...or "How I was reminded how much I love Nintendo" & Current Gaming
Ahh the 3DS Ambassador Program... Feels good, doesn't it? I'm still kind of soaking it all in, but holy crap Nintendo dropped a pile of games in our laps! Sure, they aren't new, and most of us "old folks" have probably played most of them countless times. But I just had a realization. For the first time ever - I'm able to play the pillars of the NES game library, on the go, *LEGALLY*. (I'm also going to argue that they were also free. Some may say they had paid for these games already with the original launch price, but I disagree. Launching with an amazing port of Super Street Fighter 4 made me a *very* happy camper, and I still have no regrets in buying the system at launch.)
Super Mario Bros., Metroid, Zelda... I think it's fair to say that Nintendo really tried to make an effort for the fans. They had to have realized that most of the early launch purchases were made by the die hard, long term Nintendo loyalists. And what better way to make sure there was minimal butthurt with the early price drop? Nice work, Nintendo.
Anyway, now that I've gotten that out of my system... WINTER IS COMING... *cough*choke*... sorry... (Yeah, I'm a little late to the game but I've just finished both watching the first season of Game of Thrones, and reading the book. Holy crap. I'll leave it at that.) ... Let's talk about what I'm playing right now.
Once again, Target loves putting Xbox 360 games on sale or in the hidden discount bin, and as such I've picked up Dragon Age 2 and Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 2 for cheap.
DA2 has been pretty damn fun, and my wife also really enjoys just watching it. The long and the short of it is - Mass Effect with dragons and swords (and that's not a bad thing!). I'm starting to really warm up to Western RPGs which has been an interesting change from the tried and true JRPG formula.
Naruto has been one of my favorite ongoing anime series for some time, and honestly - the North American versions of the games have sucked ass. In the past they've removed characters, and limited you to the English Dubbed voices - But with Ultimate Storm 2 that's a thing of the past. At last - Japanese voices with English Subs! Found this little bad boy deep in the discount bin with a price I couldn't pass up. This game pretty much plays like an interactive version of the series up to the whole Pain and destruction of Konoha arc. If you're a fan, you'll probably love it.
Anyway, Time to dive into A Clash of Kings...
Showing posts with label sf4. Show all posts
Showing posts with label sf4. Show all posts
Thursday, September 1, 2011
Thursday, April 28, 2011
Current Gaming
Well, it's been a while since I wrote up one of these here "Current Gaming" posts, so let's just dive right in!
Currently my gaming time has been split between Skate 3 on the ps3 and Street Fighter 4 on the 3DS.
Now, I know what you're thinking - "Skate 3? That's hardly new!" - And you know what? You're right, it's not. But, when i saw it in the discount bin for $15, i figured why not give the franchise that's pretty much taken Tony Hawk's crown a spin?
Right off the bat, Skate 3's system for pulling off tricks is refreshing to me. You basically use the right thumb stick to perform fighting-game like stick movements, which end up translating into all the various skateboard tricks you'd expect in such a title. It actually ends up feeling really smooth and fluid - I'm really liking it.
The graphics are pretty top notch and do the game justice. I've yet to have a chance to try the online parts of the game, due to PSN being down.
Anyway - If you've enjoyed old school Tony Hawk games, and happen to find this title for cheap, check it out!
Then there is the ever-present Super Street Fighter 4 3D. This is the reason I purchased a 3DS at launch, and ever since it's pretty much been my #1 title on the 3DS. I'm still pretty blown away with the fact that Capcom managed to fit a full featured, online enabled Street Fighter into a handheld. Graphically, I feel SSF43D totally holds its own when compared to the home and arcade versions. (OH and FYI - If you go into the game settings menu, and disable 3D all together - you'll get a nice boost to 60fps in single player mode. It's actually really noticeable!).
SSF43D's online play is about as perfect an experience as one could expect on a portable system. Playing with both random strangers and friends is very simple, and I've only run into really laggy matches maybe two or three time.
