When people look at Nintendo, the comparisons to Sega are always there in the forefront of the discussion. Naturally, the rivalry and competition that the two companies had in they heyday of the Sonic/Mario rivalry is the obvious go-to connection for comparison. However, there is another comparison that gets thrown around quite a bit these days, and that's only due to speculation and negativity. As you probably already know, the Sega company ceased production on hardware after the Dreamcast system. Since then, Sega has focused solely on making software, which was really weird when Sega games started showing up on non-Sega game consoles. Well, some people these days think that everything Nintendo does now is a failure, and they immediately point to the underwhelming sales of the Wii U as evidence of the supposed decline of Nintendo as a company and lack of viability in the industry. They say that Nintendo is no longer relevant to the industry they all but built and established, and the common argument and suggestion is that they should just go the route of Sega and stop making consoles and only focus on their software and intellectual properties and franchises that they own. Granted, I don't fall under the same umbrella of beliefs, as I think there are still a lot of positives about the Wii U, and for Nintendo to just give that up and release their highly regarded and special franchises on Sony or Microsoft consoles, well ... that would be a travesty to the gaming industry. But I'm not here to argue about Nintendo, and instead talk about Sega doing their fans, especially the long-term ones, a service by going back to their roots and bringing back the beloved Sonic the Hedgehog in his truest form to date. Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode 1 (and later 2) was released by Sega a few years ago. They just couldn't do it on their one platforms, obviously. And yes, even to this day, it's still weird to see Sonic on Nintendo consoles. Anyway, Sonic 4 took the Hedgehog back to where it all started, essentially rebooting the franchise and character after many - and I mean many - failed and disappointing attempts to feature him in different styles and genres/categories of games. They went back to the traditional 2D platformer formula, with all the same moves and capabilities as before. The game itself is fun and feels fairly accurate of the old school Sonic games, but it's also still Sonic. If you weren't a huge fan of Sonic before this game, it probably won't win over new fans. For me, I always saw the Sonic games as too fast paced and hard to control, while the collector in me freaks out every time I loose the rings I worked so hard to collect in the first place. But for what it is, it's nice to see and play it and be reminded just how important those classic Sonic games were to the industry. Competition breeds creativity and innovation. Just too bad Sega was king of the mountain for the time that they were. Complacency mighty have been the downfall for that company. We should all hope that Nintendo never decides follow in Sega's footprints again.
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Nintendo has always been known for being ahead of the times, trying new and unique things and attempting to go against the grain when it comes to the video game industry, Not everything they have tried over the years has been successful or revolutionary, but they never stop trying to change the game, one invention at a time. Sometimes their ideas are just complete and utter failures, while other times they are just way ahead of the time, and years after an idea "fails," it somehow works out eventually (see 3D technology from the Virtual Boy to the 3DS). And sometimes, their crazy ideas work out, and are exponentially better than predicted or expected to be, which force competitors to take note and try to capitalize on the success of what Nintendo is bringing to the table. Take for example motion controls, which everyone laughed at and mocked, until the Wii became one of the most successful consoles of all time, mainly because of the motion controllers and Wii Sports. Now days, Nintendo is constantly trying to reinvent themselves along with the wheel at the same time, mainly because they are trying to stay relevant in the gaming landscape next to the two titans of the industry, Microsoft and Sony. Back in the day, however, the competition was a little less stressful. Sega was winning the market share at one point, sure, but the market was clearly big enough for both companies to co-exist without running the other out of town. Nintendo decided early on that their main focus would be games and the first party titles, while Sega was the company determined to be different and revolutionary. Part of this thinking and business strategy is where the idea for Sonic and Knuckles came from. Sonic & Knuckles, for the Sega Genesis, incorporated what Sega called "lock-on technology," which acted as an expansion pack for Sonic 2 and 3. All you had to do was stick the cartridges for either one of those games into the game/expansion pack. By doing this, you can play as Knuckles in those games, alternating the gameplay dramatically and opening up unseen and unexplored areas of those games. It was a cool idea, but unfortunately not one that ever really caught on past this trial run of games. Sure, expansion