Ah, here we go. This is the closest thing to a “serious” game I’ve played in a long time. You know the ones, the mature, the big-budget, the “hardcore”. I’m not sure those labels really would apply, but it’s further up on that spectrum than the Avatar games, you know. It’s a Western action RPG and all that.
The real reason for playing this was the LOTR connection. The wife and I are big fans, and even if this wasn’t exactly penned by JRR (we’re on a first three initials basis), it’s at least in the cinematic universe and it explores corners of Middle Earth we don’t often see. I was just interested in being in that world.
As a bonus we got a game that we didn’t mind playing together. We picked the easiest difficulty, which I think was a bit easy for me but to be honest l didn’t want it to be more than breezy, it would have been frustrating. Doubly so for my wife. We had enough issues with the bugs and the clunky UI, I’m not sure the game would have handled loading from a checkpoint. One of the more amusing bugs was a persistent chain-rattling in an Orcish fortress that steadily grew louder until it overwhelmed all other sound effects, even when we left that room far behind.
There was also a heavy Uncanny Valley element, along with environments jam packed with invisible walls. It’s clear that this is one of those games with more vision than budget, although having said that in terms of ambition it wasn’t overly creative. But again, we weren’t there for an amazing gaming experience, we were there to play around in Tolkien’s world and laugh at the cheesy voice acting. Actually a lot of the voice work was quite good, but any character who has appeared in the films (Elrond, Gandalf, etc) was a pale imitation.
But yeah it was just fun shooting orcs, finding phat lootz, meeting new folks, getting a bit lost, levelling up. Because we were doing it together. There’s a new LOTR action game in development that looks kinda interesting, Shadow of Mordor. But it’s single player only. You just can’t forgive as many flaws when you’re playing alone. I was excited thinking we could play that together too, but nope.
But oh, I just loved meeting Radagast, finding a hidden dwarven fortress, learning the history (which is canon) of places like Gundabad or Fornost, interacting with eagles and dragons and Black Numenoreans. I’ve said before that I don’t care what the general consideration is whether something is canon or non-canon. It’s all canon to me, as much as I can make. I just can’t learn and remember details and characters and then dismiss them as not real. We had this experience, it’s real to me.
I played the ranger Eradan, and Everbloom played the elven sorceress Andriel. Local co-op ftw baby! We had fun poking fun at Farin, the AI third wheel. You also get in your party a personal eagle taxi who flies you all over the north like an obedient Pidgeot, and can do Sky Attack to enemy formations. I got pretty attached to these characters, and they in particular are voiced very well.
I had a look at some PC videos afterwards and oh my goodness that version looks so much nicer than the PS3. I would have thought that by 2011 developers could have worked out the kinks in developing for the console, but I guess that whole graphical creep issue had come into effect. Loading times were pretty long, but for all I know that’s normal. Like I said, not really into playing the newest hottest games on the scene, dudebro.
Well I think I’ve said what I wanted to. This game was a real novelty, it had a lot to like, but mostly for the lore and the co-op play. As a game apart from that it’s competent but not amazing. It’s also different to my usual forte so familiarising myself with that style was fun. Just don’t compare it too closely to Skyrim or whatever you kids are playing these days. Any LOTR fans though should definitely check it out, and set it to easy if you need to.
Here’s a little game I played on my iPhone recently. It’s a sidescrolling action platformer, quite floaty, with a fair bit of combat but also exploration. You get a sword and a changeable magic attack, and you level up as you go along.
The game is fairly polished apart from the slightly slippery controls. The art style is very chunky and low-poly, reminiscent of early 3D games. I think it’s intentional and it’s cool to see something calling back to this style that is seldom referenced. The explanation is that the game was literally made by three people: one for art, one for programming, and one for music. It’s obvious it was made by a small team, and it has charm.
It does get difficult at points, but if you seek everything out in each area the most trouble you’ll have will be the platforming. Some areas are also quite dark, making it difficult to appreciate your surroundings. The important thing though is that it feels good to play, if you can get past the floatiness I mentioned. Just remember to double tap the move button to run. Recommended.
Here it is, the last Avatar game. But guess what, I got one of the Wii ones in a bargain bin so there’s more to come! Haha! This game, unlike the previous two DS installments, was developed by Halfbrick, an Australian studio subsequently responsible for iOS hits such as Fruit Ninja and Jetpack Joyride. They did the first two Avatar games on GBA but the console generation cycle bumped the GBA out of the running and I guess bumped these guys up to DS. Bumped out were the RPG gameplay and the spritework, to be replaced by a stage-based isometric puzzle platformer rendered in 3D.
The comparisons to the DS Zelda are very easy to see. Mostly stylus controls, super deformed art style (although there’s precedent for that in the Avatar franchise), the early 3D polygon look. There’s less combat though and more using bending to solve puzzles in the environment. Much more, in fact, which is welcome after the limited interaction in the last two DS games. As I said, the structure is also level-based, with collectibles to find so you can go back and do it again better. Each is based on an episode, with many skipped of course. Each one also gives you a unique pairing of two characters to use, who have their own skills.
