When I was asked to do an indie game review, I was quite excited. “I wonder what quirky yet fun little game I will get to try out!” I thought. I have played several indie games, whether as a part of the Humble Indie Bundle (which I payed $15.00 for, thank you very much) or as standalone games downloaded off of XboxLive; I am proud to say that I support indie developers. I am also aware that because these developers do not have massive budgets and teams, they have a certain amount of wiggle-room when compared to the larger developers.
So when I say that Dr. Mazing is to indie games what Pol Pot was to Cambodia, understand that this game was bad, even considering it’s “indie” status.
Honestly, it feels kind of wrong calling this steaming pile an indie game. For that matter, it feels wrong to even call it a “game”. It seems more like an unskilled gamer decided to pleasure himself mentally by cobbling a game together out of a half-remembered high school programming class and Microsoft Paint, just so he can call himself an “indie game developer.” Upon browsing BitCore Studios’ website, I found that this game was not some sort of ill-conceived joke, but that the creator took this game quite seriously.
This does not surprise me.
When I first started the game up, I was greeted by this:
This is what greeted me. I should have known to turn back then.
Upon viewing this mess, I thought to myself, “Gee, what awful, child-like art. This can only mean that the humor or content will be more mature in nature, and they chose this art style ironically.” This view made sense, based on the fact that no game would dare use art this bad if it wasn’t going to be able to make up for it in gameplay and story. Honestly, it looked like a 4-year-old with epilepsy finger-painted it in a drunken stupor. Not that I’m saying I could do any better, but then again, I’m not a game developer. Moving on…
I hit the start button, and what could be described only in the loosest sense as “the plot” began. This being a little arcade game, I wasn’t expecting much of a plot. Considering that the game is a 2d sidescrolling beat’em up only means that it requires even less of a plot than most games. Other great 2d sidescrolling beat’em up’s are the quarter arcade classics Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and (my personal favorite) Cadillacs and Dinosaurs, and their plots essentially were “Bad people did things. Stop them. Beat up their dudes.” So the fact that I was still disappointed by the plot of Dr. Mazing is astounding. It would have been better with no plot, because at least then I wouldn’t have been subjected to long, poorly drawn, and painful “cut-scenes”. The worst part of the whole thing? It took itself seriously.
That’s right. The only way this game could get away with existing is by being funny, and it doesn’t even try. It tries to be cool and have sexual tension and a grand reveal at the end, and it fails so hard, it almost brings tears to my eyes.
The really great part? All 9 levels are the same. 9 levels of hell.
“But even the worst beat’em ups have some intrinsic value, right? It couldn’t be THAT bad.”
Yes. Yes it can.
Because while pretty much all beat’em ups are fun in a way, you have to actually be able to play them. This is not one of those games you can actually play. If you can hold down on the X button and move right, you have won the game. You have just successfully beaten every enemy in the game. That is not playing. That is interactive watching. If you have 2 thumbs, you cannot lose. Except for when you do.
Nearly every enemy in the game is easily beatable with just 2 fingers, but there is one boss who cannot be beaten this way. And this is because this game takes the command “If imagescollide…” very seriously. If an image of a bullet or swinging fist touches your image, even if your character is supposedly nowhere near that bullet or fist, you will take damage. The game forgets that you are viewing the action at an angle, and that it is a 2d game. so things that should go behind or in front of you still act as if they had hit you. Now combine that with an enemy who’s swinging fists take up more than half the screen.
Now you understand this boss.
All of this comes together to make the single worst gaming experience I have ever encountered. I expect better gameplay from internet flash games or McDonalds Happy Meal “video games”. When a gamer looks at a game, and says, “I have the capability to make this game, but the logic and good reason not to.” you know that something is terribly, terribly wrong. This fecal heap could have been made with MS paint and a half-remembered high school programming class, and probably was.
I checked out the site at http://bitcorestudios.com/ , and discovered that I was right. This game was made by a single person. And I have this to say to him: I respect what you have done. You have made a game, and I have not. Congratulations, you are further on the road to being a real game designer than most people who want to be one. That said, you should not have released it upon the earth. Show it to some friends, say “I made a game”, and delete it immediately. That is what you should have done, not CHARGED PEOPLE MONEY for it.
