ZTGD

Dragon Quest Heroes II is a solid sequel to a refreshing take on the musou genre. I love that Omega Force has been expanding on the style for a while now. These themed entries are often much more interesting than the standard ‘Warriors’ games. Still, some of the changes feel not for the best, and the combat started to drag on the longer I played.

Dawn of War III certainly isn’t the type of sequel that fans of the series may have anticipated, albeit it is still a title that is faithful to the Warhammer franchise. However, Relic’s gamble of adapting their franchise in a way that more closely aligns with the popular MOBAs of the day has largely paid off, even if the game does suffer from a bit of an identity crisis in the process.

Even though I didn’t use it all that much the more I progressed through the game, I could see how it might be useful in a harder difficulty run as I played on normal mode. Without redefining the foundations of the original, Outlast 2 weaves an intriguing tale- paced expertly through environments that breed a sense of tension and paranoia only the best in the genre can muster.

In the end, The Silver Case is a strange, but interesting title. I can’t really fault it too much for its design. This is a game from 1999 after all, but some of the dialog choices made and what could have been fixed a bit in a new translation could have helped the hokey exchanges from time to time.

There are lots of antiquated systems in Voodoo Vince – it is a product of its time. I could complain about how the developers should have taken the time to fix these issues, but I am a realist. This game is $14.99, and by all intents and purposes, likely would never have gotten a second chance without some love from a few big name executives at Microsoft. That said none of its issues deterred from my enjoyment. Vince is a great character, and for the price this game delivers exactly what I wanted from it: a chance to play it again without digging out my original Xbox.

Wonder Boy: The Dragon’s Trap is a fun, nostalgic romp that brings some of its legacy issues along for the ride. For those that can adapt to that, it is a great game. I am all for bringing back lesser-known titles, especially from consoles such as the Master System, as long as the same love and care is poured into them.

Sexy Brutale is a title with an intriguing premise, backed up by a story well worth experiencing. However, the lackluster characterization and singular, uninteresting solutions to its puzzles hold it back from greatness.

Now, while for the most part the game was inoffensive, it did feel rather boring and broken in some ways, but at the $29.99 price tag they’re asking for, I feel inclined to do more than just blow it off and ignore it. I now have to actively tell people to avoid this title. Even with the amount of races offered in single player, there is no way I would spend up to 30 dollars on this title. I would go as far as maybe ten bucks at the most.

On a whole this is one outstanding collection granted players come into it with proper expectations. Sure the original Duck Tales is a blast, but most of these games have not aged as well as one would hope. Still, I cannot recommend it enough, it brought back memories. From the music to the insane difficulty, I had a blast. The rewind feature allowed me to see them all, and the new leader boards and modes make it worthwhile.

The term so close, yet so far away fits perfectly here. I adore so much of what this game does, but the combat becomes its Achilles Heel. With some tweaking this could easily be a franchise action RPG I would gladly play every few years. As it sits now, the frustration kept me from enjoying the best parts of Shiness and its world.