SSF43D, in my opinion really comes off as the most polished and complete of the 3DS launch titles - between online play, the streetpass battles (which are FUN!), and the jaw dropping graphics, this is a 3DS title that should be in everyone's collection.
I'm looking forward to the upcoming Call of Duty: Black Ops map pack. I really need to jump in on a few rounds of COD before it launches to get back into the swing of things. The Call of the Dead Zombie map also really looks amazing, I can't wait to give that a try.
I also need to make some time to play Portal 2, I've heard nothing but great things about it so far...
Currently my gaming time has been split between Skate 3 on the ps3 and Street Fighter 4 on the 3DS.
Now, I know what you're thinking - "Skate 3? That's hardly new!" - And you know what? You're right, it's not. But, when i saw it in the discount bin for $15, i figured why not give the franchise that's pretty much taken Tony Hawk's crown a spin?
Right off the bat, Skate 3's system for pulling off tricks is refreshing to me. You basically use the right thumb stick to perform fighting-game like stick movements, which end up translating into all the various skateboard tricks you'd expect in such a title. It actually ends up feeling really smooth and fluid - I'm really liking it.
The graphics are pretty top notch and do the game justice. I've yet to have a chance to try the online parts of the game, due to PSN being down.
Anyway - If you've enjoyed old school Tony Hawk games, and happen to find this title for cheap, check it out!
Then there is the ever-present Super Street Fighter 4 3D. This is the reason I purchased a 3DS at launch, and ever since it's pretty much been my #1 title on the 3DS. I'm still pretty blown away with the fact that Capcom managed to fit a full featured, online enabled Street Fighter into a handheld. Graphically, I feel SSF43D totally holds its own when compared to the home and arcade versions. (OH and FYI - If you go into the game settings menu, and disable 3D all together - you'll get a nice boost to 60fps in single player mode. It's actually really noticeable!).
SSF43D's online play is about as perfect an experience as one could expect on a portable system. Playing with both random strangers and friends is very simple, and I've only run into really laggy matches maybe two or three time.
SSF43D, in my opinion really comes off as the most polished and complete of the 3DS launch titles - between online play, the streetpass battles (which are FUN!), and the jaw dropping graphics, this is a 3DS title that should be in everyone's collection.
I'm looking forward to the upcoming Call of Duty: Black Ops map pack. I really need to jump in on a few rounds of COD before it launches to get back into the swing of things. The Call of the Dead Zombie map also really looks amazing, I can't wait to give that a try.
I also need to make some time to play Portal 2, I've heard nothing but great things about it so far...
Thursday, April 21, 2011
New Sonic Generations gameplay footage
Here's an unfortunately blurry, yet long video showing off the hybrid game style of Sonic Generations:
Look, i really want to get super excited for this (I do, really!) - But I know the Sonic Cycle all too well... It's just almost too good to be true. But that said, we've got old school meets new school Sonic game play (this could either be really awesome or totally horrible)and no hint of any friends (Tails and Knuckles are always welcome in my dojo).
Don't fuck this up Sega.
(ps- Sonic 4 Episodes 2? is this even going to happen?)
In other news, I managed to score 3 StreetPass tags the other night (standing around a GameStop when people are picking up pre-orders was a good idea!). Two of said tags also had Street Fighter 4 data. I won both figure matches, then promptly blew about 8,000FP on Figure Slots. Once the 3DS reaches critical mass StreetPass is going to be a pretty slick functionality. I'm really excited to see what is in store for this functionality.
Look, i really want to get super excited for this (I do, really!) - But I know the Sonic Cycle all too well... It's just almost too good to be true. But that said, we've got old school meets new school Sonic game play (this could either be really awesome or totally horrible)and no hint of any friends (Tails and Knuckles are always welcome in my dojo).
Don't fuck this up Sega.
(ps- Sonic 4 Episodes 2? is this even going to happen?)
