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Retro Pocket Impressions (iOS)
I have very fond memories of playing old LCD games as a child. Whether it was a Game & Watch game or something like the copy of 1943 I had and played until the plastic wore out. There was a certain charm that those games had and I loved the challenge of them, even though they were pretty basic and you did the same thing every time you played them. I had a huge collection of them and still keep on the lookout today for good ones to add to my collection. Anytime McDonald’s has them in their kids meals I play them to see what they’re like (not great). There are people out there still trying to bring those old memories and the charm of the LCD game to life.
UFO Interactive is one such company that has recently released a number of LCD style games through their Retro Pocket lineup. On iOS they’re broken up into individual games that can be purchased for .99¢. I tried out a few of them to see how they were. Three games in particular were Candy Factory, Kung Fu and Fireman.
Star Wars Pinball Impressions
Zen Studios has released a number of tables over the last couple of years for their pinball platform Pinball FX (on the 360), Zen Pinball in other places. The tables have been a mix of original creations and also licensed themes such as Plants vs. Zombies, Rocky and Bullwinkle, Street Fighter as well as different super heroes. Regardless of the theme of the table they’ve always been of very high quality with tons of fun little secrets to find. Would Star Wars be filled with the same sense of wonder?
Pinball tables themed around the Star Wars franchise, by the same company that did the stellar Marvel themed tables a year ago? That sounds good to me. Let’s see what this is all about.
Demo Impressions: Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate
Monster Hunter. We’ve had a strange and winding relationship over the last few years. If you don’t know what I’m talking about read my preview of Monster Hunter Tri for the Wii and the response to that article. I thought the game on Wii demoed very poorly, maybe even terribly. I didn’t think it was very good at all and didn’t get me excited for the game. I found out from a number of Monster Hunter fans that there was WAY more stuff to do in the game than the demo showed off and that if you actually dive into the whole experience it can be rewarding. I didn’t get that sense from the demo, but I decided to try out the full game and I was glad that I did. I was a great experience; something that many games just don’t give you any more. It put you in charge of everything. Didn’t explain every mechanic in minute detail and had a huge of amount of content, quests, loot and monsters to experiment with.
Capcom recently released the demo of Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate on the 3DS and the Wii U. Since I have a 3DS I downloaded the demo and jumped into the experience. Even from the beginning I though this demo could be a problem. It essentially gave you the exact same things to do as with the demo on Wii, and not much else.
Etrian Odyssey IV: Legends of the Titan Demo Impresssions
If you’re as massively old as I am then you probably remember playing games like The Bard’s Tale on PC or Sword of Hope on the Game Boy. You also remember having stacks of paper next to you where you had meticulously mapped out every inch of the dungeons in those games so that you wouldn’t get lost. Unlike many RPGs at that time which used a top down perspective those games had you going through maze-like dungeons from a first person view. The Etrian Odyssey franchise is a throwback to those days and shows how that style of game might have evolved if they were being made today.
Atlus released a demo for Etrian Odyssey IV: Legends of the Titan on the 3DS eShop. This is my first foray into the franchise and I thought I’d chronicle my experiences with the demo. Let me just say I was not expecting what I was greeted with and I’m pleasantly surprised by my experience. How did I miss out on this series for so long? Read more…
Game & Watch Collection Impressions (DS)
I had to buy a lot of Nintendo stuff, and I somehow missed out on that Kirby medal, but I finally acquired the Game & Watch Collection from the Club Nintendo rewards program. Exclusive games are what really interest me with Club Nintendo. I’m not really into the shoelaces or the notepads. So far the only game rewards have been Grill Off With Ultra Hand!, Game & Watch Collection, Game & Watch Collection 2 and Doc Louis’ Punch-Out!!; the latter of which was a prize for achieving Platinum status. I am now saving my points for G&W Collection 2 by the way. It’s odd that these collections only have three games a piece on them while the G&W Gallery games ranged from four to 20 games. Also, several of the G&W Gallery games featured both classic and modern versions of the old handhelds they replicated. This collection does not. Regardless of past releases, G&W Collection is a nice package and a cool reward for those willing to save the points. It contains three G&W games; Oil Panic, Donkey Kong and Green House. Read more…
My Time With A Wii U Demo Station
I recently found out a number of stores in the Tulsa area received Wii U demo stations this past week and I headed down to GameStop to check it out. The following is an email I sent to the rest of the Nintendo Okie crew outlining my initial thoughts with the system.
