Alex Martinet

SJSU News • 2nd May 2018

Rock band tries to find its identity

Heavy metal music isn’t everyone’s cup of tea and there are few bands that embrace the early 2000’s rock sound, but after 16 years, the “Ember” still burns for Breaking Benjamin in their latest album.

SJSU News • 17th April 2018

‘Jones’ second season is a sophomore slump

Season two of “Jessica Jones” opts to provide an origin story for our favorite super-powered alcoholic detective. It questions the idea that superheroes have to be perfect to be heroic. It’s a great idea that is fumbled with new additions that are ultimately unnecessary and become an afterthought for a once great show.

SJSU News • 4th April 2018

‘MLB The Show 18’ lacks new additions

“MLB The Show” has been one of the safest bets for sports video game fans, but....

SJSU News • 4th April 2018

‘Boarding House Reach’ shows juxtaposed Jack White

Jack White, singer-songwriter producer who is probably most known as part of the rock duo The White Stripes, released his third solo album tit…

SJSU News • 8th February 2018

‘UFC 3’ is a realistic recreation of MMA

It took three attempts, but with the additions to the story and multiplayer modes, Electronic Arts has solidified “UFC 3” as a solid contender.

SJSU News • 5th February 2018

‘FighterZ’ is nostalgically similar to original show

This is how you balance making a fighting game and fan service.

Victory Point • 14th September 2017

NHL 18 Review: Seek & Destroy

EA Sports’ NHL pillar has been underrated this console generation after a slow and brutal start after NHL 15, but slowly EA Sports has add features on top of a strong core game to make this one of the fine-tuned NHL games. There is a lot of fan service requested features that finally make their way into the game. While I think it might not be on the same level of attention like FIFA and Madden, the new additions help to make NHL 18 more competitive and enjoyable across the board.

Victory Point • 17th August 2017

Madden 18 Review: Contender

Madden NFL 18 continues to find ways of refining even after 25 plus years in the football gridiron. With the franchise using the frostbite engine, this is the best looking version of the game to date that showcases a new narrative focused side to the series that we haven’t seen before. While they’re a few sacks along the way, EA Sports have once again made another stellar version of Madden. Since NBA 2K11 began the MyCareer incitive, which allowed players to create a player and play him through

RIFF Magazine • 22nd June 2017

Review: Imagine Dragons switch up the game plan with 'Evolve' - RIFF

If you were holding out hope Imagine Dragons would course correct after Smoke and Mirrors, then you will probably be disappointed with the latest offering by the Las Vegas band. With EDM-like beats set to random pulses of the electric guitar, Evolve, cannot decide if it wants to be pop or rock, and ends up doing neither well. “Believer” is a solid hit, and it deserves all the attention it’s been getting. This track has stellar production, with frontman Dan Reynolds’ vocals at the forefront when

RIFF Magazine • 16th June 2017

Review: Royal Blood supercharges 'How Did We Get So Dark?' - RIFF

On How Did We Get So Dark?, English hard rock duo Royal Blood aspires for rambunctious bombast, which unfortunately goes nowhere. The drums and bass outfit carries the heavy and deep influences of the Queens of the Stone Age and the White Stripes. The band follows a similar approach to the Black Keys, but has a rougher edge thanks to singer-bassist Mike Kerr and the pistol-like drumming of Ben Thatcher. Royal Blood has kept its gritty, edgy roots with Jolyon Thomas returning to produce the follo

RIFF Magazine • 30th May 2017

Review, photos: Modest Mouse plays deep cuts at the Masonic - RIFF

SAN FRANCISCO — Modest Mouse mixed new and old material throughout the band’s two-hour set Saturday at the Masonic, but the final setlist left some fans wanting more. The show concluded a two-day tour in the San Francisco Bay Area.

RIFF Magazine • 3rd May 2017

Review: Black Lips offer varied platter of flavors on 'Satan's Graffiti' - RIFF

Satan’s Graffiti or God’s Art marks a new direction for the Black Lips. The flower punk group has been reduced to the core duo of Cole Alexander and Jared Swilley, working alongside producer Sean Lennon. The group has kept the gritty, edgy garage roots that were a staple from the beginning, and added levity with Zumi Rosow on saxophone, and Oakley Munson on drums. For this reason, the first half of the album is the Black Lips trying to create a new musical identity with the new contributors. Th

Victory Point • 23rd August 2016

Madden NFL 17 Review: Commitment To Excellence

EA Sports is back at it again with another installment in the Madden series. This time around the title has listened to the community by finally delivering on features long promised, rebalancing special teams, and return of Ultimate Team and Draft Champions. For the third straight year, Madden NFL 17 is a blast to play. With enhancements in presentation, dramatic improvements have been made to Franchise mode, where players have the ability to take over a team, coach the sidelines or dominate th

Victory Point • 22nd February 2016

Far Cry Primal Review: Into The Wild

Far Cry Primal takes the series back to the very beginning of man’s history. It’s set in 10,000 BC, slap bang in the middle of the Stone Age, taking the premise of Far Cry right back to the earliest of human struggles.

Victory Point • 22nd February 2016

Far Cry Primal Review: Into The Wild

Far Cry Primal takes the series back to the very beginning of man’s history. It’s set in 10,000 BC, slap bang in the middle of the Stone Age, taking the premise of Far Cry right back to the earliest of human struggles.

Victory Point • 26th August 2015

Gears of War Ultimate Edition Review: Missing Pieces

It’s easy to forget how few games were available when the Xbox 360 first released. There was nothing groundbreaking, nothing you had to keep playing if you were an early adopter, and survived the overblown Xbox 360 red ring of death crisis in 2005, the year the system launched.

Victory Point • 7th April 2015

MLB 15: The Show Review: Grand Slam

MLB 15: The Show is a great baseball outing by learning from previous mistakes. It returns all modes along with the fundamental hitting, and pitching that made it the baseball series on the market. The newest additions are more about tuning the back end to make the experience more unison. The result is one of the best sports titles to release, and has the chance to become the baseball equivalent to NFL 2K.

GamerHub.TV • 1st August 2012

Medal of Honor Warfighter: Immediate Discharge From Service

Back in 2010, Medal of Honor released to the public, attempting to portray real-life military operations in Afghanistan in the Shahakot Mountains. The product failed to live up to expectations, pushing the team to go back to the drawing board. Medal of Honor: Warfighter is the next installment in the franchise and it’s once again inspired by real-world events about global terrorism. Danger Close, the developer behind the game, aims to soar high in Warfighter by featuring Tier 1 units from around