Kyle Orland’s Workblog

May 11, 2007

Joystiq Review: Pelican PS2 to PS3 controller adapter

The whole point of backward compatibility for most PS3 owners is being able to get rid of that PS2 in the old entertainment center. Yet many PS3 owners have had to keep their PS2 units hooked up for a few reasons, namely:

  1. Support for our old memory card saves.
  2. Support for rumbling controllers.
  3. Support for the Guitar Hero controller.
(full article)

September 13, 2006

Xbox Live Files: Card Games Come to the Xbox

People used to playing online Hearts and Spades on their computers might be interested to know that competitive card games are making headway on the Xbox Live Arcade. Two recent releases, Uno and Texas Hold ‘Em Poker, show the promise of the system for online card games, despite some flaws in presentation and game design.

 
(full article)

August 30, 2006

Xbox Files: Geometry Wars - The Bejeweled of the Xbox Live Arcade

Geometry Wars is a casual game, but it’s not the kind of game you play casually. It’s the kind of game you play on the edge of your seat, your gnarled hands making visible dents in the controller as the adrenaline pumping through your body makes you shake. It’s the kind of game that makes you cry out and throw the controller down when you lose, only to pick it up again and try to beat your high score in just "one more game."

In other words, it’s the kind of game they don’t make much anymore.

(full article) 

August 29, 2006

Xbox Files: X360 & Casual Games - A Match Made in Heaven?

The Xbox 360 might not seem like the most logical choice to bring a casual game revival to your living room’s video game consoles. After all, the 360 is the most powerful console currently available — home to sprawling, graphically rich epics. Why would anyone want to use all this power on a casual game? The answer is Xbox Live Arcade.

(full article) 

June 19, 2006

Nintendo DS Lite (Review)

"Did the original DS actually have internal lighting?"

That was my first thought when I turned on the new DS Lite and saw its two ridiculously bright screens bring light to an otherwise dark room. Logically, I knew that the original DS had a built-in lighting system that allowed games to be visible in low light conditions, but the improvement in the DS Lite is like going from a 60-watt light bulb to a 120-watt bulb.

(full article) 

April 3, 2006

BreakQuest (Review)

In the relatively young medium of the video game, the break-the-bricks game is one of the oldest genres out there. It’s also one of the most replicated, with slightly altered versions appearing on nearly every device that can play games. You’d think that after all this time, they’d have run out of ideas to modify the simple formula of breaking bricks with a paddle and ball. BreakQuest proves that they haven’t.

(full article)

March 27, 2006

24: The Game (Review)

Much like the show it’s based on, 24 is a simple, fluffy experience that uses excellent production values as an excuse for an extreme lack of depth. While it might not be the most difficult or engaging gameplay experience out there, there are worse ways to while away a few hours.

(full article)

March 15, 2006

Mark Ecko’s Getting Up: Contents Under Pressure

I don’t really "get" graffiti. I’m not a part of the street culture that insists it is a form of artistry and self expression. That said, I also don’t relish identifying with the elitist socialites who consider it nothing more than vandalism and property damage. So I was looking forward to Getting Up: Contents Under Pressure, a game that would supposedly educate me on what graffiti culture is all about without requiring me to grab a spray can and tag a bus.

(full article)

January 31, 2006

Gem Shop (Review)

Gem Shop is an innovative, different, and fun diversion for the first couple hours of game play. To some, the game’s extreme challenge at higher levels will only spur more and more obsessive gem matching in an effort to make it onto the Internet high score list. For others, though, this wall of difficulty may lesson the game’s overall addictive properties.

(full article)

January 27, 2006

PQ: Practical Intelligence Quotient (Review)

There are a lot of games that can make you feel stupid, but there aren’t many that come right out and tell you exactly how stupid you are.

(full article)

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