Nintendo Juggernauts

I'm way behind on games, and as such a ton of very high profile games has gone by without me so much as saying a word. For now, I'll focus on some of the older ones - Smash Brothers Brawl and Mario Kart. They may be 'old hat' by now, but as 2 of the biggest names in the Nintendo arsenal (in company with the likes of Zelda, Mario and Metroid) these games may remain the last 'high profile' remake that Nintendo churns out for a while (Mario, Zelda, and Metroid having already debuted on the Wii).

Since it came first, I'll start with Smash Brothers Brawl. The anticipation for this game could not have been higher - melee was perhaps my most played multiplayer game of last generation, competing only with World of Warcraft in terms of time played with friends. The original Smash Brothers game helped to define the N64 as the multiplayer console of choice (along with Goldeneye, Perfect Dark, F-Zero X and Mario Kart 64) and Smash Brothers Melee took the low budget, almost 'technical demo' feel of the original Smash, improved upon it ten-fold and polished it until it gleemed. To improve upon melee was in and of itself a nearly impossible task, and yet while this was accomplished impressively, I can't help but feel let down by Brawl to some extent.

In many ways, Brawl suffers from the hype and build up that many high profile games eventually fall prey to (especially long-development games). For all that Brawl was, it could not stand up to the imaginations of it's rabid followers, and since Melee was so incredible people were expecting things that could not feasibly be done. Give them Sonic, and suddenly they want dozens of third party characters. Give them a stage builder and suddenly then they demand it to be massive in scope and customizable to an increidbly detailed level. Give them online and they want an entire infrastructure with dozens of customization options, flawless latency regardless of personal connection and 100% up time starting on day 1. Give them single player and suddenly they want the story mode longer and more complex and more involved. The list goes on and on.

Now, I don't think Brawl was a "10/10", if one must think of such things on a numerical scale. In fact, the only game in recent memory that I have played that felt even remotely close to 10/10 was Portal. This includes GTAIV (to be discussed later). But just because a hotly anticipated title does not reach perfection by no means makes it a 'bad' game. Smash Brothers in an incredible game, overflowing with so much content that to complete it all might take you the entire life of the system to accomplish, if not more. Brawl will still be some of the most fun you'll ever have with 4 people, and it even significantly beefs up the longevity of the game for someone who plays it alone as you now have both an entire single-player story mode as well as online play to keep you going strong.

To me, Brawl is the defacto Smash Brothers experience. When all is said and done, it takes the near-perfection of Melee, expands the roster, throws in new items, modes, options, levels, tprophies, customization AND adds online play. I would never return to Melee to play Smash Brothers, there's no reason to unless you prefer some of the subtle nuances in Melee's (broken) physics system. From here on out, Brawl is the new standard in terms of what a 4 player fighter must to do push the envelope and remain on top. It does exactly what a sequel should do - take an established franchise and find new ways to push the envelope, expand the game and build upon the core experience, all while remaining fun to play. In this, Smash Brothers Brawl excels more than most, providing an astonishingly huge amount of new content, experiences, options and modes in a genre that typically only updates the graphics and rosters.

Are there problems? Sure. Some people say that online doesn't work (although, in my experience, it works fine). The fighting is not quite as tight as it is when played locally, but for a game whose entire experiences revolves around millisecond response times, it is enough to make the game playable and enjoyable. What really hurts the online experience is the puzzling lack of voice chat. Even if only available in a "Lobby" setting, thise would have made choosing games online with friends far less awkward and confusing. You can get around this by playing locally or perhaps communicating via IM or phone, but then you are rushing to make contact as you fight against the clock to choose your character and next stage. Then you don't even know why your friend left, or if he wants to leave soon... it takes all of the fun out of the multiplayer and boils it down to what might as well be you playing a (possibly) more intelligent AI. Despite the fact that online works for me, I still wait for friends to come over to play Brawl - this, to me, is the full extent of the multiplayer experience, not small text bubbles and taunts.

The stage 'builder' is a great idea but suffers from complete lack of originality and a depressingly small number of items to build from. I've seen a few nice ideas come from the stage builder mode - the 'daily' customized stage is also a nice feature - but compared to the enviornment and character of the levels shipped with the game they look absolutely bland.

