Dane DeHaan likewise, does a good effort at offsetting Jordan’s optimistic and likeable character by playing a dark, troubled teenager. The majority of the film is seen through the shaky cam lens of DeHaan’s character, Andrew. There’s obvious signs that Andrew is going to turn much more evil later in the movie that it almost becomes cliché when it finally happens, but DeHaan also sells a very understandable reason for his character. Andrew is ostracized both at school and at home by a abusive father. While you want Andrew to succeed, DeHaan sells the fact that Andrew really has too much working against him to ever see the light, so when Andrew finally does snap, it’s less shocking and more expected.

Finally, rounding out the trio is Alex Russell’s character, Matt. Russell was the most frustrating performance in the movie as you never really understood where Matt stood. Was Matt an egotistical, popularity hungry teen? Was he a good student or a slacker? Did Matt care about family (Andrew) or just look out for number 1? You get mixed messages throughout the movie that leaves you frustrated and unable to relate to his character or get emotionally invested, and it’s a problem. Matt never becomes a very easy character to read so that when he ends up trying to be the light of reason towards the end of the movie, it feels somewhat tacked on, rushed and unconvincing. Without giving too much away, we know that Matt and Andrew are cousins; however, we also know that Andrew’s mom is very sick and is dying, but Matt never seems to discuss this with Andrew or show any sign of concern (or knowledge) of what’s going on. You would think this would actually come up at some point in the movie, but it’s totally ignored. Blame it on the writers or Russell’s acting, but it leaves a plot hole that’s hard to get around.

The shaky cam film style isn’t necessarily a bad choice to base Chronicle around as it attempts to remind the audience that this isn’t meant to be a heroic super hero movie, but it also feels like it removes the audience from the action at times. I personally would have preferred to go without it, but it’s not the worst job I’ve seen of it. One area of the film I did appreciate was the fact that there was very little time around the origin of the protagonists power, and more focus on exploring the use and training. Watching Jordan, Russell and DeHaan fly for the first time or watching them do Jackass style self damage throwing baseballs at each other is entertaining and it really sells the performance of your average teenage guys who just discovered they have amazing powers. There’s a talent show performance in the middle of the movie that really sells the characters as just enjoying being teenagers with powers, using them to have fun, become popular and of course, get the girls.

One of Chronicle‘s biggest problems though is the balancing of humor and fun with the depressing dark story of Andrew. While Andrew’s tortured home and social life sets him up for an eventual fall into darkness, the constant ping-ponging of enjoyment and abuse ultimately feels like an emotional mess throughout the movie. I understand the director wanted to remind us that Andrew can’t escape the torture of his home life no matter how much fun he has outside of it, but it felt all too often that the movie didn’t know what emotional direction it wanted to go in.

Chronicle is worth viewing; however, and I would genuinely like the idea of seeing a sequel (with an entirely brand new cast) if they can fix the issues above and (hopefully) get rid of the shaky cam movie style. Chronicle gets a C+ from GeekCitadel. Rent it for sure, but I can’t recommend a purchase.

Welcome to the walking nightmare… you are immediately placed in a car as a man in need of a better lawyer. You are Lee Everett, who is headed out of Atlanta in the back seat of a police car. The veteran police officer analyzing, Lee, believes he is not a guilty man. And he makes this point known while barely paying attention to the road. Like any good B movie, a shambling figure dances into the road and sends the both of you tumbling into a ditch.

It’s at this juncture that you are firmly in control of, Lee Everett. Unlike previous titles in the adventure genre, players will notice the lack of an intrusive U.I. If you’re familiar with any of Telltales previous games like, Back to the Future for example, you’ll notice some similarities but distinct differences when playing, The Walking Dead. The game completely omits the need to grab at random items; instead they are attached to the pointer and shown at the left of the screen.

The Walking Dead, incorporates vast changes to the formula of adventure games. To create a heightened sense of fear, Lee is placed into dangerous situations which span from quicktime events, to aiming the reticule at key body parts. It’s the survival aspect that keeps players locked into a game where you don’t constantly shoot zombies in the face. It’s a puzzle solving game without all of the elaborate choices from other games in the genre. A variety of the puzzles are fairly simple and common sense; while others rely on the player advancing to another area first.

It isn’t just the puzzles that make the world feel alive, it’s the sense of choice that most adventure games don’t have. Players will make tough choices that can change the whole dynamic of who Lee associates with. For example, there is a portion of the game where players can choose to roam the city in the daylight or at night. In one of these choices, the player will completely miss the opportunity to meet one of the characters. In many of the other choices, the player has to choose between the life and death of two survivors.

Other choices aren’t as cut and dry as that, since Lee will be able to make various dialogue choices that change the way he is perceived. If Lee is spending all of his time being a dick, the rest of the characters will take note and think of him as a wild card. My only problem with this so far, is that it doesn’t seem to really change the outcome of any given situation. Sure the survivors will mention it in dialogue, but they won’t hold it against you when the going gets tough. I’m sure this is because it’s the first episode and these situations will be fleshed out more, but as of now it feels severely linear.

The world that Robert Kirkman created jumps off the comic book panel and onto the screen. The characters look as if they were drawings come to life, with some nice 3D animations to complete the transformation. Telltale has gone a long way to make this 2d comic into the 3D gamespace, and make some of your favorite characters into living breathing survivors. It is a great thing to see and may push more players into reading the comics.

