Metroid: Other M (Wii)
When Metroid: Other M was announced at E3 '09, it caused some confusion. Team Ninja, most well known for their Ninja Gaiden series, were teaming up with Nintendo to bring us Other M. The trailer rocked our world, but can this achieve the same success as the Prime series when Retro took control?
The story is a huge part of Other M, and when I say huge, I mean it. It begins where Super Metroid finished, with Samus finishing off Mother Brain, and the baby Metroid sacrificing itself to save Samus. Samus, after leaving the Galactic Federation, then receives a signal from a lone bottle ship in space, and decides to investigate. There, she meets up with former commanded Adam Malkovich and his team, and they continue the investigation together. The whole story is told between flashbacks and real life sequences in the ship. It delves into Samus's backstory with Adam as part of the Galactic Federation when she was very young, and explores her relationship with Adam as a father figure. These are all told in very elaborate CGI-cutscenes, and these look sharp, especially on Wii. Voice acting was a bold move to place into a Metroid game, but sadly, it wasn't the right choice. Samus's voice actress sounds like something from a daytime soap opera, and her boring, expressionless tone leads us to believe that she is nothing but there, and leads to some awkward dialogue. Instead of her acting as a bad-ass bounty hunter who doesn't take crap from nobody, she is displayed as a puppet, and sounds more like a 12 year old reading her diary.
The gameplay in Other M revolves around third person action mixed in with first person shooting. The game is played holding the Wiimote sideways, and with a 90 degree turn of the Wiimote, it switches Samus into first person mode, allowing her to scan and investigate the environment, as well as shoot missiles. As you investigate the bottle ship, you'll come across hundreds of creatures that can be disposed with Samus's blaster, and a strange auto-aim feature allows for precise accuracy. Of course, Samus's ball-form is back and better than ever thanks to some clever puzzles surrounding it. New to Samus's arsenal is her ability to take out downed enemies using swift melee moves, and these are a treat to watch, especially in mid-boss battles. Samus isn't using her huge weapons and her full abilities unless being authorized by Adam, her commander. There's lots of reason to come back, with hidden doors and passages that can only be explored once you have a certain item.
The graphics in Metroid: Other M are beautiful. Environments blend perfectly with mixes of long hallways in addition to breathtaking deserts and ice worlds. The characters look slick, as well. The sound in the game is hardly not there, with just environmental tones and heightening sound effects when an enemy is near.
Metroid: Other M is a great return to the Metroid series. Although not as drastic a change as when Retro took over earlier, Team Ninja did the series justice, thanks to a great story and great gameplay. Although it's not perfect, it's at least worth a rental.
Pros:
Great Story
Mix of First and Third person gameplay
Beautiful graphics
Cons:
Voice Acting
Portrayal of Samus
Music
Overall: 7.0/10
Saturday, January 22, 2011
Thursday, October 7, 2010
Top 5 Super Mario Galaxy 2 Songs!
Hey everyone, I'm posting today to advertise my new video! It's my top 5 songs from Super Mario Galaxy 2. Feel free to post yours in the comments, and I really appreciate you taking the time to enjoy my vids!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2rp9IG_MPv0
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2rp9IG_MPv0
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
Professor Layton and the Unwound Future
Professor Layton and the Unwound Future (DS)
The Professor Layton series has been a hit in Japan and a sleeper hit in Western states. The third installment, Professor Layton and the Unwound Future, hopes to duplicate the success of the first two, but is it enough this time around? Yes.
The game starts out with Layton and Luke receiving a letter from a supposedly future version of Luke. From here, the game spawns an incredible turn of events ranging from time travel to a few run-ins with old friends and fiends. The game's story is phenomenal like always, and constantly keeps you on your toes guessing as it twists itself through plot-twists. That being said, the story felt right. It was never rushed, and was kept at a great pace, just like the first two. I found the story to not be as compelling as the previous title, Professor Layton and the Diabolical Box, but it still kept me captivated and wanting more each chapter. Speaking of chapters, the game is split into about 10 chapters, and the game will take you 6-8 hours to complete, adding countless more for all 165 puzzles and extra games and challenges. The overworld is huge, mainly taking place in Future London, and spanning multiple areas such as Chinatown and even Present London. Navigating is much easier thanks to the nicely implemented undergrouond railways, letting you go from one place to the
next.
