Author: Josh Jackson

It was two years ago where Rocksteady Studios did what we all thought was impossible, they made a good Batman game! And not only was it good, it was one of the best games of the year, truly capturing the badassery of the Dark Knight while giving gamers a detailed look into Arkham Asylum. With such high expectations, Rocksteady’s sequel, Arkham City, aims to be bigger in every way while making the experience of being Batman even better. But the real question is did they succeed?

After the events of the first game, newly elected mayor and former Arkham warden, Quincy Sharp, 

Back in the 90’s, there was a little series of games titled “Strike” that were all the rage. Anyone who’s played games on the PC or good ol’ PS1 like Soviet Strike and Nuclear Strike remember how fun it was to take control of a military vehicle and spread havok across enemy lands for hours on end. Obviously, someone at Avalanche Studios remembered, if Renegade Ops is any proof. This ode to these classic games reminds us how fun, over the top, and at times, how cheesy these games could be while being good enough to establish its own legacy.

Renegade Ops stars a group of mercenaries who are tasked with stopping an international terrorist organization from taking over the world. Primarily in a heavily armored truck, either one or two players, (online or split screen,) drive around on huge, detailed levels from a top down perspective, using the left stick to drive and the right stick to shoot your mounted gun. In addition to the secondary weapons that can be picked up such as rockets and flamethrowers, each of the four playable characters have their own special abilities. Ranging from shields, air strikes, power increases or the ability to disable enemy weapons, your character greatly alters how you decide to take on each mission.

It helps when each mission is so much fun to play. Tasks are seperated into primary and secondary missions that range from destroying particular enemies, rescuing hostages and delivering supplies. Each kill, mission completed and the larger multiplier built up by landing consecutive shots earns experience points that increase each character’s capabilities even more. Even though over a dozen upgrades are available to choose from, a maximum of four can be equipped at any one time. So then it comes down to whether or not you want to focus on offense, defense or improving your special abilities, giving the strategy even more versatility.

On the subject, Renegade Ops could have used some of that versatility in the game play department. By the time your each about the fourth out of nine levels, you’ve seen all the missions in the game, and it becomes a rinse and repeat affair. The first level teases you with flying a helicopter, but after that… nothing. I came across the helicopter one more time towards the end of the game, but aside from that, the truck is all you get. If the game had more helicopter areas or even a third vehicle thrown in, it would have done wonders for the repetition issues. 

The story also borderlines on being ridiculous to the point of annoyance. At its best, the comic book inspired scenes are pretty funny, with tongue in cheek writing that’s fully aware of how silly it is. But when the writing falls flat, it falls hard. At certain points, I thought it would be better to hit the mute button, but it was just good enough overall to get through it, but just barely.

Renegade Ops was a hell of a lot of fun. Despite its variety and story issues, sometimes you just want to sit down and blow stuff up. The renegades provide this in spades in an easy to pick up and play arcade style action game that provides enough depth to accommodate different play styles without being complicated. Did I mention it looks incredible? So if you want to blow off some steam and cause a little mayhem, I say you should walk over to your Xbox or Playstation and hit the download button.

The Ace Attorney series is very close to my heart, so in celebration of Phoenix Wright being added to Marvel vs Capcom 3, I just knew I had to cover this niche series as the next underground game. The question then became which one would get the spot? Trials and Tribulations was the best one overall, whereas the original will always hold a special place in my black heart for starting the trend of awesomeness, but the theme I’m trying to go with are games that didn’t get a fair shake. Games that for whatever reason, were ignored or overlooked by the public. Within the Ace Attorney family of games, Apollo Justice would be the black sheep that everyone pretends doesn’t exist, but I don’t think that’s fair. Apollo was different… he even stepped on a few family traditions, but he was still great to have around.

Ace Attorney series in general follows an upstart attorney as he attempts to defend his innocent clients from false charges across numerous games and cases. These text adventures are broken up into investigation sections, where players gather evidence and collect witness testimonies, and the trial sections where the defense and prosecution have an epic battle of justice while using evidence to find contradictions with witness testimonies. Yes, I understand that most of what I wrote is a detective’s job, but come on. Was the game supposed to just have you sit on your piles of money waiting for a class action suit to fall on your desk? What makes these games special are the eccentric characters, memorable animations, top notch writing and interwoven plots that are some of the best this decade. Yeah, I said it.

Now by the time Apollo rolled around, he had some huge shoes to fill. This particular game was supposed to be the start of a new trilogy made from the ground up for the Nintendo DS, (all of the previous games were GBA ports). Phoenix Wright and the rest of the cast took a back seat to a new attorney, with new stories and cases after the last trilogy was wrapped up so perfectly… or at least they were supposed to take a back seat. There are a few main reasons that this game has the fanbase divided, and part of the reason believe it or not was Phoenix’s inclusion.

Yep, that homeless looking guy is Phoenix.

Fans were pissed that all of Phoenix’s accomplishments were pretty much erased at the very beginning of Apollo Justice. Now a disgraced former lawyer, he helps the new heroes in some pretty shady ways that go against everything he stood for in the original trilogy. It should make you feel sympathy for Justice, but you barely get to know him since the main plot revolves around the circumstances surrounding Phoenix’s fall from grace. These are all legitimate gripes, and trust me, I was mad at how they butchered Phoenix too. But I think we should cut the game some slack in this aspect. As the story goes, this disgraced lawyer was supposed to be a brand new character and the story was supposed to focus much less on him, but the suits at Capcom were afraid the game wouldn’t sell without Phoenix, so he was kind of shoehorned in to please the higher ups. It goes to show that they don’t always know what’s best.

Phoenix wasn’t the only character to come back either. Phoenix’s assistant from the DS exclusive case in the original Ace Attorney, Ema Skye, returns in the detective role. I was a fan of her character and thought it was adorable in a weird way how she had grown somewhat bitter about ending up a detective instead of an enthusiastic scientific investigator. But when she got to show off the power of science, that’s where the game really stood out from its predecessors. Using new methods of evidence gathering such as searching for blood stains, footprints and the like really took advantage of the advanced DS hardware. Throw in the 3D crime scene re-enactments and it made it feel like it belonged on the newer generation handheld. Apollo himself also had a new ability that let him search for nervous twitches on the witnesses when he couldn’t prove they were lying with evidence. It was really weird, and that’s saying a lot for a series that had a parrot called to the witness stand. There was no penalty for failing these parts, so it didn’t feel like a completely fleshed out idea, but a similar feature is being added to Professor Layton vs. Ace Attorney, so hopefully it will be expanded on then.

But aside from all the new features, there was one new addition that brought upon almost as much controversy as Phoenix. The new prosecutor: Klavier Gavin. Prosecutor by day and rock star by night, he came off as disinterested in his less glamorous job, but cared about finding the right verdict. This is where people don’t like him, but I can’t say I agree. It seems fans who hate him feel that way because he goes as far as to help Apollo during trials instead of berating him at every second. But to say he wasn’t antagonistic was far from the truth. Just like his predecessors, he puts up a strong fight and rebukes Apollo at every point… until he starts to realize that the defense might be right. After three games of having prosecutors who put personal grudges and petty win records over doing their job properly (in the context of the game at least), I found it refreshing to have a guy who actually cared about serving justice as much as the playable characters, but came off as charismatic while doing so. Plus, he had some kick ass theme music!

So in the end, I’ll be the first person to admit that Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney failed to improve overall on its predecessor, but after coming off such an amazing build up that lasted three games, what really could? I know our beloved Phoenix became someone he wasn’t, Apollo never became much of anyone and some of the jumps in logic were too much to take, (especially in the final case,) but that doesn’t mean that this game can’t be enjoyed for what it was, which is a solid entry in one of the greatest DS franchises that was just starting to find its footing after the credits rolled. Since this game’s release, a proper sequel has been put on hold in favor of spin-offs, crossovers with Mr. Layton and even a brand new series, (which I’m sure you’ll be hearing about from me real soon,) but with enough support, hopefully Mr. Justice will find his way back into the court room.

And with that, the defense rests. If you’re a fan of the series and stayed away from this entry because of the negative reaction, I implore you to reconsider (yay, Kung Pow reference)! If you’re new to the series, start from the beginning with Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney on DS, WiiWare or iOS devices, so you can work your way to Apollo and either share our immense joy or utter disappointment with the rest of us. And besides, it was better than that Edgeworth spinoff. Now that game sucked!

This one might be cheating a little bit, but in the spirit of IndieCade this past weekend, I wanted to talk about one such game that was released with little fanfare, but is a great game nonetheless. While other indie games such as Braid, Limbo and P.B. Winterbottom have all gotten a certain degree of hype within the Xbox Live circles, And Yet it Moves was a game cut from the same cloth that went largely unnoticed when it hit WiiWare in summer 2010, but that didn’t make it any less special. While it didn’t have many tricks, it did a great job of taking a single core mechanic and exploiting it to its fullest.

Much like video games that I grew up with, AYIM doesn’t have much of a story. It’s as simple as guiding a little paper cut out guy from one end of each stage to another, avoiding traps in the process. The entire game is presented in a type of pop up book look, so each set of stages has a unique feel from the forest to the cave stage. 

But if that’s all there was to AYIM, this wouldn’t be a game worth bragging about. Its catch is the ability to freeze the game and rotate the world with the Wii Remote. Suddenly, leaps of faith became problem solvers, because due to the momentum physics, the main character could jump off a ledge, at which point the world could be spun in a different direction so that his momentum would push him through a tear in a wall. This mechanic was used in so many cool ways, like moving boulders, avoiding bees. On paper, it doesn’t sound like much, but in action, it was so rewarding to figure out each platforming challenge as they came.

It’s too bad that Nintendo never adopted an efficient way to highlight the premiere games that were released for its WiiWare service, leading so many gamers to believe it didn’t offer anything worth playing. I feel this is where the problem was for this game getting zero exposure, because even for an indie game, it flew in so far under the radar that it hardly was a blip on anyone’s conscious. Much like other games that will probably end up in this series eventually, (I’m looking at you bit.Trip and MotoHeroz,) if Nintendo promoted these games half as much as games like Limbo and Braid were promoted, they could have gathered a much bigger console following. But the lack of exposure didn’t mean AIYM wasn’t some of the most fun I’ve had with a download title.

If you ask me, the game play in AYIM stands up well against some of the best indie games out there. Aside from its short length, it did everything a game needs to to be successful. With its unique art style, its solid execution and memorable moments, this game is a perfect reason to pick up a few old Wii point cards and give this one a shot.

I know what you’re thinking. Really? An anime game? Especially one based on what’s essentially a romance story wrapped in an action packed coating? But that’s exactly why InuYasha: A Feudal Fairy Tale deserves so much credit. Anime fans are constantly bombarded with really awesome looking games that end up being cheap cash-ins, and we usually fall for the trap every time. InuYasha was the exception to this rule, and it’s not just because I’m a giant geek for the series (InuYasha, InuJoshua, get it!?!). It’s really good. I promise!

At first glance, this game is easy to pass up as being one of those cheap cash-ins that I mentioned. It seems like fighting games are the quickest way to make a buck with anime games and I honestly wasn’t expecting much when I picked up my copy. It was weird to think that a brand new game based on a hot property was only $20, even if it was released for the PS1 during its dying days. As soon as I got home with my new copy and booted it up, my mind couldn’t help but be blown to a million pieces, much like the Shikon Jewel.

In essence, the 2D combat of InuYasha wasn’t particularly deep. You had three attack buttons and a special move button that could execute different moves depending on the direction being used on the D-Pad. But what started off as simple had become more complex than it ever should have been allowed to be, thanks to the air juggle system. Now don’t get me wrong. It’s nowhere near Marvel vs Capcom, Street Fighter or even Tekken levels of depth, but for an anime game? It was easy to spend hours finding new ways to link attacks with each character. And it was the characters that really made the game.

Rarely in the fighting game genre do the characters feel like they’re evenly matched. If you can still find one of those ancient relics called arcades, you’ll constantly hear people bitching about how one character is cheap or broken. That’s not the case in Feudal Fairy Tale, because each character felt just as strong as all the others, while being distinct enough to compliment various play styles. Whether it was the fast, in your face Koga, or a keep away fighter like Kagura, there was never a reason to blame the game when you sucked too much to win. It also helped because when you’re dealing with a passionate fanbase, you don’t want to alienate fans of a particular character when they suck too much to play with. Just ask Thor in MvC3.

But the game’s balancing wasn’t where the best part of the way the characters were handled. It’s not too uncommon for fighting games to feature special win quotes or fight intros when two particular characters are fighting, but to have special moves and animations during the fight is almost unheard of. This InuYasha game got the subtleties just right to make it feel like fans of the series made the game instead of a bunch of suits that were looking to make a quick buck (or in this case, yen).

One cool feature was the implementation of the sacred jewel shards that the characters are out to collect in the series. Evil characters defile the jewel while good characters purified them, so an evil character touching a purified shard would take damage, but would force it to revert to a neutral state and vice versa. Grabbing a shard of the same alignment would result in a larger power boost, but neutral characters could grab any shard.

That feature was all well and good, but the highlight for fanboys like me were the tailor made attacks that I mentioned before. It was so awesome to see Kagome’s throw attack switch to her trademark “Sit!” when she was fighting InuYasha. Or how the perverted monk Miroku’s throw would change to groping his opponent’s ass if he was fighting a female (yep, I can’t believe I wrote that). It made most match-ups feel special and in a strange way, added to the replay value in a way that’s not seen often.

If that was all there was to it though, there’s no way I would remember this game so fondly, since fighting without a purpose can only last so long. Back before online was a huge deal, single player was key for keeping gamers playing. Surprisingly enough at the time, the game’s single player mode featured a fully voice acted story unique to each character, complete with branching paths and alternate takes on the story if your character were to lose. There was nothing like the feeling I got when I felt like I was in control of the anime’s story, and even some of the “what if” scenarios were way too fun to play through. On top of the incredible music, voice acted fights and the numerous unlockable rewards, Feudal Fairy Tale had way too much going for it, or at least more than a constantly burned anime gamer like myself would ever expect.

