Halo Wars, FE: Shadow Dragon, Halo 3 Mythic

These aren't full reviews, just a quick overview of some of the games I played recently.

 

Halo Wars - 9.5/10 (My rating, I don't care if you don't like it. :P)

So, this was probably the biggest game so far this year (even bigger than Street Fighter IV and Killzone 2), yet it was expected to crash and burn. If you look at boards on popular gaming sited like IGN and Gamespot, you're sure to find some topics saying things like, "o this game sux master cheif isnt in it and all u do is point sumwere and clik" (everything was spelled incorrectly on purpose, as I actually saw someone type that with that exact spelling). Halo fans weren't expected to like it because it wasn't an FPS, and most hardcore Halo fans despise anything other than FPS's with lots of big explosions, and RTS fans weren't expected to like it because; A: it is a console game, and most hardcore RTS fanboys despise consoles; B: It's simplistic for an RTS. Yet the game came off nicely, with a nice amout of sales worldwide, and an average of around an 8 review from gaming sites.

Personally, I liked almost everything about this game. The campaign was slightly lacking, but the Skirmish and Multiplayer modes make for endless fun... even if you keep seeing the same teamwork strategies over and over again online.

 

Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon - 9/10

A re-vamped version of the original Fire Emblem for the NES in Japan (Fire Emblem: Monshou no Nazu), Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon retells the story that started the series off, and introduces the US and Europe to the main character of the series, Marth.

It probably only sold most of its units due to Marth's appearance in Super Smash Brothers (both Melee and Brawl), but it's fun anyway, as an original turn-based strategy-RPG. And it's always nice to see how a popular series started off. Both new and old FE fans can find an enjoyable adventure. Here's to hoping that the interactions shown by Marth and Caeda will finally stop the 'Marth is gay' rumors. >.>

 

Halo 3: Mythic Map Pack - 10/10 (Not exactly a game. DLC that came with Halo Wars LCE)

Now here's one of the reasons Halo Wars sold so much. Anyone who bought the Limited Edition of Halo Wars got an early, free download of the Halo 3 Mythic Map Pack, which included the maps Assembly, Orbital, and Sandbox.

 

Assembly - A round, two-story, small map with a bases at two opposite sides and a middle fort-like area. Very similar to to the map "Midship" from Halo 2 and "Wizard" from Halo 1 (also known as "Warlock" from Halo 2). Great for two-sided CTF, Free-for-all, and neutral Assault.

Orbital - Two bases, connected by two very long hallways, which are connected at multiple points by smaller highways. One high-up hallway and one low hallway make for strategic games of Assault and CTF, as well as Team Slayer.

Sandbox - A fun, square map, with two bases and many smaller buildings strewn across the map. Fun for team Slayer. But that's not why we love this map. Everything in it is deletable in Forge mode, and infinite numbers of new, fun maps can be made. Under the basic map is an entirely enclosed area, effectively an entirely different level in the same map; you can close it off to confine playing to this area. If you look into the sky, you can see a teleporter, which will bring you far into the air, to a grid. People will fall through it, but you can place floors and make yet another map up top. Sandbox is pretty much three canvas maps in one.

 

So, that's my opinion. Got any opinions on them yourselves? Got a game you'd like to talk about? Leave a comment! :)