The whole premise of the Professor Layton titles is puzzles. And the game is full of them. Any citizen around town's got puzzles for you, and interacting with items usually spawn Layton or Luke to challenge each other with a puzzle that reminded them of that item. The puzzles are great this time around, ranging from difficult to just right. Hint coins are scattered around town, and these help you unlock hints for those super tough puzzles. New this time around is the super hint, which costs two hint coins, and usually gives away the answer to the puzzle. These puzzles take place on the lower screen of the DS and have great touch-screen compatibility as you slide blocks and write numbers. I did have trouble with handwriting recognition, but that was just me. Navigating around London is easy, just tap the foot in the lower-right corner of the screen and tap where to go.
Aside from the main quest, Layton's chest offers tons of things to do. If you're lost and need to recap on the story, just tap Hershel's journal and you'll be caught up in no time. The puzzle index is also in here, so if you want to replay a puzzle anytime, just stop in here. The new minigames this time around include Luke's toy car, which offers a fun diversion as you navigate yourself around a little course. Also new is the storybook, a Mad-Libs-esque story, letting you collect stickers and complete picture books. The best one, though, takes place in the parrot mini-game. This little fellow, helping you in your main quest as well, helps you deliver packages to citizens in a fun test of skill. If that isn't enough, just like the last game, Nintendo's offering weekly puzzles in the form of Wi-Fi events, but don't expect any if you're not hooked up.
Once more, the music is the best it's been, offering a new remix on a monotonus puzzle tune, and featuring beautiful pieces for the areas of London. The graphics didn't receive much of an update, but it didn't need it. The crisp voice acting and greatly scripted video sequences are a great addition as well.
Professor Layton and the Unwound Future is a fantastic DS title. You can start here, or with any of the previous titles. The story may not be as compelling as before, but it's fantastic puzzles and gameplay keep you around for more. A pure masterpiece on the DS.
Pros:
Phenomenal Puzzles
Great Audio/Videos
Tons to do!
Cons:
Story not as compelling
9.5/10
The Professor Layton series has been a hit in Japan and a sleeper hit in Western states. The third installment, Professor Layton and the Unwound Future, hopes to duplicate the success of the first two, but is it enough this time around? Yes.
The game starts out with Layton and Luke receiving a letter from a supposedly future version of Luke. From here, the game spawns an incredible turn of events ranging from time travel to a few run-ins with old friends and fiends. The game's story is phenomenal like always, and constantly keeps you on your toes guessing as it twists itself through plot-twists. That being said, the story felt right. It was never rushed, and was kept at a great pace, just like the first two. I found the story to not be as compelling as the previous title, Professor Layton and the Diabolical Box, but it still kept me captivated and wanting more each chapter. Speaking of chapters, the game is split into about 10 chapters, and the game will take you 6-8 hours to complete, adding countless more for all 165 puzzles and extra games and challenges. The overworld is huge, mainly taking place in Future London, and spanning multiple areas such as Chinatown and even Present London. Navigating is much easier thanks to the nicely implemented undergrouond railways, letting you go from one place to the
next.
The whole premise of the Professor Layton titles is puzzles. And the game is full of them. Any citizen around town's got puzzles for you, and interacting with items usually spawn Layton or Luke to challenge each other with a puzzle that reminded them of that item. The puzzles are great this time around, ranging from difficult to just right. Hint coins are scattered around town, and these help you unlock hints for those super tough puzzles. New this time around is the super hint, which costs two hint coins, and usually gives away the answer to the puzzle. These puzzles take place on the lower screen of the DS and have great touch-screen compatibility as you slide blocks and write numbers. I did have trouble with handwriting recognition, but that was just me. Navigating around London is easy, just tap the foot in the lower-right corner of the screen and tap where to go.
