Animal Crossing x Mario Kart 8 - DLC Review

This week saw the release of the second pack of DLC for Mario Kart 8 on the Wii U. This coincided with a slight lull in university work and a visitation from my friend Andy Dodd, who is also an avid Nintendo fan, both events forcing me to play (I tried protesting… honest).  

The DLC (for a explanation of DLC see Here) is named Animal Crossing x Mario Kart 8. It is the second pack of DLC for the game coming about a year after the games release. The staggering of extra content for Mario Kart 8 demonstrates Nintendo’s refreshing approach to DLC. Don’t worry I won’t praise Nintendo’s  DLC policy too much, I don’t need to when I did it in this post.

Animal Crossing x Mario Kart 8 infuses the game with elements of the Animal Crossing series of games. The DLC adds a total of three new characters, six new kart parts and eight new tracks. All of these come at the price of £7.00 which isn’t too bad, especially as it hasn’t come straight after the game’s release.

As mentioned I have played, and been trounced on (thanks Andy), the tracks and thought I would give a brief review of my thoughts. We were also joined by Amy in this, who terrified us both with a spot of road rage (‘spot’ may be a slight understatement).

Crossing Cup

Baby Park

Courtesy of Nintendo Everything

This track is a remake of the Mario Kart Double Dash track on the Nintendo GameCube. The track is a small oval and the normal three laps is increased to seven. Whilst in some racing games a simple oval can be boring, in Mario Kart they become gleefully chaotic. By the middle of the race you are often left unsure whether the person you have just passed was in front of you, or if you lapped them. Plus there is the potential for weapons overload, which can lead to both tears of joy and frustration. Either way the simplicity of the track hides the hectic fun to be had.

Image courtesy of Nintendo Life

Cheese Land

An impressive 3D remake of the 2D GameBoy Advance Mario Kart. This track didn’t make much of an impression on me, although to be fair, I have only played through once. It just seemed to pass by in a blur of cheddar-yellow and reminded me of Dry Dry Desert. Still a track made of cheese can’t be a bad thing, right?

Wild Woods

Image from Mario Wiki

This is probably my favourite track of the Crossing Cup, not because of the track, but because of the scenery. The track winds its way through a forest full of Shy Guys and Toads having fun. There aren’t many racing games where characters swing above you on tree vines or wave from rope bridges. But even though these are background elements, they add fun to the game. These touches demonstrate why Mario Kart can be such a fun franchise, as it combines endearing characters with gameplay that makes you want to Luigi ‘death stare’ your nearest and dearest.

Animal Crossing

A cool elongated figure of eight map which takes you around an Animal Crossing town. The cool feature of this map is that, like the game, the season changes randomly when you select it. All I have experienced is winter at this point, but driving through snowmen is rather entertaining.

Image from Nintendo Everything

Bell Cup

Neo Bowser City

A remake of the track from Mario Kart 7. This track goes through a brightly lit city under the control of King Kooper himself, Bowser. The track is cool in its design, but compared to the other tracks in the Bell cup, didn’t make much of an impression upon me.

Image from Nintendo Everything

Ribbon Road

Image from Mario Wiki

My favourite track of the DLC, due to it being made up of toys, including the titular road made of ribbon. Everything about this track screams fun, except when it makes you actually scream as a result of another Red Shell. The track reminds me heavily of Toy Story, right down to the wallpaper and bed in the corner. The best part, in my opinion, is the gliding section where you have to avoid two swaying jack in the boxes. Once again the playful element is a sure sign that you are playing Mario Kart.

Image from Mario Wiki

Super Bell Subway

A cool track which includes some formidable subway trains. These add an interesting element as they can be avoided, or boarded from above. This means that each lap is different as the trains continually move as you play. Just make sure that you mind the gap.

Big Blue

The final track is one long stretch of road broken into sections instead of laps. It is based on the F-Zero games series. This is a racing series featuring flying cars, and this fits in perfectly with Mario Kart 8’s new anti-gravity mechanism. A race along this road is filled with futuristic visuals and uncertainty as to which way up you are. I am glad that another single lap track has been added as it makes a nice change from the usual lap-tracks.

Image from Mario Wiki

As this is Mario Kart each of these tracks is accompanied by upbeat theme tunes that are sure to get stuck in your head. The best track of the bunch is probably the theme for Wild Woods.

I haven’t tested out the characters yet as I am still playing as Link from Legend of Zelda. After all what is better than when two of your fandoms combine?

A note on the character of Dry Bowser courtesy of Andy, can any of you imagine a Dry (aka firey-zombie) version of Mario, Luigi and Peach… shudder.

Five Little Known Facts About Nintendo

As a student of Creative Writing at the University of Winchester, I have been spoilt for choice in choosing my topics for assignments. The nature of the degree has meant that whilst the format of the assignments/essays has been stipulated, the topic or genre hasn't.

One of my final assessments for my degree is a twelve panel exhibition for a module known as Writing for Display. This module has been all about writing for the general public. Thankfully, due to my part-time job as a freelance copywriter I have a good knowledge of how to write engaging and informative texts for a range of readers. The topic of the exhibition has been left up to us, with our tutor suggesting a subject that will interest us to make research enjoyable.

It shouldn't come as much of a surprise to regular readers that I picked to write about Nintendo, a company close to my heart. As I did research for the exhibition I found myself learning somethings that I had not realised. I thought I would share some of these with you today, along with other facts I knew, but find interesting.

Nintendo has been around for a long time.

