Glory Days 2 Review

What a surprise! That's really the best way to describe this game. I wasn't even aware of the first game, but after I saw some action packed clips of this game I wanted to give this game a whirl. I'm glad I did because Glory Days 2 combines hectic arcade action with strategy game elements.

Gameplay: 8/10

Pros: Very Unique and different gameplay. Distinct vehicles with different gameplay mechanics and strategies, hectic arcade action- combination of helicopter rescue and sidescroller shoot em up. different time periods, tons of weapons, etc.

Cons: Touch controls are awful. In long play sessions, gameplay can be repetitive. Difficulty can be frustrating since you usually lose because your army is stupid, not because you get shot down...it keeps you playing though.

Graphics: 7.5/10

Pros: Tons of action, fast gamespeed and metal slug-esque graphics. Fantastic Parallax backgrounds give real depth.

Cons: Certainly doesn't push the DS's power and your planes look pixelated when they change direction and turn towards the camera. Plus the generally zoomed out camera takes focus away from the destruction on the ground.

Sound/Music: 8/10

Pros: Pretty epic war drum and battle music fits the mood perfectly. Sound Fx are arcadey and work well.

Cons: Sound FX and music can be repetitive and doesn't differ enough between time periods.

Lasting Appeal: 7/10

Pros: Multiplayer is a great addition even though there is no WiFi play. Campaign has different eras and is challenging. Battle mode helps you customize your own battle field conditions and continue playing after the campaign.

Cons: Campaign is too short and can be beaten in a couple hours with some skill and diligence. No WiFi play is a real shame.

Average: 76.25%

Tilt: +0.75%

Glory Days 2 is a great little game to saddle up with for a trip or quick play sessions. The gameplay is really unique... yet familiar and it's just plain fun to play (as long as you don't use the touch controls). Yes, the experience won't last that long if you play the heck out of it, but in spurts this game is great. It's a great idea and features gameplay that I would truly like to see expanded upon. One of the other great things about this title is that you can pick this game up for about $20 online. It's worth playing if you like shoot em ups or old school games with a little more depth.

Verdict: 77%

Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin DS Review

Castlevania is an epic video game franchise and each new iteration is a solid entry into the series (minus the 3D ones). Almost every Castlevania fan points to Symphony of the Night as the pinnacle of the series, though Aria of Sorrow or even Dawn of Sorrow both approached excellence. For me the two best Castlevania games were Symphony of the Night for Sega Saturn (yes I had that obscure system) aka Nocturne in the Moonlight and Circle of the Moon for GBA. Circle of the Moon is by no means the best GBA Castlevania, but it did surprise me, impress me, entice me…and ultimately sold me on the Gameboy Advance as a system. Well, I should probably add Portrait of Ruin to that list because although it doesn’t feel as new and great as the 2 Castlevania’s that really won me over to the series, it really offers way more as far as game length, characters, modes, etc. So to end the ranting and really get to the summary of the review: Castlevania Portrait of Ruin doesn’t surprise, offers some new features, and is another great addition to the Castlevania franchise. It is better than last year’s Dawn of Sorrow, and although a Co-op adventure mode is truly a huge missed opportunity, the new partner mechanics are pretty cool and the painting mechanic is freaking awesome.

Gameplay: 8.5/10
Pros: This is how games are meant to play…classic side scrolling action adventure. Controls are immediately familiar to castlevania fans though there are several new partner features such as calling them in, dual attacks, switching etc. that are fun to learn and work really well. Game is challenging and intense as always. The new portrait system will hopefully be used in future titles.
Cons: Touch features from Dawn of Sorrow were almost completely dropped…there’s no sealing of bosses or touch screen doors to unlock. I think the dual screen could be used for more than just a map. Finally, the dual character mechanic could have been utilized a lot more for puzzles and goddamn a co-op mode would’ve been sweet!

Graphics: 8.5/10
Pros: Good ole pixel art! As always, Castlevania sports excellent sprites, animations, and even some sweet 3D backgrounds. It’s built on the same engine as Dawn of Sorrow and the new iteration looks just as good if not better.
Cons: Some enemies have been rehashed from the previous games and I would have liked to see more 3D, sprite effects, etc.