packs continued on, but not quite in the same way, where other games could be combined to practically make new games out of it. I never played this as a kid, and quite frankly, never knew about this "lock-on technology" until much, much later in life. The Sega friends I had never had this game, from what I remember. Either that, or I wasn't friends with them anymore when it came out. Either way, it wasn't until it was released on the Wii's Virtual Console that I finally got to play it. I enjoyed it then, but I still wasn't unlocking the full potential of the game. You see, if Sonic 2 or 3 are downloaded on the same account as Sonic & Knuckles, the special unlocked versions of the games are available just as if you were plugging them in to the expansion pack "lock-on technology" cartridge they used at the time. Using Knuckles is just plain fun. Whether it's the Sonic & Knuckles game itself or the unlocked versions of other games, Knucklesis a fun character. He plays completely different than Sonic, and he is a nice counterpart character. Tails was okay to use, but people never really clamored to play as Tails. With Knuckles, however, he pretty much became a fan favorite and cemented his place in the Sonic universe in connection with Sonic for as long as the blue blur continues to run. Competition breeds inspiration, motivation and a need for improvement. Without Sega being such a wrecking ball force, Nintendo might not have ever realized how important their first party titles would be in the long run. And without Nintendo, Sega might not have felt the immense pressure and need to do new and crazy things. If only they could look into the future and see the path they would continue to blaze going forward. Growing up, as I wrote about before, I strictly had Nintendo game consoles. I never had a Sega Genesis or any other Sega console, like the Sega Game Gear. I was perfectly content with my Nintendo, as having multiple consoles back then wasn't exactly a common thing, especially for a kid my age. It was one or the other, and despite what you think you remember about that time in game history, there was a point when Sega actually owned more of the gaming market share than Nintendo did. That seems completely crazy, but thanks in part to the crazy popularity of the blue blur known as Sonic the Hedgehog, Sega systems were actually more prevalent than Nintendo's. Crazy part is, I knew very few kids that actually owned anything Sega related. Maybe I just gravitated towards fellow Nintendo fans, or maybe it was just sheer coincidence, but regardless, my experience with Sega's were limited to say the least. There was one kid who I considered a good friend, although we hardly ever hung out outside of school. Anyway, I remember one day he brought his brand new Game Gear to school that he had just received as a "present." It was Christmas or his birthday or anything like that, but rather just another day like every other. I was confused as to why exactly he got a present, as I was quite jealous, and discovered that him and his family were Jehovah's Witnesses. This meant that they didn't celebrate holidays or birthdays, and in lieu of that, his parents would randomly buy him presents for no reason other than it was the right thing to do since he wasn't getting anything on the normal days that other kids would be. I'm sure it wasn't easy for him, and despite his faith he would have liked to get presents like every other kid. Either way, he had a Game Gear, and while I wasn't entirely sure why, I was jealous, if only because it was something cool that I didn't have. He was a huge Sega fan, and loved Sonic to death, as he was always drawing him, talking about him and hating on Mario. When Sonic 2 came out, I of course knew little about it. This was of course before the heyday of the internet, where video game information was super easy to obtain. Other than magazines, we learned everything about video games that we knew from friends. As archaic as it sounds - and trust me, it was - I almost am envious of those days and how simple and stress free they were. All I knew about this game was what my friend told me. He taught me how to draw Sonic and his new friend Tails, and despite my lack of intimate knowledge of them, I knew I liked them for being different. Sonic was the equivalent of the cool kids in school, and Mario was the nerdy kids, who might have had a better future in store for them, but in the moment, all they wanted to be was equal with the cool kids. Anyway, it wasn't until I went over to another friend's house, who I can't even remember how I was friends with him, was it until I played Sonic 2 on a console. Playing with Tails was fun, as it was a nice change of pace for an alternate or second character to have different moves and abilities and overall just play differently than the main character. I still couldn't help think then that while I liked the characters and the premise for the game, it just wasn't as fun. It was too fast, too wild, too hard to control, and made me think everything was just a speed run and not actual levels you would need to traverse like normal platformers in order to beat them. Playing it again makes me feel this all over again. It is a fun game, and it's fun to revisit the cool things they introduced into gaming, but ultimately, I feel like it is just trying