Category Archives: Video Games

The Best Wii Games Nintendo Should Sell on the Virtual Console

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Nintendo made a great move in January by allowing Wii games to be downloaded on the Wii U’s Virtual Console. Now, games that are no longer in print or are hard to come by can easily, and cheaply, be accessed on the Virtual Console. But the selection is still small and as such, I thought I would weigh my opinion on the best Wii Games Nintendo should sell on their Virtual Console.  I’m only selecting games that I think would benefit the most on the Virtual Console.

Image from http://www.ign.com/games/new-play-control-pikmin-2/wii-14286473

Pikmin and Pikmin 2.

One of the more obvious choices, Pikmin and Pikmin 2 are great games that are meant to be played with the wiimote. After playing the Gamecube version and switching over to the Wii, I was happy at how everything was better managed and easier to control. However, the prices for these games on Amazon are pretty high even if they are used.

Selling both of these games on Virtual Console would not only allow for a greater audience to be exposed to these games, but it would also serve a tantalizing lower price for two gems. What’s more, Nintendo could sell them with a discount if bought together.

Image from http://www.ign.com/games/the-legend-of-zelda-twilight-princess/wii-748589

Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess

Though more ubiquitous than the Wii Pikmin games, Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess would benefit with a Virtual Console option. This is a great year for them to release it with two official Zelda games coming out. Also, Nintendo is very good at releasing or updating older Zelda games to the modern audience. The amount of Zelda games you can get on Virtual Console is pretty high. What’s more, this game is almost ten years old so selling it online can open the door for new players.

Image from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fire_Emblem:_Radiant_Dawn

Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn

Going for $70 used on Amazon, Radiant Dawn is another perfect Wii game that would be good for the Virtual Console.  It’s just like Metroid Prime Trilogy, a good game that is quite expensive.  Again, this is also a good year for its release thanks to another Fire Emblem game coming out.  And who knows, maybe Nintendo will have a Gamecube emulator and release the Fire Emblem Gamecube game as well.

http://www.ign.com/games/no-more-heroes-2-desperate-struggle/wii-14288376

Third Party Games

The Wii may not have the Third Party strength compared to the PS3 and Xbox360 but there are still a host good games out there could be sold on the Virtual Console.  It’s not that far of a stretch as well considering Nintendo is selling Capcom and Konami games from the NES and SNES era.  This can include Silent Hill: Shattered Memories, Tatsunoko vs. Capcom: Ultimate All-Stars, Red Steel Series, and No More Heroes.  All these games were good Wii games that didn’t get that much press.  And what the hell, throw in Resident Evil 4 while we’re at it, that game is freaking awesome.

How about you?  What Wii games do you think the Virtual Console should have? Let me know in the comments!

Who Would Win? Rocky vs. Little Mac

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Ladies and Gentlemen! I bring you a match-up that will get your heart a-pumpin and your voice a-screamin! This is between the most famous fictionalized boxers of all time, Rocky Balboa from the Rocky movies and Little Mac from the Punch Out video games! They are known for their indomitable will, their stubborn tenacity, and the ability to beat the odds no matter what against larger-than-life opponents. Both of these boxers never met each other in the ring but what if they did? Who would win between these two boxing legends?? Let’s find out folks! Only canon sources are applied and no items will be used, let’s determine whose will and fortitude is stronger in a fantastic, 12-round, battle of Rocky the Two Time Heavyweight Champion vs. Little Mac the Champion of the World Video Boxing Association!

Image via huffingtonpost.com

Let’s start off with Rocky! A native Philadelphian, Rocky’s humble origins were eventually thrown into the spotlight when Apollo Creed, the Heavyweight Champion, handpicked him to fight in a special match. Since his legendary battle with the Champion, Rocky has faced tough opponents over the years such as the vicious Clubber Lang and the monster Ivan Drago. He even faced the new Champion, Mason Dixon, when he was 60 years old! He has had several trainers over the years such as Apollo’s trainer Duke, Apollo himself and of course, Mickey Goldmill played by Burgess Meredith. All of these trainers had imparted their boxing wisdom onto Rocky and he would have definitely not been the champ if it wasn’t for them.

Rocky’s main strength as a boxer is the ability to tire out his opponents. This is thanks to his iron jaw but especially to his will of steel. Even when faced against stronger opponents, he’s able to tire them out and finish the job. He actually uses this to his advantage by taunting some of his opponents, like Clubber Lang, and make them wear out faster by aggressively attacking him. One of Rocky’s main traits is his “southpaw” fighting, better known as fighting primarily with your left hand. It’s quite unorthodox in the boxing world and supposedly can throw off your opponent. In the end, Jim Lampley in Rocky Balboa said it best that Rocky has a “cast iron jaw, ferocious body attack, and will of steel; all of which carried him to victories over the years against physically superior opponents.”

Despite his talent as a great boxer, Rocky has some bad shortcomings that saw him some of his defeats. Rocky’s ego can get the better of him at times whether he either lacks or has too much of it. He had too much ego going up against Clubber Lang for their first fight and too little shortly before his first fight against Apollo Creed. Rocky also has a bad right eye which he got fighting his first match against Apollo Creed. He lacks some peripheral vision for that eye and that can be an almost literal blind spot for him. Also, Rocky seems to forget that he has hands and on those hands are gloves and he can use those gloves to block. He’s like Homer Simpson when he decided to take up boxing in “The Homer They Fall,” boxers punch him in the head but Rocky doesn’t seem to care.

Image via smashbros.com

Little Mac hails from the Bronx and is primarily known for his short height. In the NES version of Punch Out he was 4’ 8’’ but then he was buffed up to 5’ 7’’ in the Wii version. Little Mac has faced many vainglorious opponents that were much bigger than him during his boxing matches. They’ve all been diverse and use unique techniques even to the point that some of them use magic to help them win. As such, Little Mac has valuable experience that was bestowed to him by his opponents and has prepared him for any kind of situation.

Little Mac’s main strength is his fast reaction. Some of his tougher opponents have punches that can strike fast and hard. However, all of them have tells that indicate their plan of action and Mac is good at picking those up. Depending on how well Mac knows his opponent, he can leave a match unscathed with another KO under his belt. Sometimes, Mac knows the tells so well that he’s able to hit his opponents at the right time to give him star punches. Star punches are extra strong punches that can do a lot of damage on his rivals. If he saved up three star punches he can knock them down with one blow. What’s more, if he’s out of hearts (basically his level of fatigue) only one star punch is needed to knock down the opponent and if he uses all three then that can knock them out for good.

