Author Topic: Moon Chronicles (3DS eShop) Season One Review  (Read 1827 times)

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Offline Halbred

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Moon Chronicles (3DS eShop) Season One Review
« on: February 18, 2015, 02:35:52 PM »

Consider this our full review of Season One.

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/review/39660/moon-chronicles-3ds-eshop-season-one-review

Hey Zach, got some questions for you about this Moon Chronicles game.

Okay, disembodied voice! I like the cut of your jib, so go right ahead.

Didn’t I already play this in 2009?

You probably did, back on the DS, when Renegade Kid originally launched it. It was great—you should re-read my review from back then. Moon Chronicles is that game, but on the eShop and remastered for the 3DS. It looks nicer now and runs at 60 frames per second. Also, there’s Circle Pad Pro support now, which is great. If you’re using the New 3DS, the C-stick works as the extra Circle Pad.

But wait, I can only buy the first “episode” on the eShop. What gives?

Yeah, Renegade Kid tried to do the episodic thing with this game. They sliced it into four parts and released part one back in June. Then they were having trouble with certification or something, got distracted by Xeodrifter, and only just released the remaining three episodes this month. The reason you can’t buy the other episodes on the eShop is that they’re technically DLC. You have to buy them in-game. But first you have to update Episode 1. After that, you should probably just buy the Season Pass instead of individual episodes. It’s just easier—and cheaper. So think of it this way: Episode 1 is the game itself—Episodes 2-4 are DLC add-ons.

That’s terrible.

I completely agree. The game’s rollout has been abysmal. However, don’t let that stop you from actually playing it, because Moon Chronicles is really fun. It’s also the only first-person shooter on the 3DS.

Explain—as you would a child.

You’re a military dude on a moon base that’s suddenly attacked by floating drones. Your team discovers a mysterious hatch (probably inspired by that TV show Lost), which leads to an alien manufacturing facility. You wind up shooting a lot more drones and other robotic sentries in your quest to rescue your people and find out what the factory is manufacturing. The game looks okay—kind of like an N64 first-person shooter in HD—and the controls are basically lifted from Metroid Prime Hunters. Playing with the Circle Pad Pro (or New 3DS) is fantastic. Otherwise you’re clutching the system in one hand and using the stylus to aim with your other hand, which leads to some epic hand cramps.

This could be trouble.

When you say “N64 first-person shooter,” my mind leaps to GoldenEye, or possibly Turok. Are these valid comparisons?

Let’s say that Moon features the control scheme of Turok (minus the jumping), the corridor-shooter environments with GoldenEye, and the weapon selection of any standard first-person shooter but with alien names. The Muon Pistol is a pistol, the Lepton Spread is a shotgun, the Oxid Cannon is a grenade launcher, etc. Moon is very clearly built on the Dementium engine—if you played either of those games, Moon will feel familiar. However, it does feature a truly unique gadget: you can control a remote-guided drone, the RAD, who can move through tunnels and collect certain items, or take down shields that are blocking your path. It’s fun and inventive. There’s some good back-and-forth gameplay that I enjoyed.

Is it a long game? How is the pacing?

The game is actually quite long—the first three episodes are divided into four chapters (levels) and the last episode is a final gauntlet of one level and an epic final boss fight. Save points show up at regular intervals and you can always backtrack to a previous save point (which I recommend, as doing so refills your health). The final level is brutal in that you can’t save between the start and finish, but if I got through it, you can get through it. You can also collect “Alien Artifacts” throughout the game to unlock VR missions—which may as well be additional, but shorter, levels. Episode 1 may seem short, but some of the later level maps are impressively enormous. I’d say you’re looking at between eight and 10 hours total if you’re going for all the pickups.

Sounds like a fun game. Do you take umbrage with any parts?

“Umbrage?” Really?

“What don’t you like about it?” Happy?

I take umbrage with your imaginary face! Anyway, yeah, there are some things I’d change. There are two or three sections where you’re driving around the lunar surface with LOLA, a car that’s basically a Warthog. I never found LOLA to control all that well. You have to take it slow, but the final LOLA run is timed, which is a huge pain. I don’t like how sparse the alien environments are—certain set-piece objects are either overused or used in completely random areas. There’s just no cohesion to this subterranean facility. Similarly, there are very few enemy types. 90percent of your opposition consists of floating droids who move erratically and are unusually challenging because of that. Bosses are also reused.

Reused bosses? Sounds like a Renegade Kid game.

Hey now, that really only happened in Dementium and Xeodrifter. This game has several distinct bosses, but you’ll fight two of them (a multi-armed robot and a stationary security system) several times. I will say that, thanks to the sharper graphics of Moon Chronicles, weak points and hitboxes are easier to see. And since your arsenal usually changes dramatically between encounters, each fight has a slightly different flavor.

I remember you!

How’s the C-stick working for you?

Let’s just say I miss using my Circle Pad Pro XL. If you haven’t upgraded to the New 3DS XL, you should be using a CCP if you’ve got one. The C-stick is functional, but it’s also really small.

Sounds like a fun game. I might give a shot!

I like it. It has some flaws, but there’s a lot of game here. I’m hoping Renegade Kid develops a second season—which would, in theory, be brand-new content.

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Offline Jonnyboy117

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Re: Moon Chronicles (3DS eShop) Season One Review
« Reply #1 on: February 18, 2015, 10:55:32 PM »
Would you say that shooting the regular enemies ever becomes fun? I've found them to be generally annoying, as they often move faster than you can aim and take a lot of shots to kill. The guns, at least the three that I have so far, don't feel very satisfying to shoot, and even the ones that look powerful still take a while to destroy basic enemies. So, my big problem with this shooter is that the shooting isn't any fun -- until you get to the bosses. These are really challenging and fit the controls better, since they tend to move more slowly (if at all). This lets you focus on dodging and aiming at weak points, without having to chase them down with your cursor all the time. Otherwise, the exploration can be fun, but it would flow better if you didn't have to collect your robot buddy before moving to the next room.
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Offline Phil

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Re: Moon Chronicles (3DS eShop) Season One Review
« Reply #2 on: February 18, 2015, 10:59:48 PM »
Clever review style that was funny and informative. Really nice job with this one, Zach.
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Offline Mythtendo

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Re: Moon Chronicles (3DS eShop) Season One Review
« Reply #3 on: February 19, 2015, 01:06:02 AM »
I usually just skim reviews, but this was a unique way to write a review and I liked it.

Offline Stratos

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Re: Moon Chronicles (3DS eShop) Season One Review
« Reply #4 on: February 21, 2015, 12:34:25 AM »
I'm loving the early 90's FPS vibe this gives off. I do hope we get more Moon Chronicles down the road. I'm sold on all of them now because of the inclusion of 2nd stick controls. D-pad never felt right for movement and touch screen shooting is not my style.


This has the potential of becoming a good Metroid Prime clone if they keep at it.
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Offline Phil

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Re: Moon Chronicles (3DS eShop) Season One Review
« Reply #5 on: May 31, 2015, 02:14:58 AM »
I finally played the first episode thanks to the Nindie Humble Bundle. It's like Metroid Prime Jr. to me, and that's nice praise I would say. I agree with you on areas lacking cohesion. I'm using the Circle Pad and the touch screen to move and aim. It's a comfortable control scheme so far. I'm now pondering if I should go ahead and buy the season pass now.
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