This month at Game Tunnel we had some amazing titles! A tiny off the beaten path game, Caster, took our vote for Game of the Month (See below). As the editor I don't get to chime in on what I think the scores should be; that is the writer's job. However, in my top line editorial here I will say I disagree with this month's placement of Spirited Heart. I'd put it around #4 in this list, but clearly it shows that not every game is suited for every person and even we admit that a review is nothing more than one man's opinion.

Caster

If you're looking for a game that's a little faster-paced than most, then Caster will speak to you. Flashy gunfights? Check. Super fast speeds and crazy jumps? Check. Frenzied combat with nasty enemies? Check. A main character with blue hair? Check (of course). Caster follows the main character's (who you name) mission to destroy the evil Flanx aliens/bad guys. And that's all you need for story. The rest is about high-speed shootouts. You move with WASD and shoot and aim with the mouse. You can upgrade your weapons and attributes after each level, eventually gaining the ability to destroy the environment and sprint around at inhuman speeds.

The fighting is wonderful pandemonium, but it's a little hard to get a handle on at first. By the second or third level, though, you'll be blasting the baddies like a pro. The graphics, while not brilliant, hold up and get the job done.

Caster is a great game for those seeking a thrill. It's a shame it's so short (around 2 hours), but there's a nice little bonus for buyers: anyone who buys Caster will get the next chapters for free.

Read the full review...

Zeno Clash

Close combat 3D action beat-em-ups are exceedingly rare. Ones that do it exceptionally well are rarer still. Zeno Clash is in the running hands down for the best 3D melee combat game of all time. It's bloody, it's brutal, but maybe most importantly the missions are well designed and varied.

Now I say varied, but the theme is always the same. Kill everything that is trying to kill you. The controls are good, but do feel a little clunky at times. The graphics are great and the sound effects more satisfying than any other. Zeno Clash stands apart from the herd of games with it's incredible gameplay.

It falls a little short on both plot and voice talent. The setting is very unique, but the plot just didn't leave me wanting to learn more as much as the violence made me want to skip to the killing at every cut scene. Further, the game is best played in short bursts of violent fury, playing for many hours began to feel repetitive.

Geneforge 5: Overthrow

This is the finale of the Geneforge series, and it wastes no time in throwing you headfirst into the story. The Shapers have ruled over the land for ages, and now the Rebels challenge their reign. There are multiple other factions that are more moderate in their politics, but either way you're forced to choose sides between the Shapers and the Rebels.

The story plays out through lots of narration, which read much like a fantasy novel. There's a LOT of writing, which makes it less accessible to newcomers. Where you take the story and what side you choose are all up to you, as are most of the choices in the game.

Geneforge is a point-and-click RPG, so many of its aspects are similar to games like Diablo. Travel and interactions are all done with the mouse (and a healthy assortment of hotkeys). The combat is where Geneforge shines, and is fairly unique in my opinion. The battles were turn-based, and involved all the characters in the field.

All in all, Genforge will be a hit or a miss. If you're a follower of the series, you'll be happy and it will satisfy your world-salvation needs. If you're not, then it might be a little too hardcore.

Read the full review...

Wallace and Gromit's Grand Adventure: Episode 1

I was always a fan of the Wallace and Gromit show when I was a wee lad, so I had high hopes for WaGGA, from Telltale Games.

Wallace is struggling to make ends meet, but is hopeful thanks to his new honey-making business' commission to make 50 gallons of honey in one day for a party, so he decides to make a batch of super-flowers for his bees in order to speed up production. It's slightly absurd, but the game isn't quite as funny as I'd hoped.

The puzzles are clever, but because of the heavy reliance on backtracking and the game's halting pace, it can be tedious. The game looks wonderful, and is faithful to the show's style, but the problems keep it from being memorable.

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Be a King

Being a king is hard work, especially when you've got to build up your kingdom with nothing but huts and peasants to start with. This is the set-up for about 75% of all Real-time strategy (RTS) games, and such is the case with Be a King. Developer 300AD has created an RTS that manages to hold its own against the masses thanks to some refreshing quirks.

Be a King uses many RTS staples: you build various structures to populate your community, and the more people you have, the more you can accomplish. Your income (from taxing the commoners) is used to buy materials, which allow you to create more buildings. You also have to protect your citizens from outside forces like bandits and monsters, etc. The game is divided into levels, which you clear by accomplishing a set of objectives, such as earning a certain amount, building certain buildings, reaching a certain population, and so on.

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Wonderland Adventures: Mysteries of Fire Island

Behind its ultra-happy face, Wonderland Adventures: MoFI is quite the head-scratcher of a game. The plot isn't a brilliant narrative by any means: fire is falling from the sky, so you set out to stop the catastrophe. It goes in a fairly predictable pattern from there, sending you to Fire Island via a shipwreck, where exploring ensues.

The puzzles are plentiful, of course. They're creative, and they're pretty unique in terms of each other, so you don't always feel like you've done the same puzzle multiple times before. However, having to start over from the beginning of each level gets incredibly frustrating, along with the constrictive camera and sluggish pacing.

Casual gamers will enjoy the game's jolly nature and cutesy atmosphere (mostly aimed at young people), but others will be off-put by the squeaky voices and the smiley-face characters.

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Fishdom H20: Hidden Odyssey

This is actually two games in one: a simplified aquarium simulation and a hidden object game. And it is the definition of casual game.

Fishdom H2O is centered around your aquarium, which you populate with fish, plants, and various decorations. These all cost money, which you obtain by diving. Diving is how you'll spend the majority of your time in the game, and the activities center around gathering sunken items in find this object games.

The aquarium sim part of the game isn't particularly interesting, mostly because all you really do is watch the fish swim around aimlessly and buy more plants. However, the hidden object part is okay, even if it does get repetitive after a while. The game doesn't really go anywhere, but it stays put with a reasonable amount of competence.

Spirited Heart

Spirited Heart claims to be a life-simulation game set in a fantasy world. I noticed as I played it, though, that there wasn't a whole lot of simulating going down. Unless life is governed by pure chance, that is.

You play through Spirited Heart as one of three young ladies, each a unique race and each with a distinct personality. The story follows you (playing as a girl) as you're thrust out into the world and have to make it on your own. That means getting employed, making dough, and (of course) gaining the affections of an eligible bachelor.

Working in Spirited Heart is basically a toss of the dice: there did not seem to be any discernable pattern to your successes and failures. This aspect of the game is where I have the biggest problem. When a game relies totally on randomly generated gameplay, you stop playing the game, and resort to gambling. Strategy is very limited, which leaves the game feeling shallow and unfulfilling.
Because of its flaws, Spirited Heart becomes more of a monotonous task; it's a chore, instead of an enjoyable form of entertainment.