How many Mario cats do you have?…….

Super Mario 3D World! (Wii U)

So far I have really enjoyed owning a Wii U. Despite many people feeling that the system is "behind" in capabilities of its rivals or the fact that it does currently lack deep 3rd party supporting games, I really do enjoy the system and what it brings to the table. Things such as a lower price point, classic characters, and good BUILD QUALITY (AHEM, MICROSOFT) do mean something to consumers. And I'm sorry but I'm not upset that there isn't the same selection of first person shooters as I really don't play much of those anyway. And I do enjoy playing a console and library of games that are still challenging that also don't require me to wait until my kids are asleep before I can enjoy the full content of the game. You might think I'm foolish, maybe it's untrue, you might think I'm crazy, I enjoy Wii U….

SHUT UP THAT WAS A GOOD SONG!

So to save you from reading anything too fanboy-ish, I have absolutely enjoyed this game so far. It combines the 3D "free roaming" levels of Super Mario 64, with the classic 2D platforming that continues to somehow make Mario games enjoyable after 28 years. The colors look great, the gameplay is smooth and easy for anyone to pick up and play, the fun power-ups are there, and Nintendo does a great job of paying homage to itself through various musics & graphics that bring back the great memories of setting the TV to channel 3 + blowing in the game. 

Quick note: In case any of you are going to be dusting off your classic Nintendo Entertainment System, blowing in the cartridges, was part of what caused the blinking screen in the 1st place. Replace the "pin connector," which can be found at any game store or ebay for a few bucks and your golden. Just let me know if you need help and I'd be glad to. Unless you are my sister-in-law to which case, I'm not good enought to beat you at Tetris yet, so you're on your own.  ;)

*OF COURSE!

The premise of the game is that Bowser is up to his usual tricks (OF COURSE!*) and Mario & Co. must put a stop to him. Right from the start of the game, we get a throwback to Super Mario Bros. 2 (US Version) and are able to chose from 1 of 4 characters to complete the levels; Mario (controls easily), Luigi (jumps high), Princess (floats), and Toad (dashes quickly). There are a few new items like the Bell which allows our heros to wear the Cat costume, and the Cherries that allows multiple versions of your character. 

Now, one of my ABSOLUTE favorite "side" parts of the game is the Captain Toad Adventures. These are side missions that center around a small Toad that don't take long and do provide a good challenge. The levels are small and easy to see with camera rotation, however Captain Toad cannot jump, so you have to plan your route and sometimes back track in order to complete the goal of obtaining all 5 green stars before time runs out. I freakin loved this and look forward to playing these almost as much as the regular game! Another neat item that coincides with "The Year of Luigi" is the addition of the bonus game "Luigi Bros." It's simply a copy of the original arcade classic "Mario Bros." with the main character being Luigi. Enjoy the POW, but use wisely my friends……..

DOWNFALLS: The only major downfall I can immediately see for myself right now is the price. Is this game worth $50 - $60? Wellllllllllllllsortttttttofffffffffffmaybeeeeeeeeeeeee, idunno. Is it worth $30 - $40? You better believe it is. I do highly recommend that any person that has enjoyed a Mario game at one time in their life or another play this game somehow.




Until next time,

I, I've been watching you
I think, I wanna know ya
Said I, I'm a little dangerous
Girl, I'd love to show ya……..



Thanks for reading, take care & have fun out there

Other: Motive

GREAT SCOTT!!!!!!

Just 5 more minutes, I promise I can still catch the bus..............

As Strickland would accurately label me a slacker, I promised a review. I'm going to drop some knowledge on you today. Okay buttheads? 




I'll stop now. 

................

EIGHTY EIGHT MILES PER HOUR!!!!

Okay I'm moving on now before this whole write up is BTTF themed. What's that you say? USE the theme anyway? Pfft, that's about as likely as a screendoor on a battleship.

May 27th, 2013.  

7:56pm

Think I'll play a Wii game that I picked up on the cheap. 