Nintendo was founded in 1889 by Fusajiro Yamauchi. At this time there wern't any HD TVs on the market, and therefore no need for video games consoles. But people still wanted to be entertained and Nintendo were happy to oblige. The company began life manufacturing Hanafuda cards, which are traditional Japanese cards to play a game similar to Solitaire. It is a game where players must match up cards with the same suits.Nintendo continued making playing cards right up until 1963 when they branched out into games, food, hotels and even taxi services. During this time they became the first Japanese company to produce plastic playing cards on an industrial scale. It wasn't until 1970 that Nintendo started experimenting with electronic entertainment.

Nintendo make traditional Hnafuda cards too.

The Origins of Mario.  

I knew some things about Mario's origins. The fact that he first appeared as the playable character 'Jumpman' in the arcade game Donkey Kong is common knowledge. But what I didn't know was that originally Shigeru Miyamoto (one of Nintendo's most influential designers) had wanted to make a game based upon the character Popeye. When Nintendo couldn't acquire the character license they re-skinned the game. Mario was originally Popeye, Princess Pauline was originally Olive Oil and Donkey was meant to be Bruto. As someone who isn't a fan of Popeye I must say that I am pleased that a license couldn't be agreed upon.

The Origins of Other Franchises.

Sticking with the theme of origins did you know that The Legend of Zelda series is based upon Shigeru Miyamoto's childhood. He grew up in rural Japan exploring the fields and caves near his home with no map or compass. This goes to explain a few things about the first Legend of Zelda, such as a lack of guidance when you begin your quest.
The main characters default name is link because he is the hero that links the games, regardless of time period. His green costume is based upon Peter Pan, a favourite childhood story of Miyamoto.

It seems that inspiration from childhood is prevalent at Nintendo, as Chain Chomp was based on a tethered dog that would jump at Shigeru. The dog, like Chain Chomp would always be stopped when he reached his tether. The Pokemon series is based upon its creator, Satoshi Tajiri's, love of collecting bugs.

Brotherly Love 

I always assumed that Mario was at least a few years older than Luigi. But I was wrong. According to Yoshi's Island they are actually twins. Both were delivered in a single bundle by a stork (sweet right?), Mario is thought to be older because he left the bundle first.

Name Game

Mario's name comes from the landlord of the warehouse that Nintendo of America used to rent. And the fictional character's full name is Mario Mario, with Luigi being Luigi Mario. Luigi's name origin is slightly less interesting. The development team wanted an Italian-sounding name that went well with Maio. Luigi was picked, also partly due to a nearby pizzeria called Mario & Luigi's.

The reason behind Yoshi's name (in the game's lore) is due to the island that they were discovered on being called Yoshi Island. Perhaps they were discovered by the same person as the Galapagos Tortoise. 

Quick-Fire Mind Blowers

And now for some smaller points that surprised me: 

When Mario breaks a block he isn't doing it with his head. Even in early games his fist is raised briefly showing that Mario isn't as foolish as I thought. 

Wario's name isn't as lazy as I thought (just Mario with an upside down M). Actually his name is Mario's name combined with the Japanese word for bad, Warui.

Lastly, in the original Super Mario Bros, the reason Bowser kidnaps Peach isn't due to love. Instead, it turns out that Peach is the only one who can undo the spell Bowser has put on the Mushroom Kingdom.

So, there you have it. Some rather interesting tidbits I have discovered about Nintendo as I build an exhibition. Once the full exhibit has been submitted I may post it on this blog.

Hanafuda image from Nintendo Wikia, Zelda image from Wikipedia, 

Pax East Round Up/Rant Down

PAX East wasn't the only source of news, I also read that Tim Burton is making a live-action Dumbo movie. Clearly, I haven't seen everything after all.

On set photo of Burton's live-action Dumbo (joke)

But before I get onto a rant about another franchise being Burtonised I will talk about what I had intended for this blog-post. Very recently we had this year's PAX East event, this time being held in Boston. PAX are the Penny Arcade eXpos, established by the creators of the popular web-comic Penny Arcade's as a series of festivals dedicated to gaming. The festivals area place for games that are soon to be released to be aired, and demoed, and should hype gamers up for the year's releases.

I say should because, unfortunately, I feel like the games took a backseat this year. The focus shifted towards demonstrating virtual reality hardware instead, and as a result I feel like the event suffered in the same way that E3 suffered a few years ago when the new consoles took centre stage. Hardware advances are all well and good, but should not eclipse the software (games, apps etc.). Without that software the hardware has no purpose. And the software that was presented didn't get my gaming juices flowing, and felt rather stagnant.

It may be hard to believe that this is a game, not a film.

The parts I paid most attention to were those displays by Square Enix. Final Fantasy XV looks amazing and to see it in demo form got me excited. The cut scenes shown previously at E3 made my jaw drop as they looked almost like a live-action film and not a video game. But this has happened before, with games promotional material looking stunning but the game play looking like it's made of play dough. A clear demonstration of this divide was seen in Alien Colonial Marines, and all gamers know how that turned out. Too often shiny clips promise something that game play just can't fulfil. Yet, looking at the gameplay footage of Final Fantasy XV it would appear like this issue has been solved. And the gameplay visuals appear just as photo-realistic as the cut scenes. I should mention that I acknowledge that graphics aren't everything and a games story and gameplay are major deciding factors on whether it is a great game. But remember that this is a Final Fantasy game so story is hopefully assured. And gameplay wise it is looking rather innovative, for a FF game, which too is reassuring. Overall, I am really looking forward to FF XV's release, and hope that by then I will own a console that can play it.

The Alien Colonial Marines demo looked good... looked!