Sound/Music: 8/10
Pros: All the old familiar sounds sound as good as ever. There is some good voice work even though it is minimal and the score is perfectly creepy and atmospheric.
Cons: The story is still told in text boxes, and the music isn’t as memorable as previous installments.

Lasting Appeal: 8.5/10
Pros: The game offers a lot when it comes to castle real estate and terrain to explore. The paintings are very large worlds and allow you to visit very different locales. As with any other Castlevania game, the decent story and great gameplay will keep you adventuring to the end. There are some other modes and characters, which offer some replay value, but ultimately the modes are a novelty, and you may not want to play through the adventure all over again.

Average: 83.75%
Tilt: +0.25%

Castlevania Portrait of Ruin is a must for anyone who has enjoyed any previous Castlevania game. It is one of the better sequels to come along in awhile and is a great platform action/adventure. If you’ve never been into Castlevania, I’m not sure this game changes it up enough to warrant a go, but if you’ve never heard or played one, this is an excellent place to start.

Verdict: 84%

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Elite Beat Agents DS Review

Simply put...this game is fun....really fun...wicked fun even. Elite Beat Agents appears on the surface a simple little diversion where you just tap numbers in order. The fact is that it will consume your time and will play levels over and over again both because they are fun and because you lack the rythm and timing to beat the level and move onto the next one. Throw in an incredible multiplayer component both with only 1 cart or multiple cars and you've got one of the best DS titles ever made, because it is unique to the DS, has play mechanics that can't be recreated on any other system, has great pick-up and play gameplay, and is just incredibly fun and addictive. This game is an absolute must-buy for DS owners and is one of those rare titles that is a system pusher...i.e. you should buy a DS to play this game.

Gameplay: 10/10
Pros: Multiplayer is a riot and invokes as much smack talk as an intense game of Halo Team slayer. The main game's story is quirky, and funny. I can't remember the last time I actually laughed during a videogame, but Elite Beat Agents is hilarious and totally out there. There's nothing better than listening to a song, getting in the groove and totally acing a level. Then again just triumphing over a difficult level is pretty darn rewarding. Simple controls, yet incredibly hard gameplay to master.
Cons: Game is challenging on easy ("breezin") and really tough on regular ("cruisin"). It could be frustrating to some, but I have not gotten frustrated once having to play a song/level over and over again to beat it, because it's just plain fun to play.

Graphics: 10/10
Pros: Sweet comic book style graphics and storytelling...great artistic design and presentation. Elite Beat Agents polygon models are excellent and move very fluidly and comically.
Cons: Probably doesn't push the DS hardware to the limits, but the graphics complement the gameplay and differentiate themselves from other games..so ten from me

Sound/Music: 9/10
Pros: Some excellent songs: Jamiroquai's "Nothing left for me to do, just Dance!" from Napoleon Dynamite is a favorite. There's also a great variety: everything from Madonna "Material Girl" to Avril Lavigne's "Sk8ter Boi." All the songs and music are good choices and fit the levels. The voicework for the beat agents and commander kahn is very welcomed and sounds great. The best music/sound I've experienced on the system.
Cons: There are some song duds. I mean I have to take a point off for Ashlee Simpson and "LaLa"

Lasting Appeal: 9/10
Pros: The Multiplayer levels all have their own competitive scenarios...from fighting aliens to kids playing 3on3 bball which makes the frentic multiplayer even more fun because it offers some new cartoon stories. There's also an excellent Co-op mode and the game is just so fun you will want to beat it on every difficulty level and then play it all over again to get higher scores and grades.
Cons: An online component would have been nice, but if the song lagged or something it wouldn't work so I guess they can save that for #2. The game is so great you can't help but wish there were more tracks and levels.

