Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night has its latest release window.
During today's Nintendo Direct, it was announced that the platformer will be coming to the Nintendo Switch this summer. A new trailer has also been released showcasing gameplay:
Originally scheduled for a 2017 release, Bloodstained has been pushed back a number of times, most recently into 2019. Development at one point moved from the Wii U to the Switch.
More information regarding release dates for upcoming Final Fantasy titles on Switch was announced during today's Nintendo Direct.
Final Fantasy IX is out today, while Final Fantasy VII will be out on March 26. It will be the Nintendo console debut for both PlayStation-era entries in the long-running series.
Chocobo's Mystery Dungeon EVERY BUDDY!, the latest in the Chocobo Mystery Dungeon series, will be out on March 20.
Shown at the start of today’s Nintendo Direct, a trailer was shown showcasing bigger enemies. For Super Mario World mode, slopes have been added, and a Cat Mario power-up was shown in a New Super Mario Bros. stage.
There also appears to be new tweaks to the menu, as well as what appears to be coin challenges.
Super Mario Maker 2 is slated for release in June.
Kairosoft’s mobile management games are simple and easy to get into. Pocket Academy, the latest to hit the Switch, doesn’t change the formula all that much. It was fun seeing my school grow from humble beginnings to a sprawling campus, but the experience is fleeting.
Pocket Academy has you managing a group of students attending the Japanese equivalent of high school. You start out small, with a handful of students and one teacher. But as the years pass, the school grows from one small class to managing three separate grade classes. The things you need to have a successful school include scoring high marks for national testing, making sure grade 3 students pass their final exams to get a good job, sending clubs out for competitions, and making sure kids attend school and get motivated. It sounds like a lot to juggle, but it’s actually simple enough to get into and the game does a good job of walking you through everything.
While doing all of that, you also have to make money. By having the kids study and pass tests, you can also have them take exams that will help the school raise its tuition, thus putting more money in the school’s bank account. It takes a while to generate revenue, as my school was dirt poor and struggling to make money at first. But once I found my rhythm, the money started to roll in and I didn’t have any problem seeing my school grow. The game takes place over the course of 11 years (with each year taking about 30 minutes to an hour to clear), so you have plenty of time to get things down right.
Presentation wise, Pocket Academy has a bright, cheerful aesthetic. The graphics are colorful and the 2D sprite-based look is pleasing to the eye. The music is fine, but can be grating after a while. It changes with your school’s rank and when the school is given a new title, and that can take a while to achieve.This is one of those games where if you want to listen to a podcast while playing, that’s perfectly fine as you’re likely to not going to miss out on much. Hell, if you’re a few years in, it’s pretty easy to just let the game play itself while you grab a bite to eat.
I found myself enjoying the light fare that is Pocket Academy since it has just the right amount of depth and accessibility that make it a quality management simulator. It’s not super engrossing, and you can get the full experience in probably a weekend’s time. This is cool for those who like management games but don’t have the time to get truly involved in much deeper, more detailed games of a similar nature.
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I love adventure games. Whether it’s Day of the Tentacle or The Secret of Monkey Island (which are also LucasArts games!), I love a game with a strong narrative and clever puzzles. I’m happy to say that Grim Fandango Remastered, Double Fine’s port of the original 1998 title, has both in spades.
The story of Grim Fandango goes like this (without giving too much of it away): Manny Calavera is a travel agent for the Department of Death and wants to find better clients. He happens to find one, and ends up getting himself into a world of trouble that spans four years of perilous adventure. Manny travels through many places and locales in the underworld in order to search for and then send this client to where they rightfully belong.
One of the strongest qualities Grim Fandango possesses, besides the fun characters and clever script, is the atmosphere. It is set in many brooding locales, filled with a great noir-like setting that’s easy to get lost in. The music, an eclectic mix of melodies and sounds from all over the world, is also a huge positive. Traveling around the underworld with Manny, Glottis, and other characters constantly felt both cool and funny—something that really isn’t all that easy to pull off.
Grim Fandango doesn’t come without its problems, however. For one, the camera feels extremely dated. This was LucasArts’ first foray into a 3D adventure game, and it’s clear they didn’t get everything down pat. There were just too many times where I wanted to get to one area, but alternated between two different sections of a map because I had trouble figuring out how to get there. It’s manageable, but I wish things were made just a little bit easier to navigate in some areas.
Also, while I love Grim Fandango’s puzzles, sometimes I felt just too lost trying to figure out where I needed to go or what I needed to do in order to solve a puzzle. Obviously, the goal is for you to figure out what you need to do in order to advance, and it’s probably more fun discovering the way on your own, but a hint system would have at least given me a nudge in the right direction. It’s a nice quality of life feature that would have made things just a bit more accessible.
