Developer

Cold Iron Studios

Publisher

Cold Iron Studios

Platforms

Microsoft Windows, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S

Release

August 21st, 2021

Genre

3rd Person Shooter, Horror, Multi-player

Graphics: Playing on the original Xbox One Aliens Fireteam Elite felt like a modified Xbox 360 game. While the environments and Xenos all looked great the presentation felt lacking. For some reason there are almost no cutscenes and the NPCs don’t move their lips while talking. These are minor to most but its something we picked up on almost immediately.

Sound: The sound is strong with rich amounts of Alien franchise music and effects pulled directly from the movies. All of the weapons sound exactly as you would expect and the blip on the motion tracker is always a welcome sound. The music that isn’t pulled from the movies tends to be strictly atmospheric and therefore isn’t that memorable. Still its a good package for what the game offers.

Control: The control is done almost perfectly in this game. With the standard 3rd person shooter layout you can run (push in L stick), dodge (B), aim (LT), shoot (RT), use primary ability (RB), use tactical gear (LB), reload (x), change weapons (Y) and even bash (push in R stick). Everything feels right and the flow between weapons and using your abilities is seamless. The only issue we had is that using your special gear can be a bit clunky, as you have to use the d-pad to open a menu wheel. Otherwise we have no complaints about the control.

Gameplay: At its core Aliens Fireteam Elite is a perfect blend of Gears of War and Left 4 Dead set in the Aliens universe. There are 12 levels which span over sets from the Aliens film and even Prometheus. Each level generally plays out the same, move from point A to point B, hold the area from a wave based attack and move on. All the levels end with a huge wave attack that usually include a minor task such as obtaining power cells or opening a specific door. Because the general idea is the same the game can feel a bit stagnant. The way this is addressed is with the enemy types. For the majority of the first levels you are strictly facing off against various xenos, which include special types such as the spitter, prowler and exploder and every once in a while you will face off against a warrior (real pain in the ass). By level 5 you will encounter synths who come in all different varieties but now you have to utilize cover which makes it feel like an army base shooter. These areas seemed to bother the public, but Jim and I welcomed the change in pace. One area that cannot be overlooked is the amount of grinding that is needed to unlock every thing. You have 6 classes, which can all be upgraded based on time/points. In addition there is a special perk tree for each class as well as general perks that are only unlocked with points earned in a specific class. There is a huge arsenal of weapons ranging from pistols to rifles all the way up to flamethrowers and smart guns. Each weapon can be upgraded and fitted with 3 attachments. There is also special gear that can be found such as sentry guns, mines and drones. While most of these items can be earned you will also find some goodies in hidden caches around the levels, so keep an eye out.

Originality: On one hand this game doesn’t feel original at all, and on the other hand it feels brand new to the Aliens franchise. The core mechanics are all reused from other games, but the setting and delivery in the Aliens universe is a first for a multi player base squad shooter.

Replayability: As I mentioned the grinding is crazy in this game. You have the ability to play alone (with bots) or with your buddies so there will be a different feel depending on the level of difficulty and the level of your squad. You will also be able to find pieces of hidden intel which will reveal the story behind the game and even includes Easter eggs from the Aliens franchise.

Overall: Overall this game has plenty of issues, but while playing with a buddy you cannot deny the fun you will have. If all of the technical problems are fixed and there is a little more content added this could be considered excellent.

Beer Pairing: When it comes to beer pairing I decided to go the Lucky SOB from Flying Dog Brewery. This is an Irish Red Ale at 5.5% which goes down smooth but offers a little bit of sweetness. So grab a 6 pack and enjoy yourself.

Watch our video review!

Graphics: Its hard to complain about any of the new Mortal Kombat games and this is no exception. Somehow MK 11 managed to look even better than MK10. With more colors, better environmental depths, better lighting effects and model details this game looks amazing.

Sound: NetherRealm knows how to do two things. The first is make fitting music that is prefect background for any given level, and the second is hiring great voice actors, aside from Ronda Rousey. The only ding we can give is that the music is well composed but unmemorable.

