Messages

4626

Nintendo Gaming / Re: Could use some decision help

« on: April 09, 2010, 10:34:07 PM »

For the most entertainment value, I'd recommend Rune Factory.  That game can swallow days of playing time if it appeals to you.


But Fragile Dreams is probably the game that interests me most.  Even if it is a flawed adventure, the game just looks so eerily beautiful that I'm drawn to it.


FFCC: Crystal Bearers looks interesting enough, but I'm waiting for a price drop.  Frankly I'd be surprised if it isn't selling for under $30 before then end of the year... and that's is a better fit for "how much" I want the game.

4627

Nintendo Gaming / Re: So this is why Hudson won't do another Mario Party

« on: April 09, 2010, 10:28:17 PM »

If I hadn't already fallen completely in love with Dokapon Kingdom then this might be interesting... but since discovering Dokapon Kingdom I've had no love for other party games.  It destroyed Mario Party 8, and I don't think anything will knock it off my "favorite geeky party game" pedestal for a long long time.

4628

Nintendo Gaming / Re: Cave Story WiiWare

« on: April 09, 2010, 10:22:49 PM »

I think I'm screwed.  Is it possible to get back to to the farm after you've saved in the upper portion (after rocketing past the instant death traps)?  As far as I can tell, it's not, which means I can't go back to get the more powerful weapon. 

I beat the doctor's second form but I have so little health I can barely scratch the final (?) boss.

Out of curiosity, how much HP should I have at this point?  Mine's 45.

Ooh... never tried going back down, but there are other parts in the game where it doesn't let you backtrack freely so I wouldn't be surprised.  45 health sounds just about right though - it's definitely possible to win with that amount of health.


Do you have the machine gun, or something else for a weapon?  I'll try playing the final bosses again tomorrow and see if I can offer better comments about possible strategy.

4629

Nintendo Gaming / Re: Cave Story WiiWare

« on: April 09, 2010, 12:30:59 PM »

ejamer: from what I read from other sources you get the most powerful weapon in the game if you actually hand him the polar star.

Dang.  Don't know if I can do that this game... since I've already traded my Polar Star to Curly for her cool machine gun.  I don't regret the choice though, because it's awesome how the powered-up machine gun can use recoil to make you fly.  Might have to try doing things differently next time I start over.


Which brings me back to the fact that this game is very enjoyable because of the way it encourages multiple play-throughs to see everything.

4630

Nintendo Gaming / Re: (Please) knock me off my spot on the Tomena Sanner leaderboards!

« on: April 09, 2010, 11:46:23 AM »

Gah!
 
I've afraid to say the guy in first place is probably safe from me for a while. He's got 50% more points than I do. Damn you, Jayarr, whoever you are!

Meet your nemesis:
http://www.nintendolife.com/forums/wiiware/tomena_sanner_o_o
:p


This game is pretty awesome though.  It's so simple, so weird, so easy to pick up and play.  Although not good enough for the leader boards, I still see something new and funny almost every time I play.

4631

Nintendo Gaming / Re: Worthy WiiWare Games

« on: April 09, 2010, 07:55:36 AM »

Jungle Speed needs to be on there. It's an amazingly fun card game like a hybrid or uno, war and reflex card games like speed and spit. Special thanks to GP for introducing the game to me. My friends and sister tried it and now we all own in on our Wiis. It's very well made as well and has options for expanded rules and such.

Good call.  It's a solid board game conversion, and a great party game that allows up to 8 people to join in.


It kind of surprises me that WiiWare hasn't seen more board game conversions.  We've got Uno and Jungle Speed and Hey! That's My Fish... but I thought we might see a few more ranging from classic American game designs like Monopoly, Scrabble, Operation and even Hungry Hungry Hippos to lesser known designer games like Settlers of Catan* and Carcassonne*.


*Ok, I think Microsoft has rights to digital distribution for those two specific games, since they are both on XBLA... but there is a huge library of cool board games that could be transferred over to WiiWare pretty easily.  The biggest effort involved would be securing the rights.

