Category: Zelda

Monthend Video Game Wrap-Up – January 2016

Another year, another pile of Steam games that I will never play. thanks, Humble Bundle!

~ Game Over ~

Tengami (Wii U) – I guess it’s what the kids call a “walking simulator” because that’s most of the game. Also you sometimes solve puzzles. They’re mostly pretty easy, but still satisfying. What really makes it special is the beautiful pop-up book aesthetic and pretty music. It only lasts for about an hour, but it’s a nice hour.

Goosebumps (PC) – I wouldn’t have bought this if it hadn’t been in a bundle for $2. And the Ryan in that timeline lived a lesser life, because Goosebumps is quite an enjoyable little point-and-click adventure. Some minor annoyances, like a “puzzle” that literally just makes you wait and lawn gnome jumpscares, but otherwise a perfect example of how to do this kind of game correctly.

Zelda: Tri Force Heroes (3DS) – Soloed most of the game on my lunch hours because I don’t make time for 3DS at home. It’s actually not horrible to play alone, and it’s almost encouraged by the awful players I usually meet online. I’ve beaten the game, but I’m going to go back and do all the extra challenges to get the true ending… eventually.

Minecraft: Story Mode – The Order of the Stone (WiiU) – Boy, that’s a mouthful. Anyway, it’s Telltale’s adventure series based in Minecraft. The last time I played a Telltale game was Sam & Max Season 1, and this is markedly different than that. Story Mode is a lot less interactive; it’s more like a film where you make a choice once in a while. But it’s still entertaining, so who am I to complain?

FNAF World (PC) – I was so happy that finally a FNAF game was made that I would actually be able to play. Even if it is an overly cutesy RPG with a hyperactive battle system. There’s a little more to it going on under the hood, being a FNaF game and all, and I’m eager to start reading all the crazy internet theories about the game’s mysteries. Except there may not be because the game was pulled from Steam for being half-baked. Oops! I still played it and made my way to the “bad” ending. Probably will play it again.

~ Now Playing ~

Pokémon Picross (3DS) – If you pay for it, it’s the best picross game. If you try to get by on the Free-to-Play model… you’re gonna have a bad time. Anyway, it has certainly slaked my thirst for themed picross, which is really all that I needed. I’m slowly working though the Alt-World mode, in which every puzzle is presented in the Mega Picross format.

Xenoblade Chronicles X (WiiU) – Still plugging away at this giant beast. It’s such a wonderful world, I don’t really want it to end. Then again, I suppose it won’t, because it’s like 500 hours worth of content. I’ve done up to Chapter 11 in the main story.

Fallout 4 (PC) – Trying to build and furnish a house in this game is kind of a nightmare. But, you know, it’s Fallout, so at least the rest of the game is good. Having no level cap is great. I love not having to worry that I put my points in the wrong skills.

FAST Racing NEO (WiiU) – They really aren’t kidding. This gam is fast with a capital everything. It’s one of those wonderful and rare arcade racers that I actually enjoy, even though I’m not really very good. Even the novice championship is giving me troubles. I’ve gotten gold trophies on the first two circuits, bronze on the third, and didn’t even place on the fourth.

Dragon Warrior Monsters (GBC) – I was assessing the Game Boys I own (not that many, really) and plugged this in to see if my Game Boy Color was working. It was, and now I’m stuck falling down this rabbit hole again. Only up to Rank F in the arena so far.

The Deadly Tower of Monsters (PC) – Framed as the DVD of a old mid-twentieth century sci-fi movie, with director’s commentary and cheesy special effects to match. I’m fairly certain that it was made specifically for me. I’m about halfway up the tower, but I have no idea what that means in terms of actual game progression.

Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam (3DS) – I was toying with the idea of not buying this, at least not right away. Who did I think I was kidding? At least it’s been really good so far. Fusing the M&L and Paper Mario worlds was a great idea, and cutting out most of the forced tutorials was the best idea. At current, I’m in the desert area.

Shovel Knight (WiiU) – Got the Shovel Knight amiibo this month, which changes the way you play the game a fair bit. Also it allows for two-player mode, so that’s pretty ballin’. Any excuse to play more Shovel Knight is a good one.

Monthend Video Game Wrap-Up – December 2015

December… the month of getting free money and then blowing it all on digital video games.

Because there are excellent sales after Xmas, you see. Not… not because I’m irresponsible or anything like that. Perish the thought.

