Author Topic: What are you playing?  (Read 692262 times)

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Offline ejamer

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Re: What are you playing?
« Reply #575 on: October 18, 2014, 09:29:29 AM »
I went back and played a decent chunk of Super Mario 3D World tonight. As time passes, I'm becoming more and more comfortable saying that's my favorite game of all time. Perfectly distilled platforming.


Not sure it's my favorite game of all time, but certainly couldn't begrudge anyone who feels that way.
Super Mario 3D World is fantastic.
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Offline Sarail

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Re: What are you playing?
« Reply #576 on: October 19, 2014, 11:04:51 PM »
As always: Final Fantasy XIV - A Realm Reborn. After acquiring full Sol tome armour from Hunts, Duty EX, Primal HMs (basically anything that grants Soldiery tomestones), I started seriously pushing to complete Beastmen quests. And as of two days ago, I finally completed them after starting them earlier in the summer. There's five sets of beastmen tribes currently in Eorzea on the lower continents - Ixali, Kobolds, Sahagin, Amal'jaa, and Sylphs. And there's a bit of a surprise once you get all five to rank 8 (Allied standing.) Incredibly rewarding quest line and added items. And much respect for Yoshida and crew for pushing that surprise at the end of it all, as well. That kind of stuff is desperately needed in the gaming industry.

Revisiting: Dungeon Defenders. My brother convinced me to rejoin him on his crusade to levelling a character to lvl100, and I had completely forgotten how much of a total romp this game can be. It's crazy fun. I'm not so much a tower defence kind of gamer, but I make an exception for this game. It looks and feels like a Nintendo game, and that's probably why I adore it so much. Anyway, to keep it brief, my brother and I have been trying to level quickly and gain Mythical armour - the next step in armour once you hit lvl75. I've got three of four pieces now. :)

Brand new: Super Smash Bros. 4 (3DS). First thing's first - I'm a competitive player of Smash. I love it, and I don't know why. It's a thrill. One-on-one, no items (except Smash Ball), and any stage goes. That's my motto. I've made a finalised tier list now concerning my personal choices amongst grouping fighters in a 'Best/Great/Good/So-So/Awful' category, and so far, my personal tiers are as follows:

Best - Zero Suit Samus, Diddy Kong, Koopalings
Great - Bowser, Pac-Man, Link, Pit, Palutena, Robin, Fox, Pikachu, Wii Fit Trainer, Mii (Brawler), Falco, Wario
Good - Villager, Greninja, Captain Falcon, Mario, Sheik, Ike, Kirby, Meta Knight, Olimar, Mega Man, Jigglypuff, Dr. Mario, Duck Hunt, Mr. Game & Watch, Mii (Gunner)
So-So - Luigi, Rosalina, Donkey Kong, Toon Link, Marth, King Dedede, Little Mac, Charizard, Lucario, Shulk, Dark Pit, Ganondorf, Lucina, Mii (Swordmaster)
Awful - Peach, Yoshi*, Zelda, Samus, Sonic, Ness, R.O.B.

*Scott Thompson (oksoda) is a BEAST with Yoshi. I do not understand this. It's incomprehensible. Really.

And if you'd like to come Smash my head into the stratosphere with me as any of my three 'Bests,' then by all means, please come do it. I welcome all challengers. (I'm terrible, really.)[/b]
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Offline broodwars

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Re: What are you playing?
« Reply #577 on: October 20, 2014, 12:13:15 AM »
I have finished Alien: Isolation and...I'm exhausted, and the game went on about 3-4 game hours longer than it needed to. The development team made an unusual choice with the Xenomorph mythos, obviously basing it on the deleted scenes inserted in the Director's Cut of Alien.  I'll be interested to see how "canon" the Alien fanbase treats this game.
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Offline Adrock

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Re: What are you playing?
« Reply #578 on: October 20, 2014, 09:30:21 AM »
And if you'd like to come Smash my head into the stratosphere with me as any of my three 'Bests,' then by all means, please come do it. I welcome all challengers. (I'm terrible, really.)
I'm down. Maybe I can change your mind regarding Lady Fire Emblem (AKA Lucina). I'm not great either. In Classic Mode, I've only been able to max at 7.0 difficulty. I've seen video of someone beating 9.0 without damage.

I don't want to get too into it here. I've been keeping all of my Super Smash Bros. for 3DS thoughts in the threads Khush created in Handheld Gaming.

