"I've always wondered what it would be like to feel like a kid again. Now I know." This was one of the first things I said along with, "Sweet!" and, "Oh shi-" upon entering what I believe to be the largest arcade I've ever been in. Off in the distance, I could see a racing section with virtual motorcycles and cars. To my right I could see imported fighting games. Up above, I could see that there were more games upstairs. Hot damn, I was excited. I realize this post isn't my standard review, but it's an account of arcade gaming which is something I rarely get to do. A friend prompted me to give an account of my arcade experience, so I will do so here.
Despite this being the largest arcade I've been in, it was also one of the strangest. I mean, how many arcades that you know of have a bar? Then again, how many arcades do you know of, period? Probably not many unfortunately. Regardless, there was a wide variety of stuff to play. There were common arcade staples like DDR and Time Crisis, but there were some games you rarely see in arcades like a 4 machine-linked Outrun 2 SP Special Deluxe (with 2 driver seats in each vehicle) and imports like Street Fighter IV and Tatsunoko vs. Capcom. The arcade also had a wide array of games for both more casual and more hardcore players. The idea is clearly to appeal to all crowds, but it still seems odd to have something as casual as virtual bowling just a few steps away from something as hardcore as Street Fighter IV. Despite being a big fan of Street Fighter IV and an even bigger fan of Initial D, I have to say the game I was most impressed with was the linked Outrun 2.
The machine has an excellent design for group play. There are 4 "cars" that are all linked together for multiplayer. Each car has two seats, each with a full set of gas and brake pedals, a steering wheel, and a shifter. Sounds pretty beastly, right? It is, and if you're curious as to what it looks like, you can give a quick glance here at Segaarcade.com. The idea is that, when 2 people are in one car, if a person crashes or clears a stage, control will be switched over to the other player. Think of a weird Mario Kart Double Dash where you can't switch out at will... only replace Nintendo characters with Ferrari vehicles... and instead of merely finding it decent, I absolutely loved this game. Each of the cars has some amount of motion included as well, so when you turn your in-game car to the right, your car will tilt a bit accordingly. It's certainly not an accurate motion "simulator", but it does add something. As for the spectator, each of the cars in the machine has a camera to the left of the wheel that will record the faces of the "riders" of each car. It won't distract the player, and it's a fun addition for the spectator. This is truly a very well designed arcade machine. Of course, because of all these neat features, it has to be insanely expensive. I tried to look for prices online, but after a few minutes with no results, I came to the conclusion that I probably don't want to know the price.
Moving away from the driving section, let's talk about the shooters. I'm going to talk about one in particular, since I doubt I'll be seeing it anywhere else, that being The House of the Dead 4: Special. We all know what the House of the Dead is... so what makes a "special edition?" How about having the players strapped in to a roller-coaster-like seat that spins you around so you can shoot at enemies that are pursuing you from behind? Awesome. Otherwise you've got classic shooter gameplay. The hero and heroine step out of JCpenney's and into a zombie apocalypse. Okay, I stole the JCpenney's thing from my friend, Carlos, who I played with, but he's onto something. Seriously, look! Particularly the girl, what's with that scarf? Still, the game was awesome, but it was clearly a "date game." I found out that I have a 68% compatibility with Carlos. Our characters hugged. Maybe the game heard me when I yelled, "I love you, bro!" Yeah, my sincerest apologies to Carlos, I was pretty obnoxious when I played, but it seemed obligatory given the circumstances. At least I don't think I was as obnoxious as the attendant who yelled, "Welcome to CarnEvil!" upon our starting the game. Oh well, it's all in good fun. My only problem with the game was that I had some serious issues throwing grenades. You're supposed to press and hold down a button on the light gun, the idea being the longer you hold it, the farther you throw it. Unfortunately, I would continuously just tap the button because I didn't want to throw the grenade very far. Apparently it wasn't enough to warrant throwing the grenade to just tap the button. Can't we go back to the really old school method of just shooting the grenade on-screen?
