Forums > Contributor Zone > Review of the Week April 4 - April 10: ...it smells of death.

*lightning bolt strikes a grave marked "RIP ROTW"*

*a hand rises from the grave, followed by ominous laughter*

Last week, we saw the revival of our old weekly contest. I enjoyed seeing the resurrection of this spectacle, especially the part where I freakin' won. However, it's now time for me to turn over my crown to a new ROTW champion. Never mind the black, curly hairs on it. Those are from a... uh... a wig... yeah...

THIRD PLACE

EmP's The Walking Dead: Michonne - Episode 2: Give No Shelter (PC)

You know one type of game that's tough to review? Puzzlers.

You know another? Compilations.

One more: episodic games.

That being the case, I'd say EmP handled this one expertly. It's vague in the right places to avoid spoilers while informative enough to give the initiated gamer the skinny of why Michonne's mini-series is kind of a drag. It flows wonderfully and I found it to be insightful, and that it now has me questioning whether or not I even want to bother with this title. That's saying a lot from me because Michonne is one of my favorite TWD characters. (Where the show is concerned, I think I'm more of a Carol fan. She's straight out of fucks to give.)

There's really not much for me to pick at as far as drawbacks. I'd say it's more of a case where the other folks on the list just happened to select games that are more ROTW material.

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SECOND PLACE

pickhut's Mega Man 10 (Xbox 360)

I played through Mega Man 10 some years ago and never reviewed it. I liked it a lot, but I think pickhut brought up something about this game that I couldn't quite put into words. MM10 doesn't really have any standout qualities about it. He outlines precisely why it's not one of the more impressive titles in the series, but also describes the game well enough that you should be able to tell whether or not your opinion will align with his own. This is how a review should be written.

Personally, I always thought of Mega Man 10 as "the one that thankfully isn't Mega Man 9." I wouldn't say I hated that one, per se, but I found it very disappointing.

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And finally

REVIEW OF THE WEEK

Nightfire's Sword of the Samurai (PC)

I didn't have much interest in this game going into the review. When I finished it, I immediately put it on my Steam wishlist.

The review hooked me from the get-go and detailed all of Sword's neat features without coming off as a clunky list. It also helps that there's a lot of personality and passion injected into this piece, which made it a very engaging and smooth read. Your enthusiasm helps bolster the game's positive qualities, which made it difficult to resist buying it sometime down the road (I'm currently broke, so even $6.99 is outside of my budget). It flows terrifically, uses a variety of screenshots and properly condenses what sounds like a very deep game into a quick read. Seriously, reviews for games like this can really bog readers down with boatloads of information, so it's great to see one that's snappy.

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Alright, now git!

The only thing my milkshake brings to the yard is a subpoena.

You should be playing SotS. I'd have got it the second Nightfire made me realise it was on Steam. But that would eat up all my gaming time, and who else is going to write that Doom 32X review? I'm selfless, me.

It's a really good game and, as such, I'm glad it's showcased by this site's second really good review.

For us. For them. For you.

Thanks for doing this, Joe, and congratulations to the winners!

"Too often we enjoy the comfort of opinion without the discomfort of thought." - John F. Kennedy on reality

"What if everything you see is more than what you see--the person next to you is a warrior and the space that appears empty is a secret door to another world? What if something appears that shouldn't? You either dismiss it, or you accept that there is much more to the world than you think. Perhaps it really is a doorway, and if you choose to go inside, you'll find many unexpected things." - Shigeru Miyamoto on secret doors to another world2

I thought OD was hitting Doom 32X.

The only thing my milkshake brings to the yard is a subpoena.

OD can't handle Doom 32X.

For us. For them. For you.

In lieu of me hitting Doom 32X, I decided to just buy the XBLA port of Doom 2. I'm happy with that decision.

I'm not afraid to die because I am invincible
Viva la muerte, that's my goddamn principle

You should do the 3DO port instead. It's excellent.

Snicker

For us. For them. For you.

Is it 2002?

I don't have to prove I'm refined - that's what makes me refined!

Back when you last submitted a review?

For us. For them. For you.

Glad you enjoyed reading the MM10 review! At first, I found it surprisingly hard to convey my thoughts about the game, since it really didn't have any unique qualities to it. Though, I had a moment of clarity in the bathroom. Weirdly, half of my insights seem to occur there.

Well, this is awkward.

I head spaceshit noises.

Emp, that was too easy. Always reaching for the low hanging fruit.

I don't have to prove I'm refined - that's what makes me refined!

I totally missed this thread when it appeared.

Thanks for the nomination :)

I should really poke around the forums more...

placid like acid