Sam & Max

Gametap tightens the faucet

by

As reported by Game|Life, Gametap’s editorial website and video content is getting axed less than a year after it was started.

I have voiced worries about Gametap in the past, and this is another bad piece of news. The problem the service has is that it seems to be run by individuals who know what the hell they are doing. This brings a level of knowledge and communication with users that you would not expect from a branch of Time Warner. Of course, this makes Gametap stand out like a sore thumb, which is bad when it comes time to knock out anything unrelated to the bottom line.

In any case, losing the editorial section likely has nothing to do with the fate of the service itself, but it still makes me worry. I can’t tell if Gametap has been any sort of profitable venture, and this closing comes at a time when the service has had horrible weekly updates for most of the year, aside from Sam and Max episodes. →  Speak softly and carry a big post.

Review – Sam & Max Season 2, Episode 2: Moai Better Blues

by

Episode 2 of Season 2 of Sam and Max continues the fresh trends we saw in Ice Station Santa. The pacing is brisk, the filler is minimal, and each location is compact. This is a good thing, because without these elements this episode might have been painful. The puzzles this time around are dastardly and obfuscated, harkening back to the old days of the adventure genre while not quite reaching the level of absurdity of a Gabriel Knight game. Just as striking as the spike in difficulty is the shift towards humor that is even more obscure and older in taste. Whether or not these are two trends for the future, or a sign of Telltale mixing it up as they see fit, remains to be seen. Whatever the case, this is a stumbling block for the series.

The problem with the puzzles is that each small area has a lot to interact with, and more often than not you have a huge inventory to sort through. →  Virtua Poster 4: Evolution

Review – Sam & Max Episode 1: Culture Shock

by

Well here it is folks. After much trial and delay, the world can finally partake in a new Sam & Max game. Since my only experience with these two characters comes from a handful of viewings of the old Fox Kids cartoon show, my interest in seeing new Sam & Max was quite neutral. Yet my desire to play the new game has been quite high, for no other reason than my great interest in the way in which it was developed. This has to be one of the biggest gambles the industry has seen this generation, one that I hope to see succeed.

After Lucasarts decided to waffle around and eventually can their efforts on a new game, creator Steven Purcell looked towards small developer Telltale Games to start anew. Since Telltale is the brains behind the episodic content of the new Bone game, so too would Sam & Max be released in episodes. Not only that, but Telltale has decided to stick to their guns and create another adventure game for the duo, rather than adapting to modern times and creating something more mainstream. →  18 Wheeler American Pro Reader