PixelJunk Monsters (PSN)

What is it?
PSN’s own desktop tower defence

Liked:
- Pretty art style
- Challenging puzzles
- Good variety of levels
- PSP Remote play support

Didn’t like:
- Difficulty ramps up quickly
- Big Fat Bees!


PixelJunk Monsters is like eating a fudge cake. Amazing at first but the further you go into the sugary delight the harder it gets to finish. The game starts off being fun yet challenging and then quickly becomes really hard! Your main objective is to stop your little village getting marauded by waves of evil monsters. You protect them by turning the surrounding forest into deadly monster slaying artillery. The art style however turns this gruesome concept into a rather cute game, even requiring your hero to dance to level up your towers.

Despite the Desktop Tower Defence aesthetic this game is more akin to a puzzle game where each level has a limited number of solutions. On harder levels this means a lot of trial and error as the game throws up a wave of monsters you weren’t expecting. Persevere though and you will eventually suss out the correct strategy.

There is also a nice 2 player mode which is identical to the main game with another player. I played this with some friends who took it upon themselves to build their own towers and help speed up the monsters demise. I also played it with my girlfriend whose job was mainly just to level up the towers. It’s nice to play a game that is fun with both the hardcore and casual crowds.

At only £3.50 you will easily get your moneys worth even if you don’t manage to beat the entire game. However there is a patch coming to make some of those levels more accessible to everyone. It’s perfect for short gaming bursts. A gem of a game and a bargain to boot!

Quick Tip: Stand over towers to dance them, don’t bother levelling up arrows, sell aerial guns when there are no more fliers

Who’s it for:
- Fans of desktop tower defence
- Fans of PixelJunk series
- People who like to game in small chunks

Who’s it not for
- People who don’t like strategy or puzzles
- People with small SD TVs

One final thing, why does the game icon show a flamethrower burning a fat bee? That would never happen…hmm….any ideas?

Nanobots (PC Download)

What is it?

Point and click adventure game with cute funny robots. It’s an indie game and it is free! Go get it from http://www.livelyivy.com/?page_id=73

What I loved:
- Bought back fond memories of playing point and click games when I was younger
- Clever puzzles
- Great characters and great comedy
- Did I say I love point and click games?

What I didn’t like:
- When it ended. I want more!
- Couple of puzzles felt they could have been a less ambiguous


So Nanobots is a point and click adventure game in the “classic” style. If you loved Monkey Island, Broken Sword or Sam and Max stop reading and go play this game, trust me you’ll love it! If you didn’t like those or have never heard of them, I will give you the hard sell.

This is a short game (Couple of hours tops) in which you have to save a bunch of tiny robots from destruction. The environment around you is one large puzzle on your creator’s computer desktop. You have to use each robots unique skill to interact and find your way to safety.

This game has fantastic writing and clever puzzles, but there is a learning curve. You will spend a lot of time clicking around the environment looking for things that are interactive and there are no hard and fast rules as to what you can and can’t interactive with. By and large though if you see something there is probably a reason for it being there.

If you aren’t in love after the first few minutes this probably is not for you. Worth every second of the time I played it and it’s free so you have no excuse not to try it! I just hope there is another Nanobots outing at some point in the future.

Again Nanobots is available at Livelyivy.com

Quick Tips: Use Audbot to talk to the other Nanobots for clues

Who’s this for:
- People who love any “old school” adventure game like Monkey Island
- People who want something that challenges their brain not their reflexes
- People who like independent games

Who’s this not for:
- People who hate 8 bit style graphics
- People who don’t like puzzles or pointing or clicking

Uncharted: Drakes Fortune (PS3)

What is it?

Tomb Raider with a guy. Cover and shoot baddies then climb around some ruins.

