Sunday Roundup: 2/17/13

This week was planned. I thought to myself, “Jason, you’re gonna go out there, find some cheap-ass games, and you’re going to buy them.” I actually decided this. Usually I refrain from splurging on games like this, convincing myself I don’t need the game, even if it is $3, which many of these games were (if not less). But I was in a buying mood, and, thankfully, many places were in the selling spirit! And wouldn’t you know it, there were even some surprises in this week’s roundup!

 

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Big Bumpin’ Xbox 360 Release Date: November 19th, 2006 Purchased at: GameStop (Merrillville, IN – $1) Alright, before you judge me for buying the Burger King game, just look at the price point. It was a dollar. Less than that, actually, after taking the Power Up discount! And it doesn’t get more “collectible” than a video game released by a fast food chain in which you play as said chain’s mascot. Seeing as I already had Sneak King, I was looking for this game specifically. Seeing as it is readily abundant, I could have it my way…

Centipede PS1 Release Date: May, 1999 Purchased at: Disc Replay (Merrillville, IN – $4) Being that this game is a horrible remake of a true arcade classic, I just had to get my hands on a copy! Now, finding the game wasn’t the issue here, in fact it is quite easy to find. Locating the game complete and at a good price is the hard part. This time I snagged the game and will happily be playing it within the week.

Dance Central Xbox 360 Release Date: November 4th, 2010 Purchased at: BAM! (Merrillville, IN – $5) Deal of the week right here, baby! BAM, otherwise known as Books-A-Million, apparently decided they were no longer going to sell video games in their retail stores, because this game and several others on this list were marked down to just five dollars. FIVE. DOLLARS! For a brand new game. I was happier than a kid on Christmas morning raiding the shelves, which were unfortunately thin, of any and every good game. Read on and see more!

Dance Masters Xbox 360 Release Date: November 4th, 2010 Purchased at: BAM! (Merrillville, IN – $5) Somehow Konami, the innovators of the dancing game, were unable to make a Kinect-themed dancing game. Dance Masters is their attempt to beat rival Dance Central, but it falls flat on its face. It’s actually embarrassing how poor this game is when compared to DC, which should also be noted as being developed by rhythm game pioneers Harmonix (Guitar Hero, Rock Band). Still though, for five dollars brand new, I grabbed it… never to be opened ever.

de Blob Wii Release Date: September 22nd, 2008 Purchased at: GameStop (Valparaiso, IN – $5) Highly recommended by Jett, de Blob is a game I purchased a few years back for my nephew for Christmas. I thought the coloring mechanics and city-roaming was a pretty neat combination. Plus I am a fan of the artsy game, and de Blob seems to fit the bill.

Dreamcast Collection Xbox 360 Release Date: February 22nd, 2011 Purchased at: BAM! (Merrillville, IN – $5) Of all the game bought at BAM!, this was the one I was actually most excited about opening and playing. But then I thought, “Wait. Why would I open this game? I literally already have all of these games on the Dreamcast anyway.” So I decided I’d let it sit in plastic and (hopefully) accrue collector’s value.

DS Rumble Pak DS Release Date: October 24th, 2005 Purchased at: Disc Replay (Merrillville, IN – FREE!) Here’s something I’m slightly ashamed to admit: I had no idea a rumble pak even existed for the DS, let alone being developed by Nintendo! But there it was on the shelf mixed in with the Game Boy Advance games. History tells me the device did not sell well, as consumers and critics alike complained the vibrations distracted from the gameplay on the tiny handheld, as well as buzzing sounds emitting from the rumble pak itself being distracting. Either way I’m happy to have added the peripheral to my collection.

Frogger PS1 Release Date: November 3rd, 1997 Purchased at: Disc Replay (Merrillville, IN – $3) How can they mess up Frogger!? I popped this game into my PlayStation to try and relive some of my childhood and was promptly reminded that most games are never as good when you get older. Sloppy camera angles, confusing level design, and a very delayed response time make the game a chore to play. The only saving factor, which doesn’t even save the game in any reasonable fashion, is that the first level is modeled directly after the classic Frogger arcade game. So there’s that…

Jak and Daxter: The Lost Frontier PS2 Release Date: November 3rd, 2009 Purchased at: Five Below (Merrillville, IN – $5) Five Below is my favorite dollar stores. That’s not saying much because I very seldom frequent dollar stores, but this one is a bit nicer. Case in point, brand new PS2 games! The Lost Frontier was released alongside a PSP version as well, and both games were well received but not nearly as well as the original Jak trilogy. The game wasn’t developed by series creators Naughty Dog, and like most games passed on by the developers, it isn’t as good. Also worth nothing: Five Below has a delicious selection of affordable candies and treats, including Japanese goodies like Koalas!

