Super Mario 3D World

First off, I would like to state that I did in fact get my PS4 at launch and think it's a great machine. Resogun has been the most played game so far, followed by Need for Speed: Rivals, which is a fantastic, connected experience. Great games, and am especially excited for inFamous: Second Son and the great indie titles that are coming in the next few months. However, it was my birthday this weekend and I got a new game for the Wii U that will occupy most of the gaming time for the next bit and especially when others come over.

Super Mario 3D World.

This game is fantastic. I am a straight up sucker for platformers that is for sure, and Nintendo knows how to do these things properly. It's not just regular Mario though, it's the first 3D, multiplayer Mario game, and from the brief bit of time we spent playing multiplayer, it is a million times more fun and less frustrating than New Mario Bros U was.

Thus far the level designs have been fantastic, the music is brilliant as per usual (thanks Koji Kondo) and getting all the stars and stamps on every level has been easy so far, but I am certain that it is going to get far more difficult. Will Super Mario 3D World save the Wii U and be the system seller that Nintendo wants it to be? I'm not certain, but I will have you all know that this game is phenomenal, fun, and should be played by everyone. Expect a full review soon.

It's Almost Here

So I realize it's been a while since I wrote anything on here, been busy with school and the whatnot. I also have been writing for a sweet little site called Recultured, and you can go here if you want to see what I've been writing about. Anyways things have been pretty crazy but I have got some gaming in here or there. Here's a recap.

Wonderful 101 - It's fantastic, and while there are some flaws it's still been an enjoyable game and I hope they make a second one.

The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker HD - A great touch up to one of my most favourite Zelda games, it's a great adventure and let me tell you, the new Swift Sail definitely helps to make the game even more enjoyable.

Pokemon Y - This is the one that I ended up with and thus far it's been good. Trading Pokemon with strangers has been weird but fun, and the 3D in the battles is great. I just wish the whole thing was in 3D.

Steamworld Dig - Another one of my favourite new 3DS games, this one is super addictive and helps me with the digging fix alternative to Spelunky on my 3DS. Check this one out for sure.

That being said, the PS4 comes out in a week and I'm excited to bust that thing open, do a day one update that hopefully doesn't brick systems, and play some Resogun, Contrast and whatever else I end up getting for the system. I'll try and post a bit more to here but Recultured is a sweet site so definitely check that out as well for whatever else I've been writing. Who else is excited for some next-gen goodness?

Will Wind Waker HD Help to Sell Wii U's?

Wind Waker HD is a highly anticipated title hitting the Wii U, and although it is a remake of a near-10 year old game it's still something that many people want to play. Technically it has already come out, being released digitally on this past Friday on the Wii U eshop and included with the new limited edition Wii U Zelda bundle. However it won't be available in stores for another week and a half (which is when I am getting my copy of this classic).

Many are speculating if this title, alongside some of the other fall Wii U releases will finally help Nintendo move some Wii U's and Nintendo believes that Wind Waker HD in particular will be a system seller. Roger Langford, Product Manager for Nintendo UK recently stated that, "It is the perfect time for Zelda fans to discover Wii U... For many Zelda fans, this is the first time that they'll discover Wind Waker and we're treating the game as a triple-A new release." He also goes on to point out that "Ocarina of Time 3D performed very positively on Nintendo 3DS and we're looking to replicate this success with The Wind Waker HD."

While many bemoan the fact that Nintendo is releasing another remake of a Zelda classic, it has been noted that it will be a while before a full on Wii U Zelda is released, and rumors have been rampant that the team on the new Zelda is the biggest Nintendo production yet. It may be a while until that Zelda comes out, but until then I will gladly spend some quality time with Wind Waker HD.

Wonderful 101 Review

I have put a good chunk of time into Wonderful 101 thus far and have been enjoying it immensely. There's already so much to do in this game and I'm about a quarter of the way through my first playthrough. I've been a fan of Platinum Games for as long as they've been Platinum Games (and a bit before that) and this was one of the titles that originally sold me on the Wii U. Sadly I have had to wait a good half year for it to come out, but it's definitely been worth the wait.