Liked
- Interesting story
- Female support isn’t usual useless damsel type
- Covering and shooting works well and is fun
- Climbing big ruins
- It looks pretty

Didn’t like
- Vehicle sections are clumsy
- Enemies are repetitive
- The game pointing out the answer to almost every puzzle
- Scenery that looks like you can grab it


Uncharted is fun but I think I fell victim to journalist hype. Plenty of people talked up the game and while it is good, the post release “hype” had me expecting more. Call it Tomb Raider with a guy and I don’t think you will fall too short of the mark. You shoot things, solve puzzles and climb things. That said Tomb Raider was a lot of fun, and so is this! (Just don’t expect anything ground breaking)

Bad guys manage to be everywhere you want to go and you know they are about to storm the area when solid blocks of cover are carefully laid out in front of you. Hiding (or covering if you want to sound more manly) and shooting is fun and feels exciting. It is just a shame there is not a great variety in the bad guys until a lot later in the game. I would have preferred a bigger mixture in looks and behaviours earlier on to keep gun fights from all feeling the same. Why does every guy who has a grenade launcher wear a cowboy hat?

Puzzles are pretty straightforward and the game gives such obvious hints with the camera that you shouldn’t struggle to solve any of them. Turn this, move that then push this button, secret door opens. Behind every “secret” door though is a bunch of baddies, I guess the puzzles are even easy enough for them to figure out!

Vehicle sections are terrible, but there are not too many of them to ruin the experience.

It was just worth my £40 I did enjoy it, but now I’m done I don’t really intend to go back. If you want to play a game that feels like an Indiana Jones blockbuster, in both action and story, you won’t go too far wrong with this. Just don’t go in expecting a “Game of the Year”.

Quick Tips: Switch to Run ‘n’ Gun with faster baddies. Always use cover in gun fights

Who’s it for:
- People who like action adventures
- People who like Indiana Jones
- People who liked Tomb Raider
- Fans of Gear of War style cover and shooting

Who’s it not for:
- People who don’t like shooting or climbing
- Social/Family gamer
- People who like multiplayer

Boom Blox (Wii)

What is it?

Throw it! Pull it! Shoot it! Smash it! Physics based game about blocks.

Liked:
- Great use of the Wiimote
- Throwing (think an elaborate fair ground milk bottle throw)
- Pulling (Jenga and then some)
- Shooting (Duck hunt with blocks)
- A lot of fun in multiplayer mode

Didn’t like:
- Some frustrating single player levels that had to be completed to unlock the next
- That you can only share and try custom created levels with friends
- When you have the right solution but the blocks fall wrong


Boom Blox is a lot of fun! It’s now the party game of choice in my house replacing Wario Ware and Wii sports as the best way to have fun on the Wii. Whether it’s pulling, throwing or shooting blocks the controls feel good and responsive but more importantly it all feels fun!

There is a good amount of variety and fun to be had throughout the single player and multiplayer modes. At times though I found some of the game types in the adventure mode frustrating and wish I could have skipped them to play a more enjoyable one.

Multiplayer is where I have spent the majority of my time. There’s a good range of game types and while you will probably stick to your favourites it’s nice to have some choice.

The beauty of the game is while there is an element of skill to it, most of the skill is in your head and not in your hands. Spotting a towers weak point is usually more important than your throwing skill. That said the harder you throw the harder the ball will move and weak throws will often just bounce off of the structure. The pulling games are a little fiddly at first but once you get used to them they act as a good change of pace from throwing.

I dabbled with the level creation tools provided (It is hard to not be enticed when the game is constantly giving you new bits to build with). They’re certainly fairly easy to use with a good degree of depth but this is a game I’d rather be playing with than creating for.

Well worth any Wii owner picking up especially if you want a really fun game to play with your friends.

Quick Tips: Remember to use the special blocks. Try sample multiplayer to get a feel for a range of game types. Put the wrist strap on, you don’t want to break your TV.

Who's it for:
- Family/Social gamer
- People who like puzzle games
- People who like creating user content (or Rube Goldberg machines)

Who’s it not for
- People who cant play games with child game aesthetics
- People who get Wii elbow easily

Grand Theft Auto 4

What is it?

Third-person action adventure with guns, cars and an exciting story.

