Phil Villarreal's Blog, page 51

"The Casino" Review

Rolling in with routlette, slots, video poker, craps and baccarat, "The Casino" is just as meat-and-potatoes as its title.

Very much akin to old-fashioned shareware gambling sims that used to make their way across the nation via shareware floppy disks, "The Casino" lets each game stand on its own merits. With no money at stake, there are vastly diminishing returns to each, but all of the games offer short, arresting bursts of entertainment value, strategy and chance.

While there is little exciting about the presentation or execution of the casino standards, there is something to be said for the way it cuts through the fluff and gets right to the point. The game provides a no-risk way to scratch the gambling urge or test out some strategies.

Asymmetrical multiplayer lets you see how your earnings and skill stack up against those around the globe. Aside from that, there's not much of a compelling reason to continue to rack up pretend money.

"The Casino" may not be the most thrilling to drop this holiday season, but you may find it worthy of a tile on your Switch library. A welcome, appealing go-to that won't waste your time or cash, it's there when you feel the need to try your luck.

Publisher provided review code.

"Family Feud" Review

The new "Family Feud" game on consoles exists in a parallel universe in which the pandemic doesn't exist. That's something of a relief in terms of the escapism factor, but also oddly tone-deaf. 
Guiding happy-go-lucky clans, not socially distant in any way as they gleefully rub elbows and shake hands, is as jarring as something you'd see in a pre-2020 TV series. While it's gratifying to revisit a world in which social gatherings came without taboos, quizzes with answers that included concerts and festivals were commonplace and shortages of household items were unthinkable, it would also be welcome to have at least a touch of reality infiltrate the video game show. 
Maybe an update that included pandemic-tinted questions -- or any update with new questions, which will eventually be needed to refresh the stale original slate -- would be welcome.
At least the dev team at Ubisoft took care to make the initial release full-featured. Online play is a welcome and all-too-rare addition in the genre, and there are multiple difficulty levels, customizable characters, a helpful answer-filling system and game formats to help keep sessions from wearing out their welcomes.
The game seems to have been concocted for foreign markets, then translated haphazardly to North American English. Odd spellings and syntax errors abound, oddly adding a charm to the otherworldiness of the semi-educated guessing game.
While the game is as one-dimensional on the show on which it's based, it's also every bit as fun. If you've ever wondered how your own family would perform on the show, this is your opportunity to find out.
Publisher provided review code.

PHIL ON FILM: "Black Bear"

 For my full review, click here.

"Planet Coaster: Console Edition" Review

 In a time when open amusement parks are hard to come by, "Planet Coaster" slides in as a welcome escapist fantasy. Managing, pleasing and exploiting happy-go-lucky crowds can be as much of a rush as partaking in a thrill ride, once you overcome a sluggish start to get your momentum going.

As with most management sims, most of the fun in "Planet Coaster" comes after you've put in significant time sewing your seeds. What starts off as a slog can quickly turn into a frenetic juggling affair, requiring you to zip from one area to the next, putting out fires, optimizing the finely-tuned facets of your empire while building for the future.

Developer Frontier Developments put in similarly heavy work on the console adaptation of the 2016 sim, taking care to make the menu interface flow as naturally as it would with a mouse and keyboard setup. There's also a narrated tutorial to help get you going.

A nostalgic feel pulses throughout the game. As you prop up coasters, kiddie rides, concession stands and other attractions, a certain pre-pandemic innocence and optimism pulses throughout. 

The "Minecraf"-style sense of freedom stokes players' creativity by offering ample ways to explore, innovate and spectacularly fail. There are already four years of walkthroughs online, thanks to the enthusiastic PC community, to stoke your visions.
"Planet Coaster" loses little in its transfer to consoles, moving as briskly and smoothly as a cart shifting its tracks. A tinkerer's dream, the game is limited only by the heights of your imagination.

Publisher provided review code.

"Marvel's Avengers" Review

 After a disastrous E3 2019 showing, developers Crystal Dynamics and Eidos Montreal took the criticism to heart, using the year to smooth out the rough edges, reshape core concepts and refine the bizarre visuals.

The result is one of the more underappreciated gems of 2020.

With a sweeping story, creative multiplayer co-op integration and promise of much more to come, "Marvel's Avengers" became a game that lived up to its lofty promise. More a "Destiny"-style persistent platform than one-offs in the vein of "Spider-Man," the game nails the core of what it means to unite Earth's Mightiest Heroes and deploy their complementary powers to take on overwhelming threats.

The heart of the story is Kamala Khan, who is coming into her own as the limb-stretching dynamo Ms. Marvel. After a cataclysm disbands the Avengers, she takes it upon herself to piece them back together, helping to heal old wounds and forge new alliances. 

The balance in skill and entertainment value among the likes of Hulk, Black Widow, Iron Man, Thor and Captain America is relatable and convincing, unlike the nerfing/overpowering tactics used in the likes of "Marvel vs. Capcom" slugfests. Instead of making, say, Black Widow as powerful as Hulk, each hero is given various skills and challenges that make them roughly equally satisfying to take on. 

A lengthy tutorial introduces you to the skillsets to each, allowing you to upgrade their skills, shaping their abilities to your comfort level and tendencies.

