Blimey, is it April already? That’s already one quarter of the year swept under the carpet — but still, what a cracking three months it’s been. Frankly, given the sumptuous software line-up we’ve seen since January, one might feel that inevitably things would settle down as we roll into spring. Quite the contrary, in fact, as March left us skint once again following a barrage of quality games spanning a diverse range of genres, from stonking shooters to sprawling RPGs. While overshadowed somewhat by the launch of Nintendo’s swanky 3DS, last month offered some right corkers to say the least.
For starters, we got the superb follow-up to BioWare’s fantasy romp Dragon Age: Origins, the sci-fi spectacle Crysis 2 from Crytek, and the vibrant, curiously-named platform romp de Blob 2. Yep, these are the frat boys of the gaming world, the chisel-jawed, pec-tastic giants looking to dazzle you with their eye-popping aesthetics and substantial pulling power. And to be fair, they’ve got a lot going for them. As always, however, there’s a couple of less obvious gems hidden amongst the crowd, lurking behind all the ostentatious flaunting like an introverted high-school geek just waiting for a chance to shine. Top Spin 4, The 3rd Birthday, and Dissidia 012: Final Fantasy fill this slot admirably.
Still, there’s only one winner, and plucking March’s Golden Boy from the pack proved a bit of a head scratcher on our part. We all mucked in on the decision and, after much gum-flapping, singled out Top Spin 4 out for our March 2011 Game of the Month accolade. Yep, the underdog has it in the bag. Why? Simple: Top Spin 4 caters superbly to both the hardcore and casual Tennis fan, offering a combination of an authentic and streamlined interpretation of the sport. Not only that, but its comprehensive career mode and online component will ensure you’ll be serving up many matches for weeks, if not months to come. Oh, and it also gives you an excuse to get your waggle on by offering a more than adequate PlayStation Move experience to boot.
Read a snippet of our review below.
"Top Spin 4 is a great step for tennis video games, cleverly joining an authentic experience with a streamlined approach to the gameplay," writes U.S. Editor Adam Dolge. "The addition of Move offers yet another reason to own Sony’s motion controller and true-to-life play style only raises the bar for the series’ competition. There is plenty to offer hardcore and casual tennis fans, and above all it’s easy to learn and fun to play — what else could you ask for from a video game?"
Don’t agree with our choice? Be sure to let us know what title you feel deserves the title of Game of the Month in the comments section below.