I really could go on and on about this game. If it had any shortcomings, they would be that the roster was somewhat small, the load times could be terrible and the game had the bare minimum translated into English, making it feel like a really inexpensive import at times. Aside from that, InuYasha: A Feudal Fairy Tale was so much better than it was ever supposed to be. A budget title on a dying system based on an anime that the fanbase would buy regardless would have been easy to phone in, but the developers decided to give the fans what they deserved, which was a high quality adaptation of a popular series. Plus, my wife and I bonded over this game! So as I type away wearing my cosplay dog ears, keep in mind that not all games can be judged by their cover. It might seem like the idea of a game like this is a fairy tale in itself, but luckily for gamers, this InuYasha game was the real deal.

I’ve always been a huge fan of Insomniac Games, developers of the Spyro, Ratchet and Clank, and of course, Resistance franchises. They always bing a level of charm and creativity to their projects that helped make what would otherwise be an unremarkable title into a memorable classic. Sadly, I always felt they lost that with the Resistance series. While this World War II era FPS did have some unique alien weapons, the focus was more on standard shooting mechanics, a dull protagonist and a barely there story. Resistance 2 improved this by adding secondary functions to the human weapons and having more of a focus on alien technology, but it still didn’t feel like it was the Insomniac I know and love. So I went into Resistance 3 with the reluctance of a soldier heading into a Chimera horde, not expecting much, but wanting to give the game a chance all the same.

Resistance 3 starts off with the humans in a desperate state. Since the last game, the invading Chimera enemies have all but won, with Earth mostly under their control while humans have taken shelter in small resistance groups. One of these men is Joe Capelli, one of the soldiers from the second game who is looking to live as normal of a life as possible with his wife and son in a post Chimera world. After their position is compromised based on a series of events, Joe decides to take up arms one last time against the Chimera forces and try to put a stop to their invasion once and for all, but without an army this time around, how much can one man really do?

Now after setting up that sense of optimism, it seems like there’s a lot that can be done, thanks to that Insomniac charm that I said the previous games were missing. First, Joe is a much more interesting protagonist than that testosterone oozing, personality-less meathead in Nathan Hale. Joe has a reason to fight and a reason to come home, helping players relate to him more. The graphics have been touched up and don’t look as cartoony either. I have nothing against cartoony, but I can’t take the desperation of war seriously when everyone looked like Stretch Armstrong. Even though it’s not explained in the story, Resistance 3’s weapons suddenly have the Ratchet and Clank trademark of leveling up the more they’re used, further advancing their already unique traits. Classic weapons like the Auger that can shoot through walls, the Bullseye which can help bullets home in on tagged enemies and the magnum with triggered explosives in the bullets gain attributes like bullet spread and fire damage.

But the real fun lies in the new weapons. My favorites are the Atomizer, an electric gun who’s secondary function creates a sphere with a gravitational pull, dragging all enemies nearby into it and frying them to death. Unleash it in a crowd and let the good times roll! My other new toy was a weapon that mutates enemies that are hit with its fire, turning them into a giant ball of green crap that was last seen in Troll 2. This turns them into living bombs that can be shot to infect nearby enemies. Yes, it sounds evil, but that’s what makes it so fun!

Oh My Gawwwwwwwd!

Another big change is the removal of regenerating health. I don’t know about the other Geekscapists out there, but I’m tired of games holding my hand and letting me take 50 bullets to the chest, just to be healed in 5 seconds behind cover. While it’s also not explained, certain enemies are suddenly carrying items that can be used to recover your health. These bottles of goop can also be found in the environment, giving you more reason to explore aside from the hidden documents that will snag you a few trophies.

Most importantly, nothing dulls a shooter like repetitive enemies and uninspired levels. Resistance 3 avoids this for the most part, with a story that takes Joe across the country. This gives him an excuse to explore different environments, locals and terrains without ever feeling forced. Enemies are surprisingly varied in this game compared to the previous ones, with giant bosses that are spaced out between Chimera foot soldiers, flying enemies, giant robots and even a set of enemies never before seen in the franchise towards the end. Oh, and what game would be complete nowadays without zombies?

Towards the second half of the game however, Resistance has shown you most of what its capable of. When you get all of the cool stuff and fight off most of the new enemies, it does take a dip in quality and starts hitting that dreaded repetitive feeling. The game isn’t that difficult either, which can be helped by raising the difficulty, but even then, it’s not hard to watch the credits roll within 6-8 hours. It gets to the point where if you’ve seen one Chimera, you’ve seen them all, and the game isn’t as fun until it gets a huge shot in the arm towards the end.

Lastly, what would a shooter be without multiplayer? Unlike Resistance 2, the co-op campaign in the third game is identical to the single player, except player 2 is barely acknowledged in the story and magically disappears during most cutscenes, but it’s fun to run through with a friend. Online multiplayer however, is where I have a huge bone to pick. First, the game needs an online pass to play online, a first with Sony first party titles, and will be continued in the future. There was no trial to make sure I would even like it, so why would I pay extra for something that might not even be fun, especially with the hit or miss reputation PSN has with online gaming? When I finally did get the chance to try it out elsewhere, it was nothing special and some of my games had significant lag. So tell me why I should pay extra if I to play online? The least you can do is make it work properly!

Overall, Resistance 3 is a huge improvement that makes the game finally feel like an Insomniac game rather than Insomniac trying to be something it is not. It blends the world created by the previous installments with interesting characters, the best weapons in the series and more realistic graphics to fit the tone of the story better. Leveling up weapons has an addictive quality to it, and while short, the game is paced well, making nothing that happens feel forced. The variety in enemies and weapons could have been spread out a little more, because I do feel they used up most of their good ideas about half way through, but having a small chunk of the game feeling dull is better than most of it feeling that way. The online multiplayer leaves something to be desired, and I’m frankly tired of being charged for online access when the online doesn’t even work properly, but it seems like the attitude is as long as a shooter has online, it’ll be praised regardless of its quality. Outside of these issues, Resistance 3 is a huge step in the right direction and I’m excited to see if Insomniac can infuse more of its personality into the inevitable next installment to make it stand out even more. War has never had so much potential.

Does anyone even remember that Bloodrayne exists? I swear, I thought this franchise had been massacred beyond repair. After a successful first game that hasn’t aged well, its legacy has been a string of awful sequels, and not one… not two… but THREE movies directed by Uwe Boll. Most games would have called it quits, (I know most gamers have when it comes to Bloodrayne,) but this vampire refuses to die. So when I heard there was a new game coming to PSN and Live Arcade, two things peaked my interest. First, I was surprised that it was going to be a 2D action platformer, and second, that it was being developed by WayForward, masters of reviving dead franchises (A Boy and his Blob, and Contra come to mind.) So for the first time in… well, ever, I was excited to pick up Bloodrayne Betrayal and see if WayForward can save the sultry vampire or if she would suck the life out of the developer.

As soon as the title screen loads up, you’re greeted with a beautiful visual of Rayne, the heroine of the story. That’s the first thing that you’ll notice; all of the animations from beginning to end are stunning and proves that you don’t need 3D models and high polygon counts to make a gorgeous game. Each animation, attack and gallon of blood splattered on the ground looks so stylish and slick. I mean seriously, just look at it!

But I’ve never been one to judge a game by how easy it is on the eyes. Fortunately, Bloodrayne plays as pleasingly as it looks. With a basic set of combos, each one can be linked and chained to manhandle multiple enemies at once. These foes do huge amounts of damage, but that’s not a problem for a badass blood sucker like Rayne. Grabbing stunned enemies and sucking their blood helps regain health, where as tapping the grab button will infect them instead, allowing you to detonate enemies while blowing up bad guys in the blast range. It becomes somewhat of a strategy, do you take out multiple enemies or do you play defensively and build up your health?

Bloodrayne isn’t all about the action though, because it has a fair share of platforming goodness that’s handled almost as well. Proper exploration through wall jumping, bouncing off of enemies and well timed air dashes reward players with extra points used for rankings and hidden skulls that can either raise your maximum health or give you more ammo for the potentially screen clearing pistol. It just is kind of bad that the castle you’re exploring is apparently made of ice, because Rayne seems to slide around at times, making it unintentionally hard to land tight jumps at times.

This flaw becomes more apparent later in the game, much like the other complaints I have. Around the 9th of 15 stages, enemies become brutally aggressive. I mean that’s usually no problem, I love a good fight. I just don’t love when my character has no recovery frames after getting knocked down and the enemy attacks are timed so they make contact at the moment you get up. Nothing is more rage inducing than getting banged around helplessly back and forth by two enemies, (don’t laugh!) It also got really annoying that as some of the stages get darker, it becomes really hard to see enemy attacks, platforms and obstacles. I know they’re going for the ever so popular silhouette effect, but at least let me see what I’m doing. I felt like I might as well have played with my TV off at times. And if you’re going to have word bubbles instead of voice acting, please don’t have the characters talk during a fight. Not only can’t I follow the story, but my need to read distracts me from the fight.

Despite these shortcomings late in the game, Bloodrayne Betrayal was, dare I say, a bloody good time? (Sorry.) Forget that Bloodrayne is in the title and look at this as a fantastic entry in a growing catalogue of fantastic 2D games released by WayForward, who are truly proving that they’re masters at their craft. By reinventing the franchise into an old school throwback of gaming greatness, gamers should be prepared for a challenging, rewarding experience with hidden goodies and top score leaderboards to keep you playing. So chalk this one up as a success, and while I can’t believe I’m saying this, I really hope to see more Bloodrayne! Just please, please no more movies! Thanks.

This week’s underground game is a perfect example as to why some publishers are afraid of taking a chance on a new IP. Take Nintendo for instance. I’ll never forget one of my first E3s, when I walked out of my first Nintendo conference only to hear most of my colleagues muttering, “they’re just releasing a bunch of Mario games” like it was a bad thing. But when I thought about it, I instantly thought of Chibi Robo and wondered if we could really blame them for leaning on the Mario and Zelda franchises. Chibi Robo had everything you would expect from a first party Nintendo game. While a little weak on the graphics side, it featured colorful environments, tons of charm, witty, yet adorable dialogue spoken in Animal Crossing-esque gibberish, a hilarious cast of characters and innovative, fun game play. I don’t know if it was because it was released at the end of the Gamecube’s life span or if it was simply because the lead character wasn’t wearing a bright red cap, but Chibi Robo was a fantastic game that too many people missed out on.

What could have been described as part housekeeper sim and part Toy Story, players took control of Chibi Robo, one of the newest, top of the line housekeeper robots that are all the rage. Your new owner, known only as “Dad”, spent every last dime on you despite the fact that he’s a lazy good for nothing who hasn’t had a job in months. His wife is getting fed up with his irresponsible behavior and isn’t the happiest to see you. That’s bound to change, since it’s every Chibi Robo’s job to spread happiness to its household. Your manufacturer ranks each robo based on how much happiness it spreads, and it’s your job to become the number one robo and bring peace to your new home.

The game cycles a day and night system, somewhat like Nintendo’s other newer IP: Pikmin. During the day, Chibi explores the house, looking for chores to perform, earning happy points in the process. The home is an open world, somewhat like games such as GTA. Unlike GTA, the only killing you’ll do is with kindness. Players had the choice to either approach family members and accept missions from them, or search for hidden areas that might hold power ups, upgrades or the occasional spot to clean on the floor.

When night time hits and the family falls asleep, all of the toys in the house come to life and need help from the tiny robo as well. Being the good robot he is, Chibi can tackle a whole new set of missions to spread happiness to the forgotten toys of the house, and some of these are ridiculous in concept. Setting up love connections, assembling an army of egg men… it’s all in a day’s work for Chibi Robo.

So what could make a game essentially about cleaning be so great? For one, the sense of progression rivals Metroid in its balancing. Chibi’s health is represented by his battery, so for every action he takes and every time he takes damage, his battery drains a little bit more (which you want to avoid since dying forces you to lose your happy points and the rest of that cycle in the day). You’ll have to stay close to a wall socket in the beginning, but once upgrades like larger batteries, the blaster and propeller are unlocked, Chibi can venture farther into the house, finding more mysteries to solve, more people to help and more mysteries to discover.

And I can’t talk about Chibi Robo without talking about the small charms that make it so fun to play. From the interactive music that plays with every unique action, to his awesome facial expressions. His sidekick, Telly Vision, is a tiny bug eyed squack box who talks a little too much, but it’s usually for the better. The game is pure craziness, with a silly sub plot about evil robots who are determined to stop the Chibi Robo’s from spreading happiness (who can be blown away for extra parts), a daughter that only speaks in frog, and downright marital distress. It’s easily one of Nintendo’s more ridiculous concepts, but it worked so well.

So throughout the course of a game about cleaning, you will hopefully save a marriage, destroy otherworldly robots, become a wingman for some toy on toy action and maybe even save a life or two. The game’s only low point was after Chibi gets into the top 10, much of the open world aspect is taken away and you’re forced to stick to a strict story path with little direction in the final stretch. Still, the path getting there is such a joy.

If Chibi’s job was to spread positivity through the world, it worked for everyone who gave the game a chance. A Walmart exclusive sequel titled Chibi Robo: Park Patrol was released on the Nintendo DS. A New Play Control version of Chibi Robo and a third, official sequel to the first game’s narrative was released for Japanese Wii’s, but after poor sales of two titles, the big N never brought these over to the States, which is a damn shame (I blame all of you). Nonetheless, Chibi’s legacy lives on, with many of his friends appearing as stickers and Chibi himself showing up as a trophy in Super Smash Bros. Brawl, the little guy isn’t completely forgotten in a stable full of legendary franchises. He may not be Mario or Link, but if you still have a Gamecube or Wii laying around and want to try something new, head over to your nearest bargain bin and give Chibi Robo a try. And no, he won’t dust your Wii off. You’ll have to do that yourself.

