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Handheld Gaming

June 1, 2013 by 8 Comments

I’ve been investing most of my time lately into various games across the 3DS and Vita. I actually haven’t turned on any of my consoles in a while and haven’t done anything on my computer aside from some Minecraft once or twice a week. It’s interesting because I used to be mainly a PC gamer before shifting more towards consoles and now I’m focusing on handhelds mostly. I doubt that I’m making that kind of shift again but I think it’s interesting to note. Anyways, here is what I’ve been playing lately.

Donkey Kong Country Returns 3D

Donkey Kong Country Returns 3D

Donkey Kong Country Returns 3DS

Keen and I really enjoyed Donkey Kong Country Returns back when it was on the Wii and now several years later it’s available in a portable form. It still looks great and the new 3D is a nice touch, even if there are some instances of ghosting. The greatest thing about it would be the controls, or rather the lack of motion controls. In the Wii version I believe you were required to shake the remote in order to perform a roll and that was maddening. There’s also a new mode with some additional items and more health, essentially an easy mode, but I elected to go through the first time in the classic mode, which is just like the Wii version. For some reason it seems way more difficult than I remember but I’m enjoying it so far, aside from the time attack challenges which are rage-inducing. I’m looking forward to trying out the new world that they added into this version.

Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Ages/Seasons

I love the classic 2D Zelda games and I was thrilled when they released them onto the eShop this past Thursday. I actually still have both of my GBC carts and they are in pretty pristine condition. The only problem is my Gameboy Advance won’t charge up but now that they are available on the 3DS I suppose it really doesn’t matter. This actually reminds me that I’m really excited for the new LttP game coming up in the future. Hopefully that delivers a solid 2D Zelda experience.

Persona 4 Golden

Persona 4 Golden

Persona 4 Golden

I didn’t know what to think of this game and the only thing I knew was that it’s super popular. Having never played a game from the MegaTen series (Or off-shoot game) I really had no idea what to expect other than possibly a heavy dose of weeaboo material but I gave it a try anyway and I’m really glad I did. The game has a very fascinating mix of turned based RPG and some kind of social life-sim/time management system. I honestly never figured I would get so into this game but I’ve already sunk 60+ hours into it and now I’m VERY curious about past Persona games and other Shin Megami Tensei titles.

Upcoming Games

When listing future games that interest me I find that not much in my immediate future is found on anything but a handheld system. Currently I’ve looking forward to Project X Zone, Shin Megami Tensei IV, definitely Animal Crossing: New Leaf, the Jak & Daxter Collection, Muramasa Rebirth, and Rune Factory 4. 

So yeah, pretty much all portable titles. Maybe the reason I’m only finding interesting stuff on my 3DS and Vita is due to the fact that we’re kinda in a transition period between console generations, but I don’t feel that bothered by it because I have plenty to do.

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Skylanders Swap Force

February 6, 2013 by 1 Comment

So just recently Skylanders Swap Force was announced. The hook in this entry seems to be the new 2-piece figures that can swap out their top and bottom sets to create dozens of different combinations.  It’s a pretty interesting idea and I’m curious to see how they implement it. Will the Skylander you create just have a few powers from each set or will the unique combination of, say, putting the tentacle legs on the bottom of the robot guy give you some special ability that only comes with that arrangement. Will some areas require a combination of tech/magic or water/fire, etc, to gain access? Also announced was the addition of the ability to jump, which lots of people have been wanting, including me.Skylanders Swap Force

That’s really the extent of my knowledge on the subject.  I’m not aware of any other details having been announced. Well, except that they will be releasing 32 or so figures. I think 16 will be new Skylanders and the rest will be updated versions, like they did with Giants, and I’m assuming the “16 new skylanders” are the swap force figures. When you think about it, this is actually  a pretty cool idea. Even if you only get a few of the figures, that still gets you several different character combinations, which can give players the variety of play without requiring the purchase of so many figures. And, of course, all of your old figures will work in the new game. The only thing that won’t are the old portals.

Skylanders Swap Force Magna Charge on top Swash Buckler on bottom

Magna Charge on top with Swash Buckler on the bottom!

I do have some concerns, however. The franchise seems to be becoming a yearly thing and that worries me. I don’t know how far they can push things in only a short amount of time. The past games were good and all, but they had some issues, one of which being their simplicity. Only a few of the buttons on the controllers are utilized, with the rest being mapped as repeats. I understand that their core demographic is kids, but that seems to not be giving kids nowadays a lot of credit. Years ago we might have only had 2 buttons and a d-pad, but every kid today has grown up with more complex stuff and they are doing things that we probably never could at that age. So that being said, I would appreciate a more complex game. Giants did offer difficulty settings, but all it really seemed to be was making the enemies hit harder and you hit softer, which I don’t think is a really smart difficulty design. Hopefully with the addition of the jump ability we will see some new gameplay mechanics put into action, like some platforming. Another big thing that players want is online play, both in the form of co-op and battle arenas. I haven’t heard anything mentioned on the subject but it would be a gross oversight for them not to include it this time around.