I found out that the GameStop over at 71st and Memorial (not in the mall) had a Wii U demo station and I headed over there a few minutes ago on my lunch break to check it out. My goodness was I impressed. The controller itself, I thought, had some weight to it, but it wasn’t uncomfortable in any sense. I could hold it easily in one hand and use the touchscreen. They only had the Rayman Legends demo available, but I was much more impressed with that game based on the two levels that I played than I was with Rayman Origins. That Black Betty level was fantastic fun. Rhythm game/runner and it was a lot of fun.
I really liked the way that you interacted with the game through traditional gameplay and using the screen to do different things. The different ways that they used touch and tilt on the GamePad along with the game on the TV was interesting and I could see that being a lot of fun. It didn’t allow for off TV play, but I can only imagine that there are going to be a lot of times that you have to use the GamePad in addition to the TV so that would essentially be impossible with a game like that.
The sticks were good. They controller fit perfectly into my hands and all of the buttons as well as the touchscreen were easy to reach. The only thing that’s going to be weird is having to remember to move your hands up for the right stick rather than down like we’ve been trained for so many years, but I think that would just come with time.
Overall, really impressed with the limited amount of time I had with it (about 15 minutes). Hopefully they’ll have some more demos available soon so that I can see how some different games are going to play
So early on I’m fairly impressed with the hardware itself and the one game demo I got a chance to play. Due to financial considerations I won’t be able to get my own system until February and it’s going to be a long wait.
Toki Tori Review (3DS VC)
Toki Tori is a puzzle-platformer originally released back in 2001 for the Game Boy Color. Now, thanks to the wonders of the Virtual Console, we can jump back in time and get our hands on a game we probably overlooked eleven years ago…
What You Need To Know
Toki Tori may be a chicken but he’s no coward! All of his brothers and sisters have been eggnapped and he needs you to help find them all. You and Toki will travel through four worlds full of danger and tons of obstacles, but it’s all worth it when you realize it’s his family that’s on the line! The goal of each level is to collect all the eggs in each screen while keeping Toki Tori safe from traps, monsters and running out of time.
Castlevania: The Adventure (3DS VC)
Castlevania is one of the longest running video game franchises in history. To date it’s seen about 83 jillion releases across eleventy-billion platforms (okay, It’s more like 38 unique titles). The game has a huge following and has stayed mostly true to its origins, with some exceptions. It’s been the basis of a whole genre, along with another NES classic Metroid, and numerous games that come out today are compared to it. Castlevania: The Adventure was the first game to appear on Nintendo’s handheld, the Game Boy. While the structure was similar to that of its NES predecessors it does make some changes to the formula. How will the game hold up more than 20 years after it’s original release?
What You Need to Know
Castlevania: The Adventure takes place 100 years before the original game and follows the story of Simon Belmont’s ancestor, Christopher Belmont. There are four stages that can be quite lengthy. Unlike its NES counterpart there are no sub-weapons that can be used and the hearts you will find restore Christopher’s health. You’ve also got a time limit on each level to contend with, so keep moving.
The Denpa Men: They Came by Wave Impressions
The “Denpa” Men: They Came by Wave is one of those games that would only come out of Japan. It’s got a bizarre visual style and is very reminiscent of games like Dragon Quest and Pokemon. That would make sense considering the company that developed the game, Genius Sonority, is owned by Nintendo and has developed a number of spin-off games in the Pokemon franchise as well as Dragon Quest Swords for Wii. Read more…
Plants vs. Zombies Pinball Impressions (XBLA)
What do you get when representatives from Zen Studios and PopCap Games meet over lunch during GDC 2012? Well, you get a pitch for Plants vs. Zombies pinball, of course. The game was actually pitched by a member of PopCap Studios’ development team and was given the green light as long as no time was wasted developing a pinball engine. It just so happens that Zen Studios has such an engine and so the partnership was formed.
I can’t tell you just how excited I was that this table was announced. It was teased a few weeks ago with some of the most likely candidates for a PopCap themed table being PvZ, Peggle or Bejeweled. The latter two being the more obvious choices as those games have mechanics that might be more suited to a pinball table. I think it’s hard to argue with just how popular Plants vs. Zombies actually is and now we have a table based on the popular lawn defense game.
Donkey Kong Country Returns 3D (3DS)
Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate (Wii U, 3DS)
Super Little Acorns 3D Turbo (3DS)
Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Gates to Infinity (3DS)
Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed (PS3)
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