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Jan 5th, 2008 at 03:55:10 - Super Mario Galaxy (Wii) |
Let me just say:
This is the FIRST Mario game that I have REALLY played, and is the FIRST Mario game that I have BEATEN.
Yes it's true. You could say that this is my FIRST Mario game.
I am sorry, but Mario and Mario games hadn't appealed to me until Galaxy; I am mainly intrigued by Fighting Games, SHUMPS, Beat-em-Ups, Conceptual Games, Artistic Games, Games-with-Interesting-Control-Schemes, and Puzzle Games.
Mario didn't fall into any of those categories, nor did Zelda until Wind Waker ((Artistically/Visually Stimulating), and Phantom Hourglass(Artistic, and interesting control scheme)... both are still on my TO-DO list).. but finally, I was intrigued with a Mario game.
GALAXY. That word, in and of itself, is intriguing to me... It exudes Limitless-ness. Infinities. No-boundaries. Those are things I like to hear, and associate with Games...
Previously, I could only think of Mario as the definitive level-progressing platformer with Fire Level, Ice Level, Dark Level, Desert Level, and some nice (and DISTINCT!) music to boot. That was all for me. But the moment that I saw a screen shot of a GALAXY level, comprised totally of spheres-scapes, and floating land masses, I was in awe.
I am so happy to say, that I STILL have that feeling AFTER beating the game... it's truly stunning. The game is absolutely an Artistic and Conceptual Game Design Showcase...
I don't think there was ONE thing I didn't like about it...
Oh, that for the most part it was an Easy game...that was my only "issue".
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Jan 5th, 2008 at 03:23:27 - Dragon Ball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi 2 (Wii) |
Looking back, this game really opened some doors for me regarding fighting games based around Motion-Controls.
I didn't believe it could happen, BUT, this game has managed to convince me that with some fine-tuning, and more attention to character balance, Fighting games on the Wii can get pretty serious.
This game, however, is NOT an example of a balanced fighting game-- as SSJ4 Goku HAS TO BE better than regular Goku by default (story reasons, fan-base, consistency... etc..etc) but still, I learned alot about the possibilities of the Wii, with this game.
I would go into details, but... it's not really the individual parts that made me realize the potential of fighters on Wii, it was the collective whole that convinced me.
Using the Nunchuk (Buttons, Motion-Control, and Analogue Stick) and Wii-Mote (Directional Pad, Buttons, and Motion-Control) all in combination with one another, in ways that made sense, is something you must try first to believe.
Watching my friends play the game also convinced me that once you got a hold of all the options available, battles become more and more intense (counters, teleports, parries, throws, throw-escapes, super cancels, etc..etc)-- just some really crazy and exciting stuff to watch...
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Jan 5th, 2008 at 03:08:05 - Soul Calibur Legends (Wii) |
Soul Calibur Legends. The Soul Calibur Beat-em-Up/Linear Adventure Game.
I've been playing this game in small bursts, for 3 days now...
It's only managed to maintain some of my attention, because of the controls.
The controls are not very responsive, or accurate-- you swing the wii-mote horizontal or vertical, thrust forward, or pull-up (as if scooping with a spoon) to do different moves-- but MOST of the moves from MOST of the characters match the motion that you perform.
Despite the issues, That's not to say that this control method is not interesting. The problems arise only when you want to do specific attacks.
Since I've played every Soul Calibur up until this point, I like to try and do the moves from the previous games that I liked the most. For example, I love Ivy's move where she pulls an airborne character out of the air with her chain-whip. This move IS in Soul Calibur Legends, but is SOOOO difficult to do because the game doesn't read motions that well. The motion to perform the move itself is not hard at all--thrust forward, then LIFT UP-- it's just that the game can't pick it up as accurately (or INaccurately (?!)) as I would like.
I was impressed to see, that the game DOES read left-to-right horizontal slashes differently than right-to-left horizontal slashes. It was a small touch that won BIG points with me. I also appreciate the number of attacks possible with each character-- nearly every distinct/easily-recognizable move that each character has (from previous Soul Cal games) is in this game.
You can also move the Nunchuck to perform defensive/evasive manuvers (Guard Imapact, Side Stepping), as well as to cancel/charge offensive attacks into other attacks to perform near limitless combo strings. I was surprised to see so much attention given to the Nunchuk, as left, right, forward, and backwards motions (and in combintation with the Z (block) button and C (Soul Charge) button) yeild different results. There is truly alot going on here, it's just not as intuitive or as responsive as it should be.
The Nunchuk and Wii-mote can be used in combination to access even MORE moves.
These kinds of touches let me know where the developer's focus was; translating the 6 Soul Calibur characters into a competent motion-controlled adventure-game fighting system. (By no means, does this system work as a full-fledged one-on-one fighting game... as experienced from playing the last-min-addition 2-player Vs. Mode)
The rest of the game is abysmal-- Repetitive levels, weak story, bad dialogue, forced character interaction, easy enemies, and the half-baked 2-player Co-op, Competitive, and VS play. But the combat options per character is really intriguing, to me at least... Especially since each character is adjusted appropriately to fit the motion controls in harmony with their native fighting style. (Taki comes to mind, as she utilizes the Nunchuk's evasive manuevers more than any other character, being the "ninja-fighter"... Ivy has some cool two-part whip-pulling manuevers that only she can do; i.e. Thrust forward to extentd the whip, then PULL-to-the-LEFT/RIGHT to have her pull the whip in that direction as it retracts...)
I can only think of this game as a window into the possibilities of wii-controls and fighting-based games. There's a lot that CAN be done here, I don't know if it's the Wii Hardware's fault, or lack-of-time for the developers, but there is some really new and fresh ideas for combat with the Wii-mote and Nunchuk.....
Another game that utilizes the motion-controls very well for combat is DragonBall Z Budokai: Tenkaichi 2 or 3. Those games made me believe that fighting IS possible on the Wii...but that's for some other time.
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May 27th, 2007 at 02:35:11 - Chibi-Robo (GC) |
Chibi-Robo.. is one of my favorite games.
I don't know if the game will have any replay value after I beat it.. but I this first time through is absolutely entertaining... I have never been engaged in such a nice neat little story as this one.
And unlike most games, I still haven't figured out exactly what triggers what event... Everything progresses at a believable, steady pace... As long as you do something, something else is bound to happen... There were some days (in-game) where I would just explore a single room, searching every nook and cranny of the space, and stumble upon a new toy. You'd talk to it, you'd hear its story, then become motivated in seeing the story finish...so you do what the toy asks of you (i.e... get the princess from the castle, by returning her red shoe). Somehow the story will fuse with another toy's story.. and before you know it, you're caught in this new saga...
I love the structure of the game so much.. leisurely, and at your pace... though this does make the game feel longer than it actually is... I have only been playing for 10 hours (total) but I could've sworn that I played it for at least 4 weeks.
Good stuff...
Chibi-Robo in Smash Bros. Brawl PLEASE!
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neoyaku2 has been with GameLog for 17 years, 3 months, and 6 days |
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