For a third week running we’re being treated to a handful of incredibly strong releases. Considering it’s the typically quiet summer period, this is most peculiar. Pleasing, but peculiar.
Madden NFL 13 isn’t one that’ll interest many in the UK, but the Madden games do usually at least chart quite highly for a week or two before quickly vanishing. “It’s clear the team at Tiburon took a hard look at ways to bring the franchise back to its former glory. Some annoying bugs persist here and there, but overall, Madden NFL 13 stands as one of my favorite football experiences of this generation,†said EGM in their 8.0 review.
There’s a demo available for those not sure if American rugby is their thing or not. We’ve been sent a few to review in the past and found them way more entertaining than we initially expected to.
The PlayStation 3 seems to get a lot of exclusive JRPGs, doesn’t it? Here’s another – Tales of Graces f. It was released in the US back in March. EGM gave it an 8.0 and said it was recommended for both newcomers and hardcore fans. Clocking in at 60 hours you won’t be finishing it too soon either.
And here’s another RPG… oh, wait. Persona 4: Arena isn’t another RPG. It’s a 2D fighting game spin-off, set two months after Persona 4. As it’s by the developers behind Guilty Gear, fans of that will feel right at home. Reviews include 9 from IGN and an 8.5 from the Official Xbox Magazine. Grainger Games are currently offering it for a not to be sniffed at £24.99.
Then we have Worms Collection for Xbox 360 and PS3, which we first reported on back in May. It contains Worms, Worms 2: Armageddon and the 3D Worms Ultimate Mayhem. Amazon has it for £18.51 compared to Play’s £24.99 asking price. Looks like Amazon’s version includes some extra DLC too.
If nothing takes your fancy here – which could be the case, seeing as the above are all acquired tastes – then there might be something in the world of downloads that’ll tempt.
Reviews for Rock Band Blitz appeared online on Monday to much praise. It can be played with a joypad, so as a result it feels very much like Harmonix’s previous games Amplitude and Frequency. There’s 25 tracks in total, plus literally thousands to download. Defunct Games said that “The only people who won’t like Rock Band Blitz are those who can’t stand music,†in their rather informative review.
Telltale have also released the third episode of their The Walking Dead series. That’s at least if you’re an Xbox 360 owner – the PlayStation 3 version has been held back with hold-ups, as per the previous games. The last two episodes were thoroughly excellent and Telltale have promised that this one will have some even harder moral choices to make.
Finally, 1997’s Kirby’s Star Stacker is the 3DS’s Virtual Console release of the week, priced at a modest £2.70. Worth a download? Well, obviously – it features Rick the hamster.
Next week: Port Royale 3: Pirates & Merchants (PS3, 360), Wappy Dog (DS) and iCarly: Groovy Foodie! (DS)