Other highlights include the trailer for Bloodborne by From Software (yes that is the developing companies name), the studio that have recently brought us Demon Souls, Dark Souls and Dark Souls II. All of these were dark bleak games, which were brutal in difficulty, and yet were both very enjoyable and beautiful in design. And it would appear that their trend continues to Bloodborne. The trailer shown at PAX showed a nightmarish land that had rich detail hiding beneath. It even made Amy, who is far from an avid gamer, sit up and take note. Stating that it looked beautiful. I have faith that this game will be just like the aforementioned, even if it has become a PS4 exclusive.

Worryingly little was heard from camp Nintendo. Although this could be due to an upcoming Nintendo Direct. Perhaps like their announcements during E3 they allow us to think there is nothing before blowing us out the water in private. Splatoon, their new first-person painting shooter got an airing. It still looks rather cool, but the real testament for me will be whether it has any single player appeal. As mentioned in this post, I am rather hesitant about Splatoon as I am no longer a big online gamer.

Courtesy of Forbes

Also worrying was the announcement that Mass Effect 4 will be including multiplayer. But then again the whole existence of the game confuses me. I would have preferred if Mass Effect had remained a trilogy, especially considering such a final end. Not that I am surprised considering it was a major franchise, but sometimes even that doesn't warrant not allowing something to end before it grows too old.

I was sad to hear that Sony have allowed the patent on The Last Guardian to run out. As this could be a sign that they have given up on the game. Considering how long it has been since any news appeared it could be rather likely that the game has been abandoned.

The Last Guardian, gone, but hopefully not forgotten.

Things that passed me by, other than the virtual reality, was that Far Cry 4 now has yetis. I guess at least it now has something that is different from Far Cry 3. And also the fact that Uncharted 4 has been pushed back and that the Assassin's Creed film has gathered some momentum with cast being announced. Neither of which made me excited as both franchises have become examples of overstaying your welcome.

I will try to end on a enthusiastic tone however. Indie games on show were all rather cool looking, which just reaffirms my belief that right now indie gaming Is the way to go. Which is my main reason for not buying either the PS4 or the Xbox One. Also we have heard some of this year's E3 line-up which includes some exciting titles. So, perhaps the gaming horizon isn't as bleak as PAX would suggest.

What do you all think of PAX East? Let me know in the comments section.

Unicycle elephant from johnlund, FFXV image from galleryhip, Aliens image from Scified, Final image from DualShockers.

Inspirational Blogger Tag Challenge

I have been nominated to list seven facts about myself  by Amy-Elize Brown. This is part of the Inspiring Blogger Award, and I’m honoured that she thought of me. Please check out her awesome, and equally as inspiring, blog: Asleep in the Woods.

Like her, I have done a seven facts post before. If you do want to see seven little known facts then check out my previous post: Here. To do something a little different, I thought I would reflect upon seven video game developers who have made a good impression on me.

Traveler's Tales
Many of you may know Traveller’s Tales (TT) for their work on the Lego games series. Before they were releasing Lego games in a range of franchises, they developed some great games like Crash Bandicoot: Wrath of Cortex (the best Crash Bandicoot game in my opinion). But it was a game preceding this that left an impact on me. The video game adaptations of A Bug’s Life and Toy Story 2 were some of my earliest forays into gaming. In fact, A Bug’s Life is one of the only games that I collected the hidden items out of enjoyment, and not for achievement/trophy. Whether you love or hate the Lego games you have to admire the franchise. Especially considering they still update their Lego game's mechanics, even after establishing a working formula.

Valve

This one shouldn’t come as much of a surprise, as Valve corporation pretty much feature on many gamer's admiration list. With a backlog of impressive series like: Half Life, Left 4 Dead, Portal and Team Fortress, it is easy to understand why. Each game is iconic in its own right, and have attracted cult followings. The only criticism I have, and many will agree, is that the studio seems to have a dislike for the number three (Half Life2: Episode 2? – why not just call it Half Life Three?-), and we are still waiting for some of those much needed final acts (Half Life!)

Bioware

They are one of the best in the gaming business at storytelling. No other games developer spring to mind who have been able to complete a whole trilogy without it feelling stale or repetitive by the end. Yet with the Mass Effect trilogy, Bioware managed to keep me hooked throughout. Each game has a strong story that stands alone. I’m sure some people will disagree with me on that one, especially regarding Mass Effect 3’s ending. Another reason I respect Bioware’s storytelling is due to Dragon Age: Origins, which has been one of the only fantasy worlds to draw me in; and very effectively too. By the end of the game I was left shaken as I had to leave the world and its people behind.

Rare Ware

I have already mentioned that Traveller’s Tales had an effect on my childhood, but they weren’t the only ones. I grew up playing the N64, and as such experienced the golden age of Rare Ware. I have talked about many of their games before, and if you want to hear more about them check out this post Here. But suffice to say, the studio brought us games like Banjo-Kazooie, Diddy Kong Racing and Goldeneye. These are some of the games that people think of when they think of great retro gaming.

Rare Ware's pre-Microsoft days... sigh.

Nintendo

This one shouldn’t come as much surprise to regular readers of my blog. What may surprise some of you is that Nintendo actually began their gaming career with playing cards. Thankfully, they went a bit more high-tech and produced some of the greatest video games. Without the grandparent of gaming we wouldn’t have critically acclaimed series like Mario, Donkey Kong, Kirby,or even my beloved Legend of Zelda. Despite what some people may say about Nintendo they are still going strong, and will hopefully keep providing us with amazing games.