After what felt like an eternity of waiting, Bronies were finally treated to the season premiere of My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic. Now that the show has taken the adult male demographic with an iron hoof and continues to skyrocket in popularity, the bad part is this also means the second season has huge expectations to keep. At the start of the episode, I had no idea what to expect. Sure, I knew it would start much like season 1, with a plot centered more on conflict and the return of the power known as the Elements of Harmony, and I knew there were teaser videos all over the interwebz to get a quick fix, but I was anxious for so many reasons. Would new villian, Discord, be a worthy foil for the mane six? How would the Elements of Harmony come into play this time around? And how awesome will Pinky Pie be after such a long absence?

The episode opens with a class field trip featuring the Cutie Mark Crusaders, three recurring fillies who have yet to find their life’s purpose and earn cutie marks (the pony equivalent of a magical tramp stamp) on their flanks. After their usual bickering near a giant statue of some kind of dragon/pony/snake thing… (otherwise known as a Draconequus) the statue begins to crack thanks to the disharmony brought by the young chaos bringers. The statue ends up being Discord, a spirit of chaos that was sealed away centuries ago by Princess Celestia and her sister Luna, (before she became season 1’s Nightmare Moon). Now that he’s free, he’s brought chaos to all the land (including clouds made of cotton candy that are filled with chocolate milk rain) and it’s up to the six main Ponies who now represent the Elements of Harmony to put a stop to his antics and protect Equestria from this new threat… except the elements were already stolen by Discord, and the only way to get them back is to beat him at his own game.

I’ll admit, the beginning started off slow to me. I mean, I like cotton candy clouds and chocolate rain as much as the next guy, but I couldn’t help but wonder why Celestia couldn’t do more. I mean, she’s the princess after all. The ruler of all Equestria. Is she really so helpless that she not only lost the precious elements of harmony from right under her hooves, but has to send her student and her friends to clean up her mess? And does anyone else find it messed up that in season 1, Celestia’s sister was banished to the moon essentially because she was lonely, but Discord tries to bring chaos to Equestria and he gets displayed in the palace garden where he can easily be awakened. $5 says she’s in total control all along and is just trolling again.

Once the cast tries to track down the elements in Discord’s maze is where it really picked up. Each pony got separated and eventually manipulated into switching their personalities to become the opposite of what their element represents. It was hilarious seeing the normally trustworthy Apple Jack blatantly lie while following up with an awkward poker face ripped straight out of LA Noire, or the timid Fluttershy acting so bitchy. At the close of the episode, the formerly loyal Rainbow Dash abandoned her friends, causing the heroes to lose Discord’s game and leaving us on a huge cliff hanger for next week.

So after watching the premiere, I learned a few things. First, eternal chaos = chocolate rain guys. CHOCOLATE RAIN! Second, Fluttershy is completely helpless, and she’s ok with that. But most importantly, I learned the ponies haven’t lost a step and I can’t wait until this two parter concludes next week. Especially in the second half of the episode, The Return of Harmony Part 1 does a great job of showing why the Brony phenomenon is so strong. With a mix of great animation, simple, yet humorous writing, distinct characters and a strong happy go lucky quality, the episode continues the trend of episodes that are an absolute joy to watch.

It also helps that the writers aren’t afraid to throw a bone at their older audience every now and then. There’s no way that “chocolate rain” wasn’t intentional, but aside from that, how awesome was Discord? Voiced by John de Lancie, (or Q from Star Trek,) he seems to be perfect for the role of the mischievous trolling spirit that alters reality at the expense of the heroes. It’s probably because he already played that role as Q to begin with. So Trekkies, give the episode a shot and be prepared to be welcomed to the heard! I think Discord is a great new addition to the already colorful cast, (not to mention he has some sweet dance moves,) but I’m still going to pout until I see Luna again…

This episode gets two hooves up from me. If there was ever a time to see what all the fuss is about, I think this would be a good time for everypony to jump in. Now comes the hard part… waiting until next week! Until next time, brohoof!

It’s not often that the lackeys in video games get a chance at the spotlight. That rare chance came with Prinny: Can I Really Be the Hero? Imagine if Toad was ever able to get revenge for their years of abuse or the Pikmin didn’t need a goofy astronaut telling them what to do? Much like the Servbots that I talked about in my look back at The Misadventures of Tron Bonne, Prinnies are the often abused minions in the Disgaea series of strategy games. These adorable, (and at times crude,) penguin demons are used for slave labor when not being used as fodder on the battlefield. But as it turns out, they also make fantastic platforming stars.

Disgaea always was a niche title, so imagine what would happen when a spinoff game comes out late in the PSP’s lifespan when so many gamers had given up on the portable. It’s not like there was anything jumping out to make gamers take notice either, with little advertisement to the point where only the Disgaea faithful were aware of it. Those who gave it a chance were sure to have a blast, and I don’t just mean how the Prinnies explode when mishandled.

Taking place in The Neatherealm, Etna, the fan favorite demon lord controls the largest collection of the little servants known as the Prinny Squad. After a shocking revelation in her refrigerator, she sends 1000 of them for a very important task… to replace her Ultra Dessert! The game has a very old school platformer feel, complete with hair pulling difficulty, pits, instant deaths, fights that revolve around solving patterns and thumb blistering button mashing. Prinny doesn’t have much to fight with, he has a pair of knives that are stronger on the ground but can shoot projectiles from the air. They can also ground pound and double jump if that helps! Let’s just say you’ll be glad you have 1000 lives.

With such a limited set of moves, the game really forces you to make tactful decisions on how to tackle each situation. Ground pounding on foes stuns them, making them easier targets, but you can also just try jumping in head first. Especially if playing on Hard, where any damage is a one hit kill, it makes every move feel important. It’s the small things like these that really suck you in and addict you to the game. If that wasn’t enough, there are tons of hidden items, stages, achievements and ranks to discover. But the biggest part of the replayability is that if you can tackle the first six stages in any order. Depending on when each level is played, stage layouts, enemy positions and bosses can completely change, so you have to play through the game at least six times to see everything these demons offer.

And you’ll want to, believe me. Thanks to the top notch presentation, including the music, voice acting and animations, the game is a laugh out loud joy to play. It’s obvious that the localization team was well aware of their audience, (find the Prinnies named Prieza, Prigeta and Prikachu or the Star Wars references and tell me different,) and features such clever writing that you’ll want to hear every line of dialogue recorded on the UMD. So much so that when you’ve put nearly 100 hours finding everything in the story, it’s one of the few games that has a large amount of downloadable content for Sony’s portable. Just when you think it’s over, it pulls you back in!

The game was popular enough to spawn a sequel earlier this year, where the Prinnies are sent to find a missing pair of panties, (did I mention the game is Japanese?) Just watch these trailers and try not to smile at all of these crazy happenings. If you want more Prinny action, you can always check out Disgaea 4, which was released a few weeks ago, but until then, head to your local bargain bin and pick up this hidden gem. You’ll be glad you did, dood!

Mega Man may be all but dead at the moment, but that doesn’t mean he’s forgotten. Knowing that, it seems like a great idea to cash in on the nostalgia of the days when the Blue Bomber wasn’t apparently hated by the company that releases his games, which is good for Capcom, because download services like the Virtual Console were pretty much made for cashing in on nostalgia. Enter Mega Man: Dr. Wily’s Revenge, the first game in the franchise for the Game Boy. Taking a look back in the past can remind you why your childhood was so awesome, but it can also make you scratch your head and wonder how you ever liked such crap. In case you were wondering, Mega Man falls under the former.

Using a similar structure to the console games, this portable version features four robot masters to choose from, all of which are from the first game in the series. While the bosses might be the same, the levels are brand new, and while they feature some of the same obstacles and traps as the console counterpart, the majority of the content is original to this game. After the first four stages are cleared, Wily appears with his gauntlet of final stages, which put you up against 4 Mega Man 2 bosses, a brand new boss dubbed the “Mega Man Killer,” and finally Wily himself.

Keep in mind that this is before Mega was upgraded with what would become his trademark buster, so at the start, all he has to shoot with is his measly little pea shooter. As bosses are defeated, their abilities are gained and can be used to make later bosses and stages easier, with the familiar rock, paper, Cutman format the series is known for. And trust me when I say you’ll need all of the extra weaponry, because the game throws anything and everything it can at you to make sure you run out of your three measly lives. Each of the well-designed levels uses every trick in the book, including bottomless pits, instant kill spikes, slippery floors, disappearing platforms, powerful enemies… It wouldn’t be a Mega Man title if controllers didn’t get thrown (or in this case, your 3DS). Thankfully, the game uses a password system so the stages you’ve beaten stay beaten.

As tricky as the game can be sometimes, if you’ve played a Mega Man game before, you pretty much know how to get around most of the traps. Following enemy patterns becomes second nature quickly and it’ll take about three to four hours to finish an unfamiliar first run. People who are new to Mega Man will probably take longer, but while it can be difficult at times, it’s nowhere near unbeatable.

So if I were to sum up my feelings on Dr. Wily’s Revenge, I would say that it serves as a greatest hits collection for the early days of the series. The game pits you against challenging stages, challenging enemies and challenging bosses that are oh so rewarding to finally finish. It’s a bit on the short side and it’s missing some of the abilities that would later become trademarks of the series, but hey, the game is 20 years old. I would say it aged pretty damn well. Plus, at $4, it’s not like it’s breaking the bank. So if you want an old school challenge while showing your support for a dying icon, give this Game Boy classic a download. Revenge has never been so sweet.

Nearly 15 years ago, Star Fox 64 introduced us to some of the greatest memories in gaming. Whether it was the first time we were told to do a barrel roll, experiencing rumble through our controllers or exploring the lush worlds of the Lylat System, ask anyone who played it and they’re sure to have tons of fond memories of the classic rail shooter. But that was a long time ago and frankly, Fox and company haven’t done so well since then. After a string of disappointments, the team is returning to basic training in Star Fox 64 3D for the 3DS. After so long away from the cockpit, does the team still have what it takes to be the best in the galaxy or have their best days passed them by?

Tasked with saving the galaxy from an evil empire lead by the mad scientist, Andross, players take control of Fox McCloud. Fox is the leader of a group of mercenary fighter pilots that are AI controlled, each with their own strengths and weaknesses. Peppy is the veteran of the group who reveals boss weaknesses and seems to be an all around flyer. Slippy is the tech expert that displays boss health and builds most of your vehicles, but constantly needs to be rescued on the field. Lastly is Falco, a wisecracking rival to Fox who is nearly as capable in combat. Failing to protect your teammates in battle will result in losing their aid for two levels and the possibility of ranking at the end of a stage, so it’s important to keep an eye on them, no matter how much of a pain in the ass it can be.

But this is easier said than done, because some of the levels can get challenging when trying to keep everyone in one piece. The game has two types of sections, a standard section where you follow a set track in either your primary fighter plane, the Arwing, the Landmaster Tank for ground missions and the Blue Marine for underwater fights. Each vehicle offers a different feel that makes each one stand out, so it’s not just a rehash of flight levels underwater or on the ground. The second type are all range mode battles which are only in the air. These let you fight multiple enemies in a 3D arena, forcing you to take advantage of all of the fancy flight moves like summer-saulting and U-turns to keep track of enemies and dodge incoming attacks. And you want to make sure you’re at your best, because exploring stages and maximizing your kills unlocks multiple paths and medals that count towards 100% completion. While a straight run might not take long, the true replayability in this classic is being able to experiment with the stage to find all of the hidden paths.

Part of what made Star Fox 64 so memorable was the overall presentation, with revolutionary graphics, voice acting and level design at the time. Thanks to the extra power of the 3DS, the visuals have been remastered, looking gorgeous in 3D. The incredible music for the original has also been touched up to enhance the overall epic feel of the firefights that take place. I admit that I was concerned when I learned the voice acting would be redubbed, worried that Star Fox would pull a Star Wars and rape my childhood memories. That worry turned out to be unfounded because while a small handful of lines are slightly altered, everything is pretty much how I remember it and whoever directed the new dub took great care to make sure the actors sounded as close to the original as possible when appropriate and improved where the original lacked, (so say goodbye to Fox’s awkward screams!).

So far, it might seem that as good as the game is, it’s pretty much the same game it was all those years ago. Honestly, that is mostly the case, but there are a few features that keep it fresh. First is the gyroscopic controls, which let you steer your 3DS to move your vehicles. Once getting used to it, it works really well, but I have to ask what Nintendo was thinking when they mapped the re-calibration button to the same button as the brakes. There’s nothing like losing to Star Wolf because when trying to slow down, your plane went out of control and nosedived into the dirt. There’s a 3D mode that is said to make gyro controls easier, or an N64 mode that recreates the original, but honestly, I couldn’t tell the difference.

Next is the score attack mode that lets you challenge high scores and replay any level you’ve completed in the campaign at any time. My only gripe is that your campaign high scores don’t count even though the levels are identical. Talk about forced replayability.

Third is a retooled multiplayer. The option to play with Landmasters or on foot has been removed and is strictly played in the air now, but the levels have all been remade to take full advantage of flight combat. Some Mario Kart elements were added such as item boxes and power ups to give players an advantage over their foes. The biggest touted aspect of the new multiplayer is the option to record your face through the 3DS camera to show opponents your reactions, but this feature is completely pointless and I’ll tell you why. First, it’s really jumpy, so it looks like you’re watching a freakin flip book instead of real time video. Second, the game is not online. I repeat: NOT ONLINE! Why do I need to see my opponent’s faces? They’re sitting right next to me! I’m far from being on the bandwagon that thinks everything needs online all the time, but if you’re going to have video recording, online should be a given. Bad move Nintendo.

