Messages

31

General / Re: 52 Games Challenge 2018

« on: May 04, 2018, 05:16:37 pm »

Due to personal issues I haven't really been able to game as much as I would like. But I had a week off this week, and I decided to spend it playing through Freedom Planet. Or, playing through it thrice with all the characters really. And I have to say, I'm glad I did. Because Freedom Planet is a fantastic title.

If you look at it you may immediately draw comparisons to the Sonic the Hedgehog series, and you wouldn't be wrong. Freedom Planet, at its core, is clearly very inspired by the Sonic the Hedgehog series. However, I honestly think it's vastly superior to Sonic. The speed platforming is still there, but Freedom Planet adds a lot which really makes it stand out. Freedom Planet has a larger focus on exploration and combat than Sonic, and it handles it really well. The levels are well designed and offer you good chances to explorer without ever feeling lost. The characters have a larger moveset with moves better suited to combat compared to Sonic as well, and it makes taking out enemies a lot of fun. Not to mention, the bosses are fantastic and perfectly suit the combat system. They really reward learning the patterns and adapting to them, and while they can be very challenging they are always fair.

I can highly recommend Freedom Planet to any fan of action-platformers. Even if you aren't the biggest fan of Sonic, Freedom planet does enough different and fixes enough of the frustrations I have with Sonic that it's still worth a look. I do recommend you choose Lilac for your first playthrough! But if you enjoy challenging yet fair action-platformers, Freedom Planet is highly recommended.

Full list: https://vgcollect.com/forum/index.php/topic,8821.msg149075.html#msg149075

32

General / Re: 52 Games Challenge 2018

« on: April 06, 2018, 09:42:57 pm »

Game no. 13!

• SpongeBob SquarePants: Creature from the Krusty Krab (Wii)

As a Wii launch title this was one of my very first games for the Wii, along with Cars and, of course, Wii Sports. I didn't remember much about it though. All I remembered is Patrick being a superhero, Plankton running from a Krabby Patty, and then at some point I sold it or gave it away without beating it. But now I got it again, and it's a pretty short game, so I just marathoned through it. So, how is it? Eh.......just eh. To be honest, it's not that good of a game. At it's core it's playable, and near the end it does pay off with some cool sections and a cool final boss fight, but the majority of this game ranges from mediocre to terrible.

SBSP:CftKK changes gameplay style all the time, but at its core it's a combination of a beat-em-up and a collect-a-thon. There are also sections of 2D platforming, plane flying, and other small minigames to break up the pace, but the majority of the game is spent either running around collecting items or fighting enemies. Too bad nothing is really special about it. The worlds, while clearly attempting some creativity, are pretty bland to go through, and levels blend together a lot. The puzzles are simple. Now I would not mind that because I get it's targeted at a younger audience, and simpler puzzles are OK as long as the game is fun to play, but it just isn't. Another factor in that is the fighting, but it's nothing special. Just spam Z and the enemies will die, that's literally all the strategy you need for fights. There's only like 2 or 3 enemy types too, so fights very quickly turn incredibly boring. So to summarize, general exploration and combat are incredibly boring. And since that's your main objective that's a problem.

But the issues keep on going from there. Controls are a problem too. First of all, as soon as the game tells you to dash with a Nunchuk-waggle, ignore it and use the up-direction on the D-pad. Everyone knows the Nunchuk waggle is unreliable, and that goes here too. I get it was a launch title, and I can excuse it to a certain extent, but launch title or not, the motion controls are broken. This is most obvious with the winches. To turn this the game wants you to rotate your WiiMote, and it's just broken beyond belief. Let me explain to you: Hold your WiiMote completely straight up, slant it very very slightly to the left, and then move your arm in a circular motion while keeping the WiiMote upright, as if your WiiMote is the handle on a big wheel you're turning. I get that mimics the actual winch, but it's not explained well, so there you go. And apart from that, the motion control is just broken. The wheel does not work how you want it too. It's easily the most frustrating part of the game. With most other stuff (apart from the god awful plain sections) it's doable, but they're not great.

Also, we gotta talk graphics. This is an ugly game. It looks like it belongs on the PS2, and a low-budget PS2 game at that. Again, I get it was a launch title, but that's no excuse here. They do attempt some different art styles to spice stuff up, but the novelty of this wears off quickly and it's just completely booted out halfway through the game anyway. If you want a pretty Wii game, keep on looking.

