Azmol Meah

Reviews

Shin Megami Tensei: Persona

Seen in retrospect, a Persona title stripped of its highly acclaimed social link gameplay is a soulless, characterless, frustrating, and (quite frankly) often boring experience. [30 September 2009]

Crimson Gem Saga

A typical young, brutish, yet highly intelligent man (who is looking for direction in life) meets a busty, feisty, manipulative, maybe too naked woman. [15 July 2009]

Suikoden Tierkreis

If the world really is about to end as the numerous cutscenes keep telling me, shouldn’t all these concerned heroes want to get their hands dirty? [13 May 2009]

Blue Dragon Plus

Hopping along playfully without a care in the world completely defeats any urgency that the narrative may have created. You’re saving the world man, get a move on! [6 May 2009]

MadWorld

Any game that can piss off both the left and right wing without breaking a sweat needs to be in your collection. [8 April 2009]

Animal Boxing

While one wouldn't expect to find hippo brains splattered across the dual screen, a few bruises, the odd cut, maybe even a tiny drop of claret would have been cool. [4 March 2009]

Iron Chef America: Supreme Cuisine (DS Version)

British writer Azmol Meah takes on the DS adaptation of an American take on the hit Japanese show. [18 February 2009]

Pokémon Ranger: Shadows of Almia

Surely, after almost four years of the DS being on the market, even the big N must realise that drawing circles on the screen is only fun, like, maybe twice? [28 January 2009]

Naruto: Path of the Ninja 2

For many modern players, games in the vein of 16-bit Final Fantasy titles are like throwbacks to the days without electricity. [5 January 2009]

Prey the Stars

The clear sign that your console is top gun is that it has crazy, off the wall nonsense like Prey the Stars on it. [17 November 2008]

Unsolved Crimes

Unsolved Crimes keeps the tradition of point 'n' click adventuring alive on the Nintendo DS. [5 November 2008]

Hellboy: The Science of Evil

Nothing in Hellboy's arsenal or attack set ever feels substantial enough to warrant any satisfaction. [6 August 2008]

Teenage Zombies: Invasion of the Alien Brain Thingys!

It's quite bizarre to see a game which in the concept sounds incredible -- playing as the dead, awakening to feed -- when the ultimate experience is so the opposite. [23 June 2008]

King of Clubs

Imagine playing Mario Kart and wanting to turn left, but because of technical incompetence you can only turn right! That's exactly what this is akin to. [12 May 2008]

Downstream Panic!

Ever wonder what would happen If LocoRoco and Lemmings had a baby? [28 April 2008]

God of War: Chains of Olympus

God of War: Chains of Olympus has unfortunately chosen to focus on the weakest aspect of the series: the combat. [2 April 2008]

Castlevania: The Dracula X Chronicles

Castlevania: The Dracula X Chronicles is yet another part of a longtime obsession the industry has with processing power over gameplay. [27 February 2008]

Atari Classics Evolved

The 'Evolved' option is quite possibly the most pointless update since Transformers' Soundwave became "New Soundwave". [18 February 2008]

Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney: Trials and Tribulations

Phoenix is wiser, older, and far more battle-weary than before. [24 January 2008]

Mega Man ZX Advent

When you've got a loyal fanbase who buys your games regardless of quality, is there really any need to rock the boat? [10 January 2008]

Hot Pixel

The concept of the core gameplay is meant to center on quick, fun, frantic minigames. The problem is, none of the games are quick, fun, or frantic. [2 January 2008]

Smash Court Tennis 3

Smash Court Tennis 3 lies in the murky middle ground between Wii Sports' tennis and Virtua Tennis, neither excelling in any particular area nor really doing that much wrong. [12 December 2007]

Monster Hunter Freedom 2

It's rare to see a developer achieve so much success in the presentation, planning and the preparation aspect of a game, yet completely stumble on the gameplay side of things. [24 October 2007]

Dragon Ball Z: Harukanaru Densetsu

Dragon Ball Z is known and loved for its over the top, action packed, fast paced, soap opera-esque drama. Why relegate all the drama to the random draw of cards? [23 July 2007]