Between levels we have delightful little cutscenes. No voices but some very amusing bits of written dialogue with some visual humour and expression on their huge faces. The collectibles I mentioned are used to unlock characters and costumes exclusively for a volleyball minigame that can be played by DS Download Play (I heard you could use costumes in levels but couldn’t get it to work). It’s not the best motivation for completion but seeing those characters in the cute chibi style was almost worth it.
It’s just so strange to have this game (which is admittedly pretty quality) come after two games in the completely different, more serious, RPG style, especially when the second was bulding well on the first. The shift in gameplay and art style is very jarring, but hey if it gave them the chance to do something interesting with the Avatar license (which it did), then it’s not such a bad thing.
So it was fun. Not too hard to get through, which is refreshing after some bits of the RPG ones which were frankly a slog. Actually some stages were quite long but it tried to gradually ramp up the puzzles as you went on to keep it engaging. I miss wandering around and talking to townspeople but realistically they never had much to say. It’s a tradition for developers to ape Nintendo but this spin on that DS Zelda style worked out well, and its heavy focus on spatial puzzles seemed to fit. It’s certainly pretty unique and that chibi style is cute (I love how the boxart is a takeoff of its console bigger brother. I found a copy for $8 and at that price it’s great for fans of the show. So until I get to the Wii game, I’ll say flameo, hotman! (Yes that’s a greeting but I’m using it to say goodbye ok)
Pikmin 3! Another good reason for the Wii U to exist. As any long-time readers will know, I started with the second one on Wii and went back for the first one. After finishing this one and enjoying the mission mode immensely, I went back for the missions of Pikmin 2 to see if they were as good. The comparison was a little painful, with slightly wonkier controls and greatly blurrier visuals. So although it wasn’t too evident as I played it from memory, a direct comparison in that way just shows what an improvement Pikmin 3 is.
First of all, it looks beautiful. I never used the first-person screenshot thing because it was dumb, but I’ve heard it makes textures and whatever look crummy. That’s ok, the game is meant to be played zoomed out. Everything looks so great, it looks real. You don’t have the Gamecube’s plasticky feel, and there’s sparklyness and it’s just nice to look at. The music gets annoying though, what with all the repetition. I needed auditory feedback on gameplay though, so I was stuck with that.
The plot is interesting, if a little short. It’s about the same length as the previous ones though so I guess it’s ok. The missions really lengthen your enjoyment though. I was worried when hearing about it that there wouldn’t be any amusing writing as there is for 2’s item descriptions. But there’s the new data files, and tons of incidental dialogue that wasn’t there previously, as well as interplay between characters. Previously, Olimar has either been alone or with an arguably autism spectrum/self-absorbed crew members (Louie and the President, repsectively). This time, we have three characters who have different opinions on each other and quirks, plus Olimar’s logs. Certain incidental dialogues did repeat unpleasantly often in either content or gist, though. Overall it’s a plus.
It’s always disappointing when a sequel cuts things from a previous installment instead of expanding on them. It’s the Nintendo way, but the systems here are streamlined and well executed, which is their intention behind those practices. The basic mechanics are tuned from previous games, so the basic play experience is better. It’s good to have control options, but the Gamepad option is garbage (I assume it’s similar to the original GCN controls?) so like a lot of people I opted for Wii remote with Gamepad on lap for a map and whatever else it does. It works well, and the Gamepad is used very well on this occasion. No more treasure, but fruit was satisfying to find and had different classes so you knew what to expect for carrying it.
This leads to the juice mechanic, where your time limit is based on the fruit you find. I found the game was tuned way too easy, I quickly built up a good stock and stayed consistently very high (until it’s abruptly taken away at one point for some real tension). Otherwise though, a great idea, better than a hard 30 days or the vaguer Pikmin 2. It brings up the end-of-day schtick though. Juicing the fruits introduced a surprising amount of lag for what’s a simple white screen with some fluid effects. It’s what I’ve come to expect on the Wii U unfortunately. Anyway that bothered me, and it happens every day so you see it a lot.
As I’ve alluded to though, the missions are great fun and while they didn’t grab me in 2 (and were non-existent in 1), here I was hooked. Using the skills you’ve gained to clear out a small area quickly is a very different experience to the exploration and longer-term planning of the story mode, so both coexist peacefully. Boss rush mode can just go away though, the bosses weren’t much fun for me and doing them again was not something I was into. Plus, there was a cool co-op mode for missions (why doesn’t story have co-op?!). My wife surprisingly got really into it and we’ve been having tons of fun getting platinums, more often on the collect treasure as opposed to fight enemies. Micromanaging multiple captains is hard work for me, but having a human to communicate with we can get much more done. But seriously, give us a co-op story why not?!