So are there any goods? Well, I will say that the good of SpongeBob does shine through. All dialogue is voice acted, and the lines do reflect that classic SpongeBob humour we all love. From Plankton's sarcastic "Woohoo" to SpongeBob pointing out the obvious absurdity of everything going on, sometimes the SpongeBob charm does shine through. Also, again, the final sections with Plankton and the final boss are actually pretty good. I will not spoil what they are here, but those sections are enjoyable. Enough to warrant playing the entire game? Probably not, but hey, they are good nonetheless.

To summarize, Spongebob Squarepants: Creature from the Krusty Krab is sadly not a good game. It's not god-awful, I've definitely played worse, but it's probably a good contendor for top 5 worst Wii games in my collection. Now recently I've started backing up my Wii games to USB Loader GX and playing them from there, and that app allows you to use a ranking system from 1 to 5 stars. And if I were to put SBSP:CftKK on there, I think it would get two stars. Not the worst, but still pretty bad, and apart from maybe the final Plankton section not worth looking back to. But hey, a game beaten is a game beaten!

Full list: https://vgcollect.com/forum/index.php/topic,8821.msg149075.html#msg149075

33

General / Re: Help a newcomer; name your favourite exclusive games

« on: April 04, 2018, 06:08:34 am »

Here's some of my personal recommendations of must-haves on these systems:

Wii:
- Super Mario Galaxy; One of the best if not the best 3D Mario game in my opinion, and revolutionary for its time
- Super Paper Mario; a very underrated gem that's enjoyable charming fun from beginning to end
- Excite Truck; A Wii launch title that fell under the radar, but a fantastic off-road racing game well worth owning

Wii U:
- The Wonderful 101; Takes some time to get into, but when you it's a fantastic and very unique action game
- Bayonetta 2; I know it's also on Switch now, but I'm still going to plug it because it's simply my favourite game of all time. If you don't have it yet, make this your top priority

DS:
- Kirby Super Star Ultra; Arguably the best Kirby game, and definitely my favourite. If you're going to own any Kirby game, make it this one.
- Pokémon White 2; Of course a Pokémon game would have to make the cut, and purely off of blind nostalgia White 2 is my favourite, so I'm just going to plug that one.
- Super Princess Peach; A charming little platformer that has kind of been forgotten, but is still well worth a look
- The World Ends With You; A cult classic and for good reasons. Very unique and very good, a recommendation to any fan of action RPGs or Touch Screen games
- Viva Piñata: Pocket Paradise; Look past the branding and you have a seriously addictive simulation game that may just be one of the most underrated games on the DS
- Super Scribblenauts; Without a doubt the best Scribblenauts game. One of the most unique and clever games on the DS and absolutely worth owning
- Drawn to Life and Drawn to Life: The Next Chapter; Two incredibly charming and very underrated games that more than deserve your attention. These games have some of the most charming characters and story I've ever seen. Dirt cheap too, so absolutely worth picking up! (Though heads-up: Please pick them both up seperately and don't buy the combo pack, because they changed the ending in the combo pack).


3DS:
- Kid Icarus: Uprising; An incredibly unique and fantastic action game that needs to be played to fully appreciate
- Tomodachi Life; Not for everyone, but if the trailers intrigue you it's well-worth a look. If it's your type of game I can assure you you'll have loads of fun with it

34

General / Re: Games That You Think Are Unplayable Or Are?

« on: March 22, 2018, 08:57:58 am »

Half of games available on pc perhaps? Seriously, if there's one thing I absolutely hate about pc gaming it's how so many developers and publisher just don't seem to care about optimization. SO often I've had games not boot, crash on startup, crash randomly, have messed up graphics, have a blank screen, run like it's running on a microwave, the list goes on. And always I need to get online, scroll through pages and pages and pages of people having either the same or other issues looking for the most ridiculous solutions ranging from changing data within the game files to even having to download fan patches just to run the freaking game, and of course the first solution so rarely is the one I need. Seriously, once I get them running they're typically fine, but I shouldn't have to spend hours trying endless lists of random fixes to try and get it to run in the first place. I guess because they usually can be fixed they don't count as unplayable, but whatever, many of them do deserve a spot on here for just how broken and poorly optimized they tend to be.

