As I’ve mentioned before, I got my start in the world of reviews and podcasting on the Black Panel, Australia’s grooviest Gaming site. These guys are so awesome our gaming coverage here at Nerd Culture Podcast can stay minimal and we recommend you head on over there for all your gaming news and reviews. But every now and then we might feel the need to do something in the area ourselves so, to kick off Joystick, NCP’s gaming area I thought I would repost my Black Panel reviews. I’ll only have a paragraph and link. The full reviews can be read at blackpanel.com.au
BioShock 2
The first thing that comes to mind when playing BioShock 2 is just how ‘right’ everything feels. Like the first game in the series, BioShock 2 is a first person shooter set an undersea city known as Rapture, but various refinements have resulted in much more depth. Real time hacking (you can be attacked while hacking), hacking rewards (want some free ammo?) and true dual-wielding, all build on the already great gameplay of the original.
Read the full review at Black Panel
Heavy Rain
It is important for me state this right from the outset – Heavy Rain is more than a game, it is an experience. It is an interactive drama that blurs the boundary between film and games and offers the chance to show how realistic moral choices can have realistic consequences; to show that games are not just for kids. Heavy Rain is an adult drama, and this is a great thing for games.
Read the full review at Black Panel
Super Street Fighter IV
The room is dark. Vivid colours suddenly appear on the huge TV screen on the wall, illuminating the smiling face of the handsome game reviewer. The announcer’s voice rings out, and a plethora of selectable characters appear. Who will he choose? Selecting one of the newcomers, Juri, he grins with excitement as her image then fills a third of the screen. Using an impressive looking world map the game then chooses a location, giving a hint of the opponent to come. The scene of the imminent battle appears and his opponent is revealed, the bestial Blanka, and the fight begins!
Ok, so I got a little carried away with the intro, but this game brings it out of you and it does illustrate just how exciting this game is. The bright colours, the ridiculously over the top fight announcer and the superhero like physiques of the fighters all combine to deliver a pulse racing experience and that’s before the fighting even starts.
Read the full review at Black Panel
Red Dead Redemption
The sun is setting in the distance as I casually trot along the dusty trail. I’m admiring the scenery when a damsel in distress comes running out of the underbrush, wearing nothing but a negligee and begging for help. Could I give her a ride into town? Wait! All is not as it seems. As soon as she reaches me, she throws me to the ground, leaps onto my horse and gallops away laughing. But all is not lost. I quickly rise and whistle for my trusty steed. He immediately bucks her off and trots back to meet me. I leap into the saddle and the chase is on. I quickly lasso and hogtie her, place her on the back of my horse and think about what to do with her. Decision reached, I ride to the nearest train line, dump my protesting captive onto the tracks and step back. It doesn’t take long for the train to arrive and my would-be horse thief explodes into red mist. My ‘Dastardly’ achievement is proudly announced and I can’t help but smile. Life was hard in the Wild West.
Read the full review at Black Panel
Monday Night Combat
Monday Night Combat is a wonderfully entertaining mix of player vs player, third-person shooter with tower-defence mechanics set in a futuristic combat game show. Think The Running Man X Wipeout (or It’s a Knockout if you’re an older reader) and you have some idea. Visually, Monday Night Combat looks very similar to Team Fortress 2, with vibrant colours and cartoonish characters. It looks awesome.
Read the full review at Black Panel