So for a gamer like me who played Star Fox 64 to death years ago, is it worth dropping $40 to play it again? The game is still incredibly fun and holds up with the best of them today, so fun factor isn’t the issue. It’s whether or not you enjoy it enough to want to run through it again. The gyroscopic controls breathe new life into it, but as always with the 3DS, moving the system screws with the 3D effect so you’ll have to choose one or the other. Multiplayer is the biggest reason to buy it though, and whether or not it gets a full recommendation is whether or not you have friends with 3DS systems to play it with, (but not everyone needs the game because oddly enough, it ONLY supports single card play). The lack of online makes no sense, especially considering that the previous Star Fox game was online, but if you’ve never played this classic before, there’s absolutely no reason not to pick it up. With tons of hidden stages, two different endings and top notch presentation, Star Fox 64 3D still flies with the best of them, so jump into the Arwing and do a barrel roll one more time.

Nintendo fans are still scratching their heads as to why the Wii never got a full fledged Pikmin sequel. With as great as the Wii remake of the first game worked (using the word “remake” loosely), Nintendo would have had to be insane to abandon Pikmin 3 for Wii (so… they’re insane). While we were all looking out for the eventual announcement that never came, the closest thing that Wii owners would get actually slipped right under their noses. That title is the underground game Little King’s Story.

Little King’s Story came out in the fall of 2009 and was met with a resounding yawn by the gamers who were clamoring for something to play on the Wii. Why that is I will never know. Maybe it looked too cutesy for the supposed “hardcore” gamer? Regardless, when I booted up the disc and was met with a magical storybook like world where finding a crown means everyone suddenly worships you, I wanted to see how far I could push this thing.

Published by Marvelous Entertainment and developed by Hotel Dusk developer Cing (two names you’re sure to hear many more times in these weekly installments), the game was such a unique blend of genres. The core of the game had the young King Corobo and his followers venturing off to topple evil kingdoms and using their territory to expand the small village that the game starts in. The villagers all have different jobs that come into play during your travels, so farmers are great at digging up items but suck at fighting, where as soldiers are great at kicking ass but are pretty useless outside of battles. 

Just like Pikmin, the king can attack directly, but his strength is pathetic on its own. So what does one in power do? Throw his pawns into battle! And the cast you come up against is kind of weird… from evil demons (you assume they are evil… I mean, you don’t really talk to them- you just kick the crap out of them on sight) to rabid cows whose heads fly off when they charge into a fence. Yes, this game is very Japanese. The main difference between this and Pikmin is that due to the variety of jobs the villagers can learn, the combat variety and the different strategies that come into play are much more varied.

And when I say jobs, the game makes it feel like these are really their jobs. When not out adventuring, the king travels around the village and can interact with each villager as they go about their day, following their own little schedule thanks to an in game clock. Each villager has their own life when you’re not brainwashing them into fighting dragons or whatever crazy crap you can’t be bothered to do on your own. Which makes it all the more depressing when your poor leadership gets them killed, because when they die… they’re dead. Villagers will mourn, sporadically burst into tears and make you feel like the awful person you are. At the very least, you can take the time out of your day to show up to their in-game funeral. Jerk.

It’s this immersion into the world that really makes the game feel like more than a knockoff. Managing and expanding your village rewards the same sense of accomplishment as winning a difficult battle. Being able to interact with your subjects makes your troops feel like more than nameless, faceless drones. Then there’s the leveling up of each villager in the training rooms, recruiting new people to your cause, amassing a giant army of invincible farmers… It’s no surprise that there’s so much focus on the village aspect considering some of the kind folks that worked on Harvest Moon had a hand in this quirky adventure.

It’s not everyday that you get the chance to play as a child who bosses adults around with his magical pimp cane, which is more the reason that it’s such a crime that more people didn’t check out Little King’s Story. Its genre blurring game play combined with its familiar combat takes a game that at first glance looks like a Pikmin knock-off and ends up surpassing it in many ways. Luckily for the five people who played this, a rumored sequel is said to be coming for the Vita. The bad news is that it’s on the Vita. If your Wii has been collecting dust these last few months, do yourself a favor and pick up a copy of Little King’s Story. Your king demands it!

The Misadventures of Tron Bonne was an example of Capcom deciding to follow the amazingly popular formula of guaranteeing that no one will ever hear of your amazing game (Zack and Wiki anyone?). First: Create an even more obscure spinoff of an obscure spinoff. Then: Place the comic relief villain from said game into the main character role. Now: Only produce a handful of copies. But don’t forget the box art… oh god, the box art.

Still, in my high school years, I had my fingers on the pulse of everything and anything Mega Man. I remember wishing that I had a buster on my arm and I often dreamed of growing long blond hair and green robot boobs. When I heard that a Mega Man Legends title was coming out that put me in control of Tron Bonne, the resident genius of the Bonne family of air pirates, I jumped at the chance at finally being bad in the Mega universe. But as it turned out, the only thing criminal about the game was that so few people got to play it.

I remember the game sucking me in quick. It started off similar to Legends, as a 3D action game where you run and gun past enemies to collect as much money as possible. Soon after the opening tutorial, Tron’s brothers are confronted by creditors who funded their signature robots. Rather than constantly bothering them in the middle of dinner with harassing phone calls, they take a more direct approach and outright kidnap them. It’s then up to Tron to collect money by any means necessary to pay off their debts and rescue her family.

Now, this was long before every game on the market let you be bad, so this felt truly special, and even a little wrong while you’re raping and pillaging cities. You could rob citizens, break into houses, blow up children who are protecting their belongings… You know, the usual. What kept it all lighthearted were the Servbots, 50 child like bots who do most of the dirty work for Tron, not to mention they look as adorable as possible while ridding a town of all it holds sacred.

Violence is never the answer though, or at least not all the time. This was the true strength of the game. If I didn’t feel like blasting foos, there were puzzle stages that I could make money off of. If I suck at puzzles, (which I usually do,) I could explore caves in an RPG type stage that rewards me for exploration. I could even search for more hidden stages! The game was so non-linear that as long as you raise enough cash, you could reach the end of the game without having to play the stages you suck at. So obviously, I used that as an excuse to play again while taking different paths. There was even a strategy element where Servbots could be sent to scout the map for items between missions, and micromanaging their performance through hard labor or torture mini-games. Yup… I said torture mini games. I’m pretty sure this is the only game that features robbery, burglary and torture that manages to stay cute and charming.

And charming is exactly why this game remains so fond in my heart. Finding items let you customize your Gustaff mech to make it your own, the majority of the game was voice acted superbly and brought so much humor to the game, and you can’t help but let out an “Awwwwww!” at the adorable Servbots. In fact, it was so charming that it pretty much set me up with who would later become my wife, considering she was one of the 5 people on the planet who owned a copy. Thanks, Tron Bonne!

While the game mostly went unnoticed, someone at Capcom must still have some love for the pirate family. Numerous icons featuring the characters can be purchased as Playstation Store avatar icons. Servbots make cameos in many of Capcom’s other games, from Dead Rising to Tatsunoko vs Capcom, and were even a playable joke character in Marvel vs Capcom 2. But Tron was still firmly in the spotlight, making her fighting game debut in Marvel vs Capcom 2 as well, with a modified Gustaff and nearly an entire moveset inspired by her abilities in Misadventures. She has most recently appeared in Marvel vs Capcom 3, who even got the distinction of having her own stage with her brothers observing the battle in the background. Ironically, she got into the game while Mega Man himself had yet to appear, but that’s a conversation for another day.

So what makes The Misadventures of Tron Bonne so memorable? Is it the amazing presentation? No, it has to be the non-linier progression and variety of game play mechanics. Or maybe it’s the metallic jock strap. Yep, gotta be the jock strap.

But when I’m not focused on proper groin protection for my favorite game characters, I’m focused on a solid, memorable gaming experience, which Tron Bonne brought in full force. If you’ve got a spare $150 laying around and a functioning PS1, eBay is the perfect place to dig up this gem. If that money has to go to trivial spending like food and rent, look for Tron in Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom 3 this holiday season to see what the pirate is made of. Hopefully, Capcom comes to its senses and re-releases this cult classic on the Playstation Network soon. Hell, Jonathan prayed every night for 15 years for Gargoyle’s Quest (another buried Capcom classic) to return and he ended up getting his wish two weeks ago.

Known for publishing very Japanese video games in the United States, some might not know that NIS America recently got into the anime business. After a year of growing pains, NIS hosted their anime panel in ways that you wouldn’t expect from corporate PR; humble, upfront and honest. So what goes into bringing an anime to America from NIS?

1. It has to be silly.

There are enough serious, violent anime series out there. In order to stand out, the series they bring over have to be fun, weird and over the top! To convey that spirit, the head of the localization team and one of the heads of the division came out dressed up as a star and a kappa. Now come on, who wouldn’t trust a man in green?

2. It has to be story driven.

Most of the mainstream anime use story as a background device to give an excuse for the action, but not if it’s coming over from NIS. Each of its properties must have story as the driving force to keep viewers on the edge of their seats until the next release comes out.

3. Japanese popularity isn’t a factor.

It seems like not taking popularity from its home land into account might be a mistake, but the panel put it pretty well. What’s popular and appealing to Japanese audiences won’t always be received as well worldwide. So they look at each property individually and choose the ones that they think will make them the most money overseas. Yes, they said that. An executive being upfront and honest? Who would have thought!

4. No dubbing.

No, it’s not because they have any kind of problem with localizing the product or because they’re afraid of dubbed voices ruining the “sacred” original version. It’s because it costs a lot to dub and they want to maximize profits, plain and simple. Wow, more honesty. Thanks for being upfront, but that sucks for the dubbing community.

5. No fanservice.

Oh, fanservice, the one part of anime that makes me embarassed to be an anime fan. NIS America doesn’t want anything distracting or unnecessary taking away from the stories they bring over, so they try to avoid anime with a large amount of panty shots and giant, jiggly boobs. It’s ok though, we were assured that the men on the panel in fact, love boobs.

No boob sniping at NIS.

At the close of the panel, we were treated to teaser trailers for two new properties coming in the near future. Enjoy!

Kimi Ni Todoke:

Dororon Enma-Kun Meeramera:

For more information on NIS America, visit www.nisamerica.com

There are some anime series that become so big, the small screen can’t contain them anymore. It was only a few short years ago that you couldn’t be anywhere near anime without hearing about Haruhi Suzumiya and her S.O.S. brigade. The fandom surrounding this eccentric girl and her war against everything boring eventually became known as Haruhi-Ism, and became a true anime phenomenon. All was well as long as Ms Suzumiya wasn’t bored, which could literally cause the universe to implode, which is ironic because although a movie was inevitable, I was surprised when the movie was dare I say… boring?

The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya starts off fine enough. It’s near Christmas time and Haruhi is already planning all kinds of crazy things for the S.O.S. Brigade. As usual, the club members have no objections except Kyon, the only normal guy in the group and the usual straight man compared to Haruhi’s craziness. After all, the other members, consisting of Mikuru, Yuki and Koizumi, are just there to observe. The time traveller, alien and esper respectively, were sent by their various factions to make sure Haruhi never gets bored, while leaving her completely unaware of what they really are.

Then one morning, Kyon gets to school where the unthinkable happens, Haruhi is gone. Kyon is the only one with memories of her, the club or their adventures, and its as if it was all one bad dream. Yuki and Mikuru are regular students, Koizumi is nowhere on campus and none of the other classmates know who Haruhi is. As Kyon struggles with they mystery of why everything has suddenly changed and is forced to find a way to fix it, but after all of the complaining and annoyance towards the group, is he really better off in a world without Haruhi?

First off, I want to say that I was so happy that this was an original film. Too many films based on series as of late are just recaps of the series with Dorritos and Coca-Cola products added in, (*cough* Evangelion.) With that said, this movie is very unfriendly to first time viewers, so watching the two seasons of the series are practically a must if you want to understand what’s going on. Part of the fun of the movie is watching Kyon react to this new world and finding all of the changes, so the viewers who have invested so much time into the show will be intrigued as to why this is happening.  With this being one of the first English screenings, the veteran voice actors like Crispen Freeman, Michelle Ruff and Wendee Lee bring the material to life and add real weight to it, (especially Freeman’s performance as Kyon.) But it’s not long before Haruhi’s presence is sorely missed, and I couldn’t help but think that her disappearance was one of the worst things that could happen to the series.

As much as I like Kyon, he’s only entertaining when playing the foil to Haruhi’s eccentricities. A whole movie with Kyon thinking to himself in a panic didn’t hold my interest for long. I know, at first he goes into a fit of panic and goes ballistic on some of his classmates, which was a surprising turn for the character, but these outbursts don’t last long. In fact, they usually lead to unnecessary monologues to himself and long pauses where literally nothing happens. The centerpiece of the film drags on so much that even a series fan like myself just wanted Kyon to shut up and find her already. And there’s so many false finishes or moments when you think the film is reaching a turning point, only to come to a halt again… I felt like the audience was being trolled hard. The only positive of the lack of Haruhi was way more screen time for Yuki, who is a big part of the film and my personal favorite. By the time the film finally nears its conclusion, the narrative picks up in a big way, and without spoiling anything, it’s jump out of your seat shocking, especially when you’re eyes are half closed for the time leading up to it.

So as it turns out, Haruhi disappearing wasn’t the best idea for the film. It’s like Pokemon without Pikachu. It’s like Dragon Ball Z without Goku. And as weird as it is to say, it’s like Evangelion without Shinji’s constant whining. At about 2 hours and 40 minutes, what really should of disappeared was an hour of the unnecessary stalling. The beginning is the S.O.S. Brigade that everyone knows and loves and the last half hour is edge of your seat exciting, but most of the time in between is the slowest of slow grinds that barely keeps you interested only because you want to know what its all leading to. Only the most dedicated Haruhi-Ists will find the movie worth seeing until the end when it’s released on DVD this fall. It’s just too bad that the girl who hates boredom passed so much onto her fans.

