Blackadder II Miis, because I’ve been watching Blackadder. I figured just him and Baldrick would do, and I’m happy with how they turned out. Not enough beard options with Miis, but I figured the second series characters are the most iconic. Feel free to use them yourself, if you like. And let me know if you make a good Elizabeth I.
Subjective game reviews, comic translations, pixel art, and other video game bits & bobs.
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February 8, 2015
February 6, 2015
I was watching an episode of Saturday Supercade’s Donkey Kong show (don’t judge me) and noticed a striking similarity between Mario & Pauline’s circus van and the Mystery Machine. Then I found out that they were both made by Ruby-Spears. Jinkies! Pop culture confluence at its finest stupidest.
February 4, 2015
I heard recently that Stanley the Bugman is never referred to as Stanley the Bugman. I present as evidence the manual to Donkey Kong 3, the NES version.
Also quick update for Rayman fans: trying to get Tonic Trouble cooperating with my computer broke me this week, and I’m working on another project for a bit. More Rayman will be coming later.
February 1, 2015
[Review] Rayman 2 Forever (GBC)
Like the first game, Rayman 2 had its portable equivalent on the Game Boy Color. It’s a pretty good conversion, capturing the atmosphere of its counterpart well. I also feel that it improves on the foundation of the first GBC game, giving us an enjoyable product.
Firstly, it looks great. The pixelart is nice and while the cutscenes are very derpy the game itself uses colour well to make a gloomy atmosphere and the important bits like items stand out (for the most part; I missed a switch a couple of times). Switches are new and give the game a bit more depth than a straight obstacle course, but the level design is actually more straightforward and while it’s cleverly arranged it’s usually easy to tell what to do next, which is a good thing. The exception is the last few levels that turn into big mazes, but that’s fine as a break and final challenge.
The sound is… pretty much the same as the last GBC instalment, as that one’s soundtrack was based on Rayman 2 already. No complaints, but now that I’ve refamiliarised myself with the source the delightfully chippy tunes are even better (if a little repetitive). What’s not repetitive (segue eh?) is the levels and environments, which do a good job changing up the type of challenge and the look.
While the tone and environments are carried over well from the console game, sadly not everything made the 8-bit cut. A notable lack is the enemies, with only two actual Robo-Pirates appearing in the whole game. Two! One is a miniboss (as seen in the fourth screenshot), and the next is supposed to be Razorbeard I think, despite looking and acting identically to the earlier one. We have Zombie Chickens, spiders, crabs, and barrels, and apart from that a few returning Rayman 1 GBC enemies (red bats and the rare Antitoon), but I felt the primary threat of the game was not very present—the main representation of the pirates is a ton of flying bombs. No Jano either.
I think this game did a good job replicating Rayman 2 into a 2D sidescroller on the GBC. It’s also a fun game in itself, and I got to 100% (the reward is underwhelming), which wasn’t even too hard because of the linearity of the levels. I’d recommend it, it builds on Rayman 1 GBC and improves on it, in design and also the use of saves instead of passwords. According to the credits it was made by a different team, but using the same engine and some shared assets the result was better. Which goes to show the importance of design, or something.
Next up is Rayman M/Arena/Rush. That is, unless I can get Tonic Trouble working. It’s been a nightmare setting that up, you can’t buy it, and running a Windows emulator and finding the iso has been a pain. There’s the released game and also the beta “Special Edition”, not to mention the N64 version (unfortunately there’s no decent N64 emulator for Mac). At least I can play Tonic Trouble GBC without any issues. Well, see you soon, same Ray-time, same Ray-channel.
January 26, 2015
Here’s the only official Rayman comic (as far as I know). It was done for a special issue of the Disney Adventures magazine in “Winter 2000”, although it was also printed in the UK’s equivalent Disney’s Big Time in 2001 (the print presented here is the UK one, which has a blue background as opposed to white). It was a gaming-themed issue and also included comics for Donkey Kong 64, Ape Escape, and Crash Team Racing.
The comic itself is obviously based on Rayman 2, with Ray going against Razorbeard and his Robo-Pirates with the help of Globox and Ly. The art is fun if a little wonky here and there, but the script is pretty uninspired, simplistic and exclusively reliant on puns for humour. It doesn’t really add anything to the universe either, but at least Globox doesn’t talk like a big dumb-dumb.
After the Rayman series was undermined by Rabbids, there were a number of Rabbids comics, but by that point they’d mostly divorced themselves from their Rayman origins (so to speak). The only other adaptation for Rayman was the animated series, which is pretty much an alternate continuity for the second game, it seems. More on that later.
