Medal Wars Keisers Revenge is a funny and enjoyable game with bad controls. But then, as any good video game design school says, controls are tantamount to experience. Is it possible to create video games that are quality without great controls? Medal Wars tries its hardest to do just that. 

In Medal Wars, your mission is clear: become the greatest soldier who ever lived. It might not be easy though as even fate itself is against you. Keisers Revenge is a comedy action RPG for PC that aims to match its fast paced action with belly aching hilarity. But does it succeed?

Yes and no.

The action in Medal Wars is solid and there’s more than enough of it to keep you playing, but the game suffers hiccups in the form of controls.

You play as a newly recruited member of the Green Army, a battalion which suffers the unfortunate reality of being on the front line in the war versus the Black Army. Worse still, your side is rapidly losing ground. It’s up to you to save the day. After a brief spot of army training, you’re off on solo missions to destroy your enemy and win back bunkers.

You’ll be aided in your mission by tents on the camp that allow you to upgrade weapons for which you’ll need to collect money in your missions. You can also gamble on-camp to possibly win more cash. Visiting the camp also recharges your health and lets you buy items

Before long you’ll notice Medal Wars’ sense of humour. All the characters are over the top (the buxom female character, for instance). There are lab monkeys in sailor suits and there’s more than enough laughs to satisfy.

Outside the camp you’ll enter combat. Headshots will quickly dispatch your foes while foot shots send them hopping. You can also run in and use your bayonet. When you reach bunkers and bases the challenge increases. In some areas you’ll need to eliminate all enemy troops while others have you playing in first person mode.

As mentioned above, it’s the control scheme that interferes with the game. You have to position the cursor then click or hold the left mouse button to move. The problem with that is that you also have to aim a reticule and press the left mouse button to shoot. This means that sometimes you’ll run when you meant to fire. Off you’ll go, running straight into enemy troops.

This is the one and only area of weakness in Medal Wars, but it is a big one. While the game is both fun and funny, it’s also irritating thanks to those controls.

I still have to give Medal Wars a healthy overall review score of 3.5 out of 5, but I’m disappointed as, without that one hiccup in the controls, the score would have been higher.

Rarely if ever do hidden-object adventure games have such a deep and immersive story as that found in Lesta Game and Film’s Nightmare Realm: In The End. It tells the story of Emily, a girl of mystical legacy who is caught up in a mysterious realm that will not let her go.

Nightmare Realm: In the End’s story is full of twists and turns that keep you hooked. Towards the beginning of the game, Emily’s mother Kathleen ventures out of her home into a mysterious dark world that acts as a gateway between minds and dreams. It turns out that Kathleen’s entire family is in danger and it’s up to Kathleen to save the day. How on earth is she going to do that? Well, hey presto, here’s a magic board game that wants to help Kathleen through the dark magical world. The game provides you with a map and with details about what to do, as well as providing a ton of backstory.

Those who played the original Nightmare Realm game will remember it for its beautiful presentation and its rich and imaginative story. This sequel repeats the magic of the original game and takes it even further.

The story of In The End is even more imaginative than the first game. It expands on the lore that the fist game hinted at, revealing all manner of characters and creatures. Even if the animation sometimes feels a little weird (there are bizarre live action segments that don’t really fit), the presentation is still spellbinding. The environments are bright and gorgeous and the art is wonderfully surreal.

One of the nicest surprises of Nightmare Realm: In The End is its longevity. It’s a pretty difficult game with a lot of travelling and a lot of great puzzles to solve.

Perhaps the one weakness of the game is that, given the general depth, breadth and ambition of the title, the somehow shallow hidden-object scenes seem like something of an aside, rather than an integral part of the game. There’s the sense that nightmare Realm: In the End would be happier as a full-blown adventure game.

The gameplay is fun, but it’s a little uninspired. Most of the time you’ll be more interested in the development of the story than in the actual gameplay itself.

It’s a shame that the imagination that went into the story and the artwork isn’t shared with the gameplay itself. Nevertheless, however, there is more than enough here to please most gamers.

I have to recommend Nightmare Realm: In The End for its ambition, its presentation and its exceptional story, even if I do wish the gameplay could have packed more of a punch.

Overall: 4 out of 5

I’m going to put my hands up and admit that the first time I read the title War of the Human Tanks, I wrongly presumed that this was just another, tried and true world war two game (see the rhyme there. . .?)  Despite the title only being five words long, I somehow ignore two fifths of them—the “human tanks” part went right over my head.

