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http://www.defunctgames.com The latest articles from Defunct Games. http://www.defunctgames.com/reviewcrew/232 A few weeks ago, we looked at the TimeSplitters trilogy, the newest PlayStation 2 games to hit PS+. Believe it or not, these were the first PlayStation 2 games to be given the Review Crew treatment, which led to a lot of people asking when I would be tackling the rest of the PS2 games released in 2024. The answer to that question is RIGHT NOW! We’re going to go back and look at three PlayStation 2 games that were recently added to the PlayStation Plus subscription. I’m talking about classics like Sly Cooper and the Thievius Raccoonus, Summoner and Tomb Raider: Legend. It’s cool news that these games were added to the PlayStation 5, but are any of them actually worth playing? To answer that question, I decided to flip through the pages of Electronic Gaming Monthly, Edge, Game Informer and other classic magazines to see what the critics said back when these three games first came out. I sure hope you’re ready for strong disagreements, because this is a very divisive episode of PlayStation Plus Review Crew! Fri, 30 Aug 2024 00:00:00 -0800 http://www.defunctgames.com/courant/1762 Three decades after it first hit the Nintendo Entertainment System, Shadow of the Ninja has been Reborn for a whole new generation. This is a complete reimagining of the original, featuring revised level designs, upgraded boss battles, brand-new moves and abilities, and more than fifty items to play around with. This is a bigger and better-looking experience that does an excellent job of honoring what was good about the 8-bit classic. Unfortunately, the gameplay isn’t as precise as it should be and it’s surprisingly frustrating cycling through the items. It’s not as iconic as the 1990 original, but Shadow of the Ninja: Reborn is still worth picking up, no matter if you’re a long-time fan or somebody new to the series. Thu, 29 Aug 2024 00:00:00 -0800 http://www.defunctgames.com/courant/1761 CYGNI touts itself as a next-generation shoot ‘em up, and from a visual perspective, it succeeds. From the massive bosses to the attention to detail in the backgrounds, this is a graphically stunning game that will impress you from beginning to end. But while the game goes all-in when it comes to the visual splendor, the same cannot be said about the rest of the experience. This is a fairly straight-forward vertical shooter that doesn’t do much to shake up the genre cliches. The weapons are boring, the upgrade shop is lacking and some of the best ideas (like shooting enemy units on the ground) feel like an afterthought. Sure, CYGNI: All Guns Blazing is the same old shoot ‘em up with a fresh coat of paint, but that sure is one good looking paint job. Tue, 27 Aug 2024 00:00:00 -0800 http://www.defunctgames.com/reviewcrew/231 With his recent appearance in Multiversus and a sequel hitting theaters in just a couple of weeks, I think it’s safe to say that Beetlejuice is officially back! That’s right, the Michael Keaton character created 36 years ago is suddenly everywhere, and I couldn’t be more excited. All this excitement reminded me that there were a pair of 8-bit Beetlejuice games published by LJN in the 1990s, one for the Nintendo Entertainment System and the other for the Game Boy. With no new Nintendo Switch Online games to talk about this week and the TimeSplitters games on PlayStation Plus already covered, I thought it might be fun to see if either of these Beetlejuice games are actually worth playing. Y’know, just in case Limited Run Games eventually announces a compilation or something. To answer that question, I decided to flip through the pages of Nintendo Power, GamePro and more classic magazines to see what the critics said back then these games first came out. I sure hope you’ve been studying the Handbook for the Recently Deceased, because this is going to be a spooky episode of Beetlejuice Review Crew! Fri, 23 Aug 2024 00:00:00 -0800 http://www.defunctgames.com/courant/1760 Fallen Leaf is a throwback game that not only looks the part, but also plays just like the action/platform games that crowded the Nintendo Entertainment System. With its good looks, great control and expertly-crafted level designs, this wannabe 8-bitter does a great job of emulating the games of the 1980s. It’s also surprisingly long. Maybe too long. And I don’t like how there isn’t much incentive to switch between the different playable characters. But even though it’s overlong to a fault, Fallen Leaf is a must-play experience for anybody who sharpened their teeth on old school Mega Man games. Thu, 22 Aug 2024 00:00:00 -0800 http://www.defunctgames.com/reviewcrew/230 This month, Sony will be sending PlayStation Plus subscribers into the future, and the past and ... well ... all over the place. That’s because the TimeSplitters trilogy will finally be coming to the PlayStation 4 and 5. That’s genuinely exciting news, but are any of these games actually worth playing? To answer that question, I decided to flip through the pages of Electronic Gaming