$5, OH YEAH, I picked up "Metroid: Other M"

Many of the Metroid-heads did not like this game one bit. Before I get into that explanation, I'll start with some of the story itself. The overall place this game falls into the "official" timeline: after Super Metroid and before Metroid Fusion. So the short and sweet version is something that those who have played the Metroid franchise will be a bit familiar with. Abandoned space station. Samus, who joins/is joined by Galatic Federation, is there to check it out. 

STOP, DON'T SAY A WORD.....

You are going to try to read my thoughts.

You want me to make a donation, to the coast guard, youth auxilary.

You are probably thinking that Samus is a total Bad A__ and completely unstoppable, right?

I could see why you would think that. 

Sadly, no. In this game, Samus falls into the "man vs himself" style of story. Her connections with the Metroid, past relationships, it just isn't what you have come to expect from her normally, strong/silent type. 

I did enjoy this game. Its a fun game, and although I haven't completed it, I tend to enjoy the 3rd person control. The 1st person control, not so much. It seems that from various sources (YouTube comments, fellow gamers) the game doesn't hold up on it's place in the Metroid cannon. Maybe it is because I wasn't into the story needing to be perfect, after all, I'm not a die hard Metroid fan. Metacritic gave this game 79 out of 100, rather 8 out of 10.

 I really did like it and if you are looking for an affordable title for the Wii, pick it up. 

Thanks for reading, take care & have fun out there

-PM

Wrecked!

Wrecked Game!!!!

This may be new knowledge to some of you reading on the internets, but I am a fan of what is considered "retro" games (pssh, I remember when they were NEW). Kids these days with their new finagled controllers and Nintendos (to us old folks, everything was a Nintendo). Games were cartridges and sometimes referred to as "tapes," which if you followed Commodore, they DID have games there were on actual cassette tapes. I know young ones are asking, "whats a cassette tape?" Stifle, and know your role. 

Anywho, thanks to this game review, I'm all in a fit. Fellow game expert Dave Burk stated, "It's a movie-license game. Never have your expectations up for such a property." That being said, I'd rather itch my butt like a dog on a sheet of ice instead of playing this game. 

One thing it does do well is remind me of games from yesteryear that had bad controls. Meaning, graphics may have been fine, story was sound, but you spent all of your effort fighting with the controller to produce the result you want. Castlevania. (Get behind thee Satan! How dare you Pat!) Hold on, don't hate. I love the Castlevania series for the NES, even the less than stellar Castlevania II. But anyone who ever played those knew that most of the time you were making jumps that required you to stand in a very precise spot (one foot off the ledge style WHATS UP!!!!). Don't get me started on the damage "jump backwards." Again, right now if you are confused, either find a way to play them or just save the hassle and  take my word for it. 

Back to life, back to reality.

Wreck-It Ralph could have been a great game. I saw the movie and possibly enjoyed it as much as if not more than my kids. I lost it during the "bad guys" group when they freak out and the Pac Man ghost turns blue (actually the whole time he is following the same pattern he does in the arcade game, I know, huge nerd whatever).

I thought the characters were good and actually found myself enjoying the iPhone App my wife has. Very Donkey Kong esq with the vintage graphics and game play. Thus, my expectations were upped for the Wii version. 

Why do I do that to myself. I guess as a Blues fan I'm used to...............

The game's graphics/cut scenes are a bit of a let down and look like they were done using a program on Windows '95 (yeah, I freakin went there). Basically it's just the picture of the character speaking with a word bubble above their head. SMH


I do like that the different worlds look like the different places in the movie i.e. Fix it Felix, Jr., Sugar Rush, Hero's Duty. 

The other annoying thing is the switching between the characters. See Ralph is a typical video game "big guy." He is strong and can move things but doesn't jump well and is slow. Felix is at the other end of the spectrum in that he's a bit weaker but has a double jump and can chuck his hammer like Link's boomerang (BOOYAKASHA!) Now switching between characters in a game isn't a bad thing especially if it's a one player game, but you will find yourself switching every few seconds or so. I'M NOT MAKING THAT UP. 

So in closing, don't pay the retail price for this game. I noticed that most places have it "new" for $20. I would rather eat the $20 bill and pass it. It would be more entertaining than playing Wreck-It Ralph.

Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go play E.T. on the 2600.........

Thanks for reading, take care & have fun out there

-PM