Liked:
- Exciting and varied missions
- Well told story with some tough player decisions
- A city that is arguably the closest to feeling alive than any other game before it
- Intuitive use of in-game mobile phone
- New spoken dialogue if you have to repeat a mission

Didn’t like:
- The game lacks some of the sandbox nature of previous games leaving little to do after the story is over
- Misleading chase missions where targets are invincible until a certain point
- How every feature left me wanting more
- Play dates with needy friends quickly becomes a chore
- How I cant play pool or bowling in the online mode


I liked GTA4; I liked it a lot in fact. Being back in Liberty City reminded me of playing GTA3 and how much fun I had in that world. In many ways 4 still resembles most of my memories of 3.

The main structure is largely unchanged from before with fetch quests, assassinations and chases making up the bulk of your missions. Again you find yourself rubbing shoulders with various criminal low lives and that while cops will ignore your speeding they don’t like you tapping their bumper. GTA4 is still all these things but its delivery feels improved.

The controls are slicker, the story feels more involving and the city feels more alive. However the more I found myself asking “Can I…” the more the game said “NO!”

“Can I go into this shop?” … “NO!”
“Can I watch TV with Brucie?” … “NO!”

Not that GTA should say “YES!” to any of these questions or the ones you will find yourself asking, but every edge or limit I hit made me wish there was more. Perhaps that is just the sign of a fun game.

This game was certainly worth my £40, looks great on PS3 and had plenty of game-play to keep me entertained (at least 30 hours) but once I completed the story I had no desire to go back to Liberty City. There just isn’t as much non-story fun to be had as there was in previous games. An online multiplayer mode is also great fun, but I wouldn’t recommend it to people with out real friends to play with. If you are a big fan of previous games, action movies and virtual criminal activity you won’t find many better games this year than GTA4.

Quick Tips: Take your finger off the accelerator and break round corners. Always use cover in gun fights. Make LJ your friend.

Who’s it for:
- Lovers of great action games and movies
- Fans of previous GTA’s core story and mission structure
- People who love to shoot and blow stuff up, but also want an engaging story

Who’s it not for:
- Children under 18
- People who deplore violence and swearing
- People who have no interest in story and just want to mess about (try Saints Row 2)

Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots (PS3) in under 500 words

What is it?

Third person action game taking place in a war driven future. Shooting and (optional) Stealth throughout.

What I liked:
- Changes in game play and pace keep the game exciting to the end
- Emotional involvement and attachment to the characters
- Graphics
- Production values arguably unparalleled by any other game
- Plenty of “WOW!” moments

What I didn’t like:
- Some cut-scenes and exposition can drag at times, but on the whole are very good
- That some of the exciting game play could have been a bit longer
- Staggered lord of the rings ending (that just like LoTR’s would have been better if it had stopped earlier)
- Online mode


I’ve been a part time fan of the series and if you have never had any interest in Metal Gear games or know nothing about the story I wouldn’t recommend this as your time to enter. That said this is the first Metal Gear I felt compelled to actually complete. I no longer felt stifled by complicated controls and while it can be convoluted I actually found the story a compelling reason to play on.

Whilst I enjoy being stealthy from time to time games that feature heavy doses of it often just end up frustrating me. So I was relieved to find this game didn’t punish me too harshly when I was (as expected) spotted. I even found opting to blast my way through a situation, rather than sneak around, was also a rewarding way of playing. Some parts even require you to go all guns blazing!

A couple of cut-scenes dragged on and I often wished I could have been more involved with the action they portrayed. However this game has amazing production values and I genuinely found myself laughing and almost crying at these largely non-interactive moments.

Overall I found Metal Gear Solid 4 to be thoroughly entertaining and well worth my £40, (It took me around 20 hours to complete on normal). I have no interest in the online mode (too slow and tactical for my tastes) but I’m sure it will interest people who like games such as Socom. I would definitely recommend this game to anyone who has had at least a passing interest in the series.

Quick tips: Tranquiliser and the syringe are very useful throughout. The face camo you use will be present in cut-scenes, so take it off before if you don’t want to see it.

Who’s it for:
- Metal Gear Fans
- Stealth Action Fans
- People who want to see what the PS3 is graphically capable of
- People who want a tactical online experience

Who’s it not for:
- Social/Family gamers
- People who can only play in short bursts (ie under 60-30 mins)
- People who hate cut-scenes
- People who aren’t fans of shooting, guns or war
- MGS haters :-p