4632

Nintendo Gaming / Re: Cave Story WiiWare

« on: April 09, 2010, 07:43:42 AM »

Also, I just remembered about the hidden room about halfway up the Outer Wall.  There's a locked chest in there and I couldn't figure out how to open it.  Any help? 

I'm trying to figure that one out too...  But am going for the "best" ending this time by fixing as many of my little mistakes as possible, so hopefully that will help.


Another (possible) weapon spoiler:
Remember the first room where you got the Polar Star gun at the start of the game?  You can visit that room again later - I used the Machine gun to get up there - and the old man talks about someone stealing his gun before it's finished.  Since you can trade in that gun two other places for upgrades, I'm betting he'll give you something too if you keep it.


A funny note: I just found the map.  Played through the entire game without it earlier, and have to say it didn't seem necessary at all.

4633

Nintendo Gaming / Re: Worthy WiiWare Games

« on: April 08, 2010, 08:45:23 PM »

Yes, yes... I know many of these fall into the obvious category... but it's easier for me to provide a full list of games that I thought were significant in different ways over the past year.  (Please note that being significant doesn't mean they are all "great" games, but they were at least interesting for one reason or another.)


In alphabetical order:

• Art of Balance
• Bit.Trip series
• Blaster Master: Overdrive
• Bonsai Barber
• Bubble Bobble Plus!
• Cave Story
• Equilibrio
• Final Fantasy IV: The After Years
• LostWinds: Winter of the Melodias
• Max & the Magic Marker
• Muscle March
• NyxQuest: Kindred Spirits
• Rage of the Gladiator
• ReBirth series (Castlevania, Gradius, Contra)
• Rubik's Puzzle Galaxy: RUSH
• Swords & Soldiers
• Tales of Monkey Island series
• Tomena Sanner
• Uno
• Water Warfare
• You, Me, and the Cubes

Some trends that I thought were interesting include: taking advantage of rarely used Wii peripherals (WiiSpeak, Motion+, Balance Board) highly experiments (and sometimes "Japanese") games continued excellence from unique puzzle games retro revival entire series of related games being released digitally  (Monkey Island series vs Sam & Max) movement between physical and digital medium (Rubik's Puzzle Galaxy and Groovin' Block)

4634

Nintendo Gaming / Re: Cave Story WiiWare

« on: April 08, 2010, 08:23:54 PM »

The boss rush as what I assume to be the end of the game can piss off.

Anyone have any tips on how to get through it?

Lots of spoiler text coming up here.  Sorry about that, but it's best not to reveal things that people might not want to read by accident.



Last boss discussion:
I agree - don't use missiles on Misery.  It's much more effective to get right under her and fire away with either the Machine Gun or Polar Star or the Snake or whatever equivalent weapon you might have.  Save the missiles for later bosses - I like to use them for the Doctor's second form so I that don't have to get close, although sometimes use the Sword there too.


Another tip: you don't need to fight off Sue and Misery when fighting the Possessed Island Core.  Just ignore them (but keep moving so you don't become a target) and focus on jumping between platforms and nailing the main boss with missiles whenever his mouth is open.  Keeping Misery alive can actually be beneficial because she will sometime summon a bunch of easy enemies when you are on the ground - kill those enemies for missile and life refills as necessary.


Although the final boss rush *is* hard, it's not impossible by any means.  With a little bit of practice you'll be fine.  By the way, you found the stash of power-ups at the top of the screen before entering the room with Misery, right?  So you are heading in at full power?


Possible weapon spoiler:
If you want to make the final battles easier, try saving Mr Little (if it's not already too late).  Where Kazuma is waiting with the dragon, you can fall underneath the platform and find a hidden door with a small family.  The wife is looking for her husband, who is in the Graveyard where you found Arthur's Key at the start of the game.  Bring him back and you'll get an awesome weapon - or at least it is awesome as long as you don't power it up.  Great choice for boss battles since getting hit won't make it less powerful.[/spoilers]




One thing I really like about this game is that choices do affect things, but don't ruin the experience at all.  Some weapons and items can only be had if you make the "right" choices... but doing things differently still lead to a satisfying path.  For example, if you don't trade for the Machine Gun there are some real benefits later - but I'm using the Machine Gun on my current playthrough and absolutely loving it.  Having a "good" and "best" ending works the same way - although I have no idea how to get the best ending yet... I just know there are places I haven't been yet and people I need to find a way to save.


