GamerNode: OneWordReview's Columns

OWR: God of War

The beginning of 2010 feels like one long homage to the God of War franchise. With Bayonetta, Darksiders, Dante's Inferno, and, well, God of War III all coming along during 2010's first quarter, we thought it'd be very appropriate to One Word Review the biggest influence on the bloody melee action subgenre, the original God of War. It was lauded as one of the best things since mashed potatoes and gravy (yes, I thought of that myself) when it was released in 2005, and gamers are still loving it today, but how do we describe it? Like this:

Eddie's OWR: Dramythepic

Dan's OWR: Gutslashular

Matt's OWR: Combolicious

Jason's OWR: Bloodified

Mike's OWR: Mythbusting

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OWR: Kingdom Hearts

What do you get when Disney teams up with Squaresoft (now Square Enix)? Quite simply, you get a less intensive, action-oriented version of the Japanese RPG... featuring tons of Disney characters. Kingdom Hearts was received very well when released in 2002, and the franchise has gone on to produce a number of sequels, including last week's DS entry, Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days. With all its commercial success and fan love, what does GN think of the game that started it all? 

Eddie's OWR: Fairytaley

Brendon's OWR: Whimsical

Jason's OWR: Dis-Enix

Mike's OWR: Crossovergasm

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OWR: Prince of Persia

The return of the Prince saw big changes for the high-flying franchise; a new art style, new acrobatic controls, and the death-guarding sidekick, Elika, were among those changes. The game received strong review scores alongside complaints regarding its relative ease and simplicity. From "uninspiring" to "magical," there is little that hasn't been said about Prince of Persia. What does GN have to to say? 

Eddie's OWR: Autolingering

Brendon's OWR: Underappreciated

Brittany's OWR: Interminate

Mike's OWR: Beautimmersion

Tyler's OWR: Reprettytive

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OWR: Dead Rising

An early hit on the Xbox 360, Dead Rising featured more zombies than had ever been seen in a videogame before, along with plenty of ways to massacre them. If you've been listening to the VS Node Podcast, you may have heard that Eddie has been raring to get back into the game, and with the recent release of I MAED A GAM3 W1TH Z0MBIES 1N IT!!!1 on Xbox LIVE Arcade, there couldn't be a more fitting choice. It's been called "brilliant," "hilarious," "boring," and a "toybox." What does GN call it?

Eddie's OWR: Romeroclonal

Brendon's OWR: Amusing

Jason's OWR: Zomberiffic

Creighton's OWR: Undeadstruction

*Extra Special Guest Contribution*

Frank West: Ivecoveredwarsyouknow

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OWR: Viva Pinata

Today's One Word Review is of a game filled with animals...who are filled with candy. The sequel to Viva Pinata comes out this week, so GamerNode is taking a look back at this original surprise hit.

Despite its cutesy exterior, many game critics fell in love with Viva Pinata's simple, yet enjoyable gameplay, calling the title things like "vibrant," "impressive," "enchanting," and even "the perfect sandbox." What does GamerNode have to say about it?

Eddie's OWR: "Cultivative"

Chris P's OWR: "Fun"

John's OWR: "Insomniacure"

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OWR: Metroid Prime

Metroid Prime was the first game in this classic Nintendo franchise to make the jump into the third dimension for the GameCube back in 2002. The critical reception of Metroid Prime was universally positive, and it is still quite uncommon to hear any gaming critic bad-mouth Samus Aran's first-person adventure. What does GN have to say?

Brendon's OWR: "Mindmelting"

Eddie's OWR: "Archeological"

Demetri's OWR: "Worldchanging"

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OWR: Eternal Darkness

Too Human finally hits stores this week, arriving at the end of an all-too-long nine-year development cycle that has spanned three different gaming consoles. The agonizingly lengthy wait for this game almost makes it difficult to remember Silicon Knights' previous offering, the critically acclaimed Eternal Darkness for the GameCube.

It's been called "incredible," "amazing," "spine-chilling," and "astounding," in the past, so the staff of GN has decided to offer our input in this week's late edition of the One Word Review. What do we call this psychologically thrilling game?

