August 2011 - Video Game News, Reviews, and Art

Madden NFL 2012 Review

Posted on August 31, 2011September 27, 2011 by GameNinjaX

Madden NFL 12 is here on time as usual, just enough time to get excited right before the season begins. There are some noticeable upgrades compared to last years madden that make the game play a lot smoother and takes out all the WTF?! moments. By WTF moments, I mean the times where Darren Sproles would run right over and truck Ray Lewis for a touchdown (which would never happen in real life). The developers over at EA focused on eliminating, or at least minimizing, this issue by implementing a feature that takes into account a players force and where they are being hit.

On all the previous Madden games, when you tackled another player in the chest or from the side, the opponent would just fall backwards. In Madden NFL 12, the opponent will actually fall corresponding to the location of the hit. Not only that, but they implemented a new feature that takes into account individual force, because we all know most punt returners cannot truck a middle linebacker. So if you see Ray Lewis or Brian Urlacher in the back field staring you down, you better hold RB and tuck that ball for dear life.

The Graphics have somewhat been improved from Madden 2011, but not by any significant amount. This was a little disappointing because it tells me that Madden is at its full potential on this generation of consoles. Even though the graphics already look so detailed, that my dad will walk in and think there is a game on, why should we keep purchasing the same game over and over again? I think EA will have some trouble in the next few years trying to sell Madden if the only difference is roster updates.

Another feature that I enjoy is the sound track on this years Madden NFL 12. Snoop Dogg, Common, Rise Against, and many other artists made there way on the Madden NFL 2012 soundtrack and make you feel like bull dozing a few bodies into the ground.

The best thing I enjoyed about this years Madden, is the fact that on my first game I stomped the Raiders with the Chargers 28-0, and unlocked 4 different achieves for doing so.

Chargers > Raiders

Madden NFL 12 rates

Gameplay 8/10 The game has been improved over and over again, for more than a decade now. There is no wonder that there are T.V. shows just about winning this game in tournaments. Madden 2012 just adds more features to making a video game feel as real as possible.

Graphics 8/10 I can’t complain about the graphics because it does fool older people into thinking there is a game on T.V., but the difference in the graphics from last years game are minimal.

Audio 9/10 This years soundtrack is a very nice addition to the overall feel of the game. When I’m leaving the menu screen on just to listen to the music, then you have to give the publishers kudos.

Replay Value 8/10 I will be playing Madden NFL 2012 for the entire football season, my friends will be playing Madden NFL 2012 for the entire season, and you will be playing Madden NFL 2012 for the entire season.

I recommend buying this game if you are a fan of football and video games. If you are a casual gamer wanting to know what the Madden craze is all about, then I suggest renting it on GameFly

Dead or Alive Dimensions Review

Posted on August 29, 2011September 27, 2011 by GameNinjaX

DOA Dimensions Gameplay

Dead or Alive Dimensions, hands down has the best graphics on the Nintendo 3DS system. The first game I played for the Nintendo 3DS was Super Street Fighter IV and I thought those graphics would be hard to beat but as usual, the developers of the Dead or Alive series, Team Ninja, out did themselves again.

Possible Xbox future consoles

The Graphics for Dead or Alive Dimensions make you feel like you entered a new age of technology, where hand held devices are becoming as powerful as consoles. This could mean that the new generation of consoles is going to come out soon. Look at the signs normally the “Slim” versions of a console come out a year or two (at most) before the new generation of consoles are released.

Anyways back to the Dead or Alive Dimensions Review, the game play is very smooth and much easier to play with the Nintendo 3DS analog stick. I actually have an easier time playing Dead or Alive on the 3DS rather than the Xbox, which I never thought would happen. The fighting style is very smooth and doesn’t frustrate me as much as the previous Dead or Alive video games, I don’t know if its just easier on the Nintendo 3DS or the developers worked on the overall game flow.

Another area that Dead or Alive on the 3DS surpasses the console video games, is the amount of playable characters in the game. There are a total of 26 playable characters for Dead or Alive Dimensions and 2 alternate costumes for each character, which is more than any previous DOA video game. The amount of unlock-able characters really adds to the game and keeps it interesting.

The chronicles “story” mode in Dead or Alive Dimensions covers the story mode for all the previous titles of DOA, and is a nice catch up on the history of Dead or Alive. The chronicles mode is a nice remake of all the original story lines, but there are two faults to its implementation. The first con is that the characters mouths don’t move during the cut scenes, it makes you feel like your game is possibly defective or frozen. The second fault of the chronicles story mode is that if you know the entire DOA series story, then this probably will be a breeze and just a rehash for you. However, if you haven’t played or missed out on a Dead or Alive game then this mode will be more intriguing.

