April2023
Review Disney Speedstorm - Great Courses And Characters, But Stutters On Switch
Super karting, quite artistic, FPS atrocious
It’s hard to review a game when it has something that doesn’t bother some players but is considered a dealbreaker for others. Disney Speedstorm is a particularly tricky course to navigate, then, because it has two of them. Let’s get this out of the way first, then, so as to not waste some...
September2022
Review Disney Dreamlight Valley (Switch) - A Surprisingly Touching Take On The Life Sim Genre
A rough, but charming, work in progress
Note: Since the publication of this review, the publisher changed its plans to make Disney Dreamlight Valley free-to-play. Also, myriad updates and patches have been added to the game which may have altered and modified the gameplay experience from the one detailed below. Imagine waking up and seeing Mickey...
October2019
Review Asphalt 9: Legends - Likeable Burnout-Style Racing Action, If You Play The Right Way
Another loot box for the road
The Asphalt series actually started off on Nintendo, many moons ago. It launched on the DS in 2004 as Asphalt: Urban GT, got a sequel and then headed off to (what was then) the new and exciting world of mobile gaming, leaving Nintendo behind. Other than a brief return for the launch of the 3DS with Asphalt 3D, the...
February2019
Review Modern Combat Blackout - Call Of Duty Has Little To Worry About
Out for the count
By now, we emphatically know that first-person shooters can work on Nintendo Switch. The console’s positioning as a semi-handheld platform – and the realistic limitations of its hardware – simply aren’t an issue when an FPS is developed in the right way. Heck, even PS Vita got a great shooter in the form of Killzone:...
August2011
Review Let's Golf! 3D (3DSWare)
Pitch perfect?
Gameloft's Let's Golf! 3D may be the first third-party 3DSWare title to download, but it's not the company's first swing at portable pitching and putting: DSiWare has the original Let's Golf!, so this new outing has to bring more to the table. In some ways it delivers, but it doesn't quite hit the pin. For one thing, you're getting a...
March2011
Screeching fault
Gameloft’s racing series is something of a DS staple, with Asphalt: Urban GT launching with the original dual-screened console, a sequel, and then Asphalt 4 available on DSiWare. The French developer is certainly getting some mileage out of the Asphalt name, and now with the 3DS comes Asphalt 3D, a sadly middle-of-the-road affair...
August2010
Review Crystal Monsters (DSiWare)
You don't want these monsters in your pocket, but they're still fun to have around
It's usually clear within the first few minutes of playing a new Gameloft game which franchise it's been "inspired" by. Not breaking tradition, the same holds true here, with Gameloft's latest bearing a very strong resemblance to none other than the Pokémon...
July2010
Review Soul of Darkness (DSiWare)
Castlevania called - it wants its game back
No game publisher has released more games on the DSiWare service than Gameloft. And while the company has received a wide range of review scores among their various DSiWare releases, no one can argue that they've brought some quality games to the service in the short time it's existed. Soul of Darkness...
Review Date or Ditch (DSiWare)
Ditchfest
Don't be fooled by the level of choice suggested by Date or Ditch: this is a strictly linear game with even less depth than its vapid title suggests. Another converted mobile game from Gameloft, Date or Ditch puts you in the shoes of a male or female protagonist who must decide which of three love interests to settle down with. Gameplay...
June2010
Review Hero of Sparta (DSiWare)
God of War for cheapskates
Gameloft is often panned for making games that look, play and feel similar to other titles, and its latest is no exception. Taking obvious inspiration from Sony's God of War series, this is a fairly linear 3D beat 'em up with a Greek mythology theme. As King Argos, who has washed up on a beach somewhere and lost his entire...
May2010
Review Ferrari GT Evolution (DSiWare)
Drivers may want to exercise caution
Ferrari GT Evolution is a decent arcade-esque racing game. It looks quite good, handles well and has enough gameplay variety to keep things interesting, but you'll have to return to certain tracks far too many times before progressing to warrant a stronger recommendation. The meat of the game is Career mode, in...
April2010
Review Earthworm Jim (DSiWare)
A slippery customer
Like previous platforming conversion Rayman, Earthworm Jim is something of a missed opportunity. Fondly remembered by many gamers from its original outing on Mega Drive and Super Nintendo, Earthworm Jim was a welcome antidote to the huge numbers of cutesy animal platformers with its bizarre attitude and plenty of character...
