Since its release in 2012, FarSight Studio’s Pinball Arcade (PlayStation 4, PlayStation 3, Vita, Xbox One, Xbox 360, iOS, Android, PC, Mac) has consistently added new recreations of classic pinball tables from the ’60s, ’70s, ’80s, ’90s, and even the ’00s.
Here’s a critical look at the ten tables they’ve released for Season Four.
For me, Sunday evening’s TV used to be all about watching the cartoons on Fox: The Simpsons, Family Guy, and so on. But while the network may have neutered the night by adding such non-animated shows as Brooklyn 99 and Last Man On Earth to the schedule, Zen Studios are bringing “Animation Domination” back with the Ball Of Glory pack for Zen Pinball 2 and Pinball FX 2 (PlayStation 4, PlayStation 3, Xbox One, Xbox 360, PC, Vita, iOS, Android, Amazon), which features tables inspired by Archer, Family Guy, Bob’s Burgers, and American Dad. Though after playing all four, it’s clear you’ll want to play them more than one night a week.
Given that it’s just an add-on to Disney Infinity 3.0, you might expect the arcadey racing game Toy Box Speedway (all systems) to be somewhat shallow. But it not only has more depth and options than you might expect, but thanks to its tight controls and twisty tracks, it’s a really fun Sunday drive.
If it’s true that imitation really is the sincerest form of flattery, then a lot of game developers should be flattered by Bedlam (PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PC), a first-person shooter that pays homage to classic games by recreating both their fun and their flaws. Though you’ll decidedly enjoy this more if you’re familiar with the classic games being honored.
For the last couple years, the Transformers games have mostly been third-person shooters. But by switching the combat to a hack & slash motif, Transformers Devastation (PlayStation 4, PlayStation 3, Xbox One, Xbox 360, PC) feels like a welcome change. It’s just too bad it sometimes feels like a redundant one as well.
When Rock Band 3 came out in 2010, its lousy song selection and unwillingness to let me play at the difficulty level of my choosing irritated me so much that I rage quit after just a few tunes and never looked back. But while the former problem continues in Rock Band 4 (Xbox One, PlayStation 4), I’m happy to say the latter has largely (though not totally) been excised, making this a rather welcome comeback.
Much like the Marvel Comics and Pixar films that inspired its earlier incarnations, the Disney Infinity games have always tried to appeal to adults as well as children, though with decidedly less success. In fact, it wasn’t until the Disney Infinity 3.0 Twilight Of The Republic playset, which was essentially a Clone Wars game, that it managed to pull it off. But while you might expect the same from the Disney Infinity 3.0 Rise Against The Empire playset, which is set during the time of the original Star Wars trilogy that adults love so much, it actually falls a bit short for lots of little reasons.
A few weeks before it came out, the executive producer of Afro Samurai 2 Revenge Of Kuma Volume 1 (PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PC) — one of a bunch people at Redacted Studios who also worked on the original Afro Samurai — confessed that, “No one on the team was really happy with how the first game turned out.” Unfortunately, I doubt anyone is going to be happy with how this new game turned out, either.
Since the explosion of mobile games began, there’s been a bunch that seem like they’d work just as well, if not better, on a game console, and with a controller. But while few mobile games ever make that transition, the 2D, side-scrolling, puzzle-driven platformer Leo’s Fortune is bucking this trend by bringing this iOS, Android, Windows phone, and Amazon Fire game to Xbox One, PlayStation 4, PC, and Mac. And though it took a year to make the trip, it seems that it was time well spent.