too hard to make something different than the "norm." A two-tailed fox is perfect for being original, but as a Nintendo fan, it may have been cool back in the day, but now, it's still trying to live in the past. And you're lucky, dear readers. I had a "what does the fox say?" joke lined up that I never used. You're welcome. Somethings that I know now as an adult I wish I had known as a kid. I'm not talking about like how to manage finances better once you have your own source of income, or sometimes ugly reality of of your constant pursuit of love. No, the advice I wish I knew back then would still be very vague and mysterious of what the future would hold, but it would at least make me stop and think about some of the things I did and the choices I made, even if I couldn't make different ones or they were already made for me. I wish I could go back and tell my younger self that the choices I would make that seem harmless or insignificant at the time, could and probably would define me as a person in my adult years. More specifically, choosing between Sonic and Mario as a kid would eventually help define me as a gamer later on in life, especially if video games would continue to be apart of my life in the future. I have a simple theory, really. I believe there are three different types of gamers. There are Nintendo fanboys, there are gamers that absolutely despise and hate Nintendo, and then there are the gamers that are just indifferent. Obviously, everyone will fall into on of these three categories, but if you think about it, what group you belong to in this list also goes a long way in describing your gaming habits, despite how non-specific they may be Gamers who are indifferent towards Nintendo tend to be pretty open about their game choices, and usually play a wide variety of games and platforms, especially the new hotness and whatever games are reviewed and hyped up the best. Nintendo fanboys love the Big N to death, and the company usually can't do any wrong, especially with their IP's. They also seem to be far less cynical about games in general, usually trying to find the positives before bashing them for whatever flaws they may have. Nintendo haters are on the complete opposite side of the fence, as their game choices tend to always be more "hardcore" and mature than whatever kind of games Nintendo is putting out. They are usually cynical, bitter and quite negative about games as a whole. Clearly you should be able to figure out which side of the fence I sit on. So like I said before, these are all dependent on which character you chose to gravitate towards and defend endlessly as a kid. Some kids chose Sonic, other kids chose Mario, and some kids just didn't care for either one, or liked them equally. Of course, most kids didn't have the choice, as their parents made it for them by getting them one video game system or the other. Whether you were a Nintendo owner or a Sega owner, your allegiance lay with what system you owned. And that, as I theorize, goes on to accurately define you as a gamer later on. ' For me, obviously, I grew up on Nintendo consoles. I did have a couple of friends who owned Sega Genesis', but I wasn't good enough friends with them to get much play time with their game systems, especially games like Sonic The Hedgehog. It wasn't until very late in my life that I ever fully experienced this game, the first in the Sonic series. As a kid, I was always intrigued by it, but honestly, it only made me want to go home and play more Mario. Going back and playing it again, it made me think about how because I shunned Sonic, and overall just didn't have much time to enjoy it, I grew up to be a Nintendo fanboy. But that isn't what this week is about, not at all. No, in this week, I want to actually play all these Sonic games that I either missed or didn't care about before, because let's be honest. Sonic is one of the most recognizable and influential video game characters ever, and despite him taking a back seat to Mario over the years, I still feel it is pertinent and respectful to pay homage to the blue blur. Besides, I'm a Nintendo guy, remember? I always look at the video game cup as being half full, even if that means writing about the character and brand that almost toppled the Nintendo empire single handily, This blog post is going to be confession time, with a trip down memory lane as well. Just wanted to let you all know right off the bat so there is no confusion at all why in the world I picked this game, of all games to play this close to the end of the year. Now with that heads up warning out of the way, let's get down to it. First of all, I don't like James Bond. I have never liked James Bond, and have zero emotional connection to the character, the actors that have played him or the franchise itself. I've seen a handful of James Bond movies, from all eras and several different actors, and none of them have ever held my attention. I know it's pretty taboo for a guy to not like James Bond, but the movies just never did it for me. The storylines are always pretty cheesy, the action is over-the-top, and I can't seem to get over the fact that despite spanning over half of a century, the character is the same character over all generations it has covered. I realize that this happens all the time comic books and other fictional stories, but they have never