Aside from the main quest, Layton's chest offers tons of things to do. If you're lost and need to recap on the story, just tap Hershel's journal and you'll be caught up in no time. The puzzle index is also in here, so if you want to replay a puzzle anytime, just stop in here. The new minigames this time around include Luke's toy car, which offers a fun diversion as you navigate yourself around a little course. Also new is the storybook, a Mad-Libs-esque story, letting you collect stickers and complete picture books. The best one, though, takes place in the parrot mini-game. This little fellow, helping you in your main quest as well, helps you deliver packages to citizens in a fun test of skill. If that isn't enough, just like the last game, Nintendo's offering weekly puzzles in the form of Wi-Fi events, but don't expect any if you're not hooked up.
Once more, the music is the best it's been, offering a new remix on a monotonus puzzle tune, and featuring beautiful pieces for the areas of London. The graphics didn't receive much of an update, but it didn't need it. The crisp voice acting and greatly scripted video sequences are a great addition as well.
Professor Layton and the Unwound Future is a fantastic DS title. You can start here, or with any of the previous titles. The story may not be as compelling as before, but it's fantastic puzzles and gameplay keep you around for more. A pure masterpiece on the DS.
Pros:
Phenomenal Puzzles
Great Audio/Videos
Tons to do!
Cons:
Story not as compelling
9.5/10
Thursday, May 27, 2010
Super Mario Galaxy 2
Super Mario Galaxy 2 - Wii
In 2007, Nintendo released Super Mario Galaxy, their "spiritual" sequel to Super Mario 64. It was praised highly for it's unique level design, fantastic soundtrack, and it's genuine fun factor. 3 years later, we come to Super Mario Galaxy 2. It features great new changes to an already amazing formula, and is a blast to play.
Super Mario Galaxy 2 completely forgets about what happened in SMG 1, ditching the old observatory story and starting fresh, with Mario on his way to the Star Festival. And guess who's back? Yes. Bowser. And guess what? He wants Peach. So he attacks the festival in enormous form and kidnaps Peach. Mario then meets a baby Luma, who fans will remember from the first game. He (she?) takes Mario to the sky, and he lands on a mini-hub world in the form of Starship Mario, a sort of Mario playground letting you take breaks from galaxies and have fun running around. From here, Mario meets a huge purple Luma thingie, and the game picks up.
Like I said, the game ditches the hub world from the first game, and sticks to a traditional world map, like in side-scrolling Mario titles. This works great, and is much easier to navigate than the Comet Observatory. From here, Mario can enter galaxies. In each galaxy, there's about 3 levels, usually one from the start, one hidden one, and one level featuring a comet challenge. To get these comet challenges, one must collect the comet coins. There's one in each level, and once Mario has enough, the comet's randomly show up on the galaxies.
Now onto the gameplay. Superb. If you thought the original SMG was good, think again. The sequel features not only 3-D levels, but a host of classic 2-D levels, reminiscing of the old Mario games. These are fantastic, and every level features intuitive level design, and each offers a new different twist. Mario's got a feast of new power-ups as well. Including Rock Mario, and with a shake of the Wiimote, curls Mario into a ball, letting him flatten and break anything he touches. Also new is Cloud Mario, my personal favorite, which lets Mario create 3 clouds which act as platforms, letting him reach new heights. Nintendo's also brought back Bee Mario, Boo Mario, and Spring Mario. Did I mention Yoshi? He's back as well, and he's got a few tricks of his own. He can swing off of flowers, and eat enemies and spit them out. He's got 3 power-ups, including a Blimp Yoshi, a Dash Pepper, and a Light Yoshi, each offering unique things to the prized gameplay. There are also new gameplay mechanics such as flying with a bird, using a drill to drill through planets, and back from the original is the big rolling ball, and these are all welcome additions.
