Topic: What Game(s) are You Currently Playing?

Went back to using the Switch and I am now playing Super Smash Bros. Ultimate again for the first time in a year! I was pretty obsessed with this game back in 2021, but I wasn’t able to play it until now since the Switch with my account and the game transferred households, but I got it back! Forgot how much I loved the game…it still really is the best fighting game I’ve ever played and looking back at it now, it’s still insane how big this game became over time and how many awesome characters they got to have in their roster. I associate the game with so many good memories and a ton of memorable moments that came from the internet…I miss those times a lot. With how big the game became, it really does make me curious what the direction for the next entry will be…it will be interesting to see when it eventually comes.

I did play a couple CPU matches to get used to it again, and the game still plays well, and I am surprisingly still ok at playing it. However, I am trying to get used to the button placements on the Pro Controller, since they somewhat throw me off after I used an Xbox controller for a good while. I kept accidentally hitting the B button instead of the A button. I do want to do online matches, but my internet is awful and I am afraid that I’ll screw up the controls while playing, so I’ll probably only do that when I am more comfortable playing it.

I’m trying to also get a complete spirit collection (or at least an almost complete collection) since I read months ago that they added new spirits in December for the game’s anniversary. If I recall, my spirit collection is currently at 1510 out of 1517, and today I was able to get three new spirits without any trouble! I made a lot of effort and progress with the spirits when I was so hyperfixated on this game years ago. I think three of the missing spirits are DLC fighters, so I might need to buy those at some point to get a nearly finished collection, though I am not going for 100% completion. World of Light honestly wasn’t bad and the Spirits weren’t either (in fact I love collecting them) but I do think the story mode could have been a bit more exciting and fun, though I can’t compare it to Brawl’s Subspace Emissary since I never played Brawl before, though I think a lot of people liked Subspace more than World of Light.

Thanks to the Steam Summer Sale, I decided to pick up Moto Racer 4. I got Moto Racer 2 during GOG's summer sale, and wanted to try a more modern Moto Racer game. Honestly, I like it. Fun arcade-style racing and works great with my gamepad.

Also, my friend gifted me ATV Drift and Tricks when we were playing Moto Racer 4 online one night. I notice something... this game reused the dirt tracks from Moto Racer 4. Basically the same game, but with ATVs. Knowing the tracks made this one easier, but it feels more like an ATV DLC for Moto Racer, but it's sold as a separate game. Still had fun with it.

As for Switch, I did recently complete the Inside Out Golden Pass on Disney Speedstorm and unlocked all the tiers of the pass. Have to say, definitely better than Paladins' own pass. I progressed through it in two weeks.

Currently I am playing World of Warcraft Mists of Pandaria Remix on PC. I just got my shadow priest to level 70. That two characters I now have at max level. I just need 3 more to get the 5 characters at max level achievement that I have been trying to get for years now and with MoP Remix I feel I have a good chance.

Other then that I am just grinding out guns on XDefiant since the new season dropped. Still enjoying this game alot and it gives me that old school CoD feeling best of all it's free.

@dmcc0 I remember playing Smash TV on the NES and SNES when I was a kid didn't realize they made a Game Gear port. I remember seeing a Genesis port advertised but never seen it myself. Still one of my favorite games to this day and it still holds up well to this day.

I went ahead and got Super Monkey Ball: Banana Rumble after hearing all the hype, and it's been a really pleasant surprise. The level design feels just like the classic games, and the Spin Dash does so much to bring back that experimental feeling of trying out whatever crazy shortcuts you can think of in your head and just barely managing to clutch them out. There's so much here too in terms of content and while it's not perfect, this is easily shaping up to be my favorite game in the series since the original duology.

Went back to BS Special Tee Shot after I got it working on my Miyoo Mini. Turns out I just had to plunk the BS-X BIOS on its SD card.

Always enjoyed Kirby’s Dream Course, but I prefer this as there’s not as much reliance on powers, and the shots are more technical. KDC has putt, long putt and a lofted shot, but the angle of the latter is fixed. In BSSTT it’s hugely adjustable, from a low punch shot to a skied wedge. On top that, the ball is smaller, so it feels more like golf than Kirbo abuse.

I’d like it to appear on the NSO SNES app at some point, see how people take to the difference.

ITS FINALLY TIME FOR DUAL DESTINIES BABYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY

Rio PS3

I will try to finish the Storyline today as it looks like very short.