Control: The control is tight and requires a better level of timing. MK10 allowed a little bit of sloppy button mashing, but this game increases the required discipline, especially for pulling off the combos and amplified moves. Its very well done, once you get the hang of the timing.

Gameplay: There is a ton of gameplay options here. You have two story modes, the towers of time, multiplayer, the krypt and a shit ton of unlockables. Plenty of great characters to choose from, and with the DLC you can play as Spawn, Rambo and the Terminator! The gameplay has changed a bit to become a bit more technical. With the removal of the x-ray moves that have been replaced with brutal blows and final blows you have to time everything a bit more. This slower style makes sense and helps the flow of the fights.

Originality: Unfortunately there isn’t a ton here. After all this is the 11th entry in the main series, the only new aspects of the game are in the story and the 4 new characters; Kronika, Centrion, Collector and Geras.

Replayability: So damn much. Each character has almost 30 different costume variations along with the 3 pieces of equipment that can be changed you will spend way too many hours trying to unlock everything. In addition you have the Krypt that has so much to unlock and some of the items are hidden and are time dependent.

Overall: Overall this game is amazing, we truly cannot hate on anything in this game. I cannot stress enough that you need to get the Ultimate edition if you haven’t already played the game.

Beer Pairing: When it comes to beer pairing I decided to go with a unique white stout from the New Holland Brewing Dragon’s Milk White. Such an amazing game deserves a special beer, and how many of you have tried a white stout. So stock up, since its seasonal, and enjoy yourself.

Watch our video review!

Graphics: When Mortal Kombat hit the arcades motion capture was still brand new. To see sprites that looked like real people was something that alot of kids had not seen. Once it got ported to home consoles there was a quite a dropoff in quality. Still, both the SNES and Genesis look pretty damn good and all of the sprites retain alot of detail. Now everyone probably knows the SNES lacks the violence and the Genesis requires the blood code. So if you want to see some blood, go with the Genesis version.

Sound: The sound is very different depending on which console you are playing. The SNES attempts to adapt the arcade sound and has some issues with the quality of the music. The sounds effects are all there and are better than the Genesis. The Genesis attempts a few adaptations but also creates their own tracks for the game. The Genesis has better quality music, but lacks the sound effects. Either way the sound is not the strong point of this game.

Control: The control is interesting for the time. Most kids were use to the Street Fighter 2 layout of fighting games. Mortal Kombat introduces a few tweaks to that style which include; a dedicated button for blocking, the juggling mechanics and pulling off special moves using only the d-pad. As with most digitized graphics there seems to be a slight delay in the input vs what you see on screen. If you spend enough time with the game you will get use to it. The arcades were able to overcome this, but for these two home ports the controls still feel a bit sluggish.

Gameplay: Like any other fighting game Mortal Kombat has single exhibition matches, endurance matches, tournament and multiplayer. Sprinkled into the tournament you have test your might mini games. What sets Mortal Kombat apart from all other fighting games are the fatalities, the best way to truly embarrass your defeated enemies is to rip there heads off. The only major thing missing from this game is a true combo system, likely due to the digitized graphics. To compensate you have the juggling system I mentioned above. Mortal Kombat 1 is just a simple fighting game with alot of violence and some cool finishers.

Originality: Alot of the basic aspects of this game are similar to most fighting games. High and low punches and kicks, blocking, tournaments, etc. But with the inclusion of fatalities, extra violence and the idea of a secret easter egg were all new to this genre. Unlocking Reptile is still one of the most annoying tasks to attempt and then trying to beat him is damn near impossible. Still, this was something extra for kids to try and every game after would always include some kind of easter egg like it. So for the time when there were a ton of Street Fighter 2 clones, this stood out.

Replayability: With 7 characters available you have at least 7 playthroughs to see the ending for each one. You have multiplayer which always drives the replayability of a game and of course as I just mentioned there is Reptile. So the replayability is pretty high here.