~ Game Over ~

A.R.E.S. Extinction Agenda (PC) – An action platformer wherein you are a robot who shoots up other robots and then gains a new weapon after defeating a boss. Yeah that sounds like something I’d like. It’s only five stages long, and the controls are just a little bit off, but I had fun. Maybe even enough to buy the expansion…

~ Now Playing ~

Xenoblade Chronicles X (Wii U) – Basically the last game I would ever need if I still had anything resembling an attention span. The single-player component is massive beyond belief, and then there’s an online multiplayer mode that could theoretically make it last forever (or at least until Nintendo scuttles the servers).  On Chapter 9.

Zelda: Tri Force Heroes (3DS) – Honestly, I had no real intention of ever getting this game, even though the demo was a hoot. But then Santa brought it for me and I’ve been having a grand old time with online multiplayer Zelda. Never thought I’d write that sentence. Haven’t gotten too far yet though, only up to the second world.

Xenoblade Chronicles 3D (3DS) – Since I can’t play X on my lunch break or on the bus, I’ve decided to go back to the “next best” thing. You know, because I sunk 20 hours into it and then totally blew it off for something more shiny. It’s also a really good game, though bittersweet, as it reminds me of when I moved into my house. Reached Alcamoth.

Pokémon Picross (3DS) – It would be the ultimate picross game, if it weren’t bogged down with the meanest F2P systems ever. But I just gave in and bought it out, so I don’t really have to deal with that. There are a metric buttload of puzzles, but only about half of the current Pokémon are present, so I’m already frothing for a sequel. Completed all normal puzzles, now working on the Alt-World mega puzzles.

Splatoon (Wii U) – There were two Splatfests this month, but I didn’t participate in the first because I was far to enthralled with XCX. I did spend some non-Splatfest time with it as well, trying out new guns (I had grown very attached to my N-Zap ’89) and clearing the third “world” of the single-player mode.

X-COM: Enemy Within (PC) – Going back to this masterpiece to see what the expansion added was a little jarring at first, because I opted to play on Normal instead of Easy. But then I gained the ability to turn my guys into mech-riding cyborgs, and all was good. Except for the enemies that turn invisible. Nuts to those guys.

Super Smash Bros 4 (WiiU/3DS) – Hadn’t played much of it recently, and then Cloud (yes, that Cloud) happened. Also I am so pumped for Februrary, as I really can’t wait for Corrin and Bayonetta to join the fight. Corrin in particular looks like she could be my new main.

Bravely Default (3DS) – It just goes on and on forever. I hit a pretty solid wall (superboss) near the end of Chapter 6, and then Xenoblade and Picross took over my life.

Fallout 4 (PC) – I only got but a brief taste of this one, but it left a lingering desire on my tongue. I love how the world is made of all these bright pastel colours instead of the usual drab greys and browns. The live-action intro is wonderful. However, the overall voice acting quality seems to have taken a hit since New Vegas.

Monthend Video Game Wrap-Up – August 2015

August. What is there to say about August?

Absolutely nothing.

~ Game Over ~

Mega Man 6 (NES) – Typically one of the less-appreciated Megamns. I really like it! The Rush adapters are a lot of fun, and almost make up for the lameish robot master weapons. Also it’s maybe a little on the easy side, making it a breeze to burn through in an afternoon.

Life is Strange: Episode 4 – Dark Room (PC) – I was greatly disappointed by one of the bigger story beats, but enjoyed everything else about this episode. Many times I thought something horrible was going to happen, but it never did. Because they were saving it all for the end. Yikes.

Submerged (PC) – Lovely game about boating around a city that’s half underwater and climbing up buildings. It’s like Shadow of the Colossus, but with a boat instead of a horse, and a total lack of violence.  Only takes around five or six hours to complete, too.

Mega Man 4 (NES) – What? Ryan’s playing Mega Mans? WHAT A SURPRISE. …you know how I feel about Mega Man 4.

Mega Man (NES) – Ugh… this one is pretty bad. Have I mentioned that before? No unplayable, but frustrating and kind of a joke compared to the rest of the NES games.

Mega Man 2 (NES) – And then this one is so good. Not the best, but pretty darn close.

Mega Man 3 (NES) – This one is the best. I’ve even played it so many times now that I only have a little bit of trouble with the Doc Robot stages. Hooray!