Monthly, Game Informer, Edge and more classic magazines to see what the critics said back when these games first came out. I sure hope you’re good at remembering character names, because this is going to be another over-crowded episode of PlayStation Plus Review Crew. Fri, 16 Aug 2024 00:00:00 -0800 http://www.defunctgames.com/courant/1759 If you’re a fan of games like Virtua Racing, Daytona USA and Sega Rally, then prepare to get in the fast lane for Parking Garage Rally Circuit. Inspired by the early 32-bit racing games of the 1990s, this turns what could have been a silly gimmick into a truly memorable racer full of fresh ideas and personality. It’s a reminder that we rarely see games like this anymore, and I couldn’t get enough of the cleverly-designed tracks, the smooth handling and the ska soundtrack. Parking Garage Rally Circuit is the surprise racing game of the year. Thu, 15 Aug 2024 00:00:00 -0800 http://www.defunctgames.com/courant/1758 You’ll laugh, you’ll cry ... you’ll use psychic powers in a bunch of completely inappropriate ways. That’s Sam & Max: The Devil’s Playhouse in a nutshell. This final season brings a renewed energy and freedom to be as weird, crazy and inventive as possible. Every single episode is filled with moments that are going to stick with you, and the whole thing wraps up with a pitch-perfect ending that toes the line between being funny and sentimental. The Devil’s Playhouse is easily the best season of Sam & Max, and it has never looked better than it does here in this brand-new remaster. If you missed out 14 years ago, now is your chance to discover one of the best point and click games of the 21st century. You won’t be disappointed. Wed, 14 Aug 2024 00:00:00 -0800 http://www.defunctgames.com/courant/1757 If you’re a fan of Killer Klowns and asymmetrical multiplayer horror, then you’re going to have a lot of fun with this new online game of cat-and-mouse. The locations, characters and klowns look like they were pulled straight out of the movie, and you’ll have fun recognizing the different weapons and abilities. But once the nostalgia wears off and you’ve played through the five stages multiple times, the repetition will start to set in. It won’t take long to feel like you’ve seen and done everything, and there aren’t many hooks to keep you coming back. This is a good shell of a game, but without new content and more varied options, I can’t imagine many sticking with this for very long. Killer Klowns uses its amazing license surprisingly well, but still manages to come up short. Wed, 07 Aug 2024 00:00:00 -0800 http://www.defunctgames.com/reviewcrew/229 Thirty years after he debuted on the Genesis and Super NES, Aero the Acro-Bat is back on modern consoles. And that’s not all, in the near future, the complete Aero series, including Zero the Kamikaze Squirrel, will be coming to PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X and Switch. That’s cool news, but are any of these games actually worth playing? To answer that question, I decided to flip through the pages of Die Hard Game Fan, Super Play, Mean Machines Sega and more classic magazines to see what the critics said back when these games first came out. Get ready for some big top excitement, because this is Aero the Acro-Bat Review Crew. Mon, 05 Aug 2024 00:00:00 -0800 http://www.defunctgames.com/reviewcrew/228 This week marked the 35th anniversary of the Game Boy in the United States, and in order to celebrate this iconic birthday, Nintendo has decided to release a 2006 Game Boy Advance game that also came out on the DS. That’s right, Nintendo Switch Online Expansion Pack subscribers are getting Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Red Rescue Team, a dungeon crawler roguelike starring an amnesiac hero who gets turned into an adorable pocket monster. That’s cool news and all, but is this game worth playing? To answer that question, I flipped through the pages of Electronic Gaming Monthly, Nintendo Power and more classic magazines to see what the critics said back when this game first came out. Brace yourself, because there’s going to be one major twist in this episode of Nintendo Switch Online Review Crew. Fri, 02 Aug 2024 00:00:00 -0800 http://www.defunctgames.com/courant/1756 Explore a whole city by jumping from one shadow to the next in the new platformer SCHiM. Made by a first-time developer, this innovative game takes us on an epic journey to reunite a man with his shadow. The result is a funny and occasionally emotional quest through what would normally be mundane locations, like a super market, art gallery or beach. There is a bit too much filler and it’s not always clear where you’re supposed to go, but the game is full of surprises and absolutely sticks the landing. It’s a little rough around the edges, but the world needs more games like SCHiM. Wed, 31 Jul 2024 00:00:00 -0800 http://www.defunctgames.com/egmranks/76 Last week, we counted down the best and worst games from the Fatal Fury, Art of Fighting and The King of Fighters franchises. That was a lot of fun, but more than a few people asked: What did Electronic Gaming Monthly