In other news, I managed to score 3 StreetPass tags the other night (standing around a GameStop when people are picking up pre-orders was a good idea!). Two of said tags also had Street Fighter 4 data. I won both figure matches, then promptly blew about 8,000FP on Figure Slots. Once the 3DS reaches critical mass StreetPass is going to be a pretty slick functionality. I'm really excited to see what is in store for this functionality.
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
AHH. Is it just me...
...or are we all just a little starved for new information about the 3DS and upcoming titles?
Sure, there's Zelda - and don't get me wrong it's a Day 1 purchase - but damn it all why is E3 so far away?! I'm already kind really hyped for the Nintendo keynote (Sorry MS/Sony... I'll be watching, but the Big N has me all worked up). Next-gen Wii rumors... And you have to assume Nintendo is going to pull out all the stops for the 3DS as well.
I'm just going a little batty here... waiting. Hitting all the usual spots in hopes of some new nugget of information about the future of my beloved new 3DS.
In the meantime I should beat Street Fighter 4 3D again, and get my ass in gear with Shadow Wars.
On the subject of Shadow Wars, I've at last come face to face with a black screen crash. Happened out of nowhere on my 2nd attempt at a mission - and it was rather annoying (Yes, my 3DS has the current firmware).
Pilotwings 3DS is, thus far, an enjoyable and relaxing excursion. I'm chipping away at the missions in between periods of distraction by the free flight mode. I think the glider is my favorite of the aircrafts so far - it has a neat mechanic where you're able to see updrafts (which are key for any long flight), and you can get pretty high up in that glider (I've topped out around 2.5k feet or so as of this writing).
If Nintendo doesn't at least *tease* a new proper Advance Wars title for the 3DS at E3 (and a new Battalion Wars game does NOT CUT IT) - I will be very disappointed.
Sure, there's Zelda - and don't get me wrong it's a Day 1 purchase - but damn it all why is E3 so far away?! I'm already kind really hyped for the Nintendo keynote (Sorry MS/Sony... I'll be watching, but the Big N has me all worked up). Next-gen Wii rumors... And you have to assume Nintendo is going to pull out all the stops for the 3DS as well.
I'm just going a little batty here... waiting. Hitting all the usual spots in hopes of some new nugget of information about the future of my beloved new 3DS.
In the meantime I should beat Street Fighter 4 3D again, and get my ass in gear with Shadow Wars.
On the subject of Shadow Wars, I've at last come face to face with a black screen crash. Happened out of nowhere on my 2nd attempt at a mission - and it was rather annoying (Yes, my 3DS has the current firmware).
Pilotwings 3DS is, thus far, an enjoyable and relaxing excursion. I'm chipping away at the missions in between periods of distraction by the free flight mode. I think the glider is my favorite of the aircrafts so far - it has a neat mechanic where you're able to see updrafts (which are key for any long flight), and you can get pretty high up in that glider (I've topped out around 2.5k feet or so as of this writing).
If Nintendo doesn't at least *tease* a new proper Advance Wars title for the 3DS at E3 (and a new Battalion Wars game does NOT CUT IT) - I will be very disappointed.
Friday, April 15, 2011
What the...?
So out of seemingly nowhere, the internet is buzzing with rumors of an imminent pre-announcement this month(?) and a full official reveal of Nintendo's next generation of home console at E3.
Back on April 7th, Kotaku made an educated guess based on the immediate release schedule that new Nintendo hardware was coming soon.
Then yesterday, EVERYONE in the video game press suddenly claimed to have insider knowledge that this WAS in fact the case. Here is Kotaku again with even more details and links.
So - not that I have any insider knowledge, but i'm pretty damn excited at the prospect of a fully backwards compatible next gen Wii (in my opinion, it should be called Super Wii, for old time's sake), with a robust online service.
If Nintendo can manage to really woo the 3rd parties, and get Epic and the Unreal 3 engine on board, they just might win back the hardcore gamers...