~ Now Playing ~

Five Nights at Freddy’s (iOS) – I bought the mobile version because I thought it would be easier to handle if I could play it while in my parents’ living room with people around. Nope! The tension is still unbearable. Also it crashes like nobody’s business. So I’m stuck on Night 2 forever.

Bravely Default (3DS) – Playing over a year after everyone else got bored of it has a certain benefit: a lot of the streetpass/friend list bonuses are totally broken since my allies are all done the game, many of them having maxed out job levels and whatnot. And I’m really enjoying it! I’m already getting hyped for the sequel, though I’m only on chapter 3 of this game.

Picross e6 (3DS) – Mo’ Picross, mo’ problems. Or, not. Because Picross makes me happy.

Fallout: New Vegas (PC) – Don’t know what it is, but as much as I enjoy this game, I find it very difficult to invest time in it. Also, a maxed out Sneak stat isn’t nearly as effective as I’d like it to be.

Earthbound Beginnings (NES) – Honestly, it’s starting to feel a little tedious. If Lloyd and Ana had joined the party at a respectable level, maybe things could have been different… Whatever. I’m nearing the end. Just got to keep pressing forward. Sloooooowly.

Dark Souls (360) – Yeah I went back to this for a bit. Made some progress. Probably going to keep not writing about it though.

Papo & Yo (PC) – A puzzle platformer of sorts. Wherein the boy you play as has a robot for a backpack and a monster for a buddy. Also said monster sometimes goes on horrible, violent rampages after eating frogs. Only an hour in, it’s been enjoyable.

Chrono Trigger (DS) – Logged a couple hours in here. Chipping away at my goal of unlocking all of the endings, one baby step at a time. I currently have four of thirteen.

Secret of Mana (SNES) – Started a new run because my brother had never played it past Spikey. I don’t blame him. That’s a tough (and very cheap) boss. Might take forever to finish, because we usually play Monster Hunter or Smash Bros instead.

Zelda: Four Swords Adventures (GC) – Started a new run because my buddy had never played it. Might also take forever to finish. Because we have like seventeen million games on the go right now. (We are terrible at finishing games.)

Shipwreck: Nameless Protagonist’s Awakening

Shipwreck is a strange little game. To be specific, I mean that it’s strange that it’s a pretty by-the-book Zelda wannabe that doesn’t really do anything to stand out. It’s kind of cute, I guess, but that doesn’t really make an impression on someone who almost exclusively plays cute games.

That’s me, BTW. I play a lot of cute games. Nuts to grizzled shootmans. I’ll take the doofy platforming animals and colourful block-matchers instead.

Anyhow, Shipwreck. From the outset, it just screams Link’s Awakening. You wake up on a beach in the middle of a torrential storm, your ship ostensibly wrecked, and there you find a sword and hack your way to the nearest town. Stay at the inn, and in the morning the mayor tells you that a ghost has been terrorizing the island and you’re quickly recruited to stop it.

Stopping the ghost, of course, requires you to traverse an overworld, searching for dungeons wherein your will find a collection of macguffins that unlock the last place. Along the way, you will collect tools and weapons, increase the number of hearts in your life bar, and maybe play a few simple mini-games. Sound familiar?

Shipwreck is just a little indie game though, so there are only four main dungeons (five if you include the little baby intro dungeon), one town, and a fairly small, barren overworld. Indeed, the overworld is nothing but space in between town and dungeons. It contains little other than trees to block your path and shrubs to chop down. Occasionally a house where mini-games are found. But there are no enemies, no hidden caves, no treasures, no non-tree obstacles. Fortunately, since it’s small, it’s not much of a bother.

Tools are used in exactly the same way as in Link’s Awakening: each one acquired goes into your inventory, and you can equip any two at the same time. Some are a little redundant (apples and bread, sword and pickaxe), but you get the usual adventuring kit like a shield, (cross)bow, and lantern. None of the tools combine to do something neat, à la bomb arrows or rooster boomerang.

Dungeons are where 95% of the game is spent, and thank goodness, because there are actual things to do in them. They don’t have a lot of depth to them, however. The general idea is that you wander forward until you find a) a locked door or b) a key. After you find one, you then wander in the opposite direction until you’ve found the other. Sometimes a treasure chest will contain a map or small amount of coins instead of a key. There is exactly one heart container in each dungeon, noted quite visibly on the map.