These are some good examples of what I like about arcades. For one, there is no home version of House of the Dead 4, but even if there was, you'd never get to play like you would in this scenario. Outrun is an even better example in my opinion. Home versions of the game are still fun, but you can't help but feel a little disappointed when you play the home version after playing that beast in an arcade setting. Even games that don't have super advanced cabinets have a certain feel to them that can't be matched at home. Unfortunately, there wasn't a lot of Street Fighter competition this time, but I think it just wasn't a night for the SF crowd. I could probably go on forever about this arcade, so I think I'll stop it here. There was a lot of good about this place, but unfortunately there were a few minor problems. One of the SF IV cabinets had a faulty fierce punch. It's bad enough to have any buttons being faulty on a pricey import like SF IV, but fierce punch? That renders Ken unplayable. If only you could disable fierce punch in online matches... There were a few other machines that were out of commission, but such is the nature of an arcade. My biggest problem with the place is that it's a 2-hour drive one-way to get to it. I wish arcades weren't dead and were still around. Oh well, I guess I'll have to accept that people would much prefer playing WoW or other online games. I guess at least with WoW, you don't have to keep putting money into it if you want to keep playing.
Oh... wait...
That's all for now, so until next time, Game Over.
Sunday, November 29, 2009
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
"What, you think this is a volleyball? Get with the game, chump!"
They say the best things in life are free. Despite this rarely applying to video games, I present to you a rare instance of a game that supports the old saying: Barkley, Shut up and Jam: Gaiden, Chapter 1 of the Hoopz Barkley SaGa. Before I begin, I'd like to reiterate the fact that this game is FREE. You can get it here and I strongly suggest that you do. As the name suggests, you're in for a humorous gaming experience, but my reasons for recommending this game go far, FAR beyond the hilarity. However, if this review seems a bit lacking or vague at times, it is merely because I am trying (with great difficulty) to make sure that I don't spoil any of the game. I believe here it is important to mention that the game is an RPG. Yep, that's right, an RPG with Charles Barkley... but that's just the beginning.
As I stated before, I don't want to spoil any of the game because the humor is at its finest when you see it for yourself. What I can tell you, however, is that the story is hilarious. At times, the game was difficult to put down because I simply had to see where Barkley would end up next. It is true that the game will make many references to basketball and people involved in the sport, but it doesn't matter. I know very little about basketball and still enjoyed this game thoroughly.
For many, the most important part of an RPG is the story, and although in this regard Barkley, SU&J:G will not disappoint, there is so much more to this game. I started this game for the novelty and hilarity, but the gameplay is no joke. Going into this game, I expected simple turn-based battles like those of the original Final Fantasy or Dragon Warrior. While this game still uses a variation of turn-based battles, I was pleasantly surprised to see that this game has a more active battle system. For starters, the game doesn't use random battles. The enemies can be seen on the overworld screen and approached from behind for a preemptive attack. In addition, the battles themselves are more engaging. For example, one of Barkley's attacks has you holding down the action button while a cursor goes up and down through a target zone. If you time it right and release the button when the cursor is in the middle of this zone, more damage will be dealt to the enemies. Although not an entirely new innovation, as similar battle systems are found in the Mario and Luigi and Paper Mario games, it's far above and beyond what you'd expect from a free game made by a few people in an RPG Maker program. In addition, not only does Barkley have two other attacks that use different action mechanisms, there are several other playable characters that are met throughout the game and every single character has their own individual attack mechanisms. That's right, you won't just find yourself doing the same timing trick over and over; every character has different moves that are all done through varying active commands. This is very impressive to say the least.
Another aspect of some importance is that of the graphics. The graphics look to be about the kind of graphics that would be seen on the SNES. They're not ugly by any means, but they aren't particularly aesthetically pleasing either. However, the creators used these less than perfect graphics to their advantage. In fact, these limitations actually added to the humor on several occasions. At one point, I found myself squinting at a smaller sprite roaming about the overworld, thinking it looked somewhat familiar, but I couldn't place my finger on why. When the bigger, more fleshed out sprite appeared in battle, I laughed hysterically at the now clear image. There are other instances in the game where before you talk to a character, you see a sprite and think, "is that... no it can't be..." which makes it that much funnier when you talk to the person and see them up close. When playing Barkley, SU&J:G, be sure to have an astute eye for some of the sprites, as some of them are jokes in and of themselves.
One more aspect that absolutely cannot go unnoticed is that of the music. The creators did an excellent job of composing tracks that fit the various settings, particularly the boss battle theme. However, in addition to these original compositions, there are a few other tracks throughout the game that are taken from other sources. On these rare occasions, the other tracks are used for humor purposes, and trust me when I say it's absolutely hilarious. Unfortunately, saying much aside from that would spoil some of the funniest moments of the game, but it should go without saying that it's important to keep the speakers on when playing this one so as to not miss any of the fun.
