Video Game Review: Crimson Dragon

Most of the game is on rails, and when that’s the case things handle reasonably well. You navigate within your guided route via the left stick and can do barrel rolls by tapping the left and right bumpers, respectively. Aiming is down with the right stick, whether for straight shots or to paint targets, with the right trigger firing. You can also toggle between available weapons with the left trigger. On missions with a wingman, you can have him cover front (d-pad up) or back (d-pad down) as well as team up for a powerful combination attack (X). It’s not great, but it works.

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Video Game Review: Gran Turismo 6

We’re sure longtime fans will find their groove much quicker, but we thought the layout and progression of the racing circuits was exceptionally well done. We never felt like the game was robbing us of well-deserved victories. Instead, we knew we needed to get better and/or purchase better equipment. It’s also worth noting how different the various cars handle… and given the vast number of available models this really helps give the game some added variety.

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Video Game Review: Freedom Cry DLC

Like the main game, Adewale has access to a ship, which can be upgraded. It’s a much faster process, though, with fewer tiers available and less resources needed. Many upgrades are also achieved by simply liberating slaves. The result is that you end up with lots of money and resources that have no purpose — in fact, free ammo is one of the perks for freeing a number of Maroons — which eliminates one of the rewards for exploration.

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Video Game Review: Halo: Spartan Assault

Tossing grenades (done via the left trigger) isn’t quite as clean. Instead of a true arc, the game seems to anticipate where you want the grenade to go. Typically it properly identifies your intended target with ease. This isn’t always the case, however, and there are times when your grenades will detonate on a turret instead of a group of Covenant or something equally annoying.

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Video Game Review: Knack

Layout and implementation aren’t the issue here — it’s the responsiveness. In a game in which many of the enemies have multiple attacks and can evade, too, the ability to react on the fly is important. Instead, what we get to work with is a collection of commands riddled with brief hesitations. For example, you can’t chain dodges together and are forced to pause momentarily after each one. Needless to say that’s not good when you’re routinely fighting three or more baddies at a time.

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Video Game Review: Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag

On the bright side, naval combat feels much improved. You have three different speeds at which to navigate the ship, and your full complement of weaponry is used contextually based on how you position the camera. For example, looking straight ahead allows use of mortars or a chain shot. Tilt until you’ve got a starboard or port view, however, and you’ll be firing cannons; look behind and you’ll drop explosive barrels into the water. Disabled vessels can be boarded if you come up alongside them, and outside of some trouble gauging distance between ships, it worked well.

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Video Game Review: NBA Live ’14

More disappointing that any of that, however, is the heavily touted BounceTek dribbling system. In theory, it’s supposed to allow you to quickly chain dribble moves together to break down defenders and leave them in your wake. Instead, the transitions are choppy and unnatural, which makes properly timing the controller inputs an uphill battle. So haphazard are the animations that it’s actually a better approach to use audio cues to time your moves. It’s a system in dire need of additional polish if it’s to deliver the intended experience.

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