Another thing I really like is how playing through the game a second (or third) time feels really good. A lot of games don't have any reason to bring you back for more, but Cave Story seems like it's got a lot of secrets and small details worth looking for.  The game also feels really good when you play though a second time.  Tasks that took a lot of exploration the first time are much quicker.  Boss battles with challenging patterns already unraveled are easier.  It gives the player a real sense of mastery over the game to breeze through subsequent plays.


Anyway, glad to hear others are enjoying the game too.  Cave Story sucked up a lot of my gaming time recently and was definitely worthwhile.  Now if only I can figure out how to open the clock door when climbing the wall!  Maybe this time. 

4635

Nintendo Gaming / Re: Netflix comes to Wii.... finally.

« on: March 27, 2010, 12:08:46 AM »

I wish there was a similar service for Canada.  This isn't a big deal... but I'd definitely use Netflix if it was available here.

4636

Nintendo Gaming / Re: Can anyone recommend any good Virtual Console and wiiware games?

« on: March 23, 2010, 10:27:16 AM »

I remember playing the arcade version of Magician Lord in the diner that my mother used to work in when I was about 7-years-old. That game is at the top of my list.

I recommend buying the SNK Arcade Classics Vol 1 disc-based game instead.  You can find it for under $20, and it includes the following games:
 
Art of Fighting
Baseball Stars 2
Burning Fight
Fatal Fury
King of the Monsters
Last Resort
Magician Lord
Metal Slug
Neo Turf Masters
Samurai Showdown
Sengoku
Shock Troopers
Super Sidekicks 3
The King of Fighters '94
Top Hunter
World Heroes
 
Much better value for your money... In fact, it's a good deal for anyone who enjoyed playing some of those old Neo Geo classics!

4637

Nintendo Gaming / Re: Shiren the Wanderer DS Thread of Helping Jonny Not Give Up

« on: March 23, 2010, 10:20:45 AM »

Do people really play roguelikes and not get frustrated by them? I am fine with challenging games, but in something like Mega Man 10, I know what I did wrong on every death and can immediately try again. Shiren is very unpredictable, and when you fail, you could permanently lose things you worked hard for. On top of that, you may have to play for hours to get back in a similar situation. As I said before, I think there are a lot of neat ideas and admirable things about this game, but it seems inherently and maybe even deliberately frustrating.

They don't tend to frustrate me, but it probably depends on your expectations going in.  I grew up playing high-score challenges where games usually had no end.  Gamers simply played for as long as possible, knowing that death would catch up with them eventually.
 
For me, Rogue-likes are a throwback to that classic design: high-score challenge RPGs, where story matters much less than the adventures your character can have in a relatively short time before dying.  It's not a question of *if* the character will die, but what experiences he/she can have before that happens and what stories you are left with when death finally claims that character.
 
Starting over isn't frustrating for me because I view the next game as the beginning of a new adventure with different levels to explore, (potentially) better loot to equip, and new interactions to discover.  But I can certainly understand how people grow attached to their characters and don't like losing them... especially when death can seem random and harsh.

4638

Nintendo Gaming / Re: Cave Story WiiWare

« on: March 22, 2010, 11:22:34 AM »

So this came out today in the US today. Anybody plan on getting it?

Yes, but the "import fee" for Rondo of Blood left me 100 points short!  Either have to buy more Wii Points or wait for a bit... not sure which it will be just yet.

4639

Nintendo Gaming / Re: Can anyone recommend any good Virtual Console and wiiware games?

« on: March 22, 2010, 11:21:02 AM »

One last note:


The NintendoLife website might be helpful since their mission statement is to review all released WiiWare/Virtual Console games.



http://www.nintendolife.com/


Some people find their scores to be useless because many games get lumped into the 7-8 range, the reviews are often more positive than you'll find from other websites, and reviews tend to go up rather quickly after a game is released.


