If you are looking for an action-adventure game like Metroid with 2D graphics and a pinch SHMUP bullet patterns then Blaster Master Overdrive may be a good choice. It looks good and controls well. And it has enough content to to keep players entertained for at least a week.
But be warned. The difficulty in this game is higher than in Super Metroid or any other Metroids I've ever played. This is mainly because the bosses are like bosses from bullet hell shooters like Ikaruga, R-Type III or Radiant Silvergun.
If you're accustomed to the bosses in SHMUP games then you will love this. Shooter fanatics and hardcore gamers in search of a worthy challenge will be more than pleased with this.
But if you get easily frustrated by video games and have no desire to do the "bullet dance" and dodge entire screens filled with projectiles and to repeat the same dungeons and bosses again and again, you should probably never ever play it.
I personally somehow enjoyed it. It sometimes drove me crazy when I died at a boss and then had to repeat the last sections. But after I kept playing it long enough, the bosses became feasible and at the end I was glad not to give up too soon.
I have bought one of those black ones in may (for Euro 147). In the disc channel it still says "Gamecube" and "Wii". But when you insert a GCN disc, the Wii makes a terrible noise and spits it out.
So it's not only the lack of the controller-ports and Memory- card slots. They also changed the DVD drive which is no longer able to read those miniDVD-based discs.
The good thing about this new model is, it looks shiny and they have included the Wii Remote Plus (which is of course also black).
I haven't noticed the technical issues mentioned in this review. I think there are just a few people who have problems with controls, aiming and such. Usually, once you get used to the controls, it's no longer an issue.
It's a great mix of FPS and Action Adventure with fairly good graphics. It perfectly creates an atmosphere of threat, fear, evil and the supernatural. Sometimes even reminded me of Resident Evil.
And the idea of possessing objects and trying to scare people away (e.g. as a heating pipe) is just genius. The only other GCN game where I have seen this is Batman Begins. (But without the possessing.)
In terms of length the game took me about 7 days to complete. Nothing to moan about.
Score wise I agree with @kyuubikid213. The game is easily a 8/10 in my opinion. And I have payed the full price for it (57,98 Euro).
BTW: Another great game on the Gamecube that needs more attention is "Second Sight". It's also a mix of FPS and Action Adventure. With a strong story and innovative gameplay. And it's kinda scary too.
To look at these very small lo-res objects, strains the eyes. And sometimes the game-screen is only a quarter of the full screen making it even harder to look at. Oh, boy.
@wiiwii Yes. That very well may be. I've heard somewhere that 3DS games can be up to 8GB in size. That is huge. If they want to be able to offer many 3DS retail games as download then they definitely need better servers than the ones used for the current Wii-Shop.
I doubt that GCN games will be on the WiiU's VC. I mean, on the current Wii-Shop WiiWare downloads sometimes take very long (in worst case up to 30 minutes).
And WiiWare games can only be 40 Megabytes maximum (for good reason!?). This makes me assume that the Nintendo servers are already running on the edge of their capacity.
How will they handle Gamecube games that can be up to ~1500 Megabytes in size? With hundreds or even thousands of people downloading at the same time?
I don't believe that. Of course you can download your VC games and transfer them to a SD card or other media. But you can't download the manuals for WiiWare games! (The only way would be to take screenshots.) If Nintendo is no longer providing them, then they are gone forever.
The day they turn off the Wii-Shop Server I'll never buy a Nintendo product anymore because I would have the awkward feeling they fooled me all those years. I mean, I have WiiWare games worth more than 320 Euros. And if suddenly all the instruction manuals disappear then I'm really angry.
@Damo Yes. I agree that there will be a Wii U Shop. Without a doubt. But this is no reason to incinerate the old one.
Actually, they even can not stop the Wii Shop Service. For there will always be people who own a Wii and would like to download their dearly bought Virtual Console and WiiWare games again and again and again. And the WiiWare game's operating instructions also must be provided in the future.
And if they need to carry on with the old Wii-Shop store anyway, I'm assuming that Nintendo is clever enough to somehow make (as much as possible!) profit out of it.
With WiiWare entering the final stages of its life...
I can't hear this anymore. Why do you think that Nintendo abandons the Wii after releasing the WiiU? It's certainly no coincidence that both consoles are called Wii. And I'm sure they've learned something from Sony.