Average: 95.00%
Tilt: +2.50%

Yes, I'm giving this a higher score than Gears of War. The reason being that this game induces as much fun at half the cost and can be played by anyone. Literally any one who likes music can enjoy this game and after the short tutorial will be dancing with the rest of the elite beat agents. Beware Kiddies because Moms and Daddies will be stealing this game as frequently as they did back in the 80s with Tetris. This game has that mass appeal while still offering challenge to more experienced gamers. An absolute must buy! A game that you will look back fondly on and want to play YEARS from now. Hopefully a new staple of the Nintendo Library.

Verdict: 97.5%

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Elite Beat Agents

Yoshi's Island DS Review

Yoshi's Island doesn't mess with the original's formula and really just adds some new elements here and there. The new multiple baby element is really cool, but doesn't change the feel of the game at all. Basically, this game is for you if you liked the SNES original or Gameboy re-release. It's not going to surprise you in any way (if you've played the original) but it is a solid Nintendo platformer.

Gameplay: 9/10
Pros: Classic Platforming of old. Playing one of the SNES's best games is always fun. New babies with different powers is a really cool new feature even though some work better than others.
Cons: If you've played the original this really just feels like more of the same. It's great, but you've played it. The first boss is even the same (well 2 of them instead of 1). It could've used some more touch features.

Graphics: 8/10
Pros: Same cool morphing effects from the remake and original. Great art sense and pastel / cartoon feel.
Cons: A lot of the graphics and animations are just ripped from the original (GBA or SNES, isn't DS stronger?), but what really bothers me is that the title screen and level progression menu is exactly the same.

Sound/Music: 8/10
Pros: I love the Yoshi yelp and the baby crying really makes you feel anxious to get the baby back. Again, the sound and music will instantly feel familiar and is perfectly sufficient.
Cons: Nothing new, perfectly sufficient but lacking something...pizzaz perhaps?

Lasting Appeal: 7/10
Pros: If you missed out on owning a SNES or didn't buy the GBA remake then this is a must buy and you will absolutely love it, play it, beat it, and play it again. There are tons of levels and a lot of different worlds. The bosses especially stand out and were always excellent in this series, so you'll play through just to see and beat all of them.
Cons: I'm not sure how much you'll care about finding all the flowers and collecting everything. I for one will not play it again after I beat it, though I may try to score high enough on a level here and there to unlock the bonus levels.

Average: 80.00%
Tilt: +/- 0.00%

End Result is that Yoshi's Island DS is a solid Nintendo Platformer that will surely please anyone who played the original. It copies the original in so many ways and just doesn't offer enough to live up to the original, which after all is a classic and arguably one of the best platformers of the 16-bit era. We are in a different era where the bar has been raised and doing the more of the same isn't enough to warrant a must buy title.

Verdict: 80%

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Yoshi's Island DS

Mario Hoops 3 on 3 DS Review

Mario Hoops is hard to review. Nintendo and Square-Enix put so much production and money into the game, that it is very distracting when trying to review the game on its own merits. This game screams big-budget! It's the equivalent of a summer blockbuster movie...only it's a video game on Nintendo DS. When I first picked up Mario Hoops, played through the tutorial, and started playing I was blown away by the graphics, presentation and even the unique gameplay. It is very impressive in the first couple hours, but as I went on to the second tournament and then the third, I realized that this was the most ridiculously easy game I had ever played. I just lost my first match yesterday and am now being challenged in the Hard Mode Star cup...so the 7th tournament. It has made the game a little more interesting and a little more annoying. The controls, which I had no problems with in the early easy part of the game when I was just dunking nonstop on my competitors, have become problematic. I have tried passing several times to a player on a fast break and have instead jumped up for a mid-court jump-shot...very frustrating. At the same time, I like the increased defense of the computer controlled players. It should be noted that this is not a basketball game...well not really. Though you shoot, slamdunk and dribble, the game is basically a scramble to ? blocks to rack up coins before you attempt to score and put these coins in your bank. It doesn't feel like a basketball game because the strategy is not about protecting the hoop, since letting a character dunk on you only nets 20 pts., but instead about chasing aroudn ? blocks for items and to prevent the offensive player from collecting coins to add to his potential basket (20 pt. dunk + 100 coins = 120 pts!). It's different, and while I was playing the super easy tournaments I was yearning for the ability to have my brother and friends join in for some multiplayer, which I am sure would be a ton of fun. No Nintendo wifi connection! It's a glaring issue and I can't believe that the developers didn't offer this feature. They poor salts in our wounds too, since you don't have any hoops download play only lame mini-games. They really should've delayed the game to include wifi online play like they did for Metroid Prime Hunters...it would have added a lot of value and fun to the game. That pretty much sums up the game...while fun and amazingly well produced, Mario Hoops lack the extra shine and features that would've made it really great and would've forgiven it for its control and other small gameplay issues. With only local multiplayer and a limited 1player experience, this game's flaws become less forgivable and more frustrating.

