Sunday Roundup: 6/5/16

It has been a busy couple of weeks! The end of May I went back home to watch my brother get married! It was amazing, of course, and it was the first time I was back home in Indiana in almost two years! The weekend immediately after was Fanime, an anime convention here in California that we’ve gone to for the past few years. We dressed up, we bought stuff, and we had a good time. Following that we had a friend move in with us until he can find a place of his own, and now Laura’s sister is back home for a couple weeks before her job starts! Phew! Thankfully though, a visit home means a ton of new video games I can’t get here in California! Let’s break it down!

 

The Subtle Differences in Bravely Second

It’s been out for a few weeks now, and though I haven’t been enjoying it right off the bat as much as I did the first game, Square Enix’s Bravely Second has been an entertaining RPG. There wasn’t anything the game needed to change in order for it to be another solid turn-based game, but the developers still added some extra stuff into that mix. Some stuff are welcome additions, and others are things I didn’t know I wanted or needed! If you’ve somehow never played either game and own a 3DS (shame on you!) then here are some changes you can look forward too when you pick it up and start one of the best RPGs on the 3DS!

 

Sunday Roundup: 4/24/16

A visit to Los Angeles for family and friends is great, and being able to hit up a couple used game shops along the way is even better! I haven’t been to LA in six years, so it was nice to get back there and see that some places were still the same, but others were totally revamped! Par for the course for a major city I suppose. Anyway, after a visit to a shop that wasn’t all too thrilling, my brother and I hit up a place that was literally, and I mean this in ever sense of the phrase, packed floor to ceiling with games from every console. It was a little piece of heaven that I can’t seem to find in my neck of the woods. Anyway, let’s get to it!

 

Sunday Roundup: 4/10/16

Hakuoki: Memories of the Shinsengumi 3DS Release Date: September 19th, 2013 Purchased at: GameStop (Sunnyvale, CA – $18) Releasing a few years back, Hakuoki is as random a JRPG one can get on the 3DS. I decided to pick up this one for a couple reasons: I needed a game to fit into a Buy 2 Get 1 Free category to maximize the potential of the free game, and two it was released awhile ago and I likely won’t see too many more of it out there. The game isn’t particularly rare, and you can still find it on sites like Amazon, but it might be a game to keep in your collection. If for nothing else, it’s supposed to be a pretty decent strategy game.

Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed Wii U Release Date: November 18th, 2012 Purchased at: GameStop (Sunnyvale, CA – $18) Way back in 2012 I reviewed this game for the 3DS and was impressed by its variety in levels, characters, and quality of the racing in general. I have heard good things from a lot of people about this Wii U version (which also happens to be a console launch title!), with some people going so far as to say it’s a superior game to Mario Kart. I don’t know if I’d go that far, but I’m all for games I can play with my friends on the couch! Unfortunately though this might just be a two player co-op game. Can anyone shed some extra light on this for me?

Darksiders II: Deathinitive Edition PlayStation 4 Release Date: October 27th, 2015 Purchased at: GameStop (Sunnyvale, CA – Free) The original Darksiders happened to be one of the very first games I ever reviewed for the now defunct Inside Gaming blog of the Machinima network. I thought it was pretty great back then, but not great enough to pickup the sequel until this “Deathinitive” re-release. Granted, I have had the game on Xbox 360 for awhile now, but this is in HD! Following Death as he fights in the war between the Angels and Demons, Darksiders II takes what made the first game memorable (the Legend of Zelda-esque exploration and gameplay) and makes it all better and pretty on the PS4!

Broken Sword: Shadow of the Templars Wii Release Date: March 24th, 2009 Purchased at: GameStop (Cupertino, CA – $2) A port of an old point-and-click adventure game released on the PC way back in 1996, Broken Sword has gone down as one of the more influential games of the genre. Despite this, and the countless systems this game has come out for, I feel like the game has still gone unplayed by a lot of gamers, myself included! The game is a story driven adventure centering around the Knights Templar, a terrorist attack in Paris, France, and the mysteries around those involved. It’s interesting, don’t get me wrong, but I almost feel taken aback by how old the game is I don’t want to even try it. But we’ll see; maybe I’ll be surprised by it one day!

