Shovel Knight: Plague of Shadows

Platform: Nintendo Wii U

Platform Reviewed: Nintendo Wii U

Genre: Creative Platformer

Release Date: September 11, 2015

Date Reviewed: September 18, 2015    

   

       Plague of Shadows is free DLC content for the game Shovel Knight where you get to play as the character Plague Knight. This free DLC pack comes with the ability to do a challenge mode where you can complete many different challenges for each knight. This will be unlockable when you beat the game once with Shovel Knight and Plague Knight. That isn't everything that came with this great DLC content. If you've beaten the normal game with Shovel Knight you will unlock the ability to play as Plague Knight. The levels and map layout are all still the same but it is very much a different game. You step in the shoes of Plague Knight where you have abilities such as throwing bombs. Just like with Shovel Knight, Plague Knight can also gather special items and customize his attacks. Each bomb has a certain fuse and certain explosive style that you can choose from which is needed to overcome certain obstacles.

Each boss, each level are played differently with Plague Knight.

       Plague Knight in a nutshell is very different from Shovel Knight. You can gather potions in order to increase your health, you need to gather coins in order to upgrade the shop and buy new attack items and Plague Knight has to move throw each level very different heavily relying on his exploding jumps. Plague Knight has no shovel to bounce off certain obstacles. Instead if you hold down the jump button and let go he will launch himself straight up or side ways. Plague Knight also has a double jump but doesn't jump as high as Shovel Knight does. Plague Knight even has his own armor sets as well which each have their own unique effects.

       The level design is of coarse flawless as ever. There is a bunch of new music scrolls you are able to collect and unlock. Playing as Plague Knight feels completely different and more of a challenge than Shovel Knight. Plague Knight is also as long if not longer than the original game and it is FREE. Plague Knight's story is very unique from Shovel Knight's but both have to do with love overall. Overall Plague Knight is a fantastic addon and is something that most developers need to do with their games. I look forward to the next piece of DLC they release.

Fantastic DLC!

9.5/10

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Dragonball: Xenoverse

Platform: Xbox One, Xbox 360,  PS4, PS3,  PC

Platform Reviewed: Xbox One

Genre: Fighting

Release Date: February 5, 2015

Date Reviewed: April 18th, 2015

      Dragonball: Xenoverse is the next fighting game in the Dragonball universe. The unique thing about DBX is that it is a great treat for the fans mainly due to the unique story. You play as a custom created character where you time travel to different events with Trunks. You are basically a time traveler where you travel back to different historic events and prevent the history of those battles from changing. Example in the battle with Raditz he dodges the special beam cannon and it hits Goku instead. Your goal is to defeat Raditz and correct history. As you are doing different missions you learn that something isn't right and certain villains are becoming more powerful than normal. Your other mission is to figure out who or what is causing these problems.

You're very own Character!

      DBX is a very beautiful game on next gen consoles and PC. Everything is an improvement from the last game that came out. The combat system is the same style as the previous entry in the game. The fighting style is an open world fighting system with multi fighters. So you are able to have 1 vs 3, 3 vs 3, etc.... DBX tries to make it into an online universe. The main problem they had at the start were the servers were being overloaded and it was nearly impossible to connect and play since you have to be connected at all times. Overall they do a good job making an online universe where you can see many other people in the main hub to having random offline characters wander around the main hub as well. There is online co-op and online tournaments as well. In the main hub there are multiple things you are able to do besides the main story line.

Correct History.

      In the main hub of the game you are able to shop for items, gear, accessories, aura's and many other customization options. In the main hub you are also able to do side quests and these have a pretty neat mechanic. You can farm these quests for possible loot drops such as items, dragonballs, and new skills for you character. It has an MMO style of feel to it. There are also online tournaments and the option to replay story mission to grind and get your level higher. Max level is currently level 80 which is a huge milestone. Once you hit level 80 you unlock additional character slots to create new characters if you choose to. Other news is DBX has a season pass and a lot of DLC to come with new characters and other things to expand you stay in DBX.

Good Game!

8.0/10

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Fantasy Life.

