DEVELOPER: Arrowhead Game Studios
PUBLISHER: WB Games
SYSTEM: Windows PC
PRICE: $19.99 Download
ESRB RATING: Mature
REVIEW RATING: 3.5 stars (out of 5)
I have fond memories of spending hours upon hours playing the original "Gauntlet" side-by-side with friends. Sure, the game play was shallow and repetitive, but something about the experience kept us slashing forward. Now, "Gauntlet" has been re-imagined for 2014, and the result is hit-and-miss.
Just like the original game, there's no storyline to distract players from the basic goals of slaughtering enemies, eating food and collecting loot. Players are thrust into a medieval fantasy setting where they crawl through mazes of dungeons fraught with the peril of floor spikes, bottomless pits and fire. On top of that, countless demons and monsters must be dispatched using nothing but hand-to-hand combat, projectile attacks and magic.
The original four characters return with abilities that give them different play-styles. For example, the Elf is a ranger who fights with an endless supply of arrows and explosives, while the Warrior is a pugilistic powerhouse! Wizards destroy enemies with elemental spells, and the Valkyrie uses a spear and shield (that can be thrown). While they're all fun to play, melee classes have a disadvantage because they have to wade closer to enemy onslaughts.
It's entirely possible to play and beat "Gauntlet" solo, but the real fun comes from playing cooperatively. For starters, having additional fighters gives an advantage when battling hordes of enemies, and it doesn't hurt when confronting tough bosses. There's no additional loot to grab in coop mode, so players have to compete for gold. Unscrupulous players can take it a step further, and loot a cohort's corpse when they're downed, but this practice doesn't make new friends.
It's too bad that the controls aren't customizable and that the game play becomes monotonous so quickly because "Gauntlet" could have been a real hit!
'Schrodinger's Cat and the Raiders of the Lost Quark'
DEVELOPER: Italic Pig
PUBLISHER: Team 17 Digital Ltd
SYSTEM: Windows PC
PRICE: $14.99 Download
ESRB RATING: Teen
REVIEW RATING: 4.0 stars (out of 5)
The idea of Schrodinger's Cat is introduced to most children in science class, but it's usually forgotten. However, the unusual theory has been ... err ... resurrected, thanks to numerous references in "The Big Bang Theory" TV show. Now it's the basis for a quirky video game titled "Schrodinger's Cat and the Raiders of the Lost Quark," but is it alive or dead on arrival?"
As the game begins, players assume the role of Schrodinger's cat as he or she arrives at the infamous Particle Zoo. As luck would have it, the zoo is in turmoil and the subatomic exhibits are on the loose! Now the only way to restore order is to return a wide array of quarks, bosons, leptons and gluons back to their enclosures.
When you combine the clever storyline with the multitude of scientific jokes and puns, it almost seems like this game was created specifically for Sheldon Cooper. Add in the unusual platform-style game play that uses quark combinations in order to achieve specific actions and the result will be a hit at any science convention!
You see, an action is mapped to each direction on the keyboard that is separate from moving around with the WASD keys. For example, the up quark moves Schrodinger's cat upward, the down quark is used for destruction, top quarks provide protection, and bottom quarks create platforms to walk on. Combining quarks in different ways creates useful results, such as pressing up three times to create a helicopter or pressing down twice and up once to create a missile that breaks through barriers.
Most of the enjoyment comes from experimenting with the different quark creations players can make, but it's also fun to explore the environments. This is made even better by the colorful palette and unlimited variety created through randomly generated levels. Perhaps this is an homage to Heisenberg's Uncertainty Principle of quantum particles, which directly ties back into both Schrodinger's theory and this game.
REVIEW SCORING SYSTEM
5 stars = Must Have
4 stars = Very Good
3 stars = Above Average
2 stars = Bargain Bin
1 star = Don't Bother
RATINGS KEY
Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB)
E: (Everyone)
E10+: (Everyone 10 and older)
T: Teen (13 and older)
M: Mature (17 and older)
To find out more about Jeb Haught and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.
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