35

General / Re: What is the most hype you've ever seen for a game pre release/launch day?

« on: March 22, 2018, 08:48:06 am »

No doubt.

I absolutely LOVE Super Smash Bros., it is my favourite game series of all time no-doubt. And Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U just did everything right at exactly the right time. This was the first time I've truly ridden the type train from announcement to arrival, and it was insane. The character reveals, the speculation, the dedicated presentations, it was just fan-tas-tic. The character trailers throughout the hype period were all amazing and got me screaming and kicking every time one showed up. Even the Pics of the Day had me excited every single day as I awaited what Sakurai would reveal this time. Super Smash Bros. Brawl had been my favourite game from the moment I first played it (and no fanboys, I hadn't played Melee before that so Brawl was on top), and I nearly blew up from excitement as this game was getting closer and closer to launch. I remember that the day before launch I was bouncing around all day non-stop because I was just so excited. And now with Super Smash Bros. coming to the Switch I can only hope my previous hype levels will be matched.

36

General / Re: 52 Games Challenge 2018

« on: March 14, 2018, 10:06:18 pm »

And that's game no. 12!

• Nintendo Presents: New Style Boutique (3DS)

Also known as Style Savvy: Trendsetters in the US, this is an often overlooked yet pretty succesfull series of games that saw life on DS and 3DS. After seeing the trailer for New Style Boutique 3: Fashion Forward I got interested in the series, and after I saw the Nintendo Selects version of the second game in the series on sale I decided to give it a shot. I started with this game last year and casually played it for a good while, and now I've finally beaten it. So what is it like?

In case you're unfamiliar with the series, the Style Boutique series unsurprisingly has you taking care of a boutique. The general gist is that customers will come into your boutique and ask you to pick out certain items of clothing for them. These requests typically come in them requesting a certain style of clothing, and then you have to provide them with an item or sometimes put together an entire outfit you think they'd like. And with that I've really said most of it. They do change it up in a good amount of ways by having casual character interactions breaking up the pace, having dedicated fashion contests every evening, letting you manage your own stock and shop for new items to sell and sometimes letting you mess around with hair and make-up too, but generally you'll be spending your time simply picking out clothes and giving them to customers. This is not a bad thing though, and it executes this fairly simple concept really well through charming characters and a constant flow of new, fresh stuff.

New Style Boutique is not the type of game that you play for hours on end to race to the finish with. It's the type of game you play when you have fifteen minutes to kill and just want a fun little timewaster to play around with. And for those short timespans it does its job really well. The different tasks, just huge variety of clothing to choose from, and constant flow of new brands and clothing being added make sure the game always has something new to let you play around with. And on top of that, the game is just charming. The graphics are very smooth and pretty, and the characters are all charmingly likeable. Sure, it's not like there's any particular depth to them, but they serve their purpose and serve it well. The main characters are all there to help push the story along which they do greatly. They always feel like a character first, and their task second. And all the customers are just charming as well. They're all understandably pretty one-dimensional for how many you get, but they always have a little thing to say which keeps them fresh.

Nintendo Presents: New Style Boutique really surprised me! It's not a masterpiece or anything, but for what it is it's a very charming and very enjoyable experience. If it looks interesting to you, I recommend you pick a game in the series up. Don't let the little girl-aesthetic put you off, even for adults the simple gameplay can be enjoyable if it's your type of game. If it is, then these games are well worth trying out.

37

General / Re: What Is Your Favorite Playable Video Game Character Or Hero

« on: March 12, 2018, 12:21:02 pm »

I'm quite fond of Bayonetta myself.

+1 for Bayonetta. 

I could not agree more. Bayonetta is without a doubt my favourite videogame character of all time.


She's just a fantastic character in every sense of the word. Her personality, her powers, her design, just everything!