Story mode is entertaining perhaps once through, but it has very little to make you want to come back for more, much less at higher difficulties. This may be because the fighting characters are tasked with performing strange and often times awkward platformer-esque elements while being chained to their fighting style. What's worse, co-op story mode is an awkward wreck that at times punishes players for bringing a friend instead of rewarding them for playing together. The 'stickers' provide the basis for a great rpg-esque way to imrpove your characters that revolves around rewarding you for collecting items and playing more, but it fails to remain addictive considering the amount of painstaking work that must be done to obtain many of them... only to lose them if you decide to use it to power up your character. It starts off very impressive, with each character beginning in their own location and allowing the levels to cater to the strengths and weaknesses of those characters. As you get near the end, though, and you may choose your poison, larger and less mobile characters are more likely to lead to frustration than fun as they start to fail some of the more complex portions of the 'platforming' sections of the game. Overall, the "Subspace Emissary" was an enjoyable experience and a Nintendo Fan's greatest dream materialized onto disk, but only the most dedicated of trophy/sticker collectors will come back for a second or third attempt at this awkward platformer.

All these faults aside, however, the Smash Brothers experience is still not one to be missed. Whenever I have 4 friends over, Brawl is still the standard go-to for 4 person multiplayer, Rock Band being a close-to-distant second depending upon player skill. To say that the game is "bad" or that it is not worth playing because it being a few flaws short of sheer perfection is nothing more than a rabid fanbase being let down by their own wild imaginations in anticipation. If you own a Wii and like the genre, you should own this game. Like Melee, it will probably end up being the most played game on your Nintendo system this generation.

Now it's time for (yet another) largely multiplayer affair: Mario Kart Wii. The Wii is well known for being that all-inclusive, local player party console. Ironically, Nintendo has been that way since the N64 with the inclusion of 4 controllers on a single console. What started with Goldeneye, Perfect Dark, Mario Kart 64 and Smash Brothers has continued in spirit through the Gamecube and Wii. Meanwhile, the PS1, Ps2 and PS3 are known for largely single player affairs and the Xbox/360 are known for networked games over Live. Up to this point in the Wii's lifetime it was not known for excellent online games (Mario Strikers? Pokemon? Even Brawl was troubled for some people) so hearing that Mario Kart was going online with 12 people was not met with the same enthusiasm as perhaps I should have had.

The Mario Kart series has always been fun to me, but at the same time I don't 'love' it like many people would. I completely skipped over Double Dash (despite actually enjoying the dual-kart mechanic) and the Super Circuit (for the GBA). It even took me several months of having the DS version of the game before finally starting to get into it, but I was largely wrapped up in the single player portions and challenges.

I'm not an enthusiastic fan of racing games, and a game like Mario Kart - where you vie for first place by use of objects that generally lead towards equalizing the playing field - is not won on skill nearly as much as luck/opportunity. The same can be said, in a sense, for Smash Brothers. Obviously, there is some skill involved, but when the only reason you lose is because you were hit by 2 blue turtle shells right before the end of the race, it doesnt' feel that way. This makes for close games that tend to spread the fun around - great for local parties with close friends - but as an online experience it is almost as frustrating as it is fun. So while the online is fun, well integrated and almost flawless as an experience, the game makes me tend to play offline instead of online. I have played online with friends - which is how I know the system actually works smoothly - but the limitations of communication really hold back and prevent it from being a 'great' online game.

Offline the game is a blast, and the wii wheel actually improves the experience instead of retracts from it (a first, IMO, from a cheap plastic peripheral). Your control isn't quite as precise so obviously professionals will want to stick to the controller, but there's something about a room full of people madly leaning left and right to try and eek a bit more turn out of a controller that makes the game that much more entertaining and involving. It also makes the game much more accessible to the coveted 'casual' market and means you can play with your parents or grandparents or even little siblings without having to spend hours trying to get them to wrap their head around confusing button placement and combinations.

Unfortunately for Mario Kart Wii, it's greatest fault is that it has to compete with so many other multiplayer games that, for the 'core' gamer, it will go largely unplayed. Most of these gamers will spend their time playing Brawl (or CoD4, Halo, Rock Band, etc) than they will Mario Kart. However, for the 'casual' gamer, such as my parents or younger siblings, Mario Kart represents probably the best of what Wii has to offer: a multiplayer experience that is boiled down to simple, intuitive controls that is enjoyable for everyone regardless of who wins or loses. Expect to hear core gamers frequently complain about how they never play Mario Kart and how you shouldn't get it, but if your father is getting tired of play Tiger Woods and your mother is looking for something more social than Brain Age, Mario Kart Wii represents that perfect Nintendo blend of simplicity and depth that will help make your family holidays that much more enjoyable.