Despite the issues I have with it, Grim Fandango is a fantastic adventure game full of the snappy, witty charm that LucasArts is known for, complete with a stellar atmosphere and great cast of characters. It could have used a couple of enhancements, but Grim Fandango Remastered is a fine port of Manny Calavera’s escapades.
Phantasy Star is one of those Sega franchises that I missed out on growing up—I was more of a Super Nintendo guy, y'know? I’ve heard the praise for the work Sega and M2 have done on recent re-releases of classic Sega titles on the Switch, so when Phantasy Star was among the first batch of titles, I had to finally buckle down and give it a try. Turns out, the new quality-of-life features added to this re-release give Phantasy Star a breath of fresh air, making it well worth delving into.
The first thing that stood out for me were the graphics. Released in Japan back in 1987, Phantasy Star was a gigantic game for its time, and I couldn’t help but marvel at just how vibrant and colorful the game is. For a Master System game, it looks excellent: detailed backgrounds, sprites and locations make it one of the better looking 8-bit games I’ve ever seen.
Main character Alis’ goal in Phantasy Star is to avenge her brother’s death by confronting King Lassic, who rules the solar system with an iron fist. By modern standards, Phantasy Star is a simple RPG with a basic storyline—nothing really groundbreaking. It can get kind of boring at times, just grinding along with goals sometimes not being all that clear. That was the norm in 1987, but in 2018 it can get pretty dull just roaming around. Yet, I enjoyed playing Phantasy Star -- just don’t expect anything out of the ordinary.
This re-release gives you two ways to play. Original mode is exactly what you’d expect: the original game with no frills whatsoever. The other is the far more interesting Ages Mode, which comes with a few new bells and whistles. The first has the inclusion of auto-mapping. Phantasy Star’s dungeons throw you into a rudimentary 3D environment where you navigate through doors and hidden passages to find weapons or travel to the next area. It can be difficult, but thankfully the Ages mode’s auto-mapping tracks where you’ve gone and where you started, and even tracks the treasure chests that can be found. It’s a big improvement to what had to have been a big annoyance.
The sweet sounds of the FM Sound Unit can also be heard in the Ages version of Phantasy Star. These audio capabilities were part of an add-on that never made it overseas, so this release is the first time anyone outside of Japan has had the chance to hear the enhanced soundtrack, which is actually quite catchy. This is a huge improvement, as the awesome synth sounds of FM far eclipse the simple bleeps and bloops the standard Master System console could muster.
The Sega Ages version of Phantasy Star continues to prove that the Ages polish to old classics works wonderfully and should be emulated by other developers. The parts that made Phantasy Star feel archaic are gone, and while it still shows its age this version of the title is the strongest you’ll come across anywhere.
Who would have thought that a random, forgotten Data East game from 1994 would gain such a big following (thanks, Giant Bomb). That’s the story of how Windjammers was dusted off and brought back to mainstream relevance, and now it’s available on the Nintendo Switch. The online component is inconsistent at times, which takes the experience down a tad, but this is still without a doubt one of the more fun retro ports I’ve had fun playing on the console.
Windjammers has you on a field throwing discs back and forth against an opponent, with the goal of winning 2 out of 3 sets. I think the best comparison here would be an ‘80s pastel colored version of Pong with a dash of Street Fighter II-esque personalities and mini-games. On the surface, the gameplay seems relatively simple, and really it is; Windjammers easily falls into the category of a game that is accessible yet takes time to master, kind of like a retro Splatoon.
After playing Arcade mode for a few hours, I felt pretty confident about my skills. But the more I played, the more I realized that the best part of Windjammers lies within the intricate details that really make it so addictive. Finding the right serve, swerving the disc in just the right direction, busting out a character’s special move at just the right time and angle, using the stage as a tool against your opponent: all of these elements are vital to mastery. Windjammers is one of those games where the small details absolutely pay off.
Presentation wise, this is a colorful, cheerful game that has a cool ‘80s vibe to it, despite being released in 1994 (which I’m more than willing to ignore). The music isn’t much to speak of, but the sprites are rich and vibrant, which is always a positive in my book.
Once online launched, I was really excited to test out my skills. The downer here is that my experience with Windjammers’ online play was spotty at best. Most of the time, I was able to play just fine against the opponents I was put up against. But other times, the game would be a completely laggy mess. Not bad enough to where I couldn’t play, but it was a clear nuisance and brought down the experience a bit.
Beyond the Arcade mode, not much is available offline. You can play the mini-games (Dog Frisbee and Bowling) separately, which is nice. Honestly, they’re a fleeting experience more than anything, though I wouldn’t mind playing a more fleshed out version of the bowling game in a future sequel—there’s a ton of potential there.
At its core, Windjammers is an addictive, colorful, and vibrant experience that is worth investing time and effort in. The online could be better, but this is a great, faithful port of the 1994 original updated to today’s standards. It’s definitely worth a look for both local multiplayer and retro enthusiasts alike.