However, if Little Mac is hit once after he gets a star punch he loses it. As such, he has to be careful to hold onto those star punches and use them when appropriate. Little Mac is also not the best defender as he can get knocked down by a few strong moves or even with one special move such as Bald Bull’s charge. If Little Mac gets hit, or if he blocks, or if he hits a blocking opponent then he’ll lose his hearts. If he reaches down to zero hearts, Mac will have to rest a bit and dodge his opponents until he can recover his hearts. During this critical time, Mac can’t throw any punches (except the star punches).

Doc Louis, his trainer, is also not the most helpful trainer at times. He’s good at getting Mac into shape and he was the one who taught Mac his star punches. However…Doc will give Mac cryptic advice how to beat his opponent in-between rounds and even then that doesn’t happen too much. Sometimes he’ll say what his favorite flower is (chocolate) or that he should join the Nintendo Fun Club. Other times he just commenting on how Mac is doing, the rival, or that Mac should finish this fight up. So yeah…not really the best support…

GIF from brotherbrain.tumblr.com

Alright, now that we have our introductions aside, we can begin the match! Before we begin we’re going to level the playing field a bit and say that Rocky or Little Mac do not know each other at all going into the ring. All they know is their height, weight, age, and Win-Loss ratio. With that said, let’s get ready to rumbleeeeeeee!

In front of a large, screaming crowd, Rocky and Little Mac are introduced and they meet each other for the first time in the ring. Rocky is initially surprised that his opponent is so small while Little Mac is relieved that for once his rival does not initially seem wacky or loud. As they step forward for the referee to explain the rules, Rocky notices that Little Mac means business, he’s got the Eye of the Tiger. Already, Rocky is breaking down his opinion that maybe he shouldn’t go easy on this guy.

They step back to their corners and the bell rings.

The crowd screams as the two opponents warily step forward. They test the waters by jabbing at their opposites. Little Mac in particular is trying to find the chink in Rocky’s armor. He jabs at his stomach and at his head, trying to determine where is the sweetest spot to hit. Rocky blocks the stomach punches and returns with some counter punches of his own.

But Little Mac is fast, he has reacted to opponents much quicker than Rocky before and he easily dodges his punches. After he dodges one, he returns back with a solid uppercut to Rocky’s face. Rocky is momentarily dazed and now Little Mac is wailing on him. Mickey screams at Rocky while Paulie clutches at the loose strands of hair on his balding head. Rocky finally regains his composure and steps back from Mac to regain his senses.

Rocky is now no longer going to take it easy on Mac. Mac means business and he can hit hard at that. Rocky is now dancing the ring trying to determine what to do. Little Mac sweeps in though and starts pummeling him in the face. Little Mac has picked up that Rocky’s face is the best part to hit as he rarely blocks it. Rocky responds with a hook onto Mac and he finally hits him squarely on the side.

Little Mac is momentarily stunned and now has to dodge Rocky’s punches. As he wonders what to do next, the bell signaling the end of Round 1 rings out.

Rocky, Little Mac, Rocky vs Little Mac, Punch Out

Image photoshopped by me. Punch Out NES text from https://www.splintered.co.uk/experiments/152/

Understandably, Mickey is more than pissed at Rocky and fiercely shouts that Little Mac is not some shrimpy punk; Mac has what it takes to beat him. Meanwhile, Doc Louis cheerfully talks riddles to Little Mac leaving Mac once again frustrated and confused towards his trainer.

Round 2 begins and now everything is changed. Rocky has regained his desire to win and he’s no longer treating Mac as a fragile, plaything. He goes out there like a bull in a china shop and is now throwing punches fiercely at Mac. Mac is dodging, dodging, dodging. He’s pondering hard where to strike the now serious boxer.

And now, an opening! When Rocky lets loose a right hook, he leaves the right side of his face open for a surprise attack. Mac dodges the right hook and strikes an uppercut at Rocky.

Ding! Little Mac just got his first star punch. Before Rocky knew what literally hit him, Mac decides to let go while he still has the chance and release the star punch onto Rocky.

Bam! Rocky stumbles back and hits the ground hard. The ref starts counting and before he even reaches three, Rocky is back up again. He’s ready to dance with Mac again.

Little Mac throws another uppercut at Rocky but he blocks it. Little Mac throws another one and Rocky blocks it as well. Rocky then lets loose a series of jabs at Little Mac and for once the Bronx-fighter was too slow. Little Mac is getting slammed repeatedly and can’t break away from Rocky’s onslaught. Rocky lets loose another punch and Little Mac is the one to go down this time.

Little Mac climbs back up, now bruised and badly hurt, and decides to step off from the attacks to analyze his opponent some more. Rocky comes back with his own attacks and he misses again and again. Another right hook from Rocky is responded by a counter from Little Mac to his face again. Ding! Little Mac gets another star punch but he’s holding onto it this time.

The bell rings and it’s the end of Round 2.

“Hey, Mac!” says Doc to Mac, “Chisel away at Rocky with your uppercut punches.”

Round 3 begins and now the bruised fighters are coming back out again. Rocky is about to attack but he’s surprised by Mac as he took the initiative and punched him right in the stomach.   Ding! Another star punch for Little Mac. Little Mac now proceeds to let a storm of punches onto Rocky. Left, right, left, right. Some to the face and some to the stomach. Rocky tries to respond with some punches of his own but Little Mac dodges it with ease. Another uppercut sends Rocky back down.

This time the referee gets to four and Rocky is back up. Rocky is about to attack again but Little Mac surprises him by jumping his star punches early and taking him down a second time.

Little Mac thinks that will keep Rocky down but he is surprised that Rocky comes back up, though admittedly struggling.

Rocky is now in full swing, he is in the zone, he can now visualize himself winning.

“Come on!” Rocky taunts to Little Mac as he starts dancing around him, “come on! Is that all you got??”

Little Mac swings at Rocky but he dodges and counters back with two quick blows to the head.