January 25, 2015
[Review] Rayman 2: The Great Escape (PS1)
Having explored, more or less, the Rayman 1 era of games, it’s time to move on to the next stage of the series. Rayman 2 famously was a big departure from the first game, with a darker, more realistic tone and 3D gameplay. One of the perks of the PS1 port that I chose to play is an unlockable level that’s purported to be a prototype of the original Rayman 2, using the engine, look, and playstyle of Rayman 1 but introducing new gimmicks, new antagonists and a new pre-rendered sprite style for some elements. It also seems to feature the industrialisation theme that was eventually carried through to the final game. The single level is basic and straightforward but crammed with a lot of ideas that would have gone into the game, including the “moving into the background” thing that maybe Abe’s Oddysee did first?
Anyway, the final product is much more different to Rayman 1 than this prototype. An entirely new cast of characters save for Rayman himself, although again unique to this PS1 version the Antitoons make a return as random enemies, despite the Electoons themselves being nowhere to be seen. A different playstyle, with a focus on linear 3D platforming with combat setpieces, and collectibles hidden in crannies. A much less whimsical game, R2 has a dark fantasy theme, with the magical denizens of the world being oppressed by alien robot pirate invaders. Humour is still there with the characters Globox and the Teensies, but the environments and music are a bit gloomier in general, though still with splashes of colour and more adventurous tunes. It has a unique identity that enriches Rayman’s world, especially when its additions get mixed into the delightful Origins later on.
Now long-time readers may remember that I’ve actually played this game before. The original release for the N64 and PC was enhanced graphically for the Dreamcast, with a few minigames added and a few level changes. Most latter-day ports, including for DS and iOS, are based on the Dreamcast version (sans additional minigames). However, late in the same year (2000) it was also ported to the PS1 and PS2, with more significant differences. Both added full voice acting, and the PS1 version shortened and cut levels, while the PS2 one lengthened and added some. There’s also unique extras such as the bonus prototype I mentioned, and the additional enemies. The PS1 port also has more interesting characters to rescue from the cages, with little dinosaurs, fairies, and greenbottles (Murfy’s species, although he himself doesn’t appear in the game). The PS2 port on the other hand has three hubworld areas to access levels from, replacing the map screen other versions share.
The PS2 one having more content, I wanted to play that, but couldn’t get the PS2 emulator working. As a second choice, the PS1 port with its many differences seemed a good way to re-experience the game and see what’s been changed. For a start, the graphics are quite poor. Lots of aliasing and low-res textures, but that’s to be expected. The voice acting’s pretty cheesy and generic, and brings up inconsistencies with pronunciation: Raym'n or Rayman? They say “Lumm” but the Origins manual explicitly says that it’s said like “Loom”. Ly the fairy is pronounced Li, while perusing a Japanese subtitled playthrough, they seem to express it as Lai. I also found I was pronouncing Polokus wrong, or was I? There seems to be no consistency, so maybe I should just go with whatever I want.
Enough nitpicking though. The content cuts are actually significant and result in an inferior version. I mean, if you want to play through quicker and see the unique things it’s not a bad option, but there were definitely parts I missed or noticed the lack of, like parts of Tomb of the Ancients or the whole Robot Dinosaur chase. The final phase of Razorbeard’s Grolgoth is also different, although I actually prefer the endless scrolling 3D shooter style to the original’s navigating the enclosed cavern, which led to many deaths in my original playthrough.
On the whole I had a good time with this version compared to my iOS play. Those touchscreen controls really are no substitute, and having a larger (although worse looking screen) was better for the platforming. But still, it’s not a stellar 3D platformer; although remembered fondly by many and with good ideas and atmosphere, the gameplay is not always up to scratch. The level design is just ok, the health system is good, but the whole engine just seems a little shaky. Maybe one day I’ll finally play the PS2 version and see the full potential of the game (or the Dreamcast one, which some people insist is definitive).
For now though, I’ve reacquainted myself with the world presented in Rayman 2, and I’m ready to see what its many spinoffs will offer me. Here’s what we have to look forward to: Rayman 2 Forever (GBC), the multiplayer spinoffs (M, Arena, and Rush… all the same game with differences based on which port it is), Tonic Trouble—the game that served as a prototype for R2’s engine and which crosses over with it slightly—and its GBC version, and finally I’ll also watch the animated series that only has 4 episodes. Some of the educational games are also based wholly or partially on Rayman 2, but I talked about those and I don’t plan on playing them. So look forward to all that, Rayman fans!
January 24, 2015
Rayman Mobile Games, Part 1
Before starting on Rayman 2, there’s one more small area still to cover that I forgot about. Around 2002, there were three Rayman games released on mobile phones. You know when phones used to suck and you could play games with the keypad? Well here’s a hint, it doesn’t always make for an awesome gameplay experience. Also music is either nonexistent or it plays one very short loop and then silence.