Who would have thought that a random, forgotten-about Data East game from 1994 would gain such a big following (thanks, Giant Bomb). That’s the story of Windjammers, which arrives today on the Nintendo Switch. The online component is available after launch, so I don’t have a full review just yet. However, I’m happy to say that thus far Windjammers is full of ‘90s nostalgia fun.
Windjammers has you set on a field throwing discs back and forth against an opponent. I think the best comparison here would be an ‘80s day-glo version of Pong, where you constantly battle back and forth in order to block the disc from getting into the goal area. On the surface, it seems relatively simple, and really it is; this is one of those games that are easily accessible, but take time to master, kind of like Splatoon for a modern day comparison.
After playing for a few hours I felt pretty confident about my skills. But it’s the intricate little things that really make the game fun. Finding the right serve, swerving the disc in just the right direction, using the stage as a tool against your opponent. Windjammers is one of those games where the small details absolutely make it work.
Presentation wise, this is a colorful, cheerful game that has a cool 80s retro vibe to it despite being released in 1994 (which I’m more than willing to ignore). The music isn’t much to speak of, but the sprites are colorful and vibrant, which is always a positive in my book.
Beyond the Arcade mode, not much is available offline. You can play the mini-games (Dog Frisbee and Bowling) separately, which are nice. These will probably be more interesting to test around with after leaderboards launch, but they’re short and not much to talk about. I wouldn’t mind playing a more fleshed out version of the bowling game in a future sequel’ there’s a ton of potential there.
Windjammers thus far is a terrific game, with DotEmu and Blitworks doing a fantastic job of bringing it to modern consoles. I think the biggest test for the game will be the online. If everything goes smooth, this is an easy recommendation for both retro enthusiasts and those who are looking for some fun competition.
Kairosoft’s Game Dev Story was an enjoyable experience for me when I first played it on PC a few years ago. So when I heard that title along with Hot Springs Story were heading to the Switch, I thought it would be a great idea to check out the latter. Playing it on the Switch made it clear that this is a port of a mobile game from many years ago. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, but at the same time there’s nothing really all that remarkable about Hot Springs Story.
As the name would suggest, Hot Springs Story is a management sim where you gain control of a Japanese-style spa, with the goal being to bring in as many clients as possible. You do that by targeting certain demographics that you set, then arrange items (preferably those with high compatibility) to cater to those audiences. The more investments you secure and put money into, more items and demographics will unlock. Another goal is to get the top rank of each guide book that becomes available to you, which also unlocks more client types.
I found Hot Springs Story’s aesthetic to be quite charming. The 16-bit esque sprites are colorful and vibrant, though they do get a bit repetitive. The music is also fine, but grating after a while as there’s only really two songs in the entire game. Obviously there are problems with the presentation here; after all, this is a port of a cell phone game that came out in 2011. The charm still manages to shine through regardless.
There are strategic elements to the game that kept me playing, but really there’s not a whole lot to Hot Springs Story. There were plenty of times during gameplay where I’d often just multitask and let Hot Springs Story play itself for a few minutes until a new investment or other opportunity popped up. I didn’t mind this too much, but if you were to ask me if there was any real challenge to Hot Springs Story aside from upping your clear ranking after each play, I’d say no.
Hot Springs Story is thoroughly average for 2018. On one had, it’s an easygoing, simple game that kept me entertained for a while. But it’s not particularly difficult, and there were plenty of moments during gameplay where I just people watched instead of playing or really doing anything of note. I think this is good for people who want something to do and enjoy while being occupied with other matters, but otherwise there really isn’t much to say here other than it was a nice looking game that was fun for a while.
Scribblenauts has been dormant for quite some time. Aside from recent party game Scribblenauts Showdown, there hasn’t really been anything new for Maxwell and friends. A MegaPack featuring two titles from earlier this decade -- Unlimited and Unmasked -- brings them back from dormancy. Although the new control scheme is somewhat of a hassle, both games are pretty fun and easy going despite their flaws.
In both games, Maxwell’s job is to use his notebook to either create objects or add adjectives to already existing objects that help him solve puzzles. There’s nothing particularly difficult about either game; it’s pretty easy to solve problems and it never really ratchets up in difficulty. Some will probably find both games, especially the first one, too simple. As someone that likes a lighter, more casual experience, I enjoyed the two games for the most part.
Although both games have the same gameplay, they’re also different in some aspects. Unlimited lets you travel through Maxwell's world seamlessly while collecting Starites that unlock new areas. It’s the easier of the two games, but is also the most creative. I feel like this game highlights the charm of the series more than Unmasked; there were some pretty funny puzzles throughout gameplay and coming up with ideas to solve the puzzles felt less constrictive than Unmasked.
Unmasked has a reputation system that unlocks new levels as you complete more tasks. It also has randomly generated puzzles. These are often a disappointment; while some are centered on DC Comics characters, many of them are random and feel out of place. While there are plenty of other missions that involve DC characters, and Unmasked does do a great job of utilizing that universe, the randomly generated puzzles feel out of place, and can also be repetitive at times.