Offline Khushrenada

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Re: What are you playing?
« Reply #579 on: October 20, 2014, 01:13:16 PM »
Don't hold back on my account. I believe in freedom of discussion and thread derailment. I'm surprised there hasn't been a matchmaking thread created for the game though. I'd have thought more people on this site might be wanting to compete with each other.
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Offline NWR_insanolord

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Re: What are you playing?
« Reply #580 on: October 22, 2014, 02:37:48 PM »
Since Nintendo finally set it up so you can play Off-TV in Wii mode without having to initiate it via the TV, played about half a dozen stars into Mario 64 tonight. Great game, but I'd kill for a 3DS-eShop remake that's basically all the extra content and enhancement but with proper controls.
« Last Edit: October 22, 2014, 02:40:05 PM by NWR_insanolord »
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Offline MagicCow64

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Re: What are you playing?
« Reply #581 on: October 22, 2014, 03:30:15 PM »
Pandora's Tower (Wii):


I picked this up for cheap at Fry's many moons ago, and finally got dry enough to give it a go. I actually dug the game, despite some of the pretty obvious criticisms, such as the fairly crappy graphics, low enemy count, repeat dungeons, sluggish controls, and annoyingly long boss fights. Working through the towers is fun, though, and I enjoyed the process of unlocking shortcuts to make runs back to the Observatory less onerous. Interacting with the environment and the enemies with the chain is satisfying and tactile (though swinging from grapple points fucking sucks). I even got OCD about maxing out the bond meter with Elena and crafting ingredients to upgrade weapons. I haven't really played a non-Nintendo Japanese console game in some time, so despite shortcomings I found this game refreshing.


That is, until I encountered a game-breaking bug in the final two dungeons that hard-freezes the Wii U (and Wii, based on forums). There was a workaround that let me get past this, but, on my final jaunt back to the observatory to feed Elena and rest, the workaround stopped working. I had all eight chains destroyed, and was on the doorstep of the boss. I spent over two hours trying every possible workaround posted, but to no avail. You have to beat the final twin dungeons in at most three runs, or you're fucking stuck. Apparently this was some problem with converting the game from PAL, and there is no solution. I put 20 hours into this goddamn game. I would not advise buying it under any circumstances with this glitch looming.


Donkey Kong Country Returns: Tropical Freeze (Wii U):


Picked this game back up after completing an initial run upon its release. I spent a good chunk of time going back and picking up missing puzzle pieces, a few of which were, like, jaw-dropping in obscurity, beyond anything in the first game (I'm looking at you Busted Bayou and Sea Stack Attack). I've now moved on to a Hard Mode run, and holy hell, I think it's actually more intense than the first game. The lack of checkpoints is alleviated somewhat by the selectable kongs, but I've spent over an hour on individual levels, and I came very close to throwing the gamepad during the Owl boss. Still, the design really shines in this mode, activating a level of consideration that usually doesn't factor into a regular playthrough. I'm about halfway through, and I'm already having doubts if I can get to 200% without harming myself or others. Frederick will be a nightmare.






Offline broodwars

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Re: What are you playing?
« Reply #582 on: October 22, 2014, 11:43:29 PM »
I've played The Legend of Korra, which is a terrible game with godawful checkpointing and encounter design, as expected of Platinum Games.

On the positive side, I've also played a lot of Peggle 2. It's just more Peggle, but it's just as additive as the original game.
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Offline ejamer

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Re: What are you playing?
« Reply #583 on: October 23, 2014, 12:21:27 AM »
Pandora's Tower (Wii):
...
That is, until I encountered a game-breaking bug in the final two dungeons that hard-freezes the Wii U (and Wii, based on forums). ... Apparently this was some problem with converting the game from PAL, and there is no solution. I put 20 hours into this goddamn game. I would not advise buying it under any circumstances with this glitch looming.
...


One of the rare cases where I'm still glad to have imported a game after a local release is made available.
Really a shame about the bugs in the North American release.  :(



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Offline Stogi

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Re: What are you playing?
« Reply #584 on: October 23, 2014, 01:53:09 AM »
EXCITE TRUCK

I have some downtime so I've been playing some video games again. Immediately chose to play Excite Truck. I already beat the every living **** out of it, but I don't remember a thing except how incredible the last track was.

My god. I forgot how hilarious this game is. And how much it looks like ****, but I could care less. It's like they took a child's imagination playing with tonka trucks and put it in video game form. It's insane. Nothing is realistic except for basic physics, like water is wet and gravity makes things fall. And nothing stops you from constantly flying through the air flicking off birds while you sail over forests. mountains and lakes. It's amazing. And when you get even decent at it, you never ever lay off the gas or the turbo.

Now there are some definite cons, such as recycling tracks by running through them backwards, flying into barriers that clearly are only there so you don't skip a fourth of a track, or the controls getting in the way sometimes. It can get pretty frustrating or monotonous, but it's fun. It's fucking fun. And I still haven't made it to the final race. They definitely saved the best for last. I can't wait.