The basis of the game is that you control a group of superheroes that span the world over called the Centinels, though they are often referred to as Wonderful Ones. That is where the title of the game comes from, the Wonderful 101 (there's actually only 100 of them, the 101st is you of course) and they are quite the handful of hilarious stereotypes and bizarre heroes, Wonder Toilet being my favorite so far. They have banded together to stop the evil GEATHJERK who want to take over the world, destroy the world, or just do the usual bad guy thing. The story is fairly nonsensical but the dialogue is extremely comical and I did enjoy the cutscenes just as I couldn't wait to hear what pretty much anyone was going to say next.

The combat of course is the meat of it, as is the case with games from Platinum and early on it seems pretty simple, but as you add more of the core heroes, more combat options open up. Once you have more combat options like Wonder Green's gun or Wonder Pink's whip, you can start to chain even more combos together and things start to get pretty crazy. You can use the touch screen on the gamepad to make the shapes to transform your heroes, or you can use the right thumbstick to morph your group of crime fighters. I found that the thumbstick was pretty good for the most part and a bit faster than using the touch screen, especially when you are fighting dozens of baddies. Things got a bit frustrating from time to time when things didn't respond the way I had hoped but all in all it handles things pretty well. There are also times when you go into locations and use the gamepad as a second screen, which is pretty keen, and there are a number of moments where the game turns into a shooter or some other mini-game or quick time event occurs, which helps to break up the combo mashing.

All in all the style of the game, the controls, and the ridiculous but hilarious story have made me enjoy this game quite a bit. I'm definitely looking forward to my next playthrough on the next difficulty setting and this is a must own for Wii U owners.

Score: B+

Wonderful 101 Soon

Wonderful 101 should be waiting for me at home, and I can't wait to dig in to it. In general the scores have been pretty fair on it, and lots of people complaining about how short it is. On the other hand though many have mentioned that you need to play through it multiple times to really "get it."

I am definitely down for multiple playthroughs of a hopefully soon-to-be Platinum Games classic. I'll let everyone know what I think about it within the next few days!

Monster Hunter 4 plus Cats plus Mario

Monster Hunter 4 is shaping up to be a huge hit for Capcom as it readies it's release in Japan (and hopefully sooner than later here in the west) but one of the biggest treats is the Nintendo cameos in the game. I saw pictures earlier of the Link armour and weapon set that you can attain in the game, making your hero look like Nintendo's icon, with the trusty Master Sword and even boomerang in tow, but as well the feylnes, the little cat type creatures in the Monster Hunter series are able to be set in Mario and Luigi garb. It's cute, and ridiculous and can be seen here.

It's pretty ridiculous but I enjoy it. It's nice to see once again Nintendo branching out and letting other companies play around with their IP's, such as Tekken Tag Tournament 2 on the Wii U. I think that it helps Nintendo keep in the gamer's eye, especially for the more hardcore gamers and that there is nothing wrong with this, although I am certain there will be some that think this is a little ridiculous. Regardless, it's something fun to add to a game that is a little more intense than Super Mario Bros, I approve.

New Watch Dogs Gameplay

Ubisoft posted a new gameplay trailer showing off the open world maneuverings of the upcoming release Watch Dogs, and my oh my does it ever look good. The video covers a variety of different situations such as breaking into a facility and showing off more of the hacking aspects, and more of the driving around of Chicago which definitely appeals to me. Still not super sold on this new anti-hero but an open world Chicago is definitely something that interests me. Excited for this one to hit this fall, how about you?

Fall Gaming Preview

It's official, Xbox One is now launching on November 22, a week after Sony launches the PS4, and the week before Black Friday in the US; it's about to get crazy.

I've been reading tons of articles and previews and trying to get a good grasp on what are going to be the games that I most want to play this fall. I'm excited for my PS4, though the game I want the most is definitely inFamous: Second Son, which won't be out until February. Until then, here are the games that I will definitely be playing most on PS4 this fall as well as Wii U and whatever else I happen to come across.

Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag

Madden 25

Transistor

Octodad

Resogun

Wonderful 101

Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker HD

Pokemon X & Y

That's all for me, what are you planning on playing this fall?