Little Mac is unsure what to do now and steps off from attacking his now loud mouthed opponent, waiting to see what he does now.

Rocky comes back in with a series of jabs and Little Mac dodges. Rocky let’s loose a series of punches that are entirely random. Left, left, right, left, uppercut, right, left hook. Rocky is successfully confusing Little Mac. He can’t dodge all the punches.

Bam! A solid punch to his stomach sends Little Mac down.

He climbs back and starts aggressively attacking Rocky again to the face. But Rocky responds by putting his hands up again and again and again. He then hits Little Mac back with another left hook.

Little Mac glows pink as he his fatigue takes a hold of him. Rocky sets up a right hook but Little Mac is ready this time. He dodges it, recovers, and hits Rocky again squarely below his right eye.

Ding! Another star punch. And just in time too, Round 3 just ended.

Round 4 begins and Rocky, after some encouragement from Mickey, begins taunting Little Mac again. Little Mac swings at Rocky but Rocky blocks and hits Mac in the head. Rocky randomizes everything now. He comes in close, he dances around Mac, he punches low, he punches high, he blocks his stomach and sometimes his face.

It’s too much for Little Mac, he can’t hit Rocky at the right times, he can’t figure out when he should dodge and when he should counter.

Little Mac goes down again. He’s struggling hard to get back up. He tries to attack again but it’s fruitless. Rocky has this fight. After a series of dodges and blocks, Rocky punches Little Mac one more time and he’s down and out. KO.

The winner is Rocky.

via Rocky II.

So why do I think Rocky would win this fight?

There are several reasons why I think he would win. First off, let’s look at Rocky IV. Ivan Drago has a punching strength of 2,150 psi, well above what even the strongest boxers can achieve. This punch was so devastating that it even killed Apollo Creed in the second round. Rocky was able to take Drago’s punches to his head multiple times, went the full 15 rounds, won it, and lived long enough to make two more movies. Even Drago commented how Rocky had a body made of iron.

If Rocky was an opponent in Punch Out, he’d probably be one of the most frustrating opponents ever. His health bar would barely decrease after every punch. Even when he’s knocked down multiple times, he will be able to get back up and keep fighting.

Little Mac on the other hand has a weaker body. One strong blow from Mike Tyson can lead to an instant knockdown. Little Mac can also go down so many times before he is KO’d for good. He is definitely a short-term fighter.

That’s not to say it was all in the bag for Rocky. Little Mac was definitely the faster of the two. He could dodge many of Rocky’s attacks with ease and respond promptly as well. True, Rocky got a speed boost in Rocky III but even then, Rocky’s agility does not compare to some of Mac’s more tricky opponents such as Mike Tyson, Mr. Sandman, and Bald Bull.

And if Little Mac was able to figure out what the hell Doc Louis means when he talks about Rocky’s Northeye, then he could exploit Rocky’s bad peripheral vision for his right eye and get a few good star punches from it as well.

I think though the real reason why Rocky would win between the two is that Rocky is human. He doesn’t have a set pattern like all of Mac’s opponents do. He can change things up and randomize his attack pattern to the point that Mac couldn’t keep up with him. At the heart of the matter, Little Mac is a responder. He doesn’t have the hearts to waste by senselessly attacking his opponents. He has to gauge when to accurately use them or not. Rocky would realize this halfway through the fight and would just go crazy in the ring. From southpaw to orthodox, from swarmer to out-boxer, he would just mix things up so much that Little Mac wouldn’t know what to do.

So Rocky wins in the end but…

…what about a rematch?

via killscreen.tumblr.com

In true Punch Out and Rocky fashion there has to be a rematch. It’s funny because whenever I would look up what other people would say who would win between these two titans (or one titan at least) no one would talk about a rematch. I guarantee you that no matter who would win the first fight, the loser would win the rematch.

Besides the fact that’s the way underdog stories go, there is a clear reason why I think the loser would win the rematch. First off, if Mac won the first match, Rocky would go on a training montage and change up his fighting style just like he did for Apollo and Clubber Lang. He was able to win both rematches. This new style would throw off the pattern-loving Little Mac and Rocky would win.

But in this case, Little Mac would win because Doc Louis has a trump card that helps Little Mac through any trouble.

You see, in Punch Out for the Wii, Doc has an awesome training simulation machine that helps Mac through some of his more tricky opponents. He can practice again and again with them until he’s able to take the opponents in real life with ease. In this case, Rocky would practice against a Rocky simulation.

But how? How could Mac win against Rocky’s iron will and body?

The best method is to build up his star punches as fast as he could and knock Rocky down in a TKO. Three knockdowns in one round would satisfy a win for Mac. Mac would endlessly test against the simulation to determine weaknesses that even Rocky doesn’t know about.

And when that rematch happens, Little Mac would be ready and he would take Rocky down in a surprise upset in the first round.

And here, dear readers if you have managed to read this 3000+ word article, I leave you with this. I seriously believe that after that second match, Rocky and Little Mac would become friends similar to Rocky’s relationship with Apollo. Rocky would enjoy finding time to spar with a friendly rival while Mac would revel at the chance to be with a boxer that was not crazy or mean. Cause their burning hearts are, after all, made of gold.

Thanks for reading my longest article yet! This article was a culmination of research done on my free time by watching Rocky fights, playing Punch Out, learning boxing terminology, and watching Mike Tyson fights. Do you agree or disagree with who you’d think would win? Say so in the comments! I would be more than willing to hear what you think!

Favorite Games I Played in 2014

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2014 was the Year of the New for me as I never before had played this many games that were either just released or released within a year that I played them.  This mainly stems from my 3DS which even though I got in October of 2013, I wasn’t able to exploit the games on it until 2014.  Another small boost came in the form of my used Wii U which I bought it and Mario Kart 8 at a decent price.

Even so, I still played many games that were released several years or more ago including quite a few for the DS, one on the PS3 (Arkham City), and one on the Gamecube (Metal Gear Solid: the Twin Snakes).