And I can't believe this was a launch title. Solid, solid game.
« Last Edit: October 23, 2014, 01:55:00 AM by Hypotheliciously »
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Offline Ceric

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Re: What are you playing?
« Reply #585 on: October 23, 2014, 10:39:18 AM »
Play Excite Bot.  They sat down in the room and asked what could make this crazier.  Then did it.
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Offline Stogi

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Re: What are you playing?
« Reply #586 on: October 23, 2014, 12:50:57 PM »
I'm planning on playing it next!
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Offline ClexYoshi

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Re: What are you playing?
« Reply #587 on: October 25, 2014, 05:57:23 PM »
Uh-oh! Looks like I've decided today is a good day to venture deeper into the bowels of the NWR forums!  I believe this is a good place to start as any, as the subject is broad and the points don't matter! I'll catch you folks up on the last... I'unno, 5 things I've been playing, because otherwise it'd be clogged with Super Smash Bros. For 3DS and Shantae...!

1. Starbound

I decided recently it was time to start a 4th character and play the game vanilla since they are talking about updating it to 1.0 very soon. That being said... I'm not noticing anything different in the progression or recopies available to this new character. Have I missed a patch somewhere? it still says the version is Enraged Koala. the only thing I've noticed that's new is that some weapons now aim where you have your mouse cursor pointed ala' Terraria.

For the uninitiated, that's really what this game is. It's a Sci-fi spiritual sequel to Terraria where you choose from one of six alien races and end up orbiting a random planet with no food, no fuel, and little more than a flash light, a matter manipulator, and a rusty sword to defend yourself, and... while there are bosses and progression as you craft and find better swag, it really doesn't have a ton of structure. Sand box funtimes, pretty much. makes for an excellent podcast game still, even if I don't find myself enamored with the game like I did my first time through.

2. Batman (NES, Sunsoft)

I was at my local flea market a few weeks ago and stumbled upon a copy of this for $5 and immediately demanded to take it home...! I used to rent this all the time from Dollar Video back when I was like... 7? 8? holy wow.

Sunsoft is a really hit or miss developer, and Batman, while being brutal beyond words, is up in that upper tier of the third party's achievements along with the likes of Blaster Master and Journey to Silius. the game has a lot of parallels to Ninja Gaiden with being an action platformer that sports an emphasis on Wall Jumps, managing sub weapons and ammo for them, and very evil enemy placement. Also, it has a bitchin' soundtrack. Pretty much, before Rocksteady got into the batman game business, this was THE game to play starring the Dark Knight.

3. Kirby Super Star

Speaking of games I used to rent all the damned time at Dollar Video on nights my parents felt like getting a large Deep-Dish pizza and renting an action movie that has possibly more cheese in it than the Chicago-style pie, I used to rent Kirby Super Star all the time! While I didn't stumble upon it at a flea market on the cheap, I did happen to have enough coins after Super Smash Bros. and Azure Striker Gunvolt to get this pillar of fine gaming from Club Nintendo!

Full Disclaimer, Kirby Super Star is one of my favorite games of all time. currently sitting at #7 on that list, which while some would argue is pretty far down, I've played a crapton of games. Kirby Super Star is by and far my favorite Kirby Game, and... actually, I feel it was VERY appropriate for Club Nintendo to feature it at the same time Super Smash Bros. was coming out, because I feel Kirby Super Star is not only the genesis for Kirby and the Amazing Mirror, but also for Super Smash Bros...!

A. The physics for the platforming controls in a Kirby game are surprisingly similar to those in the Smash Bros. games. of course, this isn't a surprise consideirng the release of Kirby Super Star and the development of Dragon King for the SNES Super FX chip lined up quite well. of course, Dragon King would get moved to the N64, and eventually Sakurai would get the green light to let pre-established Nintendo characters become the fighters instead of the generic polygon fighters.
B. Blocking was introduced in Kirby Super Star by using the L and R buttons. When Kirby has the Mirror ability copied, this becomes a bubble shield that takes no chip damage.
C. The various characters that appear at ringside of the Mt. Dedede arena and the Megaton Punch arena, as well as the goodies found in the Great Cave Offensive show an interest to at least in some comical fashion to tie Nintendo universes together. This is actually furthered in KDL3 where Kirby Meets up with the characters from Shin Onigashima, Professor Hector, and Samus.
D. Copy abilities gained multiple attacks that all depended on a directional imput+ hitting the attack button. this would of course become the basis for the fighting system in Smash Bros games after a bit of further fleshing out.
E. The obvious inspiration that The Arena and the Music from the rest areas in Great Cave Offensive had on Melee's All-Star mode.
F. Kirby Super Star is the first example of a UI feeling like a Sakurai Menu. granted, he wouldn't get his flair for the truly abstract until Melee and Kirby's Air Ride, but the Corkboard menu separating Kirby's various adventures and the unlockable options and mini-games into buttons feels VERY much like something you'd see in Brawl or Smash 4.
G. Kirby's Super Star featured the germination of Kirby's various attacks having specific damage values and enemies in a kirby game having an HP bar that could be mapped by using attacks on the computer virus boss. This is a bit of a stretch, but I feel the idea of attacks in Smash Bros. games doing % damage could easily have come from this.
H. The eb and Flow of Master+Crazy Hand, Subspace bosses, and Master Core all REALLY feel like Kirby Bosses, particularly with Wham Bam Rock and Master Hand having so many similarities, Tabuu taking straight from the Kirby rulebook of teleporting around like a nut before doing sort of attack that finally gives him a vulnerable moment, or some of Galleom's attacks feeling very similar to the Heavy Lobster.

4. Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS

Still playing tons of Smash Run, still playing lots of intensity 9 Classic to get good equipment and such. I do like that from what I've peeked at SmashBoards, they are very seriously considering having a custom move Meta, and Nintendo's recent tournament really supports it as well. I feel Custom moves, Equipment, and Amiibo are probably going to be some of the finer points of the Smash 4 body as a whole, but people will continue to snob on these excelent additions because they dislike change or having to adapt to more content.


5. Shantae and the Pirate's Curse

Shantae is my #2 favorite game of all time. it is a flawed but beautiful little gem that OOZES personality and charm. It has a fun little narrative and it's very meta and self-aware. Also, it's the game that Castlevania 2 should have been.

Pirate's Curse feels so much more focused...! I'm glad Wayforward took the extra Dev time on this one, because it feels like a MUCH better version of Risky's Revenge. getting around is easy, the combat somehow feels even snapper, the game already has a better difficulty to it, and the pirate abilities feel  so darned natural.

I also learn that we're FINALLY learning more about some of the supporting cast of these games. I feel like I know more about Sky, Uncle Mimic, Rottytops, Mayor Scuttlebutt, and most importantly Risky then I ever did before...! Things feel so much more fleshed out, and it's great...!

So is the soundtrack. and the 3D effect. and the return to a ore balanced version of shantae 1's item system. and so much more. Shantae and the Pirate's Curse is easily the best of the trilogy thus far, and may just end up dethroning the original GB title from my list.

Offline Phil

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Re: What are you playing?
« Reply #588 on: October 25, 2014, 06:17:12 PM »
Play Excite Bot.  They sat down in the room and asked what could make this crazier.  Then did it.


Without a doubt one of my favorite arcade racers ever. I would kill for a sequel. Speaking of which, are you sure Oblivion is back? Mwahahaha!
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Re: What are you playing?
« Reply #589 on: October 25, 2014, 07:08:22 PM »
Uh-oh! Looks like I've decided today is a good day to venture deeper into the bowels of the NWR forums!  I believe this is a good place to start as any, as the subject is broad and the points don't matter! I'll catch you folks up on the last... I'unno, 5 things I've been playing, because otherwise it'd be clogged with Super Smash Bros. For 3DS and Shantae...!

1. Starbound

I decided recently it was time to start a 4th character and play the game vanilla since they are talking about updating it to 1.0 very soon. That being said... I'm not noticing anything different in the progression or recopies available to this new character. Have I missed a patch somewhere? it still says the version is Enraged Koala. the only thing I've noticed that's new is that some weapons now aim where you have your mouse cursor pointed ala' Terraria.

For the uninitiated, that's really what this game is. It's a Sci-fi spiritual sequel to Terraria where you choose from one of six alien races and end up orbiting a random planet with no food, no fuel, and little more than a flash light, a matter manipulator, and a rusty sword to defend yourself, and... while there are bosses and progression as you craft and find better swag, it really doesn't have a ton of structure. Sand box funtimes, pretty much. makes for an excellent podcast game still, even if I don't find myself enamored with the game like I did my first time through.

2. Batman (NES, Sunsoft)

I was at my local flea market a few weeks ago and stumbled upon a copy of this for $5 and immediately demanded to take it home...! I used to rent this all the time from Dollar Video back when I was like... 7? 8? holy wow.

Sunsoft is a really hit or miss developer, and Batman, while being brutal beyond words, is up in that upper tier of the third party's achievements along with the likes of Blaster Master and Journey to Silius. the game has a lot of parallels to Ninja Gaiden with being an action platformer that sports an emphasis on Wall Jumps, managing sub weapons and ammo for them, and very evil enemy placement. Also, it has a bitchin' soundtrack. Pretty much, before Rocksteady got into the batman game business, this was THE game to play starring the Dark Knight.

3. Kirby Super Star

Speaking of games I used to rent all the damned time at Dollar Video on nights my parents felt like getting a large Deep-Dish pizza and renting an action movie that has possibly more cheese in it than the Chicago-style pie, I used to rent Kirby Super Star all the time! While I didn't stumble upon it at a flea market on the cheap, I did happen to have enough coins after Super Smash Bros. and Azure Striker Gunvolt to get this pillar of fine gaming from Club Nintendo!