Another aspect of the game I didn’t really like is the new control system. Without a GamePad or a keyboard, it made sense to create a system that would help the player generate the words that they need to solve puzzles. But in the end, it just doesn’t feel as intuitive. It takes a while to get used to, and doesn’t seem as simple as just inputting text on the Swtich’s OS. It’s fine once you get used to it, but it can be a chore.
Both games in Scribblenauts MegaPack are worth revisiting on the Switch. They aren’t perfect, and can be a breeze if you’re looking for something tough. But both games are great for casual play. If you can accept the faults of Unmasked, both games are worth giving another look.
I’ve developed a love of strategy role playing games over the years, first dating back to Fire Emblem on the Game Boy Advance. For whatever reason, I never picked up a Disgaea game—it might be because the first title was released for the PlayStation 2, a system that I never owned. Now that it’s out on the Switch, Disgaea 1 Complete is a fun, but daunting challenge for any strategy RPG enthusiast.
The first Disgaea game casts you as Laharl, a demon who has awoken from his slumber after two years to find out his father has passed away. Alongside his vessel Etna and other assorted characters he meets along the way, his goal is to reclaim his throne as king of the Netherworld. The story is fine, but I like the character interactions more than the actual story as there’s good chemistry there. Disgaea doesn’t seem to take itself seriously, and it works; the game is full of humor and charm.
On the surface, it would seem that Disgaea 1 is a fairly simple game. Just like in any strategy RPG, you send out an assorted number of warriors, mages, demons and other character classes with the goal of completing a stage in order to move to the next area. One thing that stands out is the color gems in each stage. The gems control panels on the game’s map that can aid or harm not only the people in your party but also your enemies. Getting rid of these can cause big chain reactions that drive up bonus points that go towards EXP, money, items and weapons.
Disgaea is chock full of mechanics and systems that take time to really be good at. Beyond the color gems, there’s also learning about the Dark Assembly, earning money, mastering your characters, visiting the Item World (which is probably the best place to level up), finding the right weapons for each character and class and so on. It can take a long time to become really comfortable with all of the different mechanics. It’s a harrowing experience, but as time went on I felt a bit more comfortable.
In case you were wondering, yes, Disgaea is a total grindfest. I’ve spent countless hours leveling up my characters only to see them get wiped out after clearing only a few stages. It’s easy to visit a previous stage to level up characters and earn more money, but I felt disheartened by how much I had to repeatedly do this. The chances of failing in Disgaea are very high, so always be ready to spend time grinding so the next stage can be just a little bit easier.
I very much enjoyed Disgaea 1 Complete, but I don’t feel it’s for everybody. On the surface, there’s a great strategy game full of interesting and unique takes on the genre. But it’s also grind-heavy, with a learning curve that can be extremely daunting. If you have a lot of time to spare, this is easily one of the better strategy RPGs released on the Switch thus far.
I really enjoy strategy role playing games, so it was great to hear that the Disgaea series was making its way to the Switch. I’m not that far into Disgaea 1 Complete yet to give a comprehensive review, but I can tell you at this point that Disgaea does scratch the SRPG itch in a satisfying way. That said, it’s also a bit daunting for new players, such as myself, who are just getting their feet wet with the series.
Disgaea’s main protagonist is Laharl, a demon prince who awakens from a two-year slumber to learn that his father, the king, has passed away. His goal is to reclaim the throne that rightfully belongs to him. Along the way, he’ll encounter many characters that help—and also hinder—his quest to be king. The first Disgaea game is chock full of humor, and thus far I have very much enjoyed all of the characters and their interactions, including the Prinnys, d00d.
Gameplay-wise, Disgaea is like any other strategy RPG: you put out a number of characters with standard job classes whose job it is to clear out a battlefield full of imps, dragons, mages, warriors and more. The core of the gameplay is perfectly fine, and not too out of place compared to other role playing games. But to be really good at Disgaea, there’s a ton of other little things that add to the gameplay, such as using the right weapon, chaining bonus combos for more items, and effectively using geo panels (panels that effect gameplay stats if you or the enemy step on them).
It’s a lot of take in, but there’s also a ton of other things that take time to learn, such as finding ways to earn money or effectively using the Dark Assembly (where you create characters and bribe senators for perks). There’s a ton of content to wade through. There has never been a time so far where I’ve grown frustrated over the learning curve, but there have been a number of times where I’ve felt lost and have had to read tutorials just so I get through a level successfully.
Disgaea 1 Complete is a fun strategy game thus far, but not without its flaws. The game is a total grindfest, taking hours just to make some small progress. And there’s so much information and so many gameplay quirks to learn that it took me a good while just to fully understand it all. I don’t think that Disgaea is for everyone, but it’s a very competent strategy game with good humor. It’s worth a look if you’re willing to put the time in.
