Hotline Miami Review

The game itself is a pretty poor clone of 1991's arcade hit Smash TV, but instead of a game show, I guess your guy is just a crazy murderer.

The first problem I had is the UI. Its WASD to move and the mouse to aim. This is pretty awkward. Back in 1982 when they made Robotron 2084 they figured out the best control scheme for such a game is having 2 joysticks, one for moving and one for shooting. So naturally I ask why we aren't using an XBOX controller for this, but, since they are acting like its 1991, no xbox 360 support exists. OK fine I'll deal with this dreadful keyboard and mouse, but the mouse speed is so slow, let me speed it up like I've done with every shooting game released since WOLF3d. Sadly you cannot adjust the mouse sensitivity either.

One thing this game does have that Smash TV didn't have was tons and tons of bugs. You can run into a room with 2 dudes in it, shoot one, the other will chase you about 10 feet, then suddenly loose interest and go back to patrolling the room again. I saw a dog run off the map entirely for no reason, and once an annoying error message popped up when I picked up a weapon. Bullets harmlessly pass through enemies when you shoot them at melee range,but fortunately they will miss you too. You can swing a melee weapon right through a wall or door like it isn't there. For some reason it takes longer to load this game than Skyrim in spite of it being about 200 meg.

While the game itself is an unplayable disaster, the soundtrack is really terrific. Its almost worth suffering through the game just to listen to the fabulous electronic music. Its hypnotic. If you find anyone who believes this game is of any quality, simply mute their speakers and they will immediately come to their senses. 

Verdict: 60/100

LEGO Lord of the Rings Review

Best of any Lego games I've ever played!

I've played some of the Lego games including Indiana Jones and Harry Potter. Even though those games were fun, I never got into the whole Lego series. But with this game, it blew me away. This one made me enjoy every minute of it!

The story of course follows the adventures of the Lord of the Rings trilogy, which I'm a big fan of the series. I also noticed that there were some parts of the books they added to the game (if you read the books, you may had noticed too.)

As for the cut scenes, I did enjoy them. I wasn't upset or anything about the game having the dialogue from the movies. In fact, I think if they didn't have the dialogue, this game would be a bit boring (like the HP Lego game having no dialogue; though it was good, it made me bored as I continued to play.)And every time I've played the Lego Lord of the Rings in front of my younger siblings, they always cracked up at the jokes in the cutscenes, especially when Boromir died. Even I enjoyed and laughed at those scenes, too.

I was already impressed by the beautiful of the whole landscape in the previews and reviews of the game. The makers really put their best into this game. I also like it how you can explore Middle Earth with your characters before continuing on with the story. You could unlock other characters, collect blocks, or go on quests from other NPC. Giving the player a chance to take a break and just explore was a good thing to have.

Being a Lego game, I did find some parts easy. They point out how much wood you need, how many enemies you need to defeat, etc. I actually find that good since there will be children that will be playing this game. However, even though I'm an adult, I've found myself either stuck or in constant groan when my character dies. Not that it's bad or anything, I find it more of a challenge, making me more excited as the fight presses on.

Overall, if your kid or even yourself are a fan of Lord of the Rings, this game is by far one of the best in the last few years.  Enjoy!

Verdict: 82/100

all PC Empire Building Games

2012 - Endless Space PC
2012 - Warlock: Master of the Arcane PC
2012 - Crusader Kings II PC
2012 - Port Royale 3: Pirates and Merchants PC
2012 - A Game of Dwarves PC
2012 - Anno Online PC
2012 - Elemental: Fallen Enchantress PC
2012 - King Arthur II: The Role-playing Wargame PC
2012 - Legends of Pegasus PC
2012 - Sid Meier's Civilization V: Gods & Kings PC
2012 - Victoria II: A House Divided PC
2011 - Sengoku PC
2011 - Anno 2070 PC
2011 - Total War: Shogun 2 PC
2011 - King Arthur: The Druids PC
2011 - Sid Meier's CivWorld PC
2011 - Supreme Ruler: Cold War PC
2011 - Sword of the Stars II: Lords of Winter PC

2010 - AI War: The Zenith Remnant PC
2010 - Elemental: War of Magic PC
2010 - Napoleon: Total War PC
2010 - Patrician IV: Conquest by Trade PC
2010 - Sid Meier's Civilization V PC
2010 - Star Ruler PC
2010 - Victoria II PC
2009 - Grand Ages: Rome PC
2009 - Empire: Total War PC
2009 - East India Company PC
2009 - Dawn of Discovery PC
2009 - Light of Altair PC
2009 - Sword of the Stars: Argos Naval Yard PC
2009 - AI War: Fleet Command PC
2008 - The Guild 2: Venice PC
2008 - Sins of a Solar Empire PC
2008 - Supreme Ruler 2020 PC
2007 - Europa Universalis III PC
2007 - Anno 1701: The Sunken Dragon PC
2006 - 1701 A.D. PC

2006 - The Guild 2 PC
2006 - Sword of the Stars PC
2006 - Medieval II: Total War PC
2005 - Sid Meier's Civilization IV PC
2005 - Strength & Honour PC
2005 - Supreme Ruler 2010 PC
2004 - Gates of Troy PC
2004 - Crusader Kings PC
2004 - Port Royale 2 PC
2004 - Rome: Total War PC
2004 - Spartan PC
2003 - 1503 A.D.: The New World PC
2003 - Legacy Online PC
2003 - Port Royale PC
2003 - Master of Orion 3 PC
2003 - Patrician III PC
2003 - Victoria: An Empire Under the Sun PC

2003 - War and Peace: 1796-1815 PC
2002 - Starships Unlimited: Divided Galaxies PC
2001 - Sid Meier's Civilization III PC
2001 - Business Strategy 2000 PC
2001 - Star Peace: Rise of the Tycoons PC
2001 - Trade Empires PC
2000 - 1602 A.D. PC
2000 - Call to Power II PC
2000 - Conflict of Nations PC
2000 - Shogun: Total War PC
2000 - Economic War PC
2000 - Space Empires IV PC
1999 - Sid Meier's Alien Crossfire PC
1999 - Civilization II: Test of Time PC
1999 - Civilization: Call to Power PC
1998 - Anno 1602: Creation of a New World PC
1998 - Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri PC
1998 - Deadlock II: Shrine Wars PC
1998 - Ultimate Civilization II PC
1997 - Imperialism PC
1997 - Space Empires III PC
1996 - Conquest of the New World PC
1996 - Destiny PC
1996 - Enemy Nations PC
1996 - Sid Meier's Civilization II PC
1995 - Galactic Civilizations 2 PC
1995 - Machiavelli the Prince PC
1995 - Exploration PC
1995 - Sid Meier's Colonization PC
1994 - Galactic Civilizations PC
1993 - Master of Orion PC
1992 - PowerMonger PC
1991 - Merchant Colony PC
1991 - Sid Meier's Civilization PC
1990 - Gold of the Americas PC

See also:  in 2013

DX11.1 not exclusive to Windows 8 after all, Microsoft adds DX11.1 features to Windows 7

Good news for Windows 7 users, as it seems that Microsoft has – somewhat – backed off and will add various DX11.1 features to your beloved OS. According to a post on the ‘Games for Windows and the DirectX SDK’ blog, Microsoft brings – via the Platform Update for Windows 7 Service Pack 1 and Windows Server 2008 R2 Service Pack 1 (KB 2670838) that is included with the Internet Explorer 10 Release Preview for Windows 7 - some DX11.1 features.