Tom's Pick: Sacrifice
Fuck, this game is good! And that's no hyperbole. Sometimes I'm playing Sacrifice and I just go, 'Fuck!' and I shake my head at how good it is. It's so good that I'm hereby offering to come wash the cars of all the guys at Shiny. I mean it. I will come down to Shiny with a bucket and some old towels and some liquid soap and a chamois cloth and I will wash the car of every man, woman, and child who has his name in the Sacrifice credits. Here's an essay I wrote:

Why I Like Sacrifice
by Tom Chick
I like Sacrifice because those overused game reviewer adjectives finally apply: "unique", "bold", "imaginative", "innovative", "spectacular", "smart", "bar-raising", "fun", and "highly recommended". Some adjectives apply that game reviewers don't use: "splendid", "plucky", "gratifying", "arresting", "immaculate", "vibrant", "imposing", and "wily". I also like Sacrifice because I get a funny feeling in my tummy when the Frostwolves purr their sound bites.

One caveat: like many things bold and new, Sacrifice might have a hard time finding fans among casual gamers who might do better to stick to Diablo II. Such is the burden of Shiny's creative genius.

Mark's Pick: Flying Heroes
Sometimes the guys reviewing these games, well, it’s like we lost our nuts in a tragic hedge trimming accident. With Flying Heroes my reasoning was going like this: “Not many people liked this game. It sold like shit. I can’t make this my favorite game of the year – they’ll revoke my critic’s license that I got from sending in 50 Captain Crunch boxtops!” But in a Grinch-like fashion mine seem to have grown three sizes too large today – anyone got a spare tea service I can use to cart them around on?

By god I loved Flying Heroes, and I don’t want to hear any guff about it. It’s a FFPS – Flying First Person Shooter. It handles flight the way that Crimson Skies probably should have, instituting just enough of a flight model to make the “craft” handle differently, but simple enough to fly with mouse and keyboard. And oh, what marvelous flying machines you get to play with – enchanted teacups, fire-breathing dragons, flying galleons, huge dirigibles, and more. It’s set up to play in a style that’s similar to Unreal Tournament, though your progress is tracked over a season. Do well in the tournaments and advance and new ships or mounts are unlocked for you. Cast spells. Grab powerups. Fire guns. Upgrade your weaponry and armor. Just flat out have fun in a truly inspired and imaginative game. But if you try it, remember that it does have a flight model and isn’t a pure shooter. Get over that and you’ll love it. Now can someone bring me an icepack? I gotta shrink these back down to normal size or get a new wardrobe.

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