I liked cutting white and purple Pikmin in favour of rock and flying, and the different abilities that were swapped or introduced, with new mechanics to learn for us veterans. But then, having white and purple come back in the missions was nice, like an old friend returning and it added more complexity which can be fun.
I don’t know what else to say. I was constantly impressed by the mix of cuteness and strategy gaming. It’s a true Nintendo game. Just a bit more content would have been nice. Buy the DLC missions, it’s worthwhile if you enjoy the mission structure (especially the second pack). I dunno, people say the Wii U has no games but here’s one. Although I have finished it now, but ooh Donkey Kong’s here. (Actually I’ve 100%ed that by now but you’ll see that review later). Anyways this is the best Pikmin game yet, very fun.
Once again, we have a handheld Lego game. I was on the hook with these recently on my iPhone as you might notice. This one’s brand new, so hey a thin veneer of relevancy! This one will be really short because come on.
My first impressions were that compared with Lego Harry 2, this was a lot more polished and clean. I certainly found it more fun. It is still a lite version of the console one, but in this case the implication is that load times and scale are much smaller than its big brother, which is a good thing for the bloated console version with its interminable load screens. It’s also a good example of TT Fusion’s handheld ones being more streamlined than the main events.
The quest and treasure system is similar to the console, but easier to work with. Sometimes I couldn’t tell whether I was in a level or a hub, which is a good thing: it’s immersive and seamless, more like exploring a world. You don’t have to change equipped items (or spells) all the time, but you get duplicate characters with different equipment which, coupled with the awkwardly implemented character switching system, makes it frustrating to get access to the abilities you need. I like the menu system generally though, as it keeps a lot of functions together and easy to access. Unfortunately it pushes its in-app purchases on you annoyingly.
They seem more needed in this game, too, as the studs you get don’t seem enough to unlock an appropriate amount of stuff even after you beat the game. It’s a frustrating dynamic, you feel like they’re gouging you as there’s so much stuff but you can’t afford it.
But, it’s a cool game in general, they’ve adapted all those great LOTR scenarios and setpieces in interesting ways, but quite differently to the console version, so it’s very much its own experience. All the areas are much smaller, but this is both good and bad as they seem cramped but you don’t have to endlessly traverse huge empty areas as on console. It’s part of the streamlining again. It’s also been ported to iOS very well. Probably the best handheld Lego game I’ve played so far. But now, they’ve ported the console version of Lego Star Wars Saga to iOS, which just throws everything off! Wacky! It’s also too expensive, and I’ve played it before with a co-op mode, so I won’t be getting that.
Here’s a nice one. At Christmas I found the time to play through a whole game in co-op with my bro, on his PC. And what a good choice for it! Short and sweet.
Guacamelee is basically a Lucha/Latin-themed Metroidvania-style affair, with great progression, really cool areas and art design, a physical combat focus but still really well done exploration, funny and deep characters, challenging platforming, fun secrets and upgrades, and yep it’s good. There’s so much to love.
Stay away from the keyboard though! Poor bro was forced to use it because I claimed the USB controller, and had a hell of a time. Like Super Meat Boy, the gamepad is the way to go.
Having fun in co-op gameplay can excuse a lot of flaws in a game, so I can’t say with certainty what faults this game may have. Some parts may have dragged and there may have been more frustration with the challenging parts in solo, but it’s more bearable with two. We didn’t use alternate skins very much because their benefits weren’t obvious, but in the extra challenge bits at the end we used their specialised properties at times. Also the music got annoying but we did play it in marathon essentially, it was good for a while.
I’ve heard complaints about the overuse of meme humour and references, but this is just in posters in the towns, it’s no big deal. It’s smooth and fast-paced, with plenty of techniques for traversal to keep it engaging, as well as pretty deep combat for when that comes up. It evokes old-school charm while also being modern and slick. It’s just such a polished experience, made with so much love. It’s a perfect example of an indie hit. I think I can leave it at that, because I don’t know what I can say—like many great indie games, I wasn’t convinced about it until I played it. And like many great co-op games, the real draw is the shared experience with loved ones, but this is an excellent game to have those experiences with.
Please refer to my previous Avatar game review, because this one is by the same developer and in the same genre. It has some improvements, though: now you can sleep to regain health in towns, and item managament and menus are much better. The camera is now fixed to one position, eliminating the frustrating rotation necessary before. Your party is now two characters, with contrivances to split up the party where necessary and later the ability to freely switch (this makes battles less hectic and feels balanced, as most battles are now easier). The chi system has been overhauled, and now refills outside battle, and attacks can also be used in the field to reveal items and secrets, as well as jumping to traverse areas. So a lot of my complaints have been addressed, and the result is a much more polished and enjoyable game. Plus, you can travel back to previously visited areas outside the chapter structure. And best of all, this game has Toph! Woo!