Platform: Nintendo 3DS

Genre: Open World RPG

Release Date: October 24, 2014, (JPN)December 27, 2012

Date Reviewed: March 24th, 2015

Fantasy Life is an open world RPG created by Level-5. Fantasy Life is a unique game where you are able to choose what life you want to live. There are 12 different lives you can choose from with each life having a ranking system. If you want to master all lives then prepare to dish out easily over 100 hours trying to do so. There is a main campaign to this game that is roughly 8 hours or so. It took myself 28 hours to complete due to doing the side quests and mastering mining with a little of mercenary and paladin as well. Fantasy Life has a Harvest Moon/Sims/Rune Factory feel to it and it is a good mixture.

Your character and your life.

You start the game off in an attic apartment where you are then introduced to the main story, great in game features and your choice of which life to venture off into. One great thing about the life system is you are able to change your life anytime you want. Each life always starts off with a mini tutorial on how to use the skills for that life as well as materials used for that life. Each life is unique and is very different from the other. Only ones that are remotely similar are the combat lifes which they should. They can vary from Blacksmithing, Sewing, Archery, fishing, and many others. Each life has a life master who you will report to once you've completed the tasks they ask you to. Once these tasks are completed you hand them in and turn acquire stars. Once you have hit the stars required you will rank up that life. Each rank up provide a stat increase associated with that life and new skills. For example if you are a miner you will learn a new skill where you can power up your attacks every time you mine a node.

Open World fun!

Fantasy life allows you to buy new homes, decorate them and own one home in each section of the world acquiring a total of 3 homes at a time. Another great feature is being able to play with your friends or other people online. This is a great opportunity to show off your homes and even take down some bosses that you are unable to solo. Only downfall to this is if you do not have the DLC and your friends does; you will not be able to play with them unless you have the DLC as well. Other than that your other party member can fully explore and help you take on some powerful monsters and complete those tough quests. Highly recommended feature to use.

Overall Fantasy Life is great for RPG fans alike. It is a cute little RPG that has a long of bang for your buck. Pick your life and explore Riveria with your friends, take down powerful foes, decorate your home, and have some fun! This game is highly recommended.


GREAT GAME
9/10

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The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask 3D

Platform: Nintendo 3DS, "New" Nintendo 3DS

Platform Reviewed f or: "New" Nintendo 3DS

Genre: Action-Adventure.

Release Date: February 13, 2015

Date Reviewed: March 20th, 2015

       Majora's Mask 3D is an HD remake of the N64 version from the year 2000. 15 years later and lots of begging from the fans we have it remade for the Nintendo 3DS. I played this on the "NEW" 3DS XL and the 3DS XL and prefer it a lot more on the newer model for the simple reason of the C-Stick which makes the camera very tolerable and easy to handle. The 3DS version offers a lot of new features and tweaks to the game. Some of these new additions include the addition of the Bomber Handbook. I find this useful because whenever you talk to and important NPC that offers a side quest it automatically goes into your notebook and what times they can be seen at and also offer additional hints on where to begin. Another feature with the book is the ability to set in game alarms so if you need to be at a certain place at a certain time you can set an alarm to notify you. One feature I wish they would've added to the book is the ability to draw or take notes yourself. If you walk around town and talk with the other Bomber Gang children then will tell you the heard a rumor and it will also automatically get put into your notebook.

Great Interface.

      Majora's Mask 3D is not only a beautiful game but very accessible. You are able to switch between items a lot faster on the fly. With the addition of two more item slots you are even able to assign two more items to your touch screen for the use of more items. Majora's Mask 3D looks really great with the 3D enabled, especially on the “New” 3DS because of the built in face detection. The controls are smooth, and very easy to master. The gameplay plays the same as the original and Ocarina of Time 3D with a few added tweaks to bring it up to date to today's standards. You go around to four temples and retrieve the mask off of each boss in order to awaken 4 gods to stop the moon from crashing and destroying Clock Town. However, this is done on a time limit of only 3 days and every time you go back into time in order to add more time to be able to beat the other temples you need to actually revisit each temple again in order to engage with Skull Kid. The beauty of this though is when you go back to a previous temple after already beating it a portal will open up at the entrance of each temple to send you back to the bosses. On top of the main quest there are many many side quests you can do in the game. The most disappointing factor from all of this is the lack of temples to go through and of course…..Great Bay Temple is still evil and annoying as ever.