1. Rayman Garden
Nobody knows anything about this game. It was some kind of maze or puzzle game. There are no ROM dumps, and according to a Rayman forum I skimmed, the only way to get it is to buy an old phone from an online shop that has it pre-installed. But the wiki has this screenshot, and says that you have to escape Bad Rayman. Thankfully it’s not the very last Rayman 1-inspired game released. That honour falls to…
2. Rayman Bowling
We know more about the latter two games on this list, and we have ROM dumps so you can even play them. There’s multiple versions of both; in addition to refactored versions for different screen heights, there’s a monochrome one for older phones and a pretty full colour one for your fancy feature phones. Much like Rayman 1 GBC and some of the educational games, this mixes in Rayman’s design from 2 (and partially 3) with environments from 1—I call it a spinoff of Rayman 1 because that’s the origin of almost all the game except his design. You can see more screenshots here, with most of the locations from R1 being represented, even with appropriate hazards to get in the way of your bowling. As a result, it feels faithful and adds some variety to this rather boring virtual bowling simulator. There’s a few steps to throw the ball, with position, spin, aim, and power needing to be done with good timing, which makes it hard to pull off, but it wasn’t too hard to get the scores needed to unlock levels.
3. Rayman Golf
I love that Rayman has these sports spinoffs—just like Mario!—but they’re merely cheap mobile phone games that Gameloft spat out. Poor guy. This controls slightly worse than Bowling, and since golf is such a precision sport, I ended up with a quintuple bogey on the first hole. That aim modifier is super fiddly. It’s also very easy to overshoot or hit a ball askew into a water trap, so you end up with a less exciting experience. The environment is also very generic, a simple grassy forest with pretty much no connection to anything in Rayman’s world. So really, it’s not a Rayman 1 spinoff in particular, but since it was released alongside Bowling, I count it here. Like Bowling, it came in mono and colour versions. Not much more to say, really.
It’s not too hard to play these mobile games nowadays. If you can find a ROM on a skeezy site, get a java-based phone emulator, set up a controller to put the crazy number controls onto a usable button layout, configure the screen so you can see it better… then you just have to deal with badly programmed games with loose controls for a system that isn’t suited for them. So unless there’s something unique or special about them, or you really care about the characters in this case, or maybe you just want to play every bowling simulator ever made, then it’s probably not worth going to the trouble. The screenshots in Rayman wiki may be enough for you. Having said that, Bowling is the best of this small bunch with its obstacle course lanes and its strong Rayman connections, but that’s not saying much.
January 21, 2015
Rayman Educational Games
I’ve been hesitant to talk about these games, simply because they’re not terribly well documented on the Internet, or at least would require more research than I have done. I’m satisfied to be able to talk about them briefly though, based on the Rayman Pirate Community’s wiki and various YouTube videos showing the games themselves (thanks to Eshap and bekyjewell). The information here is as far as I could grok it; it may not be entirely accurate.
So there’s essentially five major releases in the “educational” sub-series of Rayman games. They’re mostly based on the aesthetics of the first game, with a few exceptions. They’re interesting though and generally add some significant things to that universe, including new characters, and also feature voice acting ranging from cheesy to bland to actually quite good. In chronological order, then:
1. Rayman Junior/Rayman Brain Games/Maths & English with Rayman/Amazing Learning Games with Rayman
Released in 1996 for the Playstation 1 and DOS, Rayman Junior sticks very close to Rayman 1’s formula. It shares the mechanics, the UI, the platforming, and the world map. What it adds is voice acting, a new plot with intro and ending FMVs, and a loose “educational” theme that involves you interacting with numbers and letters. Said interaction is by way of Rayman’s normal techniques: platforming, punching, and so on, along with enemies and obstacles ripped straight from Rayman 1. It seems easier but is built directly on Rayman 1’s engine, so any problems I had with its gameplay are carried over. The plot is straightforward: Mr. Dark has stolen the secrets from a magic book that the Magician is supposed to be guarding, so he and Betilla ask Rayman to get them back, which is presumably what all the letters and numbers are about.
2. English with Rayman/French with Rayman
The second edutainment release in 1997 had multiple alternate versions, based on region. This has bearing on the Rayman universe: in English-speaking countries, the game was French with Rayman and involved the Magician getting Rayman’s help to decipher a recipe his French cousin Pierre sent him. He has to learn French to read the formula, giving the game more of a clear focus and goal and arguably being more educational in teaching you vocabulary and so on. It’s still heavily based on the locations and mechanics of Rayman 1, much like Rayman Junior, but the world map is new, strangely incorporating landmarks from our world, in addition to the references to France which are obviously included. It’s conceivable that these are mere analogues to the locations we know that were incorporated into the Glade of Dreams… with Polokus, anything’s possible.