The voice acting is notable as well, with some steadfast performances. It isn’t award-winning but it keeps to the tone of, The Walking Dead series. The cheesy voice-overs and often over-emotional conflict is what this series is about, and the only real issue would have to be the main character, Lee. He often sounds bland when expressing himself and it seems as if his performance could have used a lot more oomph! The sound effects really keep you on your toes, with some haunting melodies and some juicy blood splatters.

In the end, this is a fantastic opening for the new series. Like many people, I was worried how this would work out in the adventure game genre. However, Telltale has crafted a gory treat to start the episodic story. Here is hoping that the rest of the game can capture more of the “Choose your own” adventure vibe. The Walking Dead, receives a B+ from Half-Ass Gaming; let’s hope that each episode keeps up with this one.

Welcome to the walking nightmare… you are immediately placed in a car as a man in need of a better lawyer. You are Lee Everett, who is headed out of Atlanta in the back seat of a police car. The veteran police officer analyzing, Lee, believes he is not a guilty man. And he makes this point known while barely paying attention to the road. Like any good B movie, a shambling figure dances into the road and sends the both of you tumbling into a ditch.

It’s at this juncture that you are firmly in control of, Lee Everett. Unlike previous titles in the Adventure Genre, players will notice the lack of an intrusive U.I. If you’re familiar with any of Telltales previous games like Back to the Future for example, you’ll notice some similarities but distinct differences when playing The Walking Dead. The game completely omits the need to grab at random items; instead they are attached to the pointer and shown at the left of the screen.

The Walking Dead incorporates vast changes to the formula of adventure games. To create a heightened sense of fear, Lee is placed into dangerous situations which span from quicktime events, to aiming the reticule at key body parts. It’s the survival aspect that keeps players locked into a game where you don’t constantly shoot zombies in the face. It’s a puzzle solving game without all of the elaborate choices from other games in the genre. A variety of the puzzles are fairly simple and common sense; while others rely on the player advancing to another area first.

It isn’t just the puzzles that make the world feel alive, it’s the sense of choice that most adventure games don’t have. Players will make tough choices that can change the whole dynamic of who Lee associates with. For example, there is a portion of the game where players can choose to roam the city in the daylight or at night. In one of these choices, the player will completely miss the opportunity to meet one of the characters. In many of the other choices, the player has to choose between the life and death of two survivors.

Other choices aren’t as cut and dry as that, since Lee will be able to make various dialogue choices that change the way he is perceived. If Lee is spending all of his time being a dick, the rest of the characters will take note and think of him as a wild card. My only problem with this so far, is that it doesn’t seem to really change the outcome of any given situation. Sure the survivors will mention it in dialogue, but they won’t hold it against you when the going gets tough. I’m sure this is because it’s the first episode and these situations will be fleshed out more, but as of now it feels severely linear.

The world that Robert Kirkman created jumps off the comic book panel and onto the screen. The characters look as if they were drawings come to life, with some nice 3D animations to complete the transformation. Telltalle has gone a long way to make this 2d comic into the 3D gamespace, and make some of your favorite characters into living breathing survivors. It is a great thing to see and may push more players into reading the comics.

The voice acting is notable as well, with some steadfast performances. It isn’t award-winning but it keeps to the tone of The Walking Dead series.  The cheesy voiceovers and often over-emotional conflict is what this series is about, and the only real issue would have to be the main character, Lee. He often sounds bland when expressing himself and it seems as if his performance could have used a lot more oomph! The sound effects really keep you on your toes, with some haunting melodies and some juicy blood splatters.

In the end, this is a fantastic opening for the new series. Like many people, I was worried how this would work out in the adventure game genre. However, Telltale has crafted a gory treat to start the episodic story. Here is hoping that the rest of the game can capture more of the “Choose your own” adventure vibe. The Walking Dead receives a B+ from Half-Ass Gaming; let’s hope that each episode keeps up with this one.

Before anything else is said: Watch. This. Movie.

Now that we got that out of the way, let me proceed to tell you why The Avengers has exceeded every single expectation I had and why it’s the perfect, fun movie for virtually anyone.

As I mentioned, for the past 4 years Paramount and Marvel have tag teamed to create building blocks towards this movie. If you’ve seen Iron Man, Iron Man 2, The Incredible Hulk, Thor, or Captain America you know exactly what I’m talking about. What’s so expertly done in this film is that if you didn’t watch any or all of the prior films, you’re still able to hit the ground running and not miss that much. However, if you invested the time then you’ll love seeing all these pieces fit together. It’s amazing how well the plot of The Avengers feels self contained, and yet all inclusive of each movies prior events.

The actors are a buffet of top notch names. As each character comes from an entirely different background and powerset (for the mostpart), it’s incredibly interesting to see them come together and fit so perfectly. Let me throw out my Oscar nomination for this year’s best on screen couple as Robert Downey Jr. and anybody he interacts with in this film. RDJ, as I’ll call him, continues his Tony Stark role here flawlessly and is able to make you laugh with no matter who he’s talking to. The quick witted, focused dialogue is consistent and leaves you eager to follow Tony Stark anywhere he goes. Chris Evans, in my opinion, does a better job of conveying Captain America in The Avengers than in Captain America. Steve Rogers is a man who lost the world he knew to save the world he’s forced to join. You can’t help but feel heart emanate from Steve Rogers in a world that’s become so fast and ruled by technology and a man who takes the time to stop and remember what heroes fight to protect. While Captain America has leadership qualities, Joss Whedon and Chris Evans never forget that Captain America is a soldier first and there to protect people.