portrayed Bond to be anything other than a spy in whatever day and age it is at the time. It's fictional, but not sci-fi at all, so the fact that the character has been around for over 60 years and there isn't continuity between anything just flat out bugs me. Also, on a podcast a few weeks back, I told a story about how I flat out refused to play a game my cousin rented for us to play together because I was planning on buying it and didn't want it spoiled or ruined before I had a proper chance to play it. The game was GoldenEye 007, which I eventually got for my birthday from my cousin, which made me feel even worse because of how rude I was to him a few weeks before then. He even got the limited edition version which included a gold-colored Classic Pro controller with the game, which was ideal for first person shooters, if only for the dual sticks. I didn't deserve it from him, but he thought I should have it, especially with how much fuss I put up about the rental copy he picked up. To this day, I still feel bad about it and wish I had enough clarity at the time to realize I was wrong. But, c'est la vie, as they say. The reason I was so excited for the Wii game, which wasn't quite a remake, but rather a rehashing of the classic Nintendo 64 game, is for obvious reasons. As a kid, I played more GoldenEye with my cousins and friends than any other multiplayer or co-op game. We would play for hours at each others' houses, always filling up all four slots of players. Special rules, modified matches and arguments about using Oddjob consumed our play sessions. We had a blast playing together, as I don't ever remember playing that game alone. Of course, that was far before the heyday of online multiplayer, back when kids actually went outside and rode bikes to their friends' houses and play next to them on the couch. Crazy times back then, that these youngins nowadays will never understand. Anyway, when I eventually played this Wii version for the first time, it would be an understatement to say I was severely disapointed. The game itself was OK, as it was Wii graphics after all, but it just didn't feel right. I had my two boys and my cousin all sitting around the television playing multiplayer, and it bummed me out. They didn't care about how cool paintball mode used to be, or how lining an air duct with proximity mines was an awesome strategy. Needless to say, the game just didn't hold up to modern first-person shooters, as the only thing it had going for it was nostalgia, at best. So this weekend I dusted it off and gave it another shot, just to see how jaded I was then or still was. I'm sad to report that it still doesn't hold up, and might be even worse with each time I try to play it. While Punch-Out!! the other day was a pure gem and a fantastic representation of a classic game, this Wii version of GoldenEye 007 just makes me want to pull out the old 64 version, call up my friends and play, even though that wouldn't help at all to get this bitter taste out of my mouth. Sorry, Bond. The one thing I liked about is slowly fading away into the sunset, probably for good. My eight year old son came over to my pad to hang out with me for the weekend, which is significant to this blog post for many reasons. For one, he hasn't been over since I got the new systems, so it was cool to sit down with him and show him both the PS4 and the Xbox One, play around with them and put the cool features on displays for both consoles. For some reason her gravitated to the Xbox One more, partially because of the games I have for it but also because he is more familiar with Microsoft consoles. Plus, he really liked all the voice commands despite not being able to control it himself since his voice isn't registered yet. Good thing, though, as that poor Xbox One would have been worked double-time with how much he tired talking to it. After checking out both systems when he first came over, however, he happened to notice my cousin's copy of Battlefield 4 sitting on the table. He has wanted to play the game badly, and both him and his brother have the game on their Christmas wish lists. For me, I haven't touched the game or even thought about it, because really I just don't care about the series the same way that so many others do, especially many readers of this blog. It's not that I don't appreciate the series for what it is, because I honestly thought Battlefield 3 was a far better game than whatever Call of Duty game had come out that year, but despite it being better, it still wasn't a game for me. It probably has a lot to do with my lack of interest in multiplayer gaming, but after playing Battlefield 4 with my boy, I realize it's a whole lot more. The game just feels overwhelming and too big. Sure, Grand Theft Auto V was a massive game, but Battlefield 4 just feels like it's impossibly big. There is too much to do, too much to see, too much to remember and just ... too much. It's too much warfare, too much everything. Sure, it's impressive and expansive, but for me and my gaming habits, it's too much to ever wrap my around. Fortunately, it's not just me, as my boy was a little overwhelmed with it also. Now granted, this isn't a bad thing or a knock on the game. This is the type of game that is perfect for people who don't buy or play many games throughout a year, and like to just geek out and perfect one