Reviews by Masters

Lightening Force: Quest for the Darkstar review

There's a story here somewhere, but it doesn't matter much--this is a side-scrolling shooter after all. And the story is especially irrelevant when the developers, Technosoft, changed things up when they released Thunder Force V packaged…

Marc Golding · March 19, 2011

Thunder Force III review

Amazingly, on a system inundated with side-scrolling shoot 'em ups, TFIII managed to shine. Critics, shooter fanatics, and casual players alike, found common ground with this cartridge.

Marc Golding · March 17, 2011

Staff PlayStation 2 HG exclusive

Silent Hill 3 review

The start of the downward spiral.

Marc Golding · March 9, 2011

Staff PSP HG exclusive

Pocket Pool review

HyperDevbox Japan surely set out to do something different, by giving us ‘erotic pool.’ The word on the street is that publishers Conspiracy and Eidos sought to use the Girls Gone Wild license and do something really distinct, but talks…

Marc Golding · December 30, 2010

Gunstar Heroes review

Your mission is straightforward enough: As one of the two Heroes — twin brother Red or Blue — you must foil the nefarious Colonel Red (the doppelganger of Street Fighter II’s M. Bison) who has stolen the four Mystic Gems in an plot to…

Marc Golding · December 21, 2010

Staff PlayStation HG exclusive

Resident Evil: Survivor review

We’ve been able to rely on Resident Evil games for certain ingredients that bespeak their quality: amazing polygonal graphics, cheesy cinematic cut scenes, and their ability to spook the player. Survivor only gets the cheese right. This…

Marc Golding · December 21, 2010

Vectorman review

At the time of this game's release, a big fuss was made over it. Much drooling came about, and many Genesis gamers had to dab gingerly at their foreheads with cold towels. The reason was that BlueSky Software made a truly unique-looking…

Marc Golding · December 2, 2010

Zero Wing review

Zero Wing is a side-scrolling shooter, of the deliberate, R-Type variety, not the frenetic Thunder Force variety. That in and of itself may seem strange coming from Toaplan, the makers of the prototypically hectic Batsugun and its ilk. But…

Marc Golding · November 23, 2010

Staff Genesis Review of the Week HG exclusive

Eliminate Down review

For a shooter physique to be adequately robust, there are certain requirements. Its body composition must be as follows: rocking tunes, interesting places and foes, a hard ass level of difficulty, and that muscle which elicits memorable…

Marc Golding · November 16, 2010

Thexder Neo HD review

Enemies come at you fast, but luckily your laser beam has homing capabilities, so you needn’t even aim to bring them down. Being successful is more a function of edging forward gradually enough to bring the enemies onto the screen slowly…

Marc Golding · March 22, 2010

NHL 10 review

NHL 10 is inarguably the epitome of EA’s drive to make the ideal hockey game and at this point, there really is no looking back. My only gripe is that after 09 we had so much more to look forward to.

Marc Golding · October 23, 2009

Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2 review

Tough guy fulfillment has all but gone up in purple smoke. That the game’s infamous obstinacy has mellowed only serves to make matters worse. Areas crawling with menace that had you sweating your way through, barely able to come up for…

Marc Golding · October 20, 2009

UFC Undisputed 2009 review

In Undisputed, the tendency is toward striking battles, rather than toward what that particular fighter is actually most comfortable with or known for. Fortunately, this flaw won’t matter much for most gamers because the average MMA fan is…

Marc Golding · June 5, 2009

Spider-Man: Web of Shadows review

So to conclude that Web of Shadows was loaded with potential would be quite the understatement. Ultimately, the game fails miserably to live up to that potential, sort of like Penny Hardaway. And why is that? Because Web of Shadows drags…

Marc Golding · December 15, 2008

Staff DS HG exclusive

Disney's Kim Possible: Kimmunicator review

Kim can punch and kick, stringing together ‘combos’ of each attack simply through button mashing. But there are major issues with responsiveness and hit-detection. Sometimes Kim simply will not attack though you think you might be pressing…

Marc Golding · December 4, 2008

Staff DS HG exclusive

SpongeBob SquarePants featuring Nicktoons: Globs of Doom review

Globs tries to be Kim Possible meets The Lost Vikings, with inconsistent results.

Marc Golding · November 19, 2008

NBA 2K9 review

Put simply: it doesn’t get better than this for videogame basketball. NBA 2K9 basically took a blueprint which was already established as genre-defining and leading, and made some tweaks in order to provide the best experience available…

Marc Golding · November 5, 2008