Hi all!
Oy, another fishing game. Do I have to play this one? Yeah yeah, I'm on a mission and all of that. Should've made a list of exceptions before I started... oh well, I guess it is too late now.
This one offers four different game modes. I jumped into an exhibition so I could learn the controls at my leisure, though not before quickly creating a character from a few preset clothes and face options. Why does every face look angry? I thought fishing was relaxing. Once on the boat, I cast the line by pulling back on the analogue stick and then releasing it. The A button reels in slowly and the B button reels fast, and moving the stick can wiggle the lure. I didn't see any fish there so I reeled it back and cast in another direction. Finally, after waiting maybe a minute, a fish charges out of nowhere and grabs the line. I was already holding a direction on the stick, so I forgot to "set" the hook by pulling back, and it ended up getting away. I cast into a narrow part of the lake, thinking there must be a fish hiding in there somewhere. After some more waiting, a fish comes and grabs the line. This one is pushing really hard, but I finally manage to reel it in. And! And.... it's a trout. The announcer says "You're supposed to be catching bass." in a somewhat jeering voice, and the fish is released. Wonderful.
Speed Fishing puts you on a specific spot of the lake with a whole bunch of fish swimming around. You start with three minutes, and the fish you catch will add one second per once to the clock. Your score is based on how long you can fish before you run out of time. The Casting Game is more fast-paced than the other modes. There's no real fishing here, all you have to do is cast the line into the targets on the water within the time limit. Once you get all of the starting targets, more will start to appear in random locations.
The graphics are much better than Bass Hunter 64. The camera goes underneath the water, so more than just the surface is visible. There are things like plants and rocks on the lake bed, so it isn't just a brown mass like it could have been. The animation is slightly choppy at times, but is still good enough to not detract from the looks. There is strangely an announcer in this game, which is kind of freaky when you consider there's somebody watching you from some unknown location talking to unspecified people. Don't worry, if you want solitude then you can turn the announcer off.
I'm still not sure who this game appeals to, but if a fishing game sounds like something you'd enjoy, this one won't disappoint.
7/10
-Mop_it_up
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
Saturday, April 17, 2010
Bass Hunter 64
Hi all!
There are certain concepts which simply don't work well as a videogame, and fishing is one of those. I'm not into fishing myself, but I can see the appeal in it. It can be just you, out on a boat in the middle of a lake on a beautiful day, sitting back with your feet up, fresh air all around, no one around to bother you, all your troubles forgotten. When you're playing a fishing videogame, then it's just you, on a couch in the middle of an ugly living room decorated by your roommate who has bad taste, sitting back with your feet resting on a pile of empty pizza boxes, hot, stuffy air all around, and your troubles are just one phone ring away. The experience isn't one which can be replicated by a videogame.
Starting it up, I was greeted by a bland title screen which quickly faded into a save file select screen, so the pressing of start wasn't necessary. Surprisingly, this game saves to the cartridge, which seems a bit strange for an obvious low-budget title. There are two characters to choose from, a generic, nameless guy or girl. There are two modes of play, Tournament and Fish For Fun. The former has you playing for a certain score based on the fish you catch within the time limit, and the latter let's you pick a lake and stay as long as you want.
Since there is no in-game explanation and I lack the manual, I had to figure out the controls all on my own. Casting is simple, just use up and down on the stick to select the strength and press A to cast. There are three different cast types, but they all seem to function in the same way. After tossing the line into the water, I waited. And waited. Reeled in a bit more. And waited. Reel. Waited. Spun stick rapidly just to watch the character dizzy herself in an attempt to somehow amuse myself. Finally found a fish through some stroke of luck. I held A to reel it in, but it wasn't doing much, and the fish eventually got away. Great. Do you know how long that took? Eesh. Threw the line back in, and after more waiting and stick-spinning, got another one. This time I thought to pull back on the stick as I reeled it in, which seemed to work. There is a meter on the side of the screen that I have no idea what it does. It is green on the bottom and red on the top. It was half full, and as I moved the stick from side to side, the meter was moving up and down. It seemed random, so I have no clue what it means. In any case, I caught the puny 2lb bass. Now let's eat it. Wait, it's a videogame. Crap.
Graphics are passable but nothing special. The water looks decent enough and has some subtle ripple effects, though the land graphics consist mostly of blurry sprites for trees. The animation of your character is very choppy, though the fishing line is somewhat smooth. Music is non-existent outside of menus, so you'll be listening to nothing but the sound of birds chirping and the reeling of the rod.
It's a fishing videogame, what does one expect from it? I've no idea if this would actually appeal to a fishing enthusiast, as I doubt it contains much of anything that one looks for in the real hobby. You don't even get to cook the fish you catch.
Score: 4/10
-Mop_it_up
There are certain concepts which simply don't work well as a videogame, and fishing is one of those. I'm not into fishing myself, but I can see the appeal in it. It can be just you, out on a boat in the middle of a lake on a beautiful day, sitting back with your feet up, fresh air all around, no one around to bother you, all your troubles forgotten. When you're playing a fishing videogame, then it's just you, on a couch in the middle of an ugly living room decorated by your roommate who has bad taste, sitting back with your feet resting on a pile of empty pizza boxes, hot, stuffy air all around, and your troubles are just one phone ring away. The experience isn't one which can be replicated by a videogame.
Starting it up, I was greeted by a bland title screen which quickly faded into a save file select screen, so the pressing of start wasn't necessary. Surprisingly, this game saves to the cartridge, which seems a bit strange for an obvious low-budget title. There are two characters to choose from, a generic, nameless guy or girl. There are two modes of play, Tournament and Fish For Fun. The former has you playing for a certain score based on the fish you catch within the time limit, and the latter let's you pick a lake and stay as long as you want.
Since there is no in-game explanation and I lack the manual, I had to figure out the controls all on my own. Casting is simple, just use up and down on the stick to select the strength and press A to cast. There are three different cast types, but they all seem to function in the same way. After tossing the line into the water, I waited. And waited. Reeled in a bit more. And waited. Reel. Waited. Spun stick rapidly just to watch the character dizzy herself in an attempt to somehow amuse myself. Finally found a fish through some stroke of luck. I held A to reel it in, but it wasn't doing much, and the fish eventually got away. Great. Do you know how long that took? Eesh. Threw the line back in, and after more waiting and stick-spinning, got another one. This time I thought to pull back on the stick as I reeled it in, which seemed to work. There is a meter on the side of the screen that I have no idea what it does. It is green on the bottom and red on the top. It was half full, and as I moved the stick from side to side, the meter was moving up and down. It seemed random, so I have no clue what it means. In any case, I caught the puny 2lb bass. Now let's eat it. Wait, it's a videogame. Crap.
Graphics are passable but nothing special. The water looks decent enough and has some subtle ripple effects, though the land graphics consist mostly of blurry sprites for trees. The animation of your character is very choppy, though the fishing line is somewhat smooth. Music is non-existent outside of menus, so you'll be listening to nothing but the sound of birds chirping and the reeling of the rod.
It's a fishing videogame, what does one expect from it? I've no idea if this would actually appeal to a fishing enthusiast, as I doubt it contains much of anything that one looks for in the real hobby. You don't even get to cook the fish you catch.
Score: 4/10
-Mop_it_up
Thursday, March 11, 2010
Banjo-Tooie
This game was a late addition to my collection, I ordered it from eBay a couple of years ago. When I played it, I wondered how I had let this true gem of a platformer elude me for so long. Despite the advancements of modern gaming, I was still impressed by the huge, expansion, and intricate worlds that Rare managed to create on Nintendo 64 hardware.
Coming off of just playing Banjo-Kazooie, there were a few little things that caught my attention. The animation is improved, giving the characters even more personality. Banjo's backpack loosely bounces around as he walks and moves, something I actually didn't really notice before. His shadow is now the shape of his body instead of just a circle, and is cast across the floor and walls based on nearby light sources. The texture work in the original game was already very good, so there isn't much difference in that aspect.
It didn't take long before I stopped thinking about the game in terms of its technical feats and became immersed in its world. I jumped into the first level, the Mayan Temple, and started the search for jiggies. Running up the hills and steps to the other side of the level, I came across Mumbo's Skull and remembered that he is a playable character this time around. Deciding to start there, I gave him the little creature wandering around his hut, and set off with the little skull-headed freak. I came across the Mumbo Pad, and used his magic to take control of the giant gold statue. There's something about the way that the statue kicks at enemies and breakable objects that I find looks funny. It's these kind of moments which make every world in the game a unique and enjoyable experience.
A half hour doesn't do this game justice. Wanting to complete the level as much as I could, I played for two straight hours and got 8/10 jiggies. I may yet have to continue with this one. I was quickly relieved when I remembered how much better the collecting aspects were in this game. Feathers and eggs are now found in bunches, so having to run around and restock them is never a worry. Notes and Jinjos no longer must be found all in one run. which is made a good thing all the more when you consider that the worlds in Banjo-Tooie are at least twice the size of those in the original. The warp points are a welcome addition as well, making traversing the levels much easier.