or two, dumping countless hours into it. Thankfully, this isn't an annual series, as DICE has stood firm on putting one out when they are ready, not on a yearly schedule, despite EA probably begging for it be annualized every day. We played some multiplayer, and it was crazy. We tried the campaign and just couldn't get into it. Maybe I just wasn't in the mood for it, but for some reason, it made us both want to fire up Call of Duty: Ghosts and just enjoy a smaller, more compact package of warfare. Again, I can fully appreciate how good Battlefield 4 is and can be for everyone who enjoys it. And yeah, it might be a lot more realistic and immersive of a game, but is that always a good thing? The first time I ever played Bioshock, it was because of a friend of my kids' uncle, who had just recently rented it right after it was released and brought it over to play. At the time, I don't think I even had an Xbox 360 yet, and was still trying to reacclimate myself to the video game landscape after my gaming hiatus. I knew about the game - well, I had at least heard of it - but other than that, I couldn't really care less about it. I knew the premise was that you were in a city under water, and that there were big, creepy guys with drills that chased you about, but past that, it was nothing I needed to care about at that point in my life. Yes, it was a weird time for me, but it is forever part of my personal history timeline, and I can't change that. That time in my life helped shaped me to be the person I am today, for better or for worse, and while I realize I missed out on so much, I like to think I picked up a few positives out of it as well. Anyway, I remember watching him playing it and still not being interested in it at all. I was asking a few questions here and there just for context about what I was watching, but it's not an easily explained game in the first place, coupled with my disinterest, and it only led to obligatory head nods and vacant stares. And then it happened. He went to pick a lock, which was the first time I had seen this part of the game, and immediately my radar went off. I saw the pipe and water flow mini-game and perked right up. First person shooters were dead to me as a game genre, but puzzle games? Even if it was a small, brief mini-game just to unlock a safe or deactivate an alarm system, the puzzle aspect instantly made me interested in what he was playing. In fact, he was having quite a hard time figuring out how to complete them successfully, as I watched him fail over and over again. Eventually, I got the courage to ask him if I could try to solve the pipe maze puzzle and help him out, and he graciously accepted my offer. So the next time he had to hack something, he tossed the controller to me and let me have a whirl, in which I was successful on the first try. Not to brag or anything, but those types of puzzles are my cup of tea. I love when video games challenge the mind, not just the reflexes of the hand. And that stupid little pipe game was all I needed to make me pay attention to the game. I realize that the hacking mini-game was the least liked aspect of the game for almost everyone who played it, hence why they changed it to the much simpler hacking system in Bioshock 2. If enough people complain about something, eventually things will change. And yes, the new hacking method sped up the process exponentially, but for me, I was sad to see the pipe mini-game go away. Years later, I would eventually decided to back to Rapture and give the game a decent shot. After all, other than the hacking, I didn't really play any of the game, and because I started watching it being played at an arbitrary point in the middle of the game, I had no idea what was going on in the storyline. I didn't start playing it right away when I did finally purchase it for myself, however. I waited for some odd reason. Maybe I was just waiting for the right time to be in the right mood for that type of game, or maybe I just still wasn't super high on the game still, despite my previous fun with the hacking mini-games. Whatever the case was, I waited for a while. Then I had to get my wisdom teeth removed, which meant a few days off work and laying on the couch trying to recover and fight the constant pain. And to deal with the pain, lots of Vicodin were ingested, which is one of the few times in my adult life that I have heavily relied on medication to make me feel better. Because I had nothing to do and nothing but time on my hands, I figured that would be the perfect time to play Bioshock. Yes, while heavily sedated and quite loopy from Vicodin, I journeyed to Rapture. Needless to say, it wasn't the best idea. When I think back, I realize how bizarre the game is already, but when you play it while practically hallucinating, that game became the craziest, scariest and more unbelievable game in the world. While I got the gist of what was happening, I couldn't fully wrap my head around it, because well, I felt like I couldn't even find my head at some points, as it seemed to be floating up in the clouds. I managed to beat the game in those few days I had to myself, as the only thing I did was play Bioshock and sleep. I enjoyed it, but I missed a lot of it, so I did go back and play it again for the sake of better understanding the game, but even to this day, my memories of the game