The Behemoth

Image from Giant Bomb

From one of gaming’s giants, to an indie developer. It’s hard to create a 3D game that can hook someone into its world, but it’s harder still for a 2D game to create the same sense of immersion. Yet, immersed I was in the world of Castle Crashers. A game that was a simple side-scroller with a plot that was at most: Go save the king. But, there was enough collectables, unlockable and hidden features to keep me hooked. Their other game, Alien Hominid, was just as simple and still had more re-play value then most modern AAA games.

Rocksteady
Game developers attempts at superhero games are fraught with bad memories. Very few decent games have been made based on comic book characters, Spiderman on the PS one was the last good effort. Before Rocksteady entered the arena. Rocksteady have managed it twice, and hopefully will achieve a hat-trick. Batman: Arkham Asylum and Batman: Arkham City, are not just great superhero games, but great games full stop. Before anyone mutters: What about Arkham Origins? Well that was a low point (still good compared to many AAA titles), but made by another developer. I have every faith that Batman: Arkham Knight will be a fitting conclusion. Even if I do have to wait some time to get a PS4 in order to play it.

So there you have it, my top seven video game developers who I admire. You may not agree with me, but let me know why in the comments section.

Also, another thank you to Amy for tagging me. She certainly deserved the inspiring blogger tag before me, as she was one of my blogging inspirations.

I would like to nominate David Owen as my inspirational blogger/author. David is a graduate from university (University of Winchester), and has gone on to become a published author. Plus he is a video games journalist and has written for IGN; which basically makes him a god.

Thankfully, he accepted the tag and posted seven facts about himself here.

Rare Ware image from DragonBorn9617

The New Nintendo 3DS &3DS XL: Are They Really New?

I remember when Nintendo first announced the new 3DS XL, alongside its sister the new 3DS, not to be confused with the existing 3DS XL and 3DS of course. Back then it was being referred to as the 3DS XL LL and 3DS LL respectively. A few thoughts struck me as I clasped my face in my palms. Firstly, 'that's a lot of random letters.' Followed by 'that’s a lot of 3DSs.' I realise that console makers are known for remodelling their consoles in a bid to keep a fresh appearance, but the 3DS family has become a bit ridiculous.

In the beginning we had the 3DS, launched in 2011. The 3DS XL brought us a bigger screen in 2012. I could see the logic in increasing the size, but the time gap could have been longer. For 3DS owners like myself, the announcement of an update mere months after purchasing the first felt like an insult. Then came the 2DS in 2013, and to be frank I’m still not sure why. The unique selling point of the 3DS was the 3D in many ways. It distinguished it from the original DS in more so than updated graphics, but the release of the 2DS took focus away from the 3D aspect. Also, it doesn’t close like the rest of the family, making the 2DS closely resemble Cousin Itt from the Adams Family. This then brings us to the new Nintendo 3DS and 3DS XL. Do we really need them?

They offer some improvements to the past models; both have bigger screens than the 3DS, although the same size as the 3DS XL. These screens have apparently got improved 3D ability, which overcomes the original 3D problem that it limited you to looking directly at the screen. You had to have your head positioned exactly a 30cm ruler’s distance away, with your eyes pointed directly at the screen's centre, and make sure there wasn't a strong wind to tilt your gaze or you would end up with a fragmented image.

I have owned a few too many of these
 to mention without embarrassment

The new 3DS and 3DS XL are also said to have a quicker processing power than older consoles, and have been redesigned slightly in regards to button colour. As well as this, the positions of the stylus, volume slider and game cartridge is different. The buttons do look nice in a purely superficial way, but I don’t agree with the relocation of the stylus. I am a creature of comfort, therefore the stylus should be found on the top of devices or the right-hand side to avoid confusion (it doesn’t take much). Cartridge and volume slider movement doesn’t really bother me much. The start/select buttons have moved too, and actually they have improved in ease of use but not aesthetics.

The biggest draws for these new consoles come from the new C-stick and exchangeable faceplates. The C-stick allows for two joysticks, which comes in handy. Most gamers have become accustomed to movement and camera being controlled by separate analogue sticks, and handhelds that offered a single stick always feel a bit clunky. Directional pads can never quite live up to the precision of an analogue stick in my opinion. The C-stick is about the size of a pea and looks like it is made of a rather uncomfortable rubber substance, and I was a bit unsure of whether the new addition would be welcome. After giving it a try, however, I found it quite accommodating, responsive and all-round a nice new addition. It is very similar in appearance to the mouse nubs some laptops have sitting at the heart of their keyboards, but these have a tendency to be too responsive and often shoot the mouse off to an unknown screen edge at the lightest touch. Thankfully, the C-stick doesn’t and actually feels like you are slowly rotating a normal analogue stick despite not actually moving itself. The C-stick feels good and gave me a reason to play Monster Hunter 3, which I enjoy more now as it is easier to control. I was very impressed by this and it outshines some full controllers, and is a definite improvement on the 3DS Pro that Nintendo launched a few years ago (this was a bulky add-on that clipped to the side). 

I feel the need to mention that new shoulder buttons have also been added, but I have yet to find a use for these.

The exchangeable faceplates are a nice touch for people, like myself, who like to buy new devices when the old one begins to bore them. I look forward to the release of new designs, and the changing of plates is as simple as unscrewing two screws and unclipping the old plate. They also announced two limited editions, a Majora’s Mask edition and a Monster Hunter 4 edition. As a life-long Legend of Zelda fan I fell in love with the Majora’sMask edition on site.

I may be a nerd, but now I'm a happier nerd.