With this being a noteworthy year for my video games, I will give you my list of the new games I played for the 2014 year along with small awards for the “Best of” for that category.  Here’s the full list of them:

DS: 999: 9 Hours 9 Persons 9 Doors, Professor Layton and the Last Specter, Miles Edgeworth Investigations, Phoenix Wright Trials and Tribulations

Gamecube: Metal Gear Solid: Twin Snakes

PS3: Batman: Arkham City

3DS: Bravely Default, Pokémon ORAS, Fire Emblem Awakening, Professor Layton vs. Phoenix Wright, Animal Crossing: New Leaf, Pokémon TCG (via Virtual Console), Super Smash Brothers

Wii U: Mario Kart 8, Super Smash Brothers

Most Hyped: Professor Layton vs. Phoenix Wright

Image from http://aceattorney.wikia.com/wiki/Professor_Layton_vs._Phoenix_Wright:_Ace_Attorney

Okay, this was pretty close for me, it was either PLvPW or Super Smash Brothers.  True, I’ve been waiting for Smash Bros longer than PLvPW but I just love the professor and the lawyer so much.  It was very agonizing for me to just sit here in the U.S. seeing Japan get the game…and then Europe get the game…and we don’t!  I was sure it wasn’t going to come…and I was soooooo happy that it finally did.  You see, I knew Super Smash Bros would get to the U.S. eventually but not PLvPW.  But opening up that game and turning it on and hearing that music and seeing that title screen and seeing the characters gloriously animated was quite a treat and would have been hard to top.

Best Multiplayer: Super Smash Brothers (WiiU)
This should be pretty obvious, Mario Kart 8 was super fun and it’s nice to play against your friends on the 3ds version of this game but come on, 8 players!  That just seals the deal for me right there.  Playing with my friends on a variety of controllers with a variety of characters was just simple fun with simple madness.  Can’t be beat.

Best Game to Play with Mary: Animal Crossing: New Leaf

Image from http://animalcrossing.wikia.com/wiki/Animal_Crossing:_New_Leaf

We smashed, we raced, and we played Pokemon together but Animal Crossing is the best game to play with her.  True, I love doing all three of the previously mentioned games with her before but Animal Crossing is different.  We are in a town together with our own homes interacting with our own villagers.  And though we can’t directly interact with each other, our interaction with the town and its quirky villagers makes this a nice gem to play.  Animal Crossing towns do have a vibe of loneliness if you’re the only human player but this is cured if you have other people inhabiting your town, it makes it feel more active.  Plus it makes funding projects that much easier!

Best Story: 999
I played games that had a good story in them whether it was the trials in Phoenix Wright, Snake infiltrating Shadow Moses, or Professor Layton duking it with Phoenix Wright but none took me on the twist and turns of 999.  Perhaps it was because I was not familiar with the series but the game took me on a wild ride and that never stopped (until I failed an ending and had to restart).  I was legitimately creeped out by some of the moments in the game and I regretted playing it while I was in bed.

Special shoutout though has to be done for the story behind PLvsPW as that story took me on an emotional roller coaster with some good twists.  Another special shoutout has to be done for PW: Trials and Tribulations because that final trial was definitely a doozy and remains among the best in Pheonix Wright’s cases that I have done so far.

Unexpected Hit: 999 and Pokemon Trading Card Game
These two are on top of the list for different reasons.  I knew 999 was critically acclaimed but I just didn’t get why until I played the game.  I devoured this game in less than two weeks (normally it takes me at least a month to finish games).  On the other hand, Pokemon Trading Card Game was just so much fun to play.  I first played this game more than ten years ago and I suuuucked at it even with the cheat codes.  My brief dance with the TCG in real life made me learn how to play the TCG and so when I bought it on the Virtual Console it was just too much fun.  Creating your own deck was fun and beating the game (which is hard mine you) was quite rewarding.  I definitely hope Nintendo decides to release an updated version of this game!

Biggest Disappointment: Bravely Default

Image from http://www.ign.com/articles/2013/12/05/bravely-default-review

For all the hype and praise surrounding this game, I was honestly burned out by it.  The amount of grinding I had to do was intense and it just got to me.  I haven’t played the game in awhile but I’ll probably pick it up again later.  The same thing happened for Fire Emblem Awakening (which was fantastic btw) where I got frustrated by it and stopped playing for three months.  I picked it up again, powered through it, found out I loved it, and finished it rather quickly.  I’m hoping BD will be the same thing but I won’t be touching it again for awhile.  I’m still surprised by people’s praise, anyone want to give me their thoughts on this game and why you might have liked it?

Best NPC: Joker from Batman: Arkham City
999 had a host of characters that I enjoyed interacting with.  Most of the characters I originally passed off as Trope characters that had only one particular trait, however, as the game went on, they would continuously surprise me by the things they did, their knowledge, and their history.  Number 7 was one of my favorites.
However, Joker was by far the best NPC.  Mark Hamill was as usual great in his role as the Clown Prince of Crime.  Plus, Joker’s role in the game was a I think better than his main antagonistic role in Arkham Asylum.  His joking personality was at his height here and let’s not forget those hilarious answering machine messages he left for Batman.  Classic Joker.

Best Line Delivery: Twin Snakes
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FlOih2hq4Ug&t=3m34s

Enough said.

Best Sequel: Pokemon ORAS
I played a lot of sequels during this year of franchises that I love.  A good sequel in my book is one that retains the original charm of the first game while adding new stuff to it that makes it a refreshing experience.  For that, Pokemon ORAS was probably the best sequel of them all.  ORAS not only was a good Hoenn remake but a good step forward in the evolution of Pokemon games.  The sneaking mechanic for Dexnav made catching pokemon a whole new level of fun!  Hidden abilities, special moves only learned normally through breeding, and held items made it fun to find the best pokemon.

Not only that but the map and pokedex features improved a lot making you want to catch odd pokemon even if you didn’t want them in the first place.  The New mega evolutions are great and Hoenn getting a full 3D remake was just amazing.

Best Item(s):  The Brave Weapons from Fire Emblem Awakening
In the Awakening game, weapons matter a lot to you especially for the higher ranked ones as they can give more damage with better bonuses as well.  The brave weapons as such were among the best weapons in the game that I liked to equip my warriors with.  True, they may not be the strongest ones, but they’re among the best weapons to buy and that goes a long way.

Best Boss: The Grand Masters from Pokemon Trading Card Game

Image from http://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Grand_Master

As said before, defeating the Pokemon TCG was challenging mostly thanks to the Grand Masters.  All of them were packing Legendary cards that I couldn’t access yet.  Getting my butt kicked by Courtney, the first Master, several times made me rethink deck strategies to the point of dismantling them entirely and working from the ground up again.