This is a sequel which really surprised me. The vast worlds and intricate graphics and effects had me in disbelief of what could be accomplished on the Nintendo 64. Lots of new moves and tweaks were added to Banjo's moveset, which gave variety to every task. Even my complaints about the first game have all been addressed. It almost feels like someone designed this game specifically for me. Aren't I special?
Score: 10/10
Coming off of just playing Banjo-Kazooie, there were a few little things that caught my attention. The animation is improved, giving the characters even more personality. Banjo's backpack loosely bounces around as he walks and moves, something I actually didn't really notice before. His shadow is now the shape of his body instead of just a circle, and is cast across the floor and walls based on nearby light sources. The texture work in the original game was already very good, so there isn't much difference in that aspect.
It didn't take long before I stopped thinking about the game in terms of its technical feats and became immersed in its world. I jumped into the first level, the Mayan Temple, and started the search for jiggies. Running up the hills and steps to the other side of the level, I came across Mumbo's Skull and remembered that he is a playable character this time around. Deciding to start there, I gave him the little creature wandering around his hut, and set off with the little skull-headed freak. I came across the Mumbo Pad, and used his magic to take control of the giant gold statue. There's something about the way that the statue kicks at enemies and breakable objects that I find looks funny. It's these kind of moments which make every world in the game a unique and enjoyable experience.
A half hour doesn't do this game justice. Wanting to complete the level as much as I could, I played for two straight hours and got 8/10 jiggies. I may yet have to continue with this one. I was quickly relieved when I remembered how much better the collecting aspects were in this game. Feathers and eggs are now found in bunches, so having to run around and restock them is never a worry. Notes and Jinjos no longer must be found all in one run. which is made a good thing all the more when you consider that the worlds in Banjo-Tooie are at least twice the size of those in the original. The warp points are a welcome addition as well, making traversing the levels much easier.
This is a sequel which really surprised me. The vast worlds and intricate graphics and effects had me in disbelief of what could be accomplished on the Nintendo 64. Lots of new moves and tweaks were added to Banjo's moveset, which gave variety to every task. Even my complaints about the first game have all been addressed. It almost feels like someone designed this game specifically for me. Aren't I special?
Score: 10/10
Thursday, March 4, 2010
Banjo-Kazooie
Hi all!
I never owned this one back during its time. Yeah, yeah, I'm sure some of you would consider that to be blasphemy, but what can I say? I actually never even HEARD of it, but this was before the widespread days of the Internet, and I never heard anyone talk about it. It wasn't until I started collecting that I bought this game. I completed it then, but I haven't really played it since that time.
Some may call this game an evolution of Super Mario 64, which is true in some ways. To me, it's quite different, and feels more like an adventure game. That's no criticism of the game, it's more like an observation. Banjo doesn't really have any spectacular jumps or much variety in that area, so it doesn't contain much in the way of pure platformer action. The worlds are quite open, with a number of tasks to accomplish, which can often be completed in any order you choose. This is a pretty big deviation from the more clear-cut goals of the "go from point A to point B" structure that a platformer typically has, but it works.
Starting up the game, the first thing that hit me was how catchy the music is. I'm surprised I had forgotten about it in the first place, and it's stuck in my head as I write this. There's no way to skip the opening tutorial of sorts, which I wanted to do because I still remembered the moves. After that, I jumped into Mumbo's Mountain wondering if I could complete it within the half-hour that I planned on playing. As I wandered around the level collecting everything and finding the new moves, it was all coming back to me. I rounded up the final notes and got the last jiggy, then exited the world at the forty-minute mark for playing the game.
I'd forgotten how enjoyable this game can be. I'm actually tempted to continue with it, but I'm not sure. What really brings this game down is that it has one too many collectibles. Mostly, that would be the 100 notes on each level that annoy me. Since they must all be collected in the same run, it can be a real chore in the later levels which have a few places with cheap deaths. There's also the Jinjos, I hate those little colourful creatures.
Still, I've missed this game. I've completed it just the one time when I bought it, so it is still kind of fresh on my mind. Forty minutes wasn't enough, I kept going and went on to Treasure Trove Cove. There were a few jiggies here that I remembered being annoying... but I actually didn't have much trouble collecting all of the jiggies and notes. I think this one took about forty minutes as well. It's got me wonder though... The reason I haven't tried playing this game again is because of the parts that I found to be a chore. What if that would no longer be the case? Maybe now that I know almost everything about the game, or would remember it when I got to that part, perhaps it wouldn't be so much trouble on a second time through?
Of course, there's also that playing through this will delay my quest to play every game, which I am already pretty behind on. I guess I'll just have to live with that. Banjo-Kazooie is a well-crafted platformer/adventure game that would please fans of either game type. It has a few small flaws which are now more apparent than ever, but it stands the test of time.
Score: 8/10
-Mop_it_up
I never owned this one back during its time. Yeah, yeah, I'm sure some of you would consider that to be blasphemy, but what can I say? I actually never even HEARD of it, but this was before the widespread days of the Internet, and I never heard anyone talk about it. It wasn't until I started collecting that I bought this game. I completed it then, but I haven't really played it since that time.
Some may call this game an evolution of Super Mario 64, which is true in some ways. To me, it's quite different, and feels more like an adventure game. That's no criticism of the game, it's more like an observation. Banjo doesn't really have any spectacular jumps or much variety in that area, so it doesn't contain much in the way of pure platformer action. The worlds are quite open, with a number of tasks to accomplish, which can often be completed in any order you choose. This is a pretty big deviation from the more clear-cut goals of the "go from point A to point B" structure that a platformer typically has, but it works.
Starting up the game, the first thing that hit me was how catchy the music is. I'm surprised I had forgotten about it in the first place, and it's stuck in my head as I write this. There's no way to skip the opening tutorial of sorts, which I wanted to do because I still remembered the moves. After that, I jumped into Mumbo's Mountain wondering if I could complete it within the half-hour that I planned on playing. As I wandered around the level collecting everything and finding the new moves, it was all coming back to me. I rounded up the final notes and got the last jiggy, then exited the world at the forty-minute mark for playing the game.
I'd forgotten how enjoyable this game can be. I'm actually tempted to continue with it, but I'm not sure. What really brings this game down is that it has one too many collectibles. Mostly, that would be the 100 notes on each level that annoy me. Since they must all be collected in the same run, it can be a real chore in the later levels which have a few places with cheap deaths. There's also the Jinjos, I hate those little colourful creatures.
Still, I've missed this game. I've completed it just the one time when I bought it, so it is still kind of fresh on my mind. Forty minutes wasn't enough, I kept going and went on to Treasure Trove Cove. There were a few jiggies here that I remembered being annoying... but I actually didn't have much trouble collecting all of the jiggies and notes. I think this one took about forty minutes as well. It's got me wonder though... The reason I haven't tried playing this game again is because of the parts that I found to be a chore. What if that would no longer be the case? Maybe now that I know almost everything about the game, or would remember it when I got to that part, perhaps it wouldn't be so much trouble on a second time through?
Of course, there's also that playing through this will delay my quest to play every game, which I am already pretty behind on. I guess I'll just have to live with that. Banjo-Kazooie is a well-crafted platformer/adventure game that would please fans of either game type. It has a few small flaws which are now more apparent than ever, but it stands the test of time.
Score: 8/10
-Mop_it_up
Friday, February 26, 2010
Automobili Lamborghini
Hi all.
With a nonsensical name like that, I wasn't expecting anything much out of this one. Once discovering that it was published by Titus, the same nefarious company infamous for releasing contenders for "best worst game ever" such as Superman 64 and Carmageddon, I dropped the cartridge in shock and horror. However, I'm on a mission. Mustering up as much determination as I could, I picked it up and popped it into the Nintendo 64's cartridge slot, with sour memories of Carmageddon now flooding back.
Compared to what I've seen of this company's track record, this game is actually their best one they've released. This, of course, doesn't mean it's actually a good game, but it was a pleasant surprise nonetheless.
Starting it up, I hopped into the Arcade Mode. When experimenting with the controls, I performed one too many handbrake maneuvers spinning around the track everywhere, and ended up running out of time that I didn't even notice was counting down. The steering feels somewhat jerky when jamming the stick full-on left or right, but it didn't take long to adjust to the game's analogue control. As is typical of any Titus game, the button layout was designed by either somebody who has never played a game, or simply hates all gamers. Accelerate was placed on the "A" button, which makes it impossible to press other buttons besides "B" with the thumb. The C-buttons have useful functions like a rear-view camera and the handbrake, but they must be pressed by the index finger if the thumb is to remain on the accelerator. This problem could have been easily solved by placing the gas on the "Z" button, leaving the thumb free to press all face buttons.
There are two levels of difficulty, "Novice" and "Expect," so people of intermediate skill have a little decision to make. This discriminates against intermediate players, which is kind of ironic as they're usually the ones who always have a difficulty setting just for them. Strangely enough, I couldn't manage to place 1st on the first track, but it was pretty easy to do so on every other track. I guess the first track is just too simple, so it requires a perfect run to have a chance.