It was 20 years ago today that Pokémon Red and Pokémon Blue launched in North America.
Selling nearly a staggering 60 million copies across all territories, Red and Blue are some of the most popular video games of all time. But one can’t emphasize just how big Pokémon was at the time, especially if you don’t remember the craze. From the card game, to the anime, to the theatrical movie, for a few years in the late 1990s Pokémon was definitely the in thing for any kid growing up in North America, just as it was when Pocket Monsters first hit Japan in 1996.
In celebration of the 20th anniversary of Red/Blue, various Nintendo World Report staff members are recalling their own memories of the Pokémon craze. What are your own memories of Pokémon when you were growing up? Feel free to share below.
I liked This is the Police when it came out for the Switch last year. It had its flaws, but it also had an interesting premise, all while being a perfectly competent management game. Its sequel is more of the same, but expands further with a new tactical system and other new gameplay elements. This is good news on one hand, as I found the original to be a bit too repetitive. But between the dialogue, spike in difficulty and juggling the various gameplay elements, This Is The Police II often feels like it’s trying to do too much, all while not being that much fun to play.
Immediately following the events of the original game, main protagonist Jack Boyd finds himself hiding in a town not too far away from the first game’s town. He soon finds himself working with a female sheriff who isn’t taken seriously, and needs help running the precinct. Much like in the original, Sharpwood’s police force falls into a state of corruption, and it is up to you to determine just how deep you’re willing to go into the underbelly in order to come out alive.
The story and premise is interesting-- it’s another look into how a police force falls into corruption, and how officer’s actions impact the lives of others. I like the narrative, but the problem lies within the writing. The story often drags between each day, never really going anywhere. There are way too many scenes where a character will just ramble on about nothing relating to the plot for a long period of time. They were going for a certain style of storytelling here, but it falls flat in execution. Much like the original, the bulk of This is the Police II has you managing a group of police officers, assigning them to various investigations throughout Sharpwood. A new attribute system adds a new element of gameplay that helps you defuse situations more easily based on attributes certain officers have, such as shooting or stealth. I liked this part of the gameplay the most, but you’ll learn to hate most of your officers very quickly. They’ll find various ways of complicating matters: they often get drunk, give some of the lamest excuses in the world to skip work, and sometimes you’ll even see officers refuse to work with one another for the stupidest reasons. It’s infuriating and makes you want to hate them all for being lazy jerks.
Another new gameplay element consists of tactical gameplay missions similar to recent XCOM games. I didn’t like these missions for a couple of reasons. One, if you decide to skip these, you get massive end of the day penalties, almost to an unfair degree. Two, these missions often result in deaths of police officers, because it’s very difficult to clear these areas without having anyone emerge unscathed -- even one hit can cripple an officer and put them out of action. Considering you need as many officers as possible to complete all the other things you need to do to have a positive end of the day result, these missions feel like a completely unneeded, unwanted burden.
I felt many times while playing that This is the Police II often tries too much to stack the deck against you. It's is hard, and not in a good way There are so many variables and so many ways for something to go wrong, more often than not you never have the adequate resources to successfully complete a day without facing any penalties. I can’t tell you how many times I had to reload the save file just so I could have enough of the in-game currency to spend on new officers and weapons.
I appreciate This is the Police II in that it tries to be a more ambitious game than the original. It still carries aspects from the first game that I liked, such as the atmosphere and narrative. But between the sharp increase in difficulty, juggling the various gameplay elements and the long-winded storytelling, it simply isn’t that fun to play. Sometimes trying to do so much dilutes what you’re trying to accomplish, and This is The Police II is a prime example of that.
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The second version of the Mega Man X Legacy Collection combines the last four Mega Man X games for those who are fans of the series’ later titles. Unlike the first collection, which doesn’t differentiate much from the formula made popular in the original X title, these games actually do try and spice things up with new gameplay elements. The end result is questionable at best. Though it does provide solid gameplay for the most part, Mega Man X Collection 2 is a far more flawed collection than its predecessor.
If you enjoy challenging platforming titles, than X5 and X6 are likely going to be your favourites. Both are fantastic options, but if I had to choose, X5 has better level design than X6, which was frustrating to get through at times. Neither are particularly revolutionary, but play well overall. One word of warning, if you’ve only played the earlier X titles you may be surprised by the amount of dialogue. The X series has always revolved around the Reploids’ struggles against the Mavericks, but going through mountains of text to get to the next area can be a chore. Even during gameplay, assistant Alia is always there to say something. As someone who just wants to go in and do it the old trial-and-error way, this was pretty lame.
X7 brought the biggest changes to the formula as this is the first Mega Man X game in 3D. Parts of stages are played in 2.5D, which are fine, but problems begin when the camera shifts to 3D and it has to be moved manually. This turns into a giant chore when trying to figure out how to clear an area. Depth perception issues based on the camera’s position behind you, bad voice acting, and dated graphics make X7 the weakest title in the series.