All of these things make the game better. Unfortunately, this one simply follows the story of Book 2 Earth, rather than forging a new path with an original story. In my mind, this largely eliminates the need for it to exist at all. RPGs especially live and die by their story, and while it’s a better game it’s less necessary to play as an Avatar fan as it’s just Book 2, which we could just watch. True, it does change things around, adding some details and completely reworking the ending so that it finishes on the drill with a happy ending (at least in the DS version…?). But that’s not enough, not really. I guess there’s always the appeal of exploring these areas we’ve seen yourself, and interacting with the characters in this new direct way.
It really is a lot better than the first one, but the fundamentals are the same. I haven’t played any other version either so I can’t compare, but the greater interactivity and detail in the previous console iteration would suggest that this game’s big-screen version is probably worthwhile looking into. I have heard that the 360 version is notorious for easy achievemnets, with the full 1000 points being obtainable in the first half hour of game play. I really should play the GBA versions some day. So busy with games… Well, I’ve outlined the basic tradeoff: no new story but better gameplay than the first one. Much more forgiving too, it’s not a trial to struggle through it this time. So, eh? Eh.
AKA Lego Harry 2 Handheld. As before, there were two variations, and now I’ve played both. This one, as a more modern game for more modern systems, is closer to the console one albeit scaled back. By that I mean it’s more 3D than isometric, and although a bit more fluid structurally is less out there than Lego Harry 1 Handheld compared to the console version.
In the process, you lose a lot of things that made the first handheld one unique. Gone are the touch screen gimmicks and the fixed perspective, the slightly RPG-ish elements and the more rigid platforming. Now more than before it’s kind of a lite version of the big screen one, rather than having more distinguishing characteristics. Having said that, it still differs enough to be its own game and worth playing apart from the big version, especially for fans.
You also find that the controls are less suited for the touch screen the more it tries to mimic its console cousin. Another annoying factor is the duelling. It seems to tack on duels all the time, and I’d sigh whenever one came up. I was happy to skip the extra in-app purchase for more duelling.
What else can I say? It’s a Lego game like other Lego games. Handheld versions miss the point of accessible co-op play as usual, being strictly solo. Lots of unlockables and junk. Swapping between spells is always annoying. Also the loading times were super long and it seemed a little less stable and more clunky than other Lego iOS ports. And the game is in landscape but the prerendered cutscenes play in portrait, so that they’re at 90˚ to your view and tiny. It’s a stupid bug that is amazingly in the game still. Overall though not bad, I mean I finished it so it was ok. Yeah, ok, alright?
Here’s another one I played to completion a while after finishing it. My reason for leaving this off was because I’d almost only played it in co-op with my bro (hi bro!), so when we’d finished it and I’d moved away I just didn’t play it solo. But to wash out the taste of Jungle Beat, I started a new file and got to 100% completion (but not Mirror Mode or Time Attack… bugger that).
It was really great, although a few differences I’d noticed from co-op to solo was that I was accumulating a lot more coins (because I bought less lives to use in levels) and that it was much harder, especially the secret levels. I had to buy powerups, which we hadn’t done before. It’s a hard game, man! But so lovingly made. (Not enough love if you ask some people, at least love for DKC—some fans are big purists). This time I was able to take it slower, really take in the music and the backgrounds. The game looks great and sounds great, despite the over-reliance on DKC1 remixes and mediocrity of most new tracks. There’s also too many rocket barrel levels that are too unforgiving.
Fortunately the follow-up, Tropical Freeze, seems to be addressing every single major complaint people had. Yes even that one. David Wise is back now to bring us awesome music, level environments are even more imaginative and lively, water levels and more Kongs are back with the gameplay variations they bring. A few tweaks have been made to make things more forgiving, despite the levels seeming to be no less difficult. Also, it has new antagonists that have a lot more character than the Tikis: alright, they’re not the Kremlings but they are superior to Tikis in the same ways the Kremlings would be, so although I love them in this case nostalgia has to give way.
Well, I talked about TF a lot there. Anyways DKCR is pretty damn awesome, along with the new Raymans 2D platformers are going strong right now. Sure it falls short in a few ways but it’s very polished and just fun to play, and well executed on its aims. Let’s keep this short and cut it off here. Play DKCR, it’s on 3DS now which is supposedly an even better version (despite some slight graphical compromises). Bring some patience for the harder levels though.
This is a very interesting game, for several reasons. One, the cartridge contains two distinct versions of the game, depending on what system you’re playing on, the monochrome version and the full-color version, but the differences go deeper than simply the presence of colour. The minigames are different, level layouts and environment sprites also differ, item locations and progression is changed. However, contrary to expectations, the GBC version is not strictly better: certain aspects, such as animations, are better in the monochrome version. I also preferred the always-on UI, but it lacks 8-directional slingshot aiming.
