Recent reviews by Rodrows

Ghandi. Do not belive his lies.

This is by far the best videogame ever made.

EDIT: It still is

Even Hitler liked this movie

A challenging and engaging racing game

The driving in this game is more on the simulator end of the spectrum, although there are some arcade aspects as well (let's say 75% sim, 25% arcade). It never feels bad to be behind the wheel but there's some getting used to in the beginning. The game has a flashback system (limited according to your difficulty level) in case you make some mistakes, and I found the AI somewhat forgiving on Hard, but that might just be me. If you find the right balance of challenge for a race the experience can be quite thrilling.

The game doesn't have a story per se, but you do have a career mode that has you starting from a freelance driver and building and managing your own team (including hiring sponsors and teammates) to conquer championships all around the world. The races are divided into European, American and Japanese leagues, each with its own license points system that keeps you from accessing the top races right away. Depending on your driving skills and your difficulty settings it can be either a moderately long journey or a month's work to beat it.

The car engines are for the most part distinct, although there's not an instantly recogniseable car based on engine sound alone. The sound effects from crases and tire screeching are very well made and the placement is perfect, especially when listening from the inside of the car. In every race your pit engineer keeps you informed of most of the developments around you, both the ones you can see (or participate in) and the ones you don't. Your teammates make comments from time to time as well. I played this a couple of months before writing this and I don't remember if the game's soundtrack is good or not, but I do remember muting it for a better immersion or to play my own and not having any regrets.

The game requires some tweaking to fully enjoy the visuals on PC, like removing the yellowish filter that carried over from the console releases and a few texture upgrades to make the cars really shine. The tracks don't need much improvement and the skyboxes look pretty natural as they are. Regarding the cars, every one has a fully rendered interior (unlike the sequels).

Overall, a very very solid racing game that can perfectly stand up to today's releases, and for the most part outclass them.

This game is what Mario Kart sould aspire to be

You pick from a list of 26 characters on PC (some of them are DLC, both free and paid) from several sega franchises and go racing in a myriad of locations from said franchises. In most if not all the races the track takes you through land, air and sea and your vehicle morphs into something more adequate for the terrain. In addition to all this madness the tracks are littered with power-ups that work mostly like their counterparts from Mario Kart (no blue shell equivalent though) so that all drivers can battle each other on the way to victory. Characters can level up from racing, and by leveling them you can unlock mods that change the way the car is set up (more acceleration, top speed, drifting, handling, turbo, etc)
But this wouldn't be a proper Sonic game if you couldn't go fast. And oh boy, can you go fast. There's a boost mechanic in this game that can make it ridiculously deep if you put some effort into it, which consist of being able to stack boosts from any possible source (boost pads, boost power-ups, stunts, drifting, etc) up to 7 (yes, SEVEN) times, and this leads into doing absolutely crazy lines through each lap to keep the boost level as high as possible. In addition to all the terrain switching and attacks from the other drivers, there are no rest possible during some races. And even if you prefer racing by yourself, if you are curious about what you need to do to crack some records at Time Attack, go to YouTube and search for a World Record lap time. Madness.

The game has several modes for both single player and multiplayer. In SP you have a "story" mode that has you progressing through several stages with many challenge races each where you unlock stickers, courses, characters and car mods with starts from each race. There are 4 difficulty levels, and to beat the top ones you will *need* to master the turbo mechanic (and have some luck of course, the AI is relentless). Don't think of this as an easy child's game because even experts will have trouble with getting all the stars. if you want some time off there's also Grand Prix, Quick Race and Time Attack modes. The multiplayer has Grand Prix, Quick Race and Battle Mode with both online and offline splitscreen variations. Good stuff.

The music in this game is pretty good, each track theme is a known arrangement from the original game and for the most part they're catchy enough without distracting from the race (the Golden Axe track theme is playing in my head as I type this). There's also an announcer/narrator voice that works really well and sounds really intense.

The graphics are absolutely fantastic, with vibrant colors and spectacular effects that really make the tracks come to life. Water physics look great in this game, and the courses with long boat sections benefit greatly. Plus it doesn't take a too powerful computer to have the game running at 60fps.

Overall, a fantastic racing game, a fantastic sonic game and a must have for everybody.

A mediocre twin-stick shooter with Halo stickers all over

The game has 30 missions that last between 10 to 20 minutes each, during which you take control of either Spartan Sarah Palmer or some other guy with yellow armor, also an officer. The missions are quite varied, from defending outposts and pushing on the offensive (with vehicles and all, you have lots of resources most of the time) to stealth S&D strikes behind enemy lines. They are fun, but somewhat unfulfilling. A controller is recommended but not indespensable.

The story is about a surprise attack by a Covenant fleet on a human colony that happens to be a Forerunner equivalent of the Death Star, and then Spartan Palmer saves the day. It might look like spoilers but this gets explained in the first 5 missions, the other 25 is just Palmer (and the yellow guy sometimes) kicking everybody's ass against some odds that make Master Chief look like an amateur. The whole game is basically a buff for Palmer, which she didn't need IMO. She was very well presented during Halo 4's Spartan Ops.