So E3 has come and gone. It’s an important time for gamers. All of the new titles, announcements and most importantly… the time where Sega finally sets us free of all of those pesky microbes. Which means we’re free to talk to you all about the rest of the awesome titles they had on display. So myself and Adam are back to go over Sega’s exciting lineup for this year’s event. And if you happened to miss the first part, (and why would you have?) you can get caught up with a click of the mouse. *click*

House of the Dead Overkill Extended Cut:

Now this one was a surprise.

House of the Dead Overkill was an excellent, (yet ignored,) rail shooter for the Wii, and it looks like Sega is trying to give it second life on the PS3 thanks to the Move. Frame rates and animations were much smoother, so that’s a plus. The game also supports 3D and will have updated dialogue and includes two extra levels for the foul mouthed agents to plow through. 

Or at least I think they’re still foul mouthed. I’m not sure if it was just for demo purposes, but all of the cursing was censored. Usually I wouldn’t care, but the crudeness was part of its charm, (it didn’t get into the Guinness Book of World Records for the most swears in a video game for nothing.) If I’m going to be blasting through hordes of zomb… I mean mutants, I want it to be down and dirty damn it! Also, the brief opening seems to be changing the story a little bit.

I’m not fully sold on whether or not it’s worth spending $100 for two new motion controls to play it again, but I’m excited about giving G and Washington a second run. What did you think, Adam?

Well what can I say Josh? It’s House of the Dead: Overkill, only prettier, more expensive, and already out. The original version is easily the funniest damn game on the Wii and I’m sure you could find it for very cheap at this point. So the appeal of this game seems . . . limited at best.

If for some reason you know no one with a Wii and a good sense of humor, don’t own a Wii yourself, are a Sony fanboy, loved Zombieland and Planet Terror, already have the Move and still enjoy a good light gun game, then this is the game for you.

It’s just I’m betting the number of people who meet those requirements numbers in the (gasp) . . . dozens!

Captain America: Super Soldier:

When there’s a movie, there’s usually a game to follow it. Especially a super hero film. Captain America: Super Soldier had two vastly different games, one for PS3/360 and one for Wii. Let’s start with the HD version…

It seems like like the developers of Captain America were fans of Arkham Asylum. The demo had cap trying to disarm a weapon in an enemy base full of hostiles. Enemies glowed before they attack, Cap could switch between attacks, counters and dodging, you know… Arkham Asylum. What made Cap stand out a little more was his power up gauge that increased after defeating enemies to gain special abilities and Prince of Persia type platforming. Exploration was barely in the demo I played, so it’s hard to say if it will be an important part of the final release. And using the trademark shield was almost nonexistent other than blocking and very basic throwing techniques.

The Wii version is the complete opposite. The stage had large areas to explore and plenty of secrets to find. The visuals were more colorful and cartoony than the HD counterpart, and the shield could be thrown in any direction by pointing the cursor at your target. Using the shield was more important outside of combat, using it to reflect bullets to hit switches. Combat was like a dumbed down version of the HD game, but thankfully, the demo had a lot more to do than just fight.

But with everything going for it, the platforming was very rigid, only allowing you to jump at certain points. It had plenty of side quests and collectables, even in the demo, but I could see it getting repetitive. Or maybe I’m just being an ass about it. I don’t know Adam. Am I?

Yes Josh, you certainly are, because I for one loved the Wii version. Of course I can definitely stand repetition. Repetition. Repetition. Repet- oh? Sorry, conveniently timed logic error. Anyway, I thought the Wii version’s added emphasis on level exploration greatly helped its cause, and at least the vibrant cartoony graphics made the loose running make sense, unlike the 360/PS3 version, where it felt like Cap had greased the soles of his shoes.

Also, I don’t know if you forgot (we do have chips in our heads), but the exploration in next-gen Cap was horribly simplified. Sure, it was like Prince of Persia, if you’re watching the Jake Gyllenhal disaster. Moving from location to location was nothing more than a glorified dragons lair cutscene filled with wall running and absolutely no emphasis on letting the player control their path.

However, the combat on the next-gen version did seem completely awesome. In a few ways, it actually seemed better than Arkham Asylum, mostly in the sheer speed of it. Also, talking to the producers, it’s obvious a lot of love was put into the game, since a ton of comic book references (including a certain Baron) were scattered about. Sure, it may be mostly ripping off another game, but at least they’re ripping off an excellent game. 

Rise of Nightmares:

Well… this is saddening. Rise of Nightmares scared me so much that I had to stay away. Either that or waving my arms around in a room full of strangers in front of the Kinect. Either way, I didn’t check it out. But Adam is much braver than I am. What did you think?

Yeah, on this score, you actually turned out to be quite lucky there Josh. Rise of Nightmares is a noble attempt at some neat ways to use the Kinect, but man oh man; it’s also a horrifying disaster. 

First off, the graphics look like they belong in House of the Dead. Not, the PS3 Overkill remake mind you, but the House of the Dead 3 arcade cabinet. What I’m trying to emphasize here is that game looks VERY outdated. Especially in the few animations you have of your arms. 

You see, Rise of Nightmares is a First-person Survival Horror game, where you use the Kinect to reach into the environment and grab items, pull levers and attack enemies. This aspect of the game works like a charm, and all of these actions are fluid and smooth (though combat consists of a lot of flailing). If the entirety of the game were just these aspects, it would be a fun little endeavor. 

Except it’s not. You also have to move around the environment, and you accomplish this by playing the world’s slowest, most Special-Ed version of “Hokey Pokey”. Seriously, you “put your right foot in” to move forward, you “put your right foot out” to move backwards. To change the way your character is facing, you have to make highly exaggerated shoulder twists . . . kind of like “shaking it all about”. 

Here’s the thing. Hokey Pokey has its place – it’s a fun little dance for kindergartners. It makes abso-frigging-lutely no sense that it is the basis for the movement scheme in a SURVIVAL HORROR game. Due to the molasses in January pace of the movements it somehow makes you look more ludicrous than any other Kinect game, so good luck trying to show off the game to a friend and not getting embarrassed. 

But at least Sega is trying here. Rise of Nightmares make look like it came out 6 years ago and feature one of the most unintuitive and silly control schemes around, but it’s a very neat attempt at a new way to use the Kinect hardware. It doesn’t succeed as well as it should, but A for effort guys!

Shinobi 3D:

Shinobi 3D was the biggest surprise of the event. I mean… had anyone even heard of a new Shinobi game in the last half decade?

Like a real ninja, Shinobi has a habit of disappearing. After a long absence, he returned on the PS2 in 3D only to go back into hiding after those games were… let’s just say they weren’t what we expected. Shinobi 3D looks to go back to basics with 2D action platforming and a story told through stylized 2D still frames. And trust me, the game is still tough as nails, (seeing as I died before I reached the end. *ahem*)

But Shinobi has new powers to fight off his foes, namely touch screen magic spells and the ability to parry attacks. It seems like Sega is focusing equally on both platforming and fighting as well, considering that there were plenty of challenging gaps and traps to avoid… these are what mostly killed me. Please don’t tell me this was the first level! *gulp*

Streetpass support was promised to be something special, but it couldn’t be elaborated on at this time. Hopefully passing each person will help me play better somehow. Anyway, enough of my self pity. Any impressions Adam?

There was a Shinobi game? Huh. I must have missed it. 

Actually that makes sense – he IS a ninja.

Renegade Ops:

Ah, this game brought back memories. Renegade Ops is a top down vehicle shooter coming to Xbox Live Arcade and the PSN. Remember the glory days of games like Soviet Strike? Where your tiny vehicle shot and plowed through buildings and enemies twice its size? Ops felt like welcoming back an old, violent friend.

Driving through the map full of enemies, there were constant missions popping up asking me to go to different places. Trying to plan out where to go first and prioritizing my missions gave it a dynamic feel, making me think on my toes. But when all is in doubt, just blow it up! Using the right stick to shoot and the left to drive made it easy to pick up and play, and different weapons, enemy types and goals kept me entertained. I felt it was one of the better games on display and I can’t help to play it. I just hope I’m not the only one who thought so.

Oh totally not Josh. I absolutely dug the hell out of this game! The concept is simple stupid fun that anyone from the nineties would recognize, but on GINORMOUS maps. Seriously, the levels are huge!

But that makes sense seeing as this one’s from Avalanche Studios, the developers that brought us one of the world’s largest (and most blow upable) free-roam maps in Just Cause 2. They live up the reputation they’ve set for themselves and know exactly what they want to bring you with Renegade Ops – pure 80’s style action and destruction! I wasn’t expecting it, but this one turned out to be my favorite game at Sega’s little shindig, and if anyone out there feels the need to blow stuff up when this sucker hits the downloadable scene. Or to put is simply: I highly recommend it.

Sega’s line up isn’t too shabby. There were plenty of surprises and solid games to get me on board, although some I’m still wondering about. You’ve heard what we think, but what about the rest of the Geekscapists out there? What are you looking forward to most from Sega’s line up? Either way… here’s another year of hoping for Shenmue 3.

Konami’s E3 Lineup

Konami launched its first annual pre E3 event. Developers have to come out with guns blazing this time of year, but while there was plenty of that, they snuck in a few surprises as well. Namely Metal Gear Collection, an HD remastering of MGS 2, 3 and Peace Walker. And finally, after years of waiting… a new Zone of the Enders! Oh wait, this is a collection too? Oh well, it’s better than nothing. Well surely Silent Hill has a new title. Downpour looks gorgeous, but alongside it is… Silent Hill Collection? I think I’m sensing a trend.

Obviously, collections aren’t all that were announced. Details on Metal Gear 3DS were unveiled, most importantly, the ability to make custom camouflage by taking pictures of the environment. As in IRL environment. Updates to the Pro Evolution Soccer series promises more focus on the off the ball characters, better defense and improved 1 on 1. Silent Hill Book of Memories was briefly mentioned for NGP and a new IP, Never Dead, will hit current consoles later this year. Having the ability to control an immortal character who can use dismemberment to his advantage sounds awesome, but please stop saying this is the first time an immortal character can be manipulated for gameplay. Games like Wario Land and Sphinx and the Cursed Mummy might take issue with that.

But the biggest announcement was Hideo Kojima’s newest advancement, the Transfarring system. Yeah, Transfarring…

Debuting with the PS3 version of the Metal Gear Collection, players will be able to go to their Peace Walker save and move it to the PSP. ZOE is supposed to feature this as well, but not in what capacity. The most interesting part of the announcement is that Kojima said he wants to take it “globally,” within the next few years. In the context he said it in, it sounds like he wants it to be multiplatform… but how would that work if Xbox doesn’t have a handheld? Will they get one? Will Kojima integrate it into the Apple products he seems to love so much? The plot thickens…

But why listen to my ramblings when you can watch it yourself? Speaking of which, I recognize that logo at the very end. Wonder what that means.

Sadly, none of these games were at the event, but they did feature some of their upcoming downloadable games at the event. Below are what to you’ll be dropping your digital points on in the near future:

Puddle:

Have you played Locoroco or Fluidity? Well then, you’ve pretty much played Puddle. The title puts you in control of a… well… puddle, that you have to guide to the goal at the end of each stage. Realistic physics makes it so solving puzzles forces you to keep the water together and keep it from evaporating. Look for it on Xbox and PS3, (with Move and SixAxis support, remember that thing?) later this year.

Skull Girls:

Anime lolita fanboys should take notice. Along the same lines of Marvel vs Capcom 2 and 3, Skull Girls puts you in control of three fighters that can tag in and out at any point during the fight. And the fights can get kind of weird… just check out that girl with the arms on her head. While it’s much slower paced than what I’m used to in a tag fighter, it seemed to have a strong combo system. Did I mention that the comic book art style is gorgous? We’ll have to see where this one goes with more time poured into it.

Burger Time World Tour:

I was genuinely surprised to see this old friend in the house. Burger Time was an 80’s arcade game where a chef avoided evil food and dropped giant hamburger toppings on them until the burger was complete. This new version takes the 2D gameplay to a 3D realm, with new powers, areas, abilities and ways to score while trying to stack those delicious heart attacks.

Jimmie Johnson’s Anything with an Engine:

Like Mario Kart meets Nascar if Jimmie Johnson was the only real driver and everyone else rode on couches and lawnmowers. Anything with an Engine is a straightforward kart racing game with everything you would expect. Weapons? Check. Over the top characters, (with a redneck stereotype slant?) Check. Short cuts that open up to last place racers? Well… that’s new. A nice change from the blue shell at least. Promising more than just racing, maybe it has more to offer than it first seems?

Red Bull X-Fighters:

Contrary to what the title says, the game has nothing that fights in it. Instead, the game is a straightforward stunt bike game where you pull off as many tricks and score as many points as possible before you reach the end of the track, (or the time limit.) Kind of reminds me of those Dorrito games that come out every year or so.

MLB Bobblehead Pros:

Probably the creepiest thing I’ve seen in a while. It’s baseball, but with bobblehead players that eerily wiggle with the slightest bit of movement. *shudders* I seemed to drop the ball a lot in the outfield, but the iffy controls got better when batting or pitching by trying to psyche out your opponent with quick cursor movements. Will it replace the big MLB games? Probably not, but it’s sure to appeal to the families out there.

Look for more information on Never Dead, Silent Hill and the surprising lack of Metal Gear Rising as it crops up during E3. Until then Geekscapists!

Dead or Alive has notoriously been used as a showcase. Not for the scantily clad women and shirtless men, but for new hardware when it hits the market. Just think about it, Xbox launch… check! 360 launch… check! And each time, they push the console further than any other game at release. But with a very public split from Tomonobu Itagaki, the man behind the games and the development team, I was worried that the series would lose its magic if it were to return. With that in mind, I anxiously picked up Dead or Alive: Dimensions for the 3DS and prayed on my Ayane bikini statue that there would be nothing to worry about.