At 6-7 hours of gameplay, Barkley, SU&J:G never overstays its welcome while still offering a game of satisfying length and promises to be one of the funniest games you'll ever play. Despite it not being a major title from Square-Enix or a smash hit from Atlus, Barkley, Shut up and Jam: Gaiden proves to slam with the best as opposed to merely jam with the rest.
As I stated before, I don't want to spoil any of the game because the humor is at its finest when you see it for yourself. What I can tell you, however, is that the story is hilarious. At times, the game was difficult to put down because I simply had to see where Barkley would end up next. It is true that the game will make many references to basketball and people involved in the sport, but it doesn't matter. I know very little about basketball and still enjoyed this game thoroughly.
For many, the most important part of an RPG is the story, and although in this regard Barkley, SU&J:G will not disappoint, there is so much more to this game. I started this game for the novelty and hilarity, but the gameplay is no joke. Going into this game, I expected simple turn-based battles like those of the original Final Fantasy or Dragon Warrior. While this game still uses a variation of turn-based battles, I was pleasantly surprised to see that this game has a more active battle system. For starters, the game doesn't use random battles. The enemies can be seen on the overworld screen and approached from behind for a preemptive attack. In addition, the battles themselves are more engaging. For example, one of Barkley's attacks has you holding down the action button while a cursor goes up and down through a target zone. If you time it right and release the button when the cursor is in the middle of this zone, more damage will be dealt to the enemies. Although not an entirely new innovation, as similar battle systems are found in the Mario and Luigi and Paper Mario games, it's far above and beyond what you'd expect from a free game made by a few people in an RPG Maker program. In addition, not only does Barkley have two other attacks that use different action mechanisms, there are several other playable characters that are met throughout the game and every single character has their own individual attack mechanisms. That's right, you won't just find yourself doing the same timing trick over and over; every character has different moves that are all done through varying active commands. This is very impressive to say the least.
Another aspect of some importance is that of the graphics. The graphics look to be about the kind of graphics that would be seen on the SNES. They're not ugly by any means, but they aren't particularly aesthetically pleasing either. However, the creators used these less than perfect graphics to their advantage. In fact, these limitations actually added to the humor on several occasions. At one point, I found myself squinting at a smaller sprite roaming about the overworld, thinking it looked somewhat familiar, but I couldn't place my finger on why. When the bigger, more fleshed out sprite appeared in battle, I laughed hysterically at the now clear image. There are other instances in the game where before you talk to a character, you see a sprite and think, "is that... no it can't be..." which makes it that much funnier when you talk to the person and see them up close. When playing Barkley, SU&J:G, be sure to have an astute eye for some of the sprites, as some of them are jokes in and of themselves.
One more aspect that absolutely cannot go unnoticed is that of the music. The creators did an excellent job of composing tracks that fit the various settings, particularly the boss battle theme. However, in addition to these original compositions, there are a few other tracks throughout the game that are taken from other sources. On these rare occasions, the other tracks are used for humor purposes, and trust me when I say it's absolutely hilarious. Unfortunately, saying much aside from that would spoil some of the funniest moments of the game, but it should go without saying that it's important to keep the speakers on when playing this one so as to not miss any of the fun.
At 6-7 hours of gameplay, Barkley, SU&J:G never overstays its welcome while still offering a game of satisfying length and promises to be one of the funniest games you'll ever play. Despite it not being a major title from Square-Enix or a smash hit from Atlus, Barkley, Shut up and Jam: Gaiden proves to slam with the best as opposed to merely jam with the rest.
Friday, November 13, 2009
More like DUPLO Rock Band...
When I first saw previews for Lego Rock Band several months ago, I looked at them with disgust. I have loved the Guitar Hero games since the beginning and was equally excited the first time I played the original Rock Band. However, despite being a big fan, I have to admit that the Guitar Hero/Rock Band craze has gotten a little out of hand. Guitar Hero's got, 1-5, rocks the 80s, Aerosmith, Metallica, and Van Halen in addition to 3 DS games and an arcade game. Rock Band doesn't have quite as large of a library, but it's got 1-2, Beatles, 6 track packs, and Unplugged. I should say, it had all of those. Now it also has Lego Rock Band. The next logical step right?
I can't say anything about the actual console Lego Rock Band, but I can talk about the DS version and compare it to PSP's Rock Band: Unplugged. When I first started playing, I was expecting gameplay identical to RB: Unplugged with a different set-list. For the most part, my presumptions were correct, but there are some differences.
