Happy New Year, and a general Happy Holidays to all. Hopefully, for those that celebrate, a new game system has been delivered to all the good boys and girls out there and you’re spending most of your vacation time trying to conquer the water temple in TWILIGHT PRINCESS. In the meantime, I’m here once again with reviews galore of the latest entries in my all time favorite game series’ for you to feast your eyes upon, including Nintendo’s newest ZELDA epic. Unleash the hordes of shoppers and ready yourself for the Wii strap recalls, it’s game time.
LEGENDARY
For those of you (those very few of you, I should say) who were worried that the two year wait for the sweet looking and finally adult version of Link would be all for naught and fraught with disappointment can now rest assured. THE LEGEND OF ZELDA: TWILIGHT PRINCESS, out now for both the Wii and the Gamecube, quite simply, will rock your fucking socks off, and never let you stop playing. And that’s only the BEGINNING of the good news.
An epic adventure in the grandest scale, TWILIGHT PRINCESS has every thing a ZELDA fan could hope for: an intriguing plot, excellent control, diverse characters, and amazing gameplay. And the Wii version just makes it so much more immersive, with a control scheme that’s both intuitive and unique. While the analog nunchuck control Link’s movements, the Wii-mote provides slashes, jump attacks, targeting with slingshots and arrows, and more. The first time you go fishing by casting the line with the Wii-mote and reeling with the nunchuck is a surreal gaming experience.
Many of the game’s weapons and items can be mapped to the D-pad and B-trigger of the Wii-mote. Select you item, press the button, and use. At first you’ll feel a little silly swinging the Wii-mote back and forth to slash, and shaking the nunchuck to do Link’s patented spin attack, but by using these controls together and Z-targeting, you’ll be bashing baddies in no time, and getting a much needed workout as well. Link’s attacks have never felt more intuitive, and as you progress he’ll learn even more skills and finishing moves that will surprise and enthrall players. There’re also plenty of new weapons as well, such as the Whirlwind Boomerang and the bizarre anti-gravity like boots…and all are useful in their own spectacular ways.
The game features the typical style of ZELDA storytelling: something is amiss in the land of Hyrule, something has happened to Princess Zelda, and a young brave hero named Link is the answer to all the problems. New to this title is Link’s ability to travel between the real world, and the world of Twilight, a realm that mimics his own but shrouded in darkness where he is reverted into the form of a wolf. While in the Twilight, a mischievous creature named Midna guides you through the land, showing you where to go and what to get to change the land back to light, and you back into Link. But she also has her own agenda…
There’s so much going on in this game that a review such as mine honestly can’t do it the justice it deserves without spoiling much of the plot. This is made even more difficult due to the fact that the game is so damn long. At 60+ hours you’ll be spending quite a long time traversing its many fields, temples, dungeons and countryside in your efforts to lift the spell and free the Princess. And when it’s all done, you’ll want to jump right back and do it all again. It’s THAT damn good. If there’s one complaint I have with the game, it’s that there still is no voice work to speak of, other than a few choice words from Midna or the townsfolk Link meets. C’mon, Nintendo…it’s 2007. Let’s get some audio in here other than squeaks and grunts. Also, while the graphics suit the game well and look terrific, it still isn’t the best looking game out there…the Gamecube and Wii versions look practically the same.
Do yourself a favor. If you haven’t yet found a Wii to play this on, get the Gamecube version. It’s the same game (though flipped so that Link is left handed again…the Wii version has him right handed so the Wii-mote actions make visual sense with what you’re performing) and it may be easier to find than a Wii system and the game. But if you have the means, this is the must own title for the system, and will keep you busy far into the fledgling console’s other offerings.
One Gamer’s Opinion:
PORTABLE ASS-KICKERY
As many readers of my column will attest to, I am not only a big ZELDA fan, but also a huge METAL GEAR fan. Despite delving into the wacky and bizarre realms of science fiction, to me the Kojima productions games can do no wrong, and this is further proved by my love for METAL GEAR SOLID: PORTABLE OPS, out now on the PSP system.
Taking place seven years after the events of MGS3: SNAKE EATER, we find “Naked Snake†(now christened “Big Bossâ€) in a secluded prison camp, for crimes his FOX unit has performed…while he wasn’t even a member any longer! With the assistance of a young Roy Campbell (a name that series fans will recognize and Solid Snake’s superior officer) he escapes and begins recruiting a team of solider to bring down the latest menace supplied by the rogue FOX unit, as well as the next Metal Gear terror.
What this means to you, the gamer, is that there finally is a stellar stealth action title on the PSP, and one that shoves some new, unique gameplay ideas at you all the while. Despite its compact size, the adventure is quite large, though broken up into selective bites suited for quick playing on the go. As Snake travels, however, his inventory (to save screen space) is pared down to only four items at a time, forcing the player to take only what it absolutely necessary and to risk leaving behind other items that you may or may not need.