If you never got a chance, (or were too embarassed,) to play DOA before, here’s the deal. In this 3D hand to hand fighter, each character has a set of high, middle and low attacks. Combos and throws are easy to pull off, (which is aided by the touch screen displaying and even activating full combos.) It’s pretty easy to pick up and play, but the ability to counter is what makes the game. If a button masher keeps head-butting the same buttons or an opponent uses the same combos repeatedly, a high, medium or low counter can launch a powerful attack to back them off of you. Add in the interactive stages that characters can use as a weapon adds to the fast paced, dynamic battles.

Rather than being a straight up sequel, Dimensions is more of a compilation of DOA 1 through 4. All but one character from DOA 4 has returned in addition to about half a dozen bosses, (most of which have never been playable before,) and one that’s new to the series. And I’m sure they would have liked bringing in that one missing person, but I’m sure Microsoft wouldn’t have liked a Halo Spartan showing up on a Nintendo system.

While having a more extensive story than most fighting games, it was always disjointed and hard to make sense of. Dimensions tried to change that with its Chronicle mode, an official story mode where you take on the role of different characters during the events of each game. If you’re a new player, this is the place to start since the mode has constant tutorials and will occasionally slow down the action and tell you what to press in order to counter. Watching the cut scenes, (that seem to randomly switch between still character models and animated characters,) will make you glad that they crammed a Japanese voice option in, but when some of the Xbox cutscenes played, I missed the lack of the Aerosmith music that the series has used for years. C’mon Tecmo, pay up! But outside of the lack of Steven Tyler in my fighting game, the only flaws with the story are that some of the details got changed around, some parts are still confusing and if you’re not a main ninja character, you’ll be lucky to get any kind of screen time. This can probably be ignored by most people, but it bugs a follower of the series like me.

The relatively short Chronicle mode is buffered by numerous single player modes. Arcade mode has been switched up, with different courses that offer different sets of opponents. Survival mode is also in tiers, going from 10 opponents, all the way to 100 on one health bar. Tag challenge is the brand new mode where either with a horribly stupid AI partner or a human partner through co op, players team up against either one or two overpowered opponents. Playing through these modes unlocks some of the many unlockables, like secret characters, bonus costumes and figurines that can be photographed in the 3D Diorama mode.

Which brings me to the rest of the features. DOA uses just about every feature the 3DS has. The 3D itself looks fantastic, although it slows down the frame rate. It doesn’t affect game play, but if you want the console speed, it’s best to play it with the 3D turned off. The gyroscope can be used to view the backgrounds on the title screen or to move around the figure while taking photos. Kind of like a real photographer, only more, (or is it less?) perverted. Play coins from walking can be spent on surprise gifts, (usually figures,) so you’ll have more reason to get up and move. Activating Streetpass will give you ghost data that emulates the player you picked up to fight and Spotpass gives free daily DLC to people who log on. That’s right… FREE DLC! Who would have thought those words went together.

Yeah yeah, I’m going on and on about how great it is, but its glaring flaw is the online. Sure, I could also complain about the small amount of costumes compared to previous games, (how is Kokoro missing her outfit from her character portrait?) or the lack of arcade endings, but online’s drop in quality is a big deal considering how well it’s done on consoles. The lobbies are strictly one on one now, which is fine so it doesn’t strain the network, and the games usually run smoothly as long as both fighters have a good connection. Problem is, you can’t tell unless you’re fighting and the game switches to stop motion because there’s no gauge to tell you how good the connection is, and it’s not as consistently smooth as say, Street Fighter IV. There are no filters for bosses, so if someone decides to pick one, good luck. And did I mention the erratic scoring system that takes triple the points away for a loss compared to a win, and has even given me 0 points for beating a player at equal rank? But lastly, my favorite feature of awarding one player the win and the other a loss for rage quitting is gone, so the only penalty is a drop in their imaginary rank that doesn’t really matter for the quitter, and nothing for the winner. It’s saddening to me that one of the few fair fighting games online has been reduced to practically rewarding rage quitters.

But despite my gripes, the game is still the best yet on the 3DS. This is one fighter that doesn’t ignore the single player, with modes that will give you hours of entertainment, (and I’m not talking about the photo viewer.) Sure, there are fewer costumes, (which is probably why it went from being rated M to T,) but the game play content makes up for it. And despite the flaws with online, at the end of the day, if it plays well, that’s what matters most, and the game is as smooth as a local match most of the time. I’m happy to say that Dead or Alive Dimensions pulls no punches and continues its reputation of pushing a system to its limit and is the best single showcase for what the 3DS can do. And its the closest most of us will get to saying they have a hot ninja in our pants.

The best dreams usually don’t make sense. On the same token, some games are so unique that they’re hard to define. Dream Trigger is one such title, which can only be described as an LSD induced love child between wireframe shooter Rez and the music puzzle game Lumines. Mix that in with the hectic action of a vertical shooter and you get an enjoyable, addictive romp through a world of dreams. But like most good dreams, this one’s over way too soon.

Dream Trigger doesn’t have a deep story. It doesn’t really even have a story at all. The premise is as straightforward as can be, where you control your little dream guy through over 50 worlds with while fighting off waves of enemies and vicious bosses. That’s nothing new, but before you label me a liar about the innovation, the catch lies in the game play.

First, the enemies aren’t visible on the screen, at least not at first. The top screen is where the action takes place, but the bottom screen displays a type of chart that show where enemies are located. The only way to see them, (besides waiting for them to glow before an attack,) is by predicting where they’ll be based on their patterns and placing sonar pings on the bottom screen. A rhythm bar, (a la Lumines,) scrolls across the bottom screen at the pace of the music and pings that are caught in it reveal enemies in its range. Exposing enemies grants power to attack by setting off a strobe light effect around your guy and adding in an awesome music track while slamming into enemies. Attacking also makes you invincible, so it becomes a balancing act between attacking as many enemies as possible to boost your score or using precious meter to avoid an attack.

I know it sounds complicated, and it’s honestly overwhelming to manage two screens and avoid attacks at the same time, but after some practice, it quickly becomes second nature. Besides, revealing enemies and attacking isn’t the only way to build power, because power ups that appear throughout the stages. While not usually notable, this is where the 3D really comes in handy, and is one of the first examples of the 3D feature being used to enhance the game rather than forcing it in just because. The power ups start below you and can’t be grabbed, but as they get closer, their depth increases until you can grab them. And if you miss… you have to watch them float helplessly towards the screen. How sad…

But the saddest part about Dream Trigger is the severe lack of content in the game. Despite the beautiful backgrounds, crazy visuals and addictive game play, after playing 30 or 40 stages that don’t differ much from one another, it starts to get really routine. The last 10 stages or so get more aggressive, but because most of the enemies and bosses used the same tactics, patterns and strategies, the game was a complete breeze outside of the learning curve at the beginning. Yeah… that will happen when you reuse each boss about ten times each. Sure, there’s a type of bonus stage where colliding with an enemy on the map makes you play that stage with fewer sonar pings and instant death instead of the usual four hits, but even this was passable when knowing how to approach the same enemies.

And while I’m an achievement whore, the worst part of the game has to be the achievement system. The game could have been easily over and done with in about half the time it took me, but the game requires you to track down the achievements in order for new stages to be unlocked. Most of them are secret, and some that aren’t are explained in riddles, so I spent a good hour or two replaying stages to test out theories or grind for the score goals. Note to developers: it’s not a good idea to force your audience to perform repetitive tasks to give the game a few more hours of life.

Dream Trigger is a great experiment with both the 3D technology being used as more than a visual trick and a new take on multiple genres. It’s too bad that most gamers would see it as a nightmare to drop $40 on only a few hours of enjoyment, which wouldn’t be a problem to me if there was more variety. But when many of the stages feel like you played them five times on a first run and the extra modes outside of the campaign are playing the same stages in either score attack or time attack, only the most hardcore dreamers will continue to play after the credits roll, (if they get that far considering the frustrating progression system.) While Dream Trigger is highly enjoyable while it lasts, those hoping that this could be a surprise must buy for the 3DS will have to keep dreaming.

It would be an understatement to say that Sega has an impressive portfolio of franchises under its belt. One of the few that have driven under the radar as of late is the Sega Rally series. Sega Rally was a pioneer of the mud soaked rally racing video games, and after taking a few years off of the track, the series returns with Online Arcade. In many ways, this newest game goes back to basics and comes close to bringing back the addicting, yet limited arcade experience.

At first glance, you would call me a liar if I told you that this is a $10 download title. The game looks fantastic, with realistic looking cars and environments. Driving through the five distinct tracks, it’s easy to tell how much effort went into each one. The various terrain that each stage offers, (from asphalt, mud, snow and water to name a few,) affect the control of the vehicle while using the visuals to sell the realism, (the mud on the cars look awesome!) 

But no matter how good it looks, if it plays like mud of a different kind, what does it matter, right? I’m happy to say that the game plays nearly as good as it looks. This is an arcade racer tried and true, so choosing between 12 licensed cars and five courses, (some of which are locked,) racers speed to the finish line with loose turning physics that are easy to pick up and play with. The game is kind enough to warn you of the type of turns The single player options are thin, primarily spent in free race mode where you select a track and go at it,or championship mode where players race the first three tracks against 21 other racers and the clock since you’ll drop out if you don’t get to the checkpoints fast enough.. If you manage to claw and scratch your way to 1st by the end of the third race, you’ll go mano a mano against the CPU in the final track.

I’m sure you can see that the single player mode isn’t too robust, but the word “online,” isn’t in the title for nothing. Racing players online works without a hitch and ran smoothly whenever I was able to find a match. The time trial mode has a really cool feature where you can race uploaded ghosts from the leaderboards or challenge developer ghosts. And what good would a multiplayer game be without split screen? While it only supports two player head to head, it’s still a blast to tackle the track with a buddy.

Despite the thin set of features, the only major pitfall I found with Sega Rally Online was its lack of instruction. I messed around with a few of the previous games, but never really got into them. So naturally, I wanted to know how the game worked. Sadly, you know that section that says, “How to play?” It shows you the controls… which is also under the controls section. The only way I could find instructions was to go to a loading screen and cross my fingers that my question would be answered in one of the tips that pop up. I know gamers don’t usually read the instructions anyway, but it would be nice to have for a noob like yours truly.

Even still, I didn’t need instruction to realize that Sega Rally is a really polished, great looking, and most of all, enjoyable racing game that shouldn’t be missed. Sure, it only has a few tracks that can be finished in less time than it took to download, but the online features and game design are so well done, I doubt you’ll just drop it after a quick run. C’mon, it even supports the force feedback wheel! (Remember that?) Save for a few missteps, if you want a easy to play racing title that’s easy on the eyes, (not to mention wallet,) it’s time to strap on your seatbelt and give this one a spin… or at least a download.

A new Lego game at the eve of a big film release? No way! Traveler’s Tales has done a great job of adapting so many franchises into Lego-fied versions for the whole family to enjoy, so is anyone really surprised that Lego Pirates is upon us? The tales of captain Jack Sparrow are reinvented brick by brick, but compared to the other games in the Lego series, it feels like this one is missing something… And I don’t mean Orlando Bloom in On Stranger Tides.

Spanning the original trilogy and the new film, Lego Pirates puts players in the shoes of nearly every character imaginable from the series. If he or she was on camera, they’re probably playable, (even a guard dog made it in.) Each character has different abilities that are necessary to progress, such as Jack’s ability to find treasure, Will Turner’s hatchet throwing, and for some reason, every woman’s ability to double jump. After playing through story mode, just like all of the previous games, stages can be replayed with any member of the cast that you please to be able to uncover secret areas that can only be accessed by certain people. That’s how you build up replay value…

Combat is as simple as it has ever been in the Lego games, with simple mashing of the attack button getting you through most skirmishes. Dying makes you lose money that can be used to buy characters and cheats, but other than that, there’s no real consequence since you just pick up from where you left off. It gets more interesting during later portions of each film, usually providing boss fights that use a combination of strategy and timing. There’s a reason these games have earned such a following, and it’s not just because everyone loves Legos. This combination of simplicity and depth gives gamers a little bit of everything.

The stories are told through humorous reenactments of the events of each movie. If you’ve seen them, you’ll get a laugh out of the interpretations, but if you’re afraid of spoiling the new film by playing it, don’t be. It’s so vague if you don’t know what’s going on that you’ll probably just end up confused. That is, unless you can translate grunts and screams.

But there are plenty of other reasons to want to stay away besides spoilers. Essentially, the game play, style and presentation is the same as the previous games, so what makes this one any worse? First, just because a movie franchise is popular doesn’t mean they all need Lego games. It’s not like Star Wars or Harry Potter where you have these incredible abilities… Most of the characters here are pretty plain and it takes away from the excitement of using them. 

Even still, the biggest issue is the level design. I know, the series is usually great in this department, but I blame the source material more than the developers. Most of the game takes place on pirate ships, so rather than having big, open spaces to play through, you’re usually cramped up in the tiny confines of the ships and regulated to perform fetch quests that force you to go back and forth in these small, uninspired areas. I’m guessing it’s to make the stages longer, but it feels like a chore. And beware if you’re playing two players, because while older games made players stay together, this one splits the screen when players are far from each other. Yeah, it sounds good on paper, but when the screen keeps switching positions and tilting to adjust to the positions and combined with the annoying areas, it’s hardly worth the trouble.

So while Sparrow might be the greatest pirate we ever saw, his Lego game fails to meet the same standard. It’s amazing how much level design and environments can affect the experience when everything else is relatively unchanged. The children and families who are the target audience for this games won’t be as jaded as I am and still find plenty to love, but unless you’re a huge Pirates fan, there’s little reason to choose this over Lego Star Wars, Batman or Harry Potter. So in the end, it might be better if this treasure stays buried.

