Retro Sunday - August 03, 2014 - Paper Mario

I love Sundays because I usually have time to dig into a dusty old box of games and play something that I fondly remember. Today's selection: Paper Mario, one of the greatest RPG's ever created.

What the expansion slider?!

So, you may or may not have seen the recent news that Nintendo is releasing an expansion slide pad for the 3DS. This has led to a lot of speculation that Nintendo mishandled the 3DS launch and failed to add two slide pads.

To all those people who think Nintendo forgot to add a second analog and/or that Nintendo is now desperately trying to fix the 3DS with an add-on: you’re idiots.

Do you honestly believe that Nintendo, after years of developing a new system, suddenly think that they messed up, and are desperately trying to fix their “mistake” after only a few months after launch? If you do: you’re an idiot.

The 3DS is a perfectly capable and well-designed machine. The 3D effect is fantastic. After playing games like Pilotwings in 3D, you start to ‘crave’ the effect in other games. It makes it much easier to tell where you are in 3D worlds. The slide pad is the prefect way to add an analog stick to a portable system. It’s flat, effective, and comfortable.

Why then, is Nintendo releasing this add-on? Two words: Monster Hunter. This is what probably happened: Nintendo and Capcom were in talks to make a Monster Hunter game for the 3DS (in case you didn’t know, the Monster Hunter series is extremely popular in Japan). This alone would guarantee 3DS sales. Capcom probably said, ‘We’ll do it, but we need a second slide pad for optimum controls.’ Nintendo probably decided an add-on slide pad would be better than to screw over all the people who already owned a 3DS. And I absolutely agree.

Here’s the poop on the slide pad: It has its own battery, so it won’t reduce the 3DS’s battery life. It adds the slide pad, plus a couple of shoulder buttons. And of course, the best part: it’s completely optional. Several games have already been announced that use the new expansion slide pad, such as Kingdom Hearts, Metal Gear Solid, and Resident Evil. It’s entirely likely that the expansion slide pad will be available in a bundle with some or all of these games.

And the best part? It looks way better than people thought. It appears to make holding the system much more like holding a controller, as you can see here. So why the turdstorm over this new thing? Because people are idiots.

Case in point: many gaming bloggers are trolling idiots who stir up controversy to gets more hits on their sites (I’m lookin’ at you, Kotaku). Nintendo still know what they’re doing, and the 3DS will be just fine. In fact, at stores like Toys ‘R’ Us, the 3DS has been in the top 10 best selling items since the price drop. So suck on that, idiots!

As for us gamers, we can relax knowing that Nintendo is going to bring us some of the best gaming experiences available. By the end of this year, we’ll have two Mario games, a new Sonic, Cave Story, and more. By the end of next year, we’ll have a new Professor Layton, Mario Tennis, Paper Mario, Animal Crossing, and many others. So rejoice, Nintendo fans! All is well with the 3DS!

E3 2010 Wrap-up, Day 2

Today was witness to one of the best E3 Press Conferences ever!  Nintendo dropped the 3DS bomb on us, gave us 17 metric butte-tons of new games, and then, after the show, released a list of even more games to be released within the next year or two.  It was amazing!

Sony's press conference was dumb and boring.  It consisted of Sony telling everyone else how awesome they are (despite sales numbers that indicate the contrary), and montage videos.  Lame.

In short, Nintendo has ruled E3 this year, no question.  It's a great day to be a Nintendo gamer.  (Technically, it's always a great day to be a Nintendo gamer, but you catch my drift.)

As far as Bingo goes, I'm really close on several lines.  In fact, I have three lines that only need one more block to be completed.  And although the major press conferences are over, there are still media briefings through Thursday.  So we'll see.  Heck, maybe they'll hold one of those secret meetings like last year! (Forsooth!)

Oh, and in case you were wondering about the New Mario Platformer or Pikmin blocks, there were subtle hints on the show floor and in tech demos about those games.  Nothing specific.  But it still counts.  Dangit.

So have a look.  And when you're done looking, join me in dreaming about finally getting to own a Virtual Boy-red 3DS (hopefully later this year!).

Awesome Games A-Z, pt. 4

Ok, well, I was just gonna shirk my responsabilities and not post anything, but then I decided that I better. Cause you’re lucky!!