Brendon's OWR: "Freaky"

Eddie's OWR: "Mindsnaring"

Chris P's OWR: "Atmosphere"

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OWR: Madden

With Madden 09 hitting stores this Tuesday, GamerNode is taking a look at the entire Madden franchise for this week's One Word Review. The series has been a fixture in the gaming world since 1991, and has grown into what most consider to be the definitive videogame football experience. It's had its ups and downs, but at the end of the day, the fans still come out in droves to get their hands on Madden. What does GN think of that?

Brendon's OWR: "BOOM!"

Eddie's OWR: "Perennial"

Chris A's OWR: "Hailmaryiffic"

Andy's OWR: "Repetitive"

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OWR: Earthbound

This week's OWR is of a classic Super NES RPG, Earthbound. This game has a tremendous cult following around the world, as evidenced by sites such as Starmen.net, who work tirelessly to get the game's sequel published in western markets as well as Japan. Many of us here at GamerNode are fans of the Earthbound (Mother) series, so we've decided to hit the original US release with our One Word Review.

Brendon's OWR: "Timeless"

Eddie's OWR: "Awkwittination"

Creighton's OWR: "Yo-yolicious"

John M's OWR: "Magical"

Andy's OWR: "Overblown"

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OWR: Soul Calibur

With Soul Calibur IV hitting store shelves this week, GamerNode is taking a look at the game that kick-started the weapons-based fighting franchise back in 1998 for today's OWR. It's been called "brilliant," "staggering," "glorious," and "a masterpiece," among plenty of other exalting verbiage. What does GN have to say?

Brendon's OWR: "Revolutionary"

Eddie's OWR: "Staccatoquiped"

Kyle's OWR: "Soulful"

Tim's OWR: "Weapons"

Demetri's OWR: "Fanfightingtastic"

Chris A's OWR: "Buttonmasher"

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OWR: Oregon Trail

Oregon Trail is a game that will seemingly live on forever, at least in the hearts and minds of those who played it. It was a common sight in many-an-elementary school computer class, and fording the river, buying oxen, and catching deadly cases of malaria somehow manage to stick with you. This surprisingly fun game was considered educational more than a decade ago, and I, for one, am grateful for that.

So how do the GN writers and editors sum up Oregon Trail in just one word?

Brendon's OWR: "Dysentary"

Eddie's OWR: "Perilous"

Demetri's OWR: "Survivalism"

Creighton's OWR: "Fifthgradey"

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OWR: Final Fantasy VII

Final Fantasy VII is one of the most revered role-playing games of all time. It was Final Fantasy's first step into the 3D realm, and was an introduction to both the genre and to epic videogame storytelling for many-a-gamer.

The number of forum usernames that are some variation of "Cloud" or "Sephiroth" is staggering, and making disparaging remarks about FF7 on many internet message boards is enough to get yourself flamed worse than barbeque chicken. What sort of remarks do we have to make about the game?

Brendon's OWR: "Overrated"

Eddie's OWR: "Pivotal"

Demetri's OWR: "Graphicshifting"

Creighton's OWR: "Androgynous"

John's OWR: "Aged"

Chris A's OWR: "Longwinded"

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OWR: Guitar Hero

With the newest installment in the franchise, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, dropping today, GamerNode has decided to One Word Review the entire series, which is more a series of expansions than completely individualized games. They have been called "perfect," "amazing," and, in some cases, masterpieces, so what do we have to say about them?

Eddie's OWR: "Cha-ching"

Demetri's OWR: "Revolutionary"

Frank's OWR: "Rockaholic"

Tim's OWR: "Satisfying"

Ryan's OWR "Overhypish"

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OWR: World of Warcraft

The free-to-play MMORPG Mythos was on the receiving end of a large-scale retooling this weekend, moving from an almost entirely instanced gaming experience (save for hub towns and safe locations, a la Guild Wars) to a persistent world style, much akin to a familiar Blizzard game. In celebration of that, GamerNode will be reviewing World of Warcraft in the One Word style this week. Here's what we have to say about it:

Brendon's OWR: "Inexplicable"

Eddie's OWR: "Template"

Demetri's OWR: "Popular"

Creighton's OWR: "Soulsucker"

John M's OWR: "Friendstealer"

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OWR: The Sims

If you've been hanging around GamerNode at all this weekend, you've probably noticed that Brendon has gotten his hands on the full version of the Spore Creature Creator and has been streaming his editing sessions live, as well as having posted a handful of creature videos. With the Creature Creator coming out this week, GN decided to One Word Review another of legendary designer Will Wright's games, The Sims. It's been called "engrossing," "fascinating," "addictive," and even "tiresome" in the past, but what does the GN staff have to say about it?

