amphibious_ReViews

It took just two rogue headlines in my newsfeed mentioning a "one-dimensional PAC-MAN " for me to be overwhelmed by curiosity. I could only see simplifying the arcade classic as a way to make it less engaging, and yet multiple people considered it exciting enough to write an entire article about. Upon giving it a try, I realized that the new one-dimensional form factor actually made the game much easier to pick up and play, leading me to pull it up a lot more frequently than I ever did its inspiration, albeit for much shorter play sessions. PAKU PAKU follows the explosive trend, pioneered by the likes of Flappy Bird, of trimming down gameplay to its barest bones for the raw dopamine-generating power of quick restarts and high-score chasing. Just like in PAC-MAN, you'll control a gluttonous monochrome circle as it attempts to eat as many dots as possible while avoiding instant death at the hands of an ever-pursuing ghost. While said ghost moves faster than you, there are a

I'm really into getting games for free, so much so that I'll check online communities every once in a while just to learn about deals I may have missed when checking on my own. That's how I learned about the closed beta for Google's "Project Stream" that came with a complimentary copy of Assassin's Creed Odyssey, which I then applied for immediately. I was accepted into the beta testing group, and while I only had a few opportunities to sit down with it, Project Stream left me extremely impressed. I was playing a full, triple-A game through my browser with almost no input delay. The possibilities that I had floating in my brain for the future of that technology were incredibly exciting. Eventually, Project Stream graduated out of its beta to become the ill-fated Google Stadia, which I tried so hard to love. I bought multiple games on it and I tried the"Pro" subscription, I just never had a good enough reason to play it over my, more convenient, S

Occasionally, Google will surprise me with a new game to play. I'll be using one of their products for one thing or another, and then find a game that I wasn't expecting. Normally, my encounter rate for these games is pretty spread out, but Hop Mania ended up being the start of a relatively rapid burst of Google games that I discovered around the same time, each housed in a different product. Found within the Google Play Games app, Hop Mania is one of the "offline" games that come built-in, alongside the likes of solitaire and Snake . I don't think I even meant to play it for more than a minute or two, but the familiar gameplay coupled with the eerie atmosphere kept me around for a little longer. Seemingly as a tribute to its inspiration, Hop Mania gives you the choice between a frog and a chicken, the mascots of Frogger and Crossy Road respectively, as your playable character. Then you get two on-screen buttons for movement, allowing you to go either forward or

I absolutely love the Galaga series. The gameplay is deceptively simple and incredibly rewarding. Every once in a while, I'll check the Play Store to see if there's finally a good way to get my fix, but I'm always disappointed to find that Galaga Wars is still the only option. I recently decided to give it another chance and it immediately reminded me why I stopped playing so quickly the first time around. Galaga has had some amazing mobile releases in the past, like the Tekken crossover, or the 30th-anniversary collection, but Galaga Wars fails miserably at meeting any of the standards set by its predecessors. The saddest thing about this game to me is that it actually has the foundation to be a pretty great mobile interpretation of an arcade classic, but someone decided that intrusive ads and predatory micro-transactions were more important than the integrity of the franchise. It's almost unbelievable how many ways they try to squeeze something out of you. Even the ve

In 2012, as a spectacular advertising campaign for their new movie,  Wreck-It Ralph , Disney released a few different takes on Ralph's fictional home game. Each based on the clips from the film, they offer similar aesthetics and gameplay, but their different development teams and target platforms meant they wouldn't exactly match each other. Of the different versions, the only one I have played myself is the iOS release that came both as a free standalone and in a dollar combo pack alongside mobile interpretations of all of the fictional arcade games featured in the film. I downloaded both immediately after seeing the movie and absolutely loved the fact that I was actually playing Wreck-It Ralph 's game! However, it was only after replaying it now that I was able to appreciate all of the features the developers managed to pack in to make it feel like a real arcade release. Fix-It Felix Jr! sees you playing as the titular character as you attempt to repair an apartment bu