We will have to wait till E3 gets close to know for sure. In the meantime, who's up for some Super Street Fighter 4 3D? Here's my friend code 0259-0316-4469 - let me know if you add me!
Back on April 7th, Kotaku made an educated guess based on the immediate release schedule that new Nintendo hardware was coming soon.
Then yesterday, EVERYONE in the video game press suddenly claimed to have insider knowledge that this WAS in fact the case. Here is Kotaku again with even more details and links.
So - not that I have any insider knowledge, but i'm pretty damn excited at the prospect of a fully backwards compatible next gen Wii (in my opinion, it should be called Super Wii, for old time's sake), with a robust online service.
If Nintendo can manage to really woo the 3rd parties, and get Epic and the Unreal 3 engine on board, they just might win back the hardcore gamers...
We will have to wait till E3 gets close to know for sure. In the meantime, who's up for some Super Street Fighter 4 3D? Here's my friend code 0259-0316-4469 - let me know if you add me!
Tuesday, April 5, 2011
The Nintendo 3DS
Like a moth drawn to flame... there was no way I could resist the launch of new Nintendo hardware.
Let's get one fact right out into the open - I am a life-long Nintendo fanboy. If you're looking for an unbiased opinion/review of the 3DS, you're in the wrong place, and I am sorry for wasting your time.
That said, There is nothing in this world that makes me feel like a kid again more than new Nintendo hardware. The Nintendo 3DS is no exception. The first thing to notice is the 3DS is just about the same size as your trusty DS lite. It's a little thicker, but really, to the naked eye its pretty spot on. The second thing you'll notice is the top screen for the 3DS is quite a bit larger than the DS lite/DSi.
Then there is the glasses-free 3D. Truth be told, this effect doesn't really work on me. I'm a little bummed about this, but it's due to a life-long issue with my left eye - so really, what can you do?
With my 3DS, I purchased Super Street Fighter 4 (which as i said in my E3 keynote post was a must-have), as well as Ghost Recon Shadow Wars. Both are fine titles, but SF4 stands head and shoulders above GRSW because it seems to leverage every cool feature the 3DS has to offer.
So let's talk a bit about the 3DS features!
- Graphics: It's like you've got a portable Wii in your pocket. Seriously - using Street Fighter as an example, these are by far the best graphics I've seen on a portable system. The fact that Capcom pulled off a damn near flawless port of SF4 really blows me away.
- Network Connectivity: Now *THIS* is what WiiConnect24 should have been! With the 3DS you have a single system-level friend code. You're also given a proper friends list and are now alerted any time a friend comes online. This ties into the next item...
- StreetPass: This is a really cool functionality that basically allows your 3DS to communicate and trade data with other 3DS without any sort of user interaction required (the idea being that your 3DS is asleep in your pocket as you go about your day to day life). The 3DS Mii Plaza uses StreetPass, so when you DO bump into another 3ds owner out in the world, you exchange Miis (and other goodies). I was lucky enough to have a random StreetPass encounter while visiting Washington DC and I thought it was the coolest thing ever. Street Fighter 4 supports StreetPass in a really cool way - you set up a team of 5 fighters that actually do battle with other SF4 players as you pass them.
- AR Games/Face Raiders: The 3DS comes with 2 Augmented Reality (AR) games - AR Games and Face Raiders. With AR Games, you're given a deck of 6 cards with the 3DS. The main card (it looks like the Super Mario '?' block) is the root of the game - you start AR Games and aim the camera at the card... and suddenly your surroundings are part of the MANY mini games within. Face Raiders uses the built in camera to take pictures of your face, or other faces around you - then incorporates them into a fun AR shooting title, where again your surroundings become the game. This functionality really needs to be experienced first hand...