The music in this game is all original for the most part, with a few familiar tunes from the main series being referenced. Nothing too heavy. The voice acting is just people talking over the radio during missions and some voice over during cutscenes.

All the elements from the Halo universe are very well modeled in this game (even some equipment taken from the less known Halo Wars) and nothing looks out of place, although the planet has some weird geography and environments, but nothing that you are going to be looking at for too long.

Overall, I'd only recommend this if you are into the genre or a a huge Halo fan. And even then, wait for a discount.

A refreshing take on the point & click gameplay from 20 years ago.

After a car accident, you are put in the shoes of history professor Lee Everett, and must proceed to click on dialog options and inspect items and environments to further the plot and attempt to survive the apocalypse with your group of friends (and not so friends). There's nothing complex here like combining items or solving puzzles, just walking around and hitting *use*, *collect* or *talk* buttons. Gameplay does not get in the way of the story moving forward.

The story is, however the absolute focus of the game. It is divided in 5 episodes (plus an extra special in 400 days that has nothing to do with the others), and you are presented with decisions at every step of the way that affect the way the rest of the characters percive you and the environment where you are at the time. Most of them add nothing other than a reply during the conversation but others can be pretty serious (as in a life/death situation for someone else). It doesn't sound too appealing but it is presented in a very organic and fluid way and the result is very engaging. I recommend not playing it more than once to keep the "magic" of the choices there.

There's not much in therms of music in there, mostly ambient sound. But the voice acting is superb. Every character is instantly recogniseable and no voice feels out of character. The main guys, Lee and Clementine, really come to life thanks to the voices.

The game has a comic-like art style with very flat textures that look drawn, with dark outlines and all, a nice throwback to the source material.

Overall, a solid package that will last you a few hours and make you feel invested in (most of) the characters. Touching, and well made.

A silly game ideal when you have nothing else. Challenging tho.

You control your hand with 5 keyboard keys and the mouse and then attemp several medical procedures under... "varied" circumstances. It is not easy at all to pick up and nearly impossible to master. As a result from all the caos that springs from such a control scheme there's not a second of this game that is boring. Not even the menus.

There is no story here, perhaps a few narrations here and there but nothing else.

The music in this game is absolutely fantastic. A collection of extremely catchy electro-esque beats that perfectly suit the tension during each operation.

The graphics are pretty basic, lots of soft models and barely any textures. Not that they're needed though. The details on the medical equipment are well made.

Overall, a funny (if repetitive) package. If you are going to get it, get it cheap.

One of the most famous PC shootes in existence

The game gives you 5 guns and puts you again in the shoes of Gordon Freeman to fight aliens, much like in the first game, but there's not much more in common between the two. Instead of the indoor corridors of a base you now make your way across the russian countryside, complete with beaches, forests, plains and a river, until you arrive to the city at the end. The environment *seems* open, but it's jut a long corridor. A varied corridor though. There are also vehicle sections, but I found those less enjoyable than the rest of the game.

The story takes a jump from the previous game, both in terms of time and current events, and the game does not really do a good job at explaining it to you. Everyone is talking between them and then they tell you to go do this so that can happen. It is recommended to look up the details yourself after beating it. Also, there aren't any cutscenes in this game, all the scenes happen during the gameplay (not the shooting, mind you).

All the enemy soldiers have an instantly recognizeable scruffy voice while the friendly NPCs sound more calmed and soft, for the most part. This game also has some os the most well known scores for PC games (like the Nuclear Mission jam), and the weapon sounds are very well made.

The graphics, although impressive for the time this came out, are showing their age. The art direction is fantastic though, with very cool designs for anything alien related. All the weapons are unique and instantly recognizable.

The Episodes continue with the same trends as the main game, with the exception of more focus on the Gravity Gun during Episode 1. There are no radical differences between them and the main game.

Overall, I have to admit I did not like this game that much. I can see that it is a good game obviously, but it didn't ring the excitement bell like others have. I still recommend everybody to play it though, this is one of those in the "must play" list.

One of the best FPSs of all time. At some point in your life you must have heard about this game, or it sequel. Every game in the genre borrows some elements from this one, guaranteed.

The arms you with a handful of weapons you mst make your way though a ridiculously big research facility overrun with aliens and military forces. A non stop action package with zero cutscenes.

The story is explained through small chats with the surviving members of the facility and paying attention to enemy conversations. You can also gather some extra details by cautiously examining the environment.

All the enemy soldiers have an instantly recognizeable scruffy voice while the friendly NPCs sound more calmed and soft, for the most part. This game also has some os the most well known scores for PC games (like the Nuclear Mission jam), and the weapon sounds are very well made.

Although this is a remake of the original release for the source engine the graphics were not enhanced at all, so don't expect brilliant quality. Some users also say this version is inferior to the original because it added extra bugs and other issues, but I encountered none during my playthrough. Your mileage may vary though.

Overall, this game is a classic and a must play for anyone who enjoys videogames.