Dash of Destruction

Also known as: N/A

Developer: NinjaBee

Before I say too much about Dash of Destruction, keep in mind that this is/was a free game…so I feel like some slack should be given. But still, there's not enough slack that I can give that would make this game passable. Basically, in Dash of Destruction, your goal is to drive a vehicle around a level while collecting bags of Doritos. While you awkwardly drive around, you'll often be avoiding rampaging dinosaurs that would like to eat you…basically, you're their bag of Doritos. I kinda hinted at it in the previous sentence, but the controls take a bit to get used to - expect to die a bit in the beginning until you get your feet under you…or would it be until you get your wheels under you? It takes time to get something under you…whatever it is. Anyway, if you decide to play through this game, it doesn't take very long…you're looking at 30 minutes at most. More than likely it'll take about half of that. I consider that a positive, since this gameplay gets old fast. Anyway, if this was something that you had to pay for, this would have been terrible…but even with it being free, it's not great. Still, if you're looking for easy achievements and a short game to pass some time, you could do worse than Dash of Destruction.

Review added: 12/31/2024

Dead Rising

Also known as: N/A

Developer: Capcom

Good ol’ Dead Rising. When I first played Dead Rising, I was at my friends’ parent’s house visiting pals from college. I thought it was an okay game that was less about the gameplay and more about the impressive number of zombies that could be on the screen at once – the gameplay wasn’t as impressive as the technical aspects. I kinda thought of it like how State of Emergency was on the PS2 – technically impressive, but the fun doesn’t last long. But then I eventually got myself a copy of the game and began to play…and I completely fell in love with all of the bizarre characters and the B-movie story…and yes, eventually, I fell in love with the gameplay as well. Now, almost 15 years later, it remains one of my favorite games of all-time…in fact, when I intended to just play for an hour or so to nab screenshots for this review, I found myself beating the game all over again instead. It’s able to hook me that easily. Dead Rising 2 is probably a better game overall, and definitely more interesting with the ability to craft unique weapons, but the original game still holds a special place in my heart and is a game that I gladly pull out to play every now and then simply because putting traffic cones on the heads of zombies, then plowing them all over with a bowling ball is just good, clean fun.

Review added: 09/03/2020

Dead Space

Also known as: N/A

Developer: EA Redwood Shores

Dead Space is a fun action game...But if you were to classify it purely as a horror game, it disappoints. The scares are predictable and the concept of dismembering your enemies really lessens any remaining scare factor that the monsters in the game have. It’s hard to be scared or intimidated by monsters when you know that you'll be chopping off their limbs shortly after you meet them. It’s also not difficult to stay fully equipped if you like to explore the environments…so, if it’s easy to almost always be fully equipped to dismember any monster that crosses your path, then how does that create any sense of danger or uneasiness? If I hear a creepy noise, I simply load ammo into whatever weapon I have equipped and get ready to blow some limbs off before I continue. The only real way to get any sort of uneasiness is to play the game on higher difficulties, but in my eyes, good horror design creates fear and uneasiness in the player, regardless of what difficulty they play on. Horror disappointments aside, Dead Space still a very fun game and well worth playing through…just don't expect to get the willies when playing it.

Review added: 10/05/2020

Deadly Premonition

Also known as: Red Seeds Profile (Japan)

Developer: Access Games

Deadly Premonition is best described as a sandbox-style horror game, where you've got free roam of a quiet, little town known as Greenvale. Despite the fact that I’ve given it a 7 out of 10 (which some will say is still a generous score) Deadly Premonition is one of my absolute favorite games of all-time. If the list on this site was purely on my preference, Deadly Premonition would probably be in the top 25. It's just so charming and interesting from beginning to end...It's hard, even with its many faults, not to love it. The problem is that it does have faults…a lot of faults, most in the combat department, and those faults bog the game down a bit. Playstation 3’s Director’s Cut version of the game seems to be the least buggy of all the releases that I’ve played, but dang it…I love this game so much that I don’t even care about the bugs. A true side story, upon hearing that this game was inspired by Twin Peaks, I went out of my way to find Twin Peaks so I could watch it and see…and it instantly became one of my favorite television shows. Without this game, I probably would have never discovered the joys of that show. Likewise, without that show inspiring a game to be created like Deadly Premonition, I would not know a world with Mr. Francis York Morgan in it…and honestly, a world without York is a world that I do not want to know. If you don’t mind putting up with below-average gameplay at times, as long as you get an entertaining story filled with quirky characters, then you’ll probably love Deadly Premonition as much as I do.

Review added: 01/05/2021

Dorito's Crash Course

Also known as: N/A

Developer: Wanako Studios

Of all of the free Doritos games that I've played on the Xbox 360, Crash Course is by far the best of the bunch. Essentially a scrolling platformer, Doritos Crash Course takes place in a setting similar to the game show Wipeout. Controlling your Xbox Live account's avatar, you'll sprint through each stage, avoiding obstacles and hopping across platforms, as you attempt to reach the finish line as quickly as possible. The inclusion of Xbox Live support allows you to have friendly competition with friends, with everyone attempting to get the best time on each course. The game also allows offline multiplayer as well, so even if you've got no internet connection (or no active Xbox Live account) you can still have some fun when some friends are over. The gameplay here isn't groundbreaking, but it's solid and doesn't really have too many flaws. In terms of free games, Doritos Crash Course is one of the better ones I've played, and it's well worth giving a try, if you have an opportunity to do so.

Review added: 12/31/2024