Reviews
Lumines Review — The Puzzle Game That Launched a Handheld in Light and Sound
Q Entertainment fused falling blocks with a living soundtrack and gave the PSP its defining launch puzzle game. Lumines still glows. Our review.
Author: Sal Benedetto
From the Vault columnist. Grew up feeding quarters to the Ms. Pac-Man machine at his uncle's pizza place; still owns his childhood SNES and every Nintendo Power he ever begged his mother for. Writes the retrospectives and the hidden-gem hunts.
Reviews
Super Castlevania IV at 35: The Whip, Perfected
Thirty-five years after it launched the SNES era in style, Super Castlevania IV remains the finest traditional Castlevania ever made — Simon Belmont, a whip that finally goes anywhere, eleven stages of pure theatre, and a soundtrack that still sounds expensive. Our full flagship review.
Reviews
Final Fantasy XII at 20: The Gambit Pays Off
Twenty years after its North American launch, Final Fantasy XII stands as the PS2’s last great RPG monument — a seamless world, the revolutionary Gambit system, and Ivalice in all its political rot. Our full flagship review of the game that was a decade early to its own genre.
Reviews
Persona 3 Portable Review — Death, Friendship and the Dark Hour, To Go
Atlus rebuilt a PS2 masterpiece for the bus ride without losing its soul — and the female route makes it two games in one. Persona 3 Portable, reviewed.
Reviews
Monster Hunter Freedom Unite Review — The Game That Ate the PSP
Hundreds of hours, dozens of monsters and the ad-hoc phenomenon that ruled Japanese trains: Freedom Unite is the PSP’s deepest rabbit hole. Our review.
Reviews
God of War: Chains of Olympus Review — Kratos, Pocket-Sized, Undiminished
Ready at Dawn shrank a console colossus without shrinking its soul: Chains of Olympus is the PSP’s technical showpiece and one of Kratos’ finest hours. Our review.
Reviews
Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII Review — The Prequel That Earned Its Tears
Zack Fair’s story is the rare prequel that improves the original: Crisis Core pairs slot-machine chaos with genuine heart, and still plays like a PSP showcase. Our review.
Features
Do the Math: Was the Atari Jaguar Really 64-Bit?
Atari’s famous taunt, examined carefully: 64-bit buses, 32-bit RISC hearts, a 68000 clipboard-holder — and why the slogan was half-true and wholly a trap.
Features
The Jaguar CD: The Troubled Story of Atari’s Ill-Fated Add-On
Late, fragile and supported by a dozen games: how the Jaguar CD became a complete fossil of the moment gaming changed from cartridges to discs.
Features
Atari Jaguar Hidden Gems: 10 Underrated Classics Worth Hunting Down
Beyond Tempest and AvP lies the Jaguar’s best-kept shelf: Protector, Raiden, Sensible Soccer, Syndicate and six more cartridges that reward the hunt.