Mario just keeps on trucking with more titles under his toolbelt. One of my favorite franchises goes back to his roots of jumping and climbing after Donkey Kong. In the Mario vs Donkey Kong series on Nintendo handhelds, Mario (and his assistants) scamper up scaffolding and other obstacles to reach his nemesis. What I like best about the series is its puzzle-like aspect. Players are rewarded more for careful thought rather than their trigger finger. In recent years, the series has gone in for a bit of Lemmings flavor by using little toy Marios (and other toy Nintendo icons) to achieve the goals and pursue Donkey Kong to save the day. The latest incarnation, Mario vs Donkey Kong Mini-Land Mayhem continues a long trend of excellent action/puzzle gaming and serves both as a nice continuation of the series for fans, as well as a great introduction to the series for newcomers.

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Tags: Game Reviews, Misc

If any game franchise just exudes cuteness, it has to be Pokemon. Cute little animal friends that just want to hang out with you and beat the snot out of any other critters you come across in your travels. The newest Pokemon themed game is PokePark Wii: Pikachu’s Adventure. Pikachu and his friends fall down a hole and into an adventure through a Pokemon theme park. As Pikachu, explore five different zones and challenge Pokemon you meet in order to make friends and restore the park to is former glory. In a mix of exploration and minigames, PokePark makes a fun little title for younger gamers who have comfortable reading skills.

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Tags: Game Reviews

It’s the week before Christmas and you haven’t bought your family a boardgame yet? It’s time to pick up the pace! Boardgames are a great way for families and friends to get together and enjoy some face-to-face social time. One of my fondest memories of Christmas as a youth waking up on Christmas morning knowing that Santa (or his “associates”) had delivered a new boardgame next to the stocking of each child in our family. As the biggest boardgame fan in our group I would spend most of the rest of the day trying to con my siblings and parents into trying out all the new games. Here’s a short list of some of the newer titles I’ve encountered this year that I think are worth a look. If they don’t suit your fancy, I’ve written up a holiday boardgame guide for the past seven years (feel free to check out last year’s guide or jump to the bottom for links to the others.) more…

Tags: Misc, Unplugged

As the father of a preschool boy, I’ve seen the movie Cars far more times than I can count. When I heard about the release of a Wii game based on the new video, Mater’s Tall Tales, I was interested enough to want to check the game out. Mater’s Tall Tales is a set of minigames based around sequences from the video of the same name. While some are entertaining, and the visuals truly are top-notch, the gameplay of the 30-odd minigames fails to stand out from the very crowded minigame genre on the Wii console.

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Tags: Game Reviews

Shrapnel Games has a reputation for publishing high quality historical wargames (WWII versions of Steel Panthers, among others) as well as a smattering of other strategic titles (Dominions 3, Weird Worlds: Return to Infinite Space). One of their most recent releases is a downloadable game entitled Bronze, a strategy title set in ancient Mesopotamia. With simple rules and goals based around placing tiles for area control, it plays much like an abstract boardgame. With numerous campaign modes, flavor text full of historical facts, and the ability to play solo or hotseat multiplayer in randomly generated maps, Bronze shows surprising depth for it simple rules. There is something gripping about its simplicity that draws you in and leaves you wanting to play “just one more” five or ten minute game.

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Tags: Game Reviews

Last year, Tony Hawk: Ride took the video game world by storm. The game, based around a skateboard controller, polarized the gaming community as some loved the higher level of interactivity and others didn’t like the new direction the franchise had taken. I missed out on last year’s controversy, but was recently able to play around with the sequel, Tony Hawk: Shred. I don’t know what jaded, hardcore video gamers might have to say, but Tony Hawk: Shred is an excellent addition to any family’s gaming repertoire. I reviewed the game on the Wii console and its multiple casual play modes to skateboard or snowboard fit right in with the whole Wii gaming ethos. It is the “Rock Band” of skateboarding, immersing players in the fun and excitement of boarding without any of the effort and risk of the real thing.

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Tags: Game Reviews

As a follow up to the recent release of Just Dance 2, the folks at Ubisoft just released Just Dance Kids, targeted at the younger age set. With nearly the same gameplay as the previous titles, Just Dance Kids is a great game for families looking for a similar dance experience but with more age appropriate songs and lyrics. The disc features songs for the very young, like the hamster song, the chicken dance, and songs from the popular Wiggles and Yo Gabba Gabba shows. It also has broader classics that might even appeal to adults like YMCA and Surfin’ USA (although they are all rerecorded by kids singing.) With kid-friendly tunes and slightly easier choreography, Just Dance Kids is sure to be a hit in household full of kids, tweens, or even early teens.

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Tags: Game Reviews

Nintendo continues to expand its line of non-game software for its portable DS system. The latest entry into the field is Art Academy, a program that provides drawing tools and a series of lessons on how to use them. While it is a recent release as a cartridge game, most of the content previously appeared in a pair of downloadable titles available for the DSi system. In Art Academy, users draw pictures using pencils of several levels of hardness as well as a full set of paints and brushes. Pictures can be created in a free paint mode, derived from photos taken with the DSi camera, or created with guidance through any of the series of lessons included with the program.

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Tags: Game Reviews

For the past few years, we’ve sent our very own Aiden (and his mom) out to cover BlizzCon, the gaming convention of all things Blizzard, for GamingWithChildren. BlizzCon 2010 was held just last month, and here’s what Aiden had to day about the event.

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Tags: Reader Reviews!, Unplugged

Arguably, it all started back in 1983 with the release of Reach for the Stars, a computer game where players explored space, developed technology, and tried to take over the galaxy. Years later, in 1990, Civilization would be released and the entire genre of turn-based strategy games was assured a long and healthy life. A full decade after Reach for the Stars (in 1993) Alan Emrich wrote in the pages of Computer Gaming Review a preview of an up and coming strategy game entitled Master of Orion. He described it as an XXXX game (now known as 4X). In it, players control an empire and use it to eXplore, eXpand, eXploit, and eXterminate their opponents. With the continued success of 4X games based on space and history, it was a no-brainer to combine the genre with the fantasy genre. The next year (1994), Master of Magic was released combining aspects of the 4X genre with fantasy and a few overtones of the hot new card game, Magic: the Gathering. New to the game was a personal avatar with which to explore the world, capable of casting magic spells during battle as well as global enchantments to help out their particular side. While Master of Magic (MoM for short) was a fairly big hit, there has never been a true sequel. Elemental: War of Magic produced by Stardock Corporation is the latest attempt to do the genre justice. While it is a bit advanced for gamers new to 4X style play, it has a plethora of options and features to keep more experienced gamers happy for a long time to come.

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Tags: Game Reviews