I haven’t really noticed a dramatic improvement in the 3D effect. Although, I tend to play it with the effect off unless I am watching a particularly stunning cutscene.  I have noticed that the device looks flatter and feels a bit lighter, although neither is too noticeable.

Lastly, a word on data transfer. Nintendo have issued various step-by-step guides that help to transfer data from your old device to the new. As someone who is an avid player with a lot of game-time this was essential. The process was nail-biting to say the least. As I watched a cute little animation of Pikmin moving my data, the thought that I had accidentally deleted years of my life made me feel ill (I can hear you judging me over there). Thankfully, the process went smoothly, and no data was harmed in the transfer.

If you are looking to buy the new 3DS or 3DS XL then I would say it would be worth it, but on a few conditions. One, that you do not already own a 3DS and you have been looking for a reason to buy one. Two, that you own an old 3DS and think the increased screen size of a 3DS XL is worth it (it is). But I would not advise those who already own a 3DS XL to buy the new one. The C-stick is a great addition, but I would hold out on buying one until major games are released that can't be played without it; like Xenoblade Chronicles. Unless you are like me, and can’t stand being behind in all things new and shiny.

 Size comparison image from Gomgom54, Nintendo tree from Pinterest

Retro Game Gabbing - (Part 2)

Welcome back. This week I tackle part two of my Retro Gaming Gabbing, reflecting upon my retro gaming history. You can catch part one be clicking this link. In my last post I talked about discovering a gift box site, named Man Crates, which offered retro gaming crates.

One crate contained a cartridge of the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) game Duck Hunt. Upon seeing this I started to reminisce on the vintage gaming that has made me the man geek I am today. Unfortunately (or fortunately), if you found it interesting, I went into too much depth on generation three and four (see here for an explanation of generations) and I ran out of lines to go further. I am of the belief, that blog posts should be kept short and sweet; especially when you are as dull as me.

Image from Steam Community

So, without wasting any more time, here is my memories of gaming generation five. Sorry if it seems Nintendo heavy, I was little hooked (not in a cultish way).

Generation Five

Generation five was all about hand-me-downs for me. At the time I was still playing a generation four console, whilst my brother played his N64 in his room. Occasionally I was allowed to play games with him, like Blast Corps. and every fanboy’s favourite Goldeneye. Looking at these titles alongside a few others released for the N64, such as Diddy Kong Racing, MarioKart 64 and Super Smash Bros.,I realise that this generation was a golden age in split screen (for me at least). To be fair it makes sense, games had progressed to a point where they could handle a lot of on-screen activity, but we lacked the capabilities of the advanced internet we have today.

Image from How Stuff Works

When my brother got a Playstation One (PS1) I inherited his N64. Which meant that the N64 was the first console that I bought my own games for. I can still remember going around a friend’s house and experiencing Banjo Kazooie. On the next trip to the local shopping centre I recognised it on shelves, and purchased it with what pocket money I had to hand; plus a little advance from my father of course. I can remember vividly the store I bought it from, and the feeling of holding that small cardboard box in my hands (the old boxes felt much warmer than the cases we have today, ah nostalgia’s rose-tinting glasses). Unfortunately, the box is gone and the store too. But Banjo Kazooie’s cartridge still remains in my possession. My collection soon grew to including Pokemon Stadium One and Two, Pokemon Snap, Super Smash Bros.

In fact Pokemon Stadium One still stands out in my gaming history as one of my finest moments. For weeks I attempted to beat the Champion League’s Elite Four without any luck, even my brother couldn’t accomplish it. But then, one Saturday morning as everyone slept (I do resent them not being present for such a defining moment), I finally beat the League. To say I was excited would be an understatement. I am not ashamed to say that I ran up and down the house, multiple times cheering my head off. If my family had been asleep they certainly weren’t for long. I hadn’t even checked to see what my prize was for such an accomplishment. I was a little disheartened to find it was just an Eevee, but still beating them was enough, something I did regularly after I realised the formula.

Image from WiiU daily

One regret I have about the N64 is that I never owned a copy of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time on it. The game is one of my favourite stories, in my favourite game series and yet I haven’t owned the original cartridge. I have, of course, completed Ocarina of Time (in fact multiple times on multiple consoles), but not on its original platform. I also admit to never finishing The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask, although I will rectify this soon with the upcoming remake on the Nintendo 3DS.

When my brother moved on to generation six with the Playstation Two I got my hands on his PS1. At this point I became rather fickle and forgot about my allegiances to the N64. Too caught up in the amazing Metal Gear Solid, a story so complex that my head now can’t even cope with the story. I don’t think I was too concerned at the time; not when I could take down a helicopter, right after repelling down a building. The game captivated me so much that I began telling people I wanted to be a missionary, just like Solid Snake (the main character: a mercenary). People were rather confused that I believed a missionary went on secret missions to say the least.

Start-up screens still give me a shiver (in a good way)
PS1 start-up screen from Galih

I also remember the morning of my eighth birthday as a result of receiving PS1 games (I really am a geek aren’t I?). That morning I awoke bleary eyed to find that my Mum had piled my presents around me as I slept. That day I received; a garish green and purple neon Walkman, with a tape of the Witch Doctor, a copy of Rayman and Gex: Enter the Gecko along with other things that have faded from my memory. I loved both of these games, and still do, but have yet to complete them. I still retain an obsession for Leslie Phillip’s voice due to his voice acting in Gex.

Yet again, I seemed to have had more to talk about than I expected. I will stop there before I bore you any further. The next post on Geek Boy Babbles won’t be so indulgent I promise. There will be a break in gaming generations before I return to tackle generations six, seven and then handheld histories.  