I wouldn't compare this to Ghosts'n Goblins either. Both games are ridiculous in terms of difficulty but they're very different. Ghosts'n Goblins has no ilogical trial and error based puzzle solving, no teleporters that warp you all over the place, and no cryptic hints that require a walkthrough to understand. It's absolutely straightforward. All you need is some skill and patience.
Oh, come on. I thought at the end of chapter 4 someone staked him in the heart and killed him forever. And what's the point anyway? Freddy is not an english teaching vampire but a serial killer who uses a glove armed with razors to kill his victims in their dreams. These guys at Tivola really have no idea.
@Gull I absolutely understand what you mean. I was sucked into the hype before the WiiWare version existed (2 years ago). And I, too, really wanted to like the game. I even played completely through Konami's MSX game "Maze of Galious" before (which is La-Mulana based on) to fully get into the mood.
Then I've played La-Mulana (original PC version) for 24 days and beaten it 99.9%. And, inevitably, I was also annoyed like heck by the awkward design choices, drudging puzzles and unfair bosses you described in your post. At the end I really felt like a donkey's a$$ that I got into this. But I guess this is what anybody deserves for blindly following the hype created by magazines, TV and websites.
This is the fourth WiiWare title that NintendoLife gave a 10/10. The other three are:
BIT.TRIP Runner
World of Goo
Moto Heroz
But review scores are only a matter of the reviewer's opinion, I, wouldn't read too much into this anymore. I've been disappointed too often by titles that have received high review scores. For example, I don't like La-Mulana and Moto Heroz. And BIT.TRIP Runner is mediocre in my book.
Not interested in La-Mulana but I hope it sells well for more WiiWare games to be released. I don't want this to be the last great download title for Nintendo's ageing console.
If the Wii U is 100% compatible to WiiWare and Virtual Console titles then Nintendo also can keep releasing games for the Wii. That's good because people who are still proud of their Wii and don't plan to buy the Wii U are not left out in the rain.
@noxusprime06: Yes. The system will be backward compatible with Wii, and Wii U games can support Wii peripherals, such as the Wii Remote Plus and the Nunchuk. It will not be backward compatible with GameCube discs or peripherals, although games can be purchased and downloaded from the Virtual Console service.
I had problems finding out which speed setting is displayed in the top left corner of the screen. After some "translation" I have found out that the meaning of the 3 japanese letters is as follows:
お そ い Slow
ふ つ う Medium
は や い Fast
Everytime you press Select-Button the speed changes in this order:
1. Medium (default)
2. Fast
3. Medium
4. Slow
and back to 1.
@bro2dragons: It's more like Metroidvania. You are given an area to explore open-endedly, with paths that can open up as various power-ups and other items are obtained.
@DarkEdi: The name "La-Mulana" is derived from reversing the Japanese (effectively reversing the syllables) of the name of one of the developers, Naramura.
It's not like Rick Dangerous. In RD it's all about small one-screen logic puzzles, memorization and skill.
But in La-Mulana almost every single of the myriads of rooms offers a clue to solve a puzzle somewhere. Sometimes in the same room, sometimes in the next and sometimes far away. And you have no idea which of the vague clues is for which room. Assuming you can even understand the clue.
To compare it to another game, I would say the nearest equivalant is "Castlevania II: Simon's Quest" because if you haven't read the strategy guide, you will be absolutely clueless on what to do.
Looks like it's intended for Cosplay purposes and not for Halloween. Anyway, I would suggest that the Nintendo Life team squeezes into these boxes and makes a group photo.
The game has 8 stages. Every stage (except for the last one) consists of an outer stage, inner stage, mini boss and a boss. You can save your progress after each stage to the virtual "Memory Card" and there are unlimited continues. This makes the first 7 stages pretty easy if you are accustomed to games like Castlevania or Ghosts'n Goblins.
Advantageously, when you reach the boss of a stage and lose your lives, you start again at the boss even after continuing. This means if you manage to reach the boss of a stage you've as good as won.
But be warned though: The 8th level is hard as nails and the save/continue feature doesn't help here: You have to defeat all 7 mini bosses and(!) the final boss of the game in a row without continuing. If you lose your 2 lifes you have to start at the beginning of the stage. This is extremely challenging, not to say nearly impossible.
