Phil Villarreal's Blog, page 89
January 10, 2019
"Double Cross" Review
The makers of Runbow are back at it in "Double Cross," a mashup of "Mega Man" shooting, platforming, level selection and combat with a traditional side-scrolling brawler concept.
You play as an interdimensional agent who hops among planes of reality to maintain the balance of power. Harvesting a power-building resource dubbed "upgradium," you gradually build your character into a formidable force of spastic, justice-dealing destruction.
Character customization options allow you to deck out your hero with an increasingly impressive selection of offensive accoutrements, and the ability to take down levels and accompanying bosses in whatever order you choose grants a sense of freedom along with an urge to discover the ideal order to take them down.
Each level brings something new to the forefront, drastically twisting the mechanics to keep you adjusting and recalibrating your skills and techniques.
Bright, colorful and slickly paced, the peppy art design matches the freewheeling feel of the fisticuffs. "Double Cross" may or may not hit as big as "Runbow" did, but if it falls short it won't be for lack of vigor.
Those in need of a fun, slick alternative to "Mega Man 11" and the "Mega Man X Legacy" series will find a megadose of thrills here.
Publisher provided review code.
January 4, 2019
PHIL ON FILM: "Escape Room"
For my full review, click here.
January 3, 2019
Book Report: "The Adventures of Tom Sawyer"
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark TwainMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
Of all Mark Twain's considerable gifts, perhaps the greatest was that which allowed him to remember just what it was like to be a kid.
Childhood is not the time of whimsical innocence that adults tend to revise it as, but a plight of constant stresses, unlimited analysis and grandiose plans constructed, obliterated and reformed. His portrait of Tom Sawyer is of a troubled young genius longing to find his place in the world, bristling against the unnatural restrictions society thrusts upon him.
Twain revels in the elaborate rituals and flighty superstitions of his small-town, mid-19th century youth. He treats Sawyer, Huck Finn and their orbit of pals with respect and dignity, while casting the adults who surround them as hapless stooges. In a sense, he sees the world just as he did as a child, and just as children continue to do. Kids have a fresh-eyed way of breaking down the nonsense that adults surround themselves with, and Twain never lost that sense of incisive deconstruction.
As he does in "A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court," Audible narrator Nick Offerman channels the late author's sly wittiness and thick, Southern-fried bravado. Offerman's existence is a compelling argument that reincarnation exists, and Twain's voice has come back in the form of his thick baritone.
As beautifully descriptive as it is wickedly funny, "The Adventures of Tom Sawyer" transcends its genre of young adult literature and takes its place among the ranks of glorious fiction. Its lessons and philosophical observations are as timeless and golden as the ephemeral, daring glow of youth.
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January 2, 2019
"Coffee Crisis" Switch Review
It's safe to say that you've never played a beat 'em up quite like "Coffee Crisis." A barista with a penchant for metal music is the lone hero who can stop invadian aliens from stealing coffee, WiFi and music from earthlings. His solution: romp 'em.
A simplistic side-scroller that owes a debt to the likes of "Streets of Rage" and "Double Dragon," "Coffee Crisis" thrives in its point A to point B pragmatism. Your objectives are laid out in front of you, and you know it will take a whole lot of oddly-shaped skulls.
While rough around the edges, "Coffee Crisis" overflows with attributes that stick to its core competencies of heedless momentum, raw energy and a blistering soundtrack. Wearing its references proudly, the creation from developer Mega Cat Studios toes the line between tribute and mimicry.
A game that was lost in a sea of similar genre releases when it debuted on Steam 10 months ago, the game is far more likely to find its groove on the Switch, where games of its ilk thrive and are eagerly welcomed into the ever-expanding fold of retro throwback larks.
"Coffee Crisis" is a decidedly niche effort, but it picks its spots and excels in the categories that matters most. It goes with Nintendo's console like coffee does with metal.
Publisher provided review code.
January 1, 2019
"The Last Aquatic Adventure of the Last Human" Trailer
The Metroidvania renaissance continues to thrive as the decade nears its end, with "The Aquatic Adventure of the Last Human" becoming the latest to take the torch.
Sifting through the discarded embers of a trashed society submerged in the depths of the ocean, you explore dark caverns, unearth lost artifacts and open up paths that allow you to inch your way forward as you get your bearings and acquire the means to unlock more sectors of the undersea labyrinth.
Exquisitely designed and hauntingly brooding moments await you as you advance. The dark recesses of the ocean hide some nasty, often gargantuan beasts that seek to reel you in and filet you.
More than a seek, find and advance adventure, heady themes emerge that haunt you in between play sessions. A nagging sense of dread permeates much of the game, and the visual style emphasizes the feel with subdued, washed-out notes of faded color.
While limited resources seemed to restrict the scope and technical precision the developers seemed to have in mind, the raging ambition that pulses within "The Last Aquatic Adventure of the Last Human" sticks with you well after your play sessions. It's a dank and lonely world out there, and a sea of discovery awaits your discovery.
Publisher provided review code.
December 27, 2018
"Blacksea Odyssey" Review
The sense of the vast unknown shared by the ocean and space lends to a sci-fi combination of the two. "Blacksea Odyssey" follows the formula of "Treasure Planet" to mix the two settings for a high seas/interstellar RPG adventure with roguelike elements.
The vicious spacescape teems with entities that threaten your survival. Whale-like megaliths, lithe spacecraft and grotesque beasts are gunning for you. To stay alive, you need to react quickly and search out danger-plagued depths with fearless ferocity.
Nine months after its release on consoles and PC, "Blacksea Odyssey" sets sail on the Switch. Fast-paced thrills come along with the combat, which tasks you to dismember enemies systematically, cutting them down to size so you can neutralize and eliminate them.