always revert back to the drug-induced mind-trip I had while playing it before. It's funny how different a game looks when your memory or perception is greatly skewed. I realized this going back and playing some once again. Especially after playing Bioshock Infinite a few different times now, my excitement to get back into Rapture is at an all time high. While I have and have downloaded the DLC titled "Burial at Sea" which takes Booker and Elizabeth to Rapture, I have yet to play through it yet, thanks in part to all the games demanding my attention. But with that DLC chapter looming and this visit back to Rapture via the original Bioshock game, I don't know how much longer I can hold out before marathoning the whole series. If you don't hear from me for a while, send help. I've either completely lost my mind or got stuck in an endless game of Pipe Mania. If there is one thing that Nintendo has always done well, it's capitalize on their intellectual properties. I've argued this point for years, but even with the release of new Legend of Zelda and Mario games recently, the only chatter I have heard from non-Nintendo fans is that Nintendo only recycles their franchises over and over again, never adding anything to them and basically just making money off of nostalgia. What those people fail to release is that why their argument about never adding anything new to the franchises is ridiculous, the fact that Nintendo lives and breathes as a company because of nostalgia is completely accurate. Nintendo is so successful in the video game industry because of the hard work and dedication they have put in to establishing franchises and characters and game universes, and making gamers continue to care about them and want to play the newest versions. It's smart business, and while they can't always be relied on for third-party titles, their in-house published games continue to strike interest in fans, touching on the nostalgic part of the heart every time. Truth is, Sony and Microsoft would kill to have several first party franchises they can reward their fans with on a regular basis. It's not like Nintendo is lazy and puts out annual games that use the same formula over and over again and slightly upgrade the graphics every title, like other well known games are becoming notorious for. No, Nintendo treats every new game they release as if it was the first game of the series, hoping to capture the hearts of minds of new gamers with every release, never banking on the fact that there are established connections with the characters and worlds already. They take the time and care to create each game from the ground up, whether that be creating the next chapter in a series or recreating an old favorite. One of those old favorites I decided to play again, to remind myself how special Nintendo is, was Punch-Out!!, which was an NES classic that is at the forefront in the minds of all kids from that era. Whenever a list of best sports games is ever compiled, Punch-Out!! regularly finds itself at the top or near it, and for good reason. It is a fantastic game and one I will always adore. But enough about the original - I already wrote about it once before. No, I want to talk about the newest iteration of Punch-Out!!, which came out a few years ago on the Wii. I remember the announcement for this game, and I clearly recall being scared to death to think of a remake for such a classic. They weren't just making a new game, they were trying to recapture the magic the original one offered, by bringing back the old roster of characters. But if there is any company I trust to bring something back from the dead and remake it with the risk of disappointing an entire generation of gamers, I would trust Nintendo implicitly every time. And boy did they deliver a knock out of a game. (Sorry for the bad pun, but I had to. You understand, right?) Everything you liked about the original game is back in this newest version, from Little Mac being impossible to root against, to Doc Louis encouraging you all the way to the top, to Glass Joe and his winless record and of course King Hippo and his AH-HA moment when you discover the key to victory when pitted against him. It's all there, and then some, and never once did I feel like they were doing the classic game an injustice. Conversely, if this was the first Punch-Out!! game I had every played, I could totally fall in love with the franchise with just this one game. The proof is in the pudding when it comes to Nintendo delivering the magic once again. The only thing missing from this game that the classic game had is Mike Tyson, even though late adopters of the classic game only knew of Mr. Dream as the final boss. Tyson was undoubtedly the epitome of a final boss, as when you finally beat him, if you ever did that is, the sense of accomplishment and satisfaction that would rush over you would be impossible to recreate. It's completely understandable that Nintendo chose to distance itself from Iron Mike all those years ago, but a part of me wishes that they could at least give a wink or a nod to the baddest man on the planet in some form or fashion one of these days. It will never happen, and I know that, but the thought of it just makes me smile. This remake of an iconic classic NES title was refreshing, and a great way to remind everyone how deep the Nintendo catalog is in