Recent reviews by hal

Old school, non-stop action game fun.

BTD6 is a fine tower defense game that features monkeys versus balloons. Don't let the cute and colorful appearance fool you though: it's easy in the beginning, but you can easily choose more challenging scenarios that will test your abilities thoroughly.

There's a bit of a grind at first to unlock everything, but there's so much content, that just playing the game will get you there. Daily and weekly events are great and give you a chance at more free stuff. There's plenty to do in co-op too..

Another excellent puzzle game in the series. If you've played the others then you already know you're going to like this one. If you haven't, then start with The Room 1 -- not so much for the story, but for the puzzle progression.

Excellent art, music, and logical puzzles perfectly compliment the sparse, but effective story. The puzzles fall on the easier side, but you're going to have to think a little harder if you want to see all four endings. Yep, four. The nice part is that, in order to achieve all four, you need not repeat the entire game. Instead, once you complete the game, it allows you to "change your fate" by placing you in the hub right before the final puzzle. You're then free to explore and scrounge up all the hidden secrets that are scattered throughout. I wish more games took this approach: fair and fun.

If you liked one and/or two, you'll like this one as well.

The Room 2 builds on the puzzles of its predecessor. Where The Room featured puzzles that largely centered around a single object, the sequel use the entire... room. This makes the individual objects slightly less layered in their intricacies, but the overall effect is pleasing.

The rooms are not overly difficult to solve -- I spent about an hour or so solving each. The music is relaxing. The intentionally abstruse story lends an air of mystery to the somber settings. Well worth the price.

Your powers of observation and logic are gently tested against a series of decorative (and extremely elaborate) boxes. The game is beautifully rendered and the animations are lovely. There is a mysterious story you can piece together through little clues, but that's secondary to the four terrific puzzles you are presented.

There isn't a lot of trial and error and you'll never feel the solution is unfair. To the contrary, you'll wonder how you missed some of the solutions when you finally put together the clues. You do have the option of requesting hints, though I finished without using any.

It's a relaxing and satisfying game that's easy to recommend to fans of the genre.

If this looks like your type of game... then this is your type of game. Great fights, guns, maps. So much content, It's still getting optional and seasonal content too.

While it can be played solo, it's at its best with a group of friends.

It's impossible not to recommend this game to anyone that likes Tactical RPGs. It just ticks off so many boxes: looks great, amazing music, deep characters, first-class voice-acting, great battles, and a solid inventory system.

The best part of the game, however, is the impressive number of different ways you can play the game. By that, I mean choices, classes, freedom of exploration, and the number of ways in which you can complete a quest. That last one is most important: I'm constantly surprised when I try something strange and it works, or when I see someone else had a completely different approach. There are lots of different ways to achieve your goals and there are many pathways to get there.

The only real downside is that though the world is open, you can quickly find yourself in trouble in an underleveled fight if you veer down the wrong road at the wrong time. You can retrace your steps, but it does push you into a roughly broad, linear pathway. But exploration is heavily rewarded, and it's very easy to uncover things you didn't know were there, including some great side quests.

The final act can also be a little daunting in that you'll find yourself in an area beset on all sides with game-changing decisions and some very powerful enemies. It's a very long game though, so you should be prepared by that point... maybe.

This is one of the finest games of its sort. It's not to be missed if you like tactics and variety. Oh, and it's multiplayer!

The Kingdom Rush series has set a standard for Tower Defense games that many others have tried to reach by copying, but have come up short. Ironhide Game Studios knows how to do what they do best. Any fan of TD games should give these games a try.

You like heroes in your TD game? Frontiers has 18 of them. Tower options? Four basic towers that upgrade in pretty distinct branching pathways. Throw in a couple of god-like powers and you've got a pretty healthy number of ways to defend your exit.

The maps are lushly detailed and some of them even have little hidden interactions. The enemies in each are varied and interesting. Levels can be completed in campaign mode, and two additional, tougher scenarios.

The main gripe some TD purists might have is the inability to path and place towers anywhere other than in preset locations. This just isn't that style of game. The joy comes from choosing the right tower, the right upgrade pathway, and the right timing. Frontiers is another solid entry into the Kingdom Rush series.

I love it, I hate it, but I can't stop playing.

They replaced a great licensed soundtrack with one that is dull and generic, the screen resolution maxes out at 1280, and the game -- for some odd reason -- doesn't offer analog control. It's the original Crazy Taxi, but worse.

You may think you want to replay this great old game, but this isn't the version you're looking for.