GAME - good news and bad news

The bad news is that they're in trouble. Some businessy stuff is happening, shipments of new games are in chaos and if you preordered something like I did, chances are it didn't arrive at all.

The good news is that with the thing that didn't arrive for me I was able to get my deposit back.

Kicking ass in Twinbee now!

After struggling with the last stage on the first loop for a while I found that if you just don't be too anxious when collecting bells and have a helpful power up like the three way spreading shot as well as a shield and a few speed ups you can get through the game quite manageably. I have it quicksaved on the third loop now!

So hey does that mean this game has unbalanced difficulty? Well when you think about it, with the way I'm playing I may be getting further but my score isn't going up as quickly and the enemies get harder so I would say that restores some bit of balance. What I can plainly see now though is that the game really is all about the bells.

I'll post my new score soon.

Chasing high scores

I made a post about chasing high scores in Twinbee and said what my new score was but it's still the same as last time ^^; whoops.

I think I'd like to get a few high scores together, making a big list of them and store them around here somewhere. For one thing I've been playing Pac-Mania obsessively but hey it might be nice to post up some Wii, DS, 3DS game high scores that I currently have.

Where to find The Last Story in Cork

Try Tesco.

Angry Video Game Nerd "What Was I Thinking?" featurette

http://cinemassacre.com/2012/02/23/what-was-i-thinking/

This was originally on one of his DVDs but now it's on his site too. Some interesting stuff there, including the fact that he likes some of the games he reviews to an extent. He does say though that some other games really do deserve the angry nerd treatment they get! Have a look to find out what they are.

Where to find Fortune Street/Boom Street in Cork

Try Smyths, they have more display cases of the game than any other shop I've been to.

Latest Wii release dates for 2012, new Nintendo Direct feature

http://www.nintendo.co.uk/NOE/en_GB/news/2011/nintendo_announces_a_packed_line-up_of_upcoming_games_and_content_in_the_latest_nintendo_direct_49047.html

Quite a few interesting things have been announced here. There's a link near the start of the article to a Nintendo Direct feature where Satoru Iwata talks about upcoming releases.

Near the bottom is a link to a pdf document that has a listing of release dates for Wii software. This includes stuff I'm interested in like Back to the Future which thankfully isn't something that is up in the air like I feared!

Completed Super Monkey Ball 3D!

I put this game off for a long while but I beat it! All 10 worlds :) It's not too difficult but it can be tough playing it on a bus. It is a nice bit of fun though!

I don't care what any reviewer says, this is one of the best 3DS cartridge games currently available!

Completed Mario 3D Land!

Finally completed all the stages and special stages of this game! They got really tough and annoying but most were still a lot of fun. I heard there's one more special special stage to unlock but it involves getting flags at maximum height and other stuff so I might hold that off for another session.

What makes 3D Classics: Twinbee special (also, my current high score)

I love this game so much right now! I have this power up music playing as I type this post:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O1P29bsH84U

I love the way the stages all have a mellow tune until you nab a power up and then it plays the theme I linked to above, beginning with a fanfare and some hyper happy music.

I didn't say much about the game the last time I made a post about it (click the 'Twinbee' label to find it) apart from me being a longtime fan of the Twinbee series and commenting about the 3D effect.

I did mention the rapid fire option though which is awesome! Maybe it's to cater to the fact that this version was designed for a single player?

Another special thing about this version is the quick save option. It lets you pick up at the start of the stage you were on with your current lives and power ups intact from the moment you quicksaved. Another thing I like is that not only does it tell you what stage you're on, it tells you what loop you're on as well, which is definitely a nice thing for arcade shmup fans!

It's all based on the original NES/Famicom version of the game.

I might as well take a paragraph to explain the gameplay. It's basic vertical shmup gameplay but it has a few of its own unique things, one of which is juggling bells by shooting at them. This helps you get power ups and point multipliers. The danger and excitement comes from trying to collect the bells while the otherwise normal enough baddies constantly get in your way.

I say don't hesitate to buy it if you're thinking about it at all! Also, it's a far better game than Xevious.

My current high score is 1,973,300 on stage 1-5. Yes I know I haven't completed any loops yet but hey I'm having loads of fun!

Jungly Steps is a scary place

I absolutely adore Pac-Mania. It's Pac-Man but with isometrics and jumping among other things. It's one of the few arcade games I don't mind doing loops in.

The last themed stage is scary, even on the first loop. There are so many ghosts and they just flash around like lightning. The music has a more serious tone than the other stages and it just adds to the tension.

Alison's replacement in Nintendo Week (well, guest host)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8dbX52WBDkA

Her name is Soul or Sol or something. Maybe we'll see another guest host next week? If there are a few to choose from we'll try 'em all out.

There's a brief look at that game Mutant Mudds which seems interesting. Might give it a go.