Bombers Notebook is a great addition!

     Overall Majora’s Mask 3D is another exceptional HD remake in the Zelda series. Just like the prior Ocarina of Time 3D this wasn't just a simple remake. The controls are great which is vastly improved by the C-stick on the “New” Nintendo 3DS handhelds. The 3D is exceptional as well but again better on the “New” model thanks to facial detection. Even if this is your first time playing Majora’s Mask this is a must own game for your collection. The story is dark which provides a different take on the series. This is probably one of the most emotional games in the Zelda series since it mainly involves with death. The only really negative thing about this game is Great Bay Temple and the lack of main temples. Great work! Hope we will see more like this.

MUST OWN!
9/10

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Middle Earth: Shadow of Mordor.

Platform: Xbox One, Playstation 4, PC

Genre: Open World RPG

Release Date: September 30th, 2014

Date Reviewed: November 30th, 2014

       Middle Earth: Shadow of Mordor is another game that takes place in the Lord of the Rings series. You play as Talion, a valiant ranger whose family is slain in front of him. This takes place the night Sauron and his army return to Mordor just moments before his own life is taken from him. Talion gets resurrected by a Spirit of Vengeance and is empowered with wraith abilities. Talion ventures into Mordor and promises to destroy those who have caused him this pain. Through the course of his vendetta. Talion uncovers the truth of the Spirit that compels him, learns the origins of the Rings of Power and confronts his true nemesis.

Huge Open World.

       Shadow of Mordor has a great story line filled with a lot of emotions which really lets you feel how the main character feels and gives him a very important motive to seek out vengeance. In fact, it makes you the player feel like you have to slaughter every orc in sight! Shadow of Mordor plays a lot like Assassins Creed II but it does the controls very well. Shadow of Mordor is for the most part an open world environment. There are only two areas you are able to explore. You unlock the second area after you complete a certain main mission. There have been times where I did so much side quests and collecting everything where I didn't even touch the story missions at all and by the time I did I had more than enough xp and resources to continue on. and even killed all of the warlords. At some point after completing all of the side stuff it forces you to go back to the main mission, which is okay because it just means there is a lot to do.

Nemesis System works well.

       The nemesis system is a fantastic new system that they have added to Shadow of Mordor. Talion is able to gather intel on certain orcs who are unknown, you can then mark those orc captains or warlords and take them out. But be careful if any orc kills you they will get a power increase as well as a promotion. You let a warlord kill you and he becomes much more powerful. So if you fail, it gets harder if you succeed it becomes easier and you get the reap the rewards. You are able to control captain and warlords making them turn on other captains or warlords which can be very interesting and is fantastic! Your goal is to take them all out. On top of this new system you are able to associate quests with it as well. For example if you control one of the warlords or captains you can unlock a mission where they attack the opposing captain or warlord of your choice and you have different objectives. One may be to keep the captain you control alive.

Crazy Action!

       Shadow of Mordor has some beautiful visuals on the next gen consoles and especially the PC version. The world is wide open which gives you some great visuals and with the recent update you care able to take in game screen shots or shorts and capture the great moments you may experience. The audio side of things sound great as well. Great sound track, great voice acting for the most part, and great sound effects. These greatly add to the open world experience in Shadow of Mordor.

       Overall Shadow of Mordor is a great fast-paced open world game that a lot of people are surely going to enjoy. If you are a fan of the Lord of the Rings series or not there is something in here for everyone to enjoy and experience. On top of that the game also offers free DLC as well as some paid ones. Both are great values and highly recommended.