If you do happen to accidentally buy this horrid mess, there is a way to at least get some benefit out of it. Play the game with some alcohol, and every time you want to quit, take a shot. You’ll be drunk by the end of the first level, and dead by the end of the third.
And so, Mr. Game Designer man, I leave you with the immortal words of that guy from Billy Madison, “I award you no [capsules], and may God have mercy on your soul.
Spoon feed yourself these songs by Spoon next week on Rock Band 2. Ever wonder which spoon there spoon actually meant? Did they intend the spoon spoon or the other spoon? I eat cereal with spoons. Yes, I eat a bowl of cereal with multiple spoons at the same time. Oh yeah, and one POD track.
Spoon Tracks – 560 Microsoft Points (160 Microsoft points each)
Spoon – “Trouble Comes Running”
Spoon – “Don’t You Evah”
Spoon – “I Turn My Camera On”
Spoon – “Got Nuffin”
P.O.D. Single Track – 160 Microsoft Points
P.O.D. – “Alive”
Look out for them from June 1st on the Xbox Live Marketplace.
Did you know I don’t have a firm grasp on how to even play Boggle? I have the game in 4 different formats and still don’t know what I’m doing. I shake the container, I see letters, and I makeup words that don’t actually exist. But I have the degree and you don’t, and for all you know the word I just said is a real word. Don’t believe me? well, then you are stupid and I would suggest not to argue with my awesome boggle powers! Obenobif my awesome funuts rufibo! Those are totally real words! Look them up if you don’t believe me. Waste your time looking up words in that dictionary, or you could just give me the points and we move on.
Game for Windows Live is perfect for those that love PC games but also love their Xbox Live account. Why not continue PC gaming and gain achievements to show off to all your friends that easily jumps between the xbox 360 and your PC. Good news for everyone that thought that last bit sounded good. Dark void is currently only $10 through June 1st. That’s almost cheaper than renting it. Haven’t playing the game yet? Why not just buy it now on Games for Windows Live.
Bruce Lee: Dragon Warrior Genre: Fighting Platform: iPhone (Reviewed), iPad Publishers:Digital Legends, India Games Price: $4.99 Buy Now!
Story:
You are Bruce Lee in the prime of his youth and just as arrogant about his skills than any other teenager. By fighting on the streets of Hong Kong he gains a name for himself in the street as one of the toughest fighters. This quickly grabs the attention of a martial arts school who chooses to fight Bruce Lee himself. When the student is defeated he introduces Bruce to his master and so begins the long and enjoyable story of Bruce Lee’s rise to greatness.
Surprisingly the story mode for Bruce Lee is one of the best you will see in a fighting game, especially one for the iPhone. The story is cohesively told through text and comic book art in between fights. You will be able to navigate between fights using a world map to travel to tournaments, training sessions, and street fights. The story mode is quite long and is very engaging, reaching more than four hours in length if you rush and even more if you take part in the extra fights.
Graphics:
The 3D graphics you will see in Bruce Lee: Dragon Warrior are top notch for the iPhone. The game has been toted as using motion capture technology to make the character motions as lifelike as possible. Thankfully this developmental technique has transferred well into the gameplay and each technique used is fluid and is never over the top.
There are a total of ten different fighters available within the game and each one is unique to themselves and designed well. Each model may have a few fuzzy elements but they are colorful if nothing else. Considering each character has their own unique fighting style and moving style with no palette change between characters.
Considering the amount of fighting you will be doing during the story mode there are only five different venues that you shall do battle in. Though for these five levels there was definitely a great amount of attention paid towards them. Each level has small details that will leave you wondering what system you are actually playing on. Beyond the small details and occurrences happening around the fighters, there is even a day and night option for a bit more variety. Though essentially the same levels, with the addition of a night mode it practically doubles the amount of fighting stages available.
Gameplay:
There are a variety of gameplay modes to choose from; such as Story, Arcade, Survival, Time Attack and Training. Surprisingly though there is no actual Versus mode. There is the computer to fight against with no option for human vs human combat. This is unfortunate because the actual fighting is top notch and it would be interesting to test your skills against other fighters.
As I said before Story Mode is Bruce Lee: Dragon Warrior’s bread and butter. The majority of gameplay will be take place in Story mode and in the end it is essential. When you first begin there is a large amount of characters and stages that are still locked. You will have to advance through the story mode and beat different fighters to unlock them and their stages.