There are two models of Lamborghini available at the start with three colours each, and a few additional high-class cars, like a Porsche and Ferrari, can be unlocked by winning the two main game modes. There are only six tracks in the game, most of which take less than a minute per lap. I played all six in the Championship mode, though I reduced the default number of laps from 6 to 3. That number of laps seems like a bit much, though it does make taking a pit stop necessary. Although, when the tires become worn, I actually didn't notice a difference...
Automobili Lamborghini is nowhere near as exotic as its titular car. There isn't anything broken about it, but there also isn't anything special or interesting about it to keep me entertained for long. It's just straight up speed, and I've always found that boring.
Score: 5/10
This completes all "A" games! Next up is Banjo-Kazooie, which I can tell you now is going to receive a higher score than any game so far.
-Mop_it_up
With a nonsensical name like that, I wasn't expecting anything much out of this one. Once discovering that it was published by Titus, the same nefarious company infamous for releasing contenders for "best worst game ever" such as Superman 64 and Carmageddon, I dropped the cartridge in shock and horror. However, I'm on a mission. Mustering up as much determination as I could, I picked it up and popped it into the Nintendo 64's cartridge slot, with sour memories of Carmageddon now flooding back.
Compared to what I've seen of this company's track record, this game is actually their best one they've released. This, of course, doesn't mean it's actually a good game, but it was a pleasant surprise nonetheless.
Starting it up, I hopped into the Arcade Mode. When experimenting with the controls, I performed one too many handbrake maneuvers spinning around the track everywhere, and ended up running out of time that I didn't even notice was counting down. The steering feels somewhat jerky when jamming the stick full-on left or right, but it didn't take long to adjust to the game's analogue control. As is typical of any Titus game, the button layout was designed by either somebody who has never played a game, or simply hates all gamers. Accelerate was placed on the "A" button, which makes it impossible to press other buttons besides "B" with the thumb. The C-buttons have useful functions like a rear-view camera and the handbrake, but they must be pressed by the index finger if the thumb is to remain on the accelerator. This problem could have been easily solved by placing the gas on the "Z" button, leaving the thumb free to press all face buttons.
There are two levels of difficulty, "Novice" and "Expect," so people of intermediate skill have a little decision to make. This discriminates against intermediate players, which is kind of ironic as they're usually the ones who always have a difficulty setting just for them. Strangely enough, I couldn't manage to place 1st on the first track, but it was pretty easy to do so on every other track. I guess the first track is just too simple, so it requires a perfect run to have a chance.
There are two models of Lamborghini available at the start with three colours each, and a few additional high-class cars, like a Porsche and Ferrari, can be unlocked by winning the two main game modes. There are only six tracks in the game, most of which take less than a minute per lap. I played all six in the Championship mode, though I reduced the default number of laps from 6 to 3. That number of laps seems like a bit much, though it does make taking a pit stop necessary. Although, when the tires become worn, I actually didn't notice a difference...
Automobili Lamborghini is nowhere near as exotic as its titular car. There isn't anything broken about it, but there also isn't anything special or interesting about it to keep me entertained for long. It's just straight up speed, and I've always found that boring.
Score: 5/10
This completes all "A" games! Next up is Banjo-Kazooie, which I can tell you now is going to receive a higher score than any game so far.
-Mop_it_up
Saturday, February 20, 2010
Asteroids Hyper 64
This is one I've not played before. In fact, I have never played the arcade original, either. This game seems to be largely the same game with a graphical overhaul. There's a tiny ship with a bunch of asteroids flying around, and your goal is to shoot them all just for the lolz. The screen is fixed and never scrolls, and flying past one side of the screen will have you appear on the opposite side.
The dark, three-dimensional backgrounds can actually be a bit of a hindrance, as it is sometimes difficult to see the smaller asteroids. There is no music in the game, so you're left listening to the "pew" sound of your gun and the explosions of asteroids. This game is BYOS (bring your own soundtrack).
There are four ships to choose from which have different abilities, such as movement speed and firepower. The game works in levels, where you will move on to the next level after you've destroyed all of the asteroids. I'm not sure if the original worked that way or if it was continuous. Looks like it is possible to save your game, but I think that's just for high scores and not for completed levels. I didn't feel like popping in a Controller Pak to find out.
Anyone who liked the original Asteroids or arcade games in general would probably get a kick out of this game. That isn't me, though.
Score: 4/10
-Mop_it_up
The dark, three-dimensional backgrounds can actually be a bit of a hindrance, as it is sometimes difficult to see the smaller asteroids. There is no music in the game, so you're left listening to the "pew" sound of your gun and the explosions of asteroids. This game is BYOS (bring your own soundtrack).
There are four ships to choose from which have different abilities, such as movement speed and firepower. The game works in levels, where you will move on to the next level after you've destroyed all of the asteroids. I'm not sure if the original worked that way or if it was continuous. Looks like it is possible to save your game, but I think that's just for high scores and not for completed levels. I didn't feel like popping in a Controller Pak to find out.
Anyone who liked the original Asteroids or arcade games in general would probably get a kick out of this game. That isn't me, though.
Score: 4/10
-Mop_it_up
Friday, February 19, 2010
Army Men Sarge's Heroes 2
As the title mentions, this is a third-person shooting game featuring little toy army men. Since all of the characters are plastic, you can expect the game to be free of blood and gore; anyone feeling a little bloodthirsty would be let down by that! The story involves a war between the "good" forces of the Green Army and the "evil" forces --
What's that? I'm copying what I wrote for the first game? Well, true. Hey, I figured if this game can recycle material, then so can I!
This game is basically a level pack for Army Men Sarge's Heroes, as the gameplay and controls are exactly the same. There are no new weapons, and all of the control issues are still present. Strangely enough, they switched around a few of the button functions, making the fire button "A" and the strafe button "Z" among other things. That's a great way to fix controls, just rearrange them! Most of the levels have new graphical work, but all of the sound effects are recycled. The same voice samples are used for both Sarge and the enemies, which really goes to show you the care and detail the developers put into this game. Wait, no, I meant, it really shows you why 3DO went out of business.
I hadn't beaten this game before, so I decided to sit down and complete it this time around. It took about three hours, so it is still a short game. There are a few missions where you play as Vikki, the colonel's daughter (w00t?), which might be interesting if she had either a different movement style, or different weapons. Something to make the change of character worthwhile.
With the brevity of the first game, then this one is worth having if you wanted more. For anyone who didn't like the first game, there is nothing here which will change their mind.
Score: 6/10
-Mop_it_up
What's that? I'm copying what I wrote for the first game? Well, true. Hey, I figured if this game can recycle material, then so can I!
This game is basically a level pack for Army Men Sarge's Heroes, as the gameplay and controls are exactly the same. There are no new weapons, and all of the control issues are still present. Strangely enough, they switched around a few of the button functions, making the fire button "A" and the strafe button "Z" among other things. That's a great way to fix controls, just rearrange them! Most of the levels have new graphical work, but all of the sound effects are recycled. The same voice samples are used for both Sarge and the enemies, which really goes to show you the care and detail the developers put into this game. Wait, no, I meant, it really shows you why 3DO went out of business.
I hadn't beaten this game before, so I decided to sit down and complete it this time around. It took about three hours, so it is still a short game. There are a few missions where you play as Vikki, the colonel's daughter (w00t?), which might be interesting if she had either a different movement style, or different weapons. Something to make the change of character worthwhile.
With the brevity of the first game, then this one is worth having if you wanted more. For anyone who didn't like the first game, there is nothing here which will change their mind.
Score: 6/10
-Mop_it_up
Saturday, February 13, 2010
Army Men Sarge's Heroes
Hi all!
Now this game brings me back. A childhood friend of mine bought this game when it was available in stores, and he loved it. I wasn't really into it myself, but I still played the multiplayer with him and his brother, because they refused to play anything else if I didn't.
As the title mentions, this is a third-person shooting game featuring little toy army men. Since all of the characters are plastic, you can expect the game to be free of blood and gore; anyone feeling a little bloodthirsty would be let down by that! The story involves a war between the "good" forces of the Green Army and the "evil" forces of the Tan Army. It is never explained why the two colours of toys are battling, but wondering such a thing may be overthinking the simplistic story. The toys live in their own universe and discover a portal to a strange world ("the real world"), and the Tan Army have taken powerful weapons from it which they are using against the Green Army.
The levels of the game are about split evenly between the Army Men universe and the real world. The stages of the real world are far more interesting and creative, as the tiny men battle in the kitchen fridge, on living room couches, and even in a bathtub. There is quite a bit of detail to these areas, which gives a real feeling of battling in a huge house. The levels of the Army Men universe are kind of dull by comparison, as they are very much like generic real-world environments such as a boot camp, small village, and a forest. It would have been preferred if the game took place entirely within the oversized real world.
The controls have a couple of problems which make them hinder the game. Instead of mapping strafe to something like C-left and C-right, there is a strafe button that, when held, makes left and right on the analogue stick become strafing. The problem with this is that it doesn't allowing turning whilst strafing, which can make certain combat situations more difficult than they need to be. There is no way to look up or down on the fly. If there is an enemy above or below you, there are two options: stand still and hold the "R" button to aim, or hope that the auto-aim kicks in.