The versions of Magician Lord on the SNK classics collection are much easier. Even after continuing you restart where you died. This makes the game easy like a walk in the park. The Virtual Console version is much more unforgiving.
By the way: After some research I've found out that the original arcade machine has difficulty settings from 1 to 8 where 1 is easiest and 8 is hardest. I think the VC version is set to 2 or 3 and you can't change that. Sounds easy? Well, not really. At least not in the last level when you desperately try to beat the final boss and you are always sent back to the beginning of the stage.
Also worth mentioning: There is a minor issue with the emulation. On the hiscore entry screen the game runs too slow and the music sounds akward. But since you never spend more than 10 seconds on this screen, this shouldn't be too much of a problem. Also when I first fought the final boss the game hung up itself. But that may be a coincidence.
My conclusion: Magician Lord is a great game in the spirit of classics like Shadow of the Beast, Altered Beast, Castlevania or Ghosts'n Goblins. It has great graphics and music (one track even sounds a little like "Intergalactic" from Beastie Boys). But if you really try to beat the final boss you will find it a very hard nut to crack.
One can only hope that the WiiWare is completely different than the original free PC version. Otherwise I feel sorry for those who expect a great game. It seems that some people think this is like Cave Story (for some incomprehensive reason). But it's not. Not even close.
I'm a little curious how they'd adapted it for WiiWare but I don't expect too much. The original PC game is renowned for it's notorious difficulty.
This is true specially towards the end of the game: The final Boss fight consists of 5 phases and is (for many people) almost impossible to beat. And when you die you have to reload and start at a point so far away that you need about 20 minutes to get to the boss again wandering through 2 big areas full of hazards. To say it's annoying is an understatement.
If they do not have reduced the difficulty a lot, I'm sure that most of today's gamers are not able to beat the game let alone get any enjoyment out of it.
We definitely need more NeoGeo games that are not in the fighting or sports genre. There are already 23 NeoGeo fighting and sports titles available and only 11 others. I really hope this Metal Slug comes to Europe, too.
Programming on old systems is so cool. I'm working on the Commodore 64 version of Super Mario Galaxy. But I'm not quite satisfied yet. I think I need to connect a few more Gamecubes to the expansion port.
He holds a computer science and mathematics degree from Harvard University and is graduate of Mt. Sinai School of Medicine. And does he cured aids, brought world piece, and solved the world hunger? No. He plays Donkey Kong like crazy.
Finally bought the full version. Bad things first: When I first played through the game it crashed 5 times(!) and only turning off the console helped. I've rarely seen a game crash that often. But that may be coincidence and I think the game is not therefore bad. (Note: The US-version was updated and has a few improvements but the European version not! [As at September 29th 2012.])
Contrary to what some reviewers say, the controls are not broken. It did not take long for me to get used to them and have fun with it. It's not overly complicated, you only use a two button control scheme for jumping and attacking (plus another button for rage mode). And there are a few easy to memorize combos that can be performed. Classic Controller is supported.
You will die a lot in this game during combat but due to how great it is to explore the stunning areas, it never becomes frustrating. There are no confusing mazes where you can get lost for hours and the very few puzzles are easy to figure out. Even finding the eighteen monoliths that tell you the story of Ark, the place where the game takes place, is not hard. (There is only one monolith that is tricky because you need a special move to get over to it.)
Another reason why this game is not frustrating is, whenever you lose one of your unlimited lifes, you start again at a checkpoint nearby. You never repeat long difficult paths and there are more than enough save points where you can save your game to one of the six slots. There are also breakable statues scattered all around the game to replenish your health. And most enemies leave energy orbs behind after defeating them. You can never get in distress for long. I often thought that it's almost too easy at times.
The final boss section isn't too challenging either. Though the game throws merciless waves of enemies at you, this isn't too much of problem. If you die, you don't have to repeat the whole section but only the last wave you reached. If you reach the final boss and die, you can try the boss as long as you wish without having to deal with the mob ever again. Nevertheless, I must admit that the last boss is not exactly easy (it took me a dozen attempts). But with enough tries you can and will finally bring him down.