I am excited because I do like the Skylanders brand a lot, but this time I am a little more cautious. If they hope to compete with Disney’s foray into the genre, Skylanders really needs to bring its A game.

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Disney Infinity: Skylanders First Real Competition

January 15, 2013 by
The next Skylanders: Disney Infinity

Adventure through story campaigns called “play sets” which sound like Skylanders platforming levels.

Exciting news today! Disney just announced a new toy and game combination: Disney Infinity.  Disney Infinity will utilize different character figures, play set pieces, and discs. When placed on the base piece they bring to life new characters and powers in the game. Sound familiar? It should because it’s essentially Skylanders, except with Disney and Pixar IPs. However, it does take the familiar Skylanders format and push it forward with its “Toy Box” concept.

Players will be able to gather game assets like weapons/vehicles and save them to their Toy Box, where they can they create and build their own world and adventures in a vast open environment. Not only that, but the Toy Box mode can feature up to 4 players at once and there is even online play along with content sharing. The video brought to mind the Toy Story 3 game made by Avalanche software who just so happens to be the company working with Disney Interactive.  From what I saw in the trailer it gives off somewhat of a Little Big Planet vibe and… Originally I wanted to say somewhat of a Minecraft vibe, what with the bright, chunky environments that can be terraformed, but Keen recommended I avoid that as to not confuse people. Er, wait…  Check out the trailer.trailer.

Disney Infinity portal

It really does scream Skylanders all over it.

Anyways, Disney really seemed to do their homework on this one. They took the Skylanders concept and really pushed it forward with new and exciting gameplay ideas. The Skylanders franchise is going to be forced to take bigger steps in their future games if they hope to compete. I mean, GIANTS was good but it felt like no more than an expansion pack, and didn’t really do much to further the scope of the series by bringing in new concepts and ideas.

I’m actually really looking forward to this game now and I can’t wait to get my hands on it. Luckily it seems like they are aiming for a June release, which isn’t too bad. Unfortunately, however, it’s going to be another expensive hobby. Yikes!

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Our Favorite Games of 2012

December 26, 2012 by

We took a lot of time thinking about which games of 2012 are our favorites.  We went back and forth about whether or not we should classify it by console, genre, or an overall GOTY.   The more we looked over the games of 2012 the more it became apparent that 2012 wasn’t a great year for gaming in general. Many games we expected to be amazing were just alright, and when you really stop and think about it there just weren’t that many titles with a ‘whoa’ factor.  That said, 2012 did have a few great games. That’s why we’ve decided to just name the one (or two) games we felt deserving of the title of the best games of 2012.

 

http://www.keenandgraev.com/wp-content/authors/kgadmin-1.pngKeen

This was a hard decision for me because I played a lot of games released in late 2011, and a lot of games in betas that aren’t released yet.  A ton of games came so very close for me.  Mists of Pandaria was a lot of fun to level and do some raiding, but being more of the same definitely eliminated it from the running.  I absolutely loved Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning, the only game to come from the tragic 38 Studios, because it was an action RPG that had several neat features, and Borderlands 2 was a really fun co-op experience to play with Graev, but ultimately neither scream GOTY.

I came so close tonight to settling on Guild Wars 2 for my favorite game of 2012, but I just couldn’t do it.  That decision had nothing to do with GW2 — it is by far the best MMO I played all year, and one of the best games in general.  GW2 advanced the industry down the Buy-to-play path, and innovated a bit with content delivery.  In fact, I plan to return to GW2 and begin playing again.  I just can’t award it my GOTY.

My favorite game this year has to be… wait for it… Dota 2.    Yes, Dota 2 — a game still, technically, in beta. My love-hate relationship with DotA continues. I hate the community, and I question whether or not the MOBA industry is a fad or here to stay, yet I can’t stop playing.  Dota has been my go-to game when I’m in a slump, and occupied more hours played this year than any other game for me.  Free to play, all heroes, competitive, and capable of killing an hour in the blink of an eye.

 

Graev

I put a lot of thought into my GOTY decision. Despite the year being a little lackluster, there were a handful of titles that made this a difficult decision.  I really liked Dishonored, The Walking Dead, Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance, and Paper Mario Sticker Star.  Yet none of those were really my personal favorite game of the year.

To make my decision I looked at all the games that affected me the most this year — not necessarily the ones that were the most innovative or where I spent the most time playing.   The two that stood out to me the most are XCOM:Enemy Unknown and FTL: Faster Than Light.  I tried to pick between the two, but both of these games were so good, and impacted me to much, that both caused me to (after done playing) seek out more games to provide similar experiences.

XCOM: Enemy Unknown and FTL: Faster Than Light both have a ton of replayability.   They are both difficult, and lately as I’ve been getting older I’m seeking out harder games to challenge myself.

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So there you have it!  Those were our favorite games of 2012.  We’d love to hear about the games you enjoyed most this year, and hear what you have to say about 2012′s gaming in general.

 

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