Review: Metroid: Other M

Remember what I said about New Super Mario Bros. Wii and Sonic 4? About making sequels to 2D platformers that still manage to feel like they belong in this generation? Well, looks like I found the game that did it right!

But first, a little history! Back in the 8 bit era I never really got to play Metroid. I was familiar with the character and thought it was neat, but the game wasn’t appealing enough for me to go out of my way to play it. A couple of years later, a friend of mine was completely hooked on Super Metroid. I decided to sit down watch and I guess that first impression, entirely out of context, completely threw me off. All I remember was my friend running along a tunnel, stopping at a random spot, placing a bomb and crawling into the hole it made to go to another passage. I thought “are you expected to place bombs on every single floor tile in order to find stuff?” That sounded horribly boring, and the suspenseful music was not helping.

Skip a decade or two and I am playing the original Metroid on an emulator. I liked the game, but I have a very short attention span for 8 bit games. A couple years later I rented “Zero Mission” for the GBA. That’s when I decided I liked Metroid. Even though I didn’t play the original that much, the nostalgia was so intense! The ability to shoot diagonally made the game a lot more playable. I rented it over and over until I beat it and found most (if not all) of the secrets. Later on I tried the sequel, Super Metroid, but a slow emulator and the downgrade from 32 bit graphics threw me off once more.

About five years passed until I saw this video titled Metroid and Me: By Samus Aran on the Wii’s Nintendo Channel. They did such a great job at narrating the first games through Samus’ voice over actual gameplay video from the original games that I felt like the world’s greatest Metroid fan. I looked it up and watched the other videos and decided to go and buy it for myself on my birthday.

I am so glad I did, let me tell you why. Right out of the box the game sets the mood that makes Metroid games so awesome. The first few pre-rendered and real-time cutscenes not only do that, but they are also great at revising the story and giving you a quick tutorial of the game. Once you gain control you know it’s the real Metroid, none of that FPS bullcrap... but then, it IS 3D! Most of the time the camera will be aiming at an angle reminiscent of classic beat-em-ups, although zooming in and out and turning ever so slightly to enhance the ambience or to show a clue. You move left or right through a narrow corridor and you can move “up” or “down” to dodge projectiles or avoid obstacles. Of course the environment is not composed of ONLY corridors, there are open fields, elevator shafts, tunnels… yet the camera always seems to go where the gameplay feels natural using the d-pad. There is an auto-aim system that helps the 2d feeling, so even when the monsters are swarming from any and all angles, you only shoot up, down, left or right. Only in a handful of occasions the camera follows behind you, and it’s only for dramatic purposes. At any moment you can point your Wiimote at the screen to switch to 1^st person view from the point you were standing, just keep in mind you can’t move like this, only turn. This is useful to scan the room for clues, power-ups or hidden enemies. It is required, though, if you want to use missiles, as this is how you “lock on” to your targets, but after some practice you’ll be shooting missiles intituively as part of your run-and-gun routine. You can shoot and charge tour regular arm-cannon like this, using the cursor to aim manually which is actually fun when you’re not surrounded. There are times when you are forced to look for clues this way, and the game will stay on 1^st person mode until you find and zoom in to the clue, so far half of the time I never see it until I accidentally move the cursor over it and it beeps.

Besides the regular running, jumping and shooting they have added a couple of melee attacks. I’ve heard many hardcore fans complain about this but to me these are added tools and you don’t have to use them if you don’t like them. I love it when I accidentally pull one off and the game plays the scene in slow motion. BAM! Take that, space mutant!

Also, monsters no longer drop health and ammo, (which is totally absurd) instead you use something called “concentration” which is, I presume, based o the same technology that makes the suit appear out of thin air. As for health, when you’re about to deplete your last tank you can fully recharge it the same way, all you need is a relative safe place (nearly impossible to pull of during boss battles) so you’re NOT immortal. To heal ALL your extra tanks you need to find a save point.

What’s entirely new is the storytelling. Samus now has a voice, and this implies a personality. Many hardcore fans find it offensive that she turned out to be more girly than they expected. It didn’t bother me although I did notice it. Others complain about how she is now following orders to the point of being submissive. I believe this is a huge exaggeration; she decides to help a group of soldiers she already knows and respects because she cares about their safety. She follows orders in the exact way a (very smug) soldier would, in turn the other characters are clearly aware of her martial superiority and always turn to her when the going gets tough. Besides, the team of squishy soldiers with a “divide and conquer be killed attitude” actually helps the suspense and sense of isolation.

Another complaint I’ve heard is about how Samus has been sexualized. Yes, many admired the character for breaking the stereotype of the princess in peril or the bikini-clad barbarian. Yes, I think that is neat too. But no, this is no Bayonetta. As far as I’ve gone into the game she isn’t even nice to guys and barely even appears without her armor. The image of the young, voluptuous blonde in a blue skin-tight suit has been around for a while now, and while at times it seems the camera is placed a bit lower than necessary, it’s not done in a distasteful manner.

In conclusion, if you're already in love with the Prime series this may feel as a bit of a downgrade, but if you have any respect for Nintendo, Metroid, or classic gaming in general, you owe it to yourself to give this one a ride. You will have fun.