However, the comments and discussion around each game are often helpful when deciding what to buy, and reviewers do a good job of responding to questions or comments most of the time.  (For example, I was totally on the fence about Rage of the Gladiator until seeing the posts there... but am very happy that I took the chance on it!)


Of course, Nintendo World Report is awesome and you should definitely read the reviews here too - but they just don't have the time to review everything.
 

4640

Nintendo Gaming / Re: Can anyone recommend any good Virtual Console and wiiware games?

« on: March 22, 2010, 11:10:16 AM »

I was thinking world of goo, Swords and Soldiers, Megaman 9 and 10 along with Sonic the Hedgehog 4.

I own World of Goo, Swords and Soldiers, and Megaman 9 from the games you listed.  My opinions are:


-- World of Goo was overrated but still a very enjoyable game.  Finished the game, and got the OCD award on roughly 1/3 of the levels for meeting special goals when beating each level.  If you like odd puzzle games it's hard to go wrong with this one.
-- Swords and Soldiers was a wonderful surprise.  I didn't expect much and it blew me away with great quality and tough levels.  Plenty of levels, fun in-game achievements to go after, extra game modes after you beat each campaign, and multiplayer too?  (The only downside is that I don't have anyone to play against, so after beating the game haven't really gone back to the game lately.)
-- Megaman 9 is a great title if you enjoy old-school Megaman action.  Great music, tough bosses, creative level design for most stages, and a shocking ending!  Who knew that Dr Wily was really innocent all this time!  (I kid.)  There is additional DLC available, but the only thing worthwhile (in my opinion) is the endless stage where you see how long you can survive, with online leaderboards.


All three of those games are worth getting, although I would suggest that you might not need both Megaman 9 and 10 right away unless you are a huge fan of the series. Maybe it would make sense to consider one of the games below instead?


Some other WiiWare games you might consider could include:
(1) LostWinds -- The sequel (Winter of the Melodias) is better than the original, but you might want to start with the first game for the story.  NyxQuest is also a very good game that uses similar controls, but offers more puzzles and less exploration.
(2) Rage of the Gladiator -- It's like Punch-Out!! but only $10.  Makes really good use of the motion plus accessory if you have one, but doesn't require it since there are three different control options available.  Challenge mode and different upgrade paths help give the game extra replay value.
(3) Cave Story -- Coming out today!  The game is also free to download on PC... but it's definitely worth playing somewhere.  Strong retro vibe with this one, and might not live up to the hype unless you fell in love with the original indie game.
(4) Bit.Trip Beat -- This rhythm game takes influence from Pong, but mixes in some trip-tastic beats and covers the whole thing in psychedelic, retro-inspired graphics.  Sounds weird, but this score attack rhythm game is very high quality and successfully kicked off the Bit.Trip series.  (Two other games released already, at least one more coming soon.)
(5) Tetris Party -- It's just Tetris, but with a bunch of different modes and online play.  An updated retail version is planned before too long... but it's still hard to go wrong with this inexpensive classic.
(6) Bubble Bobble Plus -- Classic two-player arcade action.  This game is wonderful if you have a friend to play with.
(7) Strong Bad Episode 1-5 -- A series of point-and-click adventure games.  Quite good if you like the genre and/or the Homestar Runner cartoons this series is based on.  (Tales of Monkey Island is also available and fun to play... but has enough performance issues that I would probably recommend Strong Bad instead.)




From the Virtual Console list you posted, I really recommend the Phantasy Star games (especially the later ones) and Castlevania: Rondo of Blood.  Both are great fun, and offer great value, although obviously they are very different types of games.

4641

Nintendo Gaming / Re: Wii LAN Adapter - First or Third Party Version?

« on: March 22, 2010, 10:36:51 AM »

A few years back, I spent some time making unofficial tests with an official LAN adapter, a no-name 3rd party LAN adapter (ordered from the Hong Kong-based DealExtreme website), and the built-in wireless adapter.