Replaying Banjo-Kazooie

I love Banjo-Kazooie so much. I'm using an emulator to play it but still using my N64 controller via an adaptor. I then mapped the buttons, swapping the 3D stick and Z button with the d-pad and L button. It controls pretty well for me this way! Normally I wouldn't dare using a d-pad to play a 3D game but I'm happy with it so far.

Maybe I'll be able to give other games of this nature that use the d-pad exclusively a go? We'll see.

Anyway the collectathon nature of platform games like this and especially this one is just so enjoyable to indulge in — yet it annoys me in other newer games for some reason.

It may be on the Xbox now but I don't see how an Xbox fan would be interested in it at all. It actually looks better than other games for the system but that's more because of its aesthetics and style.This game is just too lovely and colourful to go out of fashion unlike all the other games for the system.

Continuing on from yesterday's post about Back to the Future coming to Wii in Ireland

I was a bit negative yesterday but hey it's the truth - I'm angry because I care.

You see, I like TellTale's games and the Wii is my format of choice and since I'm the customer I demand a product that works properly.

I'm doing something nice by talking about it and generating excitement, so here's me being nice and talking about the release date!

According to Amazon.co.uk it's being released on the 30th of March 2012. Now I'm taking this with a pinch of salt since Sam & Max 2's release date kept changing, even when it was released it had changes in release dates.

Back to the Future: The Game is coming to Wii in Ireland

TellTale did an unforgivably shit job of Sam and Max: Beyond Time and Space for the Wii. The parts at the end of the game came to a complete halt and only moved if you found a way for there to somehow have less stuff happening on screen. This isn't a fault of the Wii, it's the fault of the people behind its development and I have not forgiven them for that. It could've been worse if they actually promoted the Wii version of the game at all. I did not find it easy to obtain it.

Now they're bringing a compilation of their Back to the Future series to the Wii and I am feeling glad, yet wary. Are they going to fuck this up as badly as Sam and Max 2?

I had a look at the first issue of the new Nintendo Gamer magazine and they reviewed the American version of Back to the Future. The score was a low 50 and the contents made reference to the aforementioned Sam and Max sequel. They said Back to the Future has the same problems as Sam and Max 2 but that it isn't as decrepit as the latter — Whatever that means.

Is the game going to come to a complete halt during gameplay like Sam and Max 2 did due to crap development? I don't want that to happen. What I'm going to do now is stay tuned for a few more reviews of the Wii version and also have a look at how they'll promote it (if at all).

USK ratings are hateful boxart ruiners

http://www.nintendo.co.uk/NOE/en_GB/games/ms/the_last_story/product.html
So here's the official website detailing all the stuff that's going to be in the limited edition of The Last Story. You'll also get a big ugly USK rating. I hate these things because they ruin the boxart.

Why do we have to have them? Actually, don't answer that, I don't care. The right question is do German people really have such poor eyesight? What the fuck is their problem? Why does the rating have to be bigger than the PEGI one? Why should Irish people have to suffer this desecrating our game's boxart?

I was really pissed off when I saw the big ass USK rating on Skyward Sword's limited edition box.

Imagining a remake of Donkey Kong 64

Just thinking about it hypothetically. This game is famous for having more things to collect than players could actually cope with. Because of that I was wondering what if a remake had an extra feature like having the Banjo-Kazooie pair as an unlockable. Just think about whizzing through the levels with the Talon Trot and of course they would be able to collect and utilise every Kong's items and abilities on top of having their own. That would be cool in a bizarre kind of way.

Imagine the banter between Kazooie and Cranky! That would be fun too.

I also say keep Jetpac and Donkey Kong arcade intact.

GoNintendo says "Mario Party 9 has minimal loading times"

http://www.gonintendo.com/?mode=viewstory&id=171770

There we go! I'm making a post out of this especially because noone else seems to be getting excited over the reporting of minimal loading times.

I think that's WRONG and we should be getting very excited about this! Loading times inconvenience the player and should be BANNED!

I'm very passionate about this issue so I would like to make a label called: "LOADING TIMES SUCK". Expect to see it now and again!

Things Alison Whitney could do and would be great at

Listen to me go on! Like I'm some expert or fanboy. I shouldn't really pretend to be either, just thinking here.

She would be good for some kind of family entertainment like a sitcom with a laugh track. I'm actually thinking that she would be brilliant in some kind of Jim Henson production with muppet-like creatures around. Those shows suit everybody, not just kids. If she were to do something like Sesame Street I can imagine her being like Elmo's cool auntie.

I thought a good bit about her doing Samus Aran for some kind of Metroid feature. I think Alison has an unusual quality but it's different to what I picture Samus' unusual quality being like. Considering her portfolio you'd think the most Samus-y thing she could do is promote the latest Metroid game while wearing the suit without the mask and then do one of Samus' moves with a cheesy but amusing special effect.

