High Voltage

Do videogames based on movies really need to hit shelves the day their films open? "Of course!" answer marketing teams everywhere. What better time for games like Van Helsing or Fantastic 4 to shake their moneymakers than when their companion films are still big news, burning brightly in people's minds? While this practice makes good money for game companies, it doesn't make good games. High Voltage's Charlie and the Chocolate Factory isn't meant for old fogeys like me; it's designed for children, which makes its technical flaws all the more disgusting.

Game Description: Explore deep inside the factory and play the story as Charlie Bucket. Find a Golden Ticket and, along with four other children, win a personal tour of Willy Wonka's factory guided by the notorious and reclusive candy maker himself. Explore the many extraordinary environments of the factory, including some from the book that do not appear in the film. Discover what happens after the other children, greed-driven and unrestrained, wreak havoc through the factory. Then save the chocolate factory from their destruction by solving mystifying puzzles and using inventive candy powers. By helping the Oompa-Loompas and restoring order to the factory, Charlie can earn the respect of Willy Wonka and win an unexpected prize!

Game Description: College is tough for Larry he's basically a pathetic loser who occasionally gets out and hits on chicks, but things always go horribly wrong. When a reality TV dating show comes to campus, Larry decides he's going to revitalize his life by winning the contest and proving once and for all that he can live up to the shining example set by his Old Uncle Larry. Follow Larry's hilarious exploits and misadventures in the wackiest college story ever.

According to ESRB, this game contains: Mature Humor, Strong Language, Strong Sexual Content, Use of Alcohol, Nudity

Do the ends justify the means? Regardless of the topic, it's a classic question that's been raised time and time again, and it usually has no clear solution. This moral puzzler sprang to mind after playing Leisure Suit Larry: Magna Cum Laude and seeing the sad, pathetic way it delivered genuinely enjoyable comedy. Like many others before me, I can't honestly say that I have a definite answer to the question, but after seeing this title to completion, I do have a pretty good guess.

The third Hunter title (and the second released in 2003) is essentially more of the supernaturally-tinged hack-and-slash action fans have come to expect from the series. Developer High Voltage Studios has apparently taken an "if it ain't tragically broke, don't fix it" approach to this title, and so the final results are at least somewhat mixed.

According to ESRB, this game contains: Blood and Gore, Violence

According to ESRB, this game contains: Blood and Gore, Violence

Wayward is a direct sequel to the first game in the series, which is interesting since PS2 owners never had access to the title. Undaunted, developer High Voltage picks up the story two years after the events in the first game. The evil that our four original hunters appeared to have vanquished in the town of Ashcroft seems to have come back for more.