Toronto Thumbs

Review
The War of the Worlds

I remember the first time I heard the War of the Worlds radio play: it was on Theatre of the Mind on CHUM FM; I was quite young, and very scared*. While not necessarily as scary, Other Ocean Interactive’s The War of the Worlds seems to try and capture some of the magic from the original book and radio play through a side-scrolling platformer. Though the impact of this game is not quite as high as the original story presentation from old-timey radio, it is still somewhat entertaining and deserves a look.

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Posted in Byte-Size Reviews, LIVE, Xbox 360 | No Comments »

Preview
They Bleed Pixels

Move over, Wolverine.

When I think H.P Lovecraft, I think “OMG I’m scared. Hold me tight!”; never once did I ever say to myself “This stuff would be awesome as a beat-em up starring a little girl” – oh how naïve I have been. Spooky Squid, a local indie developer, has shown me how wrong I was in previous assumptions. I recently had a chance to sit down with Miguel Sternberg and go hands on with They Bleed Pixels, Spooky Squid’s new game that is drumming up some huge buzz in the indie community. Before I picked up the control Miguel said to me “Don’t worry, you WILL suck at first”. Pfft! Please, I’m no scrub.

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Contest
Forza 4 Demo Codes!

In keeping with the theme: if you screw up I will drive my backfist into your skull. Get it?

Ricky suggested that we should run contests more often; far be it from me to disappoint our craziest writer*. A little birdie flew into my window and dropped a piece of paper with five (count ‘em: five!) codes for XBL to allow you access to the Forza Motorsports 4 Demo. The game will not be out for another week and a half, so you will be the envy of all of your car-gazing friends. All you have to do is write an entertaining work of fiction using the following elements**:

• Driving.
• Groceries.
• Hit men.
• An exotic plant.

Your story should be brief, but not miniscule (you don’t have to write a novel). Just be creative; write well and you will have a great chance of taking home a code. Winners will be decided by internal votes among the Toronto Thumbs staff***. Contest deadline is October 2nd (23:00), so burn some rubber!

UPDATE (Oct 02, 2011 – 23:00): Contest is now closed. Winners have been notified.

Posted in Contests, LIVE, Xbox 360 | No Comments »

Review
BloodRayne: Betrayal

I think vampires are awesome. That being said, I’m not a Twilight or Underworld fan; Hellsing and Vampire Hunter D are more my style. So when Wayforward Technologies’ downloadable BloodRayne: Betrayal crossed my desk, I had to try it out. I had never played a 2D side-scroller with a vampire as the playable character before. My time had finally come.

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Posted in Byte-Size Reviews, LIVE, PlayStation 3, PSN, Xbox 360 | No Comments »

Fashionably Late Review
Dead Block

Dead Block is a game by Digital Reality about killing zombies with a classic cold-war apocalypse paranoia theme to it. Set in a very 50′s-themed environment, the only thing that can save you from the incoming hordes is, well, Rock and Roll. Holed up in a building, you must scrounge for resources and search for the missing musical gear to unleash a Rock and Roll offensive to win each stage.

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Posted in Byte-Size Reviews, LIVE, PlayStation 3, PSN, Xbox 360 | No Comments »

Review
Toy Soldiers: Cold War

When I was a kid, my parents hit an outlet warehouse and got me a really cool set of army men by Matchbox. The box contained the typical little plastic soldiers, each frozen in some action-packed pose; it also came with a small section of a war-torn, Nazi-occupied town, a watchtower, and an air-pump-action artillery cannon. Inevitably, all of my toys would become incorporated into the theatre of war in my house. Imagine my surprise when I booted up Signal Studios’ Toy Soldiers: Cold War, only to find my childhood memories displayed on my TV. A smile worked its way across my face faster than butter melting in the furnace.

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Review
From Dust

What if you had god-like powers – the power to shift and manipulate earth and water to your whim? The power to control the livelihood of your ever-devoted people – worshiping you with their every breath; your breath? Another World creator Eric Chahi’s latest game, From Dust, is a surprisingly gentle one despite the rampant tsunamis and volcano eruptions. The objective is to protect and lead these devoted followers through treacherous environmental challenges and pave the way to a new home. Being a god sure isn’t easy.

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Posted in LIVE, Reviews, Xbox 360 | 4 Comments »

Review
Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet

Do you know what I find amusing? Games that have very descriptive titles. Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet is a title that reflects exactly what the game is about. This 2D action/adventure shooter casts you as an alien piloting your vessel in an attempt to liberate a world infected by a parasite. This Xbox Live Summer of Arcade title is not that straightforward, though: there is a heavy exploration element, as well as a lot of puzzle solving – sign me up!

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Review
Fruit Ninja Kinect

Silently, I wait; crouched in readiness, my eyes scan the horizon for any sign of my enemies. Suddenly: they strike! Up they leap from below my field of view, right into the path of my deadly cutting tools! I split them, revealing their juicy insides with every movement of my hands. Deftly, I avoid their bombs as I mow a path to victory. Then, it is done; and I, the Fruit Ninja, may rest.

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Posted in Byte-Size Reviews, Kinect, LIVE, Xbox 360 | No Comments »

Review
Bastion

A bastion is a safe place; a fortified area where one can feel at home and comfortable. It is for this reason that Bastion is an incredibly apt name for one of the newest XBLA titles. Bastion, developed by Supergiant games and published by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment, has just recently been released to mark the beginning of the Summer of Arcade promotion on Xbox Live. It is an action role-playing game that features a dynamic narrator that documents your actions as you do them. It’s a cool feature; but is the rest of the game as cool? Intrigued, the kid clicks past the break to read on. He’s hoping that he will like what is ahead.

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Posted in LIVE, Reviews, Xbox 360 | 4 Comments »