SNES Revisited

This past week I was able to go with my family back to Edmonton to attend my brother's wedding. It was a wonderful time and there was lots of great chats, crazy adventures, and of course a lot of Magic the Gathering. One thing that did happen though was I was able to see some of my favorite old roommates and get back some of my old Super Nintendo games that they've had for quite some time (7 years or so I think). Of course the highlights of these are Final Fantasy 3, Super Metroid, Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, Secret of Mana, and of course, Chrono Trigger. I am so excited to have these gems back as I have previously mentioned building a key collection of the best games that I will be able to enjoy with my son (and any other children we have) and the fact that I have back some of the best games ever made is too good.

I've also hooked up my SNES and made sure they're all good to go, and my old saves are still on most of them; fantastic. Time to enjoy some gems of the past!

Earthbound Arrives on the Wii U Virtual Console

Yesterday Nintendo had a mini Nintendo Direct, where they were covering some of the games that are coming out in the next month or so. They covered Pikmin 3, Wonderful 101, the new Mario & Luigi and some other little things related to the Mii Plaza on 3DS.

Then at the end they revealed that Earthbound was coming out on the Virtual Console that very day. Needless to say I lost my mind just a little bit, much like many a Nintendo fan. Earthbound first came out in 1995, and I remember taking it out of the local video store in my hometown and played it a great deal. Sadly I never owned it, and over the years it has increased in price on the secondary market. I really dislike downloading games, both from a moral viewpoint and also I just dislike playing ROMs on a keyboard. The fact that they have finally re-released this classic game and I can play it on the Wii U is fantastic. Also, I was under the impression that it wasn't coming out until the end of the year, so the fact that this is out now is great.

So recently Nintendo has put out Game & Wario, which is a decent game collection, and now Earthbound and then Pikmin 3 in a matter of weeks, as well as some other downloadable goods. Looks like there is some life on Nintendo's platform yet and hopefully things really start to pick up.

For now though, Earthbound!

Animal Crossing Impressions

I have had Animal Crossing: New Leaf now for a few weeks and have dumped plenty of hours into it. I still owe Tom Nook a ton of bells, I still haven't caught most of the bugs or fishes there are to fill up the museum, and I still don't have a ton of different public works projects done.

But I have had a wonderful time in my little town of DV (don't judge me for naming my town after my hometown).

Animal Crossing is as easy to pick up and play as ever before and there's so much to do. It seems like there really isn't a lot to the game but once you start going out and picking some shells or fishing or just chatting with the people in the town, the time just flies by. The biggest changes however are through the use of Streetpass. There is an area where all the people that you have met via Streetpass dwell, and their homes are stored in your town. You can then go in there, poke around, and even order furniture that you may need to track down for your own house. This is simply phenomenal. As well it is incredibly easy to visit other towns via the internets and see what other people have going on in their towns.

This game is a time sink. It's simple, charming and definitely should be played by everyone (and having sold over 500,000 copies in the month of June it seems a lot of people are playing it). If you are still contemplating getting a 3DS, or have one, this definitely is a must play and worth having a 3DS for. Plus you know, Fire Emblem, Shin Megami Tensei 4, Luigi's Mansion, Final Fantasy Theatrhythm, Ocarina 3D, etc.

Nintendo and DLC

Nintendo has definitely been a little behind in many ways in regards to what most people consider to be the contemporary gaming landscape, and they continue to do things their own way which has its ups and downs. One thing that they have stayed far away from for the most part is DLC and this weekend was the launch of probably Nintendo's first big DLC, the New Luigi U DLC. Before this Nintendo has done a few things here and there, notably New Super Mario Bros 2 and the coin rush DLC packs and more recently Fire Emblem and a steady stream of new map packs.

Having gotten bits here and there of Nintendo's offerings they have been for the most part ok. The pricing I have found to be a little on the high end for what you get, but to be fair some of the coin rush levels and Fire Emblem maps I have gone back to multiple times so for a couple bucks it hasn't been that bad. As for the Luigi DLC it's pretty solid. All of the 80 some levels have been reimagined for use with Luigi who definitely handles different than Mario and some of them have been pretty difficult. There's only 100 seconds with which to do each level so it's going to take a while to get all of the star coins but all in all it's been solid.