Overall: Overall we love Mortal Kombat, but even we see the flaws in this first title, especially for these home ports. The control is one area that really hampers this game from being truly great, but still this is a must play for any fighting game fan.

Beer Pairing: When it comes to beer pairing I decided to go with one of my favorite stouts the New Holland Brewing Dragon’s Milk. Clearly I was influenced by the dragon but this is a delicious oak aged stout that has a ton of flavor and is a nice compliment to the violence you will be shown in this classic game. So grab as many as you can find and enjoy!

Watch our video review!

Graphics: The sprites and the animations are all very charming and colorful, but ultimately there is very little variation. The facial expressions are funny and overall this is a goofy look that works for such an obscure title.

Sound: The sound is very simple. You have a few music tracks and the sound effects of the punch’s, police sirens and celebration. Nothing special, but we can’t say it is bad either.

Control: The control is rough. Even though you only have two punches, a light and heavy punch, the response time is very delayed. You can figure out this delay but it is still frustrating while trying to pummel your opponent.

Gameplay: The purpose of the game is to knock the other player into a sewer manhole. There is a 99-second time limit, and the player has a set limit of stamina (200 hit points).

Each punch costs the player 1 HP. Also, flower pots are occasionally dropped from windows, which will cost a fighter 5 HP and daze the fighter if they hit. When a player is knocked off the pavement, they advance to the next street. After every third fight, the opponent is knocked into a manhole, then the player has a brief celebration where a lady throws confetti from a window. The goal of the game is to reach the rank of Champion. Every three fights won, the player gets a specific symbol on the lower right corner; after five symbols are earned, they go to the next set of symbols. In addition, a police car may pass by the fighting at any point in the fight which causes the players to return to their starting positions. If the timer runs out, the police will arrest the player closest to being knocked off of the pavement, meaning it is a default win for the other player for that round.

Originality: This is definitely and original idea, never had I heard of a game where the goal was to knock someone into a sewer manhole.

Replayability: The only replayability is the multiplayer. But the repetitive nature of the gameplay will have you bored within 10 minutes.

Overall: Overall we like the look of this game and it can be fun in short spurts. If you can find it for under $5 it may be worth it as a time waster.

Beer Pairing: When it comes to beer pairing I decided to go with the Yards Brawler Champion Ale. The goofy can design and the way the two are squaring up reminds me of this game. Plus it is only 4.2% so you can easily go through a 6 pack with a bud.

Watch our video review!

Graphics: Very simple, the two players are palette swaps with the ref staying the same throughout. There are a few different stages that have some decent coloring but it is nothing special. Given the time there could have been a little more thrown in.

Sound: We will give this game credit the main theme is catchy. However, the voice work is awful and the hit sounds are blah. If the developers would have added some music to the stages this game would have scored much higher.

Control: The control is a joke. The inputs are outrageously laggy and executing the moves are determined with a flip of the coin. Movement is sluggish and the jump is terrible. I would love to give this game a break here, but I cannot.

Gameplay: Playing out like a real karate match your goal is to score points by striking your opponent. The first one to 3 points wins the match. In between matches there are mini games with various objects coming towards you. The problem is that you cannot pull off the moves in time, because of the input lag. Even with a friend this game is monotonous.

Originality: Since this is the first fighting game for a home console we have to give it credit. So we can appreciate being the first of its kind.

Replayability: The only replayability is the multiplayer. You could go for a high score, but lets be honest this game is not fun enough to want to replay over and over again.

Overall: Overall we can appreciate that this is the first fighting game for the NES, but we cannot forgive how bad it is. Only try it out if you are really bored and on a mission to play every NES game.

Beer Pairing: When it comes to beer pairing we had to go with the first beer we drank when reviewing games, Lionshead. This is a cheap pilsner hailing from PA, that Jim and I absolutely love. It is a perfect beer for almost any occasion and don’t let beer snobs tell you otherwise.

Watch our video review!