Overall Score:

9.0/10

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Solar Roller

Platform: iOS, Android

Genre: 3D Platformer

Date Reviewed: November 10, 2014

       Solar Roller is the newest mobile game for Android and iOS developed by Runway Games. Solar Roller provides unique and fun game play where you use your phones motion controls to navigate through each of the levels. You start off with using Pluto and work your way up to all of the planets. Depending on how faster you complete each level you will earn stars to show how well you did. Each planet has their own unique level designs and they get more challenging each time. You basically control a ball which looks to me like a moon. You navigate each level to the goal using the tilt controls with an option to jump when you swipe upwards. This becomes very important as the much harder levels require you to jump on to platforms. This is the type of game where you come so close to beating a level and mess up you end up throwing your phone at the wall but when you succeed you feel like you've achieved something. This is where Solar Roller shines. It makes you want to continue and beat that one level you’re stuck on and once you do you feel like a god. This kind of game play is what makes Solar Roller a real treat and makes you keep coming back for more. With an already huge amount of levels to complete you are in for a treat. Another small feature I love is that this game is free and they do it in a way where you are not bombarded with ads that interfere with the game play. If you run out of lives you have an option to let it recharge or watch a short ad and get all of your lives refilled. 

 This....level...is....NUTS!

       The game play, music and level design make it feel like you are in space while playing these levels. Although the music and background can get repetitive it’s still not a big issue or game breaker at all. You are so focused on getting your ball into the goal that you don’t even notice half the time. One feature I truly enjoy is the option to record your game play. You can record and share your videos with your friends or people on the internet. Not usually a feature you see in iOS games. Very nice. There are a couple of features I do hope to see in a future update. Keep in mind they have already updated the game once so I am certain we will see even more. Some nice features I would like to see are leader boards, an adjust camera option, a race mode, and new levels added once in a while. Also it may get frustrating for some players on the difficulty curve. I love what Runway Games has done with the game so far and with updates I can see Solar Roller getting very popular. This is only their second game and I am already impressed and have high hopes for the team.

Skins!!

Great Game!
8.0/10

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Hyrule Warriors.

Platform: Nintendo Wii U

Genre: Action

Release Date: September 26, 2014

Date Reviewed: October 1st, 2014

       Hyrule Warriors for the Nintendo Wii U is created by the company who made the Dynasty Warriors series. Hyrule Warriors is not part of the Legend of Zelda storyline, it is its own separate entry. Hyrule Warriors is almost exactly like Dynasty Warriors with the main difference being that it takes place in the Zelda universe where you can play with a wide variety of characters such as Link, Zelda, Ganondorf, Agitha, and even Princess Ruto of the Zora's. With Hyrule Warriors there is a lot of different modes to play on such as your Legend Mode which is the story mode. There is also Free Mode where you can play as any character on any mission you've completed on Legend Mode. There is an Adventure Mode which seems to be the favorite, including mine. In Adventure Mode you play on a classic map from Zelda 1. There are 128 different tiles to unlock and explore from the original Zelda game. In each tile there is an objective to complete to unlock additional rewards, weapons, and even characters. Adventure Mode is pretty unique, challenging and very fun. With Adventure Mode you may have to do some grinding with certain characters to increase their level, get better weapons and giving them more abilities to take down some of the challenges. You also need to play Adventure Mode in order to unlock the final four characters in the game. The rest of the Characters can be earned playing Legend Mode. The final mode to play is called Challenge Mode which is to take on difficult challenges.

Fast paced action, hundreds of enemies.

       Hyrule Warriors also offers co-op where one player plays on the television and the other plays on the Wii U tablet. Co-op mode is very fun but has some flaws due to the Wii U's limitations. In order to allow co-op on the Wii U they had to lower the resolution for the player who is on the television. It looks like a Wii game and the frame rate is lowered with noticeable choppiness. This does not make the co-op mode any less fun but people who are all about "DEM GRAPHICS" probably will be turned off by the visuals. You can play any mode with another player. There is however no online co-op which I think is a good idea because you will be experiencing a lot of lag with all of the action that is going on the screen at all times.

       The visuals of the game overall are very nice and runs at 60FPS on single player. The in game cinematics look fantastic, the huge environments, and the visual effects are all great as well. Most of the soundtrack is from previous Zelda games in the series. Some of the soundtrack are new and you can tell it feels like they belong in the Dynasty Warriors universe but it does get your adrenaline pumping when fighting bosses or even large crowds of enemies. The story is nothing new and overall not that great but I can see why. It would be very hard to create a fascinating story with what they had. You travel through different time points in the Zelda universe. You travel through Ocarina of Time, Twilight Princess, and also Skyward Sword. They will be adding a lot of new content every month up until February so get the season pass if you want to experience more. On average to complete all mission in the game you're looking at about 50+ hours to get it all completed. There is a lot to do and this game can be played for hours and hours, heck you don't even notice the time passing while you are playing it half the time.