I should explain. This is a kind of isometric platformer adventure, with Conker roaming Willow Woods and its surrounds, fighting various creatures and pushing boxes around in puzzles, finding his way through large mazelike environments in search of the birthday presents from his party, which was ruined by an evil member of the anthropomorphic acorn race that populates his home countryside. Got it? Good.
This is the other interesting aspect: this game is a time capsule, representing the original plans for the Conker franchise before it got darker and edgier in Bad Fur Day. As I’ve explained before, the N64 iteration was in development to properly introduce the squirrel from Diddy Kong Racing, but had many ideas pilfered by the Dream/Banjo team, at which point Chris Seavor reworked the game majorly to distinguish it. Pocket Tales was meant to be a handheld accompaniment to the console Twelve Tales, as was done with many franchises and still is. However, in this case the main event that PT was supporting didn’t eventuate. A very curious circumstance.
Beta footage and screenshots of Twelve Tales/Conker’s Quest/whatever show that it was to be very similar: acorn people, the shorter chipmunk version of Berri (who was a playable character), persistent slingshot. These elements now live on solely in this watered-down version of the Thing That Didn’t Happen. (Did it happen though? Are unreleased games canon? Sure, why not, except where they disagree with actual canon).
As it is, and I played through both versions simultaneously, we have a slightly clunky action adventure game. Progression is a bit confusing: you can always ask the Forest Guardian where to go but I often couldn’t find him because I got lost. And in the hub too! I was using Nintendo Power’s maps to help me out, though. You find presents for doing the odd task or just exploring. The environments are a little samey but memorising the layouts is essential to getting them all. Enemies are annoying, it’s often hard to defeat them. Some of them respawn but health pickups don’t, so unusually health management is a prospect that extends over the entire game in long form. In a way every single health acorn is like a Heart Container or somesuch. There’s no upgrades really except items for helping you reach new areas.
So combat was not the best, but I liked breaking the game up with little block-pushing puzzles. The minigames were also not great, although one mimics Rare’s earlier game Cobra Triangle, which is also replicated in DKC3 GBA, an interesting tidbit from their history. Bosses were pretty good, and Evil Acorn (yes that’s his name) was always stringing you on with taunts. There’s also the mysterious Honker the skunk, Conker’s nasty rival to contend with you at various points (mostly minigame-based).
Unfortunately there’s not a lot to distinguish this game, but it’s a bit memetic on DKVine because it’s so obscure. It’s pretty much irrelevant to Conker’s Bad Fur Day but interesting to compare with what could have been, and going from this to BFD all the more underscores its subversive tone. It is a bit of a pain to play though honestly, and just generally clunky and vague. The characters who distinguish themselves are cool but mostly they’re just acorns with not much going on. The level concepts are cool though, from a tropical island chain to a medieval castle.
The Game Boy format doesn’t really do the game justice, as a result of Rare’s typical tendency to try to outdo the limitations of the platform. Sometimes this results in fantastic games, while this one is let down by those limitations. Still, a Rare fan should at least give this a try, and heck I’ll say it, you have no right to fully enjoy Bad Fur Day if you haven’t experienced Conker’s humble origins. I can’t really point out one version as better than the other, so play around with both and pick your favourite (although I had a heck of a time emulating both separately… oops, I gave it away didn’t I?). Oh and there’s a character called the Forest Wong. How can you go wrong with the Wong?
Alright, here we go. I borrowed this game along with Jungle Beat from a friend, because they were two games with a strongly negative reception in their respective fansbases, yet admittedly had their positive aspects. I was curious, almost curious enough to spend money to buy them myself. Having played them now, I’m quite glad I didn’t.
Not to get ahead of myself, but this one had the wider bad blood of the two. Its instant derailing of Samus’ character after almost 25 years is held as its greatest crime. I’ll add my own crimes to the list during this review, but between it and Jungle Beat, I preferred this one, the latter two thirds of the game were more fun. Inferior to previous 2D Metroid and the Primes in my opinion, but it had things going for it. Let’s get the crap out of the way first though.
Anywhere on the Internet you can find the criticisms of this game, especially the story-related elements. However, we can’t ignore the gameplay shortcomings: Enemies take way too long to deal with early on, the charge is so slow and they take so many hits. Action is broken up frustratingly with unnecessary shifts in control: slow-walking from a zoomed-in perspective or looking aimlessly around in first person. In the moment too, switching from the uncomfortable sideways-Wiimote to pointing for missiles is clunky, so much that I barely bothered with it. Finishing moves were poorly explained so I had trouble pulling them off, and half the time they didn’t “finish” them anyway.
Enemy designs were ugly and overcomplicated, and their names were just hideously unpronounceable. I guess it made them seem more alien? The environment concepts were interesting but they, along with the setting and premise, were shamelessly ripped off from Fusion. Music is basically nonexistant, and the ambience I either ignored or was drowned out by sound effects so aurally there was really nothing there.