Mario Kart single player is your standard fare, drive through cups to win 1st place and unlock stuff. Nintendo definitely went all out with Mario Kart Wii, though, throwing in more than a half dozen unlockable characters and tons of unlockable bikes/karts. Unfortunately, most of these can only be unlocked in single player so if you only like to play with others then you're stuck with the bare-bones, out of the box options. I find it somewhat curious that special things must be 'unlocked' - I understand that thought process behind it (give people something to aim for and a reason to keep playing) but at the same time it almost feels like a punishment for those who don't have time or skill to play that much. I much prefer Xbox360/Steam achievements - that give you goals and bragging rights outside of the standard game - as that means you are not limited to the content you can access.

I personally am only halfway through the 100CC class and have barely scratched the surface on time trials so the number of characters and vehicles that I've 'unlocked' is paltry at best. Most of my time is spent playing Mario Kart multiplayer with friends and family, and my single player time is devoted to other, more single-player oriented games (currently Eternal Sonata and FFTA2) to have time for Mario Kart's frustrating game of "dodge the blue shells to victory". I'm not one of those people who feels the AI is more 'rubberband' like than it was in previous games (despite having skipped several), but with 12 carts on the same track you are bound to have more items on the field at all times. It is just annoying to finish 3 races in first only to have bad luck ruin your fourth and final race and set you back a whole half hour's worth of effort. For someone who's time is becoming a more and more precious commodity, to have things like this occur become more and more irritating. It's a fine line between 'difficult' and 'frustrating', and Mario Kart Wii definitely falls into the 'frustrating' category at times.

In the end, Mario Kart Wii remains a very good game that is held back by a flood of other multiplayer games (Smash Bros, WoW, Rock Band) and a (sometimes) aggravating single player experience, which is feel has always been the case for Mario Kart games. It has definitely been worth the investment - my family loves it and it is something that everyone can enjoy without needing much experience or being too overwhelmed (as opposed to Smash Brothers). It has usurped Tiger Woods Wii as the 'time with family' game of choice. There is enough here to make the game worth the investment over time - especially if you find yourself wanting games to play without people who aren't quite 'gamers' - but don't be surprised if your close friends will prefer challenging themselves to Rock Band on Expert, fragging each other in Call of Duty 4 or duking it out in Super Smash Brothers. That's how it was on the N64, that's how it was on the Gamecube, and that's how it will always be - but that does not make Mario Kart Wii a 'bad game'. It just makes it a niche one, and it fills it quite nicely.

Sorry it took so long to finish these reviews - crazy things like PAX, hurricane Ike, work and other personal reasons have prevented me from having as much free time as I like. I'm trying to work towards a more stable update schedule - I may not make 'weekly', but I'd at least like to challenge myself to have these done in a timely manner so it's not a guessing game for you as to when they are done. Speaking of what's next:

Currently playing:
Eternal Sonata (360)
Spore (PC)
Final Fantasy Tactics Advanced 2 (DS)

What should be next:
GTA IV (360)
Saint's Row (360)
The World Ends With You (DS)
Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow (DS)

Looks like next blog may be my comparison of GTAIV to Saint's Row. You might find my conclusions somewhat surprising.

Buy 1, get 2 free!

Recovering from my China trip and my bike accident has put me ridiculously behind schedule, more on writing reviews than playing games, so I'll give a 3 for 1 deal here. One time only. Maybe. (Saint's Row and GTAIV will likely be a 2 for 1 as they'll be compared together anyway).

First let's start with the bad news: Undertow.

First of all, I only got this because it was free, and boy, am I glad that was the case. While the game itself is not terrible, it has so many flaws that you can not enjoy it as the sum of its parts, but instead hate it for what it attempts to be yet falls flat on its face doing. Please understand that, when I say this, this genre in no way appeals to me so it is fighting an uphill battle from the start. I am certainly willing to accept new genres if they are presented well or end up being fun (Half-life or Goldeneye, for instance, despite my dislike overall for FPSs').