X8 ditched the 3D concepts and returns the series to its roots, though it kept the 2.5D style of graphics that look a bit too dated for my liking. It’s everything that 7 should have been: an updated version of the X series that feels like the breath of fresh air the series had needed for so long. Axl’s rapid fire abilities are also a great addition to these last two titles.
X Legacy Collection 2 is just okay. X5 and X6 look great and provide fun platforming, though both fall victim to uninspiring stories and a lot of dialogue. X7 should be commended for trying to change things up, but the switch to 3D falls flat. X8 is much more polished and is probably the best title in the collection. The collection overall is probably best for those that are nostalgic for the PlayStation 1 and 2 era Mega Man games; otherwise, there are much better platformers around on the Switch with better variety.
I’ve never really had an opportunity to play the Mega Man X series, as the original series appealed to me more, for whatever reason. I always made a note to myself whenever I saw a re-release of the first X game that I needed to play these games sometime during my lifespan. So for me, Mega Man X Legacy Collection was like killing four birds with one stone. While this first collection is very much an exercise in redundancy, solid platforming mechanics and good presentation makes this collection of titles worth a look.
Mega Man X Legacy Collection features the first four titles in the series. Mega Man X, Mega Man X2 and Mega Man X3 were all released for the Super Nintendo in the mid 1990s. I like the new gameplay mechanics they added, like wall jumping and dashing. It still feels like a Mega Man game, but updated for the Super Nintendo era. These first three titles all look and play the same, with a few changes here and there to freshen things up a tad. It’s not necessarily a bad thing, but it does get repetitive after a while.
X4, released for the PlayStation in 1997, is a lot like first three games but with better graphics and music. There’s also anime cutscenes spliced throughout which, while nice to look at, are voiced so astonishingly bad. Mega Man 8’s voice acting was bad, but you don’t know the definition of bad until you’ve gone through X4’s stilted garbage. They make me sound like an accomplished voiceover artist.
All four games carry the same tough platforming action that the series is well known for: you will get hit and there are plenty of trial and error moments throughout each stage that can easily hinder progress. The Rookie Hunter mode alleviates things, especially for someone like me who is just getting into the series. Weirdly, how it helps you depends on which games you play. The first three games lets you take more hits for little damage, but not much else. X4 gives you nine lives, lets you take the extra hits and prevents you from falling into spikes or ledges. This is great for newcomers; I just wish it were a bit more consistent in each game.
Other bonuses to the collection are nice, but nothing substantial. The typical museum and filter modes are fun to tinker around and explore with for a while, but it’s nothing amazing. I like the default filter the Collection has, as it smooths things out, leaving a more polished and cartoony look. I’m pretty sure I’m in the minority when it comes to things like that, however, so you can always turn off the filters if you wise. The new Boss Rush mode is pretty fun, where you select specific weapons and go after three sets of two bosses that you fight at the same time. It’s a nice time waster once you familiarize yourself with the series.
The first Mega Man X Collection is a nice set of titles that comes with some pretty nice extras. All four games are too similar to one another to stand out, but the platforming is strong enough that it can provide a fun challenge for platformer enthusiasts.
Crash Bandicoot and Nintendo aren’t strangers to one another. But the original trilogy of games have never appeared on any Nintendo console -- until now. Activision, along with Switch developer Toys for Bob have resurrected the three original PlayStation titles and have melded them into one HD collection These games are extremely faithful to their predecessors, which is both a good and bad thing.
The collection has HD remakes of the original Crash Bandicoot. Crash Bandicoot 2: Cortex’s Revenge and Crash Bandicoot: Warped. The first two games focus a lot on trial-and-error platforming. I can tell you this right now: you will die repeatedly, so stock up on lives. Warped offers a bit more variety in the gameplay department and is the most polished out of the three titles. All of them came out pretty early in the era of 3D platforming, and it shows in terms of gameplay.
I have to say, playing through these games were a nice throwback to the 1990s. But those feelings come at a price. 1996 was 22 years ago, and controls for platforming titles have improved dramatically since its infancy. I can forgive these games for their ultra finicky controls and annoying depth perception issues. But it does make me pretty glad later platformers fixed the issues that these games have.
As for the Switch port of this collection, I am happy to say, the games run really well. The HD upgrade is nicely crafted, with each level looking detailed and vibrant in color. It also looks and runs great, both in portable and TV mode. I was worried that there may be slowdown or frame rate issues since this title is being ported from a more powerful console. But everything runs extremely smoothly, making this the perfect port if you’re looking for something on the go.
Crash Bandicoot: N. Sane Trilogy is a fun collection of titles filled with nostalgia value, presented in a wonderful looking HD package. It runs well and overall is a perfectly competent platformer. If you can forgive that some aspects of these games haven’t aged well in the last 20 years, then this can be a pretty fun throwback experience.