It's a beautiful looking game, which is reminiscent of Castlevania, with amazing artwork, exploration, small puzzles, an interesting story and cutscenes and a lot to love about it. In the graphics department it can easily compete with the great names in WiiWare history like Chronos Twins DX, Lost Winds, NyxQuest, Dive: The Medes Islands Secret & Co. It may even surpass some of them.
The music is also nice. Although played in short loops, it fits perfectly to the mood of the game. Think of the Latin choirs in Goth metal bands like Tristania or Sirenia and you have an idea.
If I had bought this as retail title for the Gamecube, I would not regret the purchase. It's astounding what some developers can squeeze into 304 Blocks. Ark of Sinners is something that I would rather expect on a CD than as a downloadable title. Despite the doomsayers, for me one of the best WiiWare titles I've ever downloaded and I'm glad that I was not deterred by some reviews.
Comments 958
Re: Review: Blaster Master: Overdrive (WiiWare)
If you are looking for an action-adventure game like Metroid with 2D graphics and a pinch SHMUP bullet patterns then Blaster Master Overdrive may be a good choice. It looks good and controls well. And it has enough content to to keep players entertained for at least a week.
But be warned. The difficulty in this game is higher than in Super Metroid or any other Metroids I've ever played. This is mainly because the bosses are like bosses from bullet hell shooters like Ikaruga, R-Type III or Radiant Silvergun.
If you're accustomed to the bosses in SHMUP games then you will love this. Shooter fanatics and hardcore gamers in search of a worthy challenge will be more than pleased with this.
But if you get easily frustrated by video games and have no desire to do the "bullet dance" and dodge entire screens filled with projectiles and to repeat the same dungeons and bosses again and again, you should probably never ever play it.
I personally somehow enjoyed it. It sometimes drove me crazy when I died at a boss and then had to repeat the last sections. But after I kept playing it long enough, the bosses became feasible and at the end I was glad not to give up too soon.
Re: Ghosts 'n' Goblins Coming To 3DS eShop Next Week
Why is this in the "Wii VC" section of NintendoLife?
Re: Nintendo Download: 18th October 2012 (Europe)
Too funny. Ha ha. Sarcasm.
But seriously, what the Virtual Console really needs is some of the other NeoGeo games.
Re: Nintendo Drops Price Of Wii Ahead Of Holiday Season
I have bought one of those black ones in may (for Euro 147). In the disc channel it still says "Gamecube" and "Wii". But when you insert a GCN disc, the Wii makes a terrible noise and spits it out.
So it's not only the lack of the controller-ports and Memory- card slots. They also changed the DVD drive which is no longer able to read those miniDVD-based discs.
The good thing about this new model is, it looks shiny and they have included the Wii Remote Plus (which is of course also black).
Re: Review: Geist (GameCube)
It's exactly 7 years ago when I played this game.
I haven't noticed the technical issues mentioned in this review. I think there are just a few people who have problems with controls, aiming and such. Usually, once you get used to the controls, it's no longer an issue.
It's a great mix of FPS and Action Adventure with fairly good graphics. It perfectly creates an atmosphere of threat, fear, evil and the supernatural. Sometimes even reminded me of Resident Evil.
And the idea of possessing objects and trying to scare people away (e.g. as a heating pipe) is just genius. The only other GCN game where I have seen this is Batman Begins. (But without the possessing.)
In terms of length the game took me about 7 days to complete. Nothing to moan about.
Score wise I agree with @kyuubikid213. The game is easily a 8/10 in my opinion. And I have payed the full price for it (57,98 Euro).
BTW: Another great game on the Gamecube that needs more attention is "Second Sight". It's also a mix of FPS and Action Adventure. With a strong story and innovative gameplay. And it's kinda scary too.
Re: Young Boy Thinks Gameboy Micro Is The Latest Nintendo Handheld
This story is brilliant, so full of twists and turns and unexpected drama. Its amazing.
Re: Retro City Rampage Trailer is Full of Old-School Cool
According to this article you'll be able to play your WiiWare on WiiU.
Re: Retro City Rampage Trailer is Full of Old-School Cool
To look at these very small lo-res objects, strains the eyes. And sometimes the game-screen is only a quarter of the full screen making it even harder to look at. Oh, boy.