Nintendo 3DS: My thoughts after the E3 announcement

I find it really weird I have not written anything about the Nintendo 3DS, considering I’m a total nerd over it. I blame work. Anyway, at this point you probably know everything there is to be known about the Nintendo 3DS since it was announced in E3 this year, but what I want to share with you (as I generally do in this blog) is my thoughts on the subject, particularly some ideas that (I’m pretty sure someone from Nintendo will read this) I know will make the difference between this machine turning out to be the next Game Boy or the next Virtual Boy – in a convenient outline format!

1. Take advantage of new media – Given that the 3DS will be the first commercially available 3D camera Nintendo should be the pioneer in this type of media just like Sony did with the DVD , UMD and Blu-Ray
   1. Establish a standard format for 3D images and videos among all platforms
      1. Include a means of sharing 3D images with non-3DS users
      2. Emphasize in social networks
      3. Allow users to upload 3D videos to YouTube or other video sharing services
   2. Sell movies through the 3DS store
1. Killer Apps
   1. In order to compete with the iPhone, the 3DS will need a vast library of free or cheap software besides games
      1. The 3DS store should be ridiculously accessible to both owners and developers
      2. Developers should be enticed with the ability of making 3D applications for everyday use
   2. New games
      1. Besides the already obscene launch lineup, Nintendo should continue to bring forth popular first and third-party franchises as new installments rather than 3d remakes
      2. Until other 3D handhelds come into the market, seize the opportunity to score as many exclusives as possible
      3. Enhanced Reality
         1. I
         2. Want
         3. It
         4. NOW
   3. 3D-ified Classics – sell them cheap in a 3D Virtual Console of sorts
      1. 16 bit + enhanced parallax scrolling
      2. 16 bit + enhanced Mode 7 graphics
      3. SNES FX chip
      4. Virtual Boy
      5. Early 32/62 bit era games that didn’t work that well due to lack of depth perception but would’ve otherwise been awesome (Jumping Flash! comes to mind)
1. Full online potential
   1. No more friend codes
   2. Absolutely NO friend codes
   3. In-console friend roster
      1. Mii support
      2. Instant messaging
      3. Automatically detect and connect to WiFi
      4. Live notifications of who’s online and what games they’re playing
         1. Ability to join instantly
   4. Get rid of those damned friend codes
   5. Online 3D Mii-based worldwide Pictochat

That’s all I can think of for the moment. While most of these concepts are pretty obvious, it’s only a matter of time until we see if Nintendo will take advantage of the full potential of this amazing device. What do you think? Go ahead and post a comment or two! In the meantime I’ll be saving money to preorder mine.

Review: New Super Mario Bros Wii

I just came to a terrible realization: I don’t really like Mario games… that much… I know, I know, I hate myself too. You see, Mario’s been like a father to me!

I remember reading the Super Mario Comics, watching the cartoons and even enjoying the live action movie as a kid, but I also remember sucking hard at the Mario Games. More often than not I’d get killed by the second goomba in level 1-1. I’d have a blast watching my brothers and friends play through the games over and over again, but it wasn’t fun enough for me to develop the hand-eye coordination required. When I was by myself I’d rather play Duck Hunt.

Still, when I heard of New Super Mario Bros. Wii I couldn’t resist it. I made myself believe I’d have a blast playing with the kids and bought is as soon as I could.

The game packs insane amounts of nostalgia, which makes it a lot more fun when you’re just watching. They took elements from all previous “true” Mario games and mixed them in perfect harmony, carefully shifting the influence towards the most popular titles while still feeling like a separate entry in the series. Level design is absolutely delightful. Control-wise the game feels very tight. My wife, who is a hardcore 2D Mario gamer, kept complaining they felt awkward at first but she eventually got used to them and proceeded to kick ass. Music was pretty good but I don’t find myself whistling any of the tunes like I still do with the classics.

I had lots of fun the first few weeks when I played with the wife. It was easier for me than the average Mario game and she was still getting used to the controls. On the other hand, playing with the kids was a pain as this is their first true Mario game; multiplayer requires a lot of patience although they did take some measures to avoid the weakest link slowing down the team. Eventually I was too slow to play with the missus and too fast to play with the offspring, but that’s ok because by then I was already tired of the game altogether. They all still play occasionally, so I guess it does have some replay value.

In retrospective, what I believe happened was that Nintendo was successful in turning Mario into a game selling machine for our generation, and that didn’t have much to do with the games he starred. So if you really love 2D Mario games, this might be the game for you. If you love Mario (search your feelings, hey may not be your father) maybe you should rent or borrow first, better yet, drop by a friend’s and get some multiplayer on.

Update: Monster Hunter Tri, Layout

Hello! The article titled Monster Hunter Tri has been updated! Just some stuff I forgot to mention.

Also, I totally revamped the site layout and template! I personally think it kick ass. Please comment!

Monster Hunter Tri

A few weeks ago a friend posted about this game that’s supposed to be really neat on an internet message board. Besides the fact that he seemed pretty exited for it, what really caught my attention was the fact that it was for the Wii.