Ironically, one of my easier battles came from the final battle against Ronald, your rival in the game.  He flat out refused to call back his Zapdos despite the fact that he only had fire and water energy cards.  I chose not to kill him on a gamble that he wouldn’t return him so I just outwaited him.  He ran out of cards before I did and I won.  One of the most hilarious victories I ever had.

 

Random Memory Connections: December and Zelda

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Many of us have weird memory connections where we associate one item, subject, scent, or taste, to something else that may be completely unrelated.  Seasons are like that for me; whenever a particular season comes along, I become drawn towards certain things that on the whole have no relationship to it.  In particular, whenever December arrives, I usually get in the mood for some Legend of Zelda.

Back when I was a kid, we didn’t have a NES, but my brother showed me the wonders of emulators.  By the late 90s these things had already become plentiful and were able to more than handle the NES’ outdated 8-bit graphics.  Anyway, one game that I played a ton of was Legend of Zelda on the NES.  This game was phenomenal and it was quite fun to play albeit challenging.

I have to stress at this point that playing Zelda on an emulator made the game easier than it was (especially for Zelda II).  Many times, I would makes a save state on the ROM right before entering a boss room, if I failed then I can just quickly reload that save state and battle the boss again and again until I eventually defeat him.

But that’s besides the point.  For some reason, I remember playing Zelda in December.  Perhaps that’s when I first started playing it but it doesn’t matter.  One particular memory I have was when I was in the graveyard battling out with the ghosts and hoping I would eventually find the Master Sword.  After that, my brother and I went to the grocery store and bought multi-flavored candy canes for a Christmas party my parents were hosting.  Outside, it was your typical December day in Kansas, cold and cloudy.

I assume this mixture of strong emotional connections, Christmas+Cold+Zelda, helped me associate Zelda with this month.  It’s pretty funny because when I get a hankering for Zelda, it’s never really new Zelda I want to play, it’s the old games like the first one on the NES or A Link to the Past.  They have such a nice quality to them that its easy to replay them again and again.

Image from http://www.emuparadise.me/Nintendo_Entertainment_System_ROMs/Legend_of_Zelda,_The_(Europe)/56066

I guess that’s the main reason why I like NES Zelda.  I have such a strong fondness to it that I can’t really place it for any other game including Pokemon.  It’s very much a kid’s game in the amount of exploration you do.  Unlike most of the sequels’ strictly linear structure, NES Zelda’s laissez faire style was so endearing you can’t help but feel like an honest Adventurer.   You were, for the most part, not limited to where you can go or who you can fight and provided you saved up enough rupees you can access a good chunk of the map early on.  It again reminds me of my childhood.  While I was growing up, we lived in the still new part of town next to a newly built golf course.  The amount of outside exploration I did was outstanding as I became aware of every part of, what seemed like to me, my large home.    I especially remember thrashing through the woods with my wooden sword and swiping at every branch that stood my way.

As such, the NES Zelda seem to call to me and want me to explore the land of Hyrule all over again.  To rediscover its secrets and defeat the bad guys.  The best part is that my usual confliction between my love for both outdoors and video games is erased when it gets miserable out.  With all qualms aside, I can sit back, relax, play some Legend of Zelda, and let the good times roll.

As many of you have noticed I have updated the website for a new design, I welcome any new opinions on it if you so desire to tell me.

Aged Like Fine Tasty Tonic: 10th Anniversary of Paper Mario: the Thousand Year Door

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I wanted to write this before the year was up but let’s talk about Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door.  Specifically, happy birthday to it!  It was released ten years ago on the Nintendo Gamecube and is by far one of the best games on the purple lunchbox.  After playing it again this year, I have to say that it has aged like Tasty Tonic indeed.

Image from http://www.mariowiki.com/Paper_Mario:_The_Thousand-Year_Door#Mario.27s_Partners

For the unenlightened, Thousand Year Door is a sequel to the RPG game, Paper Mario on the Nintendo 64.  Debuted in 2004, many of the original features of the game, such as partners, star special attacks, star pieces, and more have been retained if not enhanced.  Many new features were added as well including audience interaction and the ability to turn into a variety of paper-themed objects such as airplane, boat, and paper tube.

One of the main things people will talk about in this game is the humor.  TYD proves you can be funny without being crass.  Fourth-wall-breaking, slapstick, visual gags, and more makes TYD funnier than its prequel.  The game’s heavy use of humor does not distract the player from the overall story and can even enhance it such as the boss Doopliss.

It’s safe to say that with the improved humor comes improved characters.  Mario may be as flat (PUN) as ever but his partners have more depth in them compared to his N64 partners.  It’s almost tempting to reset certain scenes just so you could hear how your partners react to certain weird scenarios.  Intelligent Systems also made sure the partners didn’t become useless after their introductory chapters.  Because of the more complex puzzles, I was using them up until the end of the game.  I especially like Goombella who is far more useful to you than Goombario and more hilarious (especially when she’s telling male Goomba creeps to go stuff themselves).  It is truly sad when you say goodbye to them at the end of the game because they help make the game so memorable.

As a side note, it’s fun trying to get all the enemies in the game into her journal. GOTTA ANALYZE THEM ALL! Image from http://papermario.wikia.com/wiki/Goombella

Because of the cartoony (dare I say…papery?) design, the graphics have aged as well as the humor.  The animation runs fluidly even when a lot of enemies are on the screen.  This is especially nice when you are performing to an audience of a 100+ individuals.  The background models may betray the game’s age but the character animations themselves are pretty slick.

The story itself may at first seem just like the N64 version (i.e., collecting 7 powerful stars) but the few crucial differences make it stand out.  For one thing, Mario is not defeating Bowser and relinquishing his control on the Mushroom Kingdom.  In this game, Mario is fighting the X-Nauts for possession of the Crystal Stars in the land of Rogueport.  The Crystal Stars can be held by bosses who have no relationship with the X-Nauts and sometimes they are held by kind (albeit strange) characters!  This means that the story is not constrained to a formulaic plot and instead is more open to what it can do.  This is why we can get such memorable chapters like of Glitz and Glory, 3 Days of Excess, and especially For Pigs the Bells Toll.

