lowest form of HD available. I suppose the mostly small screen size could offset that, though, but it's still something worth pondering.

Speaking of things to ponder, Gamasutra's article on the matter alluded that the release of this TV could be a hint toward the future. They used Sony's backing (along with several other corporations) of Google TV, a television based platform that allowed access to the services vast Flash-based game library, back in May as an example of the industry considering the place of gaming- and Internet-ready TVs in the market, most likely for where they can be worked into their respective business strategies. A secondary SKU that's included with a TV alongside the standalone system would certainly be a smart way to reach out to more consumers, especially given the multimedia capabilities that each system now offers. I'm doubtful that we'll see anything of that sort take off during this console generation (aside from Sony maybe releasing this PS2 TV bundle in other territories or something), only because Microsoft and Nintendo lack the direct resources to make something happen with some immediacy, but I can easily see it taking off come next-gen.


Sony Bravia TV Includes Built-In PS2 For UK Consumers [Gamasutra]