Hijinks Inc.

Category: Hijinks Reviews

  • Hijinks Reviews: Glyder 2 for iPad

    Publisher: Glu Media
    Platform: iPad
    Cost: $.99 (on sale)  [iTunes Link]
    Release date: April 1st, 2010
    Version Reviewed: 1.01

    I remember getting my Nintendo 64 back in the day and playing the 2 games I bought with it for hours on end. There was a snowboarding game whose name escapes me, and then there was Pilotwings 64. In Pilotwings you flew all manner of contraptions with the goal of ending up in the flashing circle at the end of the course. There was something soothing about gliding though the air on the hang glider, skimming across the surface of the landscape and performing gravity defying stunts whenever the fancy took me. I hadn’t even thought about Pioletwings for years until this past month when a new Pilotwings was announced for the Wii. Shortly after that announcement I played Glyder 2.  Heelooooo, dejavu. (more…)

  • Hijinks TV Reviews: The Good Guys

    I mentioned The Good Guys in my recent post as a show that I had downloaded but hadn’t watched yet. The debut season is now 4 episodes in and I took the opportunity to get caught up this week. I went into it with very modest expectations, because I hadn’t heard wonderful things about it, but I must say, I came away pleasantly surprised.

    The Good Guys is created by Matt Nix, the same guy who brings us Burn Notice. Although this is a bit of a different show as it is more in the buddy cop vein, whereas Burn Notice is more spy vs spy. You get the occasional laugh from Burn Notice, but overall, it’s a bit more of a serious show, it’s a lot of fun, but not really in the ‘comedy’ sense. The Good Guys is definitely out for the laughs.

    Bradley Whitford and Colin Hanks are the stars of the show, playing Detectives Dan Stark and Jack Bailey respectively. Dan Stark and Jack Bailey… pretty basic straight-forward detective names. One of them is more by the book and the other breaks all the rules… pretty straight-forward roles. They open each show with the climax of the episode and then flash back to how we got here, again, pretty standard fare here. Long story short, The Good Guys is nothing you haven’t seen before, it’s all been done a million times before, but it’s done well enough, and with enough funny stuff thrown in that it’s worth the ride. (more…)

  • Hijinks Reviews: Red Dead Redemption

    Red Dead Redemption is Rockstar’s new (I say new layered heavily in italicized sarcasm because the game was actually released way back on May 18th) open ended, Western themed action adventure game that was released to raving reviews from just about everybody. This is the part where you say, ‘Hey, Rockstar, I recognize that name, didn’t they make the Grand Theft Auto games? I love killing prostitutes and running policemen over in stolen cars!’, but before you get all gung-ho about the mayhem you can create in the wild wild west, let me help you by more accurately describing what you can expect after the jump.

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  • Hijinks Reviews: Small World for iPad

    Publisher: Days of Wonder, Inc
    Platform: iPad
    Cost: $4.99 (slated for a jump to $6.99) [iTunes Link]
    Release date: March 31st, 2010
    Version Reviewed: 0.99

    Philippe Keyaerts’ Small World has made quite the splash with the release of its iPad version, and with good reason. Small World is a near perfect example of the way table top gaming should be done on the iPad; crisp graphics, smooth gameplay, easy to follow instructions, and excellent replay value. Did I mention replay value? My partner in crime Fred and I sat down and played 5 matches back to back and still could’ve played more if it weren’t for having lives and responsibility in the real world. I suppose this infatuation could be the result of us being easily entertained… but that aside, I really do think it’s a great game.

    Prior to downloading the iPad version of Small World, I’d never heard of it, let alone that it was a board game, but now I’m hooked. And I think you will be too. Unless your hate strategy games, in which case, why are you reading this review?
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  • Hijinks Reviews: Tower Madness HD

    Publisher: Limbic Software
    Platform: iPad
    Cost: $7.99 [iTunes Link]
    Release date: May 21st, 2010
    Version Reviewed: 1.4

    Have you ever played a tower defense game? Yes? Great! I don’t need to write that boring explanatory paragraph, and you don’t need to buy this game because you can already download a hundred more just like it for free, right? Too harsh?

    Tower Madness HD is exactly what you’d expect a close-to-launch tower defense game for the iPad to look and play like. You place towers on a grid by touching the screen and choosing your tower from a popup menu. You may wish to use the pinch gesture to zoom down from the default isometic perspective into a 3D point of view. The single player campaign has a good variety of maps. The tower designs are diverse, and they throw enough different enemies at you to keep you on your toes. Honestly, there is nothing inherently wrong with the game. I actually liked it. (more…)