I think of Glitz and Glory is my favorite chapter due to its setup as a gladiator setting but with a mysterious undertone.  It’s kind of cool how one chapter built up a lot of story just from talking to all the side and background characters.  The baby-Yoshi partner is also a nice especially how you can name him and get a variety of colors (I named mine “Tyson” cause I just watched Cosmos that week…).  The game’s intermissions can also be very entertaining as you control both Peach AND Bowser (as seen below)!

The game for the most part is relatively easy with a few challenging moments (especially the end boss) so you can get through it without having to stress out too much.  Grinding is actively discouraged as the amount of star points you get from an enemy goes down as you level up.  If you were looking to challenge yourself though you should try out the The Pit of 100 Trials.  This is by far the hardest part of the game as you have to go through 100 levels of enemies with no hopes up resting.  The last time I went through it I got up to about level 85 or something before I finally fainted.  I’m going to attempt it again but this time with more life shrooms.  I also recommend to equip the Happy Heart and Flower badges along with the Heart and Flower Finder badges as they can definitely aid you in the long run.

Thousand Year Door is one of the best sequels you can have for a game.  Not only does it retain the original premise and game mechanics from the prequel, but it enhances them and adds additional features as well.  If Paper Mario on the N64 was a 9 then the Gamecube version is a definite 10.  This game was fun to play 10 years ago and its just as fun now.

Reaction to HORI Battle Pad for Wii U

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Unlike a lot of people, I decided to opt out of the Super Smash bundle as I thought it wasn’t really necessary to own another Gamecube remote when I already have four.  Instead, I decided to get the game and the Gamecube remote converter separately.  Unfortunately, despite my preorder, the Gamecube converter was already sold out and won’t be expected to ship to me until the middle of December.

Fortunately, before the release, I preordered  the HORI Battle Pad for Wii U (Mario Version) with Turbo.  Lots of title fluff for just a Gamecube controller that connects to your Wiimote.  That’s basically what it is too!  If you have more than four players who just have to have a Gamecube controller than these controllers can solve that for you.

Image from http://www.amazon.com/HORI-Battle-Mario-Version-Turbo-u/dp/B00ND0E5ZU

The fact that this is a wireless controller means you aren’t constrained to how close you have to be to the TV which is nice.

But the main thing I want to say is that it’s basically like a Gamecube controller with some exceptions.  For one thing, it lacks the reassuring weight that the normal controllers have and I assume that’s because the important stuff is on the Wiimote and the controller simply acts as a button receiver.  There’s also an extra Z-button on the left side of the controller.  The shoulder pads also lack the usual “pressing-down-until-it-clicks” method.  They’re just simple buttons which I find funny but I assume they’re designed like that so they could imitate the Wii U Pad.

The Turbo buttons are also strange but basically they’re similar to the NES Max.  While pressing the Turbo button you then press another button and it does that action for a certain amount of times per second.  I haven’t used them yet as I haven’t found them necessary so I can’t comment how well they work or not.

But let me just end my reaction here and say if you want to play Smash Bros on the Wii U and are looking for a good wireless controller then this will work great for you!  You’ll look over its slight peculiarities five minutes in and after that you will be smashing away while having a good time!  Have fun smashing!

Would You Like to Know More? 1.03 League of Legends

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In episode 3 of Would You Like to Know More we talk about League of Legends!  We discuss what this video game is about and why it is so popular.  We investigate how balanced the game is and which characters are underpowered and which are overpowered and more!  Finally, we recommend to new players which heroes they should play in order to get familiar with the game.

 

Special guests in this episode are Cameron Atwill, Jared Barton, and Paydon Wilson.

Image from https://signup.leagueoflegends.com/en/signup/index

Play it Again: Resident Evil 4

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Easily in my top ten favorite video games list is the much praised Resident Evil 4.  By all accounts, this is a game that I should not like or be interested in at all.  A Horror, FPS game is definitely a far cry from my usual Pokemanz, Phoenix Wright, Professor Layton, and general platforming.

But I love the hell out of this game.  In fact, it’s one of the few games that I regularly play and beat several times (at least five on my last count).  I always get the hunger to play this game every time Autumn rolls around.  I just want to curl up in a blanket and play it until the cows come home.

The first time I tried out this game was at a friend’s house when I was in high school.  My friend turned off the lights and forced the wiimote and the nunchuck into my hands and had me play the first level.  Holy crap that was scary for me, especially the village scene when you’re fighting all the villagers and mother-freaking Dr. Salvador.  My hand shook as I tried desperately to hit my raging opponents.

It wasn’t until college that I truly got to play this game.  My roommate let me play it with his Gamecube.  It was hard at first for me to get into it but once I did I was hooked.  I had to play it and I had to beat it.

One of the things I like about RE4 is the low-reliance of jump scares, something that I’m terrified of both in horror movies and in real life (via thunderstorms or worse, balloons).  RE4 was nonetheless scary for me as its great atmosphere is perfect for spooking you.  Though I never played any of the other Resident Evil games (save 1 briefly but I didn’t like it), I’ve come to learn over the years that RE4 changed the RE format for better or for worse.  The camera over the shoulder was a great change (main reason why I couldn’t play the first one) but the shift towards a more action format was another.  Anyways, this action-oriented format I know many people complained about as it made the games less scary but I respectively disagree.  For a person who never played horror games before, RE4 can still be scary as you panicky waste your bullets and try desperately to survive despite your stupidity.

Here are some of the key scenes that scared the crap out of me for my first play through:

-The first time you arrive at the village (especially Dr. Salvador AKA the Chainsaw Guy)

-The first time a parasite explodes through a person’s head

-El Gigante

-Those fucking dogs both at the Church but especially in the Maze

-The cabin scene when the villagers surround you and Luis a la Night of the Living Dead style

-The Garrador (the blind guys with Wolverine-like claws)

-The Invisible Novistadors (this was especially scary as you panic from all the different sounds in the cramp underground sewers)

-Salazar’s Right Hand Man (ah man screw this guy!)