Within the story mode you will be fighting amongst the other nine characters in the gameplay. As you do battle with them through the various fighting stages you will gain XP. As your Bruce Lee gains levels more bits of the game will be unlocked. One of these unlockable bits of gameplay is that you will occasionally learn your opponents moves. These can then be used in the Style Editor which is essentially a customization option for Bruce. It isn’t anything extravagant but the ability to modify your fighting style to mix together some of the best techniques from the best fighters is a nice touch.
Speaking of the fighting; the fighting system would do these master fighters proud. There are high and low kicks, high and low punches to go over the simple basics. However there are also the special moves which will do significant damage towards your opponent. These special moves are used by gathered energy in the Chi bar, you can use a special move either through the specific direction combination or punch kick combo. There is also a counter system which will reduce your Chi by doing said counterattack successfully.
The control scheme for these attacks are quite simple. Directions are controlled through the d-pad/joystick in the left bottom corner, while punches and kicks are handled between a punch button and kick button on the right side with a small picture of the attack inside of the button. However the game has a small issue with the recognition of presses. Occasionally if you were to press the attacks to quickly, then your character will continue to attack in a queue of moves that will sometimes leave you wide open to counterattacks. In one such instance after being knocked down, my fighter stood up and performed a variety of kicks and punches into thin air even though I was only pushing the directional pad.
Overall:
In the end Bruce Lee: Dragon Warrior is an excellent fighting game and one of the top ones available for the iPhone. Though bear in mind it is a bit simple as there are only the standard attacks and special attacks. There are zero inhuman abilities or special attacks. You won’t be seeing any hadokens in this one. Besides the lack of player vs player combat Bruce Lee lives up to his legend here.
Today, I am reviewing the Nokia BH-905 Bluetooth stereo headset. Big thanks to Nokia for providing the headset for review. Nokia BH-905 is a flagship headphone accessory from Nokia with bluetooth wireless connectivity, 10 microphones and active noise cancellation being some of its key features. But to make it even more special, it can even be used wired by using the provided cable to hook it up to a non-bluetooth device. Now I’m very much into good music listening on the go and never really took bluetooth wireless headsets nor active noice cancelling heaphones that seriously. But after trying out the BH-905, I now can see that a good bluetooth headset can sound as good as wired ones!
To get you into the right mood about this headphone, I recommend you to watch this excellent Nokia promo video for the BH-905 before reading this review.
– She looks much prettier than me so I had to use this photo. (Photo Source: Nokia)
GOOD + Light weight and comfortable to wear
+ Superb sound quality
+ Great looking design
+ Non-intrusive noise cancellation that works
+ Wireless and wired connectivity options
+ Built-in mic for handsfree phone calls
+ Plenty of bundled adapters and cables
BAD
– Price is a bit steep
– Open-style allows others to hear your music in quiet environments
– Looks a bit awkward when worn due to protruding side headband
– Does not block out all types of noise
– The box that it came in.
The BH-905 comes in a nice big black box. Once opened, you will find the following contents:
Nokia Bluetooth Stereo Headset BH-905
Nokia Carrying Case CP-298
Nokia Audio Cable CA-143U with 3,5mm Nokia AV connector (~1.2m)
Nokia Extension Audio Cable CA-144U (~1.7m)
Nokia AV Adapter AD-52 for 2.5 mm Nokia AV
Nokia Audio Adapter AD-63 for standard 3.5 mm jack
Nokia Adapter AD-71 for airplane
Nokia Adapter AD-70 for 6.3 mm home stereo
Nokia Travel Charger AC-5 (same as most other Nokia phones)
User guide
– Forgot to take the pic of the user guide. But here are all the important bits.
The carrying case has a leather-like feel to the exterior and a full round zipper to open and close. It has a wrist strap attached as well which can easily be taken off if desired. Inside, you get to see what you paid for, the BH-905 headset. There are also little elastic loop holders for the plug adapters, AC charger and cables. The headphone has a snug fit with moulded sections and side walls for the headset. No rattling in here when closed which is what you want. However, the case is quite hefty in size. So you’ll need a decent sized bag to fit it in if you want to have it with you all the time. But this is same for most other headphones of this size.