As you progress through the story, you will “recruit†other soldiers to your mission. You can capture enemy soldiers and convince them to join you, or contact specific characters within the story to work for your cause. One of the coolest elements in the game, however, is the use of the PSP’s wireless capabilities. In picking up signals from specific wireless hotsopts, you can download new recruits directly to your memory card, to be used in both the single player and multiplayer games. Be careful, though…loose that agent in a multiplayer battle, and they’re lost for good…well, unless you can win them back or recruit them again. The game even utilizes the upcoming GPS attachment for the PSP to find WiFi hotspots with the best characters.
The story has all the earmarks of a MGS game, and even features the voice of David “Solid Snake†Hayter as the gruff lone commando. What’s more, the cutscenes feature brand new artwork from acclaimed painter (and artist of the METAL GEAR SOLID comics) Ashley Wood. All the major scenes of the story are done is this style, with slight animations to move the story along. It’s a unique presentation that suits the series well.
However, as is often the problem with PSP games, the minimalist allowance of the buttons and lack of second analog stick tend to hamper the experience for some players. It’s not horrible, and the camera CAN be adjusted to an extent through liberal use of the shoulder buttons, but many will find the controls a bit of a learning curve. Personally, I found the way that everything was mapped quite streamlined from the console versions’ many options, but I have certainly heard my share of complaints about the control.
When all’s said and done, however, this is one of the few games (besides a GTA off shoot) that will be destined to sell Sony’s ill fated handheld to more consumers. It’s got a great story, fantastic presentation, it’s fun and it showcases just how powerful and diverse the little machine can be. Plus, it fills in that all-important missing chapter between SNAKE EATER and the original METAL GEAR. Fans will definitely want to check this out.
One Gamer’s Opinion:
PORTRAIT OF AWESOME
Another series favorite of mine, CASTLEVANIA, has reached its 20th anniversary this year. As such, it’s newest entry, PORTRAIT OF RUIN on the Nintendo DS bring familiar play mechanics and graphics to the table, while providing some new and unique control and characters for gamers to explore with.
Once again, Castle Dracula has appeared and it’s up to the wielder of the famed Vampire Killer whip to bring down the Lord of Darkness. This time, it’s during WWII and young Jonathan Morris (son of John Morris from CASTLEVANIA: BLOODLINES for the Sega Genesis) and his young witch-friend Charlotte to try and stop the blood suckers from returning. But Jonathan has a problem, since his bloodline isn’t directly that of the Belmont’s, he can’t wield the whip to its fullest extent of powers, hence why Charlotte tags along to help.
As players traverse the many rooms of the castle, you can switch between either Jonathan or Charlotte, or even have them both fight at once as you take down familiar spooks and ghouls in the castle walls. Some puzzles require you to control both heroes, and you’ll be tasked with some of the series best battles that will utilize both protagonists’ skills. As the story progresses, the plot of who’ resurrecting the castle will be revealed (hint, it’s not Dracula, though of course he will probably show up) and both your characters will push themselves to the limits of their powers.
One of the more interesting aspects of the “Metroid-vania†style of the branching maps in the game is the use of the titular portraits around the castle. Jonathan and Charlotte use these to travel to other realms in order to thwart the baddies’ mission of vampire rule. It’s through these doorways into other lands that separates this title from most other CASTLEVANIA games by not restricting it to the confines of the same castle walls we’ve become so familiar with.
However, despite some new pseudo-co-op maneuvers and unique branching levels, there’s still a bit of recycling going on in the series, most notably with character sprites. Many of the characters you fight have been rehashed directly from last year’s DAWN OF SORROW, which slightly detracts from some of the look of the game. Still, it keeps it firmly in the CASTLEVANIA realm, and the familiarity with some of these creatures may be a benefit for fans on how to defeat them. Not all are rehashed either, there are plenty of new foes, but the familiar ones are VERY familiar.
And while there are some multiplayer aspects to the game (including WiFi play – first for the series) the most obvious aspect; two-player co-op, is notably absent. Still, trading and buying items from friends or creating maps for the two of your to race through is still fun, but it could have been so much more. Plus, there’s even less touch screen interaction in this title than the last.
As it stands, however, it once again proves that the 2D handheld CASTLEVANIA games stand up as the best in the series. Great story, cool plot twists, fun weapons and skills, and an all around great vampire bashing time. Whip it, good.
One Gamer’s Opinion:
And thus we bring to an end my first column of the New Year. Next week we’ve got more, with PIMP MY RIDE, KARAOKE REVOLUTION: AMERICAN IDOL, SUPER SWING GOLF, DOA XTREME 2 and the new TONY HAWK titles. Plus, coming soon…video podcasts of the column (because, frankly…I’m getting tired of typing). See you in a few.
THE GAME ON! RATING SYSTEM
Ratings From Greatest to Least:
Kick Ass, Right On, Okay, Eh, and Stinker (aka CRAPTACULAR)
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