Gears of War debuted with muscular, broad shouldered, gruff men fearlessly carrying chainsaw guns into combat. The militaristic bravado and arrogant sense of invincibility exuded American military pride, concealed (hardly) in sci-fi lore. Something happened to Gears of War though. Although conscious of loss in its first trilogy, the narrative shifted under a new development… Continue reading Gears Tactics (PC)
There’s a breathlessness to Resident Evil 3, a genuine urgency to cure Raccoon City of its corporately-induced infection (released by the ludicrously unethical Umbrella Corp.). Everything about Resident Evil 3 surges, desperately pushing toward the solution – a vaccine. It’s nigh impossible to imagine a game more “in the moment” than this, right now. In… Continue reading Resident Evil 3 (2020, Xbox One)
A continent-sized pentagram is charred onto America when Doom Eternal begins. More than Satanic in Doom’s context, it’s symbolic of capitalist aspirations finally conquering us all. Much happened between Doom and Doom Eternal. That story is lost in book-length text logs hidden around levels. Evil won though, and that evil is corporate fealty. While Earth… Continue reading Doom Eternal (Xbox One)
The Hammer of Dawn satellite super weapon is Gear 5’s equivalent to the hydrogen bombds of World War II. A visit to an outsider outpost brings derision aimed at the COG military – a small child pretends to shoot them, calling them fascists as he runs away. Later, a mission involves satellite assembly, backed by… Continue reading Gears 5 (Xbox One)
This year’s edition of the NFL’s carefully controlled videogame product focuses on QB1, a thin story concerning a college player pushed into a starting spot in his senior year – one game before the National Championship. Then, into the NFL, of course. It’s sports fantasy drivel, thinly formed but allowing people to live vicariously through… Continue reading Madden NFL 20 (Xbox One)
At the festival race starting line, LED boards flash rainbow colors, bright enough to reflect off the vehicles as their engines hum in excitement. It’s gorgeous. Finish the race and massive, 30-foot tall LED boards sprout up, likewise splashing colors in a kaleidoscopic celebration of cars. It’s prideful, the best of what Forza Horizon is… Continue reading Forza Horizon 4 (Xbox One)
The limitations of the 8-bit NES – the console Haunted ’86 was designed for – add to its creeps. A tight, restrictive color palette locks Haunted ’86 to using extensive black. That means ledges and background objects appear to just peek out, their edges highlighted. It’s mood where so few games of this ilk even… Continue reading Halloween: Haunted ’86 (Xbox One)
Sea of Thieves joins a new genre – the spectator game. It’s one where players experience Sea of Thieves through a bevy of shared .gifs, YouTube videos, Twitch highlights, and social media posts, then spend hours in the game wondering why none of that cool stuff happens to them. Reality says that Sea of Thieves… Continue reading Sea of Thieves (Xbox One)
Kids likely won’t care that Lucky, a fox that for some reason collects shamrocks, doesn’t have a personality. Lucky doesn’t even speak. He runs and bounds over obstacles with enjoyable, cheery motion. Lucky is having a blast and that’s enough. Timid and minimalist – that’s Super Lucky’s Tale. Quaint fantasy surroundings place Lucky in minor… Continue reading Super Lucky’s Tale (Xbox One)
Imagine, for a moment, you need brakes on your car. It’s a $60 repair according to the mechanic, seemingly a great price for new brakes. You agree. However, returning home, you discover those brakes weren’t installed. The mechanic explains $60 was the initial price. For additional cash, you can purchase a mystery box. That box… Continue reading Forza Motorsport 7 (Xbox One)
