Attila
Reviews
Heroes of Might and Magic III: The Restoration of Erathia (Windows)
This game has taken up many hours of my life.
The Good
The different varieties of monsters, castles, and magic spells. The map editor was one of my favorite parts of the game.
The Bad
The Inferno group only has one shooter. If it had one more it would have been my favorite group.
The Bottom Line
You start with a castle and you build it up. You can buy buildings to create men and then recruit them, and you can build your mage guild (place where you learn your spells). When you have acquired an adequete army you can try to take over the world!
By Attila on December 21, 2004
6-PAK (Genesis)
A nice compilation of early Genesis games
The Good
Golden Axe - Great beat 'em up game, my personal favorite from these 6 games. One or two player action with a cool tournament style mode.
Streets of Rage - Another good beat 'em up, not as good as 2 or Golden Axe, in my opinion, but a solid game nonetheless.
Columns - A puzzle/tetris type game, another one of my favorites. Many different gameplay modes to keep you busy.
The Bad
Revenge of Shinobi - Most people would probably disagree with me here. I didn't like the game, probably because it was wicked hard, but I know others do. This is just a matter of personal opinion, try the game for yourself before you decide.
Sonic the Hedgehog - Obviously this isn't a bad game, in fact it was one of my favorites. But who hasn't played Sonic the Hedgehog? I feel it's a waste of space on this cart and they should have put a more overlooked game on it.
Super Hang-On - This game sucks. If you want a good motorcycle game, try one of the Road Rash games.
The Bottom Line
Buy it if you like beat 'em ups or platformers. Don't buy it for Super Hang-On. Overall a pretty good compilation.
By Attila on June 23, 2002
Ken's Labyrinth (DOS)
A Classic? I don't think so.
The Good
It had some interesting ideas.
The Bad
The graphics are awful, it has terrible beeper sounds, and the monsters look 2-D. And all of this in 1993! I thought we were way past beeper sounds. Come on! A year after Wolfenstein 3D and it's still about 10 times worse. I remember playing this game when I was 6 and thinking it was cool. So I downloaded it but I realized it sucked.
It has come to my attention that this game was made by a 12 year old. Good for him. I'm impressed. I know I wouldn't be able to make a game like this when I was 12 or even now. But that's why I don't make video games! Just because a game was made by a 12 year old does not make it a classic. This game sucks ass. Period.
The Bottom Line
Bad "3D" shooter. If you want a good 3D shooter try Wolf 3D or Doom.
By Attila on April 25, 2002
Sega Smash Pack: Volume 1 (Dreamcast)
A collection of great games; plagued by bad emulation
The Good
First off, the obvious thing: the price. You can now find Smash Pack at many stores for the low price of 10 dollars. If you were to buy just Phantasy Star 2 and Shining Force on eBay, it would most likely run you over 100 dollars.
Shining Force is one of the best games ever (in my opinion) and helped start the strategy/RPG genre. This is also a fairly long game that will have you engrossed for hours.
Phantasy Star 2 is a traditional RPG that helped usher in the 16 bit RPGs. Haven't played much of this one, but I'm looking forward to it.
Sonic the Hedgehog is a classic, but I already have it for Genesis.
Columns is a fun Tetris style game that has lots of different gameplay modes.
Golden Axe is a very cool, multiplayer beat-'em-up that's one of the best in the genre, in my opinion.
Streets of Rage 2 is another great beat-'em-up, one that many consider the greatest in genre.
Sega Swirl is a fun puzzle style game that can be played against others through email.
Virtua Cop 2 is a good shooter, especially if you have a DC gun. Seemed a bit short though.
Vectorman is a good side-scrolling shooter that abounds in power-ups and other cool stuff. Unfortunately plagued by slowdown.
The Bad
Bad emulation. Because of the DC's powerful sound processor, the sounds of the Genesis games sound like they're being played out of a tin can or something. Some of the games are a little awkward to play with the DC controller. Not all the games are completely smooth.
I just can't figure out why they put some of these games on here. How did Wrestle War get on with Shining Force and Phantasy Star 2? Wrestle War seems like the only one oddly out of place, put I'm also a little disappointed they put Sonic on there. Sure it's a classic and a great game, but how many people actually haven't played it? I also hate Revenge of Shinobi, although I've heard that other people like it.
The Bottom Line
Buy it if you like strategy/RPGs and traditional RPGs and can't afford the original Genesis versions. A compilation of great games with a few oddly out of place but well worth your money.
By Attila on January 24, 2002
Jet Grind Radio (Dreamcast)
My favorite Dreamcast game
The Good
JGR uses cell shading technology which makes the game's graphics look kind of cartoony, but in a good way. Very smooth animations and cool graffiti. The soundtrack was totally awesome and I loved it. Though it probably doesn't appeal to all. It's a mix of techno and rap. There were also a few hard rock songs thrown in there.
There are a lot of different characters you can use and many different modes of play, which give the game a big replay factor, even if the story is somewhat short. It'll take you a while to find all the different pieces of graffiti. I love the fact that you can go through the storyline again and again.
The Bad
It seemed a bit too short, at least the story part of the game. There was also slowdown and the load times were too long and too often. It's hard to find too much wrong with the gameplay. The last boss was also quite easy.
The sequel (Jet Set Radio Future) will be on Xbox, instead of the canned DC. :-(
The Bottom Line
A wonderful mix of graffiti and roller-blading, and definitely worth the cheap price it's at now. A great game that has been somewhat overlooked.
By Attila on January 24, 2002
NFL Quarterback Club 97 (PlayStation)
By Attila on November 21, 2001
Coaster (DOS)
Great game and one of the first rollercoaster games.
The Good
It's a lot of fun the build your own coaster. But you can do that in a lot of other games too. But what's great about Coaster is that you can ride the coasters in a first person perspective. Good graphics. It's also really easy to design your own coaster. I had trouble learning how to custom make coasters in RollerCoaster Tycoon but this only took a few minutes.
The Bad
Too many limitations. Your coaster can only be so big and so tall and it can only use so many parts. The people who rate the game are stupid. You have a realistic coaster and they say it sucks. You have a coaster that goes 200 mph with 30 loops which would break your neck and they give it a high rating. The game could use a little more scenery. There isn't enough sound.
The Bottom Line
I like this game more than RollerCoaster Tycoon.
By Attila on August 7, 2001