Until then let me know your opinions and memories in the comments below.

Retro Gaming Gabbing - (Part 1)

Last week I became aware of a gift box site called Man Crates from a friend. Apparently they sell gift boxes sent in crates, and of course, need to be opened with a crowbar. At first I thought that he was just kidding, that perhaps it was a riff on the Loot Crates idea. But then I checked it out and was rather taken aback to say the least.

You can check out a link to their gifts for men page here.

I have to say that upon viewing their site I was hooked by the humour and shocking range of sets (I'm not sure eclectic covers this place). Two boxes stood out to me. Firstly, the zombie crates which seem to all feature some rather intimidating knives. But mainly their retro gaming crates, which would be like mana from heaven for a geek like me.

As soon as I spied the cartridge of Duck Hunt in a crate package I immediately had inspiration for this week's blog post. 

Good job they provide a crowbar, perfect for re-enacting Half Life

As I began to reflect upon my personal gaming history I realised it wasn’t just a hobby. Gaming is something that has helped me shape the person who I am today. Some may say that this is a reason that gaming should be banned, but we will ignore that for now.

So where to begin? Well, I think it would be best to deal with it by console generation.

For those that don't know consoles can be catagorized by generations. Typically generations are when consoles that were released in neighboring years are grouped together. Usually the key console makers (companies like: Nintendo, Sony, Sega etc.) release one console per generation and aim to create a new console every ten years or so. Right now we are in the eighth generation of consoles with the likes of the X-Box One, the PS4 and arguably the Wii U.

Generation Three

Technically I wasn’t born until the fourth generation, but thanks to an older brother and a family a little behind the times my console experience predates my birth. My gaming experience from this gen was of the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) and the Sega Master System I.

Specifically I have fond memories of playing the NES around my Nan’s house. My brother and I would end the visit with an hour playing coop on the console. Unfortunately, we only had one cartridge that would work; fortunately it was a double pack: Super Mario Bros. and Duck Hunt. An odd combination, but a lot of fun as Duck Hunt included a light gun. As you can imagine we had many arguments over who was winning and who was cheating by edging closer to the screen. 

However, one thing we united over was our hatred for the giggling dog that popped up when you missed the targets (thank you Super Smash Bros. forWii U for allowing me to enact vengeance upon the pooch finally). Super Mario Bros. was my first introduction to platforming and I still have the theme song permanently etched on my brain. We never did actually complete the game, the furthest we got was world five… out of ten!

Laugh for now, but your time will come!

The Master System was our home console and we had a few games, although I don’t remember any. I think the reason I don’t remember that many is because I rarely played anything other than Sonic the Hedgehog. As such I actually finished this one.

Once again I found myself bounding with my family through gaming and not just my brother. My Mum too got involved in this game and actually spent more time playing it than I did. She didn’t make it past world two; the bridge level always foxed her.

Suffice to say that despite not being born when this generation was active I have strong memories of the consoles that make it. 

Generation Four

I don't have much experience with this generation. We did have a Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES) at home, but I don't really remember playing it too much. It was my brothers console really, and we only played a few titles together like Killer Instinct and Donkey Kong Country. This generation passed me by somewhat and I do regret missing out on some genuinely good titles. I especially regret never owning a Sega MegaDrive.

Image courtesy of the Old Computer.

I hadn't realised when I began this post that I would have so much to talk about in such early generations. To help this I will end this post here and carry on the generation reflection in next week's post. Be sure to check back in a weeks time.

Also I want to hear your gaming history, let me know in the comments section below as always.


Man Crate image from ManCrate.com, Duck Hunt image from IGN,

Fantasy Life

It appears that video game obsession with me is like waiting for a bus. You can't engage with one game deeply for a few years and then three come along in a short time; and suck all time you have for anything else. This time the game that is dragging me away from  my life is Fantasy Life on the 3DS.

Don't worry I won't be giving any spoilers away, so read ahead.

It came as no surprise to me that I became a little engrossed in Fantasy Life. The game comes from developers Level 5 who have hooked me in with little resistance on many occasions. I have been an avid fan of their Professor Layton series and last year I spent more time playing Ni No Kuni than I care to admit. There is something about the innocent cartoon-like art style that conceals deep game play and a deeper story line still.

This game is no exception, and the world is as colourful as ever. Lush green fields, luminous caverns and vibrant towns are all a pleasure to explore. There are times when I just find myself strolling around the field just because it is quite relaxing. Except when set upon by wolves, or having to sneak past the Nap Dragon; who despite always sleeping terrifies me.

Gameplay wise it is an RPG combined with a life simulator game. Imagine if Animal Crossing and Final Fantasy had a child, or if Skyrim was colourful and less adult. For those of you who those references bypassed. It is a game where you can live a peaceful town-based existence, buying a home, filling it with furniture and generally living a simple existance (Animal Crossing). But, to earn your money for this you go out adventuring, exploring dungeons and slaying beasts (Skyrim style).

Fantasy Life's main unique selling point is it's life license system. Where most games will give you a choice of the type of person you want to be: warrior, mage, farmer etc. Fantasy Life allows you to chop and change your life on a whim through exchanging your license. Your lives soon become intertwined, as a warrior you need armour so you become a blacksmith. Then you need ore for that armour, so off to mine you go. But wait, those swords also have wooden hilts, and wood chopper becomes necessary. It could be easy for you to pick two lives and then not try others, but Fantasy Life makes it rather integral, and enjoyable, to play many at once.