The premise is poorly executed and the symbolic posturing is so, so hamfisted. It cannot be overtstated how poor the writing here is, and the monotone voice acting does not help matters. There are several main players who are not characterised at all, then killed off with little fanfare or consequence. The major plot points of the first half trail off to nothing more than implication, and while environmental and implied storytelling is a strength of the Metroid series, contrasting it to the extremely in-your-face storytelling applied elsehwere leaves a lot of impact to fall flat.
Samus’ boobs are too big and her suit has heels. Heels, people. Her eternal monologuing inspires dread. And not Metroid Dread, hopefully. I wouldn’t normally use phrases like ludo-narrative dissonance but, uh, Other M has got it. I wanted to watch the cutscenes but at the same time I didn’t want to. And the whole thing ends on an anti-climax.
On the other hand, uh, running around feels good. Whew, I’m all ragey from that. Should have started with the good stuff. Well, it looks pretty. The map’s pretty good and the part of the game where you go around hunting items was fun enough for me to get 100%. Must be because there’s no talking, no plot, no forced sections. The abilities you get make you feel powerful, although by the end you could say overpowered, possibly because the enemies don’t really ramp enough I guess? I like the implementation of the speed boost and stuff with the level design. I also liked some of the environmental concepts with holograms, but there wasn’t enough of it.
Basically I’d agree that it’s a big misstep in the series. I chalk it up to the interpretation of Samus, the ludicrous excuses they put up for the gameplay constraints (the authorisation system gets too much hate probably, but it’s partially justified), and the one that surprised me was the almost complete ignoring of the Prime games. This is a very Japanese product, and you get the feeling that the arrogant and possessive Sakamoto didn’t care for what those Westerners did with his baby. So he made this? Really, this? I blame him for a lot of problems with the game, mainly because I like a figurehead to point the blame at, like Miyamoto. In some ways it competently evokes an extension of the 2D games into a pseudo-3D setting (it’s 2.5D really, maybe 2.75D at best), but in others it’s going against that. So I don’t know what its goals are.
I’ve seen the game for $10 and if you’re able to ignore very large aspects of a game to focus on the good parts, it’s worth it for that. The fighting is different to any Metroid before it, but the exploration feels pretty Metroidy. And the concept of telling a more in-depth story is interesting, but executed very poorly. My wife couldn’t bear to be in the same room as the game because of the talky parts. But it pretty much ruined the series for a few years, and the follow-up has to be good. That’s why some people wanted Retro to have another go (shut up, Tropical Freeze is gonna be awesome!). I like being up on all the happenings and lore and gameplay of all my favourite series, so I needed to play this. You don’t have to. Thumbs downnot ironically
Haha, more platformers. Up front: I didn’t like this game. Rare for this blog, but this is one I couldn’t bear to spend money on, but when I saw a friend had it I was eager to borrow it. In the Donkey Kong fandom this game is quite maligned, and I had to find out for myself whether it was truly a stain on DKC’s legacy or a genuinely fun game that in hindsight had a misguided direction. Spoiler: stain.
Now, to be fair, the game as originally intended involved exclusive use of the bongos, a unique control scheme that could have made for a fun experience, I’ll grant. But aside from fundamental design issues, the NPC release hugely nerfed mechanics and changed things around, for the worse I feel. It’s the only NPC game that made significant changes to content, but the changes suck. The clap is much weaker, and directional, and its functionality has been split between two inputs. A new health system replaces the purely beat/point-driven scoring system, again splitting the focus and diluting the point. I guess the addition of barrel cannons is fine, because it’s purely cosmetic, replacing some weird plants or something. DK coins were added, or something that looks a bit like them, bringing with them an utterly unnecessary limited lives mechanic that is both irritating in modern games and tacked on in this case where it wasn’t before.
Using a more traditional platformer control scheme just makes you long for responsive gameplay to go with it, but the physics remain from the much less direct bongo control method. The combo system is innovative and interesting, but perhaps I just couldn’t master it because I just found it more frustrating than not, when I had a few actions built up but the game’s floatiness and unresponsiveness caused it to fall flat.
The most grating thing about Jungle Beat to DK fans is its very intentional disregard of past elements of the series. An infamous interview at the time described the other Kongs and characters as “not fresh”, stripping it back to simply the characters DK and “the banana”. At the time irrational internet Rare hate was at its height, so DK fans were extra defensive and critical of the perceived direction that NCL was taking with the series that had seen such classics. So not only were many mechanics thrown out the window, DK’s personality was brutalised, leaving him with seemingly only selfish motivations, and anything we liked about the series history was either thrown out or replaced with a thinly-veiled expy (the new animal buddies are shameless ripoffs of existing buddies).