Dig Dug II is a very strange sequel. It has enough elements from its predecessor to obviously be a Dig Dug game, but the look and feel are almost entirely restructured. I'm not against experimentation in sequels, but it was still a little startling to me that Dig Dug  took the Zelda II  approach rather than that of Ms. PAC-MAN . Thankfully, I think the strangeness paid off. It's definitely not better than its predecessor, but Dig Dug II is still a fun time. Just like the original, your goal in each of the stages is to defeat all of the enemies. It's the same two varieties that you are familiar with from the first game, and you can still pump them full of air to pop them, but the game's new setting introduces a brand new option for achieving victory. Instead of taking place in intricate underground tunnels, Dig Dug II is entirely above-ground on various structurally unsound islands. Each island is marred by cracks and holes that you can use you damage the island even

I only seriously played Donkey Kong Jr. for the first time very recently. I have been returning to the original Donkey Kong  for years, and the idea of making Mario the antagonist in the sequel was definitely interesting, I just wasn't ever drawn to the climbing-style platforming. After giving it a real chance, I definitely think that it's fun, but it doesn't hold a candle to the series' progenitor. I can't help but think that  Nintendo made a serious gamble with this game. It probably would've been easier to follow up Donkey Kong by simply using the same skeleton and building new levels. Instead, they propelled the story by creating a new protagonist and implementing brand new platforming mechanics. While I personally would have enjoyed something that felt a little more like the first game, I appreciate the introduction of climbing as a way to shake up the formula, and I'm definitely not mad with how it turned out. Taking control of the titular Donkey K

Back in August of 2021, I reviewed the arcade classic, Joust , essentially just by saying that it was just an inferior version of Balloon Fight . After replaying Balloon Fight to make sure I wasn't full of crap, I stand by what I said. The maps have more variety, the controls are more straightforward, and the additional modes mean there's even more to do. Though, even without the comparison to Joust , Balloon Fight  can stand on its own, whether you play alone or with a friend. The goal of  Balloon Fight  is to flap around, popping your opponents' balloons while keeping your own intact. However, its most impressive feat isn't the gameplay, but rather how remarkably responsive the whole experience feels. Thanks to the intuitive physics of flapping around while attached to a pair of balloons, I feel like I'm in full control of my character, despite not actually having perfect control. The system of building momentum combined with the collision and bouncing effects fe

While arcade-style games have always had a huge presence in the mobile-phone videogame market, most attempts at bringing classic arcade IPs to the platform left something to be desired. With those kinds of games originally built with joysticks and buttons in mind, the touch screen just can't match the precision they require. However, attempts at making new games in recognizable franchises could be successful if they were designed with the platform in mind. Bandai-Namco seemed to pick up on this when they hired the studio behind the immensely popular Frogger clone, Crossy Roads . The result of this partnership was a PAC-MAN game that actually feels like it belongs on the platform. Adopting Crossy Road 's blocky aesthetic by default, and adjusting the camera from overhead to an isometric view, PAC-MAN 256 allows its titular protagonist to move the same as he always has, but in a world that's much more akin to a mid-twenty-tens mobile game. Dropping stages in favor of an i

I used to watch my dad play Joust a lot when I was a kid, but a large majority of my gaming experience from that time in my life was Nintendo -centric. That trend continues even today, although to a much lesser degree, and those experiences really shape the lenses through which I view the games that I play. It's because of this that I had two prevailing thoughts while playing Joust . Those being, it's a lot like Balloon Fight , and Balloon Fight is better. This isn't to say that Joust is a bad game, just that I found the NES classic feels like a more refined iteration of the same formula. Both games provide you control over a character that can really only move by flapping through the air (although Joust does let you run while on the ground). Repeated button presses help you gain elevation, with steering requiring both patience and good timing while in flight. This system of navigation was a real sticking point for me in Joust , thanks to how floaty it is. In Balloon F