Getting back to the regional differences though: the release in France and other regions was called English with Rayman and required Rayman to translate a letter from the Magician’s English cousin Andrew. So, how to reconcile this? Mere localisation choices? No sir, we have here two different magicians speaking corresponding languages. I propose that there are two alternate universes: if you speak French, then your Rayman games take place in a world where French Rayman associates with a French Magician named Pierre, and if you speak English, then your Magician is named Andrew. Two Magicians, one Rayman. It makes sense, and my long-ago discussed theory about their mutual demise by Rayman 2 holds (sorry, Magicians).
3. Rayman Dictées
Not related to Rayman 1 at all, 1998’s Dictées for PC (only available in French) uses Rayman’s design from 2 and curiously, is largely based on another French edutainment game called Tim 7’s Adventures, making this a crossover of sorts. Gameplay footage is scarce but it appears to be in point and click adventure style with pre-rendered CG backgrounds and FMVs, leading to typing-related games and tasks. It’s most well known for its CG intro showing Rayman’s house and his interactions with human characters. These characters are all native to the other game I mentioned, so strictly speaking Clara the Witch, Patrick, Landra, Dr Gaaf, Sam, some other guy, a dog, and Tim (who does not appear in the intro but drives the plot) are not Rayman universe characters. Makes it easier to keep track of Rayman lore, at least.
4. Rayman Activity Centre/Rayman Maternelle/Rayman CP
These three releases from around 1999 are linked and share many elements and minigames, but also have their differences. The French versions were published with the branding of Accompagnement Scolaire, which some editions of Dictées shared. Along with the next game down (Rayman Premier Clics for 2-4 year olds), they cover a range of ages: Maternelles for ages 4-6, CP for 6-7, and Dictées for 9-10. Maternelles and CP (which I think refer to age groups) are more closely linked, though, and were likely developed simultaneously.
Activity Centre was released for English speakers, and features a point and click interface to access various minigames of dubious educational value. The aesthetic is heavily Rayman 1, and introduces new characters who are members of enemy classes from the first game: a clown and one of the Band Land insects. Betilla is the main contact to help you and introduce the game.
Maternelle and CP, on the other hand, have shifted the branding somewhat, with some aesthetic elements from Rayman 2 and even the short-lived animated series that was based on 2, while still retaining much of the look and minigames based on Rayman 1. They share some minigames from Activity Centre but also have unique ones, with different sets presumably skewed slightly towards different age groups.
5. Rayman Premier Clics
Translated as Rayman First Clicks (I think), this 2001 release for PC and Mac was intended to introduce very young (French) children to computers and provide simple, entertaining activities for them. Unlike other games on this list, it’s mainly Rayman 2-based, although it’s fairly shallow so there’s not much to go on. It does feature some of Globox’s children, so there’s that. The games are simple and the art is flat and not very appealing. As the final game on the list, it’s not very exciting. Sorry.
If you want to know more about any of these, I recommend the wiki I linked or the YouTubers I mentioned. They’re all passionate members of the Rayman community, and some of that voice acting needs to be heard. Some of these games are also quite well documented on their channels, with full playthroughs and text commentary. I wouldn’t say any of the games are worth playing, unfortunately, but they each add that little bit extra to Rayman’s world (or Raym'n’s world, as Andrew seems to pronounce it in French with Rayman). Well thanks for putting up with my long-winded enumeration of these obscure and silly games. It’s all good fun!
PS. Rayman vs Cullcut
Sorry to bother you, but I found another “educational” game. It’s a typing test thing, a Flash game for browsers that was available in French around 1999 and recently fan-translated into English, and is based on Rayman 2 with Robo-pirates and baby Globoxes. You have to type the words it shows you quickly to avoid getting chomped by Cullcut, which apparently shows up in Rayman 2 spinoff Rayman M/Arena.
January 20, 2015
[Review] Rayman 1 (GBC)
The Rayman handheld games are strange. Like the Donkey Kong Lands, they accompany and largely reuse bits of the console-based game that they mostly share names with, cutting them down to basics in the process. Like the Rockman World games, they also tend to mix in elements of other sequential games. Hopefully I can explain that a bit more clearly when I get to them.
For example, this game was released 5 years after the original Rayman and while rehashing its plot, takes a few small cues from Rayman 2 which by that time had been released. For cutscenes it uses his new, more attractive design, and the music is pleasing, chip-ified renditions of Rayman 2 tunes. Some of the worlds also seem to me to be inspired by R2 environments, although it’s largely based on R1’s archetypes.