Re: Rumour: GameCube Coming to Wii U Virtual Console
ljinkakidd wrote:
No, I don't have a 3DS. All I see is that 40MB downloads on the Wii sometimes take pretty long.
Re: Review: Drop Zone: Under Fire (WiiWare)
When I first heard of this I thought it has something to do with the game Dropzone from 1984. But anyway, no EU release = no good.
Re: Rumour: GameCube Coming to Wii U Virtual Console
@wiiwii Yes. That very well may be. I've heard somewhere that 3DS games can be up to 8GB in size. That is huge. If they want to be able to offer many 3DS retail games as download then they definitely need better servers than the ones used for the current Wii-Shop.
Re: Rumour: GameCube Coming to Wii U Virtual Console
How much memory do they need?
Re: Rumour: GameCube Coming to Wii U Virtual Console
I doubt that GCN games will be on the WiiU's VC. I mean, on the current Wii-Shop WiiWare downloads sometimes take very long (in worst case up to 30 minutes).
And WiiWare games can only be 40 Megabytes maximum (for good reason!?). This makes me assume that the Nintendo servers are already running on the edge of their capacity.
How will they handle Gamecube games that can be up to ~1500 Megabytes in size? With hundreds or even thousands of people downloading at the same time?
Re: Retro City Rampaging To WiiWare Later This Year
I don't believe that. Of course you can download your VC games and transfer them to a SD card or other media. But you can't download the manuals for WiiWare games! (The only way would be to take screenshots.) If Nintendo is no longer providing them, then they are gone forever.
The day they turn off the Wii-Shop Server I'll never buy a Nintendo product anymore because I would have the awkward feeling they fooled me all those years. I mean, I have WiiWare games worth more than 320 Euros. And if suddenly all the instruction manuals disappear then I'm really angry.
Re: Retro City Rampaging To WiiWare Later This Year
@Damo Yes. I agree that there will be a Wii U Shop. Without a doubt. But this is no reason to incinerate the old one.
Actually, they even can not stop the Wii Shop Service. For there will always be people who own a Wii and would like to download their dearly bought Virtual Console and WiiWare games again and again and again. And the WiiWare game's operating instructions also must be provided in the future.
And if they need to carry on with the old Wii-Shop store anyway, I'm assuming that Nintendo is clever enough to somehow make (as much as possible!) profit out of it.
Re: Your Wall Is Crying Out For This Amazing Mega Drive Poster
^ How can you say that? The article doesn't seem to sound like a paid advertisement. It's like beautiful essay, so sincere.
Re: Retro City Rampaging To WiiWare Later This Year
I can't hear this anymore. Why do you think that Nintendo abandons the Wii after releasing the WiiU? It's certainly no coincidence that both consoles are called Wii. And I'm sure they've learned something from Sony.
Re: Nintendo Download: 4th October 2012 (North America)
I see in the crystal ball a new WiiWare game. And the words "To Be Announced (UK/EU)". Mysterious.
Re: You Fools, Blowing on NES Cartridges Is Not The Answer
Blowing on cartridges is really inane and much too time consuming. I put them into the dish washer once a month.
Re: La-Mulana Stands Atop Download Charts Worldwide
The hype never stops.
Re: Review: La-Mulana (WiiWare)
I wouldn't compare this to Ghosts'n Goblins either. Both games are ridiculous in terms of difficulty but they're very different. Ghosts'n Goblins has no ilogical trial and error based puzzle solving, no teleporters that warp you all over the place, and no cryptic hints that require a walkthrough to understand. It's absolutely straightforward. All you need is some skill and patience.
Re: Nintendo Download: 27th September 2012 (Europe)
Oh, come on. I thought at the end of chapter 4 someone staked him in the heart and killed him forever. And what's the point anyway? Freddy is not an english teaching vampire but a serial killer who uses a glove armed with razors to kill his victims in their dreams. These guys at Tivola really have no idea.
Re: Review: La-Mulana (WiiWare)
@Gull I absolutely understand what you mean. I was sucked into the hype before the WiiWare version existed (2 years ago). And I, too, really wanted to like the game. I even played completely through Konami's MSX game "Maze of Galious" before (which is La-Mulana based on) to fully get into the mood.