Gameplay: 7/10
Pros: Unique take on basketball, the control and placement of dribbling the ball is really cool, multiplayer would be a blast
Cons: The control for passing/shooting can be frustrating, the first 5 tournaments are ludicrously easy

Graphics: 10/10
Pros: Best 3D graphics on DS hands down
Cons: ?

Sound: 9/10
Pros: Clear quality voicework, amazing sounds, catchy theme song
Cons: Each charater only says a couple things and it can get very repetitive

Lasting Appeal: 5/10
Pros: Mini-games included, multiple tournaments, multiplayer game is fun
Cons: Limited multiplayer support, mini-games are lame, single player is too easy and the only incentive to keep playing is becuase you want to unlock new characters and can't play with a friend or online

Average: 77.5%
Tilt (+/-): - 7.5% I
t is just inexcusable that some of the features weren't included in this game, it only makes it worse that the game has such high production values. All the more reason to take the time and spend the money.

Verdict: 70%

Starfox Command DS REVIEW

So I've been playing Star Fox command for the past couple days and was actually pleasantly surprised. My favorite thing about the game has to be the difficulty (not in the flying and shooting, but in the strategy) and the multiple path type of gameplay. Let me elaborate. Each starfox mission usually encompasses either taking out a mothership, destroying a particular type of enemy, or shooting down a cruise missile. The controls are excellent for flying around and shooting down badguys, and I have only died a couple times in the heat of battle or failed the mission by running out of time. On the other hand, I have allowed enemy ships, and cruise missiles to destroy my flagship on many occasions. There's actually a lot of strategy involved in placing your ships and intercepting threats. At the same time you have to stay aggressive and go after the motherships to earn more turns (and thus leaving your flagship undefended). I actually found one of the first missions the hardest because while I was destroying every enemy I faced, the training mode does not describe any of the elements of the strategic map, so I lost a lot. You also start with only Fox McCloud and then meet up with your buddies. Luckily, flying around and moving my plane around was so much fun I just kept replaying it and eventually learned how it works. Basicaly, there's fog of war clouds that you can rub away with your stylus (only so many though) and then you draw paths for your plans to fly. Once you get into it the strategy elements are really cool, work well, and keep the difficulty of the game up. The graphics and actual missions are spot on StarFox 64 and give you little 3d arenas to fly around and shoot it out. In-game controls are excellent and each spaceship is actually a little different with weapons, lock-on abilities, etc. (I hate Slippy's ship! No Lock ON!). After the first mission you can choose which teammember to go after and the game splits into 3 paths and after every subsequent misison you have at least 2 different areas/missions to choose from. This gives the game excellent replay value! There is also online support and local multiplayer modes which are exactly like the old N64 free for alls. I've never been a very big StarFox fan, though I did really like the 1st one, but the depth the strategy elements have given the game make it totally my cup of tea.


Gameplay: 8/10
Pros: Controls are excellent and fluid, drawing paths and planning out attack patterns is a unique new feature, the old N64 dogfights return, different ships handle differently, EXCELLENT boss battles. Great Multiplayer dogfights.

Cons: The actual missions can get repetitive: destroy this enemy, chase missile, destroy mothership. Training missions don't adequately prepare you for new strategic elements. No true SNES on-rails missions.