Customization options for your ship abound, letting you tweak and tinker with various aspects of your ship to emphasize your own offensive and defensive philosophies.
The diversity lends itself to the crafting suite, which lets you collect and fuse together resources that serve as boosts to help you, well, find and collect even more cool stuff with which to craft.
"Blacksea Odyssey" may lean a little too hard on rote basics, but manages to freshen up its array of offerings enough to seem fresh and vibrant. Packed with replayability and polished and refined from its initial platform releases, the game is ready to cast into new waters.
Publisher provided review code.
December 26, 2018
"Uncanny Valley" Review
A dark and atmospheric puzzler, "Uncanny Valley" is a dense and circuitous survival horror title bounding with obtuse clues sheltering multitudes of Easter eggs.
It takes a studious effort and fine-tuned attention to detail -- as well as the willingness to undergo multiple playthroughs -- to uncover everything. Your choices affect the outcomes in ways many games promise but few deliver. This is a truly branching-path effort in the "Choose Your Own Adventure" tradition.
In addition to the mysteries themselves, additional difficulty comes in the form of oddball design choices and convoluted structure. "Uncanny Valley" takes pride in being out of the ordinary, so those looking for something conventional should look elsewhere.
After releasing on consoles in February, the effort from developer Cowardly Creations gets an encore debut on the Switch. The game could gain new life in the new release, with handheld mode making some of the more frustrating qualities more tolerable.
"Uncanny Valley" is far more intriguing when played in shorter, bite-sized go-rounds.
While too convoluted and burdensome for those with short attention spans, the game has the uncanny tendency to gnaw at you when you leave it, sinking into your subconsciousness in the way intriguing works of art tend to do. An overthinker's dream, "Uncanny Valley" has a way of sticking to your ribs.
Publisher provided review code.
December 24, 2018
"Omega Strike" Switch Review
"Omega Strike" blasted its way onto the console scene in the summer, shaking up the Metroidvania concept by adding in a team of alternating character, each blessed with a particular set of strengths and weaponry. It debuts on the Switch half a year later with loads of gung-ho momentum/
You've got options to tackle every obstacle and slate of enemies, such as the block-pushing heavy, the double-jumping acrobat and the jack-of-all-trades trooper.
As with "Trine," you'll need to juidiciously select the proper hero for each task. With multiple options available for most scenarios, your options are as wide as your imagination.
Sprawling levels teem with hidden rooms, unlockable pathways forward and paradigm-shifting items that clear the way for advancement. Deciphering enemy patterns, deciding whether to run-and-gun or methodically work your way through the rooms is much of the fun.
Backtracking is an occasional burden, but retracing your path through various levels takes on fresh notes when you play as different characters. No two playthroughs are the same.
The dev team at Woblyware proves to be adept at orchestrating the Metroidvania formula to its own unique ends. "Omega Strike" is a robust, well-rounded platformer/shooter with intricate realms to uncover and explore. Made with just the right dose of 80s action flick-style cheesiness, it's a holiday treat worth sampling for Switch owners.
Publisher provided review code.
December 23, 2018
"Everspace: Stellar Edition" Review
You wouldn't know it from the waves of roguelikes that have come out in the past few years, but high fantasy isn't a prerequisite for the genre. Space works just fine as a substitute for dungeons, treasures and magic, and "Everspace; Stellar Edition" proves as much with its stylish take on the motif.
An open-concept space shooter with a sprawling play area that suits its title, the effort from Rockfish games slips into a rhythmic orbit of discovery, exploration and upgrades. Divided into sectors, the structure is parced to facilitate segmented gaming that helps break up your path through the story.
Even though the fantasy aspect isn't required for a roguelike, quick, brutal and frequent permadeath is. "Everspace" supplies that with gusto, subjecting you to a gauntlet of dangers. The danger leads to a constant flow of high tension, which makes your breakthroughs all the more exuberant.
Many of your encounters develop on the fly, and choice abounds. You can dive in to defend or attack sweet loot from adversaries, hang back and wait to swoop in and take what's given to you, or retreat entirely and try your luck in some other zone.
Gorgeous environments abound, somewhat hampered by stiff presentation and wonky textures. The pacing is usually so frenzied that it's tough to notice, and as a whole "Everspace" congeals into a wild, ever-shifting adventure that keeps you guessing, regrouping and adapting.
"Everspace" carves out its niche amid a stream of strong indie titles, giving you a taste of an adventure that's nothing like anything else you'll find on the system. In space, no one can hear you die over and over again and somehow find yourself happy with it.
Publisher provided review code.
December 21, 2018
Book Report: "Anne of Green Gables"
Anne of Green Gables by L.M. MontgomeryMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
L.M. Montgomery overcame considerable institutional prejudice to craft this delightful, entrancing coming-of-age novel, about a mischievous, hyperimaginative girl who overthinks her way through adolescence.
A female and Canadian answer to Mark Twain's Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn, "Anne of Green Gables" launched a sizable entertainment empire of its own that continues to thrive in various media today. None of the TV shows or movies can match the effervescent panache of Montgomery's writing.
Likely drawing upon her own upbringing as a brainy and rambunctious young mind scuttled by prim, proper society, Montgomery sets the stage for relatable and awkward misadventures. She talks her way in and out of trouble, forges rivalries and frenemyships and bristles against the constraints of social expectations heaped upon females.
In the Audible version, Rachel McAdams' narration perfectly synthesizes the brainy energy of a young, too-smart-for-her-own-good mind bubbling with iconoclastic ambition.
Astoundingly fun while also appreciably deep and philosophically challenging, "Anne of Green Gables" is a fun and fascinating story that's a treat from end to end.
Publisher provided review copy.
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