Army Men Sarge's Heroes is a creative concept, but it has some control issues that really bog it down. It's also rather short, with a campaign that can be completed in a few hours. Still, with few third-person shooters to choose from on the Nintendo 64, this one is worth a look.
Score: 6/10
-Mop_it_up
Now this game brings me back. A childhood friend of mine bought this game when it was available in stores, and he loved it. I wasn't really into it myself, but I still played the multiplayer with him and his brother, because they refused to play anything else if I didn't.
As the title mentions, this is a third-person shooting game featuring little toy army men. Since all of the characters are plastic, you can expect the game to be free of blood and gore; anyone feeling a little bloodthirsty would be let down by that! The story involves a war between the "good" forces of the Green Army and the "evil" forces of the Tan Army. It is never explained why the two colours of toys are battling, but wondering such a thing may be overthinking the simplistic story. The toys live in their own universe and discover a portal to a strange world ("the real world"), and the Tan Army have taken powerful weapons from it which they are using against the Green Army.
The levels of the game are about split evenly between the Army Men universe and the real world. The stages of the real world are far more interesting and creative, as the tiny men battle in the kitchen fridge, on living room couches, and even in a bathtub. There is quite a bit of detail to these areas, which gives a real feeling of battling in a huge house. The levels of the Army Men universe are kind of dull by comparison, as they are very much like generic real-world environments such as a boot camp, small village, and a forest. It would have been preferred if the game took place entirely within the oversized real world.
The controls have a couple of problems which make them hinder the game. Instead of mapping strafe to something like C-left and C-right, there is a strafe button that, when held, makes left and right on the analogue stick become strafing. The problem with this is that it doesn't allowing turning whilst strafing, which can make certain combat situations more difficult than they need to be. There is no way to look up or down on the fly. If there is an enemy above or below you, there are two options: stand still and hold the "R" button to aim, or hope that the auto-aim kicks in.
Army Men Sarge's Heroes is a creative concept, but it has some control issues that really bog it down. It's also rather short, with a campaign that can be completed in a few hours. Still, with few third-person shooters to choose from on the Nintendo 64, this one is worth a look.
Score: 6/10
-Mop_it_up
Thursday, January 28, 2010
Army Men Air Combat
Hi all!
This is one I got for I think $3 when GameStop was liquidating their stock of older games. It's a helicopter shooting game with a top-down perspective involving toy soldiers, and it takes place in real-world environments that are larger than life for the little guys. You take control of a helicopter from the Green Army and are at war with the supposedly evil Tan and Blue forces; there doesn't seem to be much of an explanation as to why these toys can't just get along, which almost makes it seem like the game has some sort of subtle social commentary. Almost. Let's not go there.
I played through the first three levels during my session with this game, all of which took place in a garden. The first two missions were basically going from point A to point B, but the third mission involved finding a battery to power a train, and then protecting the train as it travels along the track to its destination. This gives hope that the remaining missions also contain more interesting objectives than simply speeding through and blasting everything in sight. There have been only a few enemy types so far, which include foot soldiers, tanks, and machine gun towers, so let's hope the variety increases in later levels as well.
The control seems a bit clunky and would probably benefit from a setup similar to shooters like Turok. The stick moves forward and backward, as well as turning left and right, and the left and right C-buttons are for strafing. It would seem that using the C-buttons for movement and the stick for just turning would work out better, but is not an option. The machine gun will auto-aim at targets, which can sometimes be a little problematic when there are multiple enemies on the screen and you're trying to aim for a specific one. Missiles must be aimed manually and have a limited supply, so they are not to be wasted.
Visually the game is competent, but nothing special. There is a fair amount of texture work, though some of it seems rather pixelated. The framerate is a bit low, but steady, so it is manageable. The soundtrack consists of tinny rock music, and it sounds awfully familiar... Wait a minute, this game totally steals its soundtrack from BattleTanx! This is why you went out of business, 3DO! Shame on you! *ahem* Sound effects are fitting... you know what? I'm sure the sound effects were swiped from another game too, but I'm not sure if it's BattleTanx or Army Men. In any case, there is also some sparse voice work,but it doesn't really add anything.
I found myself enjoying this one quite a bit, so I think I may return to it and finish it at some point. Checking GameFAQs, it seems there are only 16 missions, so it probably wouldn't take long. It isn't pretty, but I could do a lot worse for $3.
Score: 7/10
-Mop_it_up
This is one I got for I think $3 when GameStop was liquidating their stock of older games. It's a helicopter shooting game with a top-down perspective involving toy soldiers, and it takes place in real-world environments that are larger than life for the little guys. You take control of a helicopter from the Green Army and are at war with the supposedly evil Tan and Blue forces; there doesn't seem to be much of an explanation as to why these toys can't just get along, which almost makes it seem like the game has some sort of subtle social commentary. Almost. Let's not go there.
I played through the first three levels during my session with this game, all of which took place in a garden. The first two missions were basically going from point A to point B, but the third mission involved finding a battery to power a train, and then protecting the train as it travels along the track to its destination. This gives hope that the remaining missions also contain more interesting objectives than simply speeding through and blasting everything in sight. There have been only a few enemy types so far, which include foot soldiers, tanks, and machine gun towers, so let's hope the variety increases in later levels as well.
The control seems a bit clunky and would probably benefit from a setup similar to shooters like Turok. The stick moves forward and backward, as well as turning left and right, and the left and right C-buttons are for strafing. It would seem that using the C-buttons for movement and the stick for just turning would work out better, but is not an option. The machine gun will auto-aim at targets, which can sometimes be a little problematic when there are multiple enemies on the screen and you're trying to aim for a specific one. Missiles must be aimed manually and have a limited supply, so they are not to be wasted.
Visually the game is competent, but nothing special. There is a fair amount of texture work, though some of it seems rather pixelated. The framerate is a bit low, but steady, so it is manageable. The soundtrack consists of tinny rock music, and it sounds awfully familiar... Wait a minute, this game totally steals its soundtrack from BattleTanx! This is why you went out of business, 3DO! Shame on you! *ahem* Sound effects are fitting... you know what? I'm sure the sound effects were swiped from another game too, but I'm not sure if it's BattleTanx or Army Men. In any case, there is also some sparse voice work,but it doesn't really add anything.
I found myself enjoying this one quite a bit, so I think I may return to it and finish it at some point. Checking GameFAQs, it seems there are only 16 missions, so it probably wouldn't take long. It isn't pretty, but I could do a lot worse for $3.
Score: 7/10
-Mop_it_up
Monday, January 25, 2010
Armorines: Project S.W.A.R.M.
Hi all!
Armorines is a first-person shooter that runs on a modified game engine that was originally used for Turok: Dinosaur Hunter. It isn't as polished or interesting as the game from which it borrows its engine, but it is more focused on action than exploration. I didn't really catch the details of the story as I couldn't be bothered, but it has to do with a lone soldier taking on an army of alien bugs because everyone else is either too incompetent or too lazy to take action. Whichever one sounds more realistic.
I played the first three levels in my short time with this game. The first level is a winter level which reminded me of Goldeneye's opening Dam level, and then made me long for playing a better game. It opens with a first-person viewpoint of one of the bugs, and then your character comes in on a helicopter and shoots the bug, and poof! You're now in control of your soldier. Awesome. I didn't get to make the first kill.
The second level takes "on-rails shooter" literally and has your character on a monorail car, manning a rocket launcher with rather underwhelming explosive power. The third level is a big dumb missile silo that has you traversing the same hallway several times, occasionally throwing a bug or two your way. I think there was actually more than one hallway but it's hard to say because it all looked the same. There are objectives to accomplish for each level, and though they sometimes sound complicated in their descriptions, they are nothing more than going from point A to point B.
Anyone who's played Turok will have the controls memorized already. Use the C-buttons to move and the stick to look around, use Z to fire and A to change weapons. The aiming with the control stick is overly responsive, and a slight push will have your head spinning. The game seems to try to compensate for the finicky control with an auto-aim system, but since it means your shots are usually aimed at the enemy, a moving target becomes difficult to hit.
The graphics have that famous fog from the Turok games, which seems even worse indoors than outside, for some reason. There are actually some lighting effects for when shots are fired, which help keep the visuals from being too generic. In the sound department, I wish I could remember the music. Or maybe I've forgotten it for a reason. The gun sounds may have a tinny quality to them but at least they're all present. The machine gun goes "pew pew pew!" and the laser goes "zap!" and the grenade launcher goes "boom!" The only thing unfitting is that the female selectable character still sounds like a dude...
I kind of wanted to put more play time into this one, to see if it gets more interesting. With no shortage of good shooters on the Nintendo 64, I don't see a reason to push through mediocrity.
Score: 5/10
-Mop_it_up
Armorines is a first-person shooter that runs on a modified game engine that was originally used for Turok: Dinosaur Hunter. It isn't as polished or interesting as the game from which it borrows its engine, but it is more focused on action than exploration. I didn't really catch the details of the story as I couldn't be bothered, but it has to do with a lone soldier taking on an army of alien bugs because everyone else is either too incompetent or too lazy to take action. Whichever one sounds more realistic.