Perhaps Undertow was too big for the restrictions of XBLA. This doesn't seem likely, though, as graphically it is very impressive - especially considering size limitations and that fact that it is 3d. Unfortunately, 3d on XBLA is like 3d on the DS or n64, at least in terms of quality. I'd rather have an artistically well done 2d game that uses the HD resolutions of my TV than a 3d game that, while impressive, looks awkward and poor at higher resolutions. Some 3d games can live within the size limitations caused by 3d (see: Penny Arcade game, although that is a different story) but I still probably would've preferred a sharper 2-d based game even with that. 3d games with restrictive graphic requirements must be done by a very artistically talented team (i.e. most anything Blizzard has ever made and some of the "3d remakes" done by Square-Enix on the DS) in order to be pulled off well.

Graphics in this case, however, are irrelevant. The game itself is very uninteresting, the gameplay was wonky and hard to figure out (the tutorial, as long as it is, hardly helps), and overall the experience falls flat. I certainly couldn't get into the single player campaign and, even though I beat it, only did so to try and see if the game had any redeeming qualities later once you unlocked stuff (it does not). Two player almost made it worse - with the exception that the game could now be "MST3K'd" - and we never even made it past the first few levels.

Maybe I'm just hating on the genre. Maybe I'm not competitive enough for the multiplayer or not interested enough in the "deep" strategy (hint: faster == less powerful, SO DEEP). Maybe I'm being unfair... but that's OK, because I didn't like the game and that's how it is. I've certainly played worse on XBLA (Yaris, I'm looking at you) but even for free, I couldn't really see myself recommending this. It shows some promise but compared to, say, Geometry Wars it is hardly worth the investment of your time, let alone your money.

Next up, the good news: Penny Arcade Adventures: On the Rain Slick Precipice of Darkness.

If you've never heard of Penny Arcade, you should go online and read some of the comics assuming you like any of the following (more is better):

- Video Games
- Technology
- Cartoon Violence
- Vulgarity
- Big Words

The Penny Arcade Game acts as a sort of 3d cartoon, where you are thrown into the world with well known heroes Tycho "I like big words" Brahe and Jonathan "Simpleton" Gabriel (nicknames my own). The plot is unique and the humor is spot-on for the series, and the animation parts are even extraordinarily well done, especially when you consider it was done in Flash and not by Gabe. Tycho does some of his best writing in this game, using the narrator, item descriptions and sequence of events to both mystify and humor you at the same time. Gabe's artwork is well mimicked and translates decently into 3d - the characters at first glance don't look quite right but as time goes on (and you focus less on them) you become more accustomed to it. Gameplay is solid and incorporates an interesting twist on the turn based RPG genre, similar to how the Paper Mario series works (timed buttons to gain extra defense or miss attacks, minigames to do extra damage with special attacks, et al). The learning curve is quite steep and the timing on some attacks feels very unnatural and is hard to get down, but if you play enough and pay enough attention you should be well prepared to face the final boss. I especially like how items are actually useful in this game (in most RPGs they are ignored as they are a waste of your turn).

The problem with the game honestly is not the presentation, gameplay, story or graphics... but price. For $20 - a kingly sum on the XBLA - Penny Arcade Adventures can make you feel like you aren't getting what you paid for. The entire game takes a paltry 3 hours to beat, assuming you do 100% of everything (that include running around looking at all the item descriptions). The number of character customizations you have available are almost pathetic, although that is probably because every item has to be translated into 2d for the flash movies. The replay value is slim to nil as the number of enemies is pre-set and your level caps out 15, presumably so you can carry your character over to the next episode. While those 2-3 hours you play will be filled with laugh out loud moments and some solid, challenging RPG action one can't help but feel that the game is... lacking. Compared to the next highest price game on XBLA, Puzzle Quest, which offers dozens if not HUNDREDS of hours of gameplay with an RPG twist, it's a hard sell to make. I played through PAA and enjoyed it, but it really would be up to you as to whether or not you think 2-3 hours with of Penny Arcade humored gameplay would be worth the investment.

And last but certianly not least, the Great: Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords.

I'll be upfront and honest. I haven't beaten it yet. I'm probably only halfway there. And yet I've already put over 20 glorious hours in this game. It is really hard to try and explain what is so great about Puzzle Quest, when I first heard of the concept and saw screen shots I personally thought it was nothing more than a flash-based "Pop Cap" like causal game being pawned off to the DS crowd. Then I lost one friend to the game - so much so that he stopped playing WoW, perhaps the most addictive MMO available today, just to play more Puzzle Quest. Then another friend. Then another. I even saw the Penny Arcade guys write several comics about it. And while I'm a stubborn guy, I'm also open to the idea that sometimes I can be wrong. I tried finding it on the DS almost a year later - no dice, couldn't find it anywhere, even used. Then I saw it was available on the 360's XBLA in all it's HD glory and for a measly $15.