Mark Ruffalo is the new face in this movie, replacing Edward Norton from the prior Hulk film, and works superbly with the character. Personally, I’ve never been a fan of the Hulk; however, seeing The Hulk interact with the rest of these super heroes is one of the most enjoyable movie sequences I’ve seen in years. What’s more interesting though is how much you come to enjoy having Bruce Banner as much as the Hulk in this film. Mark Ruffalo does a fantastic job of creating buildup and suspense for the Hulk’s inevitable arrival so that when he finally does arrive on the scene, you’re patience is generously rewarded. Chris Hemsworth also performs better in The Avengers than he did in Thor. To watch a God have to team up with non-Gods is entertaining to say the least, and his interaction with each character (Hulk included) puts smiles and awe on virtually anyone.

Finally, we have our Hawkeye and Black Widow in Jeremy Renner and Scarlett Johansson.  Renner does a good job of showcasing expert archery and tactical planning. Without giving too much plot away, Renner had the toughest time in conveying heroism through the limited chance he had, but when he was given screen time he shined and made Hawkeye an interesting character to come back to (much better than the absurdly tiny amount of screen time he got back in Thor). Scarlett Johansson; however, impressed me considerably. Coming off her prior role in Iron Man 2, Johansson’s Black Widow does a fantastic job of showing the incredibly sexy assassin we remember and a very straight forward, all business master assassin. From impressive choreographed fight scenes to fantastic spy mission dialogue, Johansson climbs to new heights for female super heroes to show they’re more than just T&A to gawk at.

When we look at movie plot, we see all of these incredible characters work together to fight off an alien invasion. When the invasion finally begins, every character we’ve seen rises to the challenge with the utmost excellence and grace. Each character literally gets the time to shine and save something. We see Captain America being a leader and fighting to protect civilians, defeating enemy soldiers one by one. We see Hawkeye and Black Widow be master assassins, tactically killing enemies and taking over war assets. We see Iron Man use his technology to pull off incredible feats and use cunning wit to put down enemies. We see Thor and Hulk have glorious, epic battles and beating anything that comes near them to a pulp. It all culminates perfectly in an intense 10 second scene where we see each hero doing their own fight and strength, but working together to beat impossible odds.

You will feel almost every emotion possible watching The Avengers, from laughter and excitement to shock, sorrow and awe. Everything you see on film feels organic and strikes the right chords, leaving you feel emotionally invested. By using almost every hero archetype, The Avengers makes itself open and approachable to virtually any film viewer and doesn’t rely heavily on being a comic book fan. There’s very few films that will leave you in absolute awe when you first watch them, and The Avengers is one of those films that will do that for viewers of any age.

The Avengers gets an A from Geek Citadel’s first ever movie review.

Run, don’t walk to see this film.

Prototype 2 switches the main character to Sgt Heller, a soldier hell-bent on revenge for the deaths of his wife and daughter. Upon entering NYC, things quickly turn hectic and Sgt Heller becomes infected with the Mercer virus, able to do superhuman feats and consume almost any living being near him. Story is rather weak in Prototype 2, which is a shame as its one of the areas the game needs the most. Characters are rather one dimensional and are hard to really emotionally invest in. You know the very bare basics about their motives and you have to run with it. In addition, many characters fall into stereotypes which simply doesn’t work for the roles they’re supposed to portray. Heller is an angry black man who wants to mess you up, but in a more cheesy than badass way. One of your comrades, a Latino Priest, will use language that simply makes you say “A Priest wouldn’t say that.” It feels like Radical entertainment relied too much on what players would assume a person of a race would act like and less on creating a new character.

Plot points are told through black and white cut scenes with hints of red and blue and while Radical entertainment may have been going for a more noir look and storytelling, it simply doesn’t work in this universe. The Prototype franchise relies heavily on gore, flesh and organic elements which totally contrasts the idea of telling story in black and white. I was constantly wondering if I had the option to change cut scenes to a full color mode to get a better feel, but unfortunately no.

Graphically, Prototype 2 underwhelms as well with being somewhere in between Xbox and Xbox 360 graphics (PLEASE NOTE: this review was done with an Xbox 360 version of the game). Cell shading seems second rate in comparison to anime titles like the Naruto Shippuuden franchise, and character models look subpar outside of cut scenes. Perhaps the biggest tragedy in the game is how little effort there was in bringing the city of New York to life, feeling more generic and uninspired than anything. I actually forgot numerous times that the city I was supposed to be playing in was New York, and that’s a bad sign.

Gameplay brings back the return of your worst enemy: The camera. It’s frustrating when there are open world games that handle this problem well, and then you get new games that seem to ignore their techniques. You may constantly find yourself looking around as your enemy or prey has just run out of sight, and before you can catch them again you’re attacked from an off screen enemy. It’s frustrating on numerous levels. The battle system hasn’t really improved over the Prototype 1 either, really only changing a few forms you can be in. New combat animations are a nice touch and welcome, but they do little to mask the games flaws. You may be watching a cool power you just activated on screen, and you’ll feel nothing. Hunting is a new gameplay element in Prototype 2, but it’s also a frustrating task to use. Think of a very poorly done “Spider-Sense” from the Spider-Man franchise. You click on the left joystick, and a red dome suddenly emanates from Heller. Instead of being pointed in a certain direction to your prey, the circle simply dissolves from the direction of where you prey is. The game instructs you your prey is in the center of the dome, but you may find yourself searching tediously at times as you can’t seem to find where the center of the dome is.

