Messages

1201

Nintendo Gaming / Re: Best games on WiiWare?

« on: August 26, 2009, 08:28:15 AM »

Please, more people need to buy Swords & Soldiers. You're unlikely to have more content and hours of playtime for your 1000 Wii Points. The campaign alone is longer than most full WiiWare offerings and provides a good challenge. The additional single player modes are interesting twists on the strategy that keep reeling you back in for more plays, plus the splitscreen multiplayer is crazy & addictive fun.

Oh, and of course, we can't talk about this without mentioning these guys.

Ninja Monkeys, dude. Ninja. MONKEYS.

1202

TalkBack / Re: REVIEWS: Metroid Prime Trilogy

« on: August 26, 2009, 07:52:29 AM »

TYP's preview of the New Play Control versions (which are essentially the same as those included in this package) states that the achievement system is simpler in Prime and Echoes, as it only uses two of the four emblems. Is this true? I don't recall seeing any Red emblems, which were for scans in Corruption, during the marathon, but still...

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TalkBack / Re: REVIEWS: Little King's Story

« on: August 26, 2009, 07:46:57 AM »

I do intend to pick this one up eventually, but not too soon. Right now, I'm working my way through NPC Pikmin 2 and feel that if I had both games on the go and kept alternating between them , it would be a confusing experience. Similar gameplay with different controls spells "Complete one then the other, not both together".

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Podcast Discussion / Re: Super Mario World - RFN RetroActive Discussion Thread

« on: August 19, 2009, 01:50:16 AM »

On the topic of stockpiling lives, I seem to recall Vanilla Secret 3 having an insane trick where you would carry a P-Switch at the middle of the level back to the beginning where all the Koopa Paratroopas are, then step on the switch and collect all the coins for a huge multiplier which soon starts giving 5-Ups at a time. It's weird that they even included these extra methods when you essentially gain 8-Ups every four levels, if you earn 30 star points at each level's end and play the easy bonus game.

Anyway, I'm currently at Choco Island 2, I think, or somewhere around there. The game has been a relative breeze in terms of difficulty thus far. I don't remember it being like that when I was younger though; I guess that with age comes experience, which probably applies to a lot of you replaying again now.

The sole factor that has caused my death several times is, strangely enough, Yoshi. Having invested a lot of time in Yoshi's Island & Yoshi's Island DS since my prior playthrough of Super Mario World, it has been quite disorienting to control a Yoshi with regressed capabilities. The lack of the ability to stick out his tongue upwards has caught me off guard at quite a few instances. In addition, the missing Flutter Jump has resulted in a number of deaths that could have easily been avoided if my perception of how Yoshi should play hadn't been altered so greatly by later titles. It just feels alien to me that he is unable to perform these actions. Has anyone else experienced this?

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TalkBack / Re: Metroid Prime Trilogy Marathon Weekend

« on: August 19, 2009, 01:17:44 AM »

Very good choice for a marathon. I look forward to following your progress this weekend.

Speaking of which, I'd be impressed if you managed to complete all three Metroid Primes within 48 hours... especially if you aim for 100%. Are you going to try and collect every upgrade?

1206

Nintendo Gaming / Re: Mini Ninjas

« on: August 15, 2009, 04:20:42 PM »

It's massively cross-platform so I expect the Wii version to be handled by some tenth rate developer in China.

Hm... well, IO apparently wants a broader appeal with Mini Ninjas than other games in their portfolio, so if they have any sense, the Wii edition needs to be treated just as well, as the sales prospects are probably the highest for that particular version. Right now, I will remain tentatively excited for this game.

1207

Nintendo Gaming / Mini Ninjas

« on: August 15, 2009, 01:57:28 PM »

Mini Ninjas

• Publisher: Eidos
• Developer: IO Interactive
• Genre: Action Adventure
• Platforms: Wii, DS, X360, PS3, PC
• Age Rating: E-10 (US), 7+ (EU)
• Release Date: 8th September '09 (US), 11th September '09 (EU)

Videos:
Debut Teaser
E3 2009: Story Trailer 1
E3 2009: Story Trailer 2
E3 2009: Gameplay Trailer - Hiro
E3 2009: Interview With Designer
"Introducing Futo" Video
"Introducing Shun" Video
"Introducing Tora" Video

These ninjas are mini! Except the large one...