Graphics: 8/10
Pros: Arwing ships all look different (there's even a tadpole type ship to play as), solid 3D engine that looks better than the original SNES starfox and almost as good as the N64 version.

Cons: Levels are small, and draw-distance could be farther. Some of the old N64 fog is used and actual terrain and levels aren't that varied.

Sound: 8/10
Pros: Sticks to the starfox theme music previously established. They also use this fun garbled voice when people talk (like the old SNES cart).
Cons: No spoken voice, which people may frown on.

Lasting Appeal: 9/10
Pros: Multiple paths in one player, many ways to enjoy multiplayer, decent difficulty without being frustrating, and a decent and engaging story.

Cons: Gameplay may not keep you coming back for the 3rd, or 4th time through the campaign mode. Missions can be repetitive.

Average: 82.5%
Tilt (+/-): +0.5%

Verdict: 83%

Megaman ZX DS Review

So here's a rambling review, that I did at work instead of doing....well work. So I just bought the black DS lite yesterday and Megaman ZX to go along with it. Now let me start off by saying that ZX is hard and the save system is bad and it sometimes takes awhile to get to the right mission (the map is horrible). That pretty much sums up the entirety of the negatives of this game. I could not put this game down. Granted I was a huge SNES Megaman X fan and have liked hard games such as PS2 Shinobi, so some of the negatives of the game do not bother me at all. The Gameplay is absolutely perfert! It is oldschool goodness to its best, Twitch addictive gameplay. The ability to change into 5 different megamen is also really cool. You can even turn into your human self (though I wish the Human had more abilities, he can just crouch into small spaces and doesn't scare people when he talks to them). The Graphics are sweet in my opinion and look really good, though I doubt they are really straining the DS hardware. The bosses are tough and everything is slickly animated. In fact, one of the megamen can shoot with either hand and the way you are facing accurately changes which hand animation-wise fires- very nice touch. There are 2 characters- guy and girl and although I am only past the first 7 or so bosses on Easy, I definitely have not found it overly difficult (though I have died) and look forward to replaying the game as the girl and on harder settings. Love this game. If you loved any of the X games you have to absolutely pick this one up. Currently, Metascore has this game at 80. I would says it is more of a 89-91. It sucks that there isn't a decent map on the bottom screen (or even in the menu) but I like not having to look at both screens all that much. Anyway, you can read the other reviews and complaints yourselves. I think most critiques are valid but are not that big of a deal. I'm pro difficulty, the save system is fine, but the map system - walking around finding where the missions are- definitely needs a huge improvement.

BREAKDOWN:
Gameplay: 10/10
Pros: Absolutely couldn't put this game down for the first 5 hours. I'm even itching to play it again now, but I'm at work and the DS is at home so I'll have to wait. The only reason I stopped is because I only have 1 mission left available to select and I don't know where section J is! Excellent control very responsive, classic megaman with 5 different versions!
Cons: Some may find it hard or just not like the Old School and difficult gameplay - NOT for CASUAL GAMERS!!

Graphics: 9/10
Pros: Crisp and excellently animated sprites. Great Anime Sequences! Lush backgrounds with excellent scrolling aspects (foreground and parallax backgrounds). In the vein of great SNES games like Super Metroid, but crisper! with more colors!
Cons: Nothing that is truly next-gen...minimal graphics on 2nd Screen

Sound/Music: 8/10
Pros: All the classic sounds of dashing, shooting, etc. return. Music is good and fits the mood of the game.
Cons: When you complete a mission there is an annoying beeping until you file a mission report. Music/Sound doesn't really stay with you.

Lasting Appeal: 8/10
Pros: 2 Different characters, drastically more difficult difficulty levels, 5 different Megamen with different play mechanics. Huge world - lots of levels to explore. Only $30! SICK gameplay!

Cons: Too difficult- Too hard to explore and find next area or mission. Gameplay is tough for newcomers to Megaman games. Extra playtime attributed to re-traversing areas to find the next area or get back to a save point.

Average: 87.5%
Tilt (+/-): +2.5%

Verdict: 90%