The history of a love affair.
http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/blog/32423
Like many gamers, my initial exposure to WayForward Technologies—an extremely talented developer—happened in or just after 2002, with the unfortunately timed release of Shantae for the Game Boy Color.
It was love at first sight—a huge world; a bright, colorful presentation; a charming main character; and, most importantly, a Metroid-esque world to explore. While I never beat the game and can’t find my copy to save my life, Shantae made me a fan of WayForward. You never forget your first (developer) crush! My 10-year history with WayForward has only strengthened our relationship. On the eve of the release of their Adventure Time game, I felt it might be time to wax nostalgic.
I smell a CATFIGHT!After Shantae, my next hazy memory is of a side-scrolling GBA, Godzilla: Domination, which functioned as the handheld version of Godzilla: Destroy All Monsters. While I never owned it, I’d always wanted to. It appeared to be King of the Monsters but with actual Godzilla characters. I still keep an eye out for it today, alongside another GBA game released a few years later: Sigma Star Saga, a game that somehow marries isometric, character-based gameplay with a horizontal space shooter. It sounds like an interesting marriage, and aside from that, one of the female characters (Psyme) is a cutie.
This game is really great. Surprisingly great, even.It would not be until 2007 (can you believe it?) that I would actually own another WayForward game, the inventive and hilarious Looney Tunes: Duck Amuck. In it, the player irritates Daffy with the stylus as though he is a “real” cartoon character. Making Daffy do certain things initiates fun WarioWare-style minigames. The game’s hook is that Daffy reacts in a wholly realistic way to your abuses. The game is experimental, surprising, and wonderful. Contra 4 came out the same year, but my crush had not reached fever pitch yet, and I was terrified of Contra games, so my attraction to WayForward did not outweigh my aversion to bullet-hell run-and-gun games.
Once more into the breach, dear Blob!But then 2009 came, and an ambitious WayForward game for the Wii blew my mind and stole my heart: A Boy & His Blob. We’ve featured the game a number of times here on NWR, most notably as a site-wide Game Club game and one of our Top Ten Wii 3rd Party games. Blob is, without a doubt, one of the most beautiful games on the system, aided by amazing cell animation and an incredibly musical score. Though maybe not a perfect game, Blob is more than the sum of its parts, and I encourage anyone who hasn’t played it to go find a copy. And yes, the rumors are true: there’s a “hug” button, and it’s the most adorable single action on the system.
2009 and 2010 were big deals, as well. WayForward released Mighty Flip Champs and Shantae: Risky’s Revenge those years, and I bought them both. The former is fun for about an hour before the difficulty spikes at a 90-degree angle. I think we all know how I feel about the latter (LOOOOVE IT!). I replay that game all the time—it’s a speed run game at the end of the day. It’s also quite possibly the prettiest 2D game on the DS, retail or otherwise. If Blob had not convinced me that WayForward was the king of the 2D platformer, Risky’s Revenge cemented it.
I smell a SQUIDFIGHT!WayForward released two other 2D, well-animated platformer games in 2010 based on the Batman: Brave & the Bold cartoon, one for Wii, and the other for the DS. I’ve always wanted both, but I can’t find the DS one anymore, and the Wii game just refuses to drop below $30 at every store in Anchorage. From what I’ve watched and heard, they are both brawler/platformers that hang their hats on the animation and voice acting repertoires between all the characters.
The next year, they released Aliens: Infestation, which, as I recall, was supposed to have some connection to Colonial Marines until that game was heavily pushed back. Being a fan of WayForward and the Aliens movies (well, the first two), I excitedly picked up this game in early 2012 and was a bit underwhelmed.
I wonder why I like this game...?But any faith lost by Aliens: Infectation was made up for—several times over—by 2011’s excellent, but brutally difficult Bloodrayne: Betrayal and Mighty Switch Force. Bloodrayne is gorgeous by any standard but is also the hardest, most punishing 2D game I’ve played in a very long time. It combines aspects of several 2D platformers but seems most inspired by the older, pre-Symphony Castlevania titles. I’ll beat it someday, but I’m never going to get an A rank on ANY of the missions. Mighty Switch Force, of course, is one of my favorite 3DS games. Like Risky’s Revenge, it quickly becomes a speed run game once you figure out the intricacies of each stage. Earlier this year, WayForward released bonus stages as free DLC, which made me pick the game back up and get faster times in all the normal stages too—including a perfect run through the sixteenth mission!
2012 and 2013 look to be banner years, too. I’ve already nabbed their unique take on Silent Hill with the Vita’s Book of Memories, and I fully intend to buy Mighty Switch Force: Hyper Drive Edition on the Wii U. You might call it double-dipping, but that game will feature redrawn, cell-animated graphics, GamePad features, all the content from the 3DS update, and the potential for yet more bonus features. And yes, yesterday we found out that a sequel to Risky’s Revenge, called Shantae and the Pirate’s Curse, is set to appear on the 3DS eShop in 2013, making it my most anticipated game of next year.
I hope you don't need the Hammer to get into any areas.So it’s with this history in mind that I’m looking forward to Adventure Time: Hey Ice King! Why’d You Steal Our Garbage?! I like the show; I watch it when there’s nothing else on, but I’m in no way a “big fan.” The reason I’m excited about it, despite the fact that it appears to be a direct homage to The Adventure of Link, is that WayForward made it, and they have yet to truly disappoint me. As has been stated, Adventure Time involves our heroes (Finn and Jake) traveling a large overworld, battling enemies, and going to towns/dungeons in side-scrolling landscapes. Series creator Pendleton Ward has been overseeing the game's script and art direction, and even created some new characters and enemies specifically for the game—it's very cool to know that the series' creator has such a stake in the game. A few qualities that separate Adventure Time from its Zelda forbearer: rather than leveling up through experience, our boys find stars scattered throughout the land of Ooo which are basically skill points. Additionally, you will find food, which is combined to produce a variety of effects.
I smell a BUBBLEGUM FIGHT!Despite not being the kind of guy who records the show every week, the game does sound intriguing, and I look forward to trying it out. I can only hope they include the show's charming and catchy theme song, and that maybe Marceline will play some rockin' electric guitar.
Anyway, all this, and WayForward TOO? Count me in, dear reader. Count me in.
Topic: The Way Forward (Read 3156 times)