Not that you can't pick one life and stick to it. Yeah you may need armour, ore etc. but you can just buy them from merchants. You miss out on some great gameplay doing this though. Fantasy Life then attracts a minor annoyance with this too. When you begin a new life you need to go through a tutorial mission for that life. Which wouldn't be a problem, except they all follow the same pattern. Talk to Guild-master, go see a previous student, fulfill a certain request and then be on your merry way. After completing two or so it becomes rather repetitive. Thankfully it gives you the option to bypass these and doesn't penalise you for doing so.

Fantasy Life is an amazingly deep game. I have sunk almost fifteen hours into it already, and have barely scratched the surface. I have tried five of the twelve, or so lives. Exploration wise I have only unlocked the main town and it's adjacent field. The reason for this lack of progress is quite simply because I can't help re-exploring every area to ensure I uncover every secret; sometimes even twice.

The only downside I have found with Fantasy Life so far, apart from being a time-sponge, is that it does end up being killing small animals and harvesting natural resources. I don't exactly feel like the great guy all the towns folk are praising me as.


Fantasy Life box-art from Kotaku, Game-play image from Nintendo, Pretty field image from Hardcoregamer.

EuroGamer Expo London 2014

This weekend I was lucky enough to be able to attend Eurogamer Expo London 2014 (EGX). The expo is one of the biggest game shows held in the UK. At the show developers have gathered to showcase what they have in development and give gamers a chance to go hands on with the year’s releases. Whilst not as big as an American gaming convention, E3 especially, the show still excites me.

A massive thank you to my friend Lewis Bailey for allowing me to attend as his plus one. It was a great day and I really appreciated it.

There weren’t any big exclusive games announced at the event, but there were several game titles I was keen to see in action. The games I was most eager to see included: Namco Bandai’s Project Cars, Dragon Age:Inquisition, Arkham Knight and of course the much hyped Alien Isolation (which I even got a chance to go hands on with). For a full list of games I will provide a link at the end.  It was also my first opportunity to hold the Xbox One and PS4 controllers, both of which I am still unfamiliar with.

Before I begin I will admit that I personally don’t like playing demos; worse still I don’t like playing in public (video games that is, honestly your dirty minds!) Firstly, I don’t like demos as often they are lifted from the games directly. I realise this is technically a good thing; it does after all give you a very good impression of the game. But I like my new games to feel fresh and new and hate replaying a whole section. Some games demos have understood this and offered demos that are challenge maps not in the main quest line or serve as prequels to the story. By doing this not only does it save spoilers until release, but also invests me into the story so that I am eager to pick it up on release.

I hope gamers are going to start seeing the lack of real ingenuity behind the triple A game's PR campaigns. Too much glitz, without any substance, is bad for any industry.

My second peeve about playing in public is that I get very self-conscious. I am always very aware that behind me stand several others who are eager to take my place. This realisation isn’t helped when they offer ‘helpful’ remarks or whisper about my techniques. A lot of this is down to my own pig-headed nature; I like to figure things out for myself. Another issue is the queues that come before the demo, often the most hyped games have lines well over 45 minutes long and when you only get a few minutes of game time to compensate I lose enthusiasm.

By the end of the day we were 'BFFs'

For this reason what actually stole the show in many ways for me wasn’t the big hitters it was actually the indie games. Not only are there shorter queues for them, but the developers are usually on hand. They are eager to get feedback from their games and genuinely interested in your opinion. Thankfully I think the gaming industry is starting to slide towards the indie trend. At this year’s E3 big games like Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare failed to gain as much attention as previous years. I think gamers are starting to see that behind their PR agent led pitches lies a lack of innovation.

The games I tried out were pretty decent and I will post about them separately in other posts. I got to grips with Alien Isolation, NBA 2015, Super Exploding Zoo, Little Big Planet 3, Terra Tech, Never Alone, Cloudbuilt. I also saw a lot of gameplay due to the aforementioned fact that I enjoy watching more than playing. I will go into detail about the games in later posts as I wouldn’t be able to go into enough depth in this post.

You may notice that my Euro Gamer Expo posts are slightly one sided towards what Sony had on show. This isn’t on any biased of my part, more on the part of the show. Sony seemed to get the better space and even the event programme came with a Sony advert attached. The billboards leading from the station to Earl’s court where plastered with their promotions too.  

What I will talk about is my first experiences with the PS4 and Xbox One controllers. I will say that right now due to the exclusives the PS4 is my preferred console (after the Wii U of course). It is also partly because of how the Xbox One’s reveal was handled which left a bitter taste in my mouth. It is rather unfortunate then that after giving both a whirl that the Xbox One controller felt more natural to me.  It hasn’t really changed that much from the old Xbox 360 pad except it has put on a few pounds. The buttons all remain the same and very much easy to understand. Some might complain that the fact that it didn’t change means there is nothing new to gain, but I’m more of the opinion that it isn’t broke, so why fix it?

Luminocity had a beautiful cardboard display.

The PS4 controller on the other hand is an attempt to revolutionise the dual shock pad. Once again it has put on a bit and become squarer at the top. I wanted to test out the touchpad of course, but was somewhat disappointed. The pad is plastic in texture and feels like the back of a Kindle eBook. This made it rather too fiddly for precise control. I found the slightest movement was interpreted as a mile long stroke, which is disappointing considering how advanced touchscreens can be. Despite it’s added size the buttons don’t seemed to have benefited. They instead have become smaller and more out of reach for my fingers to find, the analogue sticks were oddly indented too. I already miss the classic start and select buttons and found myself reaching for empty space. Overall the controller felt alien to me and just rather uncomfortable.