which they can call upon at any time if they feel so inclined. In fact, I would love to see more from this franchise in the future, as I think they could do some cool things with the GamePad of the Wii U. Heck, I would even take a 3DS version, as the 3D effects could be awesome. But again, I'm just daydreaming here. Of course, I have only Nintendo to blame for that. Last year when I got my Vita, I made a conscience decision not to buy any of the retail games available at launch. For one, none of the games really struck a chord with me as being must-buys, even with the new Uncharted game sitting on the shelves. Secondly, the games available to download from the PSN for significantly less money than the retail games were too tempting to pass up. I figured I could keep plenty busy with my Vita by just getting the PSN games, and with the inclusion of GameFly, it was an obvious decision to make. Fact is, the games on the PSN pretty much carried the Vita for quite some time, and some would argue that they still continue to do so. At launch, however, there was no question about it, as overall, the quality and price of the games made the full retail games seem insignificant. In fact, Sony must have thought the same thing, as just a few months after its release, they put a few of biggest retail launch games up for free for PS+ members, including that Uncharted: Golden Abyss game. One of the downloadable PSN titles available at launch was Escape Plan, a quirky black-and-white puzzle game that didn't get nearly the hype it deserved. It was great, it was easy to get in to and enjoy and had charm oozing out from every corner, in a very dark and disturbing way. When it was first released, however, the developers tried to force all the unique Vita features like the rear touchpad and such as controls for the game, and they weren't an option. Instead of putting a spotlight on the cool things the Vita could do, they made everything feel like a gimmick which only made the controls frustrating at best. Eventually they got the picture, and patched the game to add button support as control option, which opened up the game substantially. They also released a few pieces of DLC, but unlike most developers, they didn't aim to make as much money as possible right off the bat. One of the DLC packs was only a couple of pennies for the first day, and another one was about half a buck, if I remember correctly. The prices have sense gone up to normal DLC prices, but they wanted to thank all the early adopters of the game, which of course was greatly appreciated. I haven't put much thought into the game since then, however, as so many other games have graced my life that I just haven't even had time to think about it, I haven't missed anything though, as they went silent for quite some time. Well, to my surprise, the developers were actually working on a PS4 port of the game, which was just released completely under the radar. Best thing about it, is they gave it away for free to everyone who already owned the Vita version, including all the DLC. They did give it its own trophy list, however, unlike Sound Shapes, which means that you'll have to play it all over again to earn those trophies. Don't fret, though, as the game is just as good and fun as the Vita version was. Same game, just with a nice polish on it. Nothing is different that I can tell, which isn't a bad thing considering it was free. The only thing about it is that they implemented a few touch controls to take advantage of the touchpad on the DualShock 4 control, and why they are a little finicky and cumbersome at time, they aren't too prevalent and probably won't keep you from completing a level with three stars, once you get used to them. Now, the only thing I haven't tried is to play the PS4 version of Escape Plan via Remote Play with my Vita, essentially creating an Escape Plan inception or black hole. I might literally crash my entire Sony network of systems if I try it, but the more I think about it, the more curious I am. If you don't hear from me again, send help. Just not via the PSN. Over the course of the year, I have wrote extensively about overall lack of skill and constant ineptitude with fighting games. I've played a few of them, and some of which I really liked (despite my futility) and others were utterly frustrating. Either way, its a genre of games I usually hate playing but love immensely at the same time. It's really hard to explain, but I don't want to harp on it anymore either. With the year coming to end, I had to make sure I got this game in my year for the sheer fact of it being hands-down my favorite fighting game of all time. I poured more time and energy into this game back when it was first released than any other fighting I can remember, including the Mortal Kombat games back on the Super Nintendo as a kid. Hours and hours spent playing, practicing and unlocking everything possible, and just when it got to the point where there was nothing else to do in the game, I kept playing, if only out of love for the game. Super Smash Bros. Brawl was the third installment in the franchise, but far and above the best of the series. It was the biggest, the most expansive and for obvious reason, the best looking game of the series. Looking back, it truly is a crowning jewel for the Wii generation. I feel in love with the franchise back with