I do like that Nintendo is offering up something in the way of content that will make people go back to Mario Bros U and while I think it should be $15 and not $20, it's still adding up to be quite the add on.

Let's see if they indeed do DLC dungeons in the next Zelda and see how that goes though...

Microsoft's Change of Plans

My how quickly things have changed. Just days ago it looked like the Xbox One would be having an incredibly tough go at things once it dropped thanks to Microsoft's DRM and always-online restrictions. Then they dropped a bomb and stated that they were going back on their original plans. This is pretty intense as it completely shifts what they were going to be building their whole new ecosystem on but now that is being thrown out the window and they are going back to square one. This of course is due to the huge backlash they had been facing, and it's good to note that the company is listening, but one has to wonder what would have happened had they stuck to their guns?

 

Regardless Sony and Microsoft as far as next-gen goes are back on par it would seem, and while the Xbox pre-orders have ramped back up over the PS4 it's still a ways off until the systems come out. 5 months at the very least. So it will be interesting to see, but as for me I am sticking with the PS4. While the restrictions definitely left a bad taste in my mouth, it's also the massive list of M-rated exclusives that don't appeal to me. I'm a parent and while my son is still very young and far from playing, he will probably play games with me and watch me play throughout this upcoming generation and I want to set a good example. Halo, Gears, Dead Rising, Ryse, etc don't sell a system for me, and while we have enjoyed Kinect from time to time it's not going to sell me on an Xbox One.

 

Still it's nice to see that Microsoft has changed their minds and while both systems are pretty equal now I would say, it's going to be at least a year probably until the differences between the systems are noticeable. Definitely an exciting time to be a console gamer once again.

The Future

E3 has now come and gone and everyone got what they were waiting for it seems in deciding what was going to happen with the future of console gaming, and after all of that I am decidedly pro-Sony. Microsoft continued to shoot themselves in the foot over the last number of weeks with news coming out about having to be always online and it has continued to go downhill from there. My biggest problem then is that their policies are so incredibly anti-consumer that it has continued to leave a bad taste in my mouth, even just thinking about it. For a company set in a democratic, pro-capitalist market you would think that their restrictions would have led to second thoughts but apparently not. Microsoft is going to do what they want to do and what they think is good for business, but not for the average gamer. I am sure there are the hardcore Xbox fans that love their Xbox Live, their Gamerscore and all that lays in the ecosphere that Microsoft has fostered, but I for one am a fan of being able to lend and trade in the games that I own, and to not have such severe restrictions placed on how my gaming console should work. The always online (or at the least check-in every 24 hours) is still so incredibly ludicrous it is mind-blowing. There are so many places in the world where gamers don't have solid internet connections, and that Microsoft's statement regarding those with lack of Internet to stick with an Xbox 360, well that's just insane.

Also, don't forget about Microsoft being named in the whole PRISM scandal.

This isn't to say that Sony isn't the greatest, most perfect corporation in the world. But how they've leveraged themselves with a cheaper system, one that allows the trading of games and re-selling of them, and how aggressive they have been with indie developers makes me like them all the more. That being said I've pre-ordered my PS4 and will probably pick up Knack, inFamous and Destiny off the bat. Excited about the future of gaming though and for the PS4 and especially how it will tie into using the Vita.

Lastly, I am very excited about the new games for the WiiU. I've felt it's been a little neglected, as has everyone, but with Game & Wario coming in a week, followed by Pikmin 3 and Wonderful 101, Sonic, Wind Waker HD, Donkey Kong and Mario 3D World there's going to be tons to play. I feel next year however the WiiU will really take off, after Mario Kart and Smash Bros come out. Nintendo will do their own thing and some developers will make some exclusives, but for the most part Nintendo will just keep doing their own thing.

So, what is everyone else excited for? What have you pre-ordered?

Art of Videogames Review

This past weekend I had the chance to check out the EMP for the first time in a little while, but especially as there are currently a handful of nerdy exhibits on, one on horror movies, one for fantasy and one for videogames. This was what I was especially excited for, and while it was a bit underwhelming compared to the other two, it still was informative and nice to have a refresher course in the history of the medium.