Design & Build
First thing which popped up in my mind when I opened the case and saw the BH-905 headset was “wow, looks very classy!”. It definitely looks the money. All my friends who saw it said it looks really nice with its chrome accents and the simple lines. The headset does not feel flimsy or weak when held. The headband has enough cushioning in the top middle portion and the side part of the headband bends outwards to minimize the damage to your hairstyle. The headband is also nice and thick so it’s not going to snap or break anytime soon either. Overall, it’s very well built and has the looks as well. It would have been great if there were more various color options such as a full white version or army/camo version. That would have appealed to the fashion conscious.
The earpad is very well cushioned and quite soft. So your ears do not feel any hard object or pressure whatsoever. One concern was the material used. It is a faux-leather like outer area with a meshed material for center. There may be a chance that the material will get worn down or get ripped over time although in my experience with similar headphones, this still takes a couple of years at least.
– Other than the switch for ANC, rest of the buttons are all on the right side. (Photo Source: Nokia)
Usability There really isn’t much to the headset in terms of buttons / functions. This is a good thing. Hold the power button on the right ear piece to turn the bluetooth on. Then search for the headset from your mobile phone via bluetooth. Select BH-905 and pair. Done. Now whenever you switch on the headset, it will auto-pair with the last device it paired with which would most likely be your mobile phone. Works flawlessly and without hassle. In terms of wireless distance, I was able to hear the music cleanly up to about 10 meters before it started to disconnect. Even through quite a few concrete walls in-between myself and the phone.
Most of the headset’s buttons are on the right ear piece. Power/Multi-Function, previous, next, play/pause, volume up and down. On the left ear piece, there is only one switch to activate the Active Noise Cancellation (ANC). The buttons are intelligently places and sized so that you can easily figure out which button is where while it is still placed on your head. They have a nice solid click feel to them and also give an audible “blip” sound feeback through the headphones when depressed.
– Headband can be extended on both sides. It holds its position firmly but looks like it can get a bit loose over time.
One great feature of this headset is the fact that it can be used with a cable to be able to listen to virtually any audio device. So you are not stuck to just bluetooth capable devices. I’ve noticed that even when the BH-905 is paired wirelessly to my Nokia N900, if I plug in the cable to the headset, BH-905 immediately turns off its bluetooth signal and goes into a standard headphone mode. However, the active noise cancellation can still be enabled which means you still get to enjoy the music noise free.
In terms of battery life, the headset is able to pull off some great runtime. According to the specs, it will last 24 hours over bluetooth wireless when listening to music or making a phone call. With noice cancellation turned on, it’ll last around 15 hours. That is impressive. However, this headset has the benefit of being able to use it wired. This means that it can be used as both a stereo music headset as well as a wired handsfree for phone calls even when it has no juice left. Just plug the cable in and voila! In the plane where you may use it wired, you can still enable the Active noise cancellation for up to 40 hours. So you never have to worry about it running out of battery even in the longest flights around the globe. It takes less than 2 hours to fully charge using a common 2mm Nokia charger and has said to be able to standby in bluetooth mode for up to 600 hours. That’s an amazing 25 days of standby with bluetooth left on. Over the past 2 weeks I’ve had the headset, I’ve never been in a situation where it ran out of battery. I doubt I ever will. My phone/mp3 player/laptop will run out of battery much before this headset will that’s for sure.
– Very soft and plushy cushioning on the ear cups. No, they are not leather.
Comfort The BH-905 headset is very comfortable to wear. The ear cups have a thick but very soft padding that just lightly sits on your ear and does not exhibit any acute pressure points. The top part of the head band also has a plushy padding which ensures that you don’t feel the headband wrapping around your head. It should accomodate for most head sizes as the headband length can be extended on both sides. The left and right side of the headband also protrudes outwards which actually creates quite a gap between your head and the headband. This gives you a feeling that it’s not really sitting on top of your head. In saying that, it does look slightly awkward when worn. But my friends told me it looks fine so I guess it’s not that bad. The pressure of the headset pushing in on the ear is about just right although I personally prefer something slightly tighter.