LEGO Pirates of the Caribbean Wii Release Date: May 10th, 2011 Purchased at: BAM! (Merrillville, IN – $5) The LEGO games have slowly earned a warm place in my heart. I’ve always been intrigued by their lighthearted takes on classic franchises like Star Wars and Indiana Jones, but I hadn’t played many until more recent entries like LEGO Batman 2 and LEGO Harry Potter: Years 5-7. My nephew is a big fan of the LEGO games as well, so this might be going his way as a gift, because…

LEGO Pirates of the Caribbean PS3 Release Date: May 10th, 2011 Purchased at: BAM! (Merrillville, IN – $5) … I bought the game on the PS3 as well! I think it’s funny that I’ve come to own a handful of the LEGO games on the PS3. I suppose that means I’ll have to start rounding out that collection on the PS3.

LEGO Star Wars Episode III: The Clone Wars PS3 Release Date: March 22nd, 2011 Purchased at: BAM! (Merrillville, IN – $5) And would you look at that! Another one. The Clone Wars follows the cartoon series of the same name, which I’ve heard from respectable sources is quite good. Regardless, LEGO Star Wars: Episode III: The Clone Wars comes as the first original LEGO game I can recall after the now-standard formula was instituted. As long as you can do all the same stuff you can in the previous games, I’m down.

Marvel vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds Xbox 360 Release Date: February 15th, 2011 Purchased at: BAM! (Merrillville, IN – $5) I already have this game on the 360. For that matter it’s also one of the few games I actually bought on midnight. Midnight of Valentine’s Day, I might add, which I did spend with my girlfriend who did also attend the midnight release with me! My reasoning behind picking this one up again was the price: at five dollars sealed, MvC3 is a game I can easily sell off for much more than I paid. I think I’ll wait though and see if the game becomes as collectable and expensive as MvC2.

Metroid Prime Pinball DS Release Date: October 24th, 2005 Purchased at: Disc Replay (Merrillville, IN – $6) Two things: I can’t believe I forgot about this game all this time! Every now and then a good pinball game can really get me going, and Metroid seems to be able to capture the same awesomeness as Sonic did back on the Genesis. Maybe after this I can search out Mario’s pinball game. Secondly, this game released packed with the DS Rumble Pak! It was the first game to use the rumble pak and thus was packed in with the device. Strangely, the store I purchased this game from had the Rumble Pak selling separately, but I just so happened to pick up both this game and the rumble pak at the same time, thus unknowingly completing a game. Huzzah!

Pocketbike Racer Xbox 360 Release Date: November 19th, 2006 Purchased at: GameStop (Merrillville, IN – $1) The third and final game in the Burger King trilogy, Pocketbike Racer is now mine for the low, low price of one dollar. You know, these games really get a bad rap, but I’d actually like to see more companies do this. Not only does it mean we can see more wacky games like this, but it means there are more collectable games out there, as well as more games to buy for less than a buck when they inevitably get traded in!

Rygar: Battle of Argus Wii Release Date: January 28th, 2009 Purchased at: GameStop (Valparaiso, IN – $3) Rygar was a name that I remembered from the NES, and sure enough this is a sequel to the original. Or more accurately it’s a port of a sequel to the original. Rygar: The Legendary Adventure was released on the PlayStation 2 in 2002, and was later ported to the Wii. Why they decided to port a spirit PS2 game to the Wii I have no idea, but apparently something went wrong in the process because the PS2 version of the game is supposed to be alright while this Wii version is garbage. I’m going to bet on it being related to the controls…

Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed 3DS Release Date: February 12, 2013 Purchased at: N/A (Review Copy) Sadly, I missed out entirely on Sonic’s first race outing, which I hear is a good title. When asked to review this new racer, I jumped on the chance to hop into a transforming car as Wreck-It Ralph and race against Alex Kidd and Ulala! Unfortunately initial thoughts on the game aren’t stellar, as the game suffers from slow down and frame rate drops. A more thorough review is forthcoming.

Spyro: Attack of the Rhynocs Game Boy Advance Release Date: October 27th, 2003 Purchased at: Disc Replay (Merrillville, IN – $5) I was on a bit of a Spyro kick in 2011 when I procured every PS2 version of the purple dragon’s adventures. I already had the original trilogy of titles on the PS1, so I then decided I should search out Spyro’s other adventures. That meant tracking down the Game Boy Advance games, including Attack of they Rhynocs here. While pretty much every Spyro game after the first two or three on the PS1 are not worthwhile in the least (sans Skylanders), Attack of the Rhynocs is generally thought to be the best of the non-PS1 Spyro titles, and certainly the better of the GBA titles.

You Don’t Know Jack PS1 Release Date: 1999 Purchased at: Disc Replay (Merrillville, IN – $4) You Don’t Know Jack has been around a lot longer than the recent 2011 release on the Xbox 360. I remember seeing the game and hearing the game while growing up in the 90s. The first PlayStation version of the game seen here is in many ways identical to the more modern re-release, albeit with different questions and more 90s centric pop culture rips and humor. Still hosted by Cookie Masterson, You Don’t Know Jack on the PS1 is a great trivia game that I’ve already had the pleasure of enjoying.

Laters,
Jsick