The first, and most obvious difference is the difficulty. Granted, I was expecting this game to be easier than Unplugged due to it's "family-friendly" nature, but I'm still a little shocked at how easy it is. I realize that sounds incredibly arrogant, but this requires a little explanation. RB: Unplugged uses the same merciless system that Amplitude and Frequency used so many years earlier. You have to get entire phrases at a time, not just individual notes like you do in GH and RB on consoles. Translated: if you have a 40 note phrase and hit 39 notes but miss the last note, in terms of your lifebar/rock meter/whatever, it's the same as if you hadn't hit any of those 40 notes. Lego Rock Band is far more merciful. After capturing a phrase, you could switch to another track and probably sit there for about 10 notes before playing any and it wouldn't cost you your multiplier.
While I can hardly hold it against a game that has, "Lego" in the title, it does seem to be a bit too forgiving. This isn't my main problem however. The system, although similar to RB: Unplugged's, has a slight difference that makes it feel awkward. Standard rules that apply to Amplitude, Frequency, and RB: Unplugged state that after you complete a phrase, notes on that track disappear forcing you to switch to another track. This rule does not apply to Lego Rock Band which makes for an incredibly awkward experience. Instead of the track disappearing upon completion, it will instead momentarily go transparent but you can continue to play these notes. It seemed as though the game never actually requires you to switch tracks. I decided to test this theory and found that it is absolutely correct.
THIS stands out as a huge problem to me. For example, right now, I'm looking at a screen that tells me my accuracy on the previous song. For bass, drums, and microphone, there's simply a dash as I never changed the track, and there is a "100%" for guitar. This yielded me a 4-star score. Granted you'll never get a 5-star this way, but it seems to me that it's a big problem if a major game mechanic isn't even required.
In conclusion, the game isn't terrible, but has some rather large flaws. The song list is, as always, subject to personal opinion (though this one has something like 5 emo songs...) The Lego presentation is cute, but that's not what I was looking at here. In the end, you've got a small little diversion that has some fun songs but nothing more. Oh, and the game left me with one very important question. Can I actually get a Lego figurine of Freddie Mercury?
I can't say anything about the actual console Lego Rock Band, but I can talk about the DS version and compare it to PSP's Rock Band: Unplugged. When I first started playing, I was expecting gameplay identical to RB: Unplugged with a different set-list. For the most part, my presumptions were correct, but there are some differences.
The first, and most obvious difference is the difficulty. Granted, I was expecting this game to be easier than Unplugged due to it's "family-friendly" nature, but I'm still a little shocked at how easy it is. I realize that sounds incredibly arrogant, but this requires a little explanation. RB: Unplugged uses the same merciless system that Amplitude and Frequency used so many years earlier. You have to get entire phrases at a time, not just individual notes like you do in GH and RB on consoles. Translated: if you have a 40 note phrase and hit 39 notes but miss the last note, in terms of your lifebar/rock meter/whatever, it's the same as if you hadn't hit any of those 40 notes. Lego Rock Band is far more merciful. After capturing a phrase, you could switch to another track and probably sit there for about 10 notes before playing any and it wouldn't cost you your multiplier.
While I can hardly hold it against a game that has, "Lego" in the title, it does seem to be a bit too forgiving. This isn't my main problem however. The system, although similar to RB: Unplugged's, has a slight difference that makes it feel awkward. Standard rules that apply to Amplitude, Frequency, and RB: Unplugged state that after you complete a phrase, notes on that track disappear forcing you to switch to another track. This rule does not apply to Lego Rock Band which makes for an incredibly awkward experience. Instead of the track disappearing upon completion, it will instead momentarily go transparent but you can continue to play these notes. It seemed as though the game never actually requires you to switch tracks. I decided to test this theory and found that it is absolutely correct.
THIS stands out as a huge problem to me. For example, right now, I'm looking at a screen that tells me my accuracy on the previous song. For bass, drums, and microphone, there's simply a dash as I never changed the track, and there is a "100%" for guitar. This yielded me a 4-star score. Granted you'll never get a 5-star this way, but it seems to me that it's a big problem if a major game mechanic isn't even required.
In conclusion, the game isn't terrible, but has some rather large flaws. The song list is, as always, subject to personal opinion (though this one has something like 5 emo songs...) The Lego presentation is cute, but that's not what I was looking at here. In the end, you've got a small little diversion that has some fun songs but nothing more. Oh, and the game left me with one very important question. Can I actually get a Lego figurine of Freddie Mercury?