Mercury Meltdown Revolution

Mercury Meltdown Revolution is a perfect pick-up-and-play game for the perfect pick-up-and-play console. [29 June 2007]

Spectrobes

If Nintendo were given a dollar for every Pokémon clone out there, they'd be a whole lot richer. [23 April 2007]

Meteos: Disney Magic

Gone are the quirky, dancing aliens of the original Meteos, replaced here by Buzz Lightyear, Simba and Jack Sparrow. [2 April 2007]

The Warriors

More a prequel than a digital re-imagining, The Warriors is all the better for its differences from the movie that it's based on. [26 March 2007]

Red Steel

Where's the grit, the dirt? This is the mob we're meant to be dealing with, not Screech and Zack from Saved by the Bell. [9 February 2007]

Naruto: Ninja Council 2

Ninja Council 2 is very much an advertisement for the Naruto license first and a game as an afterthought. [31 January 2007]

.Naruto: Clash of Ninja 2

If you want to play a beat-em-up but don't want to worry about learning a new language as some brawlers demand, then this is for you. [24 January 2007]

Digimon World DS

If you're not a fan, then Digimon World DS isn't going to make you want to buy a Digimon lunchbox. [19 January 2007]

Spider Man: Battle for New York

Spidey's latest adventure finds him desperately trying to stop the senseless destruction of...Bunsen burners? [15 January 2007]

Magical Starsign

The biggest crime Magical Starsign commits is the endless, relentless, incessant, infuriatingly pointless random battles. [3 January 2007]

Dragon Quest VIII

While most of its progeny has evolved with the times, Dragon Quest refuses to take even the most necessary baby steps. [18 July 2006]

Brothers in Arms: Earned in Blood

What this game does so well is that it makes you actually feel like a WWII soldier, something that very few games have accomplished. [21 June 2006]

Killer 7

For better or worse, Killer 7 is a bold game that sadly seems to suffer from the same disorder as its lead character. [15 August 2005]

Trace Memory

Trace Memory is difficult to describe as it feels like it's stuck somewhere between a game and a tech demo. [13 July 2005]

Metroid Prime 2 Echoes

Because the developers were unwillingness to alter the model they created in 2002, newcomers and veterans alike will find themselves bothered rather than fulfilled. [5 July 2005]

GoldenEye: Rogue Agent

This idea had so much potential, but EA managed to screw it up so badly you really have to wonder how the game ever saw the light of day. [1 June 2005]

Devil May Cry 3: Dante’s Awakening

What I appreciate about Devil May Cry 3 is its simple to follow but still engaging plot. [26 May 2005]

Midnight Club 3: DUB Edition

This game was clearly made for all those bandwagon-jumping casual gamers. [4 May 2005]

Brothers in Arms: The Road to Hill 30

Brothers in Arms aims to differentiate itself from other war games by placing an emphasis on tactics. [27 April 2005]

TimeSplitters: Future Perfect

The problem nowadays is that nothing's original, and shooters have been done to death. [14 April 2005]

Killzone

Playing Killzone feels like eating a cake with too many flavors. [6 April 2005]

Viewtiful Joe 2

Realistic games have about as much entertainment value as watching wet paint dry. [30 March 2005]

Viewtiful Joe: Double Trouble

Surely a system that is simple to play and a game series that is essentially a no-fuss beat 'em-up would be a perfect match, right? [1 January 1995]

Meteos

Something I find utterly pointless is the constant comparisons between the Nintendo DS and Sony PSP.

Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time

Partners in Time is by no means an epic at 25 hours, but it knows its platform; it is a portable title meant for quick bursts of gaming.

Half-Life 2

Despite its pretty sheen, there have been compromises with this build.

Black

Black is too straightforward to redefine the FPS.

Brothers in Arms: Earned in Blood

What this game does so well is that it makes you actually feel like a WWII soldier, something that very few games have accomplished.

Blogs

Moving Pixels: Hurry Up Hedgehog! [8 May 2008]