Think of the Children for April 16th
There were a few surprises and unannounced titles this week. I noticed that Renegade and Double Dragon were rated for the Wii, which will more than likely be a Virtual Console release. It should be interesting to see if they use the Wii remote motion sensing to swing the bat and crack the whip. Another surprise was a second (or is it a third?) Dodgeball game for XBLA on the Xbox 360. A few weeks ago it was Pirates Vs Ninja’s that was rated, plus we have the XNA title Rocketball due out sometime this fall. I know that if you can dodge a wrench, you can dodge a ball. However, can we dodge an over-saturation of XBLA titles with the same game type?
The Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 had a combined six titles rated this week. Both saw the retail titles Robert Ludlum’s: The Bourne Conspiracy and Beijing 2008 get rated. While the 360 added Ninja Gaiden II and the XBLA titles Vigilante 8: Arcade and Double D Dodgeball. The PS3 finally saw Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots get rated. All in all, a solid week with the most highly anticipated PS3 title to date, a couple of worthy XBLA and retail offerings soon to become available.
This week I had a plethora of titles to pick from for the weekly Title of Shame. However, instead of picking on one title, I decided to award it to the entire Pet genre. There were no few than FIVE pet based titles for the PC, Wii and DS this week. Please, I beg you, stop with the Paws and Claws, Petz, Dogz, Catz and Purr Pal titles. Help encourage our children and their parents to get a loving family pet that they can care for and love. Heck, it is probably cheaper in the long run to get a live animal than it is to buy those $19.99 virtual ones every time they come out…
| Title | Publisher | Rating | Platforms |
| 2,009 Cards, Mahjongg & Solitaire Games | Masque Publishing | E | Mac, PC |
| 737 Pilot In Command | Just Flight | E | PC |
| Animal Agents | Masque Publishing | E | PC |
| Atomica | PopCap Games, Inc. | E | PC, Web Browser, PDA (Palm, Win CE, etc.) |
| Catz PC | Encore, Inc., A Navarre Corporation Company | E | PC |
| Chaos Wars | O3 Entertainment | T | PS2 |
| Dogz PC | Encore, Inc., A Navarre Corporation Company | E | PC |
| Heroes of the Indianapolis 500 | Destineer | E | PS2 |
| IL-2 Forgotten Battles | Encore, Inc., A Navarre Corporation Company | T | PC |
| IL-2 Sturmovik | Encore, Inc., A Navarre Corporation Company | T | PC |
| Jack Keane | Strategy First | T | PC |
| Metin2 | G4Box Inc. | T | PC |
| Mystery Solitaire: Secret Island | PopCap Games, Inc. | E | PC, Web Browser |
| Seven Seas | PopCap Games, Inc. | E | Mac, PC, Web Browser, PDA (Palm, Win CE, etc.) |
| Vigilante 8: Arcade | Activision | T | 360 |
| Robert Ludlum's: The Bourne Conspiracy | Vivendi Games | T | 360, PS3 |
| Purr Pals | Crave Entertainment Inc. | E | Wii |
| Renegade | Aksys Games | E10+ | Wii |
| Top Spin 3 | 2K Games | E | Wii |
| My Fashion Studio | Ubisoft Entertainment | E | DS |
| 20Q Live | Elephant Entertainment | E | PC |
| Chaotic Trading Card Game | TC DIGITAL GAMES LLC | E | PC |
| Beijing 2008™ - The Official Video Game of the Olympic Games | SEGA | E | PC, 360, PS3 |
| Boss Hunter: Revenge is Sweet | eGames Inc | E10+ | PC |
| Double D Dodgeball | Yukes Company of America | E | 360 |
| Double Dragon | Aksys Games | E10+ | Wii |
| Gourmet Chef | Ubisoft Entertainment | E | DS |
| Tortuga: Pirates of the New World | eGames Inc | E | PC |
| Space Chimps | Brash Entertainment | E | DS |
| Patrician III: Rise of the Hanse | eGames Inc | E | PC |
| Petz Dogz Fashion | Ubisoft Entertainment | E | DS |
| Sid Meier's Civilization Revolution | 2K Games | E10+ | DS |
| Hidden Mysteries: Civil War | Game Mill Entertainment | E | PC |
| Jeep Thrills | Destination Software, Inc. | E | PS2, Wii |
| Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots | Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc. | M | PS3 |
| LOL | Agetec, Inc. | E | DS |
| Ninja Gaiden® II | Microsoft | M | 360 |
| JumpStart Advanced Preschool World Premium Edition | Knowledge Adventure | EC | PC |
| Chicken Invaders | Topics Entertainment | E | PC |
| Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia | Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc. | T | DS |
| Silent Hunter III | Encore, Inc., A Navarre Corporation Company | T | PC |
| Rig Racer 2 | Destineer | E | Wii |
| Paws & Claws Let's Ride: Friends Forever | THQ Inc | E | DS |
| Polar Pool | Wild Tangent | E | PC |
| Supple Episode 1: The Promotion | MTI Games, LLC | T | PC |
| Top Spin 3 | 2K Games | E | DS |
Here is the final tally on who, what and where everything was rated for the last week. There were 47 rated titles on nine platforms. PC (24), DS (9), Wii (6) and Xbox 360 (5) had the most games rated. There were 34 of the 47 titles rated at E10+ or lower, 10 rated at T for Teen and two rated at M for Mature.
Got a comment on the article or a rated games, put it in the section below or send me an e-mail. Until next week, make sure you know what your kids are playing……
*The weekly Title of Shame (and any game that is tossed in that paragraph) is done so based on several factors, including which games were rated that week, how does the game concept stack up, is it a re-hashed sequel, lame movie tie-in, rip off of another game, etc…
* The product in this article was sent to us by the developer/company.
About Author
Like many gamers in their 40's, I developed my love of gaming from my Commodore 64 after we wore out our Intellivision. I spent countless hours wandering around the streets of Skara Brae, as my life was immersed in The Bard's Tale series on the C-64, D&D Titles and any/all Epyx titles (California Summer and Winter Games) and sports titles. After taking the early 90's off from gaming (college years) minus the occasional Bill Walsh College Football on Sega, I was re-introduced to PC games in the mid 1990's with a couple of little games called DOOM II and Diablo. I went all-in with the last generation of consoles, getting an Xbox 360 on launch weekend as well as adding a PS3 and Wii in subsequent years. I now am into the current-generation (latest?) of consoles with the WiiU and Xbox One. Recently, I was able to get back into PC gaming and have enjoyed it very much, spending most of my time going solo or playing with my fellow GamingNexus staffers in controlled multiplayer action.
While my byline is on many reviews, articles and countless news stories, I have a passion for and spent the last several years at GamingNexus focusing on audio & video and accessories as they relate to gaming. Having over 20 years of Home Theater consulting and sales under my belt, it is quite enjoyable to spend some of my time viewing gaming through the A/V perspective. While I haven't yet made it to one of the major gaming conventions (PAX or E3), I have represented GamingNexus at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas in nine of the last ten years.
Personally, I have been a staff member at GamingNexus since 2006 and am in my third tour of duty after taking off the last year and a half.