It is very comfortable even when worn for extended periods and everyone else who i got to try the BH-905 out all agreed that it is extremely comfortable. For light jogging, it has no problems staying put and not falling off. But if you shake your head a lot for whatever reason, the headset does move about and become insecure. Overall, this is one super comfortable headset that is sure to please most.
– Thick and soft head band support. It’s definitely one of the most comfortable headsets out there.
Active Noise Cancellation (ANC) This is a big feature of the BH-905 and it sure doesn’t disappoint. The technology behind it is called the Wolfson AudioPlus Ambient Noise Cancellation and it offsets the ambient frequencies heard through its 8 microphones and in turn reduces the level of noise heard by your ear. As with most active noise cancelling headphones, it works best with a consistent low to mid frequencies such as airplane noise, fan/air-conditioning noise, road noise while in freeways etc. In such environments, when you switch it on, you will be amazed at the difference it makes. The best way to experience this immediately is to turn the ANC feature on while playing no music through the headset.
Just flick the switch on the left ear cup and enable the noise cancellation. It takes about 1 second for it to activate but when it does, you’ll suddenly feel like you have disconnected yourself from the world as it eliminates nearly all constant ambient noise. However, you will still be able to hear the people talking next to you and any accute sounds. The specs say it will reduce 99% of the noise. I think their definitition of noise is a bit different to mine as it definitely doesn’t seem that much in real life environments. But still, it was good enough to impress all my work teammates. So it does not lock you out silent but at least it removes most of the head-ache inducing constant frequency noise in the background. This also allows you to listen to the music at a lower volume than what you would normally do as you don’t have to fight with the ambient noise.
One other great thing about the active noise cancellation of the BH-905 is that it does not affect the sound quality of the input source that is being played whatsoever. So the music does not get processed by the DSP and is totally untouched even when enabled. This ensures that the music sound quality is always the same. However, it does generate some hiss when the ANC is enabled. It’s very little so it does not actually affect you while listening to music at any significant volume. But if you have no music playing, then you can hear the hiss. In saying that, the hiss is much quieter than the ambient noise that you hear when ANC is disabled. It just shows how well the ANC actually is performing in terms of eliminating the ambient noise around you for you to be able to hear such low volume hiss.
– I really like how the switch for ANC is not just a button but a proper switch. (Photo Source: Nokia)
Sound Quality When pairing it up to my N900 via Bluetooth and playing some music for the first time, I was a bit disappointed with its sound quality. A bit hollow and not dynamic enough in all the frequencies. Felt a bit like it was holding back the sound. But after I ran it in for a couple of hours of various music, it started to show what it really is capable of. As with most headphones, it just needed to be loosened up a little. Now it is well balanced, slightly warm sounding and much more dynamic. There is no audible distortion at the loudest volume, no ear piercing treble and no over blown bass. I didn’t hear much noise/hiss over bluetooth either. I got various people to try it out at my work and most were very impressed at its performance and sound quality. Simply brilliant considering it’s over bluetooth wireless.
Volume also was aplenty and the built-in amplifier seems to be able to pump out some serious sound level while over bluetooth. Defiintely loud enough to annoy everyone around you in the train/bus/plane considering that it is an open-style headphone that leaks out some sound. This to me is a problem. I would have much preferred a closed-type headphone design for this as it cups your ear and isolates the music more for yourself and not affect others around you. But that’s me. I commute via public transport often. For those who don’t, open style headphones gives you a more airy sounding experience and overall, better quality sound.
– Those grills are not where the microphones are. Not sure what they are actually.
Listening to some up beat hip hop music, it showed that it can handle the beats with no problem as the bass was tight and loud, mids were not lost and highs remained clear and distinct. Tried some pop opera and the clarity was superb. It’s about accurate rendition of music here. If you are used to bass heavy closed headphones, BH-905 may sound a bit weak in the very low frequencies. But all in all, I don’t think you will find any better bluetooth wireless headset that sounds this good. Yes, it’s that good.