After playing it, I probably would've paid $30 or more for it. As is, $15 is practically a steal. It is a game that just does everything well and while it may not excel in any one area and has flaws, the overall game is still incredibly enjoyable. The gameplay mechanic - essentially "match gems" - is simple enough. As a big fan of puzzle games, this might have been enough to keep my interest, and yet, it gets better. They take this simple gem matching game and wrap a deep RPG-esque battle system around it, complete with Hit Points, Mana, casting spells (offensive and defensive), leveling up, buying items and even item creation. The system seems to be much better tuned on the xbox, where some of the super-powerful spells on the DS have been toned back to be more reasonable (or have cooldowns). There are several classes to choose from, each with a different approach to how they do damage or how they fight and each requiring a unique approach to how you match gems. I played a druid, who relies more on green and yellow magic to do damage, and so it comes with certian benefits (more powerful spells than say a warrior) but more weaknesses (relies on mana so early levels and enemies that drain mana or do damage based on mana reserves are more dangerous). The length of the game is not in the puzzle system, which may take only a few minutes or possibly 10-15 if you play more conservatively, but in the fact that these smaller puzzled games are strung together over an RPG-like "arc" where you play game after game to level up your character, obtain new items, complete storylines or quests, or take over towns. There are also different "twists" on the game mechanic for special rewards, such as clearing a board of preset gems to "capture" enemies (you can then learn spells from them), collecting "scrolls" for new spells or "anvils" for new items without getting a game over and even playing with a specific turn time limit to level up your mount.

As such, puzzle quest is not the type of game where you sit down and play it all in one sitting (although this theoretically could be done), but the smaller gameplay sizes and a feeling of progression make this game very easy to pick up and put down again. So not only will the game last you 40 (or more!) hours of true, "human time" gameplay but you will likely play it in between playing other things (or, if on the DS/PSP, on the go) which will help prevent the game from feeling too repetitive. The possibility of playing as another class adds even more to the replay value, as the game mechanics would play so differently that you would be more inclined to find it interesting than if the differences were more cosmetic or subtle. Different classes require very different strategies and completely alter how you play the board and which enemies are harder/easier to you.

The game is by no means "perfect", but then again no game is. The actual "story" feels weak and trivial given the size of the game. The story is not "horrible" and in no way gets in the way of actually playing the game, but I doubt that many (if anyone) are playing the game for the story. Often times you will feel that the game is not truly "random" and that the computer seems to almost know what is going to fall down when they make a move, but perhaps this is equal parts paranoia and truth. Obviously if played for too long at one time, the game can begin to feel repetitive, and this is not helped by the fact that random monsters are spawned on the road. As the game world gets bigger and bigger, more monsters will spawn than one could actually hope to keep off the map, meaning that getting from point A to B (especially for quests that require travel over long distances) could require that you beat 10+ enemies on the way there and another 3-4 that have respawned before you could make it back. When you are attempting to get somewhere (a town to buy new spells or make new items) or when you are trying to finish quests, this can become frustrating as it feels forced. The ability to "skip" over these random battles would have been a great addition to the game, even if it was limited to monsters you had already beaten several times. Some of the final-level items you can make also require a painstakingly long amount of time to "craft" and you can lose hours and hours attempting to create since, even if you get a "game over" with only 1 anvil or scroll left, you must start all over. When this is caused by the random placement of items on the board instead of a mistake by the player, this is especially frustrating. Overall, its flaws are forgivable given the price and the amount of fun gameplay and replay value offered.

I'm already looking forward to the promised XBLA expansion, including new classes, spells and areas, as well as the true sequel, Galatrix. I missed the boat the first time, but I'll be sure to make it this time around.

Since you last heard from me I've started (and promptly finished!) Bioshock, perhaps the most refreshing FPS I have played in some time. I've also taken Final Fantasy Tactics Advance 2 for a spin (25+ hours) and am generally pleased. The World did NOT end with me, as I have beaten The World Ends With You and I've also started the (so far incredibly nice looking) Eternal Sonata, who has already piqued my interest with crisp, bright HD graphics and an interesting spin on your standard RPG battle system. This also includes games that I'm way behind reviewing (Mario Kart, Smash Bros, GTAIV, Saint's Row) so be on the look out for more in the coming weeks and months.

Also, going to PAX at the end of the month. That should be a blast!