3DS owners might be crying over the lack of high profile releases since launch. Sure, there’s a lot of hype surrounding the upcoming release of Ocarina of Time 3D, and don’t forget that Star Fox, Mario and Resident Evil are all lined up to appear on the 3DS by year’s end as well. So… what are we supposed to do until then? Relax, dear gamer. Before you sulk in the corner over the $250 you spent to play games that aren’t out yet, here are a few under the radar games that will hold you over until the blockbuster season.

7. BlazBlue Continuum Shift 2

Not one to let Street Fighter IV hog all of the fighting game spotlight, the sequel to last year’s BlazBlue title looks to successfully bring another HD fighting game to the 3DS. From the creators of Guilty Gear, BlazBlue continues the trend of over the top characters, an awesome soundtrack and fast, technical fighting that fans have come to expect by now. Throwing in new modes, the three DLC characters and extending the already lengthy story mode, the only thing missing will be online. Even still, gamers who are winding down with Street Fighter might want to give this a look.

6. Dream Trigger 3D

No, it’s not so much a dream as it is an acid trip captured on screen. Dream Trigger is hard to explain. It’s part vertical shooter, (i.e. Raiden and 1942,) part Lumines and part Rez to bring a truly unique title to the growing library of 3DS games. Not to mention that it’s the first game I’ve seen to use the 3D effects as a functional game play component as opposed to just throwing the gimmick in as a visual effect. Out of all the games on the list, Dream Trigger should be out by the time you read this, so expect a review soon if I don’t start seizing by then.

5. Cubic Ninja

The 3D effects get all the attention, (and why wouldn’t it? It’s in the name,) but the system can do a lot more to stand out. No other game seems to showcase the new gyroscope as much as the upcoming Cubic Ninja, where players will guide their character across obsticle filled stages by tilting the handheld. Super Monkey Ball played with the idea, but this is the first game designed around the function. Oh, and building stages to share with friends seems to be all the rage nowadays, so look for that when Cubic Ninja arrives. And no, it won’t really turn mannequins into real women…

4. Bit. Trip Saga

Why buy separately when you can combo it up? Bit. Trip Saga looks to compile all of the excellent Bit. Trip games from the WiiWare service and bring them to 3DS owners on one tiny cart. Fusing rhythm with more traditional concepts like platforming or Pong, each game has its own style while keeping up with the sprite based theme. If you’ve already bought them, there might be little reason to pick this title up, but knowing that most gamers seem to ignore solid titles on WiiWare, chances are it’ll be a surprising new experience. If nothing else, seeing the main character will remind you of that awesome time when you unlocked an achievement for finding him in Super Meat Boy.

3. Cave Story 3D

Here’s another WiiWare title on the list. Not just WiiWare but Cave Story can be found on DSiWare and for free online to boot. So why am I telling you to buy a retail copy of the game that’s infinitely more expensive than free? How about a completely remade title with 3D characters and stages? How about new levels? Or new playable characters? Fact is that Cave Story 3D deserves the support, especially considering that it’s such a well made action platformer with an entertaining story, charming characters and brilliant level design… all made originally for free by ONE GUY! If that doesn’t do it for you, there’s always Prinny.

2. Mega Man Legends 3 Prototype

Ever wonder who the hell that mech driving girl with the lego people is from Marvel vs Capcom 3? Well, now is a great time to become reacquainted with the Bonne’s. It’s been over a decade since Mega Man Legends, the 3D Action RPG has come out with a new release, but when the eShop is finally available, (pending any more month long delays…) gamers will be able to download Prototype, which is acting as a prequel to the actual third game. Introducing new mechanics, a new character and the first taste of Legends in quite a long time, it’s a no brainer for Mega Man fans to check it out. Oh, and you better, because Capcom is pulling a Phoenix Wright and holding Legends 3 hostage based on Prototype’s success. Mega Man’s strongest power might be strong arming.

1. Dead or Alive Dimensions

There have been a handful of games that have come close to recreating the gaming experience of a current gen console on the 3DS, but in typical Team Ninja fashion, they’re looking to push the envelope right out of the gate. Making its triumphant return, you have to see this 3D fighter in motion to believe it. Trailers make the game look like it runs almost as smooth as DOA4 on the 360 did, (as long as the 3D is off,) and the game is promising an expansive story mode, new playable characters, online support and Streetpass functionality. Oh, and there’s one more thing… free DLC! While the frame rate is said to drop when in 3D, it’s a small price to pay if the game can recreate, (or even expand,) the HD gaming experience.

So what do you think? Are my picks way off? Was there something I missed that should be here? Or am I grasping? Either way, there’s room for more than one star in this 3D universe and the above titles are sure to keep hungry 3DS owner satisfied in the months to come.

Through Facebook and Twitter, various groups have popped up across the country in recent weeks. These Streetpass meet up groups look to organize 3DS gamers to achieve that rare moment in a geek’s life where he or she goes outside. You know, where the people aren’t pixels and Gil is not an accepted form of currency? 

Anyway, 3DS gamers who feel your pain gather here to take advantage of the feature, so you will have collected your puzzle pieces and rescued your Mii in no time. Some events like my local group in Hollywood, may even have additional activities, like a Mario Kart tournament for the presiegious GameStop gift card. It’s almost like a sense of community has been built through the sense of neglect, and I for one found it to be lots of fun. It’s better than sulking by myself over my lack of Streetpasses and pestering my wife about getter a 3DS so I can have a daily visitor at least.

For more information for the Hollywood group, check out http://www.facebook.com/StreetPassLA?ref=ts for more information. Otherwise, search for a group in your local area for details, availability, and schedule.

Rayman who? These Rabbids have all but stolen the spotlight from the limbless hero that they were spun off from. For the most part, they’ve stayed off of his platforming turf and stuck to party games and a brief detour to the world of Katamari-esque item collecting. But the time for partying has come to an end. While Tavel in Time on the Wii was a party game, the 3DS version is a 2D sidescroller that seems to be filling a gap. Much like Rayman 3D gave a 3D platformer to a system from a company known for platformers, Travel in Time is looking to do the same for 2D. It’s a huge task to live up to, but the Rabbids already toppled one platforming icon. Can they do it again?

Those crazy Rabbids are at it again, (if you still care.) When they find a time traveling washing machine, they accidentally get sent back to various areas throughout different periods, where they change history in order to get back to the present. Playing across four different eras and over 60 levels in total, Travel in Time provides plenty of platforming goodness complete with collectables and lots and lots of coins. It just takes awhile before the goodness is found.

After all the punishment the Rabbids put themselves through, it’s obvious that they’re pretty durable. Aside from pits and getting crushed, it’s all but impossible to die in the game. Health can be found everywhere and the game gives you a huge health bar that only increases as you go on. All of the enemies are other Rabbids with similar attack patterns so they’re never much of an issue either. Actually, the only hard part of the game is actually getting through the boredom of the first few hours.

I don’t want to say that the game is a bad platformer, because it works the way its meant to. But it wouldn’t have killed Ubisoft to make the first two worlds at least slightly interesting. The 3D effect is barely used so when the visuals are a non factor, all that’s left is the game itself. The stages all look the same and the first half of the game is so painfully routine that you’ll feel like you’ve played the game a throusand times before. It hardly helps that the game itself doesn’t do much to change the formula of jumping on and over stuff for at least three hours in. I wouldn’t blame you for giving up or napping during game play, since continuing is the most challenging part. It’s hard to believe that characters with such quirkyness have so much trouble keeping a person’s attention.

Both platformers and Rabbids games have a tradition of having tons of unlockables, and Travel in Time is no different. All of the enemies are seen wearing outfits from their respective time. Attacking them in different ways gives you parts of their clothes so you can customize your own character in goofy fashions. Racking up points unlocks 3D figurines, (that aren’t really all that 3D,) as well as bonus stages. And if you can actually fathom the thought, puzzle pieces can be unlocked by completing missions and time trials when you replay stages over again. Yup, that’s right. Replay value is good, but I really can’t imagine playing these stages more than once. Hell, I could barely imagine playing them all the way through at all.

I was honestly excited at the thought of a Rabbids platformer, especially after how well the first attempt at adding Rabbids to a non-party game went. Instead, I got an uninteresting platformer that does everything by the numbers instead of taking inspiration from the crazy characters the game was designed around. With tedious stages and a laughable difficulty, Ubisoft will have to try a lot harder to make its mark on the house that Mario built, especially at his home genre. Next time the Rabbids find a time machine, let’s hope they learn from the past and make a better game.

Let’s be honest, as cute as a new puppy can be, not everyone can put up with the responsibility. The feeding, the walking, the poop digging… it all can be too much. Wouldn’t it be great for these people if there was a way to have some of the joys of a pet without actually having to do much? That’s where Nintendogs + Cats for the 3DS comes in.

Following the huge success of the original Nintendogs a few years ago, did anyone doubt the chances for a sequel? The name of the game explains the premise pretty well. As a virtual trainer, you’re tasked with raising a puppy. This pooch can learn tricks through voice commands, build up its athleticisim and requires top of the line nutrition before it can become a contender in the daily competitions, much like the first game. Actually, much of the game feels like the previous one… but hey! Now there are cats! And they behave much like real cats, for better or worse.

Nintendogs garnered a reputation for having realistic behavior in the dogs, and the same can be said for the cats. With the addition of kittens, you can pet, feed, bathe, accessorize and play with your kitty in between sleeping and hissing at the dog. Unlike the dog, it can’t enter competitions, learn tricks, go for walks… actually, the cat doesn’t do much. Most of the time, I boot up the game with my dog greeting me and my cat sleeping. It doesn’t really add much to the game since the cat feels like more of a novelty than a game play addition. But at the very least, it can learn its name… and there’s no litter box so it never pees!

Speaking of peeing, walking the dog has been greatly improved over the last game. There’s no longer a daily limit to walking for starters. If you never walk them, the dogs will fill with waste for the rest of eternity, but there’s plenty of reason to avoid neglecting them. Instead of the side scrolling format with the pee chart map that showed everywhere in the city where your dogs relieved themselves like last time, the view is a behind the back first person view with the touch screen used for control. So those who remember the unavoidable trash where you had to choke your dog to keep him from eating it, the controls make it a thing of the past if you steer right.

In addition to the control improvements, branching paths that lead to different locals make the world feel connected and give you a sense of exploration during walks. And if this wasn’t enough, presents can be found to encourage you to walk often. Unlike the first game however, rather than rare items, synthesis items are found in the boxes. These can be used to trade for a larger assortment of rare goodies, and when you throw in special shops and training grounds to improve the pup’s performance, walks are an important part of improving.

Of course, all of this training is leading up to the competitions, which is the biggest aspect of the game. To feed your dog, you need money and to make big money, you need to win! The disc and obedience competition return from the previous game, and while disc is still just a frisbee fetch game, (without the product placement this time,) obedience has been changed quite a bit for the 3DS, but I’ll get to that in a bit. Replacing the obsticle course is the lure coursing competition, where players reel in a lure that the dog chases until it reaches the finish line. The game pits the dogs head to head this time, so in the race and disc games, the competition is at your side so you know they’re not cheating. Plus, losing no longer demotes you, so it’s easier to get through, even though you can still only compete twice a day with each contest. Still, doing well unlocks new breeds, items and house designs so you can shake things up, so money isn’t the only motivation.

Reading this would make a Nintendogs vet, (veteran, not pet doctor,) think that nothing much has changed. While it’s true on the surface, it seems like this new pet sim is being used to showcase many of the 3DS’s features. The most important one is the use of the AR cards. Obedience competitions use the cards to make the dog appear in the real world while it accepts your voice commands, (or I should say if. The dog still doesn’t understand you half of the time.) It’s really annoying that the AR cards are required for contests though, because if the lighting isn’t right, the camera loses the dog really easily, and the competition doesn’t pause when your dog magically vanishes. 

At the house, the cards can be used to take photos where the dog wears themed hats depending on the card you use. The street pass feature helps trainers show off their dogs and cats to each other while trading messages and items. And lastly, if you’re into the free stuff involved with walking but not the dog crap, the game uses the 3DS pedometer to walk your dog while you walk for real. The more steps you take, the better the gift, so if you want the cool swag, Nintendo is hell bent on getting you in shape to do it.

At first glance, Nintendogs + Cats doesn’t look like much. Fans of the original would think it’s just  a rehash with felines tacked in while those who never played it would think it’s not the cool thing to play. While the core of the game remains largely unchanged, there’s plenty to make this version the best in show. Everything from the competitions to the walking and obtaining items has been refined while adding in a ton of new features. If anything, it’s the new stuff that needs work. The cats are kind of just there and the mandatory use of AR cards during obedience trials makes me want to find who came up with the crappy idea and rub their nose in it. I was disappointed that the people in the town were replaced with Miis and the voice recognition is still iffy, but the game still ends up being a lot of fun. Virtual pets may not be the cool thing anymore, but Nintendogs + Cats is a great showcase of the 3DS’s capabilities that aren’t 3D and is a great game to dedicate 30 minutes a day to when you need to relax. If you need to see what your 3DS can do, I think it’s time you give this dog a home.

Over the top violence seems to be commonplace in video games today. But long before Kratos dismembered his first god or Marcus Fenix sawed through a horde of locust, a familiar voice called out for you to “Finish Him!” It was never as technically sound as some fighters, and its visuals usually meant seeing the same character with different colored clothes passed off as different warriors, but Mortal Kombat garnered such a huge following through the controversy the gore brought with it. Now that blood and guts are as common in games as cursing five year olds are online, it has to do a little bit more to stand out, and I don’t mean spell everything with a K. This new MK looks to wipe the blood soaked slate clean going back to its 2D roots with a slew of improvements, but are they enough?