The stealth aspects remain nearly the same as the previous game; however, and that’s a good thing. One of the few fun things I found about Prototype 2 was taking out enemy bases without ever having to shoot a bullet or dismember anyone. Stealth can leave you feeling a sense of accomplishment, if only briefly. The only real benefit I found from hunting mode was when you can see which enemies you can consume without being noticed (enemies in white outlines) and those who will alert enemies around you that something’s wrong (enemies in red outlines). Challenges set up in New York; however, feel more like tedious chores than training. You have the standard challenges of “run here as fast as you can” and “kill as many enemies with only *x* number of hits” and such, but it doesn’t feel so rewarding to win additional move sets from them.

Prototype 2 feels like a wasted opportunity and a “lets just release another title to make cash” idea by Activision and Radical entertainment. I can’t really recommend a super powered hero open world game like this when there’s numerous others that do it better like Batman Arkham City. In fact, I recommended Spiderman: Web of Shadows over the original Prototype, and I still will with Prototype 2.

Prototype 2 gets a C from Geek Citadel. It isn’t the worst game you’ll ever play, but it’s far from being one of the average gamers all time favorites.

Recommended buy price?
Like Prototype 1? $34.99
Everyone else? $19.99

As with any port of a PC game, the initial concern from the average gamer is loss in graphical quality. While I’m sure that Witcher 2 looks far better on modern PC rigs, you can’t deny that The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings ENHANCE EDITION is still an astonishing feat in console graphical quality. Any gamer who loads this game into their Xbox 360 will instantly get cavities from the massive eye candy buffet you’re thrown into. After personally playing Mass Effect 3 for about a month and thinking I wouldn’t play another game anytime soon with any kind of graphical comparison, I can confidently say this game far surpasses Mass Effect 3 in terms of graphical prowess. I literally had to stop numerous times, even in the middle of battlefields, just to look around in awe. Now, with all that being said, let me make sure that you understand that the PC version will ultimately give you a better experience. You’ll notice texture pop-ins and the forests may not give you as many beams of light as the PC version, but if you’re use to playing console games you’ll still be left in awe, and PC gamers will likely have to commend CDProjekt for making as valid an effort as possible in porting. I strongly urge gamers to follow CDProjekt’s  recommendation and install the game onto your HDD to get the most out of the graphical power and smoothness in playing.

That being said, graphical milestones mean nothing if you don’t have great gameplay to back it up (see Crysis, Killzone 2, etc). So does combat transition well into the 360 version? To that I say a strong maybe. Let me explain: RPG enthusiasts will likely enjoy the complexity of the battle and menu system, while casual RPG players may be off put by the intimidating learning curve. Combat is a mixed bag of tricks on the 360 version as it isn’t as simple as a game like Dragon Age 2, but that’s not necessarily bad. Between using different weapons, sub weapons (daggers, bombs, traps, etc) and spells, you’ll find a preferred method to play and you’ll be able to customize your leveled character through different skill trees to compliment your play style. The good news though is that I didn’t experience a lot of the problems Kevin had when he played the PC version (for example, long wait times between switching swords). Where the game might get messy is the amount of different menus and options you need to select during combat. While the tutorial section does an admirable job of showing you where everything is located, you’ll most likely forget at least a few of the locations of specific moves, spells, or items for quite a while. What’s worse is that opening these menus doesn’t actually pause gameplay like in the Mass Effect series, it just slows it down to a some-what reasonable pace (think marginally slower than bullet time). This might not be different from the PC version, but on a console where options may not be as easy to access in a timely manner, it would have been a welcome change. None the less, CDProjekt has made the menus work on a 360 controller, and it’s an admirable job well done. You’re going to need to make an effort to learn to play the game, but you’ll be thankful for sticking it out.

Let’s move right into the area where many gamers are questioning: The mature content. I can tell you that the sex and nudity has remained unchanged from the PC version and this is still a game meant for adults and by no means children. To be honest, I’m surprised this game hasn’t received the game developers feared Adult’s Only rating by the ESRB, but I’m not complaining. I can only emphasize for players that this content shouldn’t be interpreted as adult, but rather mature. If you’re just playing this game for virtual boobs and banging, you’re going to be disappointed (and missing out on a fantastic overall experience).

Finally, the 360 version does add (approximately 4) hours of new content to The Witcher 2. If you haven’t played the PC version and don’t have that strong/modern of a rig, it’s definitely worth picking up for your Xbox 360. I also can appreciate the guide and soundtrack included when you buy the game, they’re nice touches to show the developer really values its fans. Ironically, I would give The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings ENHANCED EDITION for Xbox 360 a B+ just like Kevin’s review of the PC version, but don’t mistake this score for meaning the game is virtually the same. While it may not give as strong a presentation as the PC version, The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings ENHANCED EDITION is a fantastic graphical feat for console gaming that shouldn’t be missed by RPG enthusiasts.