Monday, November 9, 2009
(Static hissing) Nori!
"It all started when we first said, 'Let’s play this shitty game.'
We played a game that’s so lame and bad that soon we went insane.
An awful beat-em up (sonna koto nai!)
with no hit de-tect-ion. (ano ogiri!)
And diff-i-cul-ty far bey-ond the de-mo-graph-ic’s skill! (Eins zwei drei!)
THE D-S PUFFY AMIYUMI GAME!
D-S PUFFY AMIYUMI GAME!
D-S PUFFY AMIYUMI GAME!
Anything is possible..."
Evidently anything is possible if you can take a beat-em-up and screw it up this bad. Okay, so I might be exaggerating a little... but not much. Let's delve into the catastrophe that is, "Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi: The Genie and the Amp."
When you think about the Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi show, what's the first thing that comes to mind? If it isn't suicide, you probably think of the poor animation, bad jokes, and un-hilarious antics of the dynamic duo. Let's divert our attention away from the show, however, and towards the viewer demographic. I would think that most of us think of the demographic as being children, predominantly girls. Having said that, most of us would assume that a video game based on a cartoon would be targeted towards fans of the cartoon. I highly doubt that any kid would have the patience to beat this garbage.
Let me take a moment to explain. To be fair, the game starts off with allowing you to choose between one of two difficulties: "Hard rock" or "Easy listening." Being 19 and 21 respectively, my friend and I decided to go with the harder difficulty. We screwed up, and we screwed up bad.
As soon as the game started up, we thought we knew what to expect. Run, beat up a few enemies, get to the boss and beat him up. What we hadn't planned on, however, was getting our asses kicked. Now, each level does have a checkpoint in it. However, in the first level of the game, it took my friend and I somewhere between 30 and 40 minutes to reach the checkpoint. Granted, there wasn't a lot of level after that, but it's still unreasonable. I think it goes without saying, but just in case it doesn't, if you die before reaching that checkpoint, you're going to be starting the entire level over. What a pain in the ass.
Eventually, after many vulgarities, we found ourselves at the second level. Though more of the same crap, it was much easier. Maybe we were just getting more situated (a scary thought). Nothing could prepare us for the amount of bullshit we would be confronted with in the next level.
Without going into detail, we found ourselves at the boss of this level pretty quickly. "Thank God," we thought, "Maybe the game's not going to take so long after all." Oh how were we wrong. Oh shit how we were wrong. The boss of this level is actually a group of three enemies. Well, as though being raped from 3 sides isn't bad enough, there's a catch, and it's a HUGE catch. Before any damage can be inflicted on these three enemies, you first have to hit Kaz, who is running around like his ass is on fire. It's at this point where the game really turns to complete garbage. The hit detection on Kaz is atrocious. In fact, I'm not even sure if "atrocious" is enough to describe just how bad the hit detection is here. I have done running attacks (cartwheels) into him and just sort of rolled in place. I'll try and kick him in his face and he'll walk past me leaving me standing in place kicking around like I've got some serious muscle spasms. This, of course, leaves me completely open to take hits from the enemies which quickly leads to my demise.
Eventually, we were able to finish this level, but what the hell is wrong here? Two males, 19 and 21, who are relatively skilled in the ways of video games are standing up, cheering, and fist-pumping at the end of a level of a Hi Hi Puffy Amiyumi DS game. Something is seriously wrong with this situation. Tragically, this isn't even the worst part... We're not even half-way through the game yet. Ugh... look for Part 2 later on where I conclude my thoughts on this game.
Saturday, November 7, 2009
Teacher, mother, secret lover...
Television? For Homer Simpson, yes. For me, however, video games filled these roles more than television. I constantly find myself ranting/raving about whatever game I'm playing at the time, likely to the annoyance of those around me. On several occasions, I've had a few friends say, "Dude, you should write a blog." I presume I'm told this because it is a courteous alternative to, "shut up," but either way I've decided to start a blog. Though the main intent of this blog is to share my thoughts on the various games I've played, there are sure to be plenty of "bonuses." For example, I've taken on a quest to find the worst-tasting beer out there. Posts are sure to follow on that topic. I may also have special features for terrible games. (For instance, a friend and I are suffering our way through one right now.) This way at least I can pretend to review games. Unfortunately, I highly doubt I'll be able to get a job reviewing games, but a man can dream... a man can dream.
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