March2010
Review Gangstar 2: Kings of L.A. (DSiWare)
Sample the sweet taste of crime
If you weren't interested in Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars but still hanker for some big city crime drama, you might be drawn to Gameloft's latest DSiWare release, Gangstar 2: Kings of LA. Taking the GTA template to a download title and offering it all for 500 Points should be a pretty sweet deal, but once you've...
Review Real Football 2010 (DSiWare)
Slick as a parrot
With last year’s successful Real Football 2009 under its belt, Gameloft has dusted off its downloadable footballing franchise and slapped a new number on the end. Taking the control systems and fast, arcade-style gameplay from its predecessor and polishing it up, RF2010 is at once the definitive football game on DS and a real...
Another odd mix of different genres from Gameloft
Gameloft is rather fond of porting their back catalogue to Nintendo's download services. This time, however, it seems that they've created an entirely new game specifically for DSiWare. An odd mixture of simulation and strategy, with some light RPG elements thrown in for good measure. The premise is...
February2010
Par for the course
On DSiWare, we very recently saw the release of A Little Bit of... Nintendo Touch Golf (Or True Swing Golf Express in North America), a slightly cut-down version of the retail game bearing the same name. We thought it was very competent, and as such felt that the "golf game" gap on the service had been filled. But here...
Review Legends of Exidia (DSiWare)
DSiWare's first RPG doesn't set the bar too high, but it's still quite enjoyable
It's a bit odd that we haven't seen any DSiWare RPGs until now. You'd think that with the service's portable nature and the genre’s wealth of retail releases, it would be a perfect fit. Apparently developers think otherwise! Gameloft is known for their frequent...
January2010
Review The Oregon Trail (DSiWare)
The most fun you can have with dysentery
For whatever reason, The Oregon Trail in its various incarnations, whether on DOS or an Apple II, holds a special place in the hearts of American gamers. Maybe it's because of the balanced risk/reward system and simple resource management. But more likely it's because The Oregon Trail was one of the few...
December2009
Review Me and My Dogs: Friends Forever (DSiWare)
Pure bred or pure mutt?
Me and My Dogs: Friends Forever is a curious title: it's unashamed of its Nintendogs roots, but rather than simply following the leader of the pack it earnestly tries to make its own mark. It's a virtual pet sim, focused on raising a small pack of puppies and training them for various competitions. The game is set in a small...
Review TV Show King 2 (WiiWare)
A significant improvement over a trivial predecessor.
One of the very first Wiiware titles at launch gets a much-needed sequel in TV Show King 2. The original was a decent trivia vehicle that we thought was okay, if somewhat overpriced for what it offered. There was so much room for improvement that we were glad this got a second chance. But is...
Review Miami Nights: Life in the Spotlight (DSiWare)
If only fame were this easy
Sometimes a game’s theme song tells you everything you need to know about what you’re about to get yourself into. For Gameloft’s Miami Nights: Life in the Spotlight, it’s a circa-1996 MIDI instrumental tune that sounds suspiciously like Reel 2 Reel’s “I Like To Move It,” a senseless dance song so shallow...
November2009
Review Castle of Magic (DSiWare)
Is this the magical platforming experience fans have been waiting for?
If it's one thing the DSiWare service needs more of it's platformers. The folks at Gameloft must have sensed this when they decided to port their iPhone platforming hit Castle of Magic over to the service. Since one of the main complaints about the original iPhone release was the...
Gameloft deals DSiWare a decent hand
This DSiWare release of UNO marks the card game's second appearance on Nintendo platforms within a few weeks, but does it hold up better in pocket format than its recent WiiWare release? As you'd expect, your cards appear on the bottom screen with the top screen showing the play area. Playing your cards is a...
Gameloft WiiWare card games, take two!
Like many American board games, Uno was started by your average Joe making sets in his house and selling them to friends and neighbours before getting picked up by a big outfit and made into a classic. It's a fun social game that's been around for nearly 40 years now and is played around the world. Given the...
October2009
Review Ghost Mansion Party (WiiWare)
Less party, more pooper.
Mini-game collections are becoming a dime-a-dozen on the Wii console as of late, and with Halloween coming up, it comes as no surprise to see an aptly-themed release that's packed to the gills with yet another round of fairly standard mini-game fare. But at a lofty 1000 Wii Points, is this haunted board game release good...