1208

TalkBack / Re: REVIEWS: Swords & Soldiers

« on: August 14, 2009, 01:29:36 AM »

Very well structured and informative review. Nice one.
I already have the game and I have enjoyed it to such an extent that it's now my favourite WiiWare title, so I hope this will encourage more people to buy it.
If anybody is sitting on the fence about purchasing Swords & Soldiers, let me remind you...
One of the units is a Ninja Monkey. Which has awesome sound effects. And it hits guys in the face with smoke bombs. Then it teleports.

1209

Podcast Discussion / Re: Super Mario World - RFN RetroActive Discussion Thread

« on: August 12, 2009, 02:41:10 PM »

- Cues to the previous games are shockingly few, especially in the early levels. You don't see Goombas or hear any recognizable Mario songs until deep into the game. Yoshi's Island 1 and 2 seem designed to hammer the point that this is a brand new world for Mario.

Personally, I feel that the inclusion of all these original enemy types was a design choice that very few Mario games has been able to replicate. Most other successors have used the enemies that debuted in the NES trilogy. I really like how Super Mario World introduced foes with more complex attacks and methods to defeating them. Even the familiar faces like Goombas and Koopas had changed unexpectedly.
When I consider all this, I'm really perplexed as to why so many of these enemies made this one-time appearance and then never showed up again. The one in particular I'm thinking of is Charging Chuck, the football player - he had several different forms & moves and was one of the more difficult foes to kill. So I wonder why he, and numerous others, didn't carry over to the following instalments.

1210

Podcast Discussion / Re: Radio Free Nintendo: Episode 157

« on: August 10, 2009, 03:16:31 AM »

Great show again, guys. I'm glad my Sonic the Hedgehog downfall letter provoked a great discussion to listen to.

My stance on the so-called "3D Sonic curse" is that the series as a whole is not suited to the change in perspective. The best games in the franchise of the last decade have been Sonic Advance and Sonic Rush, both two-dimensional. Why? Because the brilliant level design is the focus and not the stupid gimmicks that have plagued every console release from the year 2000 onwards. The parallels you made between this and some of Nintendo's franchises really illustrate that Nintendo know not only when the perspective is appropriate, but also when to try out other developers. That's the thing - if Sega are really so adamant about keeping Sonic in the third dimension, they have to stop going to Sonic Team. If they weren't so afraid to use someone else, for all we know, we may have had the game we've been yearning for by now. Look at Wario Land: Shake It!; made by Good-Feel, who proved their worth with that excellent production despite having no experience on anything like that ever before. Sega might have a developer with an ideal vision of a good Sonic game, but they won't find out if they keep trying to fix the problem to going to the people who cause the problems.

Sorry for rambling on. I look forward to participating in the RetroActive, though I'll be using the Game Boy Advance version of Super Mario World, which hopefully shouldn't affect things too much.

1211

Podcast Discussion / Re: RFN RetroActive Game Nominations

« on: August 05, 2009, 04:31:37 PM »

On the subject of WiiWare games, I also have to suggest Swords & Soldiers, because the hidden depth and tactical possibilities would make for good conversation, I reckon. It's just so fun to play, plus it has monkeys that are ninjas!

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Nintendo Gaming / Re: "Official" Metroid Prime Trilogy discussion thread ;)

« on: August 01, 2009, 12:41:43 PM »

First review in for Metroid Prime Trilogy, from the Official Nintendo Magazine UK. They awarded it 94%, praising almost everything about the compilation.

Metroid Prime was praised for being such an epic adventure and criticised for too much backtracking.
Metroid Prime 2: Echoes was praised for having some sublime level design later on and criticised for the frustrating Dark World.
Metroid Prime 3: Corruption was praised for great atmospheric gameplay and criticised for lacklustre boss battles.
Overall, the package was received extremely well by the reviewer.

Notable changes were brilliantly implemented controls across the trio, decreased scanning times, proper widescreen support and a unified emblem mechanic derived from the third game. The writer also claims Samus appeared to move faster, but wasn't completely sure.

Encouraging signs...

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Podcast Discussion / Re: Radio Free Nintendo: Episode 155

« on: August 01, 2009, 11:47:45 AM »

I cannot recall a New Business segment when James has had positive words to say about his latest games.
In fairness, the titles you talk about sound like they deserve all the flak you give them, but while it is often funny to hear your rants, I feel sorry that you put yourself through this frustration.
Treat yourself to some good quality software for once. Rather than go down the usual 'anger volcano' route, I'd like to listen to the James Jones who enjoys the videogames he plays. If your gaming time between podcasts is really as bad as you describe them, that's deeply unfortunate.