In terms of cutting down, this handheld title strips out almost all of the supporting characters from R1’s cast, and cuts the Picture City and Candy Chateau locations, leaving mostly the less fanciful environments. It’s not just straight removals though, it also is streamlined with Rayman having more abilities from the get-go. That streamlining applies to level design too, with what I felt to be a much clearer sense of direction in the all-new levels, helped by the more zoomed-out view.
The difficulty seems to have been toned down too, much to my relief. Whether the physics are better or the level design is more fair, I just had a much better time getting through these levels, and even feeling good finding the occasional hidden cage (this time they’re not all necessary to fight the final boss, although getting them all does unlock some extra-hard bonus levels… I didn’t try for that). There’s also many more health pickups and mid-level checkpointing, and less reliance on punch powerups. Overall the balance and feel of the game is better than the stumble of the actual main game that this is based on, which results in simply more fun and less me getting mad at it.
I hope I’ve dispelled the notion that this is a mere port, a label that’s slapped all too readily on handheld games that share a name with a larger console release. In many ways it’s a superior game. Points against it are for cutting characters like the Magician and Betilla in favour of an expanded role to the Tings (yes, the main collectibles are the support character) and for extensive use of Comic Sans font. Despite this, a memorable penultimate level—a very challenging but fun platforming gauntlet while being followed exactly by Bad Rayman—and a good final boss left me with a very positive opinion of this one. The fact that I even made it that far to play those parts immediately places this above Rayman 1 in my stakes.
Unfortunately, since it does have a different soundtrack and cuts the more weird levels from Rayman 1, I can’t just tell you that this replaces it. But I certainly found it a more playable game. It even looks better, or at least I preferred the simple colours and cute sprites; the constraints of detail forced simpler and nicer designs, not to mention clearer level layouts. But it’s time to move on, and before we leave Rayman 1 land to start on 2 and its ilk, I think I will do an overview of the educational games, even if I don’t exactly play them. There’s so many after all! Au revoir.
January 18, 2015
Remember that edited version of the Zelda timeline I made a while ago that had all the non-canon stuff added to it? Well I’ve revised it with the two new Zelda games that have been released since, and added even more crazy non-canon stuff. Wahey!
Let me explain the changes. Firstly, I moved the Tingle games into actual spots on the timeline rather than off to the side, because I’m convinced now they belong. For a start, Tingle Tower from Wind Waker is clearly visible in Tingle’s Balloon Fight DS’s background, which places it after or during the events of Wind Waker. I thought it would be fun for this to be happening while Windy and Tetra were off voyaging. Tingle’s other two games seem to be pre-WW as he’s not yet a Tingle in the first one and still lives similarly in the second. Rosy Rupeeland takes place on a series of islands in what I see no reason to not call the Great Sea, so in there they go.
I moved the Smash Bros. games out of the chart proper and out there in the outer zone, along with Scribblenauts Unlimited, as they draw from various areas of the timeline and exist outside the Zelda universe. It also gave less clutter in the graph and let me explain next to them the origin of all the elements they portray.
Some events exclusive to various manga were included, with Hyrule Historia’s Skyward Sword prequel set in Hylia’s era, Majora’s Mask’s mythological side story (10 million years ago, apparently), and two extra chapters from the Ocarina manga: one predating the events of the game and one taking place sometime in Link’s adult phase during the game. The spin-off manga series Oath of Lilto was also introduced into the post-LttP era, as it appears to be a sequel to that game. It should probably be somewhere after A Link Between Worlds, which itself is 100 years after LttP. The reason being, LttP’s Link is dead (he literally coaches the protagonist from heaven), but Old Man Streetpass is vaguely hinted to be that Link during ALBW. This manga is a little hard to place, especially since there’s no translation.
A few minor cameos were slotted in. LoZ and AoL’s Link appears in Tetris for the NES and F-1 Race for the GB: being the only extant Link at the time, and also his distinctive flute playing and shield mark him. I threw in the Spaceworld 1995 preview of Zelda 64 here too, as I’d previously theorised that it takes place soon after the Nelsonic Game Watch. It’s most likely LttP’s Link who cameos in Super Mario RPG and Donkey Kong Country 2, as the slight design differences attest and him being the “current” Link at the time of their development. He’s also the most well-travelled Link canonically and missing in action between LA and ALBW, so it makes sense, kinda.
Two DLC packs for other games were also released last year, for Sonic Lost World and Mario Kart 8. Both seem to feature a similar Hyrule Field-type area with a similarly-designed castle. Fine, both staples of later games. Of course, both also feature physical appearances of Skyward Sword’s Link, from an era without a castle and even without a land of Hyrule. How to justify that? Well, my theory is that both are drawing from a setting some years after Skyward Sword’s end, where Link, Zelda, and others have properly founded the land of Hyrule on the surface world, and built a nice shiny castle to live in. Done.