King Dodongo is back!!

       Overall Hyrule Warriors is a fantastic entry into the Zelda series. They took a very different approach to Zelda and it is very nice to get away from their basic formula and go all out killing hundreds upon thousands of enemies all at once. There is so much to do in the game and it is really fun to be able to unlock a lot of different weapons for each character, unlocking new abilities, combos, etc.... There is so much to this game and is a fantastic addition to the Wii U family. If you like Zelda, and Dynasty Warriors then I highly recommend this game to add to your collection.

Great Soundtrack

GREAT GAME!
8/10

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Gauntlet

Platform: PC

Genre: Action RPG

Release Date: September 23rd, 2014

Date Reviewed: September 29th, 2014

      Finally a new Gauntlet game. Well....it's a remake of the original Gauntlet. It feels and looks new. Gauntlet is back, better than ever for PC only. You can get this game for $19.99! Gauntlet plays just like the original. You start off with 4 classes (like in every Gauntlet) and you can choose between a Warrior, a Wizard, a Valkyrie, and a Ranger. Each class are unique and have their own strengths and weaknesses. when you start the game there is a mini tutorial that lets you try a quick demo of each class to get a feel for them. After you complete the tutorial you are able to choose what class you want to play as. After you choose the class it will give you an option to play with mouse and keyboard or a gamepad. The mouse and keyboard work well for the Ranger, Warrior and Valkyrie. However, the Wizard is a bit more complicated and is easiest with the gamepad. You start off in the Gauntlet and if you complete that Gauntlet you will be rewarded with piles and piles of gold and riches. However, as you play through that doesn't seem to be the case at all...

      A lot of people compare this game as a Diablo clone. They are all false. Gauntlet is it's own style and has it's own very unique gameplay. Gauntlet has never been a Diablo clone, it has been out for a long time and was always a different style of gameplay. Gauntlet is however an action RPG but there are no levels, no experience, no loot, just lots and lots of gold. In this version of Gauntlet you go through each dungeon to get the shard which lies at the very end. There are three zones, and each zone has 4 levels. Each level has 3 levels of it's own where the final area in each zone is always a big boss battle. Gauntlet is very challenging especially on the higher difficulties. With this Gauntlet you earn gold, you use this gold to buy items which you can equip two at a time with your "Q" and "E" keys. Each relic does something to help you out. It could be summon clones of yourself or create a crystal that taunts enemies and blowing up after it is damaged enough. You can also use the gold to upgrade these relic to make them more powerful.

The Mastery System.

       As I said earlier there is no loot. As a reward for completing certain difficulties you can unlock and purchase cosmetic armor for each class with gold. Each class also has a mastery tree. Every time you complete a mastery like "Kill 12,000 Monsters" you will earn a buff for that class. Each mastery starts off as bronze and goes to gold. One buff can increase your damage by 10%, others will give you more gold from breaking crates or vases. With Gauntlet there isn't ALOT of replay value but there is some. After you have completed the 4 hour game you can go back with different classes, play a higher difficulty to get more cosmetic armor, or even complete all of your masteries. Do not forget there is also co-op mode which is way more fun and frustrating playing with your friends.

       There is nothing really visually amazing about Gauntlet. If your PC can run it on Max setting which should not be a big problem for most PC's running this game then it will look pretty good. The visual effects are nice, the level designs are repetitive but look good. Each level is not randomized, it is always the same design which is okay but this day in age a lot of games are taking advantage of that technology. The music is fantastic as well as the audio effects. Has a classic Gauntlet sound to it which I think people who've played the original Gauntlet will enjoy immensely. Even when you pick up items it still used the classic sounds from the original game.

Big Bosses.

       Overall it is a good game, nothing spectacular but a great nostalgia trip and is much more greater with your friends to experience Gauntlet. Playing on normal you will complete it in about 4 hours. Play on hard or Unfair mode and it will take you much, much longer. Overall I give gauntlet......