Fortunately this hateful attitude, for whatever reason, was eventually overturned with Retro’s excellent Donkey Kong Country Returns and upcoming Tropical Freeze. So we can look back on Jungle Beat now without depression for the future. But when I did, I found a lackluster game. Perhaps the comparison was unfair on Jungle Beat, but I simply didn’t have fun playing it. The boss fights were either repetitive or unfair QTEs, DK’s presentation was unlikeable, and when I found I couldn’t play all the levels in the NPC version without getting perfect runs of all previous ones, which was a real kick in the nards.
Of course, I should calm down. There were actually good points. The environments were often interesting and varied. I feel like the mechanics could have been fun with more patience, practice, and in their original form. The narrative was nonexistent but piecing one together yourself can be interesting with the new enemies and characters. Oh the sound was pretty awful. Oops, good stuff: um, some good set pieces, and the beating stuff up thing was involving in a visceral way.
I also don’t care for score attack mechanics, especially not when the simple act of gameplay seems a chore to me. The game’s built around getting a multiplier (satisfying when you can build one up), and getting as many bananas and hits before you land on the ground. You do maneuvers and stuff to stay up or bouncing around. The most fun parts were when you could pull off a good string in a part of the level designed around it. But mess it up and you have to start the set of three levels again. The health/lives mechanic also undermines this score run structure.
Is it any wonder we were worried about DK’s future when we see his face in this game, showing off, grinning hideously as he violently crushes a bizarre series of wildlife? No context, no familiarity to latch onto… The implied narrative was too vague to tie together this series of unconnected environments, entered through a basic menu. DK smacks a few dudes and then beats his chest, and it’s over. And what do we have left? A number. Too small. Do it again. Well, no, I won’t.
I’m glad I played this though, so I can plausibly refute any claim that it was in any way a good idea. Afterwards I watched a speedrun, and that actually was kind of cool. Mastery of the mechanics and optimal paths makes it smoother to watch, but I’d never get there playing myself. The clean break in the franchise also leaves a bad taste in the mouth.
Games such as Jungle Climber and even Returns later incorporated some basic minor elements from this game, such as sounds, poses, or Returns’ post-boss beatings. Incoporating other things such as the characters here into later games would also help rehabilitate its image to me, and I would welcome that, but the basic fact is I didn’t enjoy playing it. I can’t recommend the NPC version due to its changes, and shelling out for the original, with bongos, would at this point be a pricey proposition. In fact, my advice would be to watch the speedruns of user piepusher11 on Youtube, to get the experience of how the game is meant to be played (he does exploit one or two glitches to skip bits, though). It was an interesting experiment in game design, but offensive to DK fandom and to my perspective not much fun to play.
Also too many names were untranslated from the Japanese. I hate that.
More platformers. You can tell what I like, huh? This one was a revisit, to get to 100% after finishing a long time ago. This is actually one of the few games my wife bought while the Wii was still hers, before I adopted it. A cute and sweet little game with some deceptively tricky puzzle platforming.
This is a reboot of the old NES game, or perhaps a straight sequel, who knows. It has similar mechanics (feed an amorphous alien jellybeans to transform it so you can get around and beat enemies), and remixes some music, I think—the original is pretty bad so I haven’t exposed myself too much to it. There’s a sequel for Game Boy, but after that Majesco’s ongoing troubles stymied two attempts to bring it back on GBA and DS (there’s screenshots of the DS beta, it looks weird).
Finally they managed to succeed, with the beloved studio WayForward handling development on the Wii. I love the direction they took, giving it a lovely painterly art style, reminiscent of a Ghibli film or Rayman Origins, with super cute character designs. Unfortunately unlike those two things, the attempt to create a naturalistic, cohesive world falls down with the overly functional level design. Lots of straight lines, which admittedly suits some environments like the factory but not others like the forest or caves.
So you can appreciate the absorbing gameplay or the enticing visuals separately, but it doesn’t quite add up. That’s ok though, there’s plenty to love. Failure isn’t punished too bad so the devious puzzles can be attempted many times (as is sometimes necessary) without frustration. They’ve really made the boy and blob appealing characters, with the boy’s vocalisatioins and quite low mobility contrasting with the blob’s silent high energy. Best of all for demonstrating the relationship is the otherwise superfluous “hug button”, scrapped mechanic perhaps, but now just triggers an unbearably adorable animation.
There’s a big variety of possible forms for the blob, and the levels do a good job of giving you different ones and making you use them in various ways. Hunting for the hidden treasure can especially tax your grip on the mechanics of each form. These are also rewarding, as they give you mini challenge levels that often focus on one form’s capabilities. Finishing these then lets you view concept art, which is neat.
Despite its cute look, the game really does get hard if you want to do everything. Just getting through the later levels will also take many attempts. But it is satisfying to do. The most frustrating bits are the boss battles, which can get long and will force you to start over if you make one mistake, as the boy is totally fragile. It’s interesting to have a realistic little boy who can’t jump far and is hurt easily rely so much on the blob. Really reinforces the relationship of the characters.