I’ve played every Smash Bros. game since the original arrived on the Nintendo 64 in 1999, so you can say I am extremely familiar with the series. For nearly the last twenty years, every game in the series has had fun, fast-paced action, all while evolving at the same time. The series has slowly morphed into a more serious fighting game that fans of the genre can get it into for competitive play. The formula has consistently been refined to provide something for everyone, and Smash Bros. Ultimate feels the same way.
I played Ultimate for about 30 minutes at E3 2018. One thing I immediately noticed is that it just feels right playing with the Switch pro controller. I didn’t get the GameCube adapter for the Wii U (which is also coming to the Switch) so I usually just played with the standard Wii U GamePad. This is a nice upgrade, a controller with real weight and good feel, more so than using a classic controller or anything else.
The two new characters that have been added into Ultimate are Inkling from Splatoon and Ridley from the Metroid series. Inkling feels fast and lightweight, with the paint mechanic being pretty fun to use. Ridley meanwhile felt heavier and more powerful, kind of like Bowser or Ganondorf. Obviously as newer characters it’ll take more than one gameplay session to really get a feel for them, but I can see myself using both.
As for gameplay, well, this is Smash Bros. You knock your opponent off the stage and into the crowd. Nothing’s really changed here from previous games aside from some new stages and assist trophies, like the Badge Arcade Bunny, Knuckles or additional new Pokemon. Some of the final smashes are more streamlined for faster pacing, which is a nice touch. Anything that feels different or was changed is to streamline and make the experience more fun. And that’s always a plus.
Smash Bros. Ultimate reminds me a lot of Mortal Kombat Trilogy from a couple of decades ago. It has every character and stage you can think of from all previous Smash Bros. titles and rounds out the package with a couple of new characters. It’s the culmination of what Masahiro Sakurai has been working on for decades, all wrapped up in one very fun experience. I’m looking forward to seeing what else will return when it launches on December 7.
I am really bad at football games, as the video you’re about to see will prove without a shadow of a doubt. But I have heard of Mutant League Football before. Based off a 1993 Sega Genesis game, Mutant League Football is a entirely different take on the extremely popular gridiron genre. While I was excruciatingly terrible at actually playing the game, the experience was pretty fun. There aren’t too many fantasy based football games, so Mutant League Football is already in a league of its own.
If you have played the arcade style gameplay of NFL Blitz before, this reboot will feel instantly familiar. Everything is streamlined so all you really need to do is choose a team, pick the play you want to go with, and you’re off. Even as someone who barely knows what a touchdown is, everything is so simple to execute that, with enough time, anyone can get into the fast-paced gameplay.
One thing to remember is this isn’t like any other football game out there. Unlike other football games, where your players could get injured, the football players in this game can get killed if a play goes wrong. I learned this the hard way when I lost the game because the other team killed all of my quarterbacks. There’s also traps and other devices that can impede a play if you don’t avoid them. This is probably my favorite part of the game -- these kind of devices make Mutant Football League feel much more like a video game compared to a faithful representation of American football. Creativity like this is always a plus in my book.
One of the key differences between Mutant League Football and other games is the kind of plays you choose. You can choose from normal plays you’d see in any football game, but there’s also some plays where you can cheat, like assault a referee or use a shotgun. It’s so bizarre and out there that I love it.
I feel like people who enjoy a more fast paced, streamlined version of football games will enjoy Mutant League Football when it arrives on the Switch later this year. While I wasn’t any good (probably because, as someone told me, I picked the worst team in the game), I still had a fun time playing it. Plus, the few one liners I saw in between gameplay were pretty funny. This is a game that doesn’t take itself seriously, and in a sea of football games that put themselves in high regard, this is a nice change of pace.
When I heard that Shaq Fu: A Legend Reborn was coming to the Switch, I had to give it a shot. My memories of the original Shaq Fu, released for the Super Nintendo in 1994, aren’t great. The weird premise, poor controls, and substandard gameplay made it so bizarrely bad that it is still remembered today as one of the worst video games of the era. But here we are in 2018 and NBA legend Shaquille O’Neal is back with Shaq Fu: A Legend Reborn. It’s a significantly better game than its predecessor, but still has its own set of problems that make it a wholly average experience.
As a mysterious orphan who grew up in China, Shaq uses his training under his mentor Ye-Ye to seek revenge against forces who took out his master. It’s six levels filled with humor that, while I thought was funny and self-deprecating at times, can be off-putting. A lot of points in the story are sure to be polarizing, but I overall liked A Legend Reborn’s humor. After all, this is a game about Shaquille O'Neal, Chinese Wu Xing master who is on the hunt for mean aliens -- it really doesn’t need to take itself all that seriously.