This game is very tough, and I found myself dying multiple times. Thankfully, the game scatters Hint TVs around levels, and you can watch them and learn hints from them. I didn't use them much at all, but for new players it's great. Also, if you die a lot in a level (and trust me, you will), Rosalina will show up and she'll show you how to get through the level, similar to the Super Guide in NSMB Wii. This is a massive game, spanning 6 worlds with about 8 galaxies in each. Once you have 120 stars, you might think you're done. But no, you must collect 120 green stars, offering a challenging way to keep you back for more.
The controls are pretty much the same as the first game, and they work even better. In the original Galaxy, there was sometimes an awkward camera system, and this sometimes led to frustration. Thankfully, it's all been fixed in the sequel, and it never gets in the way of awesome gameplay. The graphics see a bit of an update from the original, but they're still not earth-shattering. The soundtrack is incredible, but not as good as the first game. These tunes will be stuck in your head for days, and that's not a bad thing.
Galaxy 2 is incredible. The best Wii game to date. A must-have for any Wii owner, casual or hardcore.
Pros: Everything!
Cons: Nothing?
10/10
In 2007, Nintendo released Super Mario Galaxy, their "spiritual" sequel to Super Mario 64. It was praised highly for it's unique level design, fantastic soundtrack, and it's genuine fun factor. 3 years later, we come to Super Mario Galaxy 2. It features great new changes to an already amazing formula, and is a blast to play.
Super Mario Galaxy 2 completely forgets about what happened in SMG 1, ditching the old observatory story and starting fresh, with Mario on his way to the Star Festival. And guess who's back? Yes. Bowser. And guess what? He wants Peach. So he attacks the festival in enormous form and kidnaps Peach. Mario then meets a baby Luma, who fans will remember from the first game. He (she?) takes Mario to the sky, and he lands on a mini-hub world in the form of Starship Mario, a sort of Mario playground letting you take breaks from galaxies and have fun running around. From here, Mario meets a huge purple Luma thingie, and the game picks up.
Like I said, the game ditches the hub world from the first game, and sticks to a traditional world map, like in side-scrolling Mario titles. This works great, and is much easier to navigate than the Comet Observatory. From here, Mario can enter galaxies. In each galaxy, there's about 3 levels, usually one from the start, one hidden one, and one level featuring a comet challenge. To get these comet challenges, one must collect the comet coins. There's one in each level, and once Mario has enough, the comet's randomly show up on the galaxies.
Now onto the gameplay. Superb. If you thought the original SMG was good, think again. The sequel features not only 3-D levels, but a host of classic 2-D levels, reminiscing of the old Mario games. These are fantastic, and every level features intuitive level design, and each offers a new different twist. Mario's got a feast of new power-ups as well. Including Rock Mario, and with a shake of the Wiimote, curls Mario into a ball, letting him flatten and break anything he touches. Also new is Cloud Mario, my personal favorite, which lets Mario create 3 clouds which act as platforms, letting him reach new heights. Nintendo's also brought back Bee Mario, Boo Mario, and Spring Mario. Did I mention Yoshi? He's back as well, and he's got a few tricks of his own. He can swing off of flowers, and eat enemies and spit them out. He's got 3 power-ups, including a Blimp Yoshi, a Dash Pepper, and a Light Yoshi, each offering unique things to the prized gameplay. There are also new gameplay mechanics such as flying with a bird, using a drill to drill through planets, and back from the original is the big rolling ball, and these are all welcome additions.
This game is very tough, and I found myself dying multiple times. Thankfully, the game scatters Hint TVs around levels, and you can watch them and learn hints from them. I didn't use them much at all, but for new players it's great. Also, if you die a lot in a level (and trust me, you will), Rosalina will show up and she'll show you how to get through the level, similar to the Super Guide in NSMB Wii. This is a massive game, spanning 6 worlds with about 8 galaxies in each. Once you have 120 stars, you might think you're done. But no, you must collect 120 green stars, offering a challenging way to keep you back for more.
