Pads & Panels

Title: Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood

Platform: 360 (Also on PS3)

ESRB Rating: M

Publisher: Ubisoft

Developer: Techland

Rating:

Review by: John Gustafson

As a prequel, Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood introduces players to a younger Ray McCall and his brothers Thomas and William (a preacher) at the end of the Civil War in this spaghetti-western. With the Union army moving in on their family homestead, brothers Ray and Thomas become deserters of the Confederate army to save their home. The duo is too late, as the union has occupied the house, holding William and their mother hostage, forcing the two to fight their way toward the house. Unfortunately for them, their mother dies during these events. (more…)

Title: The Chronicles of Riddick: Assault on Dark Athena

Platform: 360 (Also on PS3, PC, Mac)

ESRB Rating: M

Publisher: Atari

Developer: Starbreeze Studios

Rating:

Review by: John Gustafson

Vin Diesel is back as Riddick, the shadow-lurking killer badass, and that is just the way we like him.

The Chronicles of Riddick: Assault on Dark Athena is actually two games in one – Escape from Butcher Bay and Dark Athena. The former was one of the best games on the original Xbox and a must play; the latter is a sequel that continues detailing the story from the movies Pitch Black and The Chronicles of Riddick. (more…)

Title: Zubo

Platform: DS

ESRB Rating: E10+

Publisher: Electronic Arts

Developer: EA Bright Light Studios

Review by: Sarah Kumley

The conversations in Zubo are annoying. The player’s human character must for some reason always face the Zubos that are talking, forcing the character to do an awkward stepping-in-place motion and turn to face the speaker. It doesn’t affect game play in any way, but is simply irritating to watch, over and over. It is a good thing that the rest of the game, especially the slapstick violence of the battle moves, is exceptionally amusing. (more…)

Title: “Challenge Rooms” DLC for Bioshock

Platform: PS3

Publisher: Take 2 Interactive

Developer: 2K (Boston/Australia/Marin)

Review by: Bill Jones

PlayStation 3 owners without an Xbox may have had to wait a bit longer for the amazing game that is BioShock, without anything notable added to the core experience. And that’s just fine, as the original game is an experience better left untouched.

PlayStation owners were rewarded with their patience, however, with the ability to purchase the exclusive “Challenge Rooms” for $10. The downloadable contest comes in three parts, separating the puzzle and combat elements of BioShock. The only thing that is not there is story, and players receive a disclaimer right off the bat that it doesn’t play into the themes of BioShock, but rather offers additional entertainment with the game’s engine, settings weapons and characters. (more…)

Title: Prince of Persia: The Fallen King

Platform: DS

ESRB Rating: E

Publisher: Ubisoft

Developer: Ubisoft Casablanca

Rating:

Review by: John Gustafson

Here we have an excellent example of when touch screen controls on the DS are not better than traditional control elements. Prince of Persia: The Fallen King is a usually unresponsive, sometimes agreeable side-scroller that begs for refinement and justification for its questionable choices. (more…)

Title: The Chain Game

Publisher: Out of the Box

Players: 2-8

Ages: 12 to Adult

Time Per Game: 15 minutes

MSRP: $24.99

Description

With the slogan “The Quick-Thinking Linking Game” adorning its box, The Chain Game provides players with a fairly simply concept – link compound words until one player cannot in the fast-paced round-table action.

The set provides 36 chain links, 216 compound word cards and a horn. Players divide the links and rotate the position of judge, who first pulls a card and reads the compound word – catfish, for instance. Moving clockwise around the table, the next player must come up with a new word based on one element of the previous – catnap, for example. Meanwhile, the judge counts in five-second intervals. (more…)

Bill, Kevin and Sarah took a brief trip to Champaign, Ill., Wednesday to visit Volition, Inc., the studio responsible for recent games such as Red Faction: Guerrilla (which Kevin and Bill have been playing quite a bit – expect a review soon) and Saints Row 2. Gamers that go back about a decade might also recognize the company for the PC space simulation Decent. (more…)

Title: Wondermark Vol. 2: Clever Tricks to Stave Off Death

Writer: David Malki!

Artist: David Malki!

Publisher: Dark Horse

Rating:

Review by: Bill Jones

While Clever Tricks to Stave Off Death is the second Wondermark volume to be published by Dark Horse, it marks the third collection transferring David Malki’s hilarious webcomic to print.

Like Volume 1, Beards of Our Forefathers, it collects roughly 100 Wondermark comics, this time coming approximately from the era of strips between 220 to 320. The binding and size of the book are nearly identical to that of its predecessor, but Wondermark’s latest volume takes on a different theme. (more…)

Earlier this month, Mezco Toyz opened a “Summer Exclusives” sale at its online store, featuring Hellboy and Living Dead Dolls. Among them is the Deluxe Abe Sapien 18-inch Figure ($70, shown). There is also a 3.75-inch Hellboy and Golden Army Soldier package for $30. The Living Dead Dolls Resurrection Set 3 runs $180, while a variant of that set is also available for $200. Rounding things out is a Mez-Itz Comic Book Hellboy ($20).

More details can be found at www.mezcotoyz.com

Title: Bionic Commando

Platform: 360 (Also on PS3)

ESRB Rating: M

Publisher: Capcom

Developer: GRIN

Rating:

Review by: John Gustafson

This game once appeared to have promise. Now, it is just a slew of could-have-been-fun moments mixed with downright boring gameplay.

As a sequel to the amazingly good and frustratingly difficult Bionic Commando Rearmed, the aptly named Bionic Commando stars Nathan “Rad” Spencer (voiced by Faith No More singer Mike Patton) in a third-person perspective action/adventure frenzy. Ascension City has been bombed with an experimental nuclear weapon, the population has been wiped out, and the bad guys have moved in, searching for an even more dangerous weapon. Cue the one man who can stop them! (more…)