P! Alright, so moving right along… Some might predict a Pokemon game here. And while Pokemon is a cool idea, it’s not my favorite thing in the world. But Mario games are one of my favorite things in the world. And one of the best ideas in the history of Mario games was Paper Mario. It sounds weird, and it kind of is. You play as Mario, but he’s made of paper. So, when you want to turn around, he literally flips over. But all the backgrounds and worlds are in 3-D. So basically, it all adds up to a really cool art style. And it’s not your standard Mario game. It’s an RPG. So, you get experience points, add members to your party, and go on a huge and grand adventure to once again save the princess from Bowser. It’s a brilliant game, and easily one of the best games available for the N64, or for any Nintendo system for that matter. It’s funny, it’s imaginative, it’s exciting, and most importantly, it’s fun! If you don’t own this game, then you’re in luck! You can download it right now for Virtual Console. And for $10, it’s truly an amazing deal. Go buy it! Now!

Runner-Up: Professor Layton and the Curious Village (NDS)

Q! This one is easy. I only have 1 game that starts with Q. Its name is Quantum of Solace, based on the 007 movie. But I haven’t played it yet. I should play it sometime.

Runner-Up: Quincy Douglas’ Underground Railroad Adventure (Commodore 64)

R! Anyone who knows me knows that I love me some racing games. Especially ones that are unrealistic, and where you can explode. F-Zero is a good example of this. But there are other great racing games, like the one here where they actually made a stunt track with the express purpose of letting you wreck your car for points. Naturally, I’m talking about Rush 2: Extreme Racing USA. It’s simply a fantastic game. You pick one of many cars, color it how you want, and then go out for a race. And, if you’re like me, you’ll really enjoy the stunt track. It’s filled with ramps and bumps and giant butts (once you play it , you’ll understand). Plus, you can play tag! Seriously! One person starts as it, and you have to ram the other car to tag them. If someone wrecks, they become it. It’s pretty hard, but it’s super-fun. Unfortunately, this game is not yet available for the Virtual Console. Maybe it will be someday. If not, come to my house and we’ll play it.

Runner-Up: Rhythm Heaven (NDS)

S! This was a hard one. After all, most major Mario games start with Super. Plus, many SNES games also begin with Super. Plus, don’t get forget Sonic, Starfox, San Francisco Rush… but in the end, the winner is Super Mario Bros. It is probably the most important video game of all time. After all, it basically saved the ailing video game industry of the early 80s. Plus, it spawned countless other games and series that we all know and love. Mario is the most recognizable and influential video game character of time, and will more than likely continue to be so for a very long time. Super Mario Bros. is an amazing game, even now. The controls are tight, the difficulty is perfect, the enemies and many and varied, the level design is inspired… I could go on forever. We’ve all played this game and know how freaking amazing it is. If you don’t currently own a copy, shell out the $5 for a Virtual Console copy and enjoy it forever. I know I will.

Runner-Up: Super Smash Bros. (N64)

T! Thankfully, I don’t have to try so hard to decide on this one. As we all know, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles starts with T. And if you don’t know how awesome TMNT: The Arcade Game is, this it’s time for you to find out. It’s a fantastic side-scrolling beat-em-up featuring everyone’s favorite amphibians. It’s a simple, but extremely effective formula, and one that is difficult to copy. You pick your favorite turtle (Mikey, of course) and you run around beating the crap out of foot soldiers and other enemies (but mostly foot soldiers). Once you clear the enemies in an area, you can move on. At the end of most of the levels is a boss, such as Baxter Stockman (as the fly), or General Kragg (the rock guy). Plus, it has coop multiplayer, which works really well, and is the main reason the game is so fun. The game is not yet available for Virtual Console, but when it comes, get it and play it. So, go grab a Raphael and beat some foot ninjas up!

Runner-Up: Tetris DS (NDS)

U! So since there was no Q game, I’ll fit U in right here. And since U is an uncommon letter (especially for Video Game titles), this choice is easy. I have 2 U games. One gets the top spot. The other gets runner-up. So yeah. The better one is Ultimate Mortal Kombat for the DS. It’s like Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3, but ported to the DS, with added WiFi functionality. I like UMK3 because you can play as Raiden (who was strangely missing from the original MK3). Also, the game comes with Puzzle Kombat, which is a Kirby’s Avalanche-type match-2-colors-to-break-them puzzle game. And in the background, the players beat each other up based on who gets better combos. Kinda cool. This was one of those games that I always wanted, but waited until it went on sale. I think it was $10. Well worth it. I’m not gonna say go buy it, because not everyone is a Mortal Kombat fan. So, go play Mortal Kombat until you like it. Ready? Ok, now go buy it.

Runner-Up: Urban Champion (NES)

So, there you are. Awesome games. And, if you’re really lucky (and you just might be this time), then I’ll post the last entry sometime in the next century. Honest.

-benjamines

Currently Playing: Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Minis March Again (NDS), Soul Bubbles (NDS), Excitebots: Trick Racing

Secret Hidden E3 Press Conference?

