Braid: From the moment I first heard Johnathan Blow speak at the 2007 Montreal International Game Summit, it became very clear to me that he had very strong feelings about game design and what constitutes a good game. His ideas were unique, refreshing and even at times provocative. I’ve been a strong believer in the potential of video games for many years now, and so it should come as no surprise ...

Bionic Commando Rearmed: Originally released in 1988 for the Nintendo Entertainment System, Bionic Commando was critically acclaimed for its innovative gameplay. The implementation of the grappling hook was not only said to be remarkably well-balanced for its time, but made for a welcomed change from the typical action game. If you were a fan of the series twenty years ago, you’ll probably find yourself completely enthralled by this year’s remake of the game: ...

Saints Row 2: When reviewing a game like Saints Row 2, it’s hard not to immediately start making comparisons with Grand Theft Auto IV. Both are open-world games where you run around hijacking cars whilst completing missions for less-than-stellar members of the community, both make use of the same mixture of popular music and quirky radio announcers, and each are in their own way, very much story-driven. With that said however, the atmosphere ...

Fable 2: It’s interesting how something that can seem so right in theory, so immaculately constructed, can manage to fall flat on its face when set into motion. I remember first hearing of Peter Molyneux and his game Fable, and thinking to myself how wholly wonderful this game was going to be. As an aspiring game designer – yes, I once dreamed of spearheading my own games, but that is not a ...

Dark Sector: Released in November of 2006, Gears of War was critically acclaimed for re-introducing the “cover system” style of game-play. Given the enormous amount of success enjoyed by that game, one would assume that any game making use of such a system would surely reap the same benefits; unfortunately for Dark Sector, that is not necessarily the case. In Dark Sector, you play as Hayden Tenno, a covert operative who, shortly ...

Army of Two: For many of us, some of our fondest memories of playing video games come from the times we spent playing co-operative games with our friends. I remember when I was younger, I’d head over to my friend’s house, and we’d immerse ourselves for hours playing some of our favourite games of the time. With the arrival of newer, more powerful systems, it’s been a trend for several years now for ...