Xbuttons - Xbox Live Game Reviews

Fusion: Genesis is a unique title that aims to combine space exploration, twin-stick shooting, and role-playing elements, with a bit of MMO-style gameplay thrown in. While the thematic aspects of the game are outstanding, the missions are simply boring. Starfire has done an amazing job of coming up with a wonderful space exploration universe and have all the background they need to make for some stellar gameplay in subsequent sequels. They just didn't do it here.

So I have always loved Pac-Man. I'd say you'd be hard-pressed to find a person on the planet that doesn't know who Pac-Man is. So here we are, the XBLA has brought us one of the greatest editions to feature the little yellow guy. Released on November, 17 2010, Pac-Man: Champion Edition DX is my favorite version of the game.

Tough. That is the best word I have for describing this game. Of course I am talking about the wonderfully brutal, extremely frustrating, yet joyously satisfying Super Meat Boy. Released on October 20, 2010, SMB was part of Microsoft's Fall Feast. Super Meat Boy is set at 1200 MS points.

Guardian Heroes was an enjoyable experience, but my expectations were let down, because they were too high. Now don't get me wrong, Guardian Heroes is a lot of fun. The game plays like a classic 2-D side-scrolling Beat 'em up. But the additions that Treasure Co. made to the game is what makes it stand out. The developers mixed fighting game moves with RPG elements to bring a unique twist to the genre.

H.G Wells' The War of the Worlds was published in 1898 and has become a science fiction classic that was well before its time. Other Ocean has done a great job on adapting the story, both visually and audibly with narration from the great Sir Patrick Stewart. But it's a shame you'll die a mass amount of times before you get to any section of it.They wanted to make an extremely difficult game, and to that end they have succeeded. And above all the flaws, the game is fun. But, I feel that they have overlooked the difference between a game and a chore.

After four heroes bottle the evil of their land, they move on to help other civilizations in need. This would be all good and dandy, if it wasn't for the kids they leave behind whom inadvertently release previous said evil upon the castle. Left with a serious situation, and an evil ready to destroy their land, the "kids" have no choice but to take up arms in their heroes absence. I would call you an idiot for not owning this game. The variety in classes, modes and challenges offers sooooooo much replayability that it would be a crime to pass it up.

Orcs Must Die doesn't try to pretend to be something it's not. A lot of Orcs are coming through that door. Kill them all by any means necessary, before they reach the heart of your fortress. While the lack of multiplayer, feeling of repetition, and overall low amount of replay can hinder the game a bit, the lengthy campaign and simple joy the game brings with smashing the crap out of the Orcs and their many friends is well worth the $15 asking price.

This is not the first time that I have played Castlevania :Symphony of the Night. I owned the original. In fact it was one of the first games I got in my transition from the N64 to the Playstation. One thing can be said, It was a great game then and it is a great game now.

Released during 2010's Summer of Arcade, Limbo is a platformer/puzzle hybrid. It is the first game by independent Danish developer Playdead. Limbo is presented in monochromatic black-and-white and Playdead did a great job of using these tones, lighting, film grain effects and ambient sounds to create the eerie atmosphere of the game. It is truly a great piece of art.

ZA is a dual-stick shooter that allows the player to control 1 of 4 characters. The player can move through 55 levels that are set in 7 different environments. Don't be fooled though. There's really no story, and the only thing that differentiates the characters are their dances after a level is cleared.