I played the first three levels in my short time with this game. The first level is a winter level which reminded me of Goldeneye's opening Dam level, and then made me long for playing a better game. It opens with a first-person viewpoint of one of the bugs, and then your character comes in on a helicopter and shoots the bug, and poof! You're now in control of your soldier. Awesome. I didn't get to make the first kill.
The second level takes "on-rails shooter" literally and has your character on a monorail car, manning a rocket launcher with rather underwhelming explosive power. The third level is a big dumb missile silo that has you traversing the same hallway several times, occasionally throwing a bug or two your way. I think there was actually more than one hallway but it's hard to say because it all looked the same. There are objectives to accomplish for each level, and though they sometimes sound complicated in their descriptions, they are nothing more than going from point A to point B.
Anyone who's played Turok will have the controls memorized already. Use the C-buttons to move and the stick to look around, use Z to fire and A to change weapons. The aiming with the control stick is overly responsive, and a slight push will have your head spinning. The game seems to try to compensate for the finicky control with an auto-aim system, but since it means your shots are usually aimed at the enemy, a moving target becomes difficult to hit.
The graphics have that famous fog from the Turok games, which seems even worse indoors than outside, for some reason. There are actually some lighting effects for when shots are fired, which help keep the visuals from being too generic. In the sound department, I wish I could remember the music. Or maybe I've forgotten it for a reason. The gun sounds may have a tinny quality to them but at least they're all present. The machine gun goes "pew pew pew!" and the laser goes "zap!" and the grenade launcher goes "boom!" The only thing unfitting is that the female selectable character still sounds like a dude...
I kind of wanted to put more play time into this one, to see if it gets more interesting. With no shortage of good shooters on the Nintendo 64, I don't see a reason to push through mediocrity.
Score: 5/10
-Mop_it_up
Friday, January 22, 2010
All-Star Tennis '99
Hi all!
Hooray for dirt cheap sports games I found in the depths of a bargain bin! I've not played this before now, as I'm not big on Tennis and so Mario Tennis is plenty for me.
The game has three basic modes: exhibition, tournament, and Bomb Tennis. There are eight real-world "all-star" players to choose from, which would likely be instantly recognizable to tennis aficionados but are completely unknown to me. There is a good selection of courts from around the world, but most of them seem like palette swaps or recolourings of each other.
The controls are simple and allow for various types of shots in theory, but in execution, there's almost no noticeable difference between them. There is a delay between when you press a button to swing and when the racket hits the ball, which makes it all about timing. This amount of time changes depending on your position on the court, which makes it needlessly difficult to be consistent. On top of this, it's incredibly difficult to aim the ball without hitting it out of bounds.
There are three difficulty settings for the A.I. player, but the only real difference between them is the reaction time. On any setting, the computer player will not only always return the ball if it is within reach, but also hit it perfectly in the spot that you're not standing. There are a couple of gimmicks intended to spice things up but feel rather out of place in an otherwise realistic game. There is a power meter which fills up with good plays, and once it is full, a difficult-to-return special shot can be used. The aforementioned Bomb Tennis mode leaves a bomb on the ground wherever the ball bounces, and if a player hits a bomb, they will be stunned for a few seconds.
Creating models of real people has always been dubious on the Nintendo 64; with such limited hardware, it's simply impossible for them to resemble the people they are modeled after. Still, the impact of this shortcoming can be lessened with good animation, but the already muddy models are as choppy as an old projector. The court itself has no real detail, and the crowd isn't animated. In the sound area, there is no music, so all there is to be heard is the distinct sound a tennis ball makes when it is hit by a racket, and the occasional grunt from the players when they make a desperate attempt to return the ball. There is also an announcer who sometimes spouts generic commentary, but it is so forgettable that mentioning it almost slipped my mind.
When it comes to tennis action, Mario Tennis just does everything better. Even if you want a realistic tennis game, I can't recommend this one as it just isn't solid.
Score: 4/10
-Mop_it_up
Hooray for dirt cheap sports games I found in the depths of a bargain bin! I've not played this before now, as I'm not big on Tennis and so Mario Tennis is plenty for me.
The game has three basic modes: exhibition, tournament, and Bomb Tennis. There are eight real-world "all-star" players to choose from, which would likely be instantly recognizable to tennis aficionados but are completely unknown to me. There is a good selection of courts from around the world, but most of them seem like palette swaps or recolourings of each other.
The controls are simple and allow for various types of shots in theory, but in execution, there's almost no noticeable difference between them. There is a delay between when you press a button to swing and when the racket hits the ball, which makes it all about timing. This amount of time changes depending on your position on the court, which makes it needlessly difficult to be consistent. On top of this, it's incredibly difficult to aim the ball without hitting it out of bounds.
There are three difficulty settings for the A.I. player, but the only real difference between them is the reaction time. On any setting, the computer player will not only always return the ball if it is within reach, but also hit it perfectly in the spot that you're not standing. There are a couple of gimmicks intended to spice things up but feel rather out of place in an otherwise realistic game. There is a power meter which fills up with good plays, and once it is full, a difficult-to-return special shot can be used. The aforementioned Bomb Tennis mode leaves a bomb on the ground wherever the ball bounces, and if a player hits a bomb, they will be stunned for a few seconds.
Creating models of real people has always been dubious on the Nintendo 64; with such limited hardware, it's simply impossible for them to resemble the people they are modeled after. Still, the impact of this shortcoming can be lessened with good animation, but the already muddy models are as choppy as an old projector. The court itself has no real detail, and the crowd isn't animated. In the sound area, there is no music, so all there is to be heard is the distinct sound a tennis ball makes when it is hit by a racket, and the occasional grunt from the players when they make a desperate attempt to return the ball. There is also an announcer who sometimes spouts generic commentary, but it is so forgettable that mentioning it almost slipped my mind.
When it comes to tennis action, Mario Tennis just does everything better. Even if you want a realistic tennis game, I can't recommend this one as it just isn't solid.
Score: 4/10
-Mop_it_up
Saturday, January 16, 2010
All-Star Baseball '99, 2000, and 2001
Hi all!
Cheap sports games I got for a buck each at a game store, I own these for collection purposes since I'm not a fan of baseball. Obviously I haven't played these before, and I don't see much point in spending much time with all three. I popped in '99 and 2000 to see what they looked like and what kind of options they had, and then I played a quick game in the 2001 edition.
Honesty is the best policy: I could see no real difference between the three games. They all had the same game modes of exhibition, season, play-offs, and home-run derby, they all had the same features of management, stat-tracking, create-a-player, etc. Beyond the stats of each player representing the season preceding the title year and some cosmetic changes like slight improvements to the graphics and differing commentary, the games are virtually identical.
The controls seem a bit complex for a game that appeals to casual players, but I guess that's necessary to offer realism. On the mound, you select the pitch you wish to use with the C-buttons, then press the A button to throw it to the plate. After you've selected a pitch, the C-buttons then become the buttons used to throw a pick-off throw to one of the bases, which I actually found myself accidentally doing. At bat, you can press the B button to toggle between power or contact swing types, and press A to swing. You can also press one of the C-buttons to "guess" the pitch that will be thrown, though I couldn't figure out exactly what that does. When fielding, you can press A to dive for a catch or B to jump. The C-buttons represent the bases, with C-Right being first, C-Up is second, and so on.
The graphics are nothing spectacular but get the job done. Texture work is simple, which works fine for the grass and dirt, but makes the crowd look like a motionless coloured blob. The characters have a real photo of each player pasted onto their faces, which never change expression, making some of the smiling ones unintentionally creepy. The animation of them is also choppy. Fortunately the game runs at a solid framerate with no dips, and there is no fog either. Could you imagine? Fog in a baseball game? Couldn't see the stands? Music is non-existent save for a couple of stadium fanfares that have the quality of an 8-bit MIDI, so the majority of the sound you'll hear is the announcer and crowd noises.
I played a 3-inning exhibition game using the two All-Star teams, which seemed like the fitting thing to do, and I took control of the national league team to represent teams nearest my hometown. The final score was 3-1, my team.
Rating this one is tough. Because I'm not into baseball, I don't know what kind of features one with such an interest looks for in a baseball game. The management features seem quite extensive, especially with the create-a-player feature, and the basic game is intact with no hiccups or broken mechanics that I could see. Still, with more baseball games on the Nintendo 64 to be played, I can't rate it too highly.
Score: 7/10
-Mop_it_up
Cheap sports games I got for a buck each at a game store, I own these for collection purposes since I'm not a fan of baseball. Obviously I haven't played these before, and I don't see much point in spending much time with all three. I popped in '99 and 2000 to see what they looked like and what kind of options they had, and then I played a quick game in the 2001 edition.
Honesty is the best policy: I could see no real difference between the three games. They all had the same game modes of exhibition, season, play-offs, and home-run derby, they all had the same features of management, stat-tracking, create-a-player, etc. Beyond the stats of each player representing the season preceding the title year and some cosmetic changes like slight improvements to the graphics and differing commentary, the games are virtually identical.
