Game Reviews

Welcome to the Game Reviews Section, Play Ouya reviews will be short and to the point, so that you get an in a nutshell reason why you should or shouldn't buy the title. Because there are a lot of free titles on the Discover Store I will also be reviewing them too.
 
Unearthed: Trail of Ibn Battuta


A game that tries in so many ways to be Uncharted, but unfortunately misses it's mark.








Graphics

When the graphics are working correctly there are pretty reasonable in places, some graphical glitches plague this like walls disappearing though, also frame rate plummets if there is too much action on screen. I think at this point its worth noting the animations could use some work.



Sounds

Voice acting is always a nice touch although I felt like the actors seemed a little bored at times when reciting their lines, the musical score is reasonable and fits well with the games look and feel.

Gameplay

This is were the problems truly are, as above frame rate can be a problem, handling on the RC car is so bad its painful and the full size car you drive isn't much better. I have noticed they have made some improvements since the PC version. Things feel that little bit smoother, but it needs a lot of work in my opinion.

Overall

There has been a lot of unfair reviews were people are hating for the sake of hating in places, this is not one of those, but you have to know the truth before you blindly pay $4.99 on this title. I wanted to like Unearthed as the presentation was nice and it had a lot going for it, the further I got into the game though the harder it was to forgive.

Possibly the most unforgiving thing about it though is just how short it is, I think we completed it in less then 3 hours easily. Its simply not worth the $5 price tag. Don't be fooled by the awesome looking trailer and screenshots this is one tomb you don't want to be raiding.







Dead End


Coming directly from the 70′s, Dead End is a mix between old-fashioned racing games and grindhouse horror movies.






Graphics

The Grindhouse graphics are like nothing I have ever seen so get a big thumbs up for me, from the dithering effect on the skyline to the square tyre smoke its looking swish, the car snaps from side to side when navigate the turns, this was one of the things I didn't like the look of, but the twitchy turn animations keep to the feel of the game perfectly.

Sounds

A suitably rocky tune plays out as you drive, perfect symphony to run down zombies if you ask me, hitting the zombies gives a nice squish although I would have preferred a sound with a bit more depth so I could the feel weight of each thing I hit.


Gameplay

Simple but done well, I have to say I am sick of endless games, but even though Dead End looks like one of those, it isn't so it went up in my estimations straight away, the introduction of upgrades keeps the game fresh and using the windscreen wipers to clear your screen of the guts of the undead is a sadistically satisfying element.

Overall

A great title that mixes the formula of old title like outrun with a unique grindhouse style.












It's Free To Try so no reason not to mow some zombies down in this one, well worth the purchase price too.







Space Popcorn free

A little background on the creator of Space Popcorn, he is James the man behind
A Game A Week, he is always making simple, but very clever titles and Space Popcorn is another one of those hits.





Graphics

You could be forgiven for been put off by the screenshots on the Store, but fear not this game is made like this to invoke the kind of nostalgic feel you get from playing Asteroids.
The whole presentation is set out like an arcade game from the 80's, the style remains consistent all the way through which means that the retro effect doesn't go away.

Sounds

Standard arcade fair here, does the job it needs to, nice retro soundtrack to go with the action.

Gameplay

Gameplay is great! Its simple but encapsulates the one more go feel of old. The fact that each piece of pop corn you blast doubles up means you can't ever complete the game, but it doesn't stop you from trying to beat your best score anyway.

The inclusion of another two game modes is a welcome addition, although it is still very much the same game, just even more difficult.

Overall

Its free so you really have no reason not to try it, however even if you forget that draw it is still a great little title and highly recommended.

I would like to see the title expanded on, but that sometimes can be a tough task, as if you add or change too much you risk losing some of the games magic.

This game won't hold your interest for months, but I can bet you will keep going back 3/5 hearts