But the main thing I love about her is absolutely her personality. She's sassy, nonchalant, playful, sarcastic, funny, the list goes on. She's powerful as all hell and knows it, even the biggest foes can't break her style. On top of that her sexuality is executed perfectly. She knows she's sexy, and is not afraid to use her sexiness and sassyness to mess with her opponents, but instead of being slutty she always has a sense of maturity, strength and control around her. She won't let anybody beat her around. But on top of that she also has her soft side. Her motherly side, or her deep caring for her friends. Her interactions with her friends are just as great if not greater than her interactions with her foes. She's the kind of person I would absolutely want to be friends with. Her personality is so strong, so likeable and so fun that she always stands out as one of the most unique and fun characters out there to me. If there's someone I would call my favourite video game character it'll always be Bayonetta, and it'll take a miracle to knock her off that throne

38

General / Re: 52 Games Challenge 2018

« on: March 02, 2018, 10:04:58 am »

Game number 10

• Metroid: Other M (Wii)

So, the former black sheep of the Metroid franchise until Federation Force kicked it of its throne. Is it really as bad as the internet has made it out to be? Well, no. Not in the slightest. It's actually a pretty damn good game.

Let's start with the main flaw, the story. We all know the main reason this game is hated is its depiction of Samus. And yeah, she's flawed to put it lightly. But it's not as bad as you may think. Yes, she's represented poorly partially due to some bad story points, and the voice acting is terrible, but it's not what the internet made me believe. She still goes through this solo, she still kicks all the butt, and outside of the cutscenes and the bullshit limitations Adam puts on you, it does feel like you're controlling Samus. And as for the story in general, it suffers from an interesting premise suffering a lot from poor execution of the main characters and plot devices. It's not great, but not the worst.

But I decided not to judge this game on its story from the get-go. I was here for its gameplay. How was it? Well...firstly I would say, make sure you give it some time and prepare for a rough start. This game gave me similair things to Wonderful 101, but worse, in that it starts of bad. The controls will take time to adjust to, and it doesn't really start to pay off until you're at least 2 hours or more into the game. Couple that with a beginning that is not well-fit for these kinds of controls and you have a bad start. I won't lie, I hated it when I started. But trust me, you will adjust to it and in the end it will be worth the trip. It's obviously not nearly as deep as other action games like Bayonetta or anything, and I firmly believe the game suffered from being limited to the Wii Remote, but once you're in a good bit it's actually pretty enjoyable for what it is.

So in summary, I quite liked Metroid: Other M! It's not perfect by any means, but once you get past the poor representation of Samus, the overall story flaws and the adjustment period to the controls it's actually a really damn good game. It does not get the love it deserves online, because hiding behind those barriers is a really competent and enjoyable action game. If you're curious about it, I recommend you check it out. Not the best Metroid game, but still a really solid game on its own.

EDIT

Well, after some extended playing, that's game 11

• Excite Truck (Wii)

Absolutely a hidden gem on the Wii. Excite Truck is a fantastic racing game. The idea is that you are racing on off-road courses, but rather than just trying to come in first your goal is to earn as many stars as possible. And you get these stars by doing anything from drifting to being airborne to driving close to trees to even crashing into other trucks. Just be as extreme as you can be! This simple change of focus from pure speed to technique and extreme manoeuvres makes the game unique and tons of fun. I would definitely rank this as one of my favourite racing games on the Wii, and I highly recommend you pick it up. If you're looking for a fresh take on off-road racing this is a perfect pick.

Full list: https://vgcollect.com/forum/index.php/topic,8821.msg149075.html#msg149075
Next games to play: Nintendo Presents: New Style Boutique (3DS), and t.b.d.

39

General / March 2018 - Recently Added to Collection/Recently Purchased

« on: March 01, 2018, 12:10:52 pm »

I haven't posted to one of these in a while, but I saw there wasn't a new one yet and I wanted to post so I figured "Why not? Let's make the next one!"

I usually don't post to these because whenever I get something it's a small thing or a single thing not worth posting about. But then I thought "Hey, why not post once a month with everything I got?" So here we are.

Here's my lot for February:


Not too much this month, but some neat stuff. Got a PDP Wired Controller so I can finally play PC games with a proper controller. Got a new WiiMote because one of my old ones died (and a blue one because blue is pretty and was a euro cheaper than white). Got a new DS game and two new Wii games which include a mediocre point-and-click adventure game on DS, Wii Chess (speaks for itself) and the worst Wii game ever. I'm not exaggerating. Whichever Wii game you think is the worst, trust me, it can't be worse than this. Absolute garbage! Maybe I'll write about it someday on here, but that's for another day. And also got the Nick Wilde and Judy Hopps figures for Disney Infinity 3.0. I don't even own Disney Infinity 3.0, but I'm a huge fan of Zootopia, so I'm glad just having the figures.