Each dungeon has a theme, none very unique. The tree dungeon is a very basic first dungeon. The mine dungeon is dark and requires that you have a lantern on your person at most times. The swamp dungeon doesn’t have any real gimmicks besides making you backtrack a whole lot. The desert dungeon is actually pretty great, having the closest approximation to puzzles in the game, and featuring all sorts of traps. The lighthouse is alright too, but not quite as great as the desert.

Obviously these dungeons aren’t going to be as complex as, say, Eagle’s Tower. But honestly, they feel more like Zelda 1 dungeons than anything. They’re a little more complex because there are switches and holes that you can sometimes fall to lower floors through, but really nothing that required much thought to get past.

Bosses are a pain in the butt. They don’t really require finesse or thought. You just run up and whack ’em until they die. If you don’t have a supply of healing items, you might have to dodge their attacks. The boss of the mines can only be hit with the pickaxe, which I guess is unique, and you’ve got to shoot the swamp boss with arrows. The tree and desert bosses are just jokes.

You may think by this review that I did not like Shipwreck. That’s only a half-truth. I did enjoy playing it, but I was admittedly underwhelmed. I feel like Brushfire Games had a good thing going here, but didn’t really put their all into it. Some sort of justification for the overworld would have been nice, and they could have made the dungeons a little more complex, considering that’s where the meat of the game is. I’m not saying they did a bad job, I’m saying I don’t think they realized their full potential.

Yeah, I realize that’s just about as damning as saying the game is outright bad. It’s like when someone says “I’m not mad, I’m disappointed.” Sorry, Brushfire Games. But hey, it was your first go. It’s pretty darn solid for a first game! I’m sure Shipwreck 2 will set the world on fire.

Shipwreck is available on PC via Steam/Humble, and also on Xbox Live Indie Games.

Monthend Video Game Wrap-Up – April 2015

We’re going to mix things up a little this month. I’ve decided that the Game Over section should get first billing, and then have a rundown of what I’m currently playing. I think that putting the focus on my “accomplishments” for the month is a little more interesting. And when I say more interesting, I mean that for myself when I look back on these, not for you reading it right now.

Originally the idea of this feature was to keep track of what I was playing and encourage me to leave fewer games sitting half-done. That hasn’t been the case at all, as you’ll see if you look back at how many Now Playing entries just vanished and never showed up in Game Over. I still just start games on a whim and let them wither and die when something new comes along.

~ Game Over ~

Shadow of the Colossus HD (PS3) – If you’d told me that I could like SotC even more than I already did, I’d have said it wasn’t possible. But then I played it in 3D and here we are. Possibly the best (only?) reason to own a 3D-enabled TV.

BOXBOY! (3DS) – A brilliant little puzzle-platformer by HAL Laboratory. Not surprising, since everything they do is wonderful. The gameplay is incredibly thoughtful and satisfying, and you can dress up the main character, Qbby, as a rapper or a bunny or even a girl. Hooray!

Life is Strange: Episode 2 – Out of Time (PC) – I really liked Episode 1, and Ep.2 might have been even better. I don’t much care for hot button social commentary in my video games, but I think the “Internet Bullying/Slut-Shaming is Bad” theme was handled fairly well. I find myself caring about what happens to these characters, so… Good work, Dontnod. Keep it up. Continue reading Monthend Video Game Wrap-Up – April 2015

Monthend Video Game Wrap-Up – March 2015

Yeesh, it’s April already. Funny to think that as of today, I’ll have been a homeowner for exactly three years.

Fooled you! It’s actually May 1st that I took possession of my house.

That… that was terrible. Let’s just get onto the video game stuff.

~ Now Playing ~

Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate (3DS) – As much as I love Smash Bros, I have to say that if I were restricted to one single game for the rest of my days, it’d be a MonHun game. Preferably this one.

Majora’s Mask 3D (3DS) – If I had to choose only one Zelda to play forever? It’d be Wind Waker, but Majora is a very close second.

Continue reading Monthend Video Game Wrap-Up – March 2015

New [3DS] hotness

Were you just aching to have me type more words about the New 3DS? Then you’re in luck!

If you weren’t… Well, I’m sorry. It’s just not your day.

Firstly, I just want to say how much I love the fancy Monster Hunter 4 edition that I was able to snag. The silvery colour is perfect, and I honestly think it wouldn’t look as nice without the fur pattern. The focal point, the monster emblem, is also really cool. I think it’s a pretty nice cover design all around, since it manages to be flashy and simple at the same time.