Finally, and the reason I embarked on this update in the first place, was to place Hyrule Warriors into a logical position in the official timeline. My reasons are simple: the game states that the three eras that are accessed during its events are in the past of that particular setting. So placing it towards the end of the Child timeline allows Twilight Princess, Ocarina of Time, and Skyward Sword to be seen in a straight line back from it. Ok, only the child portion of OoT actually happened in that timeline, but I reckon that’s enough for what’s presented in the game. Even the Majora’s Mask DLC pack is canon to that timeline.
There’s really no reason HW’s basic setting can’t be placed there. Drawing from elements of various Zelda games is given an explicit justification, with Cia’s dimensional magic shenanigans. It seems perfectly fine to find a place for it, and this one seems the best. I even have a reason for placing it before Four Swords+: with Cia’s death at the end, Lana’s only half qualified to fill the “guardian of time”-type role she held before. This could introduce some dimensional instability to this era, which allows aspects of even other timelines to bleed through. That’s why FS+ (Hyrule Adventure, to be precise) features design and setting cues from Four Swords and LttP, bosses and characters from WW, and even elements from LoZ and OoT.
Well that was fun. It’s strangely exhilarating to try and fit in all the cruft from such a sprawling series into a cohesive package. But next time there’s new Zelda material (ie. Wii U), I might have to make the whole darn thing from scratch, this is getting way too cluttered!
Oh, and once again thanks to Glitterberri and x7razorback7x for the original image which I am progressively doctoring.
EDIT: This is no longer the newest edition of the Zelda Timeline (ridiculous version). For more, check the zelda-timeline tag on this blog. http://miloscat.tumblr.com/tagged/zelda-timeline
January 18, 2015
[Review] A Dark Room (iOS)
Here’s a little adventure game/roguelike built entirely using iOS system interface elements and text. I say roguelike but not because you have to try n’ die many times, but because half of the game is walking around a map represented by Ascii art, which is what Rogue means to me (although I only spent a short time playing Angband). In fact, it’s only superficially roguelike. In fact, forget I said anything.
A Dark Room shows how you can tell a story and present a compelling gameplay experience in a very minimalistic way. There are no pictures, I don’t think there’s any music; it’s all progress bars, text, standard iOS buttons, and occasionally varying the screen brightness for effect. What you get is a strangely engrossing town management sim/turn-based RPG in a post-apocalyptic setting.
It’s about man’s inhumanity to man, to borrow a phrase from high school English. It’s about the protagonist’s loss of humanity in their search for answers and power in a ruined world. It’s also about loot and progress bars, which I love, having had a phase of playing Progress Quest (and I had to use a Windows emulator to do it, too).
Like I say, it’s impressive how much can be communicated and accomplished with so little. But I also like games with pictures. This one was, however, short, sweet, and memorable.
January 17, 2015
[Review] Lego The Hobbit (3DS)
I’ve long thought that aside from the co-op gameplay, the handheld versions of the Lego games have offered a better, more polished experience. Is that still true in this game? Yes and no.
For a start, this has more bugs than I’m used to in the handheld games. Characters and scenery turning invisible, the character switcher not working properly, quest markers not being marked, and even a crash to homescreen, seldom seen on 3DS. Some of these are clearly the result of poor testing and QA on the game, which is a disappointment but not wholly unexpected from Lego games given my experience with them.
I mentioned the quest markers, but the whole system is also confusing. There’s no map as the “bit that’s not levels” is part open world hub, part Donkey Kong Country-style routed map, but you have the ability to pan around it. The system works well enough when you get used to how to control it, but the game gives you no way to keep track of quests or quest-related items. It’s a bit of a mess, and the rewards are a tad unsatisfying. (Also: the text is riddled with typos.)
On the other hand, the gameplay may be the best yet of these scaled-down titles. We have the “smaller levels and more of them” structure, varied between “puzzle”-solving levels and more combat-oriented ones. But the combat is more fun than the console game, with super moves, a dodge/charge, and ranged attacks on a different button that give you more options to keep it fresh. They’ve cut jumping, which sounds odd but gives them an extra button to work with and the levels are designed to require it only contextually, a smart move. Boss battles are also less QTE-heavy, which was the worst part of the main game.
Each level has a set of 10 challenges, which may be finding hidden items, completing under a certain time, not taking damage, etc. It’s a great idea to give you different objectives depending on the focus of the level, and really makes replays feel worthwhile.