The Arcade mode is another feature in Dead or Alive Dimensions that allows you to quickly unlock characters and alternate costumes. This mode is a time attack against a series of opponents that you only need to defeat them in one round to progress to the next stage. The Arcade mode is fun for a few hours, but it does get a little dull. I recommend playing through the arcade mode to quickly unlock characters and costumes before playing the Chronicles mode. You can also unlock figurines of characters in the Arcade and Chronicles mode to view and take HD pictures of the characters.

Dead or Alive Dimensions rates

Gameplay 8/10 The game play is very smooth and easy to control especially for a hand held fighting game. I still haven’t decided if I like DOA or Super Street Fighter 4 as the best Nintendo 3DS game yet.

Graphics 9/10 The Dead or Alive games have always been known for their very detailed environments and stages, Dimensions for the Nintendo 3DS is no exception.

Audio 7/10 No great theme song or anything, just your standard fighting game sound effects and music.

Replay Value 7/10 After you play the Arcade mode a few times and run through the Chronicles mode, I don’t think there is much left to do in this game.

Dead or Alive Dimensions is a must play for Nintendo 3DS owners, especially because of the short selection of games available for the 3DS currently. Here is a clip of actual cut scenes for Dead or Alive Dimensions

Dante’s Inferno Review

Posted on August 25, 2011September 27, 2011 by blooddash

Dante's Inferno Gameplay

Dante’s Inferno is the video game take on the epic story titled Divine Comedy. It’s the story of a man named Dante fighting through the nine circles of Hell on his quest to save his wife from the clutches of Lucifer. Dante is a crusader during the time of the Crusades in Jerusalem. He returns home to find his wife dead and her soul being taken by the Devil as a result of an oath he betrayed to her over something, though you’re not sure of at the time. As she is taken away, he is stabbed in the back by her killer and after defeating Death, he takes his scythe and venture into Hell after her.

The story is good and you can tell that a lot of time went into the making of the game. The landscapes are amazing and everything has a great feel to it. The narration is done well and the gameplay pulls you in, but not for too long. The problem with the game that I had was that there were a lot of videos. It felt like when I was about to get pulled into the game there was another long video I had to sit and watch.

If you’ve ever played a game like God of War or Castlevania: Lord of Shadows, then the fighting system should feel fairly easy to adjust to. And for those that haven’t, it’s not too hard to pick up. You have a light, heavy and ranged attacks. That’s about it. There are times when it will ask you to press a button and something huge happens, but that’s just following the HUGE button shown on the screen. Anyone can do it. They have a skill tree based on two sides, holy and unholy. As you progress through the game you can absolve or punish enemies and souls for experience toward the holy and unholy sides respectively. As these increase, your tree goes up and you use souls to purchase abilities. My one huge complaint about the game is the enemies. They are the same throughout the game. You’d assume every level would have it’s own group of enemies. Lust would have women, greed would have mouths, so on and so forth. But they just add on the baddies and cycle them throughout the entire thing. So I was disappointed in that.

There are some pretty visual things in the game, such as women with their breasts hanging out, dead babies, and people suffering, so I’m not recommending this to anyone young. Like I said before the story does pull you in and if you can stand videos jumping in, have at it. Otherwise, there’s an animated video of it that follows the game almost exactly from what I can remember.

There is a DLC titled St Lucia. From what I understand, it allows you to build an arena type of setting with objectives and tasks for you and a friend to team up and finish. The customization is pretty great and you can upload them online for others to play and rate. Pretty great system in my opinion, but I didn’t get it because the games been out for over a year.

Dante’s Inferno Rating

Graphics: 8.5/10 The in-game graphics were good and well developed. There were some things that got to me, like the walls you climb, but I think they intended the souls to look cheap. They’re in hell anyway. Why make them look good, right?

Gameplay: 7/10 The fighting system was good while searching for items it made you want to check little nooks and crannies. It was linear, but that’s to be expected. Big fault though is still the enemies. I’m disappointed fighting enemies I saw in the first circle of Hell down in the 8th.

Audio: 8/10 Fairly good. The narration was done well and the tone seemed to fight the place. One creepy thing was how the babies cooed at you when they were coming at you and when you attacked them they cried. Those designers just thought of how to make you shiver a bit.

