Review Round-Up: Dead Island, Resistance 3, And More

Fall is here! The time of year when the weather cools down, the nights get longer, and the video game releases become startlingly frequent. We're kicking off the big release season this week with a ton of reviews, so we figured we'd round them up in one convenient post for you.

Check out excerpts of the reviews below and click through to read the full text.

BloodRayne: Betrayal (360, PS3) - "I feel proud for beating BloodRayne: Betrayal, but I can’t recommend it for anyone who lacks an ocean of patience. Majesco’s plan for BloodRayne’s resurrection looked great on paper, but the arbitrary and unnecessary difficulty spikes unfortunately keep this half-human half-vampire in her coffin." -Bryan Vore

Crimson Alliance (360) - "Every aspect of Crimson Alliance works together to engineer a fun cooperative hack n’ slash. From the quick and easy inventory to the excellently designed levels and rewarding combat, this is the downloadable game to play with friends this season." -Matt Miller

Dead Island (360, PS3, PC) - "Rewarding character progression and the vast variety of weapons should appeal to anyone looking for a good time. If you’ve spent your time planning for the zombie apocalypse, Dead Island is the best option so far to test how long you’d last." -Tim Turi

Disgaea 4 (PS3) - "The network is the only place Disgaea 4 breaks much in the way of new ground, but it’s a wonderful complement to yet another iteration of an already slick design. Absent a major rework of Disgaea’s foundation, this is about the best that we could ask for – even if you have to remind yourself that you’re not playing the same PlayStation 2 game from 2003 once in a while." -Adam Biessener

Driver: San Francisco (360, PS3, PC) - "Driver: San Francisco is easily the most surprising game I’ve played this year. I’ve been a fan of arcade racing games for as long as they’ve been around, and Ubisoft Reflections shows that there’s still plenty of life in the genre – even if it means remotely controlling the action in a hospital gown somewhere." -Jeff Cork

Hard Reset (PC) - "Hard Reset may only be four hours long, but they’re four good hours. I respect a game that picks one thing and does it well, even if it means skimping on or outright skipping the rest of the modern FPS checklist. Delivering combat on a level that Resistance or Halo could learn a thing or two from is an exceptional achievement for the first effort of a new studio." -Adam Biessener

Ico and Shadow of the Colossus Collection (PS3) - " Yes, the controls in Ico and Shadow of the Colossus are rusty by current standards, but the basic mechanics aren’t what made these games landmarks in the industry. These sad and compelling masterpieces create immersive worlds, interesting characters, and memorable journeys." -Joe Juba

NHL 12 (360, PS3) - "Though the Be A GM mode needs a major overhaul and the new Legends feature falls flat, NHL 12 is still strongest where it counts – on the ice. Just like a well-rounded power forward who can dominate in all three zones, you can’t deny the benefit this brings to the club." -Matt Bertz

Resistance 3 (PS3) - "More effort seems to have been put into minutia than the gameplay itself. With no reason to connect with these characters and little in the way of action to separate itself from the packed FPS crowd, Resistance 3 makes it clear that the series doesn’t belong amongst the triple-A competition in the genre." -Dan Ryckert

Rise of Nightmares (360) - "For better or worse, Rise of Nightmares doesn’t support a standard controller. Even if it did, the game would still be just as guilty of blandness. Combine this sin with the constant control struggles, and it’s tough to recommend this game for even the most desperate Kinect owner." -Bryan Vore

Star Fox 64 3D (3DS) - "This remake might not be the AAA first-party killer app the 3DS needs, but it’s a solid piece of nostalgia for longtime fans and an exceptionally strong shooter for newcomers to the series." -Dan Ryckert

And for those wondering about our review of Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine, we just received retail copies today, so our review is a bit delayed. Look for it to hit later this week.