March 2015 Video Game Reviews

Persona Q: Shadow of the Labyrinth
Atlus
Reviewed on: 3DS (Exclusive)
Street: 06.05.14
It’s almost scary what Atlus can do with a 3DS cartridge these days. This top-tier JRPG is a spinoff of the ludicrously successful Persona series, faithfully recreating the difficult combat and quirky charm of its predecessors. Through some combination of narrative hand-waving and fan-service alchemy, the characters of Persona 3 and 4 have banded together to fight their way through a series of dastardly dungeons. Contrary to the ominous tone of their source games, Persona Q is more comical, filling dead ends in the labyrinth with gags that, while not always laugh-out-loud funny, remained pretty consistently entertaining throughout. Don’t let it fool you, though. This JRPG is tough, and you have to stay on your toes to survive. While my eyes are still set on Persona 5, this entry in the series has enough substance and style to keep me occupied while I wait on further details. –Henry Glasheen

Resident Evil: HD Remaster
Capcom
Reviewed on: PC
Also on: Xbox One, Xbox 360, PS4, PS3
Street: 01.20
Even though I enjoyed the GameCube remake, I’ve always thought that Resident Evil is a game that needs to be remembered for the jagged, heavily pixelated graphics and infuriating control scheme that was bestowed upon the original—or so I thought. Seeing the opening cut scene in which the STARS Alpha team crash lands in the forest outside Spencer Mansion rendered in high definition was enough to belay my old-school gaming snobbery. The improved character designs of Chris, Jill and the rest of the STARS team were jaw-dropping, and the oppressive environment of Spencer Mansion has never looked creepier. The game’s shadow and lighting effects have been perfectly tweaked—just enough to enhance the ominous surroundings. The diehard Resident Evil fans will enjoy the fact that the HD Remaster allows the player to switch between the original control scheme, or an updated scheme that makes the player not want to headbutt their screen in frustration. Outside of the breathtaking cosmetic improvements, there’s not much different about the HD Remaster—which is a good thing. This game belongs to those who will wet themselves after seeing that very first zombie reveal in hi def. –Alex Springer

Sneaky Sneaky
Naiad Entertainment
Reviewed on: Steam, iOS
Street: 11.12.14
This is a fun little strategy-based stealth game, aimed at taking out guards without getting caught and sneaking your way through rooms. The graphics are adorable and the soundtrack is much better than you would expect from a $4.99 game. If you really like the soundtrack, you can pay $9.99 for it and the game. It features turn-based style movement and other very simple controls. I normally don’t like turn-based games, but for this game it’s totally appropriate. If you are a skilled strategy gamer, this game will only give you one to two hours of gameplay—if you aren’t, then expect two to four hours. I recommend playing this game with a friend, taking turns and seeing who can finish levels the quickest. I hope that Naiad Entertainment makes this a smart-phone friendly game, because it doesn’t quite fit the PC gaming category. For $4.99, I was satisfied with the game itself, although the playtime could be better. I could play through this game a few times and have fun improving my score, but if you aren’t that type of gamer then this game is not for you. –Nicole Stephenson