-It (especially in that weird compartment area)

-Oven man (one of the rare but very well executed jump scares)

It’s hard to rank all these scary moments but there are definitely two moments that easily top the list.  The second scariest thing in RE4 is when you’re playing as Ashley and you’re trying to get back to Leon.  Holy fuck.  That Ashley scene is what a lot of modern horror games do for their entire game.  You have no ability to take down these guys, you’re only hope is to run away and try to live.  That scene is especially bad thanks to the low lighting and the great use of sound effects.  I should mention that this scene works well as you play as kick ass Leon throughout the entire game and suddenly you’re playing as Ashley.  The degree of helplessness is incredibly high here.

First place though has to be the Regenerators.  Fuck.  These.  Guys.  They are scary as hell.  I still get creeped out by them.  Every time I see one I get the chills running down my spine.  The way they walk, the way they just won’t die, but especially the way they sound.  It’s especially bad when you’re running in the freezer-area trying to find that special sniper scope.  Ah Jesus I get worked up just thinking about them.

Image from http://es.residentevil.wikia.com/wiki/Iron_Maiden

So why do I keep playing it?

I think the best answer to this question can be summed up with one character.

The Merchant.

Image from http://rampagedelite.tumblr.com/post/79815630931

God, I love the hell out of this guy, what’s his story????  Why does he have so many guns???  How is he able to teleport so quickly and survive all the infected villagers???  His funny but slightly cynical nature is so great that you can not love him.  I always look forward to seeing him.  He is my savior, he is my backup and he’s one of the few characters who won’t kill you so that’s nice.

You might think I’m joking, and I kind of am, but the Merchant is part of an overall world that is built just right.  I like going into the world of RE4 and trying to find all the easter eggs, the hidden treasures, and the precious ammo.  The game works quite well as you didn’t have to play any of the previous games.  True, you might have the bonus of getting all the references and understanding the minor character’s motivations but that’s more of an afterthought.

The second thing that pulls me back in is that its perfect difficulty level.  I still die every time I play it despite the number of times I beat the game.  Professional Mode, however, really straightened me up and made me into a hardcore player.  I would rely on the headshots and knife stabs so much that when I went back and played Normal mode again, I would be overflowing with ammo and health packs.  Even so, the game can still be difficult for me and that’s why it’s still fun for me.

I may no longer be as scared of the game as I once was, but I can still enjoy its gameplay and its story.  Long shot this may be but if I ever get a magic lamp, I would wish to forget all my memories of RE4 so I could have the pleasure of playing it all over again.  It’s that good.

—–

On a side note…Mary pointed this out to me one time but the guy who says “Resident Evil 4” on the title screen sounds just like Muscle Man from Regular Show.  Yeah, doesn’t it??  I crack a smile every time I hear it now.  I can imagine Muscle Man going up to Mordecai and Rigby and saying

“Yo dudes!  Check out this sweeeet game here!  It’s like the best game ever!”

“Oh yeah?  What’s it called?”

“It’s called,” dramatic close up of Muscle Man’s face in shadow, “Resident…Evil…FOOOOOUR!”

And then they get sucked into the game and have to win it in order to escape it…because that’s Regular Show.

Spoiler Free Review of 9 Hours, 9 Persons, 9 Doors

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9 Hours, 9 Persons, 9 Doors (999) is a visual novel game released on the Nintendo DS in 2010.  It is widely hailed as one of the best games on the Nintendo DS.  After hearing so much about it, I decided to try it out over the summer.

999 centers around nine people and their struggle to escape a sinking ship in nine hours.  They do this by going through a series of nine rooms.  These nine rooms are locked though and require you to solve a set of puzzles to unlock these rooms.

I’ve never seen a game use the Nintendo DS’ capabilities to this degree before.  The touch screen is lovingly applied and both screens are equally employed so there’s not a strong focus of one screen over the other.  I have also never seen a game take the DS’ hardware and twist it around in the game’s mind blowing ending.  It’s great.

999’s biggest feature though is its choose-your-own-adventure-style gameplay.  There are several endings to the game.  As you progress, you have to make a series of decisions that can affect the outcome of the game.  I guarantee you that you will not get the right ending the first time.  And don’t stress out about that!  The game highlights what decisions you have already made so when you reach that branching point, you can choose another path without having to worry if you had already made that choice or not.

Unfortunately, this means you have to go through a lot of dialogue and a few puzzles you have gone through before.  Luckily, you can simply press the B button and the game zips you through the dialogue and drops you to the first decision point.  You can’t skip through puzzles you have already done but since you know how to do them, you can breeze through them easily.  Even so, redoing of puzzles is probably the biggest criticism I have of this game.

Since this is a choose your own adventure, certain themes, ideas, and plot devices that are alluded to near the beginning of the game can be emphasized or dropped completely as you play through the different stories of the game.  That’s kind of cool.

The whole game has a definite creepy vibe to it.  I would say it’s tone is similar to Myst though with a great deal more character interaction and less mind-frustrating confusion.  I guess I should expand on this and say it reminds me of the classic point and click adventure games as the constant use of the touchscreen combined with the unsettling music really bring out the dire situation the characters find in this game.

999-nine-hours-nine-persons-nine-doors-box-artwork-ds

Speaking of which, definitely the biggest plus for this game would be the nine characters.  Each character is associated with a number such as the protagonist who is number 5.  Their numbers play a strong role in the game as you can’t progress through the nine different doors without using a certain combination of characters via their digital root.  So I can go through Door 5 for instance if I have say number 5, 6, and 3 (5+6+3=14, 1+4=5).

It’s through these different doors that you can interact with the nine characters on a more personal level.  As you play through the games, their slowly revealed backstories shed light on the mystery of why they are trapped on this sinking ship.  And boy these characters are great.

My favorites characters are probably Seven and Snake.  Seven at first seems like a dumb oaf but the more you get to know him the more you realized that he’s smart and pretty funny.  Snake, who’s blind, is a sympathetic character but is still nonetheless quite capable in taking care of himself.   Even the protagonist’s love interest, June, at first seems like the stereotypical, childhood friend-turned-sweetheart but holy crap the things she says to the protagonist can be either very funny or insane.  At first I outright didn’t like her because she seemed like a flat character but that slowly crumbled before my eyes.

In fact, most of the game is like that, things aren’t as they seem and certain ideas and assumptions you may have are thrown into a vat of water and dissolve before your very eyes.  I’m going to shut up about that because I don’t want to ruin any more of the fun you guys may have playing this game.

