It was also listed as the 19th most important video game of all time by 1UP. com.

" Nickolai Adkins of 1UP also noted how much of the scenario and plot elements in Metal Gear 2 were recycled in Metal Gear Solid, ranging from " Snake emerging from “ retirement ” to rescue a kidnapped non-soldier personnel " in the beginning to " an escape sequence where Snake is accompanied by his female accomplice / love interest " at the end.

Bleszinski also lists his interests on his 1UP. com page, citing Donnie Darko and 21 Grams amongst his favorite films, with Choke and Stupid White Men as some of his favorite books.

1UP. com's Che Chou also praised the multiplayer, but observed that " constantly roll-dodging to avoid enemy fire at close range combined with the exceptionally slow movement speed of your character ... can occasionally be highly frustrating for beginners.

EGM Live * also had a weekly trivia contest, which featured a randomly selected 1UP. com member who answered their question.

In 2012, GameFront ranked her " Stripped Down " Fatality from Mortal Kombat 2011 as the third best in the series, while her " Stripped Down " was included on the list of the best Fatalities in MK2011 by 1UP. com, and her other Fatality was also ranked as the ninth best in this game by Paste.

IGN staff writer Matt Casamassina, 1UP. com staff writer Greg Sewart, Game Informer, X-Play, GameSpy, and London's The Times also criticized the mechanics of Shadow's weapons, vehicles, and other aspects of the game's controls.

It was also given awards for Best Adventure Game from the Game Critics Awards, X-Play, IGN, GameTrailers, 1UP. com, and Nintendo Power.

Launched in 2003, 1UP. com provides its own original features, news stories, game reviews, and video interviews ; it also expands on articles in EGM and features comprehensive PC-focused content ( an extension of the previously published Games for Windows: The Official Magazine ).

The RPG elements has also been praised, with 1UP saying " simple act of leveling up is addictive in itself " and according to EGM " all the extraneous questing, character building, and item collecting just works.

" The results also pleased 1UP. com, which was convinced that fans of The Lord of the Rings could not afford to miss purchasing the game.

1UP. com also picked up on this, adding that Blue Dragon was missing " strong characters, gripping storytelling, and excellent pacing ".

GameSpot criticized this mechanism and called it " a scavenger hunt much tougher than the rest of the game ", and 1UP. com said that the only purpose it served was to artificially extend the game's length.

It has been criticized for the lack of an online mode though 1UP. com still praised it.

1UP. com's Patrick Klepek criticized Nintendo for releasing only this and Baseball in one week, calling both poor games.

While reviewing Mega Man X: Command Mission, 1UP. com criticized that during parts from the game players are unable to use Zero and that his English voice acting makes him " sound like a surfer ".

A 2009 1UP. com review heavily criticized the gameplay of the game.

It is likewise criticized by fans and reviewers for subpar graphics, unrealistic damage, and not making the strides to the series NASCAR 2005: Chase for the Cup did ; John Davidson, a reviewer on 1UP, called the features " gratuitous " and believes that they " provide a constant feeling of detachment " from the racing experience.

1UP. com, when reviewing Joker, noted that " the Monsters series has always felt like it belongs in the Dragon Quest universe first and foremost ; it's more than a bunch of bastardized Pokéclones.

1UP. com staff listed the battle with Giygas as one of the 25 best boss battles, describing it as an " insane end to an insane game ".

1UP. com editor Jeremy Parish used the final battle against Giygas as an example of how EarthBound inverts gamers ' expectations, due to the fact that the player characters employ prayer as opposed to their strongest attacks.

1UP. com have credited the use of Mode 7 with giving the game graphics which at the time of release were considered to be " breathtaking ".

While 1UP. com notes that the game's " color-matching action is more engrossing than Mario Bros .' turtle-punching platform hopping ", the reviewer strongly questions whether this re-release is worth its sale price by itself when a version of Dr. Mario was included in another Game Boy Advance game, WarioWare, Inc .: Mega Microgames !.

In Japan, the genre's beginning can be traced to Bokosuka Wars ( 1983 ), an early strategy RPG ( or " simulation RPG "); the game revolves around the player leading an army across a battlefield against enemy forces in real-time while recruiting / spawning soldiers along the way, for which it is considered by Ray Barnholt of 1UP. com to be an early prototype real-time strategy game.

" 1UP. com editor Jeremy Parish stated that Bowser makes the game, describing him as more interesting than Bowser's Inside Story predecessor's partners, the baby forms of Mario and Luigi.

1UP. com listed him as the most " Gracelessly Aging Character ", citing the fact that the original Donkey Kong from the arcade game eventually became Cranky Kong.

" In 2011, Kurt Kalata ( of 1UP and Gamasutra ) stated that it is " remarkable " that " years after Shenmues release, the game's environments are still some of the best to come out of any video game ever.

The game is counted by 1UP. com as one of the first games to have brought a series of 2D games into full 3D.

In All RPG's review of the game, the graphics were described as " horrid ," while Nintendojo and 1UP enjoyed them, with 1UP going so far as to say " regardless of what anyone tells you, the graphics are awesome.

Rowan Kaiser of 1UP. com, who placed the game 53rd on " The 60 Most Influential Games of All Time ", pointed out that the game " paved the way for the later popularity of Halo, Call of Duty, and more ".

Sonic Team's Takashi Iizuka stated in an interview with video game publication 1UP. com that Chao were incorporated into Sonic Adventure " so that new players would be forced to go out, explore the action sections, and find Flickies and things.

Shiryou Sensen: War of the Dead, a 1987 title developed by Fun Factory and published by Victor Music Industries for the MSX2, PC-88 and PC Engine platforms, is considered the first true survival horror game by Kevin Gifford ( of GamePro and 1UP ) and John Szczepaniak ( of Retro Gamer and The Escapist ).

Jeremy Parish of 1UP. com was particularly critical of the game.

1UP. com's Kat Bailey commented that the game helped establish the series as a prominent and commercially successful video game franchise.

Numerous video game journalists and enthusiasts including Thomas, Craig Skistimas of ScrewAttack, GameSpot editors Christian Nutt and Justin Speer, and 1UP. com's Jeremy Parish, refer to the fourth installment as a turning point for the quality of titles in the Mega Man series.

" 1UP. com included it on its poll of the least popular video game characters ; it won in the first round, and lost in the second.

Conversely, 1UP. com would describe the game as " much better than you might be led to believe by the negative reviews it garned back in the day.

" 1UP. com agreed, stating " the game plays like classic Sonic games ", and " visually, Sonic Advance 2 is vibrant and colorful ".

1UP. com's 2007 game awards, which ran in the March 2008 issue of Electronic Gaming Monthly, included Persona 3, given the award for " Most controversial game that created no controversy ".

1UP. com noted that while the set up to get the e-Reader features was complicated, it was worth it.

1UP. com named the battle against Nemesis one of the " 25 of the Most Badass Boss Fights of All Time ", saying " There are plenty of bosses worth mentioning from the Resident Evil series ... but the one that to this day most people point to as the biggest badass of the bunch is Nemesis ".