Using the provided cable instead of bluetooth wireless, it will not sound as loud in volume when coupled with most mobile phones. This is due to the fact that the input sound is amplified by the portable device (ie. mobile phone) instead of the built-in amplifier in the headset. However, attaching the BH-905 with my Nokia N900 via the cable, it was still plenty loud. So it seems the BH-905 is quite easy to drive and has decent sensitivity. (I couldn’t find the exact sensitivity value in the official specs) The sound quality doesn’t deviate greatly from when used over bluetooth although theoretically, it should sound a little better due to it being wired. It’s also great that you can still turn on the noise cancellation while using cable. Perfect for plane trips where you can plug the BH-905 into the plane seat with the provided adapter and enjoy the extra silence that it can offer.
Finally, I need to comment about the voice call quality. It’s a bluetooth headset for a mobile phone afterall. I expected great things and it didn’t fail. While I have the headset on, if the phone call comes in, I just press the power/multifunction button on the right earpiece to pick up.
– Ear pieces supports a wide range of movements to cater for everyone. It tilts an swivels. (not 180 degrees)
Conclusion
This is one heck of a bluetooth headset. The sound quality when listening to music rivals that of a good open-style pair of headphones even over bluetooth wireless! Active Noise Cancellation works and isn’t just a gimmick. Fact that it doesn’t degrade the audio quality one bit is a huge plus. As a handsfree headset for phone calls, it works as expected and people don’t have any problems hearing my voice nor myself hearing them. It’s light, comfortable and well built. It does what it is designed to do and it does it better than expected. Only downside is the AUD$399 RRP price tag.
Ben 10 Alien Force: The Rise of Hex Publisher: Konami Developer: Black Lantern Platforms: Xbox 360 Release Date: May 26th, 2010
Story
“Ben 10 Alien Force: The Rise of Hex follows Ben Tennyson as he finds himself in the middle of Hex’s villainous plan to control the Earth. Utilizing the powers of the Omnitrix, transform Ben into ten different alien forms including Big Chill, Spider Monkey, and for the first time ever, Lodestar, as he battles Hex and his minions. Choose from 10 different aliens to platform your way through 15 levels completing puzzle challenges along the way. Fight through menacing villains and bosses in Ben’s newest adventure. Experience the world of Ben 10 Alien Force with 3-D characters set in a vibrant, 2-D styled environment.” [Via Xbox.com]
Kevin and Gwen have been taken by Hex and it is up to you to use the powers of the Omnitrix to stop him. There isn’t much of a story present in the game. You go through the levels to get to hex and beat him. My younger brother, who watches the show, says the game relates pretty well to the actual show and he was able to understand what was going on in the game better than I could. The story of the game seems to heavily rely on you watching the show in order to understand what is going on which alienates any newcomers.
Gameplay
Ben 10: The Rise of Hex is a platformer that requires you to use multiple alien forms to progress through the levels. Each alien has unique abilities that help you progress through the levels. Whether it be lodestar and his magnetic attracting powers, or big chill’s ability to double jump and glide; you can switch between up to 10 different aliens as you progress through 15 levels and 3 bosses.
As you progress through the levels you will also run into monsters on the way. The combat in the game lacks luster; however, and attacks are slow and clunky. The enemies are pretty much all the same and just require button mashing to destroy. There a few that can fly and others that shoot lasers. Like I said; however, combat is slow and clunky and you can pretty much kill any enemy before they are even able to attack you.
There are multiple modes located in the game, which extend the game in length slightly. Survival mode, time attack, and multiple difficulty modes help a bit, but the game is short anyway. Survival mode has one stage and just keeps throwing enemies at you, but due to the clunky combat it becomes boring. Time Attack lets you replay all the levels in the game and post your best time on the leaderboard. The difficulty modes don’t change much other than the health of the enemies and the damage they cause, which just becomes tedious due to the clunky combat.
Audio & Graphics
The Audio in Ben 10: The Rise of Hex is extremely repetitive and only includes a few small music tracks that continually loop as you progress through the level. It isn’t as bad when you first hear a new song but you listen to each song loop so many times that you become grateful when a new song pokes its head out to play. The graphics are also nothing to be amazed at, a majority of the levels take place underground as you progress through buildings, caves and catacombs in search of Hex. A little bit of sunlight would’ve helped, but even the outdoor stages had rain and stormy weather.
Achievements
The achievements in Ben 10: The Rise of Hex are straight forward and easy. Overall the achievement list has a very nice mix of tasks which shouldn’t be too difficult to anyone. The hardest one is “All Powered Up” because it is kind of hard to find all the extenders, but while working towards that achievement the rest should unlock.