On the main level sits the room that the Art of Videogames resides in and as you walk in you are inundated with some familiar sounds, specifically from Pac-Man and Mario Bros. They have a timeline set up along the wall and it goes from pre-Atari games up till todays current console and includes a few of my favorites, specifically the Commodore 64. That "computer" holds a special place in my heart as the first gaming system that we had, and I played a lot of Pac-Man, Impossible Mission and Montezuma's Revenge on that little guy. Funny story, I had my C64 monitor for years and used it with my PSone and PS2 until it finally died as it had such a crisp picture, compared to a regular old tube tv that is.

For each of the consoles they had chosen four games; action, adventure, strategy and shooter. For each of those there was a blown up gorgeous screen shot giclee print and some of them looked fantastic, especially the 8 bit ones for things like Zelda and Wonder Boy. As well you could listen to some great info on each game and watch clips of the games. There as well were some videos going on with interviews with game industry vets like Warren Spector talking about games and a fair amount of original concept art, and even the infamous Halo 2600 cartridge.

Centered in the room were kiosks essentially with some of the greats including Mario Bros, Myst, Pac-Man, Monkey Island and Flower that you could play for a bit. Definitely felt great to use the old NES pad and jump on some koopas. All in all there was a great amount of history presented and cases made for some of the finest games of all time and to whether or not they are art and some great information to non-gamers to let them know of the full history of the medium. It was still a little small I thought, especially as compared to the Fantasy and Horror exhibits going on but it was still worthwhile to check out and hopefully helped to inform those who don't know too much about the industry about how creative and wonderful it can be.

Also, the choice for Mass Effect 2 for the 360 was spot on.

The EMP and the Art of Video Games

A lot of people like to argue about whether or not video games are art or can be art? While I feel that they can be for sure I am excited to hit up the Experience Music Project this weekend and check out the Art of Videogames exhibit that has been going on there. I've read some favourable things about it, about the selection of the games that they've picked and the bits of history behind some of everyone's favorites like Mario, Zelda, Pitfall, Monkey Island and dozens more and overall it seems like it will definitely be something worth seeing. I quite enjoy behind the scenes looks at games and with plenty of conceptual works and interviews with developers and creators I feel like this is something that a gamer can't afford to miss. Here is a link to the EMP's site for the exhibit and I'll write more after the weekend as to how it was.

As for currently what I have been playing, I gave Monaco a try on Steam and I highly recommend getting it on there, or get it on XBLA whenever the patches are done and the game is released. It's an action packed top down bit of pixel heaven that's like a number of games but it's very own beast at the same time. As well after beating inFamous I am now on Uncharted and have been enjoying it. I do have a bit of a problem with how cheery Nathan Drake is for the amount of guys that I have slaughtered, but I digress, it's a great game with a great story so far.

The Future Is Near

It was just announced that the new XBOX reveal would happen on May 21, and be broadcast on Spike as well as on XBL and such. This is definitely welcome news as I'm interested to see what the new XBOX is going to be like. With the Wii U out now and faltering a little due to lack of games and support from Nintendo and other developers alike, and Sony's PS4 already revealed people are definitely clamoring for whatever news they can get from Microsoft. But already the rumors of always online and installing games directly to the system have left people wary, myself included, so it will be interesting to see what they have to show.

As for me personally, I'm definitely curious but at the same time I feel like the new XBOX won't be for me. As I have recently been trying to steer away from most M rated games thanks to having a new son, the titles on the 360 in general appeal less and less to me. Having a chance to finally catch up on PS3 titles on the other hand has been great. Titles like Journey, inFamous, Uncharted, Ratchet and Clank, Ico and even the Jak & Daxter games have been great to have. I got a Wii U because I love Nintendo games and want my son to play them too. Nintendo will continue to do their own little thing, receive some support but if you have a Wii U you'll probably need one of the other consoles. With the promise of next-gen iterations of inFamous, Uncharted and hopefully Last Guardian I am pretty sure that it'll be a PS4 for me.