Recommended Buy Prices:
RPG Enthusiast? $49.99
Everyone else? $44.99

When we first received word of Kinect: Star Wars, it was revealed at E3 2010 under an exaggerated mock-up video. The second time it appeared with actual gameplay at E3 2011, and it was met with mixed results from the game community. The game disappeared from the face of the earth soon after that, and no new gameplay has been shown until release. Now we get to find out if this is the motion game of our dreams; or if it should have stayed in a galaxy far far away…

Kinect: Star Wars, is full of various types of motion game-play mechanics. The main focus was obviously put into the Jedi Knight story. A full campaign surrounds Jedi Master Zain and the training day of her new Padawan learners. A routine day of mastering the force on Kashyyyk quickly turns into an all-out fight for survival. This spirals into a series of mysterious attacks across the galaxy that the Jedi have to investigate.

Players take an invisible lightsaber in hand and cut down the opposition. Swinging the right arm alone will swing the lightsaber and move your avatar. The player can use their left arm to direct force powers to lift items or enemies. Players can also advance by leaning forward and throwing their arms behind them to dash. Stepping lightly to the side will perform a side-step maneuver for tougher enemies. You can even add a little acrobatic flair to the mix by hopping lightly into the air.

There is a one second delay between completing an action and it registering on screen. It’s not as noticeable when flailing your arms to cut down the random droids. The problem arises when attempting to jump or duck in the action sequences. The delay can cause a variety of problems with some of the obstacles. Quite often, the game will ignore your movements in and out of combat. The majority of the issues show up when the player is fighting in tight corridors, the player will occasionally get stuck against walls when fighting foes.

When players are in the open areas in the game, the combat is much smoother in comparison. Basically, when the stars align properly the lightsaber combat is fantastic fun. Due to the auto-targeting system being utterly abysmal most of the time, this is often a rare occurrence that ruins the flow of the melee system. Players will also take part in speeder bike areas and space battles, which are buttery smooth besides some small hiccups here and there. It’s possible that the Kinect has an easier time recognizing simple upper body movements.

Beyond the cumbersome Jedi adventure are a series of mini-games to pursue. The first and one of the best of the mini-games would have to be Podracing. Much like the extravagant scene in Episode 1, players can pilot the lightweight tin-can racers at breakneck speeds. Extending both arms will push the vehicle forward, and pulling back your arms will cause the vehicle to brake. Players can turn the vehicle by keeping one arm extended while the other is retracted. Be prepared to use your arms for throwing creatures off vehicles, wiping down the windshield, and plowing into other racers.

Podracing is probably one of the smoothest of all the game types. It’s possible that this was worked on by the developers more than the lightsaber combat. Now that I think about it, the Rancor Rampage mini-game seems like a technical demo that made its way in game. Players turn their body left and right to face new locations, and they can step in place to make the Rancor walk. You can consider it the Star Wars version of being, The Hulk. It feels incredibly slow and clunky, and is quite possibly the least fun of all the mini-games.

The dancing portion of the game is typical for the Kinect, it luckily attempts to match what Dance Central has done with the genre. Players will dance to songs that were made specifically for the Star Wars universe like, Han Solo, Princess in a Bottle, and Kashyyyk. The players can select pre-made dancers and even some of the classic characters from the series. There are even some real world songs to boogie to scattered throughout the game. The problem with the dancing is that it uses the same routines in all of the songs. So the variety and replay value is restricted to the song list itself.

The last of the mini-games consists of the not so appealing Duel of the Fates. It’s probably the lamest duel you’ll ever have in your life. Slowly put your arms out to deflect incoming blows from the boss characters attacking you. This will result in a combat clash between the two fighters on screen; the player has to push their hand in time with the connecting lights on the lightsabers. This will give the player the chance to slowly attack in the most unappealing fashion possible. Players will never do enough damage to knock the boss out in one fell swoop, so they’ll be damned to repeating the same fight again.

Star Wars: Kinect, is a feast for the eyes compared to most Kinect games. The cartoon shading, reflections, and lighting effects vibrantly jump off of the screen. The animation is slick and fluid for both the avatars on screen and the vehicles rocketing across the landscape. The sound is straight from the Star Wars movies, lightsabers, blaster bolts, and the music we’ve all come to love set the scene. The only audio issue comes from a loss of synchronization during certain cinematics.

Swinging a lightsaber and becoming a Jedi is something that all Star Wars fans have wanted. Star Wars: Kinect wants to be that game, and it seems like it was headed in the right direction. It’s just too bad that the game stumbles on the same issues most Kinect games do. Some odd design choices and faulty body detection can destroy the entertaining combat. Star Wars: Kinect, receives a C from Half-Ass Gaming; it may not be a nerf-herder, but it sure is scruffy lookin’.

Ninja Gaiden is a name that is well known for difficulty, it has been labeled as one of the most challenging games in the history of gaming. I still remember dying over and over constantly in the original for the Nintendo Entertainment System. Now with the loss of Tomonobu Itagaki as the overseer of the Ninja Gaiden project. It looks like it’s up to Team Ninja to make Ninja Gaiden relevant again. Can they stir up a slick assassination attempt, or will they be caught in a bloody mess?

Our heroic assassin Ryu Hayabusa returns in this new installment. He’s called upon by the government when a shadowy figure requests his presence by destroying a city. He answers the call and drops down into the vicious combat zone to unveil this mystery man. Ryu has changed since Ninja Gaiden 1 and 2, and he has less respect for the lives of his enemies. He leaves no man alive even if they are begging for mercy.