The Achievement List (12 for 200g)
The World is Safe For Now – 10 – Complete the game once
True Hero – 25 – Survive for 5:00 in Survival Mode.
The Fast Lane – 20 – Complete the game in less than 3 hours
Ala Carte – 20 – Complete a level without collecting any health or energy items
Key Master – 20 – Collect all keycards
Playing with a Full Deck – 15 – Unlock all alien forms by beating levels 1-10
Unscathed – 10 – Defeat any level without getting hit
A Hero’s Workout – 10 – Defeat 50 enemies
A Hero’s Marathon – 15 – Defeat 300 enemies
No Time to Waste – 20 – Post a time on all level leaderboards.
Versatility – 15 – Harm the final boss using each alien before delivering the final blow.
All Powered Up – 20 – Collect all energy and health extenders
Overview
Ben 10: The Rise of Hex is a platformer with an interesting concept. Change between multiple aliens to pass the level and each level has multiple routes depending on your strategy and the aliens you have available. The only problem with the game is the slow combat and the fact that the game relies too heavily on you watching the actual show. I enjoyed playing the game but had absolutely no idea what was going on and who I was saving. My little brother tried to fill me in on the details that he understood from watching the show, but the game just didn’t have the same feel it could have had if I had seen the show. Ben 10: The Rise of Hex is a game that a fan of the show will enjoy playing but sadly there are just too many problems with it to enjoy it to the fullest, if you don’t watch the show.
I give Ben 10: The Rise of Hex
Pros
Fans will quite enjoy the game tie in.
Platforming that requires you to switch between multiple aliens.
Multiple modes, difficulty settings, and leaderboards
Cons
The game relies too much on you being a fan of the show.
Short, can easily be beaten in under 3 hours on your first playthrough.
The Nintendo download releases for this week are as follows:
Kirby’s Fun Pak (Virtual Console: Nintendo, 800 Wii Points)
Art Style: Penta Tentacles (WiiWare: Nintendo, 600 Points)
Lead The Meerkats (WiiWare: Lapland Studio, 1000 Wii Points)
Hero Of Sparta (WiiWare: Gameloft, 800 Wii Points)
Voodoo Dice (WiiWare: Ubisoft, 1000 Points)
Flips: The Magic Faraway Tree (DSiWare: EA, 500 DSi Points)
Animal Color Cross (DSiWare, Little World’s Studios, 500 DSi Points)
Just Sing! National Anthems (DSiWare: Engine Software, 200 DSi Points)
Bloons (DSiWare: Hands-on Mobile, 500 DSi Points)
So, that’s the round-up for this week. There is quite a number of games out for Wii and DSi to download this week, and especially on the Wii, with a lot of larger, pricey games. There are also some interesting titles coming out on the handheld front, such as Flips: The Magic Faraway Tree, from EA, which is designed to encourage people, namely younger children, to read. On top of this there is Animal Color Cross, a colourful version of Picross. If you are a fan of the original then this will probably be your kind of thing.
Unlike last week, there is also Virtual Console game out this week. Kirby’s Fun Pack, originally released on the SNES in 1996, boasts classic Kirby action. Expect to see all the fan favourites like King Dedede and Metaknight if you do decide to pick it up.
Alien Breed: Impact was just announced yesterday, but you can already pre-order the game on Steam for a 10% Off offer and an exclusive in-game digital comic, chronicling the troubled back-story of the game’s hero, Conrad, the doomed space vessel’s Chief Engineer.
If you are still unsure about the game, grab the demo on that link and check it out. The demo puts the player through their paces in a specially designed “Prologue” section. This can be played in single-player and in online co-op with a shooting buddy.
Alien Breed: Impact will be released June 3rd on Steam. Currently there’s no details about the PS3 version.
Alpha Protocol was launched this week in Europe, Australia and South America, while the United States version is set for June 1st.
The game’s reception have been pretty varied until now, some people are already showing their love for the game’s strong narrative and dialogue choices, while others are focusing their opinions around technical issues, since the game’s graphics are just average, and there’s some bugs and too much loading on the consoles. The word is that the PC version seems to be better overall.
You can expect a review from us in the near future. For now you can check the launch trailer below.