But of course the gem here is the Bayonetta + Bayonetta 2 Special Edition. Bayonetta and Bayonetta 2 are some of my favourite games of all time, so I'm more than thrilled to add this Special Edition to my collection. I've said it before and I'll say it again, if you have not played the series before, please do yourself a favour and play it. It's an absolute must-play for any fan of action games.

40

General / Re: What is your favorite gun ever in video game history?

« on: February 26, 2018, 10:10:00 pm »

Biased as hell? Definitely, but I don't even care. Now it's time to be naughty.

41

General / Re: 52 Games Challenge 2018

« on: February 19, 2018, 02:52:48 pm »

Game 9!

• Bayonetta 2 (Switch)

Tied with Super Smash Bros. for Wii U for my favourite game of all time. Seriously, if you're even remotely interested in the action or hack-and-slash genre, this game is a must-play. It is absolutely the highlight of its genre, a truly fantastic game in every single way. Am I fanboying? Probably, but I don't care. I love this game to death, and there's nothing I can say apart from just play it. The combat, the gameplay, the controls, the characters, the graphics, the music, it's all just top-notch! I can keep on hailing praise on this game for hours, but long story short, if you are looking for any game at all to play I could not recommend this one more. Do yourself a favour and play it!

42

General / Re: 52 Games Challenge 2018

« on: February 17, 2018, 12:16:53 pm »

And game 8 is done!

• Bayonetta (Switch)

This would be the fourth time I've bought this game and I've lost count of how many times I've played through it. I just love this game! This would be my second favourite game of all time if Bayonetta 2 didn't exist. I don't even know what to say about this game that I haven't said before. Everything about this game is fantastic. It's without a doubt one of the best action hack-and-slash games on the market. I would tell you to buy Bayonetta 2 (and seeing how you get both when you buy it for Switch you absolutely should), but if you're not sure whether or not you'll like it then I highly recommend you pick this one up, since it's criminally cheap on its own for how fantastic it is. If you've never played Bayonetta, please, do yourself a favour and play it. You will not regret it.

43

General / Re: 52 Games Challenge 2018

« on: February 15, 2018, 01:29:06 pm »

Game 7!

• Het Huis Anubis: Het Geheim van Osiris (The House of Anubis: The Secret of Osiris)

All right, some background info. This is a point-and-click (erm, touch?) adventure game based on the 2006 Dutch/Flemish hit tv show Het Huis Anubis (The House of Anubis). This show was a massive succes in the Benelux region, and of course, with big success comes DS shovelware games. The show did get an American remake, but this title was naturally released exclusively in Dutch speaking regions (unless the German game based on the German remake of this show is identical, but I have no idea about that).


So regardless of the source material, how's the game? Eh.
It's not bad, but it's very mediocre. I get it can't be too difficult since it's aimed at a younger audience, but for an adult audience it's not too challenging. You find an item, solve a simple riddle, and then right after use this item to move ahead. And these riddles are all puzzles you've done or heard of before. You're not here for the gameplay.

But the story is every bit as disappointing. The one thing that licensed games always need to do is be faithful to the source material, and sadly this game fails. It's an original story that, apart from the Egyptian theming, has nothing to do with the story from the series. None of the characters from the show show up apart from one you choose that has a few lines, and it doesn't even take place in the titular House of Anubis! Instead a part of the title takes place in the House of Osiris, which does not exist in the show at all. It's very clear the House of Osiris is meant to resemble the House of Anubis as much as possible, complete with an old creepy landlord, so it's quite baffling to me why they couldn't base the game in the titular House of Anubis. The building is recognisable, and its layout from the show is perfect for this type of game.

Now it wouldn't be a huge deal that the game has an original story if this story was interesting, but it isn't. It's kind of bland and not elaborate enough. For example, the general idea is that either Nienke or Fabian, a main character from the show you can choose, tasks you with finding an old archeologist. Meanwhile you meet the ghost of Osiris who wants you to free his son. All right, but how are the main cast involved with this story? What's the story behind this archeologist? What are they looking for? How did he get the artifacts he has? What happened to Osiris? And what happened to his son? Why is there a ghost from the show crying without any relevance to the plot? What happened to all the characters after the game's events? What's the deal with the House of Osiris? Tons of questions that are never answered. The story is nothing but a backdrop to get you from puzzle to puzzle.