Tests involved timing how long it took to download various games from the Wii Shop Channel, pinging the console from other PCs, and playing Medal of Honor Heroes 2 online (looking only for general observations when playing online, since I had no quantifiable metric available).


The results* were surprising.  Performance was nearly identical for both LAN adapters, and any differences observed appeared to be statistically insignificant.  Using the wireless adapter was slower initially... but after tweaking my router configuration and location, that delay was reduced to negligible levels.  The only real advantage I saw when comparing all three connection types was slightly more consistent results from the two LAN adapters.  The most important factor from my tests was clearly the quality of service offered by your network provider, instead of anything related to the actual Wii console.


I chose to sell the Nintendo LAN adapter, use the built-in wireless adapter for regular play, and hold onto the 3rd party LAN adapter in case it will be useful in the future (ie: wireless router not working, a more consistent connection required for some online gaming, or visiting friends without wireless access).  Some people might prefer to pay more for the official Nintendo LAN adapter because it probably has better quality assurance and resale value.  Personally it wasn't worth the extra cost for me; you might have a different opinion about the matter though.




*Note that these tests were very rough in nature, and my background in networking and statistics is very limited.  So "results" are better called observations and opinions.

4642

Nintendo Gaming / Re: RONDO OF BLOOD

« on: March 22, 2010, 10:03:42 AM »

I can understand if some people are underwhelmed with the game after hearing about Rondo of Blood for years and years as a "grail game"... but I'm enjoying every second of play right now.


To me, it feels like the perfect upgrade to the original Castlevania.  Everything is bigger and better, but the actual gameplay remains very simple with only a few new additions (like powerful item crash effects) and slightly improved controls.  So it's taking a classic title that was deeply appreciated and clearly improving on it.


What really excites me though are the many hidden secrets, branching paths, and unlockable second character.  All of these features add replay value, which is good because the game feels quite easy otherwise due to a convenient save system and (generally speaking) fewer "cheap" hits that must be absorbed than the original Castlevania.


Finally, boss encounters are awesome.  I've only managed to beat 4 so far (including a hidden boss in level 1) but each has been enjoyable.  The patterns have mostly been simple enough that I expect to win on the second or third attempt, but bosses are usually strong enough that you need to keep on your toes right up until the end... especially since some bosses like the Werewolf or Sea Dragon will make final strikes after being defeated, hoping to take you out with their final dying breath!


My one complaint?  I wish we could have had English subtitles to understand the cutscenes.


@Vudu:
After you find and free Maria, you can switch to her... but need to die or exit the game and then use the Switch Character entry from the main menu - you can't change characters mid-game as far as I know.  It's pretty cool when you do unlock her!  She has different controls, attacks, and special items.  Makes the game feel very different, although I agree it seems to have been balanced more for Richter than Maria.

4643

Podcast Discussion / Re: Game of the Decade -- Vote After Listening to RFN 183!

« on: March 11, 2010, 10:13:54 AM »

Finished replaying Ocarina of Time recently and started on Majora's Mask (using the GameCube Collector's Edition disc).  Got almost to the end of the third day without saving when the game froze.  Immense frustration followed, and I can only imagine that if this happened to anyone experiencing the game for this first time it would color their view of the entire game*.
 
Oh well, will go back at it this weekend... this time with the Virtual Console release that is supposed to be a better emulation.
 
 
*On a side note, something similar happened to me when first playing Ocarina of Time on the N64.  The game froze in Zora's Domain while climbing up the big ladder.  I lost a couple hours of progress and all interest in playing further.  The game sat for weeks before I bothered to try again.

4644

TalkBack / Re: FEATURE: GDC 2009: No More Excuses: Taking the Wii (and DS) Online

« on: March 11, 2010, 10:05:50 AM »

Very interesting.
 
Were there really only 3 conferences about Wii?  Developers obviously care more about having the most resources and latest tech than about finding good ways to best use what they have.  Not a surprise, I guess... but still a disappointment.  For all the talk about wanting to create immersive game experiences that reach the most people possible, the truth is anything but.
 