think of the other SNK fighters, like Samurai Shodown, World Heroes and The Last Blade? How did those games compare to The King of Fighters? Mon, 29 Jul 2024 00:00:00 -0800 http://www.defunctgames.com/courant/1755 While not quite the parody game you might be expecting, Disaster Band is a fun and silly exercise in mixing and matching crazy instruments with some of the most popular songs of all time. This is your chance to whistle your way through Pachebel’s Canon or play the Imperial March from Star Wars on a kazoo. Younger gamers interested in band and orchestra will get the most out of this, but Disaster Band is good fun for all ages. Just know that it’s a bit on the easy side and the songs end before they even get started. I’m not sure this game deserves a standing ovation, but I will give it a hearty round of applause. Bravo! Tue, 23 Jul 2024 00:00:00 -0800 http://www.defunctgames.com/egmranks/75 If you spent this weekend watching all of the fighting game excitement coming out of EVO, then you no doubt saw some of the big announcements from SNK. Not only did they add new characters to the upcoming Fatal Fury game, City of the Wolves, but they also revealed plans for a new Art of Fighting game and surprise released of SVC Chaos: Capcom vs. SNK. All that news got me wondering what Electronic Gaming Monthly thought of these classic fighters? Did they have a favorite SNK game? Mon, 22 Jul 2024 00:00:00 -0800 http://www.defunctgames.com/superplay/13 Hello, my name is Cyril, and I've traveled all the way to jolly ole England for this debut episode of Super Play's Top 600. From legitimate classics to hidden gems to a myriad of movie-licensed platformers you've completely forgotten about, we're going to cover them all. And we're going to do it by reading each game's verdict. That was usually the wrap up at the end where Super Play would sum the game's quality up in a biting and often sarcastic way. These are the funniest bits, and should help to keep us laughing as we look at the hundreds and hundreds and HUNDREDS of games released on the Super NES. Sat, 20 Jul 2024 00:00:00 -0800 http://www.defunctgames.com/courant/1754 Heavily inspired by Capcom’s much-loved Ghosts ‘N Goblins series, Retro Revengers is a throwback game that gets the look and gameplay right. Although it takes a little while to get going, this 2D platformer does a great job of mimicking the genre greats of the 16-bit era. Unfortunately, the best thing about the game also makes it far too easy. This is especially true of the boss fights, which can sometimes last only a few seconds. While it may not be as “super” or “ultra” as Ghouls ‘N Ghosts, Retro Revengers is still a fun and funny action game that is easy to recommend. Fri, 19 Jul 2024 00:00:00 -0800 http://www.defunctgames.com/courant/1753 Hot Blood is a 3D beat ‘em up where a purple-haired woman punches and kicks her way through a whole mall worth of zombies. While there are some fun shopping-related monster types and lots of different shops to clear out, the action gets old quickly and there’s not enough to the gameplay to be considered one of the better brawlers. Worst of all, for a game that is constantly reminding you to buy new (and increasingly skimpier) outfits for our attractive heroine, there’s not enough variety to choose between and nothing in the way of accessories. It’s cheap and the mall setting is fun, but you’re better off waiting for Capcom’s upcoming Dead Rising remaster. Hot Blood left me cold. Thu, 18 Jul 2024 00:00:00 -0800 http://www.defunctgames.com/egmranks/74 For a brief moment in the 1990s, full-motion video was seen as the wave of the future. With CDs bringing what many magazines referred to as “near-limitless storage,” many developers chose to fill that up with grainy, poorly-acted footage shot by wannabe movie directors. The results were, to put it politely, disastrous, with many gamers left cold by the poor quality and lack of interactivity. These days, developers have found a lot of innovative ways to build a game around full-motion video, but that was not the case in the 1990s. And that made me wonder what Electronic Gaming Monthly thought of FMV. Did they have a favorite full-motion video game? Tue, 16 Jul 2024 00:00:00 -0800 http://www.defunctgames.com/reviewcrew/227 This is Nintendo Switch Online Review Crew, a show dedicated to going back in time to see what critics said about retro games when they first came out. Every week, we flip through the pages of Electronic Gaming Monthly, Computer & Video Games, Next Generation and dozens of classic magazines from all around the world, some of which even have a ridiculous one-thousand-point scale. But what happens when Nintendo announces new games, but there are no reviews to talk about? That’s the conundrum we’re faced with this week, thanks to the addition of not one, but three Densetsu no Starfy games that were previously only available in Japan. With no reviews to talk about, what are we going to do? I guess that’s what we’re about to find out now with this very different episode of Nintendo Switch Online Review Crew. Fri, 12 Jul 2024 00:00:00 -0800