Now, despite everything in the game being bad, the game is not the worst. It's playable, and for the 1,5 hours it lasts I can see younger fans of the show enjoying it for what it is. It's very mediocre and if you're not a fan of the show it's not even worth a look. It's a shame. I knew it would be bad (Studio 100 has never made a good game as far as I know), but I'm a fan of the show, so at the very least I was hoping for some fan service. But apart from a drawing that barely resemble Nienke, the theme song playing a few times and the logo everywhere, it's just nothing. It's sad, but there are probably flash games out there that offer a better point-and-click experience than this. Nothing to see here folks.

44

General / Re: 52 Games Challenge 2018

« on: February 05, 2018, 10:08:54 pm »

And that's game six!

• Drawn to Life: The Next Chapter

I'm a fan of the original game. Some of my friends, when they heard that, really praised and recommended the sequel, particularly praising the ending. And I had it, so why not?

For those of you unaware, Drawn to Life is a series with two entries on DS, along with a spin-off for Wii and a Spongebob spinoff we don't talk about. The basic gimmick is that you draw your own hero to take on an adventure. But underneath the childish exterior and drawing gimmick lies a surprisingly deep, charming and engaging story.

Now Drawn to Life has never been known for its gameplay, and The Next Chapter is no exception. The levels really come down to pretty basic platforming. They do mix it up with new abilities, but in the end the gameplay is pretty basic and mundane. That's not necessarily a bad thing though. It makes it a great game to just sit back with and waste some time with. And you're not playing for the gameplay, Drawn to Life is about the story. And I can solidly say I quite enjoyed it. The original had a solid story and characters, but this one really fleshed the characters out and gave us a plot that really sucks you in with its charm and holds you all the way through. You do need to have played the original in order to fully understand this one, but that's something I recommend doing anyway.

Though I have to say, the ending disappointed me. I will obviously not say a word about it here, because it most definitely is experienced best spoiler-free (and a fair warning, Google is full of spoilers), but in short I didn't like the ending the way others did. It was a twist and a tear-jerker, sure, but I found it to be a bit abrupt and kind of shades the whole game in a different light. It's build up to pretty well though, and it's a satisfying conclusion, so it's a real mixed bag for me. But to me, the rest of the story is just so charming and so fun that I can look past that. (This part is really only here for those of you out there who played the game already. People seem super polarized on the ending and I would honestly love more (spoiler-free!) opinions).

In the end Drawn to Life: The Next Chapter is a great follow-up to the original, and both are well worth a spot in your collection. I found the story much better and very fun to go through, with lots of twists, emotional moments, fun moments and just flat-out charm to keep you going. The gameplay is nothing to write home about, but it's just a nice feel-good game to sit back with and just have a relaxed, nice time with. If you're into DS collecting both the original and this title deserve a spot in your collection as hidden gems on the DS. But do be warned! They also released Drawn to Life: Collection, and in that title they changed the ending to The Next Chapter. Want the real, good, and intense ending? Be sure to pick both of them up seperately. They're dirt-cheap used anyway, so if you want some charming gems on DS, these two are well worth a look!

45

General / Re: 52 Games Challenge 2018

« on: January 25, 2018, 05:31:49 pm »

And, unexpectedly, that's game 5

• 5. LEGOLAND (PC)

After some initial issues getting the game to run, I was happy to return to this piece of my childhood. This must have been one of the earliest video games I've ever played, and now I've finally beaten it. This is one of the older LEGO games, before they became "LEGO *insert external intellectual property here*", and just like the other classics LEGO games it has a charm that never fades.
Apart from a few vague objectives the game is not challenging whatshowever, but that's not the point. Putting down LEGO attractions and props to build a park is just plain simple fun. If that charm doesn't hit you I can definitely see adults finding it boring, but if you do like that simple childish charm this game is for you.
I think this game is especially great for kids though. If you have a little kid who would enjoy building their own theme park, but for whom RollerCoaster Tycoon is still too complicated, I think this game is perfect. It's basically RollerCoaster Tycoon for little kids, with many things simplified to keep it engaging and occasionally challenging, but still easy enough to get through and have fun with. It has aged VERY well. If you have a little kid you think would enjoy it I highly recommend it.