But, we will see.

What is everyone else going to go for?

Fire Emblem - GOTY 2013 So Far...

I know that it's still early in the year and there's still plenty of great games coming out and new consoles coming out this year, but nothing has eaten up my time more and engaged me more than Fire Emblem: Awakening for the 3DS. After about 25 hours I'm still just passed half way through the game and am still grinding levels like crazy. I know that that's not an impressive amount of hours but considering I just get that gaming in on the go it's definitely occupied much of my gaming time.

The story has been fantastic, the characters great, and the rock, paper, scissors style of combat is still as fantastic as it has ever been. If you have a 3DS and you don't have this game, what's wrong with you? And if you love strategy RPG's and don't have a 3DS, definitely just go out and get one and get this game. Too good. Full review still to come.

Rebuilding a Collection

I have a fair amount of games but I have decided that really the focus of what I have and should be acquiring is games that I want my son to play, for him to have the experiences I had growing up and for him to be playing the best of the best. Part of the reason of getting a Wii U was because I love Nintendo's games and I want for him to get to play as many Nintendo games as he can. He's still a tiny guy and it's a ways off but when he grows to be a slightly bigger nerd we will have some pretty awesome gaming experiences to try out.

Lately I've been thinking about the old Playstation and Playstation 2 with the recent announcement of the PS4 and I sadly got rid of some of the best games when I moved to the coast and now feel like I need to get some of the best ones back to have on hand for when my son is old enough to play them. I know you can have a Playstation 3 and get HD collections or get the games on the digital storefront but I want to have the games in all their packaging glory. Games like Ico, Shadow of the Colossus, Bushido Blade, Crash Team Racing, Castlevania Symphony of the Night, and so forth. Excited to have a little nerd on hand.

Borderlands 2

Thanks to a good friend of mine and his stream (which you can find here) I won myself a copy of Gearbox Softwares Borderlands 2 and have finally sunk some time into one of last years best games.

Yes indeed it is one of the best games of last year, and one of the best I have played in some time.

Starting up I made myself a Commando and hopped into the world of Pandora and just like the first one, the cel shaded visual style did not disappoint. This time around though the crispness is even sharper and the creature designs are superb. I have only played through for a number of hours now and know I have barely scratched the surface of the shooting and looting and am excited for more of it. As well I will write more after I play online and couch co-op with my brothers and friends in the near future.

Thus far though Borderlands 2 has been a superb shooter and something that is far more interesting to myself than most of the other fps games out there. If you haven't played this, then pick it up for sure, and if you have what do you think?

Postscript. Fire Emblem for the 3DS comes out this weekend, expect some more talk about that one soon enough.

A Plethora of Nintendo News

This morning Nintendo dropped a new Nintendo Direct and was it ever a stunner. It started off pretty slow with some interesting news regarding the Miiverse and the 30th anniversary of the Famicom (or the NES here in America), though it should be noted that some of the news was interesting indeed. The fact that you will be able to access Miiverse from smartphones and the internet is shocking but good news in regards to the future of Nintendo. I feel that this is a step in the right direction for what Nintendo will be doing should there be a day down the road where consoles are no longer a viable option for companies like Nintendo, Sony and Microsoft. After that news came all of the juicy bits of information that we have been waiting for, the new games for the Wii U.

Probably the best bit of news is that at E3 in a matter of months there will be playable versions of a new 3D Mario, Mario Kart and Smash Bros. That's a pretty big deal. Who knows when they will be actually coming out, if even at all this year but at least we will finally get to see what is on the way. There was also some new footage shown of Wonderful 101 and that game looks brilliant. That was one of the key reasons I wanted to get a Wii U and it looks like it's shaping up nicely. Bayonetta 2, as well from Platinum Games, is still a work in progress but will be a solid exclusive for Nintendo. Speaking of exclusives, there was first footage shown of Monolithsofts new game, which was only titled 'X' but looks to be a stellar sequel to Xenoblade Chronicles, a game that I still need to play if I can get a copy of it. Also for the Wii U is coming a new mash-up, Shin Megami Tensai X Fire Emblem. Not a lot was shown or is known but it will presumably be a dungeon crawling, strategy RPG and that's fine by me.