Today?... a secret hidden E3 press conference with some hidden and unrecognizable Nintendo reps produced some news that we were expecting, but hadn't heard up to this point? The news is as follows?:

• A new Kirby game will be released soon*?
• Mario Party 9 is on its way?
• The DSi will get its own Virtual Console of sorts?
• Strong Bad Season 2 (or equivalent) is under production?
• A new Mario Golf game for the Wii?
• A new Elite Beat Agents(-esque) game?
• Super Monkey Ball will roll again?
• A new F-Zero will (finally) return?!
• More New Play Control games in the pipeline?
• Paper Mario will return eventually?
• New Starfox?

So there you have it? Plenty of new news to keep us video gamers entertained? I wonder what this does to my bingo card...?

Well, would you look at that? It's all full? How exciting?! I guess you all owe me 12,000 points? What a good day for me? Don't you just love secret hidden E3 press conference 2009's? Me too?!

Well, I guess I'll go relax and wait for my points to roll in? Thanks for reading everyone? Have a nice day?

-benjamines?

Currently Playing: Mighty Flip Champs? Excitebots: Trick Racing? Wii Fit?

















*Soon means sometime in the next 50 years.

Ye Olde Holidaye!

It's my birthday today! And it almost snowed yesterday morning! Plus it snowed last weekend! How awesome is that?! But, despite my fervent prayers, it has all melted. I know it'll be back someday, though. I just knows it...

Either way, the falling of new snow marks the approachment of my favorite holiday: Christmas! I know it's been severely commercialized, but I think that's half the fun. Half the good games come out during the holiday season! But, seeing all these new games makes me wonder why they picked the ones they did instead of something better. So, let's take a look at some games that need to be made, hm?

Chibi-Robo (Wii) - I love Chibi-Robo! It's an fantastic gameplay design that anyone can play. While he is unfortunately undersold, hopefully Chibi-Robo will continue to be released every couple of years. They are making a Wii-controlled Gamecube version soon, so the liklihood of this isn't too high, but I think we'll see it before the Wii moves along. Either way, it would make a great addition to the already great lineup of Wii titles. I can just hear the robot sounds coming out of the little speaker on the Wiimote. Awesome!

Paper Mario (DS) - I think it's only a matter of time before this one comes out. Paper Mario takes the good parts of RPGs and adds them to the good parts of adventure games, which creates an extremely rewarding and supremely entertaining combination. I hope they go back to regular-style Paper Mario instead of mostly platforming. While Super Paper Mario was very fun, it lacked a certain something-something. Just think of it. You could be battling, and you could use the touch screen to do action commands and pick items to use. It makes perfect sense! Again, I think this one will come out eventually, but I wish it was coming out sooner.

F-Zero (DS and Wii) - F-Zero is easily one of my favorite franchises. It's not your regular racing game. Not only is it much faster, but there's a lot of strategy involved. After the first lap, you can use your ship's energy to give yourself a boost, but if you use too much, you may hit an opponent and explode. Plus, you get rewarded for knocking other people off of the track. Great fun! But the last one came out nearly 5 years ago. This is simply unacceptable. Much crappier games have seen much qiucker releases. Even epic games like Mario and Zelda see more releases than F-Zero. But it makes so much sense to make new ones! The unique controls of the DS and Wii could open up some seriously incredible possibilities. Come on, Nintendo! Make it happen!

Just seeing that picture on the right makes me want to wet myself. So warm...

Mario DDR 2 (Wii) - One of my favorite gamecube games needs a sequel, dangit! Even if they just had the game and no dance pad, I'd still get it! (Because I already have a dance pad). Oh, and this time, I hope they make more than like 1,000 of the total, so you know, everyone that wants one can get one. That'd be nice. Or, maybe they could change it up a little and do a Nintendo DDR, with songs from Zelda, Pokemon, and Donkey Kong. That'd be great. Something tells me we won't see this anytime soon, but it's ok to wish. Dangit.

Kirby (Wii) - It's been years now, but Nintendo released a video showing a Kirby game for the gamecube, which appeared to be the sequel (or successor) to Kirby 64. I love Kirby 64! But then it just kind of vanished. Then later on, there was a rumor that they were going to release the game on Wii instead. Awesome! But again, it has faded away. Nintendo, I just have one question: Where the crap is my Kirby Wii?!?! Kirby 64 is, in my humble yet indisputable opinion, the greatest video game ever made. Why then, would you not make a sequel? Honestly! But I'm not bitter or anything...

Click here to see the Kirby trailer released 3 freakin' years ago.

So, there you have it. Some games that make perfect sense, but ones you may never see. Have any other idea about what Nintendo (or others) should make? Let us know!

-benjamines

Currently Playing: The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker, Megaman Battle Chip Challenge, TMNT Mutant Melee