the first game on the Nintendo 64, but never had as much time with that game as I would have wanted, much less the time needed to get good at it. When Melee came out for the GameCube, it was one of the games I played most on that system, and as great as it was, it always felt like it was missing something. With Brawl, however, everything I always wanted from the franchise was fully accounted for, and I couldn't ask for more. Just in case it hasn't been perfectly clear in this crazy year of gaming, I am a HUGE Nintendo fan. I love everything about the company, and their first party games that they develop are easily some of my favorite franchises and their games, despite other games think they are just repetitive, continue to enchant me even after all these years. So naturally, a game featuring a mash-up of all the classic Nintendo characters is sure to strike a chord. Don't get it wrong, though, because it isn't just about the playable characters that make these games magical, especially when talking about Brawl. Once you add in all the stages that accurately represent the games that the characters come from, the weapons and items that you are already familiar with and the addition of seemingly countless numbers of non-playable yet still participating characters that pop up all throughout the matches, and it's almost a Nintendo sensory overload. But if my senses are ever going to be overloaded, what better cause than Nintendo, right? In Brawl, the addition of the Smash Balls was an excellent choice, and might have been the biggest ingredient missing from the previous two titles, and certainly something that I didn't even know i wanted until I saw it in action for the first time. Throughout each match, Smash Balls will randomly generate and float around the stage, waiting to be hit to the point of breaking. Not every Ball has the same damage tolerance, and each one is randomly generated it seems. One Ball may take one or two hits, while the next one may take up to five. And generally, as if not to over-saturate the gaming experience, you will see about two Smash Balls per match on average, which can always be adjusted in the match settings if you choose. So what do the Smash Balls do? They give your character, if you are lucky enough to break it open, a super charged super special ability, with each characters having their own unique Smash attack (for the most part, as there are a couple of exceptions, but don't get my started on that). Each special move is awesome to watch and experience, and you can't help but sit back and watch each one as they happen with a smile on your face, even if you're on the wrong end of one. They aren't finishing moves, however, just automatic knockouts, and like I said before, can be used several times per match. Better yet, if you or an opponent has a Smash move available and is running around trying to get into the best position to use it, it can be stole with a single attack, thus making the anxiety of having one or seeing one in play that much more heightened. The single player story mode, called the Subspace Emmisary, has always been a point of contention for most gamers, and while it isn't the best mode to play, it's certainly not horrible as many would lead you to believe. I actually enjoy playing through it, despite it making little to no sense, but honestly, what fighting game as a great storyline that makes perfect sense? Go ahead, think about it. I'll wait right here until you come up with one. Unlocking characters, stages, items and everything else, however, is the best part of the game for me, without question. Sure, there are ways to farm them and speed up the process, but that takes all the fun out of it. And once you unlocked everything, which is a lot, I still never felt like there wasn't any reason to play. If anything, it just made me want to play and explore everything that much more, enjoying all the unlockables that were now available to me. Before this game was released, Nintendo decided to start the hype train themselves, by creating the Dojo website, which released screen shots, bits of information and made character reveals on a daily basis, leading up to the release of the game. Sure, it was filled with spoilers and for those people who wanted to be surprised by what they were unlocking, it wasn't for them. But it is a fighting game, and Nintendo banked on the reveals as a good way of marketing, and I think it worked. In fact, Nintendo is so confident in the strategy that they are doing it again for the upcoming Smash Bros. game coming out next year, as they release a new screen shot every single day, which have included some previously unannounced characters and stages. Truth is, I simply can not wait for the next game. Just playing Brawl again made me want the next game that much more. There is a version coming out for the Wii U, which looks absolutely gorgeous, and a version coming out for the 3DS, which features a slightly different and more cartoon/comic art style, which looks like it will be beautiful and perfect on the handheld system. They are still vague on the details of the game at this point, but of every game we know about being in development, this game is at the top of the list. Is it 2014 yet? |
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February 2014
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