This is eventually ends up being a curse for, Ryu. As a mysterious magician casts a spell which embeds the soul draining power of the Dragon sword into his arm. The anguish of everyone that he has ever killed inflicts his body and spreads like a disease. If Ryu doesn’t find the man behind his curse, both he and the world could be destroyed. The story is given a sense of urgency, with Ryu constantly on the verge of death.

Players will frequently see Hayabusa being tortured by the disease inside of his body. There will be moments during game-play where he will be nearly debilitated by it. This is quite possibly the most interesting part of the story, as the rest of it is victim to generic villain syndrome. The storyline follows a large conglomerate with incredibly ridiculous ambitions. It’s all pretty much non-sense, but I can’t say that I’ve ever paid too much attention to a Ninja Gaiden story anyway.

We come to see the incredible fluid action sequences and partake in the skill based combat. I’m going to start by saying that Ninja Gaiden 3 is pretty difficult. It isn’t difficult like Ninja Gaiden: Black or 2, where everything seemed to be the players fault if they failed. No, this one likes to make the player feel as if the computer is using cheese mode combat to win. If the A.I. isn’t using horrible camera angles to hit you from unknown locations, the game becomes much too easy via the new Steel on Bone mechanic. Once the player starts a chain of these instant kill quick-time events, even tough enemies will fall over like a sack of potatoes.

If the player isn’t slicing enemies to bits with ease, they’ll encounter some ruthless opponents that like to auto-target and grab constantly. So there is never a point where there is a good middle-ground for skill, it’s either too easy… or face off with uncanny cheating foes. The bosses are also the worst part of this, as they are never truly fun battles like in previous games. Players are instead faced with gigantic bosses that just end up being simple pattern based jaunts.

The game also likes to throw in uninteresting action sequences from time to time. They usually have the player gliding off of a building, climbing up a wall, or moving across a chasm via a rope. The flying through the air sequences are accomplished by quick time events. The climbing and rope areas are conquered by switching back and forth between the top buttons. If this is supposed to add tension to the game, it fails miserably and comes off as an extremely boring and worthless addition to the series.

The worst omission from the game would have to be the weapon leveling system. Players are no longer able to purchase upgrades for their weapons or buy new items. In fact, weapons that are not swords are only able to be purchased via downloadable content. I don’t see how Team Ninja could remove something that was in almost every other iteration of the title. This turns the game into an average action romp that couldn’t dare stand up to its predecessors in similarity.

Multiplayer is pretty bland and probably didn’t need to be added. Players are given ninja trials for the co-operative mode that are actually fun. It’s cool to jump around slashing enemies to bits with a friend; too bad the downside is that you kill about 30 guys and the trial ends. The eight-player versus mode on the other hand, is an absolute mess. Players just jump around randomly trying to hit anything that the auto-target decides on. Players who aren’t obnoxiously leveled are beaten down by magical powers and bow and arrow moves. No skill is involved in this at all, and it isn’t even worth the tiniest bit of effort.

It’s a shame that even the graphics can’t shine brightly amongst the mediocre. It’s unclear if this game was intentionally made for the Playstation 3 and Xbox 360. It boasts some bad textures and unimpressive character models. A good majority of the landscapes look bland and claustrophobic, and don’t have the shimmer and pop of the older games in the series. The lip syncing for cut-scenes is far off from the character on the screen. The voice-over is absolutely abysmal as well; not a single voice actor seems to have given a damn when recording.

Ninja Gaiden 3 isn’t the worst game I have ever played. It’s just the worst version of a Ninja Gaiden I have ever played. It oddly shares the same number as the worst Ninja Gaiden on the NES as well. If this game didn’t have the Ninja Gaiden stamp, it could have passed as an incredibly mediocre action game. Unfortunately, if you’re going to change something in a franchise… you should probably make it interesting. Ninja Gaiden 3 receives a D+ from Half-Ass Gaming, and Team Ninja just may have to go back to the drawing board on this franchise.

Let’s get right into it, shall we? Tales of Graces F follows our main protagonist, Asbel Lhant, a plucky young adventurer who discovers a mysterious girl with memory loss. He stumbles onto the prince of the kingdom and manages to save his life while earning his friendship. After a sworn pact to stay friends forever, the world is flipped upside down by an event which devastates, Asbel. He abandons his family and friends to train to be a Knight in service of the crown for seven years. However, this may have been a mistake that has crippled their relationships forever.

Asbel, starts off as an obnoxious and cocky little snot. He picks on the sickly girl who follows him around by his coat tail. He continually disobeys every order that his father has ever given him. He’s got a brother who loves him, but he just ends up picking fights with him all the time. The worst of it all is how he treats the young girl with amnesia, constantly badgering her with questions about her past when she obviously remembers nothing.

So it’s more than welcome to see Asbel get what’s coming to him for being a little brat. It’s just the seven years after he changes his ways, and becomes a noble… albeit whiny soldier that hurts the storyline. Just when Asbel has changed his ways of being a snot nosed punk, it looks like all of his friends have to go and take his place. Asbel is constantly disrespected, demeaned, and given the cold shoulder from nearly all of his buddies.

Pascal… the major reason to even play this game.

The sickly maiden has become strong and now uses Asbel leaving as an excuse to ignore him. His little brother has turned into a cold tactician and blames Asbel for something that the Lhant parents did. The prince on the other hand just turns into this schizophrenic dictator who literally tears people to ribbons. This is something that is a major downfall for the game. It focuses on using melodramatic sequences as its driving point.