Frank's OWR: "Overload"

Eddie's OWR: "Emulife"

Chris P's OWR: "Strategic"

Chris A's OWR: "Overhyped"

Demetri's OWR: "Expansions"

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OWR: Metal Gear Solid

Another big-name sequel is on the horizon, and thus, members of the gaming community find themselves thinking about previous entries in the series. This time, it's Metal Gear Solid 4 hitting stores in a few days, so GamerNode has chosen to One Word Review the original Metal Gear Solid on Sony's first PlayStation console. It has been called "classic," "gripping," "beautiful," and "engrossing" by others, so what does GN have to say?

Frank's OWR: "Stealthpendous"

Eddie's OWR: "Cinemeld"

Kyle's OWR: "Unprecedented"

Demetri's OWR: "Psychomanterrific"

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OWR: Ninja Gaiden

With Ninja Gaiden 2 right around the corner (Tuesday!), the GamerNode staff will be revisiting Ryu Hayabusa's first 3-D action trip for this week's OWR. Ninja Gaiden was released to tremendous critical acclaim back in 2004, to the tune of a 92% average review score across all media outlets. Adjectives such as "flawless," "outstanding," "miraculous," and "dazzling" have been used by others to describe the game, but what do we say?

Brendon's OWR: "Decapitacular"

Eddie's OWR: "Floetic"

Demetri's OWR: "Skillerific"

Chris A's OWR: "Controllersmasher"

John M's OWR: "Impossible"

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OWR: Mass Effect

One of last year's biggest Xbox 360 hits and recipient of second place honors in GamerNode's 2nd annual Nodie Awards, BioWare's Mass Effect will arrive on the PC this week in a slick, updated form. Lots of the guys around GN thoroughly enjoyed this unique-yet-familiar western RPG, and that sentiment has been echoed throughout the gaming press. Descriptions such as "transcendant," "breathtaking," "impressive," and "staggering" clearly convey the message; let's see what the GN staff can conjure up for this week's OWR.

Eddie's OWR: "Veneer"

jambo's OWR: "sexbox"

Chris C's OWR: "Vanguard"

Chris A's OWR: "Ploterific"

Tim's OWR: "Sidequestsuckage"

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OWR: Wii Sports

This week's OWR is for everyone's favorite home console pack-in title, Wii Sports. With Wii Fit hitting store shelves tomorrow, we thought it only appropriate to OWR the very first "Wii ______" game. When the Wii was released, Wii Sports received an average score of 76% from all notable publications, and has been described as favorably as "ideal" and "perfect," all the way down to "incomplete" and "oversimplified." So what does GamerNode have to say?

Eddie's OWR: "Demonstrative"

Frank's OWR: "Funtastic"

Chris's OWR: "Fundamental"

Creighton's OWR: "Techdemoey"

Brian's OWR: "Precise"

John's OWR: "Waggly"

Tim's OWR: "Grandparents"

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OWR: Tony Hawk's Pro Skater

Before getting down to business, GamerNode would first like to thank everyone for participating in the first edition of OWR last week, and we hope you are ready for more unique and fun content of a similar nature in the future. We love to see reader discussion, and aim to bring the community together, rather than just throwing words at you.

This week, many of us at GamerNode have been thinking about the industry's tendency toward sequels, and what it means to gamers when a series is substantially improved upon with each new iteration. One series that always comes to mind when the word "sequel" comes up in conversation is the Tony Hawk series. For better or for worse, these games just keep on coming, so we figured we'd go back to the beginning and tell you how we feel about the original T...

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