Full Disclaimer, Kirby Super Star is one of my favorite games of all time. currently sitting at #7 on that list, which while some would argue is pretty far down, I've played a crapton of games. Kirby Super Star is by and far my favorite Kirby Game, and... actually, I feel it was VERY appropriate for Club Nintendo to feature it at the same time Super Smash Bros. was coming out, because I feel Kirby Super Star is not only the genesis for Kirby and the Amazing Mirror, but also for Super Smash Bros...!

A. The physics for the platforming controls in a Kirby game are surprisingly similar to those in the Smash Bros. games. of course, this isn't a surprise consideirng the release of Kirby Super Star and the development of Dragon King for the SNES Super FX chip lined up quite well. of course, Dragon King would get moved to the N64, and eventually Sakurai would get the green light to let pre-established Nintendo characters become the fighters instead of the generic polygon fighters.
B. Blocking was introduced in Kirby Super Star by using the L and R buttons. When Kirby has the Mirror ability copied, this becomes a bubble shield that takes no chip damage.
C. The various characters that appear at ringside of the Mt. Dedede arena and the Megaton Punch arena, as well as the goodies found in the Great Cave Offensive show an interest to at least in some comical fashion to tie Nintendo universes together. This is actually furthered in KDL3 where Kirby Meets up with the characters from Shin Onigashima, Professor Hector, and Samus.
D. Copy abilities gained multiple attacks that all depended on a directional imput+ hitting the attack button. this would of course become the basis for the fighting system in Smash Bros games after a bit of further fleshing out.
E. The obvious inspiration that The Arena and the Music from the rest areas in Great Cave Offensive had on Melee's All-Star mode.
F. Kirby Super Star is the first example of a UI feeling like a Sakurai Menu. granted, he wouldn't get his flair for the truly abstract until Melee and Kirby's Air Ride, but the Corkboard menu separating Kirby's various adventures and the unlockable options and mini-games into buttons feels VERY much like something you'd see in Brawl or Smash 4.
G. Kirby's Super Star featured the germination of Kirby's various attacks having specific damage values and enemies in a kirby game having an HP bar that could be mapped by using attacks on the computer virus boss. This is a bit of a stretch, but I feel the idea of attacks in Smash Bros. games doing % damage could easily have come from this.
H. The eb and Flow of Master+Crazy Hand, Subspace bosses, and Master Core all REALLY feel like Kirby Bosses, particularly with Wham Bam Rock and Master Hand having so many similarities, Tabuu taking straight from the Kirby rulebook of teleporting around like a nut before doing sort of attack that finally gives him a vulnerable moment, or some of Galleom's attacks feeling very similar to the Heavy Lobster.

4. Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS

Still playing tons of Smash Run, still playing lots of intensity 9 Classic to get good equipment and such. I do like that from what I've peeked at SmashBoards, they are very seriously considering having a custom move Meta, and Nintendo's recent tournament really supports it as well. I feel Custom moves, Equipment, and Amiibo are probably going to be some of the finer points of the Smash 4 body as a whole, but people will continue to snob on these excelent additions because they dislike change or having to adapt to more content.


5. Shantae and the Pirate's Curse

Shantae is my #2 favorite game of all time. it is a flawed but beautiful little gem that OOZES personality and charm. It has a fun little narrative and it's very meta and self-aware. Also, it's the game that Castlevania 2 should have been.

Pirate's Curse feels so much more focused...! I'm glad Wayforward took the extra Dev time on this one, because it feels like a MUCH better version of Risky's Revenge. getting around is easy, the combat somehow feels even snapper, the game already has a better difficulty to it, and the pirate abilities feel  so darned natural.

I also learn that we're FINALLY learning more about some of the supporting cast of these games. I feel like I know more about Sky, Uncle Mimic, Rottytops, Mayor Scuttlebutt, and most importantly Risky then I ever did before...! Things feel so much more fleshed out, and it's great...!

So is the soundtrack. and the 3D effect. and the return to a ore balanced version of shantae 1's item system. and so much more. Shantae and the Pirate's Curse is easily the best of the trilogy thus far, and may just end up dethroning the original GB title from my list.



Kirby Super Star is also one of my all time favorite video games ever. It is in my top five for SNES and easily top ten all systems. It is also the ONLY Kirby game I have ever played that I actually like, unless you count Smash Bros. games as Kirby games.

The game I been playing lately is called Mighty Switch Force and Mighty Switch Force 2 on Wii U. I downloaded them as part of my deluxe digital promotion/shopping binge last couple of weeks and they are pretty fun.

I also spent some time replaying Super Castlevania 4 SNES on Wii U. Either its a lot harder than I remember it being, or the Game Pad is not a good controller for that game. I haven't tried Wii Classic Pro so I don't know if that works with Wii U Virtual Console or not. Maybe I should find that out.
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Offline MagicCow64

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Re: What are you playing?
« Reply #590 on: October 25, 2014, 07:22:05 PM »

2. Batman (NES, Sunsoft)

I was at my local flea market a few weeks ago and stumbled upon a copy of this for $5 and immediately demanded to take it home...! I used to rent this all the time from Dollar Video back when I was like... 7? 8? holy wow.

