FILMS D'HIER: 12 Years A Slave

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By: Kevin (@prufesuroak)

films d'hier is a new column we’re introducing to pretty much be a place where my love letters to films can live. These are more opinion and personal taste pieces for the most part. But a massive chunk of my favorites are the undeniable classics if you’ve seen them. Relive them, and if you haven’t and don’t mind spoilers, read on. 

12 Years a Slave (2013) by Steve McQueen is based on a true story which follows Solomon Northup, a free man kidnapped and sold as a slave, in the years before the Civil War. Solomon, now called Platt, is thrown into a life of slavery for 12 years. Until one man, Bass, helps Solomon by sending a letter to the post office for him, helping return him back to his family.

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Short Reviews - Need For Speed

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By: Paul (@MrHarkinian)

  • Need For Speed
  • Developer - Ghost Games
  • Publisher - Electronic Arts
  • Xbox One, PlayStation 4, PC
  • Rating - Teen

You would think that for game developers, taking a year break from an annual activity, would mean that their product has more time dedicated for improvement. Hence why annual titles, like the Call of Duty franchise, tend to be unremarkable. Having to churn out a game every year puts you on a tight schedule, where tough decisions have to be made in order to make the release date. This was the unfortunate case with the Need for Speed series. As a result, most of the series titles were less than stellar, save for Criterion Games Need For Speed Most Wanted (2012), although that game is basically Burnout Paradise 2.

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Fallout 4 Review

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By: Ryan (@Henchman34)

  • Fallout 4
  • Developer - Bethesda Game Studios
  • Publisher - Bethesda Softworks
  • PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Microsoft Windows
  • Rating - Mature

It’s been five long years since the last sequel to the Fallout franchise, Fallout New Vegas, explored our favorite post apocalyptic wasteland in 2010. And now with the long awaited release of Fallout 4, I can say it feels so good to finally be back.

Now that the astronomically nuclear hype for Fallout 4 has settled, it’s time to take an in depth look at what we thought about the game. For those still not initiated into the Fallout scene, Fallout 4 is an open world action role-playing game, set in a post apocalyptic Boston. Or as the native people of the land call the area, the Commonwealth. In this land of rusting sky scrapers and old world heritage, it’s up to you to find your son, while looting, killing, and exploring your way through all that the Commonwealth has to offer. And believe me, it has quite a bit to offer.

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Signal to Noise Review

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by Omar (@siegarettes)

Someone tell me where I can get the guts of Solanimus’s developers, because it definitely took some stones to release this game. Signal to Noise is a game that simultaneously wants to be Dyad, Symphony, Beat Hazard, Audiosurf, Brainpipe, Space Giraffe, or maybe just a Winamp visualizer. Signal to Noise advertises itself as taking inspiration from games like Tempest and Star Fox, but with levels created on the fly from your own music. That’s ambitious. There’s a delicate balance to maintain when building around that technology, as the various levels of success from some of the previously mentioned titles shown. Unfortunately, Solanimus doesn’t have an ounce of the ability required to make that happen. 

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Short Reviews - Evangelion New Theatrical Edition: 3nd Impact

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By: RJ (@rga_02)

  • Evangelion New Theatrical Edition: 3nd Impact 
  • Developer - Grasshopper Manufacturer
  • Publisher - Namco Bandai
  • PlayStation Portable
  • Rating - CERO C

*Note: This game is in Japanese only.

Here’s a heads up. The core staff of this site….well mostly Omar, Ryan, and I love Evangelion. (Well I’m not sure about Omar, but I’m sure he appreciates it) Heck, our site runs on Evangelion jokes (Editors Note: *insert long rant about what convoluted nonsense Evangelion 3.33 is, even by Eva standards).

3nd Impact is a wonderful rhythm game based around the music featured in the reboot movies. The name is a pun on third impact. With third being pronounced as saado in Japanese and combined with -nd, it is some weird hybrid word that makes it pronounced as sound. So “Sound Impact”. It sounds silly, the name sounds silly, but it’s actually pretty dang good.

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Single Press: A Sunday Drive with Glitchhikers

by Marie (@rlpte)

Single Press is a series of short writings on small games. It is made possible through the support of our Patreon. 

Content warning for discussions of suicide below:

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My first time through Glitchhikers, I felt at peace. Driving down the road, having abstract conversations about existence with other worldly beings, it was comfortable. The game told me the destination didn’t matter and asked why the reason did. The eerie landscape, haunting music, and strange creatures all felt like a night curled under blankets talking about life with friends. It was a combination of my favorite things. They were just real people distilled down into existentialist conversations. So I had to share it.

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films d'hier: Breathless

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By: Kevin (@prufesuroak)

films d'hier is a new column we’re introducing to pretty much be a place where my love letters to films can live. These are more opinion and personal taste pieces for the most part. But a massive chunk of my favorites are the undeniable classics if you’ve seen them. Relive them, and if you haven’t and don’t mind spoilers read on.

“There was before Breathless, and there was after Breathless”. A phrase that usually accompanies Breathless.

Breathless is a love story between Patricia; a woman trying to figure things out, and Michel, a small time crook and con man without a care in the world, making ends meet by pickpocketing, and boosting cars whenever he needs them. Patricia is a New Yorker in Paris trying to be a journalist, who’s also figuring out what she likes about Michel.

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Gotta tap fast with XONiC

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By: RJ (@rga_02)

  • SUPERBEAT: XONiC
  • Developer - nurijoy
  • Publisher - PM Studios
  • PlayStation Vita
  • Rating - T

The PlayStation Vita is a hotbed of rhythm games ranging from Hatsune Miku, Cytus Lambda, Persona 4 Dancing All Night, and DJ Max to name a few. The newest kid on the block is SUPERBEAT: XONiC made by Nurijoy, the fine folks who brought us DJ Max. However will this game make you forget the Risettes and Mikus of the world?

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