Game of the Month: May 2008

May Showers brings brainteasing titles.

May 30, 2008 - With all the videogames released each and every month, it can be a difficult task to decide on which title to spend your hard-earned money. Granted, you could always go by our review scores alone and weed through the long list of names to find something that scored high or low, but what if you had somewhere else to turn?

Rather than wait until the end of the year for our big award blowout, we’ve created this monthly tribute to the weeks that were. The entire PlayStation Team has come together so that we can tell our readers what we thought was the very best game for each system last month… and why. Though some of us often chime in with our comments at the end of reviews, for the most part, the reviews on IGN are primarily written by one editor. In this feature we had every editor on the channel vote for a single title. What better way to represent a team is there than to speak your collective minds?

How does it work? It’s simple. Any game released in the past month is eligible for the award and is taken through a battery of tests by every editor on that particular channel. After we’ve finished evaluating each game we put our heads together and decide on a single “best of” winner that’s worthy of the title “IGN Game of the Month.” Pretty straightforward, don’t you think?

Now that we have the guidelines out of the way, let’s move on, and congratulate this month’s winner…

Why We Picked It: There aren’t many titles that rearrange your visual perception of puzzles presented to you or the logistics of the game world itself, but echochrome fits that description perfectly. Thanks to the five laws that govern the game, players manipulate platforms to hide gaps or holes, move from one area to the next and other mind bending tricks. With a significant number of stages and difficulty levels, plus the ability to make your own puzzles, this is one title that can keep you busy for an extremely long time.

Runner-Up
R-Type Command
Developed by Irem Software
Published by Atlus

Why We Picked It: It’s pretty hard to take a classic franchise and re-envision it for a new system; it’s even harder to place it in a brand new genre. R-Type Command pulls the battle against the Bydo from its shooter roots and places it into a turn based strategy world. Players now tactically make their decisions against the alien empire, and for the first time are even given the chance to play as the aliens themselves. It’s definitely a unique twist on a familiar series.

Other Games Worth Noting in May:
Nothing

This month might have been light, but next month starts to pick up with a number of large titles hitting the system. Sports fans will take to the links with Hot Shots Golf: Open Tee 2, while adventure fiends get LEGO Indiana Jones and action lovers get Secret Agent Clank. The month of June gets rounded out with Hellboy and the Disney presentation of WALL-E. What takes the honors for June? Check back next month.

Experience the Rebirth of the Legendary Franchise

Atlus U.S.A., Inc. today announced that R-Type Command for PSP, a bold new turn-based strategy entry in the long-celebrated series of side-scrolling shooters, is in stores now across North America. Purchase R-Type Command at select retailers and receive a free R-9 figurine while supplies last. Constructed from durable, high-quality plastic and boasting incredible levels of detail, this collector’s item can be assembled in a variety of different configurations as seen in R-Type Command. Don’t miss your chance to own the definitive ship from the legendary R-Type series.

For more on R-Type Command, please visit the official website: http://www.atlus.com/r-type