I like that the developers turned Shaq’s adventure into a brawler reminiscent of Streets of Rage or Final Fight, making it nothing like the original fighting game. A Legend Reborn is easy to pick up and play after a few minutes, and controls always felt responsive and tight. Landing combos was easy and the power ups were fun, despite being repetitive.
Unfortunately, A Legend Reborn feels too much like a brawler straight out of 1992. Enemy variety is lacking as I was constantly clearing foes that were just repainted versions of the numerous baddies I was clobbering in the first stage. I also wish the pacing was quicker, as each of the six levels were overly long. As someone with a short attention span, I got bored spending 20 to 30 minutes clearing each stage featuring the same enemies over and over again.
Once you beat A Legend Reborn, that’s pretty much it. You can play a harder difficulty if you want but no reason exists to play through it, especially since the enemy variety still remains an issue. The lack of co-op is very strange and could probably be pretty fun, but alas, it’s nowhere to be found. A gallery featuring some write-ups of all the characters you’ll come across while playing is nestled in the menu, but that’s essentially everything there.
A Legend Reborn is a fun, simple brawler but nothing more. I enjoyed the humor for what it was, and it doesn’t take an overly long amount to time to clear. It’s one of those games you can spend a day playing and not feel like you’re being cheated out of anything if you never play it again. Shaq Fu’s return won’t earn the horrible reputation of its predecessor, but will probably be easily forgotten before the year is over.
It was announced on today's Nintendo Direct that the Pokeball Go Plus will come with the 151st Pokemon, Mew, upon launch. Previously, the only way to obtain Mew in Pokemon Go was to complete a series of story events that would allow you to capture the legendary upon completion.
The Pokeball Go Plus device can serve as a alternative to the joy-con for both Pokemon Let's Go Eevee and Pikachu. Using the device, you can capture Pokemon with a flick of the wrist.
Pokemon Let's Go Eevee and Pokemon Let's Go Pikachu, along with the Pokeball Go Plus, will be released on November 16, and a bundle will be available.
My experience with tag-team fighting games has always been positive. From the quick, streamlined fighting style to the million things going on at once, the genre is so frenetic and fun, it’s hard to pass up any title. Arc System Works’ BlazBlue Cross Tag Battle has all of this in spades. It’ll take time to get really good if you are unfamiliar with the series, but the fast-paced action and humor make it an excellent fighting title.
Gameplay wise, Cross Tag Battle focuses exclusively on tag-team fighting. The Y and X buttons are for attacking, the A button is for special moves with your tag partner, and the B button tags you and your partner in and out. Much like in Marvel vs. Capcom, you can press the R button to have your tag partner come in to unleash extra damage as an assist character. It’s very streamlined and easy to get into after a few battles. Of course, there are deeper mechanisms within the gameplay that will take time to master for expert fighting enthusiasts, but it’s easy to pick up and play for casual fighting game fans too.
Cross Tag Battle has both online and offline features. There are the usual single player experiences like survival and training, as well as a tactics mode that helps explain all of the fighting mechanics. Episode mode has individual stories for each of the series represented: Persona 4 Arena, BlazBlue, Under Night In-Birth and RWBY.
All four episodes revolve around the same story: characters are taken from their individual worlds and are transferred to a world that is constantly narrated by a being who has a really keen interest in making them all fight. Characters are tasked to guard a keystone which, if they successfully take to the goal, will allow them to go back to their own world.
For someone like me who is unfamiliar with most of these series, it’s easy to feel left out. There was many a time in this mode where two characters interacted with one another to the point where I didn't care since I didn’t know the characters or the backstory. For fans of these franchises, it won’t be a problem at all, and this mode was probably designed more for you than for me. But if you’re new to any of these titles, you can get lost pretty quickly. Despite this, the story mode’s humor and charming characters do make up for the confusion.
Online play is pretty standard. I had zero problems finding a ranked match and getting my butt kicked. Lag was never a factor in the butt kicking, either (unfortunately for me), as Cross Tag Battle’s streaming was perfect -- aside from pre-match introductions, there was absolutely zero lag throughout my entire online experience. There are also lobbies where your avatars can meet and communicate with other players for casual play through stickers and text. It doesn’t make up for the lack of voice chat, but it's still a decent way of communicating with other players, especially if they’re from another country.
I ended up really liking BlazBlue Cross Tag Battle. The hectic gameplay, cool visuals and robust offline and online experiences make it one of the better fighters out on the Switch right now. It’s easy to get lost if you’re diving headfirst into the series, and to be really good probably takes a lot of practice. But it captures everything that makes tag battle games fun and delivers in one visually striking package.
Nick and Adam kick things off by talking about Wonder Boy Dragon's Trap for the Switch, Adam then follows up with a little Firewatch talk. Bryan then brings us some news from Stardew Valley. Adam also has found it difficult to spend his eShop voucher, so he also starts to ask for suggestions.
This weeks musical selection is the song Mind of Hero from the Wonder Boy Dragons Trap soundtrack.
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