Hot Games Of The Week, Reviewed: November 4th

The game that’s on everyone’s mind these days is Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare, which dropped Sunday. I’m still testing the multiplayer waters, so  look for a review of that game in next week’s post. There are plenty of other titles to jockey with that one for space on your hard drive, though. Hoops fans can grab a new basketball sim in NBA Live 2015, and dace-a-holics will bust moves to Just Dance 2015. The insanely difficult dungeon crawler Lords of the Fallen is chief among those. On the download-only front, the twin-stick shooter #Killallzombies and RPG-lite Costume Quest 2 are up for the taking.

Reviews by Phil Villarreal. Phil is an author, blogger and Twitterer. Publishers provided review copies.

Costume Quest 2

(PS4, Xbox One, PS3, Xbox 360, $15, Everyone 10+)

Quirky developer Double Fine (Psychonauts, The Cave) follows up its whimsical 2010 cult hit with a sequel that resurrects the tone and playstyle of the original. Once again, you lead a party of trick-or-treaters on an increasingly silly — and deadly — quest to battle monsters, collect items and powers-granting costumes and explore the world. A childlike sense of humor permeates the game, which starts offensively simple before ramping up the complexity to dizzying levels. A lively, interactive battle system keeps the required grinding tolerable, and the story unfolds in a predictable but disarming way.

If you haven’t played the original think a PG-rated version of South Park: The Stick of Truth or Earthbound for a close comparison. Inventive attacks and charmingly detailed animations blend with the bright, upbeat storytelling for a memorable journey, although one that’s probably only worth a single playthrough. If you’re willing to endure a little monotony in return for a rare portal back to the imagination and wonder of childhood, this is a quest worth accepting.

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Just Dance 2015

(PS4, Xbox One, Wii U, Xbox 360, PS3, Wii, $50, Everyone 10+)

Buy Just Dance 2015 on Amazon here

Gaming usually involves sitting on your butt, but here’s one that requires to shake it. Like Dance Central, Dance Dance Revoltution and other party-friendly titles of its ilk, the point here is to willfully allow yourself to look like an idiot as you swing your arms and legs to match onscreen prompts to overplayed pop tunes. If you lack shame and want to combine the thrill of electronic entertainment with achievement-hunting and cardio, look no further. The 45-song setlist is a little light, but sure to be expanded with overpriced DLC.

I played the game on Xbox One, and was impressed with the motion-tracking ability. Like all Kinect titles, this one is a no-go for anyone who lives in a cramped space. A lack of difficulty levels and an overly forgiving scoring system make it feel as though you’re getting participation trophies rather than pulling off non-embarrassing moves. New features that jazz things up include a Dance Challenger mode that lets you compare yourself against previous performances, as well as a Community Remix that lets you choreograph your own routines, foisting them onto the unsuspecting community.

#Killallzombies

(PS4, $14, Teen)

The first — and hopefully, last — game with a hashtag in the title takes the Geometry Wars brand of bullet hell and transplants it into a zombie apocalypse. As the seemingly lone survivor in a world gone brain-eater, you run around a bordered arena, blasting wave after wave of swarming undead. Upgrades you pick up increase your firepower, while advancing levels increase the numbers, strength and speed of the zombie plague. An arcade-style, pick-up-and-play romp, the shooter is as easy to learn and difficult to master as Pac-Man, and every bit as shallow.

What’s holding the game back, at least in its current form, is a lack of modes. There’s nothing to do other than blast away at zombies to beat your previous top score, then slam your controller in frustration and re-up for another go. Co-op and capture the flag modes will be added at a later point, according to a menu prompt. While the developer deserves credit for waiting until the feature is solid to add it to the package, rather than just rushing it out, it’s glaring that the game was released as an incomplete product. It makes sense to wait to spend your money until the game is complete.

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Lords of the Fallen

(PS4, Xbox One, $60, Mature)

Buy Lords of the Fallen on Amazon here

Fans of Dark Souls games who are itching to test their skills and patience with something comparable on current-gen will be all over this one, which is as blatant a ripoff of that series as imaginable. Set in a gothic world of medieval horrors, you’re left with little support or direction as you risk your neck against horrific enemies and sadistic environments geared to cause cheap deaths. You will die early and often, and like the Dark Souls series, you’re mocked with a trophy/achievement for your first pathetic failure. Unflinchingly hardcore, the game stacks the odds against you in brutal challenges that require brains and precision to overcome.

For a game built on death-dealing surprises, a lot of the enemies and backgrounds will seem overly familiar to Dark Souls obsessives. While it’s a bitter, agonizing treat of sorts to play a game like this without having to fire up the old PS3 or Xbox 360, the graphics and sound don’t take advantage of the new hardware, seemingly more like a throwback to last-gen. Another drawback is the lack of fun that comes with the pain. While a certain grim moodiness is to be expected, as well as embraced to a degree, the game struggles to present you with incentives to endure its ordeals. Lords of the Fallen plunders you with a variety of tough love that you have to endure rather than enjoy.

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NBA Live 15

(PS4, Xbox One, $60, Everyone)

Buy NBA Live 15 on Amazon here

While not as abhorrent as EA Sports’ past couple stabs at an NBA sim, NBA Live 15 is still nothing close to a contender to NBA 2K15. The highest praise I can give NBA Live 15 is that it’s not an embarrasingly glitch-ridden mess like its past couple predecessors. This is a back-to-basics take on pro hoops that strips away complexities to capture the essence of the sport. Looks-wise, there’s also a heck of an improvement from last year’s effort. Tight, florid presentation does as good a hob as any sports title of replicating the feel of a TV broadcast.

Now for the drawbacks. The on-court action is stiff and lethargic, with repetitive animations and predictable A.I. You can eliminate the latter by playing online, but the community is slim and inactive compared to what’s going on over at the rival platform. There are too few modes to ply your skills, making too much of the game feel like a cut-rate experience compared to the competition. While EA continues to deliver spectacular products in the Madden and FIFA franchises, NBA excellence continues to elude the publisher’s grasp.