The controls are pretty much the same as the first game, and they work even better. In the original Galaxy, there was sometimes an awkward camera system, and this sometimes led to frustration. Thankfully, it's all been fixed in the sequel, and it never gets in the way of awesome gameplay. The graphics see a bit of an update from the original, but they're still not earth-shattering. The soundtrack is incredible, but not as good as the first game. These tunes will be stuck in your head for days, and that's not a bad thing.
Galaxy 2 is incredible. The best Wii game to date. A must-have for any Wii owner, casual or hardcore.
Pros: Everything!
Cons: Nothing?
10/10
Sunday, March 28, 2010
Sunday's News
Here's what went on this last week in the world of Nintendo:
Nintendo DSi XL Released
Nintendo has once again remade the Nintendo DS, this time redoing the DSi, making it much bigger, and that's just about it. I don't really see the point, since they're pretty much hinting at a DS 2 to be shown at E3 this year.
Wii Netflix Launches
A while ago, we heard of news that the very popular online DVD service, Netflix, was finally coming to the Wii, after years of being on xBox and PS3. If you're a member, head to netflix.com to get your Wii rental disc in the mail, and then you'll be able to start browsing on your Wii!
More Super Mario Galaxy 2 News
As you all know, I'm a huge SMG fan, so I've been all over the Internet looking for news on the sequel as soon as it hits. As we all know, this time around, the HUB world is gone, and here Miyamoto explains why (http://gonintendo.com/viewstory.php?id=118670>) Also, the game features 240 stars this time, doubling the amount of the original 120. Also, the Super Guide has been talked about, and if it will be implemented into this sequel.
Nintendo DSi XL Released
Nintendo has once again remade the Nintendo DS, this time redoing the DSi, making it much bigger, and that's just about it. I don't really see the point, since they're pretty much hinting at a DS 2 to be shown at E3 this year.
Wii Netflix Launches
A while ago, we heard of news that the very popular online DVD service, Netflix, was finally coming to the Wii, after years of being on xBox and PS3. If you're a member, head to netflix.com to get your Wii rental disc in the mail, and then you'll be able to start browsing on your Wii!
More Super Mario Galaxy 2 News
As you all know, I'm a huge SMG fan, so I've been all over the Internet looking for news on the sequel as soon as it hits. As we all know, this time around, the HUB world is gone, and here Miyamoto explains why (http://gonintendo.com/viewstory.php?id=118670>) Also, the game features 240 stars this time, doubling the amount of the original 120. Also, the Super Guide has been talked about, and if it will be implemented into this sequel.
Pokemon HeartGold/Soul Silver
Pokemon HeartGold/Soul Silver (DS)
Pokemon HeartGold and SoulSilver are the 6th series of Pokemon adventures. These are a remake of the original Gold and Silver for GBA, which has been called the best Pokemon games ever created. Gold and Silver brought much more to the very full Pokemon table, adding not only full-color graphics, but also gameplay elements you wouldn't think of living without today, such as the cycling clock and daily events.
Pokemon HG and SS follow the same structure of every Pokemon game. Become a Pokemon trainer and battle up the ranks, beating 8 gym leaders and becoming the champion. You all know the formula, and this time around it's no different, providing many hours of beefy gaming. If you played Diamond and Pearl, you'll see no difference in the graphics here, but compared to the original Gold and Silver, they are a major upgrade from the once boxed houses now to full color vibrant cities. In addition to a greatly-needed graphics update, HG and SS provide remixes of everyone's favorite tunes, and these will be in your head forever, which is a good thing.