Replay Value: 7/10 If you’re going for the achievements, I’d say you may go at it 2 or 3 times because you left something somewhere. There is no picking levels, so you gotta start from the beginning. I’m almost done with my 2nd pass right now.

Overall, I’d have to give Dante’s Inferno a 7.8 out of 10. The game was well done and entertaining, but the lack of different enemies was upsetting. The graphics and story pulled you in even when things did get a little repetitive. The one thing I disliked was if you missed something, you had to start a brand new game from scratch. Granted, I did beat the game in about 4 hours or so but that’s besides the point.

New Author Blooddash

Posted on August 25, 2011September 7, 2011 by blooddash

What’s up guys and gals?

So my name is Blooddash and I’m here to help fill in reviews on games, achievements and anything that may or may not be relevant. I’ve been playing games since I was a kid and the NES was released. Got a Sega Genesis after that and then went to the N64 then Xbox and GC and afterward the 360 and Wii.I got the old school Gameboy with Killer Instinct and went up that system until the DS. Stopped there for some reason and switched to PSP. I’m mainly a console gamer because of a lack of good computer equipment. You may have noticed a large gap of Sony products besides the PSP. I enjoyed the games they had but just never went over to them. I’m not exactly sure why so let’s move on from there. My favorite genre of games are mostly FPS, Fighting and RPG. The only MMO I got into was Guild Wars and it nearly took over my life. I’m not joking.

My accomplishments in gaming aren’t much. I think I just passed 35k achievement points on my Xbox account and used to play a couple fighting games on par with competitive. I went to a Brawl tournament in early January and got 4th place after not playing for maybe a year. Played BlazBlue pretty well for a while. I play Iron Tager and actually vsed Mike Z at an arcade and got a round on him. If you don’t know who that is let me put it plainly. BlazBlue is a fighting game. Mike Z is the best player in the US that plays as the character Iron Tager. I beat him in a round. Personal achievement accomplished. Haha.

Anyways that’s a little about me. I’ll be posting for games mainly along those genre but also plenty of others. There may also be reprints of what Game Ninja X put down for my own take on the item, but that is just a maybe. You can recommend games for me to play and review. That’s perfectly fine. My Xbox tag is BloodDash07 while most other games or forums online I go by Blooddash. So with that aside, thanks for having me.

– Blooddash

Super Street Fighter IV Nintendo 3DS Review

Posted on August 23, 2011 by GameNinjaX

Super Street Fighter IV is a must own for fighting game fans. I have played Super Street Fighter IV on the Xbox 360 and Nintendo 3DS and I must admit that it is much more fun on the 3DS. The graphics are actually comparable to the Xbox 360 and yet the Nintendo 3DS is in 3-D!

I know what you’re thinking, how can the Nintendo 3DS be better than an Xbox 360? The controls must be more difficult right? Wrong. The controls are actually very similar with the new analog stick for the 3DS and they make it even easier to do combos with the touch pad (kinda cheap really). What about being able to challenge people online? You can do that too on your Nintendo 3DS version of Super Street Fighter IV as well.

The only thing that Xbox 360 has over the Nintendo 3DS version is the ability to play with someone if you don’t want to go online.

Now lets get to the Gameplay, Super Street Fighter IV adds 10 new characters to the original Street Fighter IV set of characters making it a total of 35. The developers added more levels and achievements as well. You can also notice that this game flows a little smoother than the original Street Figher IV. The punches and kicks seem to be dead on with the timing of the visuals. One thing that they should have implemented was a new boss because Seth gets a little boring after the 20th time. If you play arcade mode with the default settings you can battle Gouken after the last match against Seth. You can do this if you did not lose a single round, have at least two perfect rounds, executed ten first hits, and performed five Ultra Combo or Super Combo finishes. That’s not hard right newbs!

Super Street Fighter IV rates:

Gameplay 8/10 A very fluid fighting game for the Nintendo 3DS, and it’s currently the top rated one. Not to mention the amount of characters available and it’s the first 3-D Street Fighter!

Graphics 8.5/10 I was literally amazed how well the developers implemented the 3-D graphics into a 2-D fighting game. It’s comparable to the Xbox 360 graphis except in the palm of your hand.

Auido 7/10 Just your normal Street Fighter sound tracks with the ever lasting “Hadouken” sound effects when utilizing special moves

Replay Value 8/10 Lets face it, Street Fighter has been around for over a decade (almost 2) this game can always be picked up and played.