I’ll admit, I’m a little puzzled why the emblem is of Najarala, of all monsters. But I won’t complain since it still looks neat.

To speak about the system in general, it’s got a ton of little improvements here and there, most of which I never imagined that I’d appreciate so much. The one downgrade to the system is that it only fits a MicroSD card now, so that was an extra expense for me. Also the SD slot is on the back of the system, hidden underneath the outer shell. You have to have a teeny-tiny screwdriver to access it, which is inconvenient if you’ve been using multiple SD cards for some reason. I only had to open it once, and I don’t anticipate ever having to do it again.

The button layout has changed yet again, relocating the start and select buttons to the side of the system, instead of below the touchscreen. Now it’s set up more like the DSi. This is a great change, because I always felt that it was weird to reach over to push those buttons. Also they’ve added ZL and ZR buttons, which I (and probably most people) have no use for at this point. I guess some game might eventually come along that needs four shoulder buttons, but I haven’t met one yet.

The big addition as far as control options go is the C-stick. Though it’s more like a C-nub. It’s about the size of a pencil eraser, and feels pretty similar. It’s really odd at first because it doesn’t really move at all, but it’s perfectly receptive to how you’re pushing on it. I didn’t give a flip about it at first, but I’ve really come to love it. It makes playing Monster Hunter 4 a lot more convenient, and it’s nice to have free camera control in Majora’s Mask 3D as well.

New 3DS has a few more horses under its hood than its cousins, though that added power won’t be noticeable at all until early April, when Xenoblade Chronicles 3D is released. It’s currently the only game on the horizon that requires New 3DS’ extra power, though it’s still visually inferior to the Wii version. Rumours abound that MH4 looks a little better on New 3DS, but I haven’t really dug deep enough to see if there’s any hard evidence to support that. Final verdict: at the moment, the New 3DS’ power-up is insignificant. We’ll have to see how many desirable exclusives end up existing.

What makes the New 3DS truly amazing is the super-stable 3D technology. On the old 3DS, I almost never played with the 3D effect turned on, because it had a very narrow viewing angle, and shifting even a bit would break the illusion. It just didn’t look very good, so I didn’t make use of it. New 3DS has some sort of spooky face-tracking camera (it’s watching you) built in that keeps track of where your eyes are in relation to the screen and adjusts the 3D accordingly, keeping the effect solid even if you’re moving around a bit.

Super-stable 3D works really well. I spend about half of my time with Monster Hunter 4 in 3D, and to this point, I haven’t played Majora’s Mask in 2D at all. Since it’s built into the hardware, it works just fine with older games too, so games like Shantae and the Pirate’s Curse and Kirby Triple Deluxe can be played in their full 3D glory without having to worry about the effect constantly mucking up.

Keep in mind of course, it’s built for normal usage. If you’re wobbling around like a madman and/or trying to break the illusion, it’s still going to break. It’s not perfect, but it’s more than good enough to make playing with 3D on a real joy.

I guess there are maybe some other things about the New 3DS to mention. The stylus is different. Fatter and shorter. People seem to hate it, but I don’t much care. I don’t like that it’s tucked into the bottom edge of the system. It’s much harder to slide out from there than it was when it was on the side or top. Also, in North America, the New 3DS only comes in the XL variety. Again, I don’t care. I was rocking a 3DS XL anyway, so it’s NBD to me.

In conclusion, I’d have to say that while the New 3DS is a worthy upgrade, it’s not a totally necessary one. But then again, when has an incremental hardware revision ever been necessary? Never, that’s when. But New 3DS has been great for me, and if you’re in the market for a 3DS, there’s really no reason not to go with the fancy New one. If you already own a 3DS and don’t care about the 3D effect or Xenoblade, I can’t really recommend it. Still, it’s a nice machine, and it’s only further solidifying the 3DS as my preferred gaming system.

Monthend Video Game Wrap-Up – February 2015

February, February… I don’t really have any preamble for February. It certainly was a month.

I bought a New 3DS. That’s a thing that happened.

~ Now Playing ~

Super Smash Bros 4 (3DS/WiiU) – Duh. For the first time, I think I’ve actually spent more time this month playing the Wii U version. Sounds wacky, but Smash is really great on 3DS.

Hyrule Warriors (WiiU) – Thanks to the new DLC pack, this is back in the regular rotation.

Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate (3DS) – The cycle begins anew, and I couldn’t be happier.

