Disney Infinity

Disney Infinity (Playstation 3)

My rating: 4.5 of 5 stars

This game has a variety of options for any desired game play, though it's also a big money sink hole. Why? Because you buy characters, play sets, and power discs separately. Not to mention you have to make sure said characters work with whatever version of the game you have. So for example, we have the original Infinity disc, and 3.0. This means we can play 1.0, 2.0 and 3.0 characters on the 3.0 disc, but we have to use the 1.0 disc if we want the story line games for the 1.0 characters. We don't have any 2.0 characters (yet) so their story lines are a moot point, and I honestly wouldn't buy the game just for that as we'd still have plenty between the 1.0 and 3.0 discs. On top of that all the quests, races, how-to games and the toy box provide never ending sources of activity. Oddly though, it's the hall of heroes that my daughter loves running around in the most. She likes trying to pick up the little bobble princesses and run around with them. It's a simple way to make her happy and get an hour of quiet time to clean or rest depending on how I'm doing that day. This would be a full 5 star rating if not for the sheer compatibility and quantity headache.

Tales of Xillia 2

Tales of Xillia 2 (Playstation 3)

My rating: 4.5 of 5 stars


After how much we enjoyed Tales of Xillia, we could hardly wait for the sequel to be released. There are similarities and differences this time around as we follow Ludger through a new story. He teams up with the original cast eventually, so you get a lot of screen time with familiar characters you already love. There are some new additions and twists to it though. The artes web has changed, as have some of the battle modes, which make things a little more interesting. You don't pay to level up shops, but the shops level themselves with each new zone and you can "custom create" new items using materials found in quests and/or purchased. The really annoying part of the game is the inflated debt imposed on you in the very beginning of the game. Supposedly it is possible to pay off completely, though we've yet to manage it (this means you may end up having to do a lot of farming beyond just finishing the job boards when they fill up to pay it off). You also have to find 100 cats throughout the game, most of which are fairly easy to find as long as you remember there is one in pretty much every territory you visit, including some of the alternate dimensions. You can't entirely finish the cat quest until the very last arc of the game though, which takes you to another land entirely (kind of like the Dimensional Breech in the first game). Overall, there is a lot more added into this game to keep it going with different variables throughout.

Tales of Xillia

Tales of Xillia (Playstation 3)

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Some of the side quests are extremely easy to miss and there is a lot of running around and farming involved to level up and find various treasures. In the end though, it is an enjoyable RPG story with a variety of characters. It is also one of the few RPGs I've seen that is well done with a multi-player option (up to 4 can be assigned controllers for battle mode, though there are a total of 6 playable characters once everyone is in your group). It's been a fun family adventure to run around Rea Maxia and unravel the story.

Disney Sing It: Family Hits

Disney Sing It: Family Hits (Playstation 3)

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


This game has a nice selection of both classic and more recent Disney releases. Some songs you would expect to be on it are not however and the method they use for the karaoke line is rather confusing. Speaking parts are included in the song and it does show range, however it makes it difficult by always keeping the text at the bottom of the screen instead of with the notes that the words actually go to. You basically have to watch 3 lines at once in order to really get the hang of this one; haven't mastered that just yet.

Ni No Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch

Ni No Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch (Playstation 3)

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Originally saw this game through gaming videos Matt enjoys watching on YouTube. Being made by Studio Ghibli, a favorite animanga producer of ours, we were both interested right from the start. While a lot was shown on screen, there were a lot of side quests that were mentioned but never shown. By the end of the videos, we were chomping at the bit to get the game. Well, we got it this week and part of my Mother's Day was getting to start playing it. As it's single player, we're taking turns doing various parts of the story depending on who feels like playing and who doesn't mind being on baby duty. We're both enjoying it though and it's proving to be even more fun finding it ourselves than watching the videos. Can't wait for Matt to get home today so we can have more family play time. I know he'd be completely behind me taking some downtime to play while Mercy napped during the day, but I want to keep as much our family game as possible.

Karaoke Revolution: American Idol Encore 2

Karaoke Revolution: American Idol Encore 2 (Playstation 3)

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


As karaoke games go, this one is a lot of fun. It brings back the unlocking videos and songs from the first game that were missing in the second along with more graphics, more dancing, and an even better song selection. There's also the ability to download new songs if you don't mind paying for more game material. This one is an easy favorite when my brother-in-law comes over.