The controls seem a bit complex for a game that appeals to casual players, but I guess that's necessary to offer realism. On the mound, you select the pitch you wish to use with the C-buttons, then press the A button to throw it to the plate. After you've selected a pitch, the C-buttons then become the buttons used to throw a pick-off throw to one of the bases, which I actually found myself accidentally doing. At bat, you can press the B button to toggle between power or contact swing types, and press A to swing. You can also press one of the C-buttons to "guess" the pitch that will be thrown, though I couldn't figure out exactly what that does. When fielding, you can press A to dive for a catch or B to jump. The C-buttons represent the bases, with C-Right being first, C-Up is second, and so on.
The graphics are nothing spectacular but get the job done. Texture work is simple, which works fine for the grass and dirt, but makes the crowd look like a motionless coloured blob. The characters have a real photo of each player pasted onto their faces, which never change expression, making some of the smiling ones unintentionally creepy. The animation of them is also choppy. Fortunately the game runs at a solid framerate with no dips, and there is no fog either. Could you imagine? Fog in a baseball game? Couldn't see the stands? Music is non-existent save for a couple of stadium fanfares that have the quality of an 8-bit MIDI, so the majority of the sound you'll hear is the announcer and crowd noises.
I played a 3-inning exhibition game using the two All-Star teams, which seemed like the fitting thing to do, and I took control of the national league team to represent teams nearest my hometown. The final score was 3-1, my team.
Rating this one is tough. Because I'm not into baseball, I don't know what kind of features one with such an interest looks for in a baseball game. The management features seem quite extensive, especially with the create-a-player feature, and the basic game is intact with no hiccups or broken mechanics that I could see. Still, with more baseball games on the Nintendo 64 to be played, I can't rate it too highly.
Score: 7/10
-Mop_it_up
Aidyn Chronicles: The First Mage
Hi all!
Another game from a bargain bin a while back. I played through this entire game back then; the battles get old fast but some of the dialogue between the characters is priceless. This time around I just played the beginning sequence, as I don't think it is really worth it to play through it again.
When it comes to RPGs on the Nintendo 64, the choices are more limited than a fast-food menu. To say this is one of the best RPGs on the system sounds good at first, but doesn't actually speak much of its quality when you consider to what it is being compared. This is probably the purest RPG on the system since there are four party members, actual statistics, a money system, level grinding, a confusing, unintentionally nonsensical plot... everything a true RPG should have!
There are perhaps around sixteen or so controllable players, and there are lots of options for customization. Each of the characters' statistics and skills has its individual level, and you decide on which to spend your experience points. Not all skills can be learned by all characters, so it is important to find a good balance with your party members. What really sucks is that there is no way to revive a party member, and so that means that if the main character is killed, then it's game over man. Said character is also one of the best in the game since he can learn all skills and use all weapons, so placing him in dangerous situations can't be avoided.
The battle system is slow and clunky. Your party members tend to start on the opposite side of the field from the enemies, making the first minute or so simply moving into position. Movement speed is the pace of walking, and sometimes there is a second or two delay when choosing an action. Because the target selection is highlighted by a flashing light on an enemy rather than something more clear like an arrow, it can be difficult to tell which enemy of a group you're aiming at. Considering how a bulk of your time with the game will be spent in battles, they could stand to be more streamlined.
The expansive world in the game has quite a lot of detail to it. As you wander through the various regions on your quest, rarely will you come across repeated scenery. From deep forests to snow-covered mountains, from treacherous swaps to dry deserts, every area is different. Each town has a unique look, and even the caves are all distinguishable from one another. There is also a day/night system in place, as well as varying weather. These elements have an affect on fighting, such as the hit rate of attacks, or being spotted by a wandering enemy. It is also possible that it affects the chances of safely opening a treasure chest.
The graphics are pretty good for the most part. The environments are pretty expansive with the fog pushed quite far back, though there is some pop-up with objects like trees. Some of the textures are muddy, such as the grass, though the character models are fairly detailed. The sound is lacking for the most part. The music is pretty simple in composition and rather repetitive, and some of it isn't exactly suiting of its environment, such as the "bouncy" castle tune. The sound effects consist of mostly footsteps and the "thuds" and "thwacks" of weapons, as well as a few generic voice samples for when characters and enemies are attacked.
If you want to see what an RPG would be like on the N64 then this is it. This game has it's ups and downs: it's slow to start and the combat can get tedious, but the writing can be surprisingly witty and the leveling system allows for some customization. There are times when you have a choice of what to say and which characters to take with you, but that mostly just changes the progression of the conversations and doesn't really affect the story at all. I believe it took me about 45 hours to complete it that one time. That's a lot of time to invest in mediocrity.
Score: 5/10
-Mop_it_up
Another game from a bargain bin a while back. I played through this entire game back then; the battles get old fast but some of the dialogue between the characters is priceless. This time around I just played the beginning sequence, as I don't think it is really worth it to play through it again.
When it comes to RPGs on the Nintendo 64, the choices are more limited than a fast-food menu. To say this is one of the best RPGs on the system sounds good at first, but doesn't actually speak much of its quality when you consider to what it is being compared. This is probably the purest RPG on the system since there are four party members, actual statistics, a money system, level grinding, a confusing, unintentionally nonsensical plot... everything a true RPG should have!
There are perhaps around sixteen or so controllable players, and there are lots of options for customization. Each of the characters' statistics and skills has its individual level, and you decide on which to spend your experience points. Not all skills can be learned by all characters, so it is important to find a good balance with your party members. What really sucks is that there is no way to revive a party member, and so that means that if the main character is killed, then it's game over man. Said character is also one of the best in the game since he can learn all skills and use all weapons, so placing him in dangerous situations can't be avoided.
The battle system is slow and clunky. Your party members tend to start on the opposite side of the field from the enemies, making the first minute or so simply moving into position. Movement speed is the pace of walking, and sometimes there is a second or two delay when choosing an action. Because the target selection is highlighted by a flashing light on an enemy rather than something more clear like an arrow, it can be difficult to tell which enemy of a group you're aiming at. Considering how a bulk of your time with the game will be spent in battles, they could stand to be more streamlined.
The expansive world in the game has quite a lot of detail to it. As you wander through the various regions on your quest, rarely will you come across repeated scenery. From deep forests to snow-covered mountains, from treacherous swaps to dry deserts, every area is different. Each town has a unique look, and even the caves are all distinguishable from one another. There is also a day/night system in place, as well as varying weather. These elements have an affect on fighting, such as the hit rate of attacks, or being spotted by a wandering enemy. It is also possible that it affects the chances of safely opening a treasure chest.
The graphics are pretty good for the most part. The environments are pretty expansive with the fog pushed quite far back, though there is some pop-up with objects like trees. Some of the textures are muddy, such as the grass, though the character models are fairly detailed. The sound is lacking for the most part. The music is pretty simple in composition and rather repetitive, and some of it isn't exactly suiting of its environment, such as the "bouncy" castle tune. The sound effects consist of mostly footsteps and the "thuds" and "thwacks" of weapons, as well as a few generic voice samples for when characters and enemies are attacked.
If you want to see what an RPG would be like on the N64 then this is it. This game has it's ups and downs: it's slow to start and the combat can get tedious, but the writing can be surprisingly witty and the leveling system allows for some customization. There are times when you have a choice of what to say and which characters to take with you, but that mostly just changes the progression of the conversations and doesn't really affect the story at all. I believe it took me about 45 hours to complete it that one time. That's a lot of time to invest in mediocrity.
Score: 5/10
-Mop_it_up
Monday, January 11, 2010
AeroGauge
Hi all!
This is another game I found in a bargain bin a while back. Not once have I ever heard anybody claim this to be a good game, much less have I heard anyone say they have played it, which doesn't give me high hopes that it's going to be the least bit enjoyable.
AeroGauge is a futuristic racer akin to F-Zero, with the biggest difference being that the vehicles are essentially flying and can move vertically in a limited range. Also, like its brethren, the A.I. is very tough to beat, even on the easiest difficulty setting. The game has the standard modes, such as Grand Prix and a 2-player VS. Mode, so there is nothing special or unique. With six short tracks and ten unbalanced vehicles, there isn't much variety to be found here. The only place the game has any longevity is overcoming the steep learning curve.
The Grand Prix consists of the four tracks available at the start. Before each race, you are required to play a 2-lap qualifier before the 3-lap race, and how good your best lap time is will determine your starting position for the real race. You can skip the qualifier if you so choose, but doing so will put you in last as your starting position. It is a good idea to drive the qualifier as a warm-up when it is your first time playing that particular track, but for repeated plays through the Grand Prix mode, it becomes largely an annoyance.
