PixlBit

Get ready to crash!

I jumped into AiRace Speed without much prior knowledge of the game. From its eShop presentation, it seemed to have F-Zero written all over it. As a closet racing game fan, I couldn’t help but get excited. After a few minutes playing, it was clear that the developers managed to capture the speed – and the sadistic difficulty – of F-Zero but not much of the fun. Perhaps it’s because the tracks are devoid of racers or the fact that I never had a perfect handle on the ship, but after a few hours grinding away in these races, I never want to look at AiRace Speed again.

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Level designer > Random level generator

I wouldn’t blame you if you didn’t realize that Cloudberry Kingdom is entirely made up of randomly generated stages. They demand a level of precision and contain enough traps that you’d think some masochistic level designer was madly laughing as he put most of them together. Of course, this does speak volumes of the quality of the level generator that sits behind this intensely challenging 2D platformer, but without anything pulling everything together, it’s more of a never ending gauntlet of disparate levels than a game.

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Let’s all put aside our preconceived notions and take a critical look at Suda51’s latest effort.

Misogyny. It’s a word that’s been thrown around in tandem with Killer is Dead since the fated Gigolo Mode was first revealed. However, creator Grasshopper Manufacture has gotten a raw deal. This tongue-in-cheek mode (that only features two unique encounters) has thrown the stars completely out of alignment for the studio and the game at large. The fact of the matter is, Killer is Dead is quite similar to Suda51’s past works. Combining the frantic action of No More Heroes with the third person shooting from Shadows of the Damned and the darker atmosphere offered by Killer7, Killer is Dead is a fantastic fusion of some of Suda51’s oeuvre. The cryptic narrative that undercuts the experience further accentuates the charm of this excellent action game.

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One of the best modern day platformers.

Two years ago, Rayman hit the scene with one of his most inspired adventures yet. It took series staples and wove them into one of the most beautiful and interesting platformers I’d ever seen. Well, Rayman Legends is now here and it somehow manages to surpass Rayman Origins in every way imaginable. It applies the same great platforming to gorgeous new inspired worlds and even manages to make it enjoyable for more than one concurrent player this time around.

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Finally, something worth playing on the Wii U!

Five years ago, in a small room at E3, Miyamoto let slip that Nintendo was developing another Pikmin title. The excitement he expressed in doing so was tangible and the reveal was seemingly unplanned, but it was clear that producing the game was something special for the father of modern gaming. The final product is beautiful, well-designed, and immensely entertaining – a true testament to Miyamoto's love for the series. However, it also shows clear signs of being rushed to market despite its extended development cycle, which is an unfortunate mark against such a fantastic game.

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