- Pedometer/Play Coins: The 3DS also has a built in pedometer which keeps track of how many steps you take in a day - but with a twist! For every 100 steps you take you are rewarded with 1 Play Coin. These play coins can then be exchange for in-game items (With Street Fighter it allows you to buy more StreetPass figures, and with AR Games it unlocks more mini games). This feature is seriously going under the radar right now, and i think it's one of the more brilliant parts of the 3DS. It's like a super refined/distilled idea from WiiFit, and the in-game rewards ensure i keep my 3DS in my pocket at all times keeping track of my steps (not to mention for the StreetPass connections).
I gotta be honest here, I'm almost overwhelmed by how awesome the 3DS is so far. This system has a very bright future ahead of it, and I am dying to see what the 2nd and 3rd waves of software hold in store for us. I'm also really looking forward to novel uses of the AR gaming. I plan on writing more about the 3DS as i discover more, so stay tuned.
This is a game-changer - Sony, you had best bring your AAA game with the NGP....
'till next time...
Let's get one fact right out into the open - I am a life-long Nintendo fanboy. If you're looking for an unbiased opinion/review of the 3DS, you're in the wrong place, and I am sorry for wasting your time.
That said, There is nothing in this world that makes me feel like a kid again more than new Nintendo hardware. The Nintendo 3DS is no exception. The first thing to notice is the 3DS is just about the same size as your trusty DS lite. It's a little thicker, but really, to the naked eye its pretty spot on. The second thing you'll notice is the top screen for the 3DS is quite a bit larger than the DS lite/DSi.
Then there is the glasses-free 3D. Truth be told, this effect doesn't really work on me. I'm a little bummed about this, but it's due to a life-long issue with my left eye - so really, what can you do?
With my 3DS, I purchased Super Street Fighter 4 (which as i said in my E3 keynote post was a must-have), as well as Ghost Recon Shadow Wars. Both are fine titles, but SF4 stands head and shoulders above GRSW because it seems to leverage every cool feature the 3DS has to offer.
So let's talk a bit about the 3DS features!
- Graphics: It's like you've got a portable Wii in your pocket. Seriously - using Street Fighter as an example, these are by far the best graphics I've seen on a portable system. The fact that Capcom pulled off a damn near flawless port of SF4 really blows me away.
- Network Connectivity: Now *THIS* is what WiiConnect24 should have been! With the 3DS you have a single system-level friend code. You're also given a proper friends list and are now alerted any time a friend comes online. This ties into the next item...
- StreetPass: This is a really cool functionality that basically allows your 3DS to communicate and trade data with other 3DS without any sort of user interaction required (the idea being that your 3DS is asleep in your pocket as you go about your day to day life). The 3DS Mii Plaza uses StreetPass, so when you DO bump into another 3ds owner out in the world, you exchange Miis (and other goodies). I was lucky enough to have a random StreetPass encounter while visiting Washington DC and I thought it was the coolest thing ever. Street Fighter 4 supports StreetPass in a really cool way - you set up a team of 5 fighters that actually do battle with other SF4 players as you pass them.
- AR Games/Face Raiders: The 3DS comes with 2 Augmented Reality (AR) games - AR Games and Face Raiders. With AR Games, you're given a deck of 6 cards with the 3DS. The main card (it looks like the Super Mario '?' block) is the root of the game - you start AR Games and aim the camera at the card... and suddenly your surroundings are part of the MANY mini games within. Face Raiders uses the built in camera to take pictures of your face, or other faces around you - then incorporates them into a fun AR shooting title, where again your surroundings become the game. This functionality really needs to be experienced first hand...
- Pedometer/Play Coins: The 3DS also has a built in pedometer which keeps track of how many steps you take in a day - but with a twist! For every 100 steps you take you are rewarded with 1 Play Coin. These play coins can then be exchange for in-game items (With Street Fighter it allows you to buy more StreetPass figures, and with AR Games it unlocks more mini games). This feature is seriously going under the radar right now, and i think it's one of the more brilliant parts of the 3DS. It's like a super refined/distilled idea from WiiFit, and the in-game rewards ensure i keep my 3DS in my pocket at all times keeping track of my steps (not to mention for the StreetPass connections).