To put it bluntly, the controls are just awkward. Hold the "A" button to accelerate, press "B" to brake (something which will never be used), and hold "Z" to drift. It sounds simple enough, but the method of achieving the turbo boost is needlessly complicated. To achieve a turbo boost, you must hold the drift button and turn left or right, and then let go of both drift and accelerate whilst still turning. Immediately after releasing the buttons, you must resume holding the accelerator. Perfect timing is required in order for it to work. It feels very unintuitive and doesn't seem like it could ever be performed consistently through practice; if the turbo were activated through a more user-friendly method, it would nearly eliminate the frustration factor of the controls. There is also a temperature gauge for the turbo, and if too many are used consecutively then the gauge will fill, preventing you from using the boost for a while. The problem with the gauge is that it will become completely full even when it fills up to the point about two bars from the top, making it somewhat difficult to judge if another turbo can be squeezed out before it fills.
In order to take first place, you have to race flawlessly to beat the perfect CPU players. Although on Novice they don't travel as fast as they can, on all difficulties they take each turn with ease and never miss a boost. Considering that failing a turbo on a tight turn can cause you to come to a complete stop, it can be very frustrating. On top of this, you are required to stay above a certain overall position that's raised with each race, and there is no option to restart a race.
What really brings the game's rating down is the significant lack of content. The two unlockable tracks are basically remixes of two of the other tracks, so there are essentially four tracks. Making matters worse, the courses are very short, taking less than a minute to complete a single lap. These four, however, are quite varied in terrain and obstacles, ranging from a canyon chasm to a beach to a cityscape, and including elements such as tubes. There are five hidden vehicles which are obtained by completing the Grand Prix with the five starting vehicles; they have the exact same stats as the vehicles used to unlock them, so they are nothing more than an aesthetic change. One of these vehicles is a Nintendo 64 controller which, possibly ironically, has poor control. Speaking of stats, most vehicles are completely lacking in several areas such as speed or handling, and excel in vague areas such as stability. It would seem that a certain vehicle, the Interceptor, is easily the best vehicle, as it has a full speed stat and a half-full bar in all other categories.
The graphics are a mixed bag. There is a fair amount of texture work on the environments, but there is also quite a bit of fog and pop-up. Fortunately, this comes at a fairly smooth framerate (24 FPS I believe), with no slowdown that I could see, even when all eight racers are visible. The music consists of mostly rock, with the N64's signature tinny electric guitar. Each track has its own tune, complete with an up-tempo remix which plays during the final lap. The music is quite repetitive, and usually doesn't last for a single lap before looping. The sound effects aren't exactly suitable for their corresponding actions: vehicle engines sound like the engine noise from inside an airplane, and activating a turbo sounds more like a car crashing into a wall.
The groundwork for a great game is here with the game's interesting track designs, relatively smooth framerate, and would-be tight control if not for the awkward method of achieving a turbo. As it stands, AeroGuage is a short-lived tough-as-nails racer for anyone who takes the time to master the spotty control scheme. Unfortunately, its difficulty comes from all the wrong sources. By the time you grasp the controls, you've already seen everything the game has on offer, likely three times over. There are other games out there on the Nintendo 64 which will better satisfy the desire for futuristic racing fun.
Score: 5/10
-Mop_it_up
This is another game I found in a bargain bin a while back. Not once have I ever heard anybody claim this to be a good game, much less have I heard anyone say they have played it, which doesn't give me high hopes that it's going to be the least bit enjoyable.
AeroGauge is a futuristic racer akin to F-Zero, with the biggest difference being that the vehicles are essentially flying and can move vertically in a limited range. Also, like its brethren, the A.I. is very tough to beat, even on the easiest difficulty setting. The game has the standard modes, such as Grand Prix and a 2-player VS. Mode, so there is nothing special or unique. With six short tracks and ten unbalanced vehicles, there isn't much variety to be found here. The only place the game has any longevity is overcoming the steep learning curve.
The Grand Prix consists of the four tracks available at the start. Before each race, you are required to play a 2-lap qualifier before the 3-lap race, and how good your best lap time is will determine your starting position for the real race. You can skip the qualifier if you so choose, but doing so will put you in last as your starting position. It is a good idea to drive the qualifier as a warm-up when it is your first time playing that particular track, but for repeated plays through the Grand Prix mode, it becomes largely an annoyance.
To put it bluntly, the controls are just awkward. Hold the "A" button to accelerate, press "B" to brake (something which will never be used), and hold "Z" to drift. It sounds simple enough, but the method of achieving the turbo boost is needlessly complicated. To achieve a turbo boost, you must hold the drift button and turn left or right, and then let go of both drift and accelerate whilst still turning. Immediately after releasing the buttons, you must resume holding the accelerator. Perfect timing is required in order for it to work. It feels very unintuitive and doesn't seem like it could ever be performed consistently through practice; if the turbo were activated through a more user-friendly method, it would nearly eliminate the frustration factor of the controls. There is also a temperature gauge for the turbo, and if too many are used consecutively then the gauge will fill, preventing you from using the boost for a while. The problem with the gauge is that it will become completely full even when it fills up to the point about two bars from the top, making it somewhat difficult to judge if another turbo can be squeezed out before it fills.
In order to take first place, you have to race flawlessly to beat the perfect CPU players. Although on Novice they don't travel as fast as they can, on all difficulties they take each turn with ease and never miss a boost. Considering that failing a turbo on a tight turn can cause you to come to a complete stop, it can be very frustrating. On top of this, you are required to stay above a certain overall position that's raised with each race, and there is no option to restart a race.
What really brings the game's rating down is the significant lack of content. The two unlockable tracks are basically remixes of two of the other tracks, so there are essentially four tracks. Making matters worse, the courses are very short, taking less than a minute to complete a single lap. These four, however, are quite varied in terrain and obstacles, ranging from a canyon chasm to a beach to a cityscape, and including elements such as tubes. There are five hidden vehicles which are obtained by completing the Grand Prix with the five starting vehicles; they have the exact same stats as the vehicles used to unlock them, so they are nothing more than an aesthetic change. One of these vehicles is a Nintendo 64 controller which, possibly ironically, has poor control. Speaking of stats, most vehicles are completely lacking in several areas such as speed or handling, and excel in vague areas such as stability. It would seem that a certain vehicle, the Interceptor, is easily the best vehicle, as it has a full speed stat and a half-full bar in all other categories.
The graphics are a mixed bag. There is a fair amount of texture work on the environments, but there is also quite a bit of fog and pop-up. Fortunately, this comes at a fairly smooth framerate (24 FPS I believe), with no slowdown that I could see, even when all eight racers are visible. The music consists of mostly rock, with the N64's signature tinny electric guitar. Each track has its own tune, complete with an up-tempo remix which plays during the final lap. The music is quite repetitive, and usually doesn't last for a single lap before looping. The sound effects aren't exactly suitable for their corresponding actions: vehicle engines sound like the engine noise from inside an airplane, and activating a turbo sounds more like a car crashing into a wall.
The groundwork for a great game is here with the game's interesting track designs, relatively smooth framerate, and would-be tight control if not for the awkward method of achieving a turbo. As it stands, AeroGuage is a short-lived tough-as-nails racer for anyone who takes the time to master the spotty control scheme. Unfortunately, its difficulty comes from all the wrong sources. By the time you grasp the controls, you've already seen everything the game has on offer, likely three times over. There are other games out there on the Nintendo 64 which will better satisfy the desire for futuristic racing fun.
Score: 5/10
-Mop_it_up
Saturday, January 9, 2010
Aero Fighters Assault
Hi all!
I believe I found this at the bottom of a bin at GameStop a while back, but I have not played this game before trying it here and now. Aero Fighters Assault is an air combat game which is basically all dogfighting. Each level is a free-form area containing one or two "bosses" that you must defeat to clear the stage, and they are things like armoured aircraft, battleships, giant robots, and more. They are supported by an unspecified number (possibly infinite) of lessor enemies such as F-type fighters, bombers, and ships, but since you have a time limit then you can't waste too much time dealing with them.
There are four different air craft to choose from which each have slightly different weapons; there may be more to unlock but I didn't play that far. You have three wingmen along with you, who presumably take up the three planes that you don't choose... I say "presumably" because not once did I ever see any of them, so I've no idea if they actually help you in any way. Oddly enough, despite that crashing into the ground or a building causes your craft to completely explode, you'll reappear high up in the air with absolutely no damage suffered. If only they could incorporate this technology into commercial airliners...
The environments are pretty scarce and consist mostly of a flat plain beneath you which represents the ground, water, or cloud cover. Fortunately this comes with a good draw distance, and the ability to spot enemies when they're a quite a ways from you. Some stages may have agray block building or two, but there is never any detailed or complex scenery. The enemy planes and ships actually do have some texture work on them, but if you're that close to them then chances are it means you're crashing into them. So stop sucking. There is a noticeable drop in framerate whenever there are a lot of enemies and gunfire on screen, so the game definitely takes some adjusting. The sound effects are your standard fare, though the variety is pretty limited: all machine gun fire sounds the same, all missiles sound the same, etc. Strangely, there seems to be no sound for when your craft is hit by anything, or when you hit an enemy with machine gun fire.
For someone who likes air combat games, this one could provide an enjoyable challenge assuming the slowdown can be overlooked. As for me, it just isn't my type of game, so I don't think I'll be continuing it.