Much like the original Mortal Kombat rode the fighting game wave brought by Street Fighter II so long ago, this MK takes a page from Street Fighter IV. Treated as a complete reboot, nearly every character from MK 1-3 has returned with both familiar and new attacks. It seems like a lot of work went into giving each character unique animations and moves, helping push the game past its palette swap reputation. Also absent are the dial a combos where memorizing 15 button sequences has been replaced with a set of shorter, more fluid attacks. And of course, what would the game be without Fatalities? Each character has one default finisher and two hidden ones, as well as stage Fatalities that wait to be discovered. It’s just a shame that they weren’t all that creative, and some of the new attacks are more brutal than what’s supposed to be the fighting game equivalent to flipping the bird. Who knows, maybe my blood thurst is harder to quench nowadays.

While game play has been amped up, combos aren’t all that’s changed. Most noticeably, MK finally got a super meter! Using one segment of the bar performs powered up versions of special attacks, (if it sounds like an EX attack, that’s because it pretty much is.) Two segments breaks an opponents combos, but using three is where the real eye opener is. Using three unleashes a unique X-Ray attack for each character. These brutal moves activate cutscenes where each broken bone and stabbed organ is shown while the attack is carried out. From a game play standpoint, it adds a layer of strategy that has been lacking since the inception of the series.

Fighting gamers are usually quick to point out that story and single player doesn’t count for much in this type of game, but Mortal Kombat proves them wrong. First, we get the story mode, which could also be called the “new Star Trek” of MK without Zachary Quinto sexy-ing it up. If you played Mortal Kombat: Armageddon, (which I wouldn’t blame you if you didn’t,) the end of the MK universe came to pass, but future Raiden sent a message to past Raiden in MK 1 in an attempt to change the future. Taking a page from MK vs DC, the story is separated in chapters where players take the role of a particular character’s section of the tale. And no, there aren’t Fatalities here. What good would the story be if you killed off half the cast in the first stages? Although you might miss them when you hear some of the voices…

Other than story, the traditional arcade mode has returned, where you take your character through a series of fights until you come face to face with Shao Khan, (who’s still a bitch and a half to beat in case you were wondering.) But new to the ladder fight is co-op, because MK adds a brand new tag team mode. Playing by yourself or with a friend, special attacks and combos while interchanging both fighters can be used in a fight to the finish against another team. Lastly is the challenge mode, where players have to fight through 300 preset scenarios that range from ridiculous, (Johnny Cage fighting stunt doubles,) to nearly impossible. Playing in loner mode is the quickest way to earn coins for the Krypt, an interactive unlock menu where extras can be purchased. After the novelty of walking through the graveyard wears thin, you’ll wish for a text menu over trying to find the last few rewards to buy through the huge area.

Nowadays, what good is a fighter if there’s no online, even if most online fighting games play like crap? Sadly, Mortal Kombat falls in line with the majority. Aside from the basic ranked and player matches, the king of the hill mode brings avatars to the lobby. Each bloodthirsty, super deformed goof can activate different emotes during a fight to voice their opinion of the fight while the top two go at it. And all it takes is one person with a crappy connection to slow it down for everyone. Even when running at its best, there was always at least a half second delay between my inputs and the attack going through. The most mind blowing online decision however, is that both players receive a loss when someone quits. I mean seriously, between the lag and this nonsense, I’m pretty shocked that we’re expected to buy an online pass to gain access to online play outside of a two day trial. If you’re going to charge us, at least make sure it works.

Online is far from the only frustration. Challenge and story modes both have incredibly annoying challenges like two, three and even four on one fights, not to mention cheap bosses and move reading AI that the series is known for. Unlocking endings through the ladder gets unbearably repetitive if you try with every character, and even the unlock screen manages to annoy at times. But even though MK might not have achieved the flawless victory it was looking for, it’s a great fresh start for the series. The game play is much improved and has added depth to a game that has never had much. Single player gives you quite a bit to do and playing with a friend might take awhile to get old with the fairly large roster. While it might have lost its shock factor, Mortal Kombat has laid out a new foundation that is already taking the franchise in a great direction that any fan of the series just has to see. And you won’t have to lose and arm and a leg  for it either.

When a new system launches, you expect developers to come out with guns blazing, giving us an exciting game that sells the new hardware. So what does Nintendo do to live up to this expectation? They give us a side scrolling submarine game… But while that doesn’t sound worth your $250 on the surface, the famous developer has a reputation of making even the strangest things fun, (whoever thought they’d want to play as a fat, mustached plumber?) Steel Diver attempts to bring a different type of fun to match the new hardware, and it does so with mixed results. 

Given command of one of three submarines, the campaign offers seven missions in which you’ll explore deep oceans, discover ancient ruins and stop a nameless, faceless country from taking over the world with their evil battleships. The core of the game is controlled from a 2D side scrolling perspective, where you guide the sub from point A to point B while avoiding traps, walls, bombs, rocks and enemy subs. It might seem simple enough to avoid a giant wall that’s a whole screen away from you, but the challenge in Steel Diver lies in the controls. The entire game is controlled by the touch screen, so controlling your acceleration, depth and missile strikes are all handled on the bottom screen. My first few games proved why friends don’t let friends dive drunk, because I was slamming into everything in my way while trying to manage all of the doodads that were put in my control AND keeping track of my sub on the top screen. It sounds a little off-putting, but when I got the hang of things, the ride was very rewarding to pull off. Part of the replay value is to get through the game with each sub since each one controls differently. That, and it’s required to get through the whole game, tacking on a bit of forced replayability.

Once basic actions like avoiding giant rocks become second nature, the game gets more aggressive, with fights against sea monsters, battleships and giant subs. But a Steel Diver doesn’t go down like that, so between each level, parascope challenges are unlocked. Using a first person view, players can control the scope with the touch screen or by getting up and spinning for real using the 3DS’s gyroscope if you’re into the novelty of looking like a fool in public, (like me.) Taking down ships unlock decals that not only make your sub look fabulous, but collecting enough of them unlocks abilities such as increased defense or speed. But since these rewards can only be earned post stage, it’s more of the tacked on replay value. These challenges can be played independently from the main menu, but not for decals. Yeah, I know. It sucks…

Even with the incentive to keep playing, seven missions for a campaign is pretty thin. That’s where time trials and multiplayer come in. Time trials are a mix of familiar and new areas compared to the campaign where you guide your tiny sub to the end of the stage as fast as possible. The multiplayer mode plays very much like a 3D version of a famous board game that I can’t seem to think of at the moment. It involves two players battling ships by attacking on a grid that’s invisible to the opponent… Spotting the ship switches to parascope mode where the attacking player attempts to shoot the opponent out of the water. But even with these features added in, I doubt it’s something that you’ll be playing for very long.

And that is where Steel Diver sinks. While I enjoyed my time with the game, it’s definitely not for everyone. The controls and physics are expertly done, and the graphics, 3D effects, stage ambiance and music create a relaxing experience, but the hectic game play carries a steep learning curve. If you manage to stick with it until you get the hang of how your sub works, it’s a matter of whether or not you’ll keep playing. If you’re the kind of gamer who is satisfied with finishing the game and moving on to the next one, you won’t get much depth from Steel Diver. If the game had a larger, more robust set of stages, this game would be a surprise stand out in the sea of launch titles, but its reliance on the gamer wanting to play through it multiple times makes it a hit or miss game in the 3DS library.

With so many titles under Nintendo’s huge plumber belt, some of its franchises are bound to get lost in the shuffle. One such title is Pilotwings, a type of flight sim title that debut on the SNES and was one of the first to use the system’s 3D graphic technology. Years later, Pilotwings 64 launched with the Nintendo 64, but was completely overshadowed by some other game… what was it called? Oh yeah, Super Mario 64. So it was a welcomed surprise that Pilotwings Resort would revive the forgotten series while infusing it with the familiar Mii style from the Wii Sports titles as the marquee game for the 3DS, but can it carry the same success?

Pilotwings is kind of its own beast. Part flight sim, part arcade style score attack, players can take their created Mii’s and choose between challenges using a sea plane, jet pack or hang glider. Each mission has a set of goals such as taking pictures of landmarks across Wuhu island, (the setting where Wii Sports and Wii Fit takes place,) and shooting down targets in a set amount of time. The aim here is to get the highest score possible, so everything from your landings to your time are judged before you can move on to the higher classes. It’s an addictive cycle that keeps you trying to better your score, which doesn’t take too long since the game isn’t particularly difficult.

Now the previous Pilotwings games are somewhat notorious for their brutal difficulty, but Resort seems to borrow from its Mii inspirations. Crashing in the past meant an automatic game over. That’s it, it’s over you’re done, try again. Resort gives you a small point penalty that’s pretty easy to overcome. With the loss of the frustration comes a loss of difficulty, so it’s much easier to breeze through this time. Rewards for achieving perfect scores give incentive to keep trying for that 100%, but the real draw comes from free flight mode.

Using any one of the vehicles you unlock in mission mode can be used in free flight mode. Free flight gives you three minutes to explore the island and seek out hidden locations, items and stunt rings. Finding collectables unlocks goodies for the game such as dioramas to admire, so it will at least provide a small distraction in between some of the stricter missions, but it’s nothing too different from the main game. We should have at least be able to shoot a couple of missiles at wherever Wii Music takes place. You know… in case it tries to come back.

To its credit, Resort does have more variety in the type of missions for each vehicle than in the past games, but one thing that it does lack in is vehicle types. After so long, I would expect to have new vehicles besides the the three that have already appeared. What’s most disappointing though, is that sky diving is completely absent. Sure, there’s a new squirrel suit that plays in a similar way, but it’s hardly used and is treated as an extension of the jet pack. And no, there aren’t any kind of twists that keep the game going like the island getting taken over by terrorists, (seriously, this happens half way through the first Pilotwings,) once free flight and mission modes are completed, that’s all there is to it.

Despite the lack of vehicle variety, Pilotwings Resort excels in nearly every other area. Exploring the island rewards players with a colorful landscape that is enhanced by the 3D visuals, (that are way too strong with the slider turned all the way up. Half intensity is perfect, unless you want to willingly go blind.) The music is catchy and fits the laid back atmosphere of the island. The biggest issue holding the game back is whether or not you’ll stick around to see everything it has to offer. The game play is addicting and is great for a portable where you can pick up and play a few games, but it wears thin if you sit down and dedicate a few hours at a time. Pilotwings is great for the would-be pilot looking for an escape, but if you’re looking for a meaty vacation, you won’t get too much milage out of this resort.

Generations clashing are the stuff that nerd rage is made from. In the case of wrestling, which stars are truly the greatest? Could Hulk Hogan in fact, see John Cena? Would The Rock beat down The Miz for stealing his name and catchphrases on The Real World? And can Ultimate Warrior do more than three moves? WWE All Stars look to answer these questions and more, with an arcade style wrestling game that aims to be as over the top as the characters it portrays.

All Stars puts you in control of over 30 of the greatest WWE Superstars of past and present, (oh, and Kofi Kingston, Jack Swagger and Drew McIntyre made it in somehow.) All of the wrestlers are roided up to look far bigger than their real life selves to give them a caricature like appearance, (except for Ultimate Warrior and Hogan. They look pretty accurate, but then again, they popped steroids like Pez.) Each character is broken down into a class type, so acrobats can spring to the top rope at any point, brawlers can link together air combos with their long punch strings, big men can overpower opponents and punch them clear across the ring and technicians can link multiple grapple moves into one set. And if you don’t like any of these guys, you can create your own monstrosity, although the creation tools are extremely limited. When’s the last time you couldn’t create a move set, the N64?

The more attacks your wrestler lands, the higher their momentum meter builds. Using a third of the bar activates highly exaggerated signature moves where characters leap as high as the nosebleed seats before slamming the opponents down. Traditional health bars are used in this game as opposed to the limb damage found in modern wrestling titles, so it becomes a matter of trying to wear down your opponent for the pin, or deplete their health before nailing them with a finisher for an old fashioned knock out. 

A wrestling game wouldn’t be anything without a variety of match types, and All Stars doesn’t disappoint. Single, tornado tag, extreme rules, cage, triple threat and fatal 4 way matches are all found here, and are all displayed in the single player modes. In Path of Champions, you take your chosen wrestler through a gauntlet of 10 matches. Aside from the awesome cut scenes between matches, (and the return of digital Paul Bearer,) running the gauntlet feels like a glorifies survival mode. And guess what you get for beating it? A costume… whoopity doo. While the costumes are great for the nostalgic fan, the amount of time and tedium it takes to get through the gauntlets over and over again wears thin quick.

The other single player mode is Fantasy Match, where one Legend and one Superstar are pit against each other in preset matches that usually follow a theme. Is the Straight Edge Savior, CM Punk, a better role model than the beer swilling Stone Cold Steve Austin? Who is the better snake between Jake the Snake and “The Viper” Randy Orton? Not all of the comparisons particularly fit, but you can tell the production team put in a lot of effort into making the pre match vignettes as epic as possible. But when you get down to playing it? It’s just a series of single matches without any kind of payoff except for unlocking new wrestlers. Aside from achievement and trophy hunting, there’s little reason to run through it more than once.

So with both single player modes getting winded quick, what happens when the online mode is tagged in? While all of the modes and characters are available, the matches have about a half second delay between inputs and the response on the screen. Did I forget to mention that the timing for reversals is incredibly brutal? The game features a neat reversal system where moves can be countered and even re-countered mid animation, but online, you’d be better off just randomly guessing when to press it because the lag is killer. Whoever gets the first knock down is usually the winner because coming back from a laggy beat down is about as difficult as escaping Cena’s five moves of doom.

So while it’s a little rusty, I’m hoping All Stars comes back for another round in the future. The game play is solid and the game is a blast to play, but with online that’s about as fun as a chair shot to the head and single player modes that are shorter than Rey Mysterio, it’s hard to stay in the ring for long. It’s at its best when pulling a few nostalgic buddies away from their UFC fights and reliving great wrestling moments while making new ones. All Stars turns out to be a contender, but it’s still far off from main event level.