Defender was another arcade game that snuck up on me. I had heard the name plenty of times, but I had never actually seen the game played, let alone actually played it myself. Based on the name, I was expecting something along the lines of Missile Command , but I was way off. With it being an earlier arcade release, I also wasn't sure what to expect in terms of the quality or the quantity of the game's content. Fortunately, while Defender doesn't offer much variety, it is a solid, well-polished alien-shooting experience. The game takes place close to the surface of a barren alien planet, requiring you to avoid crashing into the terrain as you evade enemy fire. Similar to other space shooters, Defender is broken into a series of increasingly difficult stages, and you progress between them by defeating every enemy in the given stage. However, the aliens know how to take advantage of their space, and aren't all going to be in firing range at once. Luckily, the mini-map

To be completely frank, fighting games aren't really my thing, so my interest in Yie Ar Kung Fu was almost purely for its historical value. Although not the first game in its genre, it was the progenitor of the health bar that would soon become a staple in series like Street Fighter and Mortal Kombat . The feature is pretty simplistic in its debut here, broken into eight equal segments that detract one by one with a hit of any kind, but as an early title, I wasn't expecting something super advanced. That mindset was good to have going into this, as the rest of the game matches the health bar in complexity. In Yie Ar Kung Fu , you can jump, crouch, and walk as you would expect from a fighting game, but your actual combat potential is pretty limited. You can punch and kick, but the segmented health bars mean the only difference between the two is where they hit. There's no risk-reward balance for heavy and light attacks, there are no combos, and there are no other playable

After Mario 's public execution on March 31st, 2021, someone had to fill the void he left behind. With Super Mario Bros. 35 rendered unplayable, Pac-Man stepped in with his own Switch -exclusive battle royale title to save the day. While the plumber's absence is still painful, having another competetive multiplayer title based on a legendary game helped to soften the blow. As the third free battle royale game for Nintendo Switch Online subscribers, PAC-MAN 99 also brings back a little optimism to the future potential of the service. Like the previous two NSO battle royale games, the familiar gameplay of the original is left in-tact here, with just a few additions to accommodate the competetive nature of the title. The same targeting system is brought back from the other two games, letting you decide who to "attack" in the hopes of being the last player standing. In this game, attacking is done by eating ghosts, and every ghost you eat after consuming a power pel

Combining the gameplay of Namco 's Galaga with the perspective of Atar i's Tempest , Gyruss ends up feeling like a perfect evolution of both. Since most of my early-childhood arcade experience was actually through various iterations of Namco Museum , games like this didn't just pass me by, they virtually didn't exist. If this game wasn't on the list of 1001 Games to Play Before You Die , I probably wouldn't have ever played it, and that's a huge shame. With the Galaga series being some of my favorite arcade titles, Gyruss fits snuggly as a favorite as well. You've probably guessed already, but if you're familiar with Galaga , you'll likely be pretty comfortable with Gyruss . Practically everything is recreated here, from the way enemies fly on screen in formation, giving you a chance to take out a few before they fall in line with the rest of their crew, to the bonus stages that give you a chance to earn some extra points without threatening

When I first picked up Time Pilot , I wasn't sure what to expect. Most of Konami 's arcade games escaped my attention up until recently, so they tend to be a surprise every time I pick one up. Although the game's title kind of gave away its concept, I was only seconds in before I started geeking out over traveling through time and battling weaponized aircraft from five different decades. It's still just as basic of a story as any other arcade game, but the concept just did something for me that shooting aliens without an origin didn't. When you boil it all down, Time Pilot is a game about shooting and surviving. You are given what seems to be a horizontal view of the sky with 360 degrees of navigational capability in which you must maneuver to avoid enemies and incoming fire. However, you won't be able to win as a pacifist. The game requires you to take out a certain amount of opposing aircraft before it spawns the boss-like enemy that you must defeat in order