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Podcast Discussion / Re: Radio Free Nintendo: Episode 154

« on: July 25, 2009, 01:27:30 AM »

I think people would be surprised at how much we don't catch during recording due to Skype issues or good old-fashioned cross talk--which is of course why we record our audio separately in the first place. When I edit the show I often hear a bunch of stuff that I must have missed at the time, and on some occasions I'll deal with cross talk to ensure that the listeners have the chance to hear a particular remark more clearly than we did at the time.

Balancing everyone's audio to make sure we hear as much as possible from each person must be an absolute pain when it comes to editing. I suppose it's easy after a lot of editing experience, but still, I bet it's fairly time consuming to separate out all of the overlapping bits of speech. Do you all use Audacity or is there superior recording software I don't know about?

1215

TalkBack / Re: CONTEST: NWR SUMMER CONTEST

« on: July 22, 2009, 04:07:33 AM »

It is a North American copy, yes.

European readership alienated. Mission failed.

I was looking forward to making something for this contest, but the game wouldn't play on my Wii if I won. I guess that means living in the UK will disqualify me from all future competitions as well.

You submit and win, surrender your prize to me, and I will pay for half of your EUR copy.
Sound like a fair deal? We both win.

Same deal to you Plugabugz

You're probably joking, but that's not too bad an idea. Deal!

1216

TalkBack / Re: CONTEST: NWR SUMMER CONTEST

« on: July 22, 2009, 12:05:38 AM »

It is a North American copy, yes.

European readership alienated. Mission failed.

I was looking forward to making something for this contest, but the game wouldn't play on my Wii if I won. I guess that means living in the UK will disqualify me from all future competitions as well.

1217

TalkBack / Re: Zelda Marathon Weekend Live Broadcast

« on: July 19, 2009, 10:42:25 PM »

Hm...

If Link's Awakening will be the DX colour version, I will vote for that.

However, if it is the original, I agree that it might be difficult to see certain things, so I would vote for Link To The Past if that's the case.

1218

Podcast Discussion / Re: Radio Trivia: Podcast Edition - List of Games Used

« on: July 15, 2009, 12:43:15 PM »

Props to TYP for putting in the time and effort to compile this index. That truly is a monumental list, and it's more impressive when you consider that each game had 2 or 3 songs played, bringing the total pieces of music to somewhere between 500 and 600+.

Question: is there anyway to find out which episodes these pieces of music featured in? If not, I'm not suggesting you label each game with the episode number it was in, as that would be an ungodly amount of work. Just curious, because it would be interesting to know.

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TalkBack / Re: New Tatsunoko vs. Capcom Gameplay Footage

« on: July 15, 2009, 03:21:25 AM »

I'm intrigued to hear about the new characters, because now that it's coming to North America and Europe, you'd think that Capcom would make the effort to expand the character roster so that it is more recognizable to the new audience. Let's be honest, with the Tatsunoko half of the roster being completely new to most of the potential market, it's odd that they continue to include Japan-only characters on the Capcom side. At this rate, the number of famous faces is going to be vastly outnumbered by the amount of total strangers.

I hope the developers manage that aspect of the game correctly. In my opinion, it's not as enjoyable when you don't have the slightest clue who you're playing as. One of the awesome elements of the Smash Bros. franchise is having so many iconic figures being playable. Can Capcom redeem this currently Japanese-centric roster? We'll have to wait and see, though I fully believe there should be at least one Resident Evil representative for Ultimate All-Stars.

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Nintendo Gaming / Re: NWR June Wi-Fi Night Game Nomination Thread

« on: June 05, 2009, 05:01:04 PM »

I'll go along with the Battalion Wars II idea, simply because it'll give me an excuse to start playing again.

1221

TalkBack / Re: IMPRESSIONS: The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks

« on: June 04, 2009, 01:32:42 AM »

Funny story: Went back there before the floor closed, and my demo was indeed broken. Other people had the tornado blower, which I figured you needed to get rid of the poisonous gas and torando switch across the hole in the floor. Chuck confirmed that he had the tornado blower when he played the demo, so mine was just busted. *cries*

The Phantom DOES get stuck on the environment a lot. Don't dismiss these impressions because they're negative. I went into the game hopeful that it would be a fresh new attempt at Zelda gameplay (albeit with touch controls) but I kept meeting irritances at every turn.

That sounds unlikely. So you're saying that people who played that demo before and after you all had the necessary item, but you were a special, isolated case where the game didn't work. Riiiiiiiiight...