Lastly was Zelda news. While it was noted that the new Zelda is in the works it is still a ways off from being completely revealed. This is sad news, but the good news is that coming late this summer will be an HD remake of Gamecube's Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker. That news my friends is completely insane and the shots that were shown look stunning. The fact that you can play it on the gamepad is also fantastic news, and I look forward to sinking my teeth in to that bad boy.

The Wii U has gotten off to a somewhat rocky start that is for sure, but I think it's a fantastic piece of tech and now that Nintendo is really showing what's in store I am extremely excited to dive into the HD worlds of some of my favorite franchises. How about you guys, what do you think?

Spring 2013

I just wanted to put down that these are the games that I'm looking forward to giving a go over the next few months and will do my best to do write-ups for. I'm mostly excited to be playing some new experiences on my WiiU but there are some other gems coming up that I am excited about for the 3DS and the XBOX. Here we go.

3DS
Fire Emblem: Awakening
Luigi's Mansion Dark Moon
Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate

WiiU
Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate
Lego City Undercover
Pikmin 3
The Wonderful 101
The Cave

XBOX
Darkstalkers Resurrection
Bioshock Infinite
Tomb Raider
Injustice: Gods Among Us
State of Decay

Crimson Shroud Review

If you were to ask me what some of my all time favorite video-games are, Final Fantasy Tactics almost always ranks in the top 3. It is the game that over my life I have spent the most amount of time playing, beating it 8 times and putting an insane amount of hours in every time I have played through it. I love the job system, the story (especially the PSP reissue) and I just can't get enough of it. It's one of those games that I'll never get rid of or tired of. So when I heard that FFT mastermind Yasumi Matsuno was behind a sweet new RPG coming out on the 3DS, made in conjunction with Level-5 and their Guild01 series, I was extremely excited.

This game does not disappoint.

Matsuno has made this as a tribute as it were, to tabletop RPGs like Dungeons & Dragons and the like and it shows. The characters and monsters are all figures with broad bases, no animations involved, and when a monster is slain it tips over revealing a little Level-5 marking on the base; it's very clever. The dungeons that you go through are very detailed and as you progress through the game the narrator, essentially a dungeon master, reveals details about the environments, the characters, and more backstory is revealed via the narrator or through dialogue between Giaque and his crew of adventurers. The characters are charming, the world is especially detailed, and the more you play the more you uncover of the plot of political maneuverings and dastardly dealings that one should expect if you are a fan of Matsuno's work. It should also be noted that the soundtrack is phenomenal and is probably the best music I have heard on the 3DS thus far.

While there is great depth in the story there is a bit of a falter by way of the combat in the game. You will get into plenty of battles and while there are some techniques of note that stand out, for the most part it is quite a bit of a grind. This is especially because you never actually gain a level, not in the least. Your characters stay at a base set of stats and as you acquire more items and weapons you can meld these together to make more powerful swords, bows, armor, helmets and such. An interesting thing you can do is if you get a magic scroll you can use them in battle if needed, or you can meld those to a characters equipment to give them that skill. There is also a lot of dice rolling involved, to see if you can successfully attack large monsters, sneak past others, charm a monster, etc. This is actually pretty fun and it's fun to use the touch screen to "toss" the virtual dice. As well, there is a chain system kind of similar to that in Vagrant Story, where each ability or attack is tied to a different element and if you continually use different ones and create a chain, you will get bonus dice to add as modifiers to attacks and spells and such. All in all it is a pretty interesting system, but it still feels a bit lacking. Perhaps this comes from decades playing RPGs and the basic need to level up, or the lack of animations in the battling or the grind of fighting rooms of goblins over and over again. Whatever the case, it still feels a bit off compared to the rest of the game but hasn't kept me from sinking tons of time into the game.

Overall this is a fantastic game, and if you have a 3DS and love RPGs this is a fine way to spend 8 dollars. That's right, 8 dollars and you get a phenomenal experience that is far better than the bulk of what I have played lately. Bottom line is get this game, you won't be disappointed.

Score A-