After sixteen–SIXTEEN–Tiger Woods games, EA has finally found a new mascot for its golf series. As somebody who doesn’t follow golf, well… Well, let me tell you everything I know about Rory McIlroy. He looks vaguely like Paul McCartney. He has the highest stats in this game. He stares with dead, soulless eyes, unblinking, eager to consume mortal souls.
Okay, maybe there’s less supernatural consumption, and maybe more golf. You know, blue skies on a Sunny afternoon, a gentle breeze and a challenging but none-too-stressful game of skill to pass the time. It’s always seemed like hardcore gamers are a bit more interested in golf games than other sports titles. Maybe we think it’s a good substitute for going outside.
Stretchmo is a joyful collection of bite-sized puzzle challenges which stretches the Pushmo concept into what feels like its logical conclusion. It succeeds in expanding upon that original concept in a way that the previous sequels have not, and basically just gives you more Pushmo with new mechanics to use, which is a definitively Good Thing.
Last year’s Wolfenstein: The New Order was an astoundingly pleasant surprise–a single-player only shooter that committed to creating an exciting campaign and compelling story. It mixed old-school, over the top action with sympathetic characters to create an experience that was plenty ridiculous, but one that had a lot of heart. Now developer MachineGames has elected to follow-up with a prequel in the form of Wolfenstein: The Old Blood. This standalone downloadable offers much of the original game’s great action and creates some memorable moments of its own, but never manages to reach the heights of its predecessor.
Dustin Bailey 