Have Super Street Fighter IV for the Nintedo 3DS send me your friend code and we can play against each other! If you have it on Xbox 360 add my gamertag, ASG Bilbo. If you’re really into fighting games check out my review for Marvel vs Capcom 3

Check out this video of Super Street Fighter IV game play for the Nintendo 3DS!

Super Street Fighter IV Nintendo 3DS trailer

League of Legends Wukong Review

Posted on August 18, 2011September 29, 2011 by GameNinjaX

League of Legends Wukong

League of Legends new champion, Wukong, represents the legendary monkey king from Japanese folk tales. Wukong is the embodiment of the character from the Dragon Ball Z series as well.

See the Resemblance?

Wukong, the new League of Legends champion, is a beast and very fun to play. Wukong’s primary role is to inflict dps while decoying the enemy champions. Wukong’s abilities allow him to strike from afar (nimbus strike) and then create an image of himself to distract enemy champions (decoy) and run away if need be. Not to mention he comes equipped with the legendary monkey king staff and has a move that will inflict extra damage on your next hit.

League of Legends Wukong Nimbus Strike

How to play Wukong– Wukong is to be played as a hit and run champion. In the beginning of the game it is recommended to purchase Dorans Blade to increase dps and health, which is a very useful starting weapon. I upgrade my first ability in Nimbus strike, then once I hit level 2 get decoy and start targeting enemy champions with Nimbus strike, and then use decoy to leave with no damage.

If you can work this effectively, you can push the enemy back to his tower and now they are on the defensive. The next item to go for are Berserkers Greaves, which increase Wukong’s movement speed and attack speed. Wukong’s main disadvantage is his speed, so its best to acquire these boots early in game and perhaps pick up the Ghost spell to chase enemy champions or run back to base. Be careful not to start an all out brawl with Wukong because if he is targeted by the enemy team then you will not last long. Wukong has decent health but he is not a tank which means you will get targeted. Just look for ways to help your teammates gank enemy champions or keep using the nimbus strike/decoy combo to push lanes. I normally go for Trinitiy Force (even though its very costly) after the Berserkers Greaves and by that time you should be a DPSing machine.

Wukong’s Volcanic Skin

If you follow those basics you will definitely know how to play Wukong as a well rounded champion. However, here are the advantages and disadvantages of playing as Wukong.

Pros- Decent character all around as far as staying alive and inflicting damage. I have seen other League of Legends players carry a team with Wukong if you utilize his nimbus strike and decoy attacks properly.

Cons- He is a slow character, which makes it hard to play catch up if you normally have to run back and forth to the base. For some reason, Wukong cannot get a majority of the killing blows which means your teammates will usually get the kill. I have experienced this using Wukong myself and other Wukong players have as well.

Overall– Though Wukong is a fun character to play as and isn’t to difficult to learn, I recommend trying him out at least once, especially if you enjoyed the Dragon Ball Z series. I mean nimbus cloud, magic staff, and a monkey tail what more could you ask for lol!

Finally, Riot Games has heard League of Legends fans complaints and added new maps to play! Dominion maps are set to come out soon and you can count that I will have posted a review with tips, tricks, and advice when Dominion is live.

Check out my full review of League of Legends

Nintendo 3DS Review

Posted on August 14, 2011September 29, 2011 by GameNinjaX

Nintendo 3DS Review

I went ahead and took advantage of my Powerup Rewards card offer and bought the Nintendo 3DS for $99. Let me tell you that I am not disappointed! Nintendo Consoles/games have been a huge let down as of late, but start purchasing stock in Nintendo again ladies and gentlemen, because the Nintendo 3DS is spectacular.

Nintendo 3DS HD Pictures

The Nintendo 3DS is like having a portable Xbox/PS2/Gamecube in your hand. Not only are the graphics in 3D, but the 3DS can also go online, take HD pictures, download Gameboy games directly to a SD card, and be used as a mp3 player.

Nintendo 3DS HD pictures are high quality and can be stored on the SD that it comes with. I was planning on buying a new camera, but after seeing that my 3DS takes HD quality pictures and my cell phone does as well, why bother?

The controls on the 3DS are a big upgrade from the normal directional pad because it comes with a mini joystick pad that makes games like Super Street Fighter 4 and Dead or Alive a lot easier to play on hand helds. I also really like the sleek metallic design that the 3DS has because it feels very modern.

Graphics– The graphics are quite amazing, I turned my Nintendo 3DS on when I got home and was staring at the screen wondering how Nintendo created a hand held device that had Xbox like graphics. I remember playing on those big fat gray Gameboys like it was yesterday and now cell phones have free apps that have better graphics. Technology has come a long way in such a short amount of time.