Luckily it’s not all drooping shoulders and dark and twisted plot-lines. The zany and wacky anime style of the tales series is still intact. The skits system is still very much a part of the game, and it still has the characters interacting in a hilarious fashion. The main savior of comedy in the title would have to go to Pascal; this girl is the best part of playing Tales of Graces F. The often dreary and predictable storyline is made tolerable due to her dialogue.

So how does the gameplay itself fair you ask? Players are given a wide amount of tactical options to aid the hectic combat system. The mixture of button presses with contextual combat abilities really keeps conflict interesting. A bar charges over the faceplate of the character the player is controlling, this gives the player a set of moves to attack with. The bar in the lower left is used to activate critical hits. Players can even swap from A-Artes to B-Artes, which focuses on quick and powerful combination strikes.

The combat system is extremely deep with additional enhancements to invest in. Auras, staggers, and evasion counter-strikes are just the tip of the iceberg. This is without a doubt the best part of the game, and it is made more entertaining by an exhausting item combination system called “Dualize”. Players can find items from enemies and combine them into foods, equipment, and more. If utilized correctly, players can make some pretty strong weapons and armor combinations. It is tons of fun just to tinker with the system and see what powerful tool you can create.

When it comes to graphical power, Tales of Graces F is nowhere near pushing the limits. It has the visual of a glossed over Wii game. A lot of the character models look like anime dolls, with wide open eyes and plastic facial structures. The world itself is typical of the genre, but nothing really stands out as exactly artistic or exciting. The game will often set you free in a maze without a mini-map. So you can expect to get lost just trying to find an exit from a town.

The most particular issue with the design is how often you’ll see it. Asbel and Company will do a lot of backtracking in the storyline. This only serves to stretch out the length of the title, since there never seems to be a meaningful reason behind it. An example is a letter that Asbel is given to head to the next area, however one of his friends is kidnapped at this point of the game. You are forced to head in the direction of the delivery of the letter to rescue her, only to return back to the town to say that you saved her. It’s completely unnecessary and breaks up the pacing of the game.

The sound is also a mixed bag, with some pretty spotty voice-over and generic orchestral music. The voice acting for Asbel and his gang of friends is splendid when they are kids. It’s the time after they become adults that all is not well. Asbel, Cheria, and Malik never really sell their voices too well… they are simply tolerable. Pascal and Sophie are clearly the best of the bunch, with some hilarious dialogue between the both of them that could float the entire game. It is Richard who just destroys the ratio of the cast; he’s by far the worst voice you’ll hear. This is something to be sad about, as he is the main villain for the entire story.

When you get down to the bare facts of it all, Tales of Graces F is a moderately entertaining JRPG. If not for the fantastic and deep combat system, the game would be dragged down by the dramatic and generic plot. The first 10 hours are quite a struggle to get through, but once you’re over the hump you can truly bask in the combat system. Tales of Graces F receives a C from Half-Ass Gaming, it’s worth it if you love the combat… but don’t look for a rich storyline to accompany it.

Story in Naruto Ultimate Ninja Storm Generations (lets just call this NUNSG) takes a massive hit. If you’re not savvy to the story of Naruto through the anime or manga, then you’re not really going to get a good feel for it in the story mode.  The story has been divided up amongst numerous characters point of view instead of just one linear tale like previous titles. While this could have worked in theory, this feels more like the sum of its parts feels less than the whole. If you’re a fan of the Naruto franchise, you’re likely to be left even more disappointed. Key fights you participate in will feel cheapened and watered down. You’ll find yourself asking questions like “what happened to fighting Gaara’s sand form?” and “Why don’t I feel intense emotion when fighting Pain?” All the quick time events that were used well in Naruto Ultimate Ninja Storm 2 are gone, and it’s painfully noticeable. In the end, NUNSG’s story feels more like a traditional fighting game’s story, meaning it takes a backseat to the gameplay. The question is, why would Ban Dai take focus away from story when story has always been one of this franchise’s strongest assets? It makes no sense.

Another disappointment is that the open world gameplay from Naruto Ultimate Ninja Storm 2 is gone (also lessening story impact), replaced with anime openings and endings for each story line, but only anime stills with text and narration in between battles. It’s hard to accept this in place of the cell shaded cut scenes you’re treated to in Naruto Ultimate Ninja Storm 2, especially since anime scenes seem to be used so sparingly in NUNSG that it’s obvious it was to save production costs. While you’ll get different cut scenes in each story arc, it feels as though it would have served better as having one linear storyline to play through instead of playing through fragments of multiple people’s “point of view” which really doesn’t give any added value.

Fighting and graphics remain virtually the same in NUNSG as in previous titles, the only major difference is the insane character roster to choose from has been greatly expanded; however, it still doesn’t feel like a satisfactory tradeoff if you’ve already played previous franchise entries. Ban Dai tries to incorporate the Naruto trading card game as a gimmick to tempt players to buy more cards, but the system doesn’t feel like it gives a satisfactory reward when you enter the card codes in game, often just giving a few boosts to use in battle.  Online play returns and works fairly well without too much lag issues, but you may be better off creating your own match instead of trying to join (I searched for about 15 minutes for a viable match, and after not finding anything or not being able to join I eventually gave up out of frustration).

Naruto Ultimate Ninja Storm Generations comes off as an average game to franchise newbie’s and disappointing to franchise savvy, as such it gets a C+ from Geeks of Gaming. For a series that has helped progress the anime video game genre, this was one unsatisfying step back.