GOOD GAME

7.5/10



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Red Sea Exodus

Platform: IOS, Android.

Genre: Point and Shoot

Release Date: September 2nd, 2014

Date Reviewed: September 9th, 2014   

    First off I would like to thank Runway Games for letting me beta test and review their first game! Looking forward to more from you guys!

    Red Sea Exodus is a game on the IOS store and Android store. As of writing this review it is currently only on Android devices. It will be on the IOS store very shortly. Red Sea Exodus is a simple point and shoot game. You help people cross the red sea. While you are helping them cross there are soldiers trying to stop them. The main goal of the game is to escort them to safety by using the water and other elements to stop the enemies. Your basic attack is the water around you and your enemies. The longer you hold your finger on the water the bigger and stronger the attack becomes. If it gets to hectic then you can always use the elements to help you. You may choose from powers such as a firewall, lightning, earth, and others. These powers have to be bought though with in game currency. While defeating some enemies they may drop coins which can be used to purchase more powers. They also offer a way to purchase more coins at very reasonable prices. Better yet, some of the profits go to charities! So by helping the developer you're also helping charities such as Brothers Brother Foundation, The Ronald McDonald House (of Pittsburgh), and K.I.D.S (Kids in Distressed Situations). Also, once per day you earn a free bonus token which you can spin to get a free power up. Bonus spins can also be purchased in game.

 Charities your purchases go to.

 

 Bonus Rolls can win you Powers!

Pesky enemies!

     Red Sea Exodus overall is very well put together considering it is Runway Games first game. It's a challenging game and a great game to compete against your friends and people around the world. The Leader board function is fantastic for that. I hope in a future update they will add a feature where you can challenge different people on the leader boards. The animations are very smooth and look really good. Very colorful. The music, although repetitive is very soothing and catchy, really suits the game. The game has Facebook connectivity to see your friends scores. I also like the look of the enemies.

Leaderboards! (I'm #8)

    Overall Red Sea Exodus is a great game, especially for the challenge and competitions. It does need a little work regarding a few bugs that aren't that noticeable, needs for variety in each level, and a challenge option would be great! They are however are adding updates to the game which is fantastic. I cannot wait to see how this game will evolve over time and I look forward to future games from Runway Games. Pick it up, it is a free game and please help support the developer it all goes to a good cause. Fantastic work on your first game!


Overall Rating: 7.5/10

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Hearthstone: Curse of Naxxramas

Platform: PC

Genre: Online TCG

Release Date: July 22, 2014

Date Reviewed: July 26, 2014

A different review today. I will be reviewing the popular game Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft. To be more exact I will be reviewing the very first expansion for this game. This will be reviewed differently since it is a card game based in the Warcraft Universe.

Hearthstone: Curse of Naxxramas is the very first expansion set for Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft and it is a single player adventure. This expansion comes with 30 brand new cards including golden cards as well as a single player addition to the game. There is a new tab on the home menu which has been renamed from "Practice" to "Solo Adventures". When you access this option it will give you the choice between practice mode and Naxxramas. Naxxramas introduces us to 5 wings just like in World of Warcraft where you have to take down each boss in each wing. The first wing which is the Arachnid wing is open and

free to all players for the first month. Each other wing will open the following week after each other. You can spend real money to open these wings or spend your hard earned gold. It is 700 gold per wing or $6.99 each. It will cost you 2800 gold to get access to all of the wings, including the Arachnid wing when the free trial runs out.

My personal battle! Also a look at the naxx board.

Curse of Naxxramas offers a very fun and difficult challenge. Like in a typical raid in World of Warcraft you start off by facing each boss in normal mode. Defeating each boss will reward you with new cards to add to your collection. Defeating the final boss of each wing will reward you a legendary of that boss. So when you beat Maexxna you will be rewarded with the legendary card of Maexxna. Normal mode is not overall to difficult. After you beat normal mode you unlock two class challenges. I believe these are random classes. Right after you beat the class challenges you unlock the heroic mode version of the bosses

in Naxxramas. These are much harder with higher health (45 instead of 30) and a much stronger player power. The challenge is definitely there and might make you punch your monitor a few times.