What the fudge is a human tank then? Well, Obi Wan Kenobi would say its “more machine than man. Twisted an evil.”  But that’s just Obi Wan Kenobi. . .

A human tank is a tank in the sense that. .  .uhh . .. well it’s a tank, and human in the sense that it has feelings and emotions. You can probably tell from that description that War of the Human Tanks is a funny game. It’s a comic; an expansive comic with a heck of a lot dialogue. The story consumes most of your play time, meaning War of the Tanks is a real joy for people like me who love a good bit of storytelling with their gaming.

When you do actually play the game, you’ll find yourself engaged in a real time, turn based strategy game.  You can use any unit in real time if it’s connected. You’l do a few actions then your tank will be disconnected. There are several units to use and you can develop better units using credits earned from battle.

The actually gameplay of War of the Human Tanks is a heck of a lot of fun, but because it’s so fun it will divide players in two. Some players will just want the gameplay, others the story. Sadly, that does mean that many gamers will tire of the exhaustive dialogue.

War of the Human Tanks is a truly excellent title. Despite some overly lengthy dialogue, the storytelling is engaging and humorous and its matched with action which is a heck of a blast. If you love tanks, or humans, then War of the Human Tanks is one battle you’ll love through and through.

War of the Human Tanks Overall : 4.5  out of 5 

It’s one heck of a challenge making a decent turn-based strategy game. The pacing needs to be just right and its imperative to balance strategy and tactics with enough reward to motivate continued play. For many gamers, turn-based strategy games feel too slow to be enjoyable and this results in a limited market for the games. Blood, Grain and Steel attempts to overcome these hurdles with a game reminiscent of chess and Total War.

You’ll be greeted with a comprehensive tutorial when you begin Blood, Grain and Steel. This will guide you through the basics and, in about ten minutes, you’ll know everything you need to know to start playing.

The game takes place over two arenas: one is a big campaign map with provinces occupying squares on the grid. You’re given a stronghold and begin to makes new armies and control your resources as well as moving our army to occupy spaces on the grid. There is, naturally, an opposing team to battle against too.

The second arena is smaller than the first though similar looking. The difference with this arena is that the components of the armies are in the form of units.

With the campaign arena, your main resource is grain. The more grain your army has the more you can spend on your units. Each unit has a price and an upkeep cost that needs to be paid on a –turn-by-turn basis, meaning you need to be mindful of your spending.

The units themselves could do with a little bit of spicing up. There’s the paladin, the soldier, the Rider, Infiltrator and Catapult, each of which is good in different ranges and on different terrain. The units are fun to play though perhaps could have been made better with specific unit abilities.

One of the best aspects of Blood, Grain and Steel’s gameplay is the ability to deposit grain into a tile, fortifying the tile against invasion. The fact that grain is the only resource you have to manage, however, is an obvious limitation.

All in all, Blood Grain and Steel is a solid concept and an enjoyable game, but it does have limitations and could be made significantly better with a lick of paint. There’s potential here and given more resource management and decision making this could be a truly great turn-based strategy game.

Blood Grain and Steel Overall:   7 out of 10

Tomorrow Corporation, the team behind World of Goo, brew up a new gem of a game with Little Inferno.

In Little Inferno, you find yourself in a little abode with little more than a fireplace to play with. Short messages from a friend give the impression that some sort of plot if adrift and that you ought to start tossing things in the fire.

Tossing items in the fire garners you coins and stamps to collect which enable you to buy unlockable items that you then, in turn, burn.

You may have noticed from the description that Little Inferno isn’t a typical game. It’s really more of a physics simulation with a plot and some humour. It is a heck of a lot of fun though and you ‘ll find time flying by as you sit there burning things. It’s certainly not wasted time though as Little Inferno is immensely relaxing. It’s the sort of game that allows you to drift away from life, to escape in a dreamy state of mind. As such, it’s a perfect game to play when you’re tired of work and when you need to chill out.

Speaking of chilling out, the humour is going to help with that too. There’s a slightly disturbing sense of humour to Little Inferno and youll definitely have a good chuckle playing it.

One of the many ways in which Little Inferno stands out is that it offers next to no challenge. The biggest challenge you’ll face is one of patience as you wait for items to arrive. But there’s no real skill needed.