Up until that moment I had been on a quest to find a worthwhile “hardcore” (click here if you’d like to know why I use quotation marks) type game, mostly because pretty much every game I’ve owned for the last 10 years or so has been pretty “casual”. Well, there was the Force Unlashed fiasco, but that’s a blog post of its own. Anyway, I became very interested in the game and, being flat broke and actually unemployed at the time; I decided to carefully research the game before investing.

Game play videos were easily available from people who uploaded themselves playing the demo on YouTube, however streaming and compression make it impossible to tell if the graphics were either good or great. Also, they were all talking about how much fun the game is, but it’s just no fun watching someone else play. I also, for the first time, went to Metareview to gather information. While I don’t trust their weighted average calculation, I found it really handy to quickly scroll down a lit of reviews from all over. There were a few bad reviews, in the sense that they gave the game a low score, but then after I read them I’d still buy the game. It also reminded me a bit of Phantasy Star Online, which I own but couldn't afford online play at the time.

The concept is pretty simple, take your regular fantasy game, remove all the story and pointless stuff, and focus on combat… no, wait, focus on BOSS BATTLES. Yeah. Every quest in this game feels like an epic boss battle. As for character progression you get rid of skills and experience points and make it all about finding the right stuff for your next weapon or armor upgrade. Most of these items you carve out of your foes’ twitching bodies with a hunting knife.

Translate this into game play terms and what you get is loads of fun. Just like in a boss battle in an RPG you have to save your game, fight, die, reload, prepare and try again. Besides learning the creature’s attacks, movements, weak spots, and “tells”, it’s also good to know what kind of items to bring along or if your current armor/weapon will be effective. All quests have a 50 minute time limit (some may have less). You are given a handful of “supply items” and a goal. There are different places quests take place in, each with its own climate and ecosystem where different creatures interact differently. Also each creature has its own personality and they don’t always come in the same exact size.

There are different weapons from which to choose, each with its own strengths, weaknesses, moves, combos and general control scheme. They are all very balanced, for example the hammer (my personal favorite) has the highest damage rate, but has no blocking and the attack animations are pretty slow (it's pretty big), thus requiring more strategy. Whereas the sword and shield have the least damage, but you can block, attack a lot faster AND use items without sheathing the sword. It's really important you find the weapon that better suits your style as you learn the ropes. Try switching weapons once you’re used to your favorite, it’s like playing a brand new game.

Graphics and sound are beautiful, just keep in mind this is a Wii game. Landscapes are gorgeous and animations are smooth. Lots of tiny details here and there, too; I still find myself looking at new things in the very first map. Character gestures are lots of fun; and one thing I found especially clever was that the running animation turns into a hilarious “HOLY SHIT IS IT STILL BEHIND ME?!?!” panic run when you are running away from a monster.

Control-wise the game is pretty tight, the camera is ideal for the kind of things you will be doing and you can browse through your stuff and find that potion while running like hell. Some features in the menus, though, seem tacked on just to justify the wiimote + nunchuck controller scheme, which is not that bad, really. I have no issues with the classic controller, but I’ve read about people complaining about it and strongly recommending the new Classic Controller Pro.

When playing offline you are assigned an AI partner that will teach you that no matter how much your teammates suck, it’s still a WAY LOT better than being by yourself. Cha-cha will help with some things but generally he is just a good decoy. Your base of operations will be a village that you are meant to save from a few huge beasts. There’s a bit of a story but mostly it’s about how you learn the rope while hunting progressively tougher monsters until you're ready to face the terrible leviathan terrorizing the village. You have the option of stepping outside into an island while not on a timed quest to practice or gather stuff. Some people complain about the slow learning curve, It was OK for me, just keep in mind this is no easy game. Also, the few hours you spend training are nothing compared to the time you will be spending with this baby.

When playing online the game will be divided into servers, then gates, then cities. There are four types of servers: Open (everybody can play), Rookie, expert and recruiting. If you ask me all servers should be recruiting servers, where you either join a group that is doing something you want to do, or open a “city” and wait for others looking for what you’re looking for to join.

There are four players to a city, where you pick a quest and go hunting together. You can use gestures, WiiSpeak, a USB keyboard or preset “shout outs” to communicate. After a few deaths the quest is failed. Otherwise, there aren't many ways a bad player could ruin your quest. Finding friends is still a big annoyance because of the “hunter ID” system which is nothing but a glorified Friend Code, but you’ll probably have tons of fun with strangers anyway.

Finding the right group can be tedious at times because of the way the servers are divided, but that is mostly because sometimes higher-ranked (Hunter Rank is a system that measures your experience) players refuse to pick quests accessible to the least experienced players in the city. The truth is that f you're doing a lower rank quest, the game will sprinkle a few surprises around to keep the tougher players entertained while the newbies pick mushrooms.

In the end, ask any player and most will agree that the best part of the game is the sense of satisfaction you get from finishing a quest. I don’t recall feeling so exited and relieved after beating a boss in any other game. It is very rewarding.

If you’re ever on, drop me a line, my ID is ngkyf5.

click here to read my endgame review.