Video Game Reviews

FIFA 15
EA Canada / EA Sports
Reviewed on: Xbox One
Also On: PlayStation 4, Playstation 3, Xbox 360, PC
Street: 09.23
Have you ever heard of the mighty Hatters of Luton Town F.C.? Neither had I, until a few weeks back. I know there are other, allegedly more popular modes on FIFA (*cough* FUT *cough*), but unless you are taking a hapless League Two side (England’s fourth division) in career mode (like The Hatters) and molding them into a perennial Champion’s Lea- err… Cup challenger with absurd signings and even more absurd results, then you’re doing it wrong. Much like the rest of EA’s annual sports titles, FIFA 15 is a glorified roster update. Sure, there are some game play tweaks, such as improved goalkeeper AI and a more fluid feeling to the passing and movement overall, not to mention some presentation improvements like full scans of every Premier League stadium, but honestly there’s just not enough, year after year, to justify full price. With all that said, I’m still addicted as ever. Look, I could complain until I’m blue about what I feel EA should have added, but (to steal a sports cliche) at the end of the day, year after year, FIFA is still head and shoulders above any other sports game overall. Now…back to my Hatters. – Blake Leszczynski

A Golden Wake
Grundislav Games / Wadjet Eye Games
Reviewed on: PC
Also on: Mac
Street: 10.09
Painstakingly re-creating the nostalgic era of point-and-click adventure games like Sierra’s King’s Quest series—complete with their unforgiving puzzles—A Golden Wake feels like it’s been released from a time capsule.  In addition to its throwback gameplay and graphics, A Golden Wake fits into the small niche of games that somehow manage to make the conflicts of an everyday job into an engaging game.  There’s also something melancholy in the background of Alfie Banks’s quest to become a hot shot realtor in 1920’s Miami that injects the game with a surprising amount of emotional gravity.  Banks is plagued with an inferiority complex, a deadbeat brother and a plethora of deep-seeded daddy issues that he deals with by surrendering to his grand ambitions as a salesman.  His struggle to the top of the Miami real estate scene take the player through several unexpectedly difficult challenges, such as relying on salesman’s intuition to chat up tycoons and helping a pair of aeronautical daredevils get their show on the road.  A Golden Wake is definitely not for everyone—action junkies are going to be bored to death—but for those looking for some solid electronic storytelling, it’s worth checking out.  –Alex Springer

Hack ‘n’ Slash
Double Fine Productions
Reviewed on: PC (exclusive)
Street: 09.09
Hack ‘n’ Slash is a unique game that allows you to change the rules of nearly everything in the game. You start as an elf in the forest, locked in a cage. You break out pretty quick, and run into a red fairy that’s out and about at the same time. You meet, you bond, and it’s a big deal—red fairies don’t normally bond to humans in their world. It gets interesting when you come across a sword that promptly breaks. The good news is that the sword is actually more useful broken—the tip becomes a USB cable, allowing you to hack into your surroundings by slashing into them. You use this ability to save the world from the corruption coming from an evil wizard. The simplest use is to turn baddies over to your faction, but you can change their behaviors so they move a different way or do more damage to other enemies too. You also find artifacts that help you on your quest. It’s cute, smart, sometimes it’s a little too smart for its own good, and it has the feel of the retro games in terms of graphics. It’s worth a look. – Ashley Lippert