As you can tell, I like this game a lot.  If you are a fan of Phoenix Wright or Professor Layton, give this a shot.  If you haven’t played those two games then let me say this, there’s a lot of reading in this game and that can turn people off, I totally get that.  You don’t want to read you want to play a game!  But, if you don’t mind sitting back and take the story in, then you won’t be disappointed.  In the future, I’ll give my full thoughts on this game but for now, go to Amazon and buy this game!  It’s only 20 dollars new, you can’t argue that price for a game like this!

As a side note, I accomplished a unique milestone with this game.  I started it on my trip to Europe and finished it on my trip back in two weeks.  First time I completed a game out of the U.S.!

Gender Roles in Harvest Moon (SNES)

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Harvest Moon on the Super Nintendo has always been a staple game for me since late elementary school.  I have played this game multiple times and I’m quite fond of it.  The only other game in the series that I like more than it would be Friends of Mineral Town on the Gameboy Advance.  Yet despite my admiration for this game there is a flaw that, whether done consciously or not, negatively reinforces gender roles in today’s society.

Before I go further, let me clarify that I am by no means a gender studies person nor have I taken any classes in gender studies.  This is from a personal view that should be taken with a grain of salt.

Society, though not as big on this as it once was, force men to accomplish three goals in life in order to be viewed as successful.  Athletic prowess, economic stability, and sexual conquest.  If you do not accomplish all three of these goals, you could be considered a failure. And though I can’t speak for all of my fellow brethren, I know that I fear, to an extent, not being able to accomplish all three of these things (especially the economic one).

Harvest Moon on the SNES embraces all three of these goals very nicely.  After all, the game is about a boy growing up to be a man.  In the beginning of the game you are a boy who has taken up his grandfather’s run down farm and are tasked to make it great once again.  Not an easy trial that’s for sure.  While conquering this feat, you simultaneously fulfill the three criteria of society’s man definition  In fact, the game’s ending (yes, there is an ending to the game) depends on your accomplishing these three criteria.

First, athletic prowess.  At the beginning of the game you are a pretty weak boy.  Doing hard tasks like chopping wood and breaking stone can wear you down pretty quick.  But as you explore the world and continue to work hard, you are rewarded with magical items called Power Berries.  Eating these Power Berries increases your stamina and makes you last longer while doing hard labor.  There are ten of them and though some of them can be found doing random tasks, most of them are acquired by doing hard labor.  You might find one while plowing the field or inside a stump after you chop one up.  As you eat them you become a strong man.

"God, I hate eratics" taken from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nEfdF6GFh4Y

“God, I hate eratics”
taken from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nEfdF6GFh4Y

Eating these Power Berries also helps attain your goal of economic stability.  You are able to expand your fields, build your house, and obtain stronger and better items.  Even without the Berries, you could still obtain economic success by raising chickens and cows.  However, the game can be cruel to you by showing that life isn’t always fair.  Hurricanes in particular are nasty as they can ruin your farm and make your animals go hungry.  It’s up to you to pick yourself back up and keep going forward.  Through every hardship you must persevere and become a better man.  Don’t look back or else you won’t succeed.

And finally, we reach sexual conquest.  Women in Harvest Moon are as objectified as the cattle you raise and the crops you harvest.  They are nothing more than a desirable object which you have to tend to as much as you tend your farm animals.  Even the women’s privacy is cast aside as you are able to sneak into their rooms and look through their diary to determine how much you like them.

Found a one way ticket to a black eye!

Found a one way ticket to a black eye!

You might say I’m overreacting but this objectifying and simplifying women becomes truly apparent when you marry your sweetheart.  In the game there are five potential women to marry, all of whom have their own unique sprites and (relatively) distinct personalities.  There’s the barmaid, the flower girl, the mechanic, the farm girl, and the church girl.  Boom, individualistic girls who have their own set of likes and dislikes and personality traits.

HOWEVER, this is all toss aside when you marry the girl.  Her distinct avatar and personality vanishes and is replaced by a docile wife who looks 30 sprite years older.  And oh yeah, the wife sprite is the SAME for all five wives!  The only difference is the hair color.  I honestly don’t think marriage matters in Harvest Moon since the end result is a partner who is nothing like the woman I wanted to be with.  I’m not even exaggerating, all of the wives’ dialogue is exactly the same no matter who you’re married to.  The only time your wife’s personality comes through is the end of the game where you spend time with her and that’s like a 15 second clip.  Big whoop.

Wives

Wives, taste the rainbow

What’s worse is how useless your wife is.  Her main purpose is to give you support and give birth to two children.  That’s it.  She doesn’t help with the livestock or the field, she just sits in the house and makes you meals while popping out babies.

Granted…Harvest Moon is not a romance game.  It is a game that has romance in it, but it’s not solely about it.  Exploration, harvesting, and animal husbandry are also important factors in the game.  But even so, three small changes could have been made to improve the game’s romance.

-Distinct wife sprites: What was honestly wrong with their original sprites??  I wouldn’t have mind it at all if they kept their original sprites.  Why do the girls change appearance while the boy remains the same?

-Special wife traits: Each girl in Harvest Moon has a distinct hobby and personality.  If this carried onto the wives then this would add a layer of depth to the game.  Ann the inventor could give you a cool farming instrument.  Ellen the farm girl could feed all of the cattle.  The list goes on.  If you’re trying to build a certain farm, maybe the girl who you marry can help build that farm for you!

-Unique Dialogue: Oh God, yes!  Honey!  What’s wrong with you?? You seem so zombie like and dead inside!  Where’s the girl that I fell in love with??  Say something that makes me know you are still you!

*Cough* In the end, the women in Harvest Moon are subjected to the game’s definition of what it means to be a man.  In order to be viewed as successful, you must have a wife who can cook and bear you children, in other words, sexual conquest.  They are not human beings who have equal status to their husband.  They are simply an item to obtain.

To finish this off, I would like to say that the Harvest Moon series has improved dramatically since their first game when it comes to gender roles.  As more complexity is allowed in more advanced systems, the women evolve into actual characters who retain their personality throughout the game.  What’s more, you are now able to play as a girl farmer who is looking to develop a successful farm and marry just like the boy farmer.

What are your thoughts?  What are some game series whose gender roles improve (or not) as the series progressed?