Some players and reviewers have commented on how the patience and mood make them feel eerie. Personally, I don’t get that at all. I find Little Inferno a completely relaxing experience,  akin to sitting with your feet up by the fireplace (literally and figuratively). Games don’t need to have you performing mad antics in order to be fun and engaging and Little Inferno recognises this.

Given the choice between playing a slow game like Little Inferno or a quick paced action-centred title like Call of Duty, I’d choose this any day of the week. But heck, I’m the kind of gamer who loves to chill while playing.

Maybe we should all chuck our Call of Duty’s and God of Wars in the fire and get cosy with Little inferno instead.

Overall: 8.5 / 10

How do you fancy heading off to Mars on an adventure where you’ll jetpack through subterranean environments encountering all manner of alien lifeforms? Sound good? Well, that’s exactly what developer Tiger Style are offering with puzzle / platform / adventure game Waking Mars.

In many ways, Waking Mars was a breakthrough success for Tiger Style, having been released as an iOS game before going on to sell 100jk copies and being ported to PC and Steam. But then again, given that Tiger Style founders Randy Smith and David Kalinawhose have a combined resume that includes Thief, Deus Ex: Invisible War and Splinter Cell, was it really that surprising?

The Steam release of Waking Mars features all nwe voice acting UI updates and Steam’s cloud sync; so what was a minor release has now turned major. But is this form iOS now STEAm title worthy of your consideration?

Waking Mars will have you hooked from the word “Go.” It starts off as a platform adventure but soon shows its true breadth and scope.

Set on Mars (well DUH!) in 2097, you play scientist Liang as he explores for new life forms on Mars. As you learn more about the ecosystem on Mars a mystery begins to unravel.

As you explore Mars, you spread life throughout its caves by collecting and planting seeds from different plants. Each plant requires that different conditions by fulfilled before it will produce seeds so you’ll need to plant the right flora.

The gameplay begins as a puzzler but develops from there, delving into some strategy as you work out the best ways to plants seeds to cultivate ecosystems. As you make new discoveries you’ll fill up an encyclopedia so you can remember how to manipulate different plants and animals.

The only significant drawback to the gameplay is the camera, which can be uncooperative at times. Other than that one exception, however, Waking Mars is a wonderfully playable and unique title that will thrill most gamers. With great music and graphics backing everything up, this is one trip to mars you’ll be wanting to take.

Overall: 8 / 10

One thing’s for certain with Grimind: you’ll either love it, hate it or both. With a mood and atmosphere as horrific as Amnesia: The Dark Descent, it’s fair to say this isn’t one for the feint of heart.

Grimind starts in darkness (and doesn’t get much brighter). You play an unnamed create of an ambiguous species that is somewhat like a hedgehog-type-thingy-magigie-ish-thing. Whatever the creature is, it wakes alone and amnesic in a series of underground tunnels and . As he journey out of the tunnels he comes across all manner of puzzles, monsters and horrors that might leave your pants needing a wash.

Grimind’s horror is brought to a high thanks to some excellent level design. Though the visuals could use more detail, the use of colour and the imaginative scenes truly get you absorbed in the game world,  helping intensify the fear factor.

The first reason you’ll love or hate Grimmind, then, is that it’s freaking scary. But that’s not the only reason. The puzzles are a love / hate thing too. They’re hard as nails. Being the artsy-type guy that I am, and having next to no logical reasoning, the puzzles left me wanting to smash my head against a wall.  . . I didn’t just in case you’re wondering; I’ve got no head injury, just a bit of a headache after these treacherous puzzles.

That said, you might have a brain, in which case you’ll probably love the puzzles.

One thing even I loved about the puzzles, however, was their creativity. Thanks to ingenious puzzle designs, you’ll find the puzzles entertaining even if you die a million times because of them.

My favourite part of Grimind is its story. The plot is vague due to poor translation yet somehow this furthered my enjoyment. The bad translation gives you a number of different ways of interpreting whats going on and that in turn furthers the sense of involvement. There’s a sense of metaphor and symbolism to the story and the characters that is open to interpretation too. The inadvertent genius here is that the game accidentally creates a great sense of uncertainty which greatly helps to increase the fear level.

All in all, Grimind is going to scare the hell out of you and frustrate the hell out of but it will also have you hooked and utterly entertained.

OVERALL   8   /    10