Score: 9

"It's Sopwith!"

submission: Battle Over Berlin

date: December 16, 2008

The controls take some getting used to and the graphics are way better than the old CGA of 20 years ago, but this reminds me a lot of the Sopwith games. I used to love playing them. Rock on, dude!

Score: 0

"Uh... okay."

submission: Macfags

date: August 27, 2008

I grew up in a house where anything made by Apple was synonymous with "piece of shit" (my father's exact words). But dude, I've gotta side with the Mac users on this one. This video sucks.

I really think this had the potential to be something much better than just a picture of a hand and a mouse, and the "Flash by Grumio" logo was pretty sweet, which tells me that you're capable of making something much better. Perhaps keeping in mind that Apple's commercials are generally witty, intelligent, and funny. You can play on that. Or you can play on the old tech support joke that "Is there only one button on your mouse? Then we found the problem, you need a new computer!"

And that's it for the constructive criticism. Beyond that, this video sucks. Period.

Score: 10

"100%. . ."

submission: Atari 2600 - Adventure

date: August 26, 2008

. . . the Real Deal!

I'm a stickler about games, especially when people take a game that our generation grew up with and "update" (read: butcher) for the twenty-first century: power-ups, new sprites, dragons that actually look like dragons (horrors!), and so on.

This game doesn't do any of that. It truly lives up to its claim to be an exact clone, with the ducks, arrow, square, flicker, gray dot, and everything else that returns fond memories to us Gen-X'ers.

Score: 10

"Excellent! And the Solution for Madagascar. :)"

submission: Pandemic II

date: July 25, 2008

I've been a big fan of the original Pandemic for well over a year now (it's a hit at the office), and I've gotta say, the author certainly delivers on his promises when he says that the new version "makes the original look small and shallow."

After playing this game obssessively for a week, I've found there is a way to beat it consistently when playing a virus, and am in the process of playtesting that strategy with bacteria and parasites. I'll post more when I've playtested more, but will say it requires a REALLY light touch, and it helps to start with the "Durable" trait (i.e. don't start in Western Europe or the United States).

The other thing: Madagascar. I've taken to calling it "the new Western Europe" --- players of the original will know what I mean, but I've noticed something. In all the times I've played it, the shipyard has ONLY closed down after about 400,000,000 people have been infected. This is why you want to keep a light touch, so that you don't go and infect too many people before they close up shop. If these findings remain consistent, and if you keep that number in mind (400,000,000), then Madagascar should never again be a problem.

Score: 10

"True to the Original"

submission: Hunt The Wumpus

date: February 11, 2008

I'm from the old school (pre-videogame crash), and generally don't care for Nintendo, Sega, or any of the "remakes" of older games (what's the point? I can simply just play the older game itself). But I have to say that this game is absolutely true to both the gameplay and the spirit of the original. That's a rarity in many of these remakes, and I think you deserve a 10 for pulling it off.

For those who say this reminds you of Zelda, that's because of the remake's grahical style (we should remember that Wumpus came before Crowther and Woods, who in turn inspired Robinett, who ultimately paved the way for all other graphic adventures, including Zelda and its ilk). For those who say it reminds you of Minesweeper, that's because Minesweeper is a total rip-off of Wumpus. So when reviewing this game, I think it's important for everybody to keep in mind Wumpus' place in the history of computer gaming in general.

With that in mind, I want to thank you again for pulling it off, and keeping the game true to the spirit and style of the original.