I gotta be honest here, I'm almost overwhelmed by how awesome the 3DS is so far. This system has a very bright future ahead of it, and I am dying to see what the 2nd and 3rd waves of software hold in store for us. I'm also really looking forward to novel uses of the AR gaming. I plan on writing more about the 3DS as i discover more, so stay tuned.
This is a game-changer - Sony, you had best bring your AAA game with the NGP....
'till next time...
Monday, April 19, 2010
Current Gaming
Hello friends, welcome back.
So i've reached the 35 hour mark with Final Fantasy 13. So far this has been an enjoyable adventure and part of me is surprised how this game has managed to grab and HOLD my attention for so long.
I've been saying this the whole time, but I haven't enjoyed an RPG this much since Final Fantasy 8.
Thanks to a good friend of mine, i recently scored a Mad Catz Street Fighter 4 arcade stick on clearance (making room for the Super Street Fighter 4 sticks i assume). I know some of you out there are thinking "Ew Mad Catz?!?" but i have to admit this joystick is very well built, and the price was oh so right ($29.99 w/ free shipping - how could i say no?). The most interesting point about this purchase is that historically, i have been in the control pad camp for playing Street Fighter (this is based around having Street fighter 2 Special Champion Edition and the 6 button pad for the Genesis way back in the day, and then re-enforced by my Sega Saturn and it's flawless rev 2 6 button control pad). It's no secret that the d-pads on both the PS3 and the 360 are terrible (to say the least) for fighting games - and finding one of the Mad Catz Street Fighter 4 pads for a reasonable price was proving to be a pain, so i took the plunge.
I must say, right off the bat the stick felt nice in my hands and on my lap. I must have spent about 20 minutes just clicking the buttons and checking out the stick's action.
I'll report back with an update on the effect on my playing - i am rather rusty at the moment so it's hard to judge. I'm sure i'll also have an update once i get my hands on Super Street Fighter 4.
In other news, i may have found a "game" for the iPhone that's able to hold my attention. X-Plane on the iPhone is VERY worthy of the X-Plane name. I've always loved that flight sim on the PC, but to see it scaled down for the iPhone while retaining most of the core gameplay? Pretty damn impressive.
Until next time!
So i've reached the 35 hour mark with Final Fantasy 13. So far this has been an enjoyable adventure and part of me is surprised how this game has managed to grab and HOLD my attention for so long.
I've been saying this the whole time, but I haven't enjoyed an RPG this much since Final Fantasy 8.
Thanks to a good friend of mine, i recently scored a Mad Catz Street Fighter 4 arcade stick on clearance (making room for the Super Street Fighter 4 sticks i assume). I know some of you out there are thinking "Ew Mad Catz?!?" but i have to admit this joystick is very well built, and the price was oh so right ($29.99 w/ free shipping - how could i say no?). The most interesting point about this purchase is that historically, i have been in the control pad camp for playing Street Fighter (this is based around having Street fighter 2 Special Champion Edition and the 6 button pad for the Genesis way back in the day, and then re-enforced by my Sega Saturn and it's flawless rev 2 6 button control pad). It's no secret that the d-pads on both the PS3 and the 360 are terrible (to say the least) for fighting games - and finding one of the Mad Catz Street Fighter 4 pads for a reasonable price was proving to be a pain, so i took the plunge.
I must say, right off the bat the stick felt nice in my hands and on my lap. I must have spent about 20 minutes just clicking the buttons and checking out the stick's action.
I'll report back with an update on the effect on my playing - i am rather rusty at the moment so it's hard to judge. I'm sure i'll also have an update once i get my hands on Super Street Fighter 4.
In other news, i may have found a "game" for the iPhone that's able to hold my attention. X-Plane on the iPhone is VERY worthy of the X-Plane name. I've always loved that flight sim on the PC, but to see it scaled down for the iPhone while retaining most of the core gameplay? Pretty damn impressive.
Until next time!
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