The only issue I have with this expansion is that when you beat the heroic bosses you do not get nothing out of it. Personally I would have loved to gotten golden cards from defeating them. The only reason to beat heroic mode right now is mainly bragging rights, and nothing more. But if you're looking for a good challenge then please try to conquer heroic mode. For any new players out there with just the basic cards there is always a way to beat these bosses even on heroic mode without purchasing

new cards. There are a lot of guided out there you can follow that show you how to build your deck with the basic cards in order to beat these bosses. I am looking forward to conquering the other wings and highly recommend this expansion. It is free, so why not?

Just SOME of the cards that can be earned.

Overall Rating: 9/10

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Shovel Knight

Console: 3DS, Wii U, PC

Genre: Platformer

Release Date: June 26, 2014

Date Reviewed: July 4, 2014

Gameplay:

Shovel Knight takes another whack at the classic plat forming genre. The style for Shovel Knight takes place in the NES era. With classic 8 bit graphics and 8 bit sounds/music. It has a mixture between Megaman, Castlevania, and Mario. It mixes these three great games together to make its own step into the classic plat forming series. The game plays just like you would expect it if you've ever played an NES plat forming game before. Feels exactly like the three games I mention above. Shovel Knight feels like a fresh entry overall. The basic principle of the game is going through different levels; beat each knight to advance forward and save the Shield Knight from the evil Enchantress. You are a knight that wields a shovel as his weapon of choice. You attack with your shovel and perform certain tasks to venture through each level with this mighty shovel. From downward thrusts so you can bounce on objects and enemies to swooping your shovel to deal with enemies, the shovel has many uses.  Each boss knight has its own special attack and abilities. Just like in Megaman you need to find out what their patterns are to defeat them. Some of these bosses are not the easiest.

Ahhhh Classic.

In Shovel Knight you can even upgrade your shovel to perform new attacks. Shovel Knight can also purchase new armor that has different effects to the player. Just like in Mario you are on an over world map and you are able to choose any level, any time. Sometime on the world map there are random events as in mini boss battles, and treasure to grab by using certain items. If you are the type of person that needs to collect everything than you can even collect music notes. Return these music notes to the bard in town and he will buy them off of you for 500 gold a piece. When you give the bard these music notes he will add them to your collection so you can go back and speak with him at any time and listen to the music you have unlocked. Shovel Knight provides an excellent difficulty level as well just like in the classic plat formers. It starts off moderately easy and then picks right up and ups the difficulty level. Some levels make you want to pull your hair out but in the end are very rewarding when you finally beat it.

Graphics/Visuals:

Shovel Knight is an 8 bit plat forming adventure. It takes place during the NES generation of plat form gaming. The visuals and style of artwork is outstanding. Very colourful game, great looking backgrounds, fantastic looking enemies, great animations and NPC’s. All in all it is a very nice looking 8 bit game and a fantastic edition to the NES plat forming series.

Epic Boss Battles!

Soundtrack/Music:

Wow. Shovel Knight has one of the most amazing soundtracks I have even heard in the 8 bit era. Each and every song is unique, different, and makes your ears sing. You can tell they put their heart and soul into this game, into the music. The music is so good that it’s making me unlock and find all of the music notes hidden in the game. I often find myself going back to the main town just to listen to the music I have unlocked. Each boss, each level, and zone has its own unique soundtrack and every single one of them is a breath of fresh air. You can even get the entire soundtrack on download; it is very well worth it. Some people even got this game just because of the amazing soundtrack.

Epic Soundtrack!

Final Thoughts:

Shovel Knight is a breath of fresh air to the 8 bit plat forming series. It feels very familiar yet very new. With a mixture of the greatest plat forming NES games with a hint of its own style, Shovel Knight is a fantastic addition. Beautiful music, addicting and challenging game play, and beautiful art work, Shovel Knight is a must purchase. In fact I purchased it for all three platforms! My recommendation is to buy it on the 3DS or the Wii U just because you can quickly switch between all of them items with just a tap of your finger. The PC version provided no quick select tool.

Overall Rating: 10/10

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