Sunsoft is a really hit or miss developer, and Batman, while being brutal beyond words, is up in that upper tier of the third party's achievements along with the likes of Blaster Master and Journey to Silius. the game has a lot of parallels to Ninja Gaiden with being an action platformer that sports an emphasis on Wall Jumps, managing sub weapons and ammo for them, and very evil enemy placement. Also, it has a bitchin' soundtrack. Pretty much, before Rocksteady got into the batman game business, this was THE game to play starring the Dark Knight.

3. Kirby Super Star

Speaking of games I used to rent all the damned time at Dollar Video on nights my parents felt like getting a large Deep-Dish pizza and renting an action movie that has possibly more cheese in it than the Chicago-style pie, I used to rent Kirby Super Star all the time! While I didn't stumble upon it at a flea market on the cheap, I did happen to have enough coins after Super Smash Bros. and Azure Striker Gunvolt to get this pillar of fine gaming from Club Nintendo!

Full Disclaimer, Kirby Super Star is one of my favorite games of all time. currently sitting at #7 on that list, which while some would argue is pretty far down, I've played a crapton of games. Kirby Super Star is by and far my favorite Kirby Game, and... actually, I feel it was VERY appropriate for Club Nintendo to feature it at the same time Super Smash Bros. was coming out, because I feel Kirby Super Star is not only the genesis for Kirby and the Amazing Mirror, but also for Super Smash Bros...!



Yup, Batman is pretty great, owned it as a kid, played it a ton, rarely ever made it past that friggin machine boss at the end of the second level. This would be a great game to offer a second life with restore points, but I'm sure it's a licensing nightmare.


On the other hand, am I the only person who doesn't like Kirby's Super Star? I like Dreamland 2 a lot, but Super Star does nothing for me. It feels like an unsatisfying collection of minigames without the progression or heft of a full-on Kirby game. I've been baffled for years why some people hold it as not just the best Kirby game, but one of the best games ever.

Offline Luigi Dude

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Re: What are you playing?
« Reply #591 on: October 26, 2014, 12:39:59 AM »
Pandora's Tower (Wii):

You have to beat the final twin dungeons in at most three runs, or you're fucking stuck. Apparently this was some problem with converting the game from PAL, and there is no solution. I put 20 hours into this goddamn game. I would not advise buying it under any circumstances with this glitch looming.

That's not true though.  If you keep reseting your system it'll eventually let you through.  The more runs you do the less likely the workaround will work, but if you keep reseting, eventually there will be a time the glitch doesn't happen and you can finish those towers even after 3 runs.  It took me more then 3 runs to beat it and I ended up resetting I'm sure a dozen times but it's still possible to get through the towers. 

Of course be sure to get all the dungeon exclusive items before you beat the final boss in the 13th Tower since on New Game + the glitch will work 100% of the time, making it impossible to revisit the 11th/12th towers again.  Luckily on New Game + you can go to the 13th Tower whenever you want so the game won't lock you out of being able to get all the different endings, but the 11/12th tower will be.
« Last Edit: October 26, 2014, 12:41:34 AM by Luigi Dude »
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Offline Khushrenada

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Re: What are you playing?
« Reply #592 on: October 26, 2014, 02:25:30 AM »
3. Kirby Super Star
Full Disclaimer, Kirby Super Star is one of my favorite games of all time. currently sitting at #7 on that list, which while some would argue is pretty far down, I've played a crapton of games. Kirby Super Star is by and far my favorite Kirby Game, and... actually, I feel it was VERY appropriate for Club Nintendo to feature it at the same time Super Smash Bros. was coming out, because I feel Kirby Super Star is not only the genesis for Kirby and the Amazing Mirror, but also for Super Smash Bros...!


I'm with you 100% on this. I've told friends of mine the same thing and I'm sure I've posted it here before when talking about this game. I never realized it at first but some time after playing Melee, I took Super Star for another spin and was amazed at all the connections I could see between it and Melee. Although the more one plays any game by Sakurai, the more connections you'll see between them all. Another thing you didn't mention in your list of similarities is how similar some of the attacks from various powers are to other fighters in Smash bros.

Kirby Super Star was the first Kirby game I played. I was interested in it because of the commercial advertising how it was 8 games in 1. Super Mario All-Stars was 4 games in one so it sounded like a heck of a package. Although when I first saw how short Spring Breeze and Gourmet Race were, I didn't think the whole 8 games thing was that special. However, the first time I played Revenge of Meta Knight, my mind was blown. That was incredible and, even now, there's something special about that game. It had an intensity to it. There was a ticking clock. You battle through and disable all parts of the Halbred to bring it down. You have the various villains talking and giving you their perspective of the events as you work to bring them down. The climatic battle with Meta Knight and surprise reveal of him without a mask leading to more questions and then the desperate race off the sinking Halbred to the lonely seaside ride of credits. I wanted to know so much more about Kirby and who Meta Knight was and why he wanted revenge. Sadly, I found out there were no answers on that front leaving it to always be a mystery.

