Shaun the Sheep: Farmageddon: Party Edition (Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, X/S, PC)
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Posted on August 9th, 2023 by
I’m a big fan of stop motion and clay animation. I even took a class on it once back in my college years so I have a lot of respect for the folks who do that stuff for a living. One of my favorite stop motion animation studios is Aardman. They’ve done stuff like Creature Comforts and the Chevron car commercials, but probably their most famous work is the Wallace and Gromit series. One of the side characters in Wallace and Gromit was a sheep named Shaun. He was so popular that he got his own spinoff TV show and movies about his adventures on the farm with his barnyard friends. Heck, even the youngest sheep on that show got his own preschool spinoff show called Timmy Time! So yeah, a spinoff of a spinoff. Anyway, now Shaun the Sheep and his fleecy friends are in their own video game: a 2-D action puzzle platformer on all current consoles and PC, but reviewed on Switch here.
Double Dragon Gaiden: Rise of the Dragons (PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, X/S, PC)
Posted on August 4th, 2023 by
In the 80s and 90s, Double Dragon was HUGE! It wasn’t the first side scrolling beat ‘em up, but it was the first one to really dictate what these types of games would be like in the future. It was definitely one of the first two player co-op beat ‘em ups, though, and that’s what made it so popular in arcades back then. The arcade game got countless ports, sequels, and even cameos in other games. There was even a Double Dragon cartoon and cheesy live action movie! And they keep coming back, even to this day! The newest entry is Double Dragon Gaiden: Rise of the Dragons, and it’s available on all current consoles and PC, but reviewed on PS4 here.
The Classics of the Cowabunga Collection
Posted on January 13th, 2023 by
Konami recently came out with a collection of their licensed Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles games they released back in the late 80s and early 90s, during the first round of the Turtles’ heyday. Since a lot of people grew up with and enjoyed these titles, this collection is a pretty big deal. Especially since for a long time, it would’ve been hard to get the rights to all these games again! But I guess since Nickelodeon has all the rights to TMNT stuff now, maybe that part was easier to do? Anyway, of course I got this collection so grab a slice of pizza and let’s take a look at the games on here as well as my personal history with each title.
Smurfs Kart (Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, X/S)
Posted on January 2nd, 2023 by
In the distant past, long before streaming services and 24-hour cartoon channels, there was a thing called Saturday Morning Cartoons. Kids back then, me included, looked forward to this time because it was one of the only times TV was made just for kids. And as a child of the 80s, one of the most popular of these cartoons I remember was The Smurfs. Originally a European comic strip, The Smurfs gained popularity in the US from the Hanna-Barbera cartoon. I was never a super big fan of it, but I watched it anyway because, one, kids will watch pretty much anything. And two, it came on right before the Pac-Man cartoon. In recent years, The Smurfs have had a bit of a resurgence with a handful of computer animated movies and specials, and a new series on Nickelodeon. Last year we even got a Smurfs 3-D platformer which I reviewed. And this year we get a kart racer. I actually remember playing a Smurfs kart racer on the original PlayStation and it was one of the worst games I ever played. Let’s hope this one is better. Smurfs Kart is available for all current consoles but reviewed on Switch here.
Garfield Lasagna Party (PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, X/S, PC)
Posted on December 30th, 2022 by
Many of you regular readers may know I was a child of the 80s and enjoyed many things as a kid from that time. You probably know I was really into Pac-Man (still am), as well as other franchises like Star Wars, Transformers, Ghostbusters, etc. One other thing I was really into back then was Garfield. Back then, most people read newspapers and the comics strips therein were very popular with kids and adults. I think those comic strips are one of the things I miss most about print newspapers (that and me getting paid to write for them). I read the comics, bought all the books, watched the Garfield TV specials and Saturday morning cartoons, and even ate the fruit snacks and Garfield ravioli. Yes, Garfield was very popular back then. So I was really excited to review Garfield Lasagna Party, a board game title with mini-games similar to Mario Party. It’s available on all current systems and PC, but reviewed on PS4 here.
Miraculous: Rise of the Sphinx (PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, X/S, PC)
Posted on December 23rd, 2022 by
Miraculous is a cartoon show that I’ve never heard of before until now. Apparently you can watch it on Disney+. The show stars a high school girl named Marianette, who lives in Paris. But she can also turn into the superhero Ladybug and fights super villains with her partner Cat Noir. With her polka-dot outfit, acrobatic martial arts skills and weird yo-yo thing, Ladybug will also save the day in this new video game based on the cartoon. It’s available on all current consoles and PC, but reviewed on PS4 here.
Them’s Fightin’ Herds (PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, X/S, PC)
Posted on December 2nd, 2022 by
About ten or so years ago, there was a My Little Pony cartoon based on the toy line with the subtitle “Friendship is Magic.” The cartoon was directed by Lauren Faust, who also worked on such cartoons like The PowerPuff Girls and Foster’s Home for Imaginary Friends. So because of this, the My Little Pony cartoon was surprisingly good and developed a fan base of all ages and genders. Some fans even made a fighting game based on the My Little Pony characters. Hasbro shut that down, understandably, since they didn’t want their toy line associated with fighting. But people liked that idea so much that Lauren Faust created some new characters for a fighting game, and that’s how we got Them’s Fightin’ Herds! It’s a cartoony one-on-one fighter featuring all manner of hooved animals, and it’s available for all current consoles and PC, but reviewed on PS4 here.
Nickelodeon Kart Racers 3: Slime Speedway (PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, X/S, PC)
Posted on November 18th, 2022 by
For several generations, youngsters have enjoyed watching shows on the Nickelodeon cable channel for kids. Heck, even when I was a little kid back in the 80’s, I enjoyed watching Nick shows such as You Can’t Do that on Television, Danger Mouse, and Double Dare. Even more recently I’ve been known to watch shows on that channel like Invader ZIM and The Penguins of Madagascar. My younger brothers would watch shows on Nickelodeon, too, such as Rugrats and SpongeBob Squarepants. And now kart racing and Nickelodeon fans can have fun together with Nickelodeon Kart Racers 3: Slime Speedway. It’s available on all current consoles and PC, but reviewed on Switch here. They’ve added a few characters and tracks, but most of it is the same as before. But there is one new improvement the other Nick kart games lacked: ACTUAL VOICES! Really gives the series the much-needed personality this type of licensed game requires.
LEGO Brawls (PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, X/S, PC, Mobile)
Posted on October 12th, 2022 by
Customize your LEGO Minifigures with hundreds of options and pit them against others in fights with LEGO Brawls. It’s a Smash Bros. style fighting game available for all current consoles, PC, and mobile, but reviewed on PS4 here.
Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid: Burst Forth!! Choro-gon Breath (PS4, Switch)
Posted on October 5th, 2022 by
Wow, now that’s a mouthful of a title! But what does all that mean? Well, “Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid” is a popular Japanese comic book manga series and anime cartoon. It’s about an ordinary office lady who one day stumbles on a dragon from another world. This dragon magically transforms into a maid lady and offers to clean her house in return for room and board. But when you’ve got a dragon in your house, nothing is ever ordinary and Miss Kobayashi and her dragon girl friends have lots of adventures and escapades together. And now they’re in their own video game! Here they are trapped inside a computer and the only way to get out is to play a 2-D vertically scrolling bullet hell shooter! It’s available on PS4 and Switch, but reviewed on PS4 here.