So, if this is a remake, what's all new? Well, in addition to the revamped graphics and sound as mentioned above, HG and SS bring everything from previous Pokemon games and blend it together into a big fiesta of Pokemon extravaganza. So, you've got favorites such as the Safari Zone, Battle Frontier, but also new places from later games such as the Pal Park and the Global Terminal, a place solely for Wi-Fi trading, battling, and videos. Also, back from the original are the day-to-day events such as the bug catching contest or random people giving you items on certain days, and these are very welcomed back. Also new to HG and SS is the Pokeathlon, a big dome north of Goldenrod City where you and 3 of your Pokemon participate in stylus-based events. This wasn't possible in previous Pokemon games, and it's a lot of fun.
Of course, I can't end this review without mentioning the Pokewalker, a brand new, HG and SS exclusive device, which lets you transfer a Pokemon over to the Pokewalker, and level them up and play with them in your real life. It also functions as a pedometer, and Pokemon level up by walking. You can also find Pokemon and items, and meet up with other Pokemon on other Pokewalkers. The Pokewalker is not just an excuse to get outside, but it's also a deep, fun way to take Pokemon with you wherever you go.
This is a long quest, spanning two regions, 16 badges, and over 450 Pokemon to collect. If you want to collect 'em all, we're talking a very, very lengthly quest. Also this game has a high replay value thanks to the Wi-Fi functionality and day-by-day events.
Pokemon HG and SS aren't just great remakes to the games everyone grew up with, but they're also a great way to get newer players into the world they may have never experienced. 10/10
Pokemon HeartGold and SoulSilver are the 6th series of Pokemon adventures. These are a remake of the original Gold and Silver for GBA, which has been called the best Pokemon games ever created. Gold and Silver brought much more to the very full Pokemon table, adding not only full-color graphics, but also gameplay elements you wouldn't think of living without today, such as the cycling clock and daily events.
Pokemon HG and SS follow the same structure of every Pokemon game. Become a Pokemon trainer and battle up the ranks, beating 8 gym leaders and becoming the champion. You all know the formula, and this time around it's no different, providing many hours of beefy gaming. If you played Diamond and Pearl, you'll see no difference in the graphics here, but compared to the original Gold and Silver, they are a major upgrade from the once boxed houses now to full color vibrant cities. In addition to a greatly-needed graphics update, HG and SS provide remixes of everyone's favorite tunes, and these will be in your head forever, which is a good thing.
So, if this is a remake, what's all new? Well, in addition to the revamped graphics and sound as mentioned above, HG and SS bring everything from previous Pokemon games and blend it together into a big fiesta of Pokemon extravaganza. So, you've got favorites such as the Safari Zone, Battle Frontier, but also new places from later games such as the Pal Park and the Global Terminal, a place solely for Wi-Fi trading, battling, and videos. Also, back from the original are the day-to-day events such as the bug catching contest or random people giving you items on certain days, and these are very welcomed back. Also new to HG and SS is the Pokeathlon, a big dome north of Goldenrod City where you and 3 of your Pokemon participate in stylus-based events. This wasn't possible in previous Pokemon games, and it's a lot of fun.
Of course, I can't end this review without mentioning the Pokewalker, a brand new, HG and SS exclusive device, which lets you transfer a Pokemon over to the Pokewalker, and level them up and play with them in your real life. It also functions as a pedometer, and Pokemon level up by walking. You can also find Pokemon and items, and meet up with other Pokemon on other Pokewalkers. The Pokewalker is not just an excuse to get outside, but it's also a deep, fun way to take Pokemon with you wherever you go.
This is a long quest, spanning two regions, 16 badges, and over 450 Pokemon to collect. If you want to collect 'em all, we're talking a very, very lengthly quest. Also this game has a high replay value thanks to the Wi-Fi functionality and day-by-day events.
Pokemon HG and SS aren't just great remakes to the games everyone grew up with, but they're also a great way to get newer players into the world they may have never experienced. 10/10
Thursday, January 7, 2010
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