I've played nearly all other Kirby games since then. While most have a lot of charm and elements that make them enjoyable, I've always been disappointed at how they can't compare to Super Star. The more I played other Kirby games and then went back to Super Star, the more I appreciated it. It is a game bursting with ideas and because it keeps things short, it doesn't wear out its welcome. The amount of copy abilities which have many different move sets, the helper AI that is actually pretty decent, the different game ideas, Milky Way wishes and its unique idea of Kirby getting his abilities, or Marx who I've always wanted to see return. And the music. I was just starting to appreciate music more because of the Donkey Kong Country games and I found the music in Super Star to be top notch. The save room music in The Great Cave Offensive which has been used in Smash Bros. All-Star mode rest area was so beautiful to me. I would just stay in those rooms and listen to the music repeat for awhile because it was so dreamy with a slight sadness to as well. (Much like the jingle that plays in Super Metroid whenever you get an item or upgrade. It starts out like a cheer of success but seems to end on a sad and lonely note.)

I don't repurchase games. In my personal game collection, I have very few duplicates. The ambassador games on 3DS is probably 90% of the reason I have duplicate games. Kirby Super Star Ultra is a duplicate game I was happy and willing to purchase. It's the best Kirby game and my SNES cart is a bit wonky plus this was the Ultra edition with new content. I just loaned it out to a cousin of mine who had never played a Kirby game and told him to give it a try. I was glad HAL went back to that game as I hoped it might cause them to understand why it was so exceptional and start making Kirby games to equal or exceed it. Whether that had a factor or not I can't say but since it's release, there have been a lot of good Kirby games made so I like to think it had a part in that. Good stuff.
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Offline Mop it up

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Re: What are you playing?
« Reply #593 on: October 26, 2014, 03:00:44 PM »
I first bought and played Kirby Super Star shortly after Super Smash Brothers Brawl came out, and people were talking about the similarities between it and the Subspace Emissary. Since I didn't like the SSE, I was curious if Super Star handled things any better. I don't remember if the game was on the VC at this time in 2008 but either way, I wanted the original SNES cartridge.

It has an interesting setup but the various games don't play as differently as I thought they might. The MetaKnight one feels different, but the rest pretty much play the same. I do like how Spring Breeze is a semi-remake of the original Kirby's Dream Land, that was clever. But it doesn't really matter that they aren't so different because together, they still form a solid Kirby game. I liked the different powers that the game introduced, there were some fun ones, and I also played the game in co-op with made it a lot more fun. But I liked to play as the partner instead of Kirby since the partner got to be different characters. I also liked how there was some exploration elements in Great Cave Offensive and Milky Way Wishes, I liked those the most since they had a little more depth than the others.

While the menu in the game may be a bit non-standard, it still has a theme and the icons are still more unified shapes, with all of them being squares, maybe a few rectangles. This menu still works fine, and is a far cry from the mess of more recent Smash games which are just a bunch of random shapes haphazardly plastered onto a screen, and also run several pages deep. But I think the menus for Brawl, Smash 4, and Kid Icarus Uprising were deigned by Sakurai's wife, someone who probably has never played a videogame in her life.

I actually just got the game from Club Nintendo when it was offered, mostly for the DDP points but I still made a run through it. Then I decided to sell my SNES cartridge, since I not only have it on Wii U but also in the Kirby collection for Wii. I also have the DS game too, but haven't tried it yet.

A little after I first played Super Star, I wanted another Kirby game. I had just gotten a bunch of Wii Points from something, so instead of tracking down an SNES cartridge of Dream Land 3 (which was kinda expensive) I downloaded it on Wii VC. I ended up liking this one more than Super Star and it remains my fave game in the franchise. I find the art style very charming and unique, plus the sprites are smaller so more can fit on the screen. Super Star sometimes feels claustrophobic with how huge everything is, it can be tough to see full areas and what's lurking just off the screen. The design of the game feels more focused and tight, which is another thing I appreciate, and I also liked the animal buddies and seeing what they can do with each power. This game was a lot of fun to play in co-op as well.

Super Star would probably be near the bottom on my own list of Kirby games but I do still think it's a good game.

Re: What are you playing?
« Reply #594 on: October 26, 2014, 07:11:34 PM »
I am curious if other people who rate Super Star so highly are like me, it was their first Kirby game and the one that set the standard? I know I got it in a weird bundle for Christmas one year with a brand new smaller SNES 2, the weird part was I already HAD a Super Nintendo and my parents somehow thought it came with all the games pictured on the back so to them they were just buying a box of games. I ended up loaning my previous older SNES model to my sisters and making the smaller one my primary Nintendo console, my secondary console altogether as I was a Genesis first guy back then.