Scramble introduced the world to level-based side-scrolling shooters and inspired the development of legends like Gradius , but has since faded into relative obscurity. Like most firsts in the video game world, Scramble is impressive more because of what it started than because of what it is. Playing this game now, it's easy to see why it was a big deal when it released, but why nobody is really talking about it anymore. In Scramble , you are tasked with surviving as long as possible while your ship automatically flies to the right. You have free range of motion on the left half of the screen, which you absolutely have to take advantage of in order to avoid both enemies and the terrain. To help, your ship is also equipped with two types of weapons. A regular blaster that fires straight forward, and a bombs that arc towards the ground. The blaster is especially useful for clearing your path, but proficiency with the bombs is about the only way to keep your ship in the air. As you

Hot Air Balloon continues Google 's tradition of hiding simple, gray-pixel games in their software. Taking influence from both of its predecessors, this game is only accessible if the Google Play Store cannot access the Internet (à la Chrome 's dinosaur), but is exclusive to Android devices (see Play Games ' Whirlybird ). It's a simple title that isn't really worth seeking out but is still a welcome distraction while the Internet is giving you trouble. The gameplay is very straightforward. You direct the titular hot air balloon on its ascent, avoiding sheets of spikes floating randomly throughout the sky. You are constantly earning points just for staying alive, but you can increase your score much faster if you collect the floating orbs (or maybe coins?) that are also mysteriously suspended in your flight path. This is all fine and dandy, but the power-ups are really the fun part. Occasionally, you'll find a floating item that may boost your balloon's sp

I'm cursed when it comes to arcade games. My experiences always follow the same cycle. I'll boot up the game, immediately appreciate the simple, yet intelligent, design that made it popular, lose a lot, become disenchanted, and decide to play something else instead. Ultimately, I'm just not very good at them, and I lack the patience to get good, so I move on. I thought that's how Centipede would go long before I realized I was cursed, so I never actually gave it a chance. I was right. However, I wasn't as right as I thought, and I actually surprised myself with how much fun I was having by blasting all of those darn bugs! It's pretty ambiguous what you actually play as in Centipede , and I never figured it out. What I do know, is that you can shoot projectiles that defeat enemies and break hazards. Based on that alone, I figured this would just be a clone of Space Invaders , shoot the enemies that move side-to-side while getting progressively lower, use shot-st

  Google Chrome has hosted a simple pixel dinosaur game for years. Whenever you lose your internet connection, Chrome gives you a delightful little distraction while you wait to be productive again. Whirlybird appears to be Google 's follow-up to their dinosaur, providing a fun and simple time-waster with every install of Google Play Games . The monochromatic pixel graphics carry over here, with the exception of the propeller-beanie power-ups. This minor highlight adds an appreciated flare to the game without sacrificing the "feel" established in the Chrome original. As an obvious clone of the mobile gaming legend, Doodle Jump , Whirlybird behaves largely the same. You control a cute little Android as they try to jump higher and higher, with the game ending if it ever reaches the bottom of the screen (or gets spiked). As your Android bounces, you steer by tilting your phone in the direction that it should travel. Landing on a platform during its descent will usually c

  As an earlier arcade title, I sort of expected Missile Command to be more simplistic than its "newer" peers. I was pleasantly surprised to find that it actually seemed to be quite complex. Instead of infinite ammo, resource management is a necessity. Instead of controlling one little character, you take command of three silos and protect cities throughout the whole bottom of the screen. Instead of comfortably picking off enemies one by one, you have to race to take out incoming missiles in groups before they spread too wide and overwhelm you. Perhaps the most impressive though was the fact that your failures stick with you as the game progresses; if you let an enemy rocket take out a city you were trying to protect, it won't magically return the next round. It's just gone. Missile Command has a simple objective. You are tasked with shooting down scores of enemy missiles before they destroy all of your cities. You have one aiming reticule, but three missile silos.