Score: 6/10
-Mop_it_up
I believe I found this at the bottom of a bin at GameStop a while back, but I have not played this game before trying it here and now. Aero Fighters Assault is an air combat game which is basically all dogfighting. Each level is a free-form area containing one or two "bosses" that you must defeat to clear the stage, and they are things like armoured aircraft, battleships, giant robots, and more. They are supported by an unspecified number (possibly infinite) of lessor enemies such as F-type fighters, bombers, and ships, but since you have a time limit then you can't waste too much time dealing with them.
There are four different air craft to choose from which each have slightly different weapons; there may be more to unlock but I didn't play that far. You have three wingmen along with you, who presumably take up the three planes that you don't choose... I say "presumably" because not once did I ever see any of them, so I've no idea if they actually help you in any way. Oddly enough, despite that crashing into the ground or a building causes your craft to completely explode, you'll reappear high up in the air with absolutely no damage suffered. If only they could incorporate this technology into commercial airliners...
The environments are pretty scarce and consist mostly of a flat plain beneath you which represents the ground, water, or cloud cover. Fortunately this comes with a good draw distance, and the ability to spot enemies when they're a quite a ways from you. Some stages may have a
For someone who likes air combat games, this one could provide an enjoyable challenge assuming the slowdown can be overlooked. As for me, it just isn't my type of game, so I don't think I'll be continuing it.
Score: 6/10
-Mop_it_up
Friday, January 8, 2010
A Bug's Life
Hi all!
A platformer based on the movie with the same title, don't expect A Bug's Life to be reviewed as highly. You play the role of the ant named Flik, and your main skills are jumping and tossing berries. Main skills? I should say, your only skills. The goal of each level is not to simply reach the end, but to collect all 50 grains, the four letters which spell "Flik", and defeat all enemies using the golden berries item. You can still move on to the next level simply by reaching the end, so I don't know what would happen by collecting everything. And frankly, I don't care to know. You can't make me.
The enemies, in fact, will respawn within seconds if you defeat them using any other berry besides the golden one. There is not much warning when and where they will appear, so they very well could appear right on you. The golden berry item sometimes isn't found until near the end, causing backtracking to get them all.
This game gave me sore eyes in the thirty long minutes I managed to play it. Everything is so grainy especially when combined with the choppy framerate, but the short draw distance is more of a hindrance than anything else. There is one level where you have to fly across a field on a piece of dandelion fluff, and stay afloat by flying over spinning flowers. The trouble is, the flowers don't appear visible until you get very close to them, so it basically becomes guesswork as to which direction is the next flower. The music is forgettable, I just got done playing it and I can't recall the game even having music. The sound effects are scarce and consist mostly of the squashing sound of tossing berries, and the voice samples spoken by your character get old fast.
The story most likely follows the movie but I've not seen it since it was first released on home video. It is told between levels using a couple of stills which I imagine are taken from the film, along with subtitles. They are of course grainy like the rest of the game, largely due to the decreased resolution of the N64. It likely follows the general progression of the movie, starting with the ant hill, moving through the field with the bird, and going to the city. That's the first five levels, and I don't know how many more there are after that.
I didn't have a memory card inserted in the controller as I predicted I wouldn't want to come back to the game. I was right.
Score: 4/10
-Mop_it_up
A platformer based on the movie with the same title, don't expect A Bug's Life to be reviewed as highly. You play the role of the ant named Flik, and your main skills are jumping and tossing berries. Main skills? I should say, your only skills. The goal of each level is not to simply reach the end, but to collect all 50 grains, the four letters which spell "Flik", and defeat all enemies using the golden berries item. You can still move on to the next level simply by reaching the end, so I don't know what would happen by collecting everything. And frankly, I don't care to know. You can't make me.
The enemies, in fact, will respawn within seconds if you defeat them using any other berry besides the golden one. There is not much warning when and where they will appear, so they very well could appear right on you. The golden berry item sometimes isn't found until near the end, causing backtracking to get them all.
This game gave me sore eyes in the thirty long minutes I managed to play it. Everything is so grainy especially when combined with the choppy framerate, but the short draw distance is more of a hindrance than anything else. There is one level where you have to fly across a field on a piece of dandelion fluff, and stay afloat by flying over spinning flowers. The trouble is, the flowers don't appear visible until you get very close to them, so it basically becomes guesswork as to which direction is the next flower. The music is forgettable, I just got done playing it and I can't recall the game even having music. The sound effects are scarce and consist mostly of the squashing sound of tossing berries, and the voice samples spoken by your character get old fast.
The story most likely follows the movie but I've not seen it since it was first released on home video. It is told between levels using a couple of stills which I imagine are taken from the film, along with subtitles. They are of course grainy like the rest of the game, largely due to the decreased resolution of the N64. It likely follows the general progression of the movie, starting with the ant hill, moving through the field with the bird, and going to the city. That's the first five levels, and I don't know how many more there are after that.
I didn't have a memory card inserted in the controller as I predicted I wouldn't want to come back to the game. I was right.
Score: 4/10
-Mop_it_up
1080 Snowboarding
Hi all!
1080 Snowboarding is a game I rented back in the day but I don't remember much of it, other than a general thought that it was too realistic. I've not played it ever since owning it, so I was glad to give it another chance.
I started with a little of the Training mode, then I played a bit of the Contest mode and a few of the Match Races. I now remember why I didn't like it: the control doesn't seem very good. After making a jump, you have to be almost perfectly lined up with the ground in order to land without stumbling or crashing. Any of the trick modes are unnecessarily difficult because of this, not to mention how precise you have to be with directions to get the right tricks to perform. I still can't tell if you have to hold forward on the analogue stick to maintain speed or just to accelerate. You have a damage meter in the Match Race, and it's actually more difficult to simply make it to the finish than it is to beat your rival.
As far as presentation is concerned, it has a few nice touches. Snow flies up when making tight turns, and the clothes of the boarder are blown in the wind when taking a jump. The draw distance is pretty good, and the textures are mostly smooth. There is some slight clipping with the board and the ground though. The sound department is lacking however. The music is pretty awful, but I can't go into much more detail there. The sparse sound effects seem soft and muted, and the few voice samples feel forced and lack enthusiasm.
Score: 5/10
-Mop_it_up
1080 Snowboarding is a game I rented back in the day but I don't remember much of it, other than a general thought that it was too realistic. I've not played it ever since owning it, so I was glad to give it another chance.
I started with a little of the Training mode, then I played a bit of the Contest mode and a few of the Match Races. I now remember why I didn't like it: the control doesn't seem very good. After making a jump, you have to be almost perfectly lined up with the ground in order to land without stumbling or crashing. Any of the trick modes are unnecessarily difficult because of this, not to mention how precise you have to be with directions to get the right tricks to perform. I still can't tell if you have to hold forward on the analogue stick to maintain speed or just to accelerate. You have a damage meter in the Match Race, and it's actually more difficult to simply make it to the finish than it is to beat your rival.
As far as presentation is concerned, it has a few nice touches. Snow flies up when making tight turns, and the clothes of the boarder are blown in the wind when taking a jump. The draw distance is pretty good, and the textures are mostly smooth. There is some slight clipping with the board and the ground though. The sound department is lacking however. The music is pretty awful, but I can't go into much more detail there. The sparse sound effects seem soft and muted, and the few voice samples feel forced and lack enthusiasm.
Score: 5/10
-Mop_it_up
Introduction
Hi all!
My name... is not important. My goal... is not important either. But it will sure be a lot of fun! I am a collector of videogames, and I have found myself with a growing stack of them which I haven't so much as touched. The pride and joy is my collection of every Nintendo 64 game released in North America, and my new year's resolution for 2010 is to play every last one of them. Therefore, I decided to create a blog in which I will log my thoughts on each game. There are 296 games and 356 days in the year, which makes 6 a week to keep on track.
I've spent more quality time with a packet of crisps than I have with many of my N64 games. Considering I could munch through even a big bag of crisps in five minutes, I came up with a figure of a minimum of 30 minutes for each game, as that seems like enough time to at least make a decent first impression. If I find a game I like and want to continue, I can make a note of it, which is sort of what I'll be doing by posting impressions here. I may or may not come back to the games at a later point.
If anyone out there has played any game I've posted about, I encourage you to chime in with your opinions on them.
-Mop_it_up
My name... is not important. My goal... is not important either. But it will sure be a lot of fun! I am a collector of videogames, and I have found myself with a growing stack of them which I haven't so much as touched. The pride and joy is my collection of every Nintendo 64 game released in North America, and my new year's resolution for 2010 is to play every last one of them. Therefore, I decided to create a blog in which I will log my thoughts on each game. There are 296 games and 356 days in the year, which makes 6 a week to keep on track.
I've spent more quality time with a packet of crisps than I have with many of my N64 games. Considering I could munch through even a big bag of crisps in five minutes, I came up with a figure of a minimum of 30 minutes for each game, as that seems like enough time to at least make a decent first impression. If I find a game I like and want to continue, I can make a note of it, which is sort of what I'll be doing by posting impressions here. I may or may not come back to the games at a later point.
If anyone out there has played any game I've posted about, I encourage you to chime in with your opinions on them.
-Mop_it_up
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