Anyways back on topic, I had a really hard time getting into other Kirby games after spending so much time with Super Star. Some of the mini games barely counted as games but the main games were pretty good on their own. I had the one on N64 and a couple of the Game Boy games and I just couldn't get into them the same as Super Star.


Also the GBA version is funky the controls are backwards and not customizable, maybe on Wii U they might be customizable but I don't think that version is on Wii U I am not sure.
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Offline ClexYoshi

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Re: What are you playing?
« Reply #595 on: October 26, 2014, 09:55:41 PM »
My first Kirby game was actually KDL2. I think that might be why KDL3 didn't wow me as much when I rented that. I also really liked the partner system in KSS and you didn't need to get an animal Helper+a copy ability to get what you want, and get multiple moves to use with that power you want in Super Star.

I also agree that the short snippets of interesting ideas is what makes Super Star such a breath of fresh air. taking the same engines and doing stuff  on the periphery is really facinating, and Spring Breeze kinda works as a frame of "Okay, this is what Kirby Games normally do, and all these mini-games are going to do something different!"

Offline Luigi Dude

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Re: What are you playing?
« Reply #596 on: October 26, 2014, 11:42:35 PM »
My favorite Kirby is Return to Dreamland since it takes the gameplay Super Star started and puts in a bigger Kirby game that also has a great challenge as well.  The challenge rooms in Return to Dreamland alone are more fun to me then anything else Kirby related since they finally give players are real reason to get good at using Kirby's abilities. 

I've always liked Kirby games, but the biggest problem is they're just way too easy.  Even Super Star which is great and all, is still extremely easy (except for the True Arena in Super Star Ultra).  The challenge rooms in Return to Dreamland finally gave something for a more skilled gamer like me to really enjoy after playing the main game.  Of course even with the main game, I loved that Return to Dreamland also included a EX mode after you beat the game that made all the bosses much harder with entirely new attacks as well.  This made the True Arena in that game a blast to play as well.


I still haven't played Triple Deluxe for the 3DS but I've heard it does similar things so it could replace Return to Dreamland after I eventually play it.  For now though, Return to Dreamland is still king.
I’m gonna have you play every inch of this game! - Masahiro Sakurai

Re: What are you playing?
« Reply #597 on: October 27, 2014, 12:44:35 AM »
My favorite Kirby is Return to Dreamland since it takes the gameplay Super Star started and puts in a bigger Kirby game that also has a great challenge as well.  The challenge rooms in Return to Dreamland alone are more fun to me then anything else Kirby related since they finally give players are real reason to get good at using Kirby's abilities. 

I've always liked Kirby games, but the biggest problem is they're just way too easy.  Even Super Star which is great and all, is still extremely easy (except for the True Arena in Super Star Ultra).  The challenge rooms in Return to Dreamland finally gave something for a more skilled gamer like me to really enjoy after playing the main game.  Of course even with the main game, I loved that Return to Dreamland also included a EX mode after you beat the game that made all the bosses much harder with entirely new attacks as well.  This made the True Arena in that game a blast to play as well.


I still haven't played Triple Deluxe for the 3DS but I've heard it does similar things so it could replace Return to Dreamland after I eventually play it.  For now though, Return to Dreamland is still king.


I guess I should point out my main issue is I don't buy hand held machines anymore and even when I did I wasn't that big into portable gaming so I miss out on the vast majority of the "good" Kirby games as a result from what I hear. My experience is limited mostly to the console games. I am considering getting a 3DS Xl at some point though so that might change in the near future.
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Offline Luigi Dude

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Re: What are you playing?
« Reply #598 on: October 27, 2014, 11:16:32 AM »
I guess I should point out my main issue is I don't buy hand held machines anymore and even when I did I wasn't that big into portable gaming so I miss out on the vast majority of the "good" Kirby games as a result from what I hear. My experience is limited mostly to the console games. I am considering getting a 3DS Xl at some point though so that might change in the near future.

Return to Dreamland was a Wii game.  You own a Wii U so it can still play the game, so if you love Kirby, try to find a copy of Return to Dreamland.  It was a 2011 release so some stores might still have it.
I’m gonna have you play every inch of this game! - Masahiro Sakurai

Offline Adrock

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Re: What are you playing?
« Reply #599 on: October 27, 2014, 12:14:51 PM »
Return to Dreamland is a rare-ish Wii game. I never see it at the various Gamestops I walk in briefly to get Streetpasses. My friend's Play N Trade hasn't had it for ages. It's still over $40 used everywhere I've looked. On Amazon, it's between $80 to $100 new. I haven't checked Target in a while, but it wasn't there last time I checked.