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    SmorgasBorgnine’s Mini Game Reviews - 01/2012 

    Categories:
    1. Borgnine Is My Co-Pilot

    The kids are still playing Rayman Origins so I haven’t been cycling through games as much over the past month. I only have 2 to review, and one is a Xbox Live Arcade title.

    DD

    Dungeon Defenders

    This is one of the most addictive games I’ve played in a long time. This combines the tower defense and combat elements of Iron Brigade/Trenched with a much deeper loot system that is reminiscent of Diablo or Borderlands. You play as one of 4 characters (Squire, Apprentice, Huntress, and Monk) that have different weapons and special attacks. For instance, the Huntress and Apprentice are ranged-based attackers, while the Squire and Monk are melee-focused. You are tasked with defending your crystal, which is essentially a base. Some levels have multiple crystals to defend. You can upgrade your character stats by leveling up and gaining loot, which is also upgradeable. In addition to upgrading weapons and armors, you also can get different pets to help you out. Each wave starts with a build phase where you can switch your characters, build defenses, and sell off unneeded loot. It is followed with the combat phase, where you actually tackle the enemies. There are 4 difficulties and some challenge levels to spice things up (moving crystals, defending an ogre instead of a crystal, no towers, etc…) and you can also do a survival and strategy mode on each level. To top it all off, you can play up to 4-player cooperatively, either online or via local split screen. It is also very kid-friendly. All of my kids are playing this, which unusual for them. I highly recommend this game.
    Grade: A


    SR3

    Saints Row: The Third

    This game decided it wanted to be silly and just ran with it. Though the storyline is very weak, I can’t deny how fun it is. You’re a celebrity gang leader that gets sold out by a rival and you have to take them down. Where this game shines is in customization. You can literally have any character look you can think of and can dress up in a ton of different silly costumes. There are a ton of different diversions to do while ignoring the campaign. Anything from driving around a flaming 4-wheeler to playing a crazy Japanese-inspired game show that features contestants shooting mascots and avoiding killing panda bears, to driving a tank around town on a rampage. Yep, it is that goofy. How many games let you go around killing people with a 5-foot dildo and throw farts in a jar? It did improve on the graphics from part two, but they aren’t cutting-edge by any means. Other improvements from part two are the inclusion of a ton of different air/water vehicles, parachutes, and a quick animation for entering vehicles. This is worth at least a rental.
    Grade: A-

    Battlefield 3 Dev Hiring 'Anti-Cheat Administrator' To Stop The Evildoers 


    BF3

    Are you one of those guys in a helicopter hovering near spawn points in Battlefield 3 (say, an aircraft carrier), wantonly exploiting the game and infuriating players? You may not actually be cheating, but we still think you're the worst.

    That aside, Battlefield 3 developer DICE is apparently looking to address all cheaters, and not just that guy who ruins the game for everyone with his stupid, stupid helicopter, as the company has posted an ad for an "anti-cheat administrator." The move follows a recent redoubling of DICE's efforts to combat cheating in its latest game release.

    Said administrator will be tasked with a variety of responsibilities, many of which you'd expect a community liaison to handle, though the list is oddly missing "put up with staggering levels of infantile behavior from legal adults." Can you tell we don't like cheaters?

    Joystiq
    3 Comments

    XBL Language Filter Prevents Harmless Words From Being Used In Quarrel 


    XBL Filter

    Microsoft's language filter on Xbox Live is strangling the linguistic skills of Quarrel players, banning such words as "help," "train," "balls" and "shaft" from being played. While we can understand the potential risque-ness of some of these words -- especially "help," which we're sure was added at the request of the XBL customer-service team -- without context we don't see the harm in them.

    These words are fair game in singleplayer (with the Family Setting turned off), but Microsoft adds an extra filter to Live play, developer Denki's Gary Penn told Edge: "Quarrel uses the Collins official Scrabble dictionary comprising over 110,000 words up to eight letters in length, including a huge collection of words deemed 'offensive' by Collins, such as 'arse', 's**t', 'wank' and 'f**k.'"

    Other banned words include "start," "skid," "poop," "hung," "dice" and "god." We're stumped on how to use "dice" in an offensive manner, but we've seen "fag" flung around Xbox Live chat with alarming, unfiltered regularity, so we're not going to try to figure out Microsoft's regulation process here.


    Joystiq

    Get Your Krogan Charge On In Latest Mass Effect 3 Multiplayer Video 



    Hankering for a taste of what Mass Effect 3's multiplayer aspect will bring to the third and final entry in Shepard's space saga? The latest trailer out of BioWare is here to blow out your palate (and a whole bunch of other stuff too).

    Joystiq
    1 Comment
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