Metareview: Steel Battalion: Heavy Armor

Only the majestic tone of the illustrious George Takei could sum up Steel Battalion: Heavy Armor's reviews so far: "Oh my!" In our two-star review we retreated back to the Kinect game classic "It's great, when it works," but at least we seem to have scraped some functionality out of the game. Prepare thyself, for only darkness is found beyond here.

• OXM (75/100): "Steel Battalion: Heavy Armor isn't for everyone. In fact, some people may be more turned off by the potential for error in its Kinect controls than by the Xbox version's overbearing, multi-button controller ... War has never been this intense, and you should try to take part."

• Destructoid (30/100): "At its core, it's a basic mech game with a "realistic and gritty" feel to it that you've seen a million times before. Maybe at some point, the Kinect requirement can be patched out of it. Until then, piloting these Vertical Tanks even while sober may result in a loss of brain cells."

• Game Informer (30/100): "The mech-combat genre isn't overflowing with alternatives, but they do exist. Save yourself the aggravation and pick any one of those. You won't do any worse."

• IGN (30/100): "Heavy Armor might be Kinect's most spectacular failure, but it's precisely because it's so ambitious. ... Steel Battalion: Heavy Armor deserves a lot of credit for sticking its neck out in an effort to craft a fresh videogame experience. It's one of the best ideas on Xbox this year, but ultimately it's also one of the system's worst games."

• Polygon (10/100): "I was never able to shake the feeling of watching through a window while someone else played Steel Battalion: Heavy Armor as I shouted suggestions and waved frantically, hoping they'd notice me. So, how is Steel Battalion: Heavy Armor as a game? I honestly have no clue. You'd have to ask the guy in the other room."

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