Pads & Panels

#4 L.A. Noire (PS3, 360, PC)

Publisher: Rockstar Games – Developer: Team Bondi, Rockstar Leeds

Our Review

Every year, Pads & Panels list of top games is dominated not only by quality titles but also by a special few that try their damndest to reinvent what we can expect from mainstream games. It’s no surprise that Rockstar Games has found itself perennially among those special few. This year’s offering from the publisher is L.A. Noire. In addition to a ridiculously detailed recreation of 1940s Los Angeles and a plot worthy of its name, L.A. Noire works to reinvent what we can expect from gaming by pioneering facial technology that allowed its creators to add in-depth, emotional interrogations to what might have otherwise been a simple third-person action title. The DLC support for the title cannot be ignored, but even without it, L.A. Noire would stand out as one of the year’s absolute best. (more…)

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#6 Saints Row: The Third (360, PS3, PC)

Publisher: THQ—Developer: Volition

The Saints Row series has long been the cartoonish alternative for gamers to the now serious and realistic Grand Theft Auto games. Every mistake GTA IV made, Saints Row: The Third fixes. Everything is over-the-top, from the missions to the weapons and the story. The level of polish elevates it from the previous games in the series. But the best part of Saint’s Row: The Third is jumping into co-op and sharing the chaos with a friend. (more…)

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Title: “Smasher Pack” DLC for Red Faction: Guerrilla

Platform: 360 (PS3, PC)

ESRB Rating: M

Publisher: THQ

Developer: Volition

Review by: Kevin Haverty

The third round of DLC for Red Faction: Guerrilla expands “Wrecking Crew,” the offline pass-the-controller multiplayer mode. The “Smasher Pack” contains eight new maps and a new play mode called “Behemoth.”

Six of the stages blend in with the stages included on disc and offer more of the same. The remaining two feature some of the hardest to destroy structures encountered in the single-player campaign. Those two maps, “Expansion” and “Imperial,” add an overwhelming feeling. They require strategy and quick wits for the frantic pace of Wrecking Crew. It is a shame that only those two maps stand out. (more…)

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Title: “Traitor’s Keep” DLC for Fable III

Platform: 360

Publisher: Microsoft

Developer: Lionhead

Review by: Archie Easter

Fans clamoring for more Fable III have so far not had much to choose from in the way of additional game content since the game launched. Lionhead’s previous DLC add-on for the game, the “Understone Quest Pack”, was widely considered mediocre at best. Aside from a main quest that could be tackled in about 30 minutes, the “Understone Quest Pack” added a mere two short competitions – one being a shooting range, and the other, an arena based event recycled from the game’s main story. (more…)

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Title: Dance Central

Platform: 360

ESRB: T

Publisher: MTV Games

Developer: Harmonix

Rating:

Reviewed by: Sarah Kumley

Dance Central is an awesome new game that utilizes Kinect. The main premise of the game is to dance in front of the camera, as it recognizes if the player is moving correctly and to the beats of the song. There are 32 songs that come on the game disc, with many others available for download. The game also boasts more than 90 dance routines and more than 650 different dance moves. It has something for everybody, from dancing beginners to experts and everyone in between. (more…)

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Title: Dead Rising 2: Case West

Platform: 360

ESRB: M

Publisher: Capcom

Developer: Blue Castle Games

Rating:

Review by: Matt Peters

Frank West fans rejoice! Capcom’s latest DLC offering for the Xbox 360 unlocks the ability to step into the shoes of the man himself. Fortunately, this doesn’t mean the end of Chuck Greene, Dead Rising 2’s protagonist. In a new twist on the already established play mechanics, players will learn that Frank’s not just a survivor…he’s a badass.

Beginning almost exactly where the main game left off, our two heroes meet as Chuck is confronted with the now-undead boss of the main game. After an assist from Mr. West and a quick stare-down/chest pounding/grunt-off, the two quickly whisk away to a research lab AKA “a place to kill more zombies.” (more…)

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Title: “Marvel Level Kit” DLC for LittleBigPlanet

Platform: PS3

Publisher: Sony

Developer: Media Molecule

Review by: Bill Jones

Sony has teamed with Marvel to offer more developer-created platforming content for LittleBigPlanet in the form of the “Marvel Level Kit.” The kit hit the PlayStation Store the same day as the first of several planned Marvel Costume Packs, the first one comprising Iron Man, Thing, Daredevil, Doctor Octopus and Mystique. And while Sackboy versions of Iron Man and Doctor Octopus are absolutely adorable, it’s the level pack that deserves the real attention. Media Molecule gives Marvel the full treatment, with four brand-new levels created by the developer, along with an extra background, three music files, 24 create objects and 156 stickers for players to use on their own levels. But with four awesome levels that pit up to four heroes against the maniacal plans of Magneto, it’s the developer stuff that should attract the most attention. (more…)

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Title: “The Incredibles Level Kit” DLC for LittleBigPlanet

Platform: PS3

Publisher: Sony

Developer: Media Molecule

Review by: Bill Jones

Adding to Disney’s partnership with Sony for LittleBigPlanet comes “The Incredibles Level” Kit” and “The Incredibles Costume Pack.” The costume pack steals the show this time around, with nine costumes for the $5.99 price tag. It comprises all of The Incredibles, as well as a “retro” version of Mr. Incredible, their allies Frozone and Edna Mode, and their arch-nemesis, Syndrome. Though The Incredibles costumes are pretty much identical, fans of the Pixar movies should like the different hairdos that give the characters some variety. But “The Incredibles Level Kit” is a bit of a disappointment. This one is strictly just a level kit, with a “Gallery Level” for Sackboys and girls to run through to collect the items that come with the pack. The Incredibles settings are well done, but at $4.99 it’s a shame the property didn’t get the same developer-created levels present in other packs. (more…)

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Title: “The Signal” DLC for Alan Wake

Platform: 360

Publisher: Microsoft

Developer: Remedy

Review by: Bill Jones

“The Signal” picks up right where Alan Wake left fans at the end of the core game. We get a recap of the entire first game in one of those television style “Last time on…” vignettes, and then we find ourselves back in Wake’s shoes, in the first of a two-part “Special.”

Assuming anyone reading this has already played the game (and therefore won’t find this to be a spoiler), the ending of Alan Wake left a lot of questions up in the air, though to be fair the game told us up front it was going to do just that. After Wake’s rewritten ending apparently brought his wife back, but wrote himself out as a matter of balance, fans will want to know what exactly happened to him. “The Signal” doesn’t offer any concrete answers, but it’s dancing around them. (more…)

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Last week, we gave some love to our PlayStation Network fans. Now, it’s time to do the same for our Xbox Live Arcade users. You may remember Toy Soldiers, the Xbox Live Arcade game that released earlier this year, letting players switch between first- and third-person perspectives in its tower defense-meets-strategy gameplay. Kevin reviewed it, and gave it 4 out of 5 Stars. “The Kaiser Battle” DLC allows players to take control of the French Army, fight a new experimental boss and battle in new multiplayer and Survival Mode maps. Microsoft was kind enough to send four redemption codes for the “Kaiser Battle” DLC to give to our readers, and that’s exactly what we’re going to do, first come, first served. Follow us on twitter @padsandpanels We’ll give an indicator once a day – starting today, followed by Wednesday, Thursday, Friday. The first to reply @padandpanels with their user name from the site, when we post this indicator, will get a code. Good Luck! (more…)

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