A good presentation about the online capabilities though.  I've read lots of excuses about Wii not being able to handle online games, or Nintendo's online architecture being too tough to manage... but since GameSpy is running everything, apparently it's just developers choosing not to make the effort?  Why doesn't that surprise me.

4645

Nintendo Gaming / Re: New Gamecube Owner

« on: March 09, 2010, 02:26:10 PM »

Was there a retroactive session where everyone played Luigi's Mansion again?  If not, we should have one!  It's also on my shortlist of GameCube titles to play.  Definitely gets my vote.
 
One tip: if you are planning to play Majora's Mask on GameCube, save often.  Recently started playing this, got in about an hour and had everything freeze.  Now I need to start over (this time with the Virtual Console release on Wii).

4646

TalkBack / Re: EA Cuts Boom Blox Team

« on: March 07, 2010, 05:01:47 PM »

Sad to hear, since both Boom Blox games were very good... but I agree with comments above.  Wii games need to be done right the first time to have impact.  Releasing a sequel with minor improvements and minimal advertising just one year after the original really isn't a great idea.  The original Boom Blox was a solid game and didn't need to be replaced so soon (even though Bash Party did improve on the formula).
 
Also, relying on the party moniker to sell was lame.

4647

TalkBack / Re: Scribblenauts 2 Coming This Fall

« on: March 07, 2010, 04:47:05 PM »

I bought (and enjoyed) the first game because the idea seemed really interesting.  This seems like a tough sell though.
 
While it sounds like execution and controls are improved, the central idea hasn't changed at all... so while it's cool to see a sequel, unless there is huge improvement in how words are differentiated and how objects interact with each other, this second attempt seems less interesting than expanding on the idea or offering something entirely new.  (Even offering the game on a different platform would make more sense to me.)

4648

Podcast Discussion / Re: NWR Newscast: Episode 12

« on: March 01, 2010, 02:54:17 PM »

And also, ejamer, that's what I get for not owning the original Endless Ocean. I knew there was no clear and present danger, but I was unaware that there were docile sharks.

The big sharks were very well hidden in the first Endless Ocean - I'm pretty sure you could finish the game without ever seeing them.  You have to stow away in the open hull of a drifiting ghost ship, which carries you to an off-map location with sunken ships to explore and what looked like crashed WW2 aircraft.  There were some great whites, an orca that you could tame and train, and some artifacts to discover.  The trick is finding the ghost ship: I think there were parts to a pirate's compass or something that you had to uncover first?  Hopefully the sequel has neat things and hidden areas to find also.
 
Oh, great discussion about Shiren on Wii too.  I've been wondering about picking that game up (I'm generally a fan of rogue-likes) but think I'm going to stick with Chocobo's Dungeon for now instead.

4649

Nintendo Gaming / Re: Is the Wii becoming over-saturated with Mario games?

« on: March 01, 2010, 11:13:47 AM »

As long as the quality remains high and the content doesn't repeat, it's very hard to complain... but (personally) I am reaching a personal limit on how many Nintendo games really interest me this generation.  13/50 first-party titles isn't that bad though!

4650

Podcast Discussion / Re: NWR Newscast: Episode 12

« on: March 01, 2010, 11:06:02 AM »

Just out of curiosity, what is it about excessive chapters that makes it inconvenient?  Does it just make it hard to actually skip around the episode because there's too much clutter?

Maybe it depends on how people listen to the podcast.
 
I prefer listening to 10-20 minute segments, and being able to easily skip back and forth between those larger sections works extremely well for me.  Having smaller chapters just means I have to change my expectations and/or habits slightly.  (It would be interesting to hear if anyone particularly likes small chapter stops - because other people might find them even more useful than the larger breaks I am used to.)
 
By the way, I did really like the extra artwork included.  It's not a big selling point, because most of the time I'm listening and not looking at the screen - but still a nice touch.  Using short chapters to allow people to skip over potential spoilers or quickly identify content about a specific game could be a huge benefit too.  So I don't think there is any hard-and-fast rule about what is best.