I’ve heard that these design ideas that make this stand out from the previous simple scaled-down console ports were introduced in Lego Marvel Super Heroes (handheld), and further refined in The Lego Movie game (handheld). These aspects (the level structure and combat) have thus come out feeling good, but it leaves the quest system feeling half-baked as it hasn’t been used since Lego Lord of the Rings, and in fact may be worse than it was then.
Having now seen the third movie, my concerns about not including it have dissolved. There’s only a couple of new locations, which are included in the “hubs” of both versions of this game, and the only significant events are some battle scenes which I’m not too sad on missing out on. In fact, now that I’ve completed both games, I hope they don’t have any plans for DLC or another game.
Overall I’m quite happy with this one. Struggling through iOS versions has taught me to appreciate physical buttons and the second screen, not to mention the lack of in-app purchases, which made playing this on 3DS much more pleasant. The controls and interface are less clunky, and the characters and their abilities more balanced than the console version, making each one feel useful and cool at different times. Galadriel has wizard powers! No awkward item switching! Ahem.
These types of games tend to be overlooked; the big console release is accompanied by sometimes a very different game coming to less powerful systems, and sometimes that smaller version is ignored. In this case, I reckon that once again the handheld version is a better game; apart from, of course, the ability to play with a loved one co-operatively, which is such a valuable experience that it balances out the sloppiness of the console game. Maybe one day we’ll have the best of both worlds, or maybe they’ll let TT Fusion handle the main event for once. Well, I’ve been there and back again on Middle-Earth Lego games so until Lego The Silmarillion, farewell.
January 16, 2015
Donkey Kong Through the Years (Part 21): Smash For Donkey Kong
(Previous: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, Part 8, Part 9, Part 10, Part 11, Part 12, Part 13, Part 14, Part 15, Part 16, Part 17, Part 18, Part 19, Part 20)Featured in:
- 3DS Super Smash Bros for 3DS (Artwork, In-Game)
- WiiU Super Smash Bros for Wii U (Artwork, In-Game)
- amiibo Super Smash Bros
“Smash” DK seems to consist of no less than two different models with similar and dissimilar features (not even getting to the in-game model, which is different from either due to poly-count).
For starters, both appear to completely ignore any design elements introduced by Retro Studios’ games, instead appearing more like the Brawl model with some interpretive changes that are featured in Smash For and Smash For Only. DK’s red tan from the same game is gone, going for a more traditional (again, pre-Retro Studios) color scheme. Both also give DK a thinner brow than usual, with the one in the FMVs almost becoming thin, flat, and stringy depending on the animation. Both interpretations show fabric texturing on his tie, though this portrayal implies the “DK” monogram is printed onto the fabric, in contrast to the tie from Mario Kart 8 which appeared to have the “DK stitched-on with yellow thread. The hair on DK’s head is also portrayed a bit more universally in an upward comb, as if the signature hair curl is the tip of a singular “spike” of a hairstyle (more noticeably in the FMV and in-game models). All models also include a triangluar “transition” between DK’s upper chest fur and his arm fur, much like his standard wrist cuffs.For stylistic differences within this batch, we can see the standard/amiibo Donkey Kong render has a somewhat extended mouth with subtle nostrils, while the FMV model features a more round muzzle with large nostrils (though they do not protrude outward from his face). Donkey Kong’s ears in the standard/amiibo render are also slightly different in shape. In a first for DK designs, his fur on the standard/amiibo model is also shown growing out of the skin on his brow. The Donkey Kongs used in the box art, FMVs, and in-game model data also have visible fingernails and toenails, while the standard/amiibo render does not. These differences raise the question how many models were floating around during development of this game, as well as how much was cleaned up in post with a photo editor for the static promo renders.
Smash DK is also often shown with his lips pursed together in a “o”. Not really part of his model, but it’s certainly intrinsic to this portrayal.
…This has been 21 feature installments of “DK Vine Visual History: Donkey Kong Through the Years”. Hope you enjoyed it, weirdo.
Great series with fascinating attention to detail. Worth flicking through the back catalog of these.
January 9, 2015
[Review] Rayman 1 (PC)
Here goes. My goal for the start of this year is to play through all the Rayman games. After each main entry, I’ll play the handheld iterations that took inspiration from it. So we start with the original Rayman. There are many ports and versions of the game, with many subtle differences. I hear the Jaguar version is especially different. However, the DOS version is the most easily accessible from gog.com. In hindsight, maybe I should have tried the DSi version which attempts to ease up the difficulty by giving you more health and such.