Monster Hunter Freedom Unite (PSP) – My brother had to re-purchase this for his Vita, and started from the beginning. Helping him work back up to a decent rank was a nice warm-up for MH4.

The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask 3D (3DS) – One of my favourite Zeldas, but with better graphics and a few of the wrinkles ironed out. Terrific.

Lufia: the Legend Returns (GBC) – I didn’t like it at first, then it got better, and now it’s just feeling like a slog. Starting to remember why I don’t play many RPGs any more.

Senran Kagura Burst (3DS) – The shallowest, most action-heavy title on my 3DS. Great for when you just want to kick a bunch of butt without any thought or effort. Also I’m not terribly opposed to all the jiggly bits. The exploding clothes are a bit much, though.

Moero! Nekketsu Rhythm Damashii: Osu! Tatake! Ouendan 2 (DS) – Music is what brought me out of my post-separation slump. This is what put the wheels in motion. Mostly I just played “Bambina” and “Countdown” over and over.

Rock Band 2 (360) – Rocked out a little bit. Why did I bother adding this?

Pokémon Shuffle (3DS) – Freemium match-em-up. Now with Squirtles and Kangaskhans!

~ Game Over ~

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (3DS) – Like the movie it’s based on, it’s surprisingly not a massive pile of garbage. Not great, but enjoyable. Much better than Magic Pockets’ last TMNT game, anyway.

Elite Beat Agents (DS) – Eventually I was Ouendan’d out, and moved into something a little more North American. Played obsessively for a week until I was able to be “Jumpin’ Jack Flash” on Sweatin’ difficulty. These games are so fun, I would really love to see another sequel…

Resident Evil HD Remaster (360) – Still a good one. Just a few tweaks away from being my ideal RE experience. Like, get rid of the crimson heads and busywork “puzzles” and it’s golden.

Monthend Video Game Wrap-Up: December 2014

Merry MegaMas, everyone!

[banner]

~ Now Playing ~

Super Smash Bros for Wii U (WiiU) – Words about Smash Brothers.

Hyrule Warriors (WiiU) – Forever. It’s going to last forever.

Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker (WiiU) – Delightful. Though sometimes needlessly cruel.

Always Sometimes Monsters (PC) – Slow going on this one. I’ve played through two and a half days, and it seems like there isn’t always something to do? Maybe I need to talk to more people. Unless it gets more interesting, I might have to shelve this one. It’s a shame, because it seemed really neat at first.

Super Smash Bros for 3DS (3DS) – I told you last month, it’s considered beaten, but I’m not done with it yet. Had to hunt down all of those trophies! …and then just play more.

Donkey Kong Country Returns (Wii) – Decided to go back to this for a bit because it’s wonderful and worth beating. We’ll see if I can make it though, as it gets incredibly difficult. Working on World 7 at the moment.

Alien: Isolation (360) – More of this happened, but very little progress was made. Stuck partway through chapter ten, I think?

A Kappa’s Trail (DSi) – A game I got for free through Club Nintendo. It’s one of those rare games that’s played entirely with the touch screen, but is also really good.

Sacred Citadel (PC) – I was intent on just burning my way to the end of this one, but then the difficulty spiked on Act 4 and I don’t really wanna grind levels…

Lucadian Chronicles (WiiU) – A card battle game. Free, so I gave it a shot. Passed the first chapter, don’t know if I’ll ever go back.

Saints Row IV (PC) – Here we go, down the rabbit hole again…

~ Game Over ~

Pokémon Alpha Sapphire (3DS) – Nuzlocke victory!!

Mega Man Legends (PS1) – One of my favourite Playstation games. Some of the best 3D visuals on the machine, if nothing else (there is plenty of else).

Evoland (PC) – It’s a cute little indie game wherein you actually collect the game mechanics, graphics, etc as you go. Eventually it loses is way and ends up being about twice as long as it needs to be. Still, at 3-4 hours long, it’s not a dealbreaker.

Dragon Quest (iOS) – It’s Dragon Quest. There’s not a lot to say about it.

The Letter (WiiU) – Not the worst dollar I’ve spent, but I’m a little disappointed that Nintendo is apparently letting just anything onto the eShop. Whatever happened to quality control?

Dead Bits (PC) – It’s kind of crappy. But I only paid sixteen cents for it, so I can’t really complain.

~ Re-Runs ~

Mega Man 4 (NES) – Still my favourite Mega Man.

