Based on the popular British platformer series of the same name, The Fantastic Adventures of Dizzy is one of those games where it’s difficult to place in one genre. Playing as the title character, a walking, talking egg who is a member of the Yolkfolk, you set out to stop the evil wizard Zaks, who has kidnapped your girlfriend Daisy and cast spells upon your fellow Yolkfolk. At first glance, it appears to be yet another me-too platforming collect-a-thon. However, the game instantly becomes much more, as you seek out items to progress and help the various NPCs., not unlike an adventure game You’ll even come across a few minigames on your quest. There were a few issues with the game, not the least of which is the the lack of a save system (on the NES at least), and game-killing bugs that get players stuck in a place and have to reset the game. Even so, Dizzy was a fun mashup of platforming, puzzle, and adventure gaming. Maybe one day, we can see a current-gen console update. Until then, this cartridge is a rare find,

Tropico 3 takes things back to the theme of the original game, which had you running a Banana Republic (rather than the second game which had you running a base of operations for pirates). Of course this time, everything takes place on a 3D map complete with a customizable avatar of the President. As the newly elected/appointed/installed ruler of a small Caribbean island, it falls on you to shape the island’s destiny while remaining in power for as long as possible. There are several factions you’ll have to satisfy, each having thier own needs. The capitalists want to see the island making good profits and having top notch entertainment, the communists want to see that everyone has decent housing and a good job, the religious want to make sure the island has high moral standards, while the intellectuals want to insure Tropico has unbiased media, good schools, and honest elections. In addition to the factions, you will also have to juggle your relationship with the US and Russia (this takes place during the cold war you know), so they won’t decide to invade your shores.
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The holiday season continues! Not much coming out this week that has not already been announced. I think the big release this week is TRON Evolution, which is supposed to server as a bridge between the first movie and the one releasing very soon. Also, as a side note, I’ve stopped posting the Playstation 2 releases. There really isn’t anything new coming out for the console and Wii releases keep popping up in Amazon’s listings. Remember, if you see something you like, please purchase through one of these links to help us out.

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If you do a Google define search on the word ‘Whoops’, you pull back many definitions.
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Last week’s Maximum Letdown saw yours truly mercilessly tear apart a crap fighter, so this week’s Lost Classic sees me shift gears and praise an underrated fighter from the period. Silly name aside, Metamoqester showcases beautiful graphics and frenzied gameplay, not unlike something made by Capcom and SNK. You play as one of three warriors out to kill a series of monsters. The monsters are huge and tough, but thankfully you have an array of attacks to stop them. You can also team up with a friend to battle them. With only 5 levels, the game is short, but it’s still an awesome fighter. In a perfect world, we’d see a sequel, or at least a home version which lets you play as the monsters. As it is, if you come across the cabinet, you’d do well to plop a few quarters in.

Okay, I admit. My knowledge of the D&D franchise extends little beyond this game and Baldur’s Gate. However, weather you’re a newb to the role playing franchise or an expert DM, this game is easy to get into, and there is much to enjoy about this game. Weather it’s the deep intricate fantasy plot, the ability to craft and customize your character as you see fit, or the MMORPG-lite multiplayer, Neverwinter Nights represents the best of PC RPG games. It’s main draw however, is the Aurora toolkit, which allows players to craft thier own adventures. To date, players have crafted over thousands of mods, and the community is still active to this day. NWN Diamond Edition features the base game, along with the three expansions: Shadows of the Undertide, Hordes of the Underdark, and Kingmaker. These three expansions add even more to the campaign, and will keep you playing for dozens of hours. NWN Diamond Edition is available pretty much anywhere you buy PC games, and Gog.com has recently released a DRM-free version of the game available for $10. If you love PC RPGs, then you owe it to yourself and check it out. Also, head over to http://nwvault.ign.com/ for the latest community-created resources.

 

Welcome back from your post-Thanksgiving stupor! There’s not much this week aside from Epic Mickey and Golden Sun: Dark Dawn for the Wii and DS, respectively.

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Since the alphabet is the building block of our language, the Powet Alphabet is the building block of what makes us geeks.

Vampires seem to be all the rage these days. The day of the glamorous blood-sucker has descended upon us and is full-force, despite the fact vampire-based media has been around since the days of Bram Stoker, though his vamps were more about subjugation and fright than sparkles and angst. Though the definitions of vampires and types of vampires have had as many interpretations, one thing remains as constant as they are – if there are vampires, there are vampire hunters.
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