Online options are where the game will thrive over the long run. With an ongoing slate of missions deploying, there will likely long be loot and upgrades to scoop up. Taking on the ongoing saga of the comic book world, rather than telling a distinct tale, you feel like a part of the ongoing operatic journey.

Rich and robust, "Marvel's Avengers" is a veritable Thanksgiving feast of a game, worthy of carrying the banner established by the comic books and lifted to new heights by the Marvel Cinematic Universe. 

Publisher provided review code.

PHIL ON FILNM: 5 Shows to Binge in December 2020

 For my full story, click here.

"Cobra Kai: The Karate Kid Saga Continues" Review

 "Cobra Kai," which has made the shift from YouTube to Netflix, is one of the most entertaining shows on TV. Its licensed game makes a valiant effort to live up to the legacy of the series, but falls short in subtle, gnawing ways.

There is clearly plenty of love and enthusiasm for the series involved. With eight playable characters to choose from across 28 missions, you can live out just about all of your street brawler fantasies as a member of Miyagi-Do or Cobra Kai dojos. 

The side-scroller gives you the choice between the factions, then sets you free to romp through its side of the story. The approach is wise, given the way it follows the philosophy of the writing. Unlike the righteous dogmatism of the "Karate Kid" films, the series crane-kicks its way along varying shades of grey, with both sides appearing heroic or villainous at times, despite being convinced that they are always in the right.

The story unfolds from both perspectives, allowing you to see the varied shades in which both sides, who are under the tutelage of lifelong rivalry between Danie LaRusso and Johnny Lawrence.

In the "Streets of Rage" tradition, you slug your way through armies of enemies, with massive life meter-toting minibosses and end-level bosses awaiting you.

A fun and breezy idea in concept, some quality-of-life adjustments would have made things more enjoyable. Wonky hit detection and inconsistent damage amounts make it tough to know whether it pays off to be more precise or prioritize button-mashing. An overall lack of polish abounds, making the game feel more at times like a browser gamer rather than a console release. Also, the levels run on far too long. A bite-sized approach typically works better in repetitive titles such as this.

With spirit and vigor to spare, though, the "Cobra Kai" adaptation is an apt companion to fans of the series. A silly and colorful complement to the mythos, it's worth a look for superfans of the show.

Publisher provided review code.

"Cobra Kai: The Karate Kid Saga Continues"

 "Cobra Kai," which has made the shift from YouTube to Netflix, is one of the most entertaining shows on TV. Its licensed game makes a valiant effort to live up to the legacy of the series, but falls short in subtle, gnawing ways.

There is clearly plenty of love and enthusiasm for the series involved. With eight playable characters to choose from across 28 missions, you can live out just about all of your street brawler fantasies as a member of Miyagi-Do or Cobra Kai dojos. 

The side-scroller gives you the choice between the factions, then sets you free to romp through its side of the story. The approach is wise, given the way it follows the philosophy of the writing. Unlike the righteous dogmatism of the "Karate Kid" films, the series crane-kicks its way along varying shades of grey, with both sides appearing heroic or villainous at times, despite being convinced that they are always in the right.

The story unfolds from both perspectives, allowing you to see the varied shades in which both sides, who are under the tutelage of lifelong rivalry between Danie LaRusso and Johnny Lawrence.

In the "Streets of Rage" tradition, you slug your way through armies of enemies, with massive life meter-toting minibosses and end-level bosses awaiting you.

A fun and breezy idea in concept, some quality-of-life adjustments would have made things more enjoyable. Wonky hit detection and inconsistent damage amounts make it tough to know whether it pays off to be more precise or prioritize button-mashing. An overall lack of polish abounds, making the game feel more at times like a browser gamer rather than a console release. Also, the levels run on far too long. A bite-sized approach typically works better in repetitive titles such as this.

With spirit and vigor to spare, though, the "Cobra Kai" adaptation is an apt companion to fans of the series. A silly and colorful complement to the mythos, it's worth a look for superfans of the show.

Publisher provided review code.

"Black Desert: Prestige Edition" Review

 "Black Desert: Prestige Edition" is a staggeringly large and disarmingly ambitious MMORPG. 

The dev team at Pearl Abyss is filled its realms up with monsters to slay, loot to cobble together and resources to craft. You're never far from conflict, with aggressive -- if often easily dispatchable -- enemies looming around you at every turn. 

The game seems to be geared toward high-end PCs, and tends to chug a little on the Xbox One. It's not game-breaking, but frustrating and awkward at times.

The bombardment of microtransactions is also off-putting, but expected for a persistent online experience.

Taking on "Black Desert" often feels like a chore-filled grind-fest, but the act of collecting goods and button-mashing through battles tends to be more satisfying than rote. 

A sizable fanbase has seemingly gathered around "Black Desert," making its world feel lush and alive. That's likely due in part from crossplay functionality between the PS4 and Xbox One communities.

Console players looking for a fresh MMO addiction will be grudgingly satisfied, but may find themselves with PC envy.

Publisher provided review code.

Phil on Film: Movies and Shows Leaving Netflix in December 2020

 For my full article, click here.