Recommended buy price:
Like Naruto?: $30
Everyone else?: $20

The time has come for the flagship science fiction RPG from Bioware to reach its finale. There is a bit of fear and anticipation in the air regarding how it will culminate. The fear of it all is that it will be a dumbed down RPG like Dragon Age 2, but the anticipation is that it will end this amazing series in a blaze of glory. We ask ourselves if the RPG style of the first game will return, and if it can mix with the second for that perfect balance of action. Could Mass Effect 3 solidify our faith in the developer, Bioware?

Just six months after the events of Mass Effect 2, Commander Shepard finds himself in a bad situation. No one seems to believe his cries about the invasion of the genocidal aliens, The Reapers. His small stint with the renegade humanity group, Cerberus, has taken away all of his credibility. Unfortunately, this leaves the Earth and many other alien planets unprepared for the invasion. Shepard is now in the clear and the weight of the world rests on his shoulders.

The story of Mass Effect 3 takes on an epic scale. It’s up to Shepard to form alliances for the fight against the Reapers. In the meantime we get to see the toll it takes on his mental capacity. War is hell, and Shepard must endure the weight of the devastation around him. He’ll see many things that could break his spirit, and you’re along for the enjoyable ride. We’ll get to see each of his companions in their matured state. What happened to that violent foul-mouthed rebel, Jack? What about Shepard’s biggest fan, Conrad Verner? Each and every one of these questions is answered in Mass Effect 3 to a satisfying degree.

We are shown a marvelous war, and given a more cohesive attachment to the characters. The game will have Shepard traveling all over the galaxy fighting off the reapers. People are going to die, and it may be someone you would least expect. Again, your decisions will be the deciding factor of how the war goes… and how many people Shepard can get into the fight. These decisions may even get some of your own killed inadvertently, but you’ll have to shoulder the responsibility and fight on.

It’s a good thing that everything is so convincing when in battle. Shepard will drop down into large scale warzones with brutal combat situations. No planet seems to be safe from the destructive tactics of the Reapers. Many beautiful planets have been drained of their essence by these Borg like creatures. Many people are blown to bits and turned into dried up zombie husks. Ever wonder what a large war would look like in the future? Well look no more, Mass Effect 3 nails it!

To add to the success of war is the refined battle system. Shooting a weapon is much smoother and reactive in this edition of the game. Swapping from various powers and popping out to shoot enemies in the head has never felt as good. The animation for rolling into cover is smooth like butter… and it’s rare that you’ll ever be stuck out in the open. Who knew that an RPG company could make such slick shooting mechanics?

Everything is so much more accessible in this edition of the series. Players aren’t forced into keeping a certain type of weapon per class. Instead, players can invest in weapon upgrades and modifications and select any weapon they wish. Players can even fill up their entire slots with weapons if they choose. The only penalty is how much weight your character gains. This reduces the recharge time of your powers, so you have to decide if it is worth it to have one or 4 weapons.

Long time RPG fans may be asking about the roleplaying elements involved in the game.  The dialogue sections seem to have taken on a simplified approach. Players will rarely see a third option when making choices during dialogue, most of the conversations are pretty cut and dry. You’re either saying something good, or something cold and harsh. Occasionally, the player will get the option to make Paragon or Renegade choices. However, these are few and far between in comparison to previous games.

The extended element is in the side-missions. Players will perform investigations, rescue hostages, and convince many species to join the war machine. The content is staggering and is handled much better than in previous games. Each optional mission is unlike the last one, they each have an interesting story and don’t seem like they were tossed into the game without thought. A large majority of them involve former squad members, and people you’ve rescued in previous titles.

The Aesthetics in this Mass Effect literally blows the others out of the water. Increased polygon counts and better lighting effects have improved the world. Humanoid character models have undergone slight upgrades; they still touch heavily on the uncanny valley but are still impressive. The aliens are the most detailed of the bunch, boasting some slick animations that make them seem alive. The only downsides are some stiff and glitch ridden animations that can destroy a heartwarming scene.

The unseemly and constant visual issues are the main problem with the game. A lot of issues pop up in Mass Effect that just shouldn’t be in a game of this caliber. My second problem would have to be with the multiplayer aspect of the game.  Oh don’t get me wrong, the multiplayer itself is fun… and I’ll talk a bit more about it later. It’s just the fact that it ties into the single-player game, and the galactic readiness of the fleet you have gathered. So you have to go online and destroy countless monsters even if you don’t want to, so that you can assure victory in the single-player campaign… and that’s ridiculous.

Since we’re on the topic of multiplayer, let’s go over what makes it appealing and generic at the same time. Basically, players can create characters and select any class from the single-player game. Players can unlock weapons, items, and place skill points as well. They can then enter the fray and fight off waves of enemies, and that’s about all there is to it. It is a generic horde mode in the Mass Effect 3 universe. It’s nothing special, but like all Horde modes… it’s fun for a little while.

As a whole this may be the best game in the series. It blends action, adventure, and RPG elements to a satisfying degree. This finale is a little rough around the edges, but the gameplay and storyline will easily make you ignore that. The journey is what Mass Effect 3 is all about, and it’s a superb one through and through. So without further ado, Mass Effect 3 receives an A from Half-Ass Gaming. Bioware, shows us how a series should be ended, and that’s with a resounding bang.