EGX was a fantastic opportunity for me to attend and I really enjoyed seeing what is to come in the year ahead. I saw some great games, met some lovely people, bought expensive merchandise and played spot the cosplayer. It is a must attend expo for those who need to keep up with gaming and geekery.

Link to games on show can be found Here.

Link to Vlog done by The Lewis Rocks, featuring myself, can be found Here.

Robin Williams

Last week, as many of you will have heard, the man/myth Robin Williams sadly took his own life. His death will leave a big hole in many of our hearts as his films and comedy touched many minds. In my post this week I would like to reflect on the legacy that he leaves behind.

Firstly, I would like to state that I'm not going to praise every single appearance he had. Whilst he was a superb actor, he was also fallible. For instance I believe his performance as the genie in Aladdin  is the weakest part of an otherwise amazing film. Also his stand-up never appealed to me, although I can appreciate the impact he has had on American comedy circuits. But, Robin Williams did have an impact upon me on numerous ways and I want to talk about a few of these.

• Aladdin- This film is one of my favorite Disney animations and fondly watched throughout my childhood (due in no small part to it being my fathers favorite and we seem to have various copies as he forgets we own it already). However, as I have touched on already William's character in this was the biggest let down, if I'm honest he was just too childish for my taste.                                                                                                                          
• Hook- I am a big of Peter Pan fan and Hook is a refreshing take on the classic children's adventure. William's portrayal of a Peter Pan who has not only grown up, but also forgotten his life in Neverland is amazing and at points touching. He's perfectly balanced too by Dustin Hoffman as the villainous Captain James Hook.                                                                   
• Patch Adams- I have only seen this film recently, but can recommend it whole-heartedly. A story (based loosely on true events) about a doctor whose core belief is that a happy patient will take better to treatment. It is a great feel-good film for when your feeling blue. Laughter is, after all, the best medicine.                                                                                              
• Jumanji- Growing up this film always seemed to be on TV at one time or another. Despite this I always found myself watching it. I'm not quite sure why I did watch it eagerly as it's far from perfect. Just one of those films to have on in the background as I go about other things.   
• Mrs. Doubtfire- This is a bit of an odd one as I haven't actually seen this film. But, it is a film I am desperate to see. People are always citing it as being a brilliantly funny film and I feel like I commit a disservice by missing out so far.                                                                    
• Legend of Zelda franchise- Lastly as a gamer the last mention I'd like to make is to Robin Williams as a patron of the Zelda games. He was an avid player of the series, starring in trailers for them and even named his daughter after the princess. This year the two attended E3 and a mask held by Zelda gave many fans hope for a re-make of a classic.

These are just my personal observations on the career of Robin Williams. I realise I have barely scratched the surface. I would like to send my condolences to his family and friends who has left behind and who I'm sure feel the void more that most. I welcome your observations in the comments below about your views on his career.

Image from Lightlybuzzed.

What a gamer wants.

Like many gamers, I have an ever-increasing list of announcements that I want (read as need). Surprisingly, none of these is for the elusive Half Life 3; I have yet to complete Half Life 2. Also, I personally think the good people of Valve aren't quite sure what number follows two.

I thought I would post a list about what I want to see in the near future. You may not want another fan-boy wish list, but I'm going to give them to you anyway.

If by the end of this post you find yourself agreeing/disagreeing or discovering your own wishes, then please leave them in the comment section and we can banter about them there.

1. Minecraft for Wii U.                                                                                                          Just think how well the Wii U's tablet controller would lend itself to Minecraft, or for that matter Terraria. No more fiddling in inventory screens, just drag and drop, the thing touchscreens were made for.                                                                                             I'd even take a 3DS port of the pocket edition. Come on people of Nintendo and Mojang, get together; there's money to be made in this one.                                                                                    
2. Japan's Hyrule Warriors limited editions.                                                                            If you don't know about the Hyrule Warriors Treasure Box set then check out this link. I am rather envious of this limited edition, and very tempted to import it. I especially love the scarf and Tri-force alarm clock. Western special sets have yet to be announced, so I'm still holding out for a similar version to reach our shores.                                                                       
   
3. More respect for the Wii U.                                                                                               I won't rant about this one too much, for now. However, I could and have written many posts about the wasted potential of the Wii U. What annoys me isn't just the gamers who don't give it the time it deserves, developers too always seem very reluctant to give it a chance. The most recent example of this is Ubisoft, withholding a Wii U game that is ready to ship (link).                                                                                                                    
4. The end of console exclusives.                                                                                           Surely, I'm not the only one who is sick and tired of being pulled in all directions, just to play games. Why should we have to choose between missing out on exclusives, or spending money on buying multiple consoles? I know that the simple answer is to buy a PC, where the majority of games end up. But, for someone not tech savvy, PC gaming seems like a minefield.                                                                                                                          

   

   It looks cool but,
   can it play Crysis?

5. The cost.                                                                                                                          Number four leads nicely onto this one. It doesn't matter what console you pick, gaming is getting too expensive. Just a few years ago, a new release would cost about £39.99, that would only be a few days before there was some promotion making it affordable. But now, games release at around £45, and seem to hold that value. Games companies wonder why gamers buy pre-owned, it's because they are pricing themselves out of the market.

That's a few wants off my chest. I bet the moment I hit publish I will think of a dozen more.

For now, however I want to hear yours. Share them in the comments. I will reply and discuss them all, no matter how insane.

Rage image from the christian nerd, Tri-force alarm from nerdreactor, PC image from techspot.