Oh, this game. One of the few that I’ve simply given up on due to sheer difficulty. Normally I like a bit of challenge or can persevere if I’m enjoying the game. In this case, my enjoyment was low due to the slow, plodding nature (as well as slow progression with upgrades… I hadn’t even got the helicopter hair when I stopped) and the “European platformer” style maze-like levels with little direction. So when the game is so unforgiving and the deaths so unfair, I blamed the game’s design. Although you get 9 continues (which might as well just be more lives, since they put you at the most recent checkpoint anyway) the lives run out quickly. The sheer length of the levels exacerbates the problem as you must start the whole gauntlet again upon game over, and if you saved with only a few continues left, well too bad.
After rage quitting, I found out some interesting tidbits. The Rayman Pirate Community’s wiki, an excellent information source claims that Rayman 1 was not playtested for difficulty, and I believe it. By watching a speedrunner I also felt vindicated that I would never pull off the superhuman feats of reflexes and memory that he possessed. I also learned that to get to the final boss, Mr Dark, you must find each and every Electoon cage in all their fiendish hiding spots. What a joke!
So I really can’t recommend Rayman 1. Up until Origins, it seemed valid to ignore it since much of what it established was seemingly retconned by subsequent games. Origins though brings back a surprising amount from this one, with the fairies, the antagonist, the earned abilities, the drone enemies, the environments. The confrontation with Bad Rayman, a cool idea, is also recycled for Legends. So I’d recommend watching Spikevegeta’s speedrun of the game instead of playing it yourself (or rather, it playing you like a mangled xylophone).
Just a few more quick observations, because the difficulty wasn’t my only problem here. The powerup system is obscured from the player; there’s two kinds of fist powerups, but you don’t get an indication of which you have, and you lose them when you die or get hit or something? The “winding up the fist” thing is never useful because it takes too long and doesn’t go far enough. Your Ting count is reset when you die, so you’ll never get 100 for an extra life. The music varies between dull and moody, but no tunes stand out. The backgrounds are vibrant but sometimes obscure important gameplay details. Finally, while the sprites are large and have nice animation, this means the viewing area of the screen is too small and so threats can jump out at you.
It really pains me to have to put down a game. But you have to know when to walk away, and I wouldn’t let Rayman continue to abuse me. I still love him though, and have hope for his next incarnation to treat me better. So I’m moving on to Rayman 1’s little brother on the Game Boy Color. I won’t be covering any of the many, many educational games based on Rayman 1. You can play those yourself and maybe learn some French/English/Maths/etc.
January 7, 2015
[Review] Star Fox (SNES)
AKA Star Wing.
For my first review of 2015, I’ve played a game that was the precursor to one that defined my childhood. Lylat Wars (AKA Star Fox 64) was a masterpiece and one I know inside out. Unfortunately Star Fox itself doesn’t hold up too well.
The main issue with this beginning of the Star Fox saga is that it’s been superseded in so many ways by its sequel. Apart from a few settings and concepts that would end up being used in later games, its music, and the novelty of early 3D vector graphics, it’s been made obsolete. Lylat Wars not only takes many concepts of this game and improves on them, it outright replaces its plot as well—Star Fox isn’t even canon anymore! It’s a little rude if you think about it.
Coming as I am at this afterwards, I can only see the ways it falls short. There’s tons of slowdown when stuff starts happening on screen. The SNES’s limited 3D capabilities (augmented valiantly by the SuperFX chip) make spatial awareness difficult and obstacles and shots will hit you when you think you’re safe. There’s also less character without bosses talking to you, and much less team chatter.
Still, for the time and considering the hardware, Star Fox remains a very ambitious game, that was let down by those limitations it was pushing up against. Lylat Wars surpasses it in almost every way, but it’s got a few tricks that make it worthwhile. Flying into enemy ships and bases to fight their cores, locales such as Path 2’s Venom structure or inside Macbeth’s caverns, the “ship graveyard” black hole and the surreal Out of this Dimension are highlights, as well as the moody atmosphere that some levels set with their theme and colour schemes. It also retains the sci-fi pastiche feel, borrowing imagery from Star Wars and the like.
So it’s not all bad on reflection, but the stiff controls and dodgy hit detection made it a struggle to get through. It was perhaps reaching a little too far for the SNES, but I’m looking forward to seeing how Star Fox 2 improves the engine if at all. Did you know that Star Fox 2 was more than 90% complete when they cancelled it so they could sell more N64s? And then the N64 was delayed, making the cancellation a dumb decision in hindsight? And that modders have made it fully playable? So that’s my next (and final) target. There’s more peripheral games to the Star Fox saga, such as Stunt Race FX, Game Boy title X, X-Returns for DSiWare, and Steel Diver Sub Wars; but I won’t be covering them. Sorry. Play them yourself and tell me if they’re any good. Cheers. Oh, and do a barrel roll or whatever.
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