Mega Man IV (GB) – A wonderful game through and through, with the single glaring exception of Crystal Man’s stage. It is, in a word, poop.

Mega Man II (GB) – Yup, still embarrassingly easy. Terrible soundtrack.

Mega Man 5 (NES) – Almost as easy. The Protoman and Wily Castles have some challenging levels, and Charge Man is the only boss that isn’t a complete pushover.

Mega Man 3 (NES) – Great until Doc Robot shows up. Then it becomes almost unbearably hard.

Mega Man III (GB) – The exact opposite of MMII GB. So, very difficult and perfect music (or at least as close to perfect as the Game Boy is going to get).

Super Mario Advance (GBA) – Intended to play through every stage, but I accidentally warped past World 6. Didn’t even know that there was a warp in 5-3, because I always use the 4-2 warp.

Monthend Video Game Wrap-Up: November 2014

Another month down, another month saturated with Smash Bros. Two flavours of Smash Bros this time, even! And also some other things. Mostly Zelda. Why do I even own any non-Nintendo machines?

~ Now Playing ~

Super Smash Bros for Wii U (WiiU) – Thank you, Nintendo.

Pokémon Alpha Sapphire (3DS) – Having completed the Generation VII Pokédex in Pokémon Y, I decided to eschew my normal Pokémon tendencies and do a nuzlocke run. It was going really well until my Voltorb died and now I don’t know if I have the will to go on. Poor Vince, he was so young…

Hyrule Warriors (WiiU) – I’d be done this if it weren’t for the massive DLC packs that keep coming out. They add weeks and weeks to the game’s already-pretty-long lifespan. And I haven’t even finished the original Adventure Mode yet!

Wii Fit U (WiiU) – I really shouldn’t bother writing this in, but I’ve been using it a lot lately! Enough that I’ve even gotten passably good at that waiter game that I used to hate with a firey passion. Still, every time I turn it on, I get a sad from remembering that I lost my Fit Meter long ago.

Always Sometimes Monsters (PC) – I don’t even know where to start with this one. It’s a 2D RPG in a modern setting, where you’ve got to wrangle up a bunch of money to pay your rent. There’s more than that, but I feel like going into it would ruin it. It’s a bit slow, but it seems like a good way to spend a few Saturday mornings.

Alien: Isolation (360) – It’s too scary to type anything about it!

Super Mario Advance (GBA) – This was the only GBA game I owned for quite a while, so I played the ever-loving crap out of it. That also gave me great deal of nostalgia for it. I’d love for it to be HD-ified, because it’s my favourite version of Mario 2, but the colours look so faded and it doesn’t fit quite right in GBA resolution.

~ Game Over ~

Super Smash Bros for 3DS (3DS) – I’m not ceasing to play it, but I’ve cleared all the challenges, so I’m calling it beaten.

The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess (Wii) – Probably should have lumped this one and Majora under “Re-runs” because I burned through them both fairly quickly, but I think the “Game Over” category has a little more clout. Or something. I really like Twilight Princess. This is the fifth time I’ve beaten it. To 100% (less the Poes because F the Poes).

The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask (N64) – I always start writing this feature near the beginning of the month, and initially I’d written a blurb about how I’d like a 3DS remake of this game to happen. Guess what was announced literally that afternoon. Still played the N64 version because I had just dropped $10 on the Virtual Console version. You’re welcome.

Picross e5 (3DS) – Yup it’s another Picross game. And I played it.

Spirits (PC) – Kind of like Lemmings, but less cartoony and more artsy. Also your spirits can’t do nearly as many things as lemmings, and any action effectively kills them. I played through all the levels, but I just don’t care about it enough to bother with perfect clears. I wish that would stop being a thing.

Mighty Gunvolt (3DS) – A cute little 8-bit freebie they gave away with Azure Striker Gunvolt (which I still haven’t played). Four stages and a final boss of very base-level Mega Man-style action. Not totally fulfilling, but a good way to kill twenty minutes.

The Love Letter (PC) – An adorable browser game that I wrote about a week ago.

~ Re-Runs ~

Mega Man X2 (SNES) – I usually play through Mega Man X once or twice a year, but I only go through X2 every few years and almost never touch X3. It’s really too bad, because X2 is pretty good. I just don’t know the optimal way through the game, so it seems like I end up revisiting stages to collect power-ups more than I should have to.