I imagine the closest to being Samus you could be is to study Daryl Hannah's character in Blade Runner(or maybe even Splash!). I wonder if Alison could do that?

Imagine if Studio Ghibli did a Metroid feature? That would be interesting, and they're known for making movies starring the kind of females you could make plenty of comparisons with Samus Aran.

I told you I'm not an expert! I just deviated and went talking about video games.

Ok how about this: Alison has something different about her. I can't imagine a lot of other women doing Nintendo Week as well as she did it and whatever it is that she had, it's a valuable asset.

Just found out that Alison has left Nintendo Week

Aw! I've lapsed in my viewing of the episodes so I didn't find out until now. At the end of last week's episode she was revealed to be an alien and got beamed away. It reminds me of The Simpsons where Poochie left Itchy & Scratchy for his home planet. Alison didn't die on her way back though thank goodness!

She did some great PR for Nintendo of America with her smiles, charm and glamour and seemed to have great respect and discipline for it. I admit it's nearly always very strange to see women do PR for video games. I wonder if girls who aspire to become involved in the industry feel like the old man that can be found in Alltrades Abbey in some of the Dragon Quest games who aspires to become some kind of french maid?
They needn't let that get in their way though as there are veterans like Violet Berlin and Bettina Pieri who have presented game shows in the past. They were quite good.

Anyway, her full name is Alison Whitney and she has a kind of portfolio website with a c.v. of what look like very interesting B movies and a reel of her at her very best, even showing roles where she's swearing and everything.

I wonder what Gary's c.v. is like? I wonder what his second name is? Anyway he's doing the show with his Dark Gary alter ego right now. It's a big change but I hope the show will go on.

Completed 3D Classics: Kirby's Adventure, final score

For some reason the 3D Classics version of this game has a high score table. I'm not sure if it matters at all but in case you're interested my final score is 460000.

What is Metroid Other M all about?

So far it sounds like it's about a girl who had a falling out with her clique and now she's trying to get back with them after she lost her baby.

Giving Metroid Other M another go!

Or rather, a proper go since I just watched the cutscenes last time I put it on.

It seems weird, but not Metroid weird. A different kind of weird. Like an ill fitting jumper kind of weird.

Hey Sean Malstrom, I want New Legend of Zelda also!

http://seanmalstrom.wordpress.com/2012/02/06/i-want-new-legend-of-zelda/
Yeah I'd love it. After finally giving Zelda 1 & 2 a proper go after all these years I'm finding a lot of things the series could do without and what it could do with. Sean gets to the heart of it.

I think the series ought to go a bit easier on the puzzles, or else it'll get as bad as a certain non-Zelda game where the final boss is a sudoku.

I'd also go for less dialogue or, to go a step further, have no dialogue at all.

The suggestion of a Gauntlet style multiplayer is great though it would have to be much better than Gauntlet. How about a Kirby & the Amazing Mirror style of multiplayer? I mean where each player could go to different parts of a map on their own.

Kirby's Adventure & Dream Land 1 glitches from Mike Matei

http://cinemassacre.com/2012/01/28/kirby-glitches/

It's been out a few days I know but I just thought I'd link it.

I've been following this little series and I have to say it's really cool to see some of these things and it's great if you've got a few minutes to kill. This one is remarkable because of course Kirby games are amazing and just seeing some of the things there is rad like the the word HAL done in those star blocks.

Should you buy 3D Classics: Kid Icarus?

If you like but be sure to buy 3D Classics: Kirby's Adventure first! I guarantee you'll play and enjoy it more!

3D Classics Kid Icarus' save feature is ok but...

So I got the game anyway. I like the save feature but when you die you reset back at the last checkpoint with progress lost after that point. I'm not crazy about that happening in games that have RPG elements so what happens is your money (hearts) resets back to the way it was. Maybe it's better this way after all since it's a platformer. There could be an advantage to this too like say if your items got stolen you wouldn't have to buy them back again. I'd have to find that out though I'm not sure yet.

3D Classics Kid Icarus out now for 3DS in Ireland!

Just when I was giving serious thought about downloading this game from the eshop it appears! That can't be coincidence. I gotta get it! :)

It'll be nice having a save feature and not having to mess around with passwords.

Looking at a clip of the game in action it seems the 3D effect appers more prominently than in 3D Classics: Kirby's Adventure but of course that's simply because there's a kind of overlay effect on the background in Kid Icarus but with Kirby the background scrolls along with the action.

3DS Classics version of Kid Icaurus does away with passwords

I've heard that this version of the game has the save feature that was in the original Japanese version of the game and works like Zelda 1's name registration screen.

This is a big plus for me and is a good case for me buying it. I hated the passwords on the NES one and this is the only English version of the game that has the save feature. I just might buy it!