Just wrapped up Case 1 there now and I gotta say: I'm having a pretty good time! Ace Attorney games are always fun to go through so it perhaps isn't too much of a surprise but it feels great to finally be back in the swing of things again after having to put the series on hold due to school life getting in the way. The transition to 3D, while it definitely looks a bit rough in places (particularly in how characters jut from one pose to the next), is mostly pulled off really nicely, the music is as catchy as ever (with Athena Cykes ~ Courtroom Révolutionaire and Cross Examination ~ Allegro 2013 being personal highlights for me so far) and Case 1 was a pretty fun one with a very good climax, even if it didn't blow me away too much (which, given that the name/premise of the case, feels a tad ironic XD). Still, I'm very excited to continue on tomorrow and can't wait to see what happens next!

One criticism I do have though: why the f*** is everyone so mean to Apollo 😭

Shadow of the Erdtree is so damn good! I am just after Rellana and looking for tree fragments and revered spirit ashes

@Tasuki I used to play a lot of the arcade version when I was younger and I played it recently on Xbox (Midway Arcade Origins) and its still great fun. I remember having the Commodore 64 port of Smash TV when I was a kid too, but I think the single button joystick meant you could only shoot in the direction you were facing - it been a while though, so I could be wrong. Game Gear version is OK - it looks a bit rough and I'm still getting to grips with the controls, but it's still a lot of fun.

@dmcc0 I too have the Midway Arcade Origins just for that game alone, although there are other great games on it too.

The shooting in one direction was the same on the NES you could only shoot in the direction you were facing. Although with the NES there was a way to play with two controllers using one dpad to move and the other to shoot, but then it meant you couldn't play two players. I figured that the Genesis port probably has the same set up, shoot in the direction your facing since there is only 3 buttons on the standard Genesis controller.

@Tasuki The Game Gear version uses a 2-button control system. Button 1 is a 'lock' button where the initial button press shoots in the direction you are facing, but locks to that direction as long as you hold the button - so if you're facing left, you'll keep shooting left as long as you hold the button regardless of which direction you move. The second button shoots on the opposite direction to your movement. It's a decent compromise, but it does take a bit of getting used to.

I haven't played the Genesis (Mega Drive) version yet but from what I've read the 3-button pad uses 1 button for the direction you're facing, 1 for opposite direction and the 3rd uses the same 'lock' method as the Game Gear above. There doesn't appear to be an option for the 6-button controller, but looks like you can use the 2-controller method as per the NES too. Would be pretty cool with 2 arcade sticks, or even create a custom controller. I'm not sure I've come across any other games where you can use 2 controllers for a single game, so it's but it's probably too much effort for one game. Would make a great lockdown project though. Maybe the next time we have a global pandemic I'll give it a go 😅

Warframe - Feels like my homebase for the past three years since returning to the game after Update 22 (Plains of Eidolon) gave me burnout.

Eiyuden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes - About 22 hours in, maybe close to....halfway through the game. Not sure.

Master Detective Archives: Rain Code - A few hours in. Fairly by-the-numbers storytelling. I do appreciate the excessive use of neon around the world. Feels like a Danganronpa-flavored Blade Runner, which is cool.

@dmcc0 LOL that would be an interesting project. I know with the NES Advantage you couldn't use two of those on the NES because it took both controller ports which is one thing that I didn't like about the NES Advantage, having a younger sibling meant we couldn't play two player simultaneously games like TMNT II for example.

I have always wondered if you could use one of the NES adapters like the NES Four Score or Satellite to use 2 two controllers for each player on the NES Smash TV, I never tried it since I didn't own either of this adapters.

Now that you mention it I do believe that other button on the NES controller when you just used a single one mind you was a lock as well. But as I said very rarely did I play that version I mostly played the SNES one mainly due to the cheat codes. It always surprised me that they never did a true sequel to Smash TV.

@Tasuki

Yeah, but probably more likely to get a reboot or remake these days. To be honest, I'd be happy enough with a Switch port at this point - Arcade Archives or a full Midway Arcade Treasures port. Xeno Crisis is the only other Twin Stick shooter that I've come across that has the same vibe, although it's obviously thematically very different. I hate the phrase 'Spiritual Successor', but it probably applies in this case.