Here is an example of how good the graphics are for this hand held device. Doesn’t that remind you of the Gamecube graphics that was out just 5 years ago?

Not only are the graphics very detailed but the 3D images do work and without those annoying glasses! (When will the movies learn)

There is, however, a few cons to having such detailed 3D images on a hand held. The first is that sometimes the images blur for poorer quality games, which can get very annoying. The second con is that after staring into the device for about 20 minutes you will develop a slight headache. One solution to the headaches are to just pause the game and take a break (eat a sandwich you lazy bums) or you can turn down the 3D graphics. Even when the 3D graphics are turned off the images are more detailed than a regular DS which is nice.

Nintendo 3DS Rates: (Can you tell that I like the aqua color?)

Graphics 9/10, For a hand held device what more can you ask for? The images are in 3D, require no glasses and not to mention look like your playing the previous generation of consoles.

Controls 8/10 The controls are similar to the Nintendo DS except the addition of the mini joystick which I like, and a new home button.

Audio 7/10 The only reason I rated the audio is because of the issue I have with the volume. It doesn’t seem to get as loud as previous Gameboys, which is kind of disappointing. They are loud enough to hear, but if you have the TV on or loud neighbors good luck trying to block out distractions.

Features 9/10 When I read that the Nintendo 3DS can take HD pictures I was impressed but the features don’t stop there. The 3DS has WiFi capabilities to download older games, a sound management section for listening to music, a Mii character, and much more.

Overall, I am pretty impressed with the Nintendo 3DS and recommend purchasing one with the recent price cut from $249 to $169. You will definitely be seeing more Nintendo 3DS game reviews coming, especially for Star Fox :).

What do you guys think about the 3DS? Has anyone tried to download a Gameboy game from the online store yet? Leave some comments and some luv!

Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2 Review

Posted on August 12, 2011September 29, 2011 by GameNinjaX


Marvel Ultimate Alliance

Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2 is Ravens latest video game that utilizes their tried and true action rpg formula. This is the 4th installment to their marvel action rpg’s after X-men Legends and the first Marvel Ultimate Alliance. If you’re a fan of super heroes and comics, than this game was made for you. This game does implement some new features that make the game play a bit more dynamic than just mashing the A button, such as the Fusion special powers. Not to mention the host of 24 payable characters to keep it interesting.


Marvel Ultimate Alliance Playable Characters

Fusion powers are combining 2 of your heroes abilities together, such as Hulk and Thor smashing the ground with Hulk smash and Thors Hammer. You get an achievement for doing all 24 character fusions which is kinda easy points. Actually, almost every achievement in Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2 is a freebie (utilize this game if you care about gamer points).

If only Dead Pool had Mjolnir

The games storyline is based off of the Civil War series where during the middle of the game you have to choose anti or pro registration for revealing super hero identities. This decision will change the path you take during game play and will also change a few of the available characters (which pissed me off cuz I had to go back and redo it on legendary). The storyline could have been a bit more engaging, but it was sufficient enough to keep me entertained. This game is basically a Marvel dungeon crawler because you go through levels just obliterating hordes of enemies while collecting fun items/artifacts to unlock 3 powerful characters (Thor shows his godly powers in this one).

I am hoping that X-Men Destiny will have similar fighting style features to this game. I also searched for any rumors about Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3, but couldn’t find any relevant information about it coming out. Hurry up Raven and make us Marvel comic fans another sequel!

Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2 Rates

Graphics 7/10 Not horrible graphics for the 360, but definitely not the best either. The cut scenes look almost as if you’re watch an Iron Man movie drunk or something, but we can all expect the low edge graphics from the previous titles.

Gameplay 7/10 This game is loads of fun if your a fan of Marvel or comics in general, but if you don’t care for super heroes then I would stray away from this title.

Audio 8/10 All the characters sound like their normal selves and come with a few funny jokes here and there. Especially Dead pool’s and Hulk’s, make sure you ask a few questions with them.

Replay Value 7/10 It was a hard decision because I think it deserves more than a 7, but at the same time the game does get repetitive. It is fun though to replay and do both pro-registration and anti-registration on different difficulties.

Overall, this game is a 7 and a rent would suffice for super hero fans. If you can’t wait like me for Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3, there is Marvel vs Capcom 3 to hold us off for a while.

Has anyone heard any rumors of Marvel Ultimate alliance 3 yet?

Here is a cool game trailer in case you are wondering what the game play looks like.