Also, don't give me that rubbish. The Phantom is 100% controlled by you, so if it gets caught on something like a corner, it means the line you drew for it was wonky and too close to the corner. Don't blame the game for your failings.

I'm not dismissing this just because it's negative. If the criticisms actually sounded like it was the game causing the problems and not the player having difficulties, I'd be accepting. Feel free to keep your opinion, Zachary, but my understand of what I've read is you had a biased viewpoint before you even started and you vented out your frustration because you sucked at all three demos & needed to badmouth it to release the anger.

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TalkBack / Re: IMPRESSIONS: The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks

« on: June 03, 2009, 05:43:53 PM »

I have some qualms with this impressions article because (this is just my interpretation of what has been written) it sounds as though Zach was deliberately being negative and honestly, the way I'm reading it, it sounds like you just suck at the game.

The entire theme of the article appears to be Zach claiming that Spirit Tracks is "worse than Phantom Hourglass". It almost seems as if there was bias going into this demo as you didn't enjoy its predecessor. It doesn't look like you even gave it a chance.

But the real gripes I've got are that everything you describe as being a fault with the game is actually you lacking the ability to succeed.

Summary of your thoughts on the train demo: I was too slow to react to the enemies that were attacking me and got beaten up badly because I couldn't deal with it. It's the game's fault though.
Summary of your thoughts on the dungeon demo: I am completely incapable of any sort of multi-tasking, to the point where I made the Phantom ally walk into the walls. It's the game's fault though.
Summary of your thoughts on the final demo: I cannot work out how to proceed. It's the game's fault though.

So forgive me, Zach, if I don't really consider your impressions of Spirit Tracks to be of much value.

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Nintendo Gaming / Re: Zack & Wiki

« on: May 24, 2009, 11:19:09 AM »

If you solved the problem by the time you read this, good work.
If not, to let you know, the three rounds of "choose the correct circle or die" are basically 'odd-one-out' puzzles. Look closely at what they do before each round and spot the odd statue.
Small note of warning: the thing to look out for changes every round, so if you noticed it the first time, don't distract yourself by searching for it again. Just watch carefully to see if one statue has a feature that other two don't or if two of them perform an action while the remainder stays as it was.
That's all the assistance I'm going to give for now... you should work it out from this.

1224

Nintendo Gaming / Re: Swords and Soldiers (WiiWare title by the creators of de Blob)

« on: May 19, 2009, 12:49:27 PM »

When you say you've completed the campaign, does that include the three separate campaigns for the respective franchises? According to WiiWare World, playing through all 3 of them provides about six hours of play.

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Nintendo Gaming / Re: The Conduit

« on: May 09, 2009, 12:50:54 PM »

Cubed3 Online Multiplayer And Customization Impressions

Paraphrased...

Performance
* Eight players present for testing, playing on European Regional servers
* No lag or technical issues; the game remained at 60 fps throughout
* Wii Speak was present, but not used

Set-Up
* Setting up the matches is done via a voting system
* Players can vote for the game type, map and weapon sets
* Weapon sets range from human to alien and explosive packs
* Usual settings are also available for change, like points cap, respawn times, time limits etc.
* Standard game modes ahoy: Free For All, Team Deathmatch, Capture The Flag, Last Man Standing
* More interesting modes include...

Three Strikes
* Only two respawns provided
* Players used more careful and stealthy strategies for this game type
+
Bounty Hunter
* Each player is assigned to take down one opponent and must seek out & kill them for points
* As well as hunting someone else, somebody hunts you as well
* Ratios vary - two people may be searching for you, or you and another player may be competing for the bounty of a single enemy
* You may only kill your target or your would-be assassin
* Other players besides the above two are considered innocents and killing them will dock points from your total
+
ASE Football
* Apparently reminiscent of Halo's Oddball mode
* Players must gain possession of the All-Seeing Eye and hold it as long as possible
* Timers count how long a player has had it
* While holding the ASE, offence is restricted to melee and grenade attacks
* Others must kill the possessor to make the ASE free to pick up
* Gameplay resembled frantic cat-and-mouse chasing and turned into mad frenzies when the ASE was dropped & everyone attempts to grab it

Customisation Details
* All alterations can be done at the pause menu mid-game for quick testing and editing
* Everything from controller inputs, dead zones and sensitivity to speeds of running, turning & aiming can be changed
* HUD can be moved around screen, given different levels of transparency and all bars & meters can overlap

The Bounty Hunter game mode reminds me of an old PC shooter called The Ship. Deathmatches in this game type should be really intense.