Since the blob can do so many things, some of the mechanics and physics events are a little janky. I find this factor a little endearing, thinking of the developers as a small team just putting love into the game and overlooking a few things like this. The concept art adds to this feeling, giving you a look behind the scenes. I guess I have a soft spot for WayForward, although I’ve only played a few of their games.
Anyway this was one of the gems on the Wii, that console that apparently had nothing worthwhile on it. There’s not even any badly-implemented motion control, just old-school gameplay with a modern look and feel. It feels indie, and there’s plenty to do and a very engaging dynamic. I’m very happy with how it went. “Over here!” Oh boy, you’re so cute!
I bought this one for the wife, because she wanted to try a platformer that was maybe a little easier/more lenient, with a female protagonist. Turns out she still didn’t really like it, she’s just not suited to the genre. Actually getting it was an ordeal, the first copy we picked up was a cheap fake that didn’t work. The manual was a poorly-produced piece of work that seemed to reproduce a review of the game, and the card was misshapen. We had to drive back down just to return it.
I was very interested in the game, for one of the reasons I find Paper Mario fascinating—it’s a collecting point for some of the obscure Mario series elements that the bland main series ignores, especially enemies from Yoshi’s Island (my favourite Mario game by far). Its existence adds a lot to the Mario universe, not least of which is Peach’s capabilities. Exhibited here are mainly her umbrella combat skills (shown in SMRPG and Smash) and emotional control (she can turn them on and off at will). Plus Toad (yes, The Toad…probably) is playable in minigames and that guy needs some spotlight.
Anyways it’s done by TOSE, who are a little hit and miss but this one seems to follow in some ways their Starfy series I think, which is supposed to be good (from what I’ve heard). There’s a big bunch of unlockables and collectibles which I love. Although I still had lots of game to go by the time I bought everything in the shop, and accumulated way too many coins.
So this is like an action platformer, with levels that tend to branch occasionally. I found this frustrating as I wasn’t sure which way was the right way, got a little lost and often missed sections. You have a generous health bar, and an MP gauge that drains (quickly) with your emotion powers. These can be extended, and refilled easily enough. Said powers are used to pass obstacles and find hidden areas and stuff.
It is a fairly easy game (for me) but the controls do have some complexity, and as I said the levels can be confounding. Some of those “change the mechanics up with a vehicle” sections are tedious, too. All up though I had a great time here, running around, hitting Goombas with an umbrella, upgrading my powers, clearing out levels. The boss fights are good and the mishmash of different Mario games (mostly World and Yoshi’s Island, I think) was gratifying.
I’m currently playing the Superstar Saga RPG by AlphaDream and it has a similar feel, and even a graphical resemblance which makes me wonder about the development. I love the style by the way, and I’ve seen a few fangames that transplant a similar look into platformers that manage to utterly shame Miyamoto and co. Similarly, I’ll always dislike Peach being damseled when she kicks so much ass in this game.
It’s perhaps not for everyone but the Yoshi’s Island comparison I brought up earlier extends to the gameplay too, with the exploration, variety of mechanics, and environmental interaction that are fundamental to that game’s play. I’d feel ok to place this spiritually in the Yoshi lineage, in fact. As such I have high esteem for it, and being associated with such a great lifts it up, while being different enough to not suffer overly in comparison. Sure it’s a little simpler and the execution more flawed, but I had fun here and so will any fan of the flipside of the Mario universe. Oh and Perry=Mallow, think about it. I posted about this earlier. Look it up.
As Origins (and many other Rayman games before it) did, Legends had an accompanying handheld game release. And like other Rayman handheld games, it shared elements of the two most recent console outings. I expected a mainly Legends-based auto-runner to follow Jungle Run, but in fact most of the environments and enemies were pulled from Origins in Fiesta Run, although updated to the Legends style with more shading and 3D-stylings. The Barbara-type characters were also not present.
Thankfully though it does improve on Jungle Run’s formula in many ways. A large scrollable vague map replaces the simple menus. There are Invaded variants of every level that add challenge and twists on the familiarity of the level you just completed. There’s more selectable characters and a unified reward system. There’s even a kind of goal to the whole game. I feel like the levels were more interesting too. (Also I figured out some fun ways to exploit some mechanics to, for example, float horizontally indefintely.)
This game was handled by a proper Ubisoft team, rather than farmed out to a tiny studio, and it shows. Production values are higher, and it’s more stable and slick. Unfortunately they also decided to add in scummy microtransaction BS, although it can be safely ignored for the most part (in fact the purchasable powerups don’t even help, I suspect).
I was hooked quickly and smashed through it. The tuned mechanics made it very easy to pick up and hard to put down. A high point of the iOS game stable, of last year anyway.