Layton's Mystery Journey: Katrielle and the Millionaires' Conspiracy (Switch) - 54 puzzles in with four cases solved. So far, this title is episodic compared to previous Layton games, all of which have an overarching plot. Not a bad thing for pick-up-and-play sessions. I quite enjoy the main characters and all the punny names in the game. The puzzles....Some of them are good, others are meh. The visuals still exude the charming world of Layton. Plenty of extras to do as well, including all the daily puzzles.

Kirby's Dream Land 3 (NSO) - I'm not far in at all, only partway through the second world. A fairly decent Kirby game so far, but I'm already seeing why it's divisive among Kirby fans...especially after Kirby Super Star. The game brings back and adds to the animal friends from Kirby's Dream Land 2 and combines them with Kirby's copy abilities. Even so, the power-ups are somewhat limited. I've found the heart star missions fun and occasionally unique. The pastel world has aged well for a SNES title. I just wish the game played at a slightly faster pace.

Right now, I'm playing sonic frontiers on PC. This isn't meant as a dig to the switch, but it is really nice to play a version of the game that at least runs better. I'm also planning on starting paper mario n64 soon via the EP, and I'm excited for that. Loved TTYD, so I'm hoping to enjoy this one too!

Playing Cavern of Dreams. The goal of this game was clearly to make a style of an early 3D game... and not the best of the early 3D games. So I have mixed feelings. On one hand, it's super cute. On the other hand, it's a janky confusing mess. On the third hand, it was obviously made to be a janky confusing mess on purpose so there is some polish in the lack of polish. Not 100% sure if I will beat the game or not, but it's certainly an experience.

Note that I never played much of that era of gaming so I am getting none of the nostalgia and all of the jank 😆

Recently, was in an old online game kind of mood, so last night I decided to boot up Wolfenstein Enemy Territory. I never played it during its heyday, but I did get it a few years back on GOG. Not bad for a game that's always been free. Also it scratched that old online game itch I had. Played it a few hours last night.

Also, kind of miss the days when online games weren't sweatfests of people taking the game seriously, and just hopped on a server to play something over the Internet. For me, it use to be Half-Life 2 Deathmatch and Counter-Strike.

I was initially trying to focus on completing Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts and Bolts for this month but I put the game to the back for now.

Recently I went back to playing Rare Replay on the Xbox and still have been having a good time with it! It has a ton of effort put in to make it charming, plus it has a nice presentation and a ton of fun and interesting extras alongside the 30 games it boasts. I did a few snapshot challenges and I was finally able to upgrade a stamp card I had been stuck with for a year. The collection is so good and makes me happy, but it makes me sad that a ton of the IPs in there are never going to make modern comebacks, especially Conker after hearing what the director said in a documentary video

Still relating to Rare, I am replaying portions of Conker: Live and Reloaded also on the Xbox. It is a pretty hated remake but I find it to be a good one, and I think it is only hated for being more censored. I don't think the censoring should prevent people from playing it (as it is the only reason people dismiss the remake and refuse to play it) though I agree that the censoring is silly and unneeded because of how excessive it is with redacting mild swears that are nowhere near bad as the f-word. I prefer it over the original for the improved controls and better camera, since the original is super clunky and is pretty frustrating to play despite how much I love it. However, and this is a bit minor, but I wish they didn't make the art style semi-realistic since I loved the colorful Disney-esque cartoon art style and visuals of the original and think it had way more charm than the new art style they went with, plus the facial animations on the characters are stiffer, which takes away some charm the original had. There are a few performance issues in the game, like occasional slow-downs, and for some reason, parts in cutscenes tend to blur, but it is very minor. I'll do a second full playthrough of it when the Pure Xbox game club gets onto this game at one point. I'm hoping next month, but I don't think it'll get picked.

Alongside that, I've still been playing Super Smash Bros. Ultimate on the Switch and did some spirit battles. I played Banjo & Kazooie's classic mode route again to beat my high score with them and possibly my brother's highest score with Sephiroth but I wasn't lucky despite how well I played, though the intensity got high at the end and I finished with a 9.8 intensity, so I fumbled the most when battling Master Hand and Crazy Hand. I have been wanting to play online sessions today, but my internet loves to constantly drop and increase in signal strength, which makes the matches awful to play and sometimes ends the match just as it starts, though I think beforehand I knew Smash had bad online play.

I also re-downloaded the SNES NSO app and tried out Battletoads in Battlemaniacs for a few minutes. I have played the original Battletoads (but never completed it unsurprisingly) and beat Battletoads Arcade on Rare Replay, so I did have a good time with Battlemaniacs and will continue it later, though I expect it to get harder later on.