Laters,
Jsick

 

Why Nintendo Makes the Same Video Games Every Year and We Still Love Them

Without question I consider myself a Nintendo fan. Compared to any other developer, I spend most of my time playing and/or getting excited for what I will soon be playing on my Nintendo Wii U or 3DS. Some experiences can only be on PS4 and what not like last year’s Fallout 4, but with Nintendo I have always felt they’ve done something special with their games… they’ve remained fun! Throughout the years and even during the short time I’ve been on this blog I’ve seen a handful of Marios, Zeldas, Pokemons, and many other Nintendo greats come and go. They’ve consistently been what I expect and then some, but nothing has been wholly “new” (with the exception of last year’s Splatoon.). After seeing Thursday’s Nintendo Direct, I’m excited for what the future holds: more of the same great faces Nintendo has always offered. But is that enough? Should Nintendo be focusing on something new rather than giving the fans more of the same? Hmm…

 

Fire Emblem Fates: Birthright is Exactly What I Want from a Fire Emblem Game

The burning question after the release of Fire Emblem Fates was certainly which version to buy, Conquest or Birthright. Playing through the game’s first couple chapters it was clear to see the Nohr of the Conquest game were more in line with the “bad guy” mentality, and the Hoshido of Birthright were the “good guys”, but neither side was a paragon of either. You’ll have to play both games to fully understand and experience the entire story of Fire Emblem Fates. At first thought this seems like a gimmick for Nintendo to make more money of its loyal fanbase, but seeing how the game has played out so far from just one side of the tale, I’m aching to even get a glimpse of what would have occured had I chosen the other! And before you click to read any more, yes, the game is great and wholly worth your time!

 

Sunday Roundup: 2/21/16

Street Fighter V PS4 Release Date: February 16th, 2016 Purchased at: Amazon (Online – $54) Several years after Street Fighter IV revitalized the community’s (and my own) interest in the fighting game genre, Capcom has officially released the next installment in the grondbreaking fighting series. Street Fighter V has been in Beta for quite some time, and that only makes me wonder why the game isn’t as polished as I had hoped. I’ve been met with frequent disconnects online, no penalty for rage quitting, and the overall lack of modes and a strange way to select your characters via online battle are holding this one back for me. Right out of the gate though, SFIV was solid but lacked a lot of content, and it took Capcom several years to get it looking perfect with Ultra. So maybe this game just needs some more time in the incubator to come out pristine!

Fire Emblem Fates: Birthright 3DS Release Date: February 19th, 2016 Purchased at: Amazon (Online – $34) Oh man, finally! The sequel to the 3DS’ excellent Fire Emblem: Awakening is here, and it comes in two packages! Birthright lets you follow the path of the Hoshido rather than the Nohr. So far from what I’ve played, it seems the Hoshido are more of the “good guys” if you could call them anything. It might be too early to decide, though. Also, I’ve hit a snag in one of the early chapters where it’s actually getting pretty tough to win! I’ll have to keep at it though. Even though I’ve lost, I’m still thinking of ways I want to try again to win, and that’s a definite good sign!

Fire Emblem Fates: Conquest 3DS Release Date: February 19th, 2016 Purchased at: Amazon (Online – $34) Since the special edition which contained both games in one cartridge sold out instantly, I decided to just pick up both copies separately. Sure, it won’t be as cool as owning that special edition, but it’ll look nice on a shelf right next to Birthright. This game has you follow the Nohr and is supposed to be a lot more difficult when compared to Birthright. Because of that I decided to wait for this one until I beat the other, but almost all outlets are saying you should definitely play both to enjoy the story fully.

Laters,
Jsick

 

Review: Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam

Crossovers are noteworthy for bringing together two unlikely universes into one. Normally you wouldn’t find the likes of Spider-Man teaming up with Ryu, but that’s what has been happening in Capcom’s acclaimed Marvel vs. Capcom series for years. It makes for a game that appeals to two target audiences at once. So what happens when a game crosses over with pretty much the same game only made of paper? Well, you get Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam on the Nintendo 3DS. Combining Nintendo’s two RPG series’ headlined by the famous Mario, Paper Jam still appeals to the two target audiences by successfully capturing what made the Mario & Luigi series noteworthy and what made the Paper Mario games standout for all this time. It’s also a fun, and surprisingly challenging, game!

 

Sunday Roundup: 1/31/16

A handful of DS games and a duo of games I’ve literally been spending years trying to track down finally fell into my collection this week! After our move, I’m living closer to a different GameStop than before, but seeing as I still work at the same Target, I happen to be close to that ol’ GameStop of mine. And man, this week they delivered: apparently a “regular” who goes to this store often turned in dozens of great DS games. They were all loose, but some of them had incredible prices! I couldn’t say no to these and a few duplicates for possible reselling. Hmm… maybe I’ll finally start getting into that this year…

 

The Epic Battles of Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam

If you haven’t noticed, Nintendo has had two successful role play games starring Mario. Sadly none of them are in conjunction with Square, but they are excellent in their own right. The Paper Mario series has been going strong since the Nintendo 64, and the Mario & Luigi series has been successful since the days of the Game Boy Advance. Both have adventures taking place in the Mushroom Kingdom, but until very recently they have stayed away from one another. Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam brings both games together and, somehow, managed to capture the essence of both series’ in one complete adventure. However, there’s something that stands out more than the interesting premise and adorable mashup of visual styles… the boss battles in this game are insane!