Shank

So I got the itch for some side-scroller, beat-em-up, simple, linear action.

Shank met that desire for a scratch with a blood stained shiv. Everything from stabbing people in the face, shotgunning people in the face, or impaling them with the various sharp objects you easily hold on your back. Oh, and you can throw people off cliffs, which I resort to if I'm trying to replay an area quick, because I died, or if something is lobbing grenades at me.So without a question, the gameplay was solid.

The controls were a little finicky at times (aiming up in particular), but once you got used to their nuances, it wasn't a big deal. Just plug in the 360 controller, and go crazy.

The story was good enough to keep me thinking without having to go too deep. Yep, people are going to kill you, but you have pointy things to stop them. If only you could remove the required number of gallons of blood from their body so they stop getting up... but how...

The boss fights were really unique and interesting. I died multiple times at almost every boss fight, but since there was learning to be done (and obvious hints given to you after multiple deaths), I got past them eventually.

For game length, it took just shy of four hours for me to beat the entire game, which was fine by me. I came to this game with an itch, and left quite satisfied.

I would definitely recommend it, and have already queued the second one on my list for a good playthrough when the itch comes back.