Then I've played La-Mulana (original PC version) for 24 days and beaten it 99.9%. And, inevitably, I was also annoyed like heck by the awkward design choices, drudging puzzles and unfair bosses you described in your post. At the end I really felt like a donkey's a$$ that I got into this. But I guess this is what anybody deserves for blindly following the hype created by magazines, TV and websites.
Re: Review: La-Mulana (WiiWare)
This is the fourth WiiWare title that NintendoLife gave a 10/10. The other three are:
But review scores are only a matter of the reviewer's opinion, I, wouldn't read too much into this anymore. I've been disappointed too often by titles that have received high review scores. For example, I don't like La-Mulana and Moto Heroz. And BIT.TRIP Runner is mediocre in my book.
Re: Reggie Fils-Aime Would Love to See GameCube Games on Wii U Virtual Console
I have all essential GCN games on disc. But for newcomers I would suggest the following titles (amongst others, in no particular order):
Second Sight is also a very good title. And XIII. And Chibi Robo. And many, many others...
Re: Feature: WiiWare Games That Bit the Dust
There are > 280 WiiWare titles, many of them pretty good. Why complain about those few? And maybe we still see some new ones in the future.
Re: Nintendo Download: 20th September 2012 (North America)
^ This is exactly what I was thinking. Not always good to follow the hype lol.
Re: Nintendo Download: 20th September 2012 (Europe)
Not interested in La-Mulana but I hope it sells well for more WiiWare games to be released. I don't want this to be the last great download title for Nintendo's ageing console.
Re: You'll Be Able To Play Your WiiWare and Virtual Console Games On Wii U
If the Wii U is 100% compatible to WiiWare and Virtual Console titles then Nintendo also can keep releasing games for the Wii. That's good because people who are still proud of their Wii and don't plan to buy the Wii U are not left out in the rain.
@noxusprime06: Yes. The system will be backward compatible with Wii, and Wii U games can support Wii peripherals, such as the Wii Remote Plus and the Nunchuk. It will not be backward compatible with GameCube discs or peripherals, although games can be purchased and downloaded from the Virtual Console service.
Re: Review: Star Parodier (Wii Virtual Console / TurboGrafx-16)
I had problems finding out which speed setting is displayed in the top left corner of the screen. After some "translation" I have found out that the meaning of the 3 japanese letters is as follows:
お そ い Slow
ふ つ う Medium
は や い Fast
Everytime you press Select-Button the speed changes in this order:
1. Medium (default)
2. Fast
3. Medium
4. Slow
and back to 1.
Re: Nintendo Download: 13th September 2012 (Europe)
Metal Slug X interests me the most. But I don't think I buy it soon because I just bought a ton of WiiWare and VC games.
Re: New La-Mulana Trailer Compares Old With New
@Dr_Salvador: First released on May 27, 2005.
@bro2dragons: It's more like Metroidvania. You are given an area to explore open-endedly, with paths that can open up as various power-ups and other items are obtained.
@DarkEdi: The name "La-Mulana" is derived from reversing the Japanese (effectively reversing the syllables) of the name of one of the developers, Naramura.
Re: LCD Gaming is Resurrected in Retro Pocket on DSiWare
I'm glad that I don't have to play these anymore. But it's interesting that people are always pleased with the display of outdated technology.
Re: Feast Your Eyes on This New La-Mulana Trailer
It's not like Rick Dangerous. In RD it's all about small one-screen logic puzzles, memorization and skill.
But in La-Mulana almost every single of the myriads of rooms offers a clue to solve a puzzle somewhere. Sometimes in the same room, sometimes in the next and sometimes far away. And you have no idea which of the vague clues is for which room. Assuming you can even understand the clue.
To compare it to another game, I would say the nearest equivalant is "Castlevania II: Simon's Quest" because if you haven't read the strategy guide, you will be absolutely clueless on what to do.
Re: Want to Know The Real Reason Star Fox Was Renamed in Europe?
Never heard of a company called StarVox.
Re: Review: Successfully Learning English: Year 4 (WiiWare)
Well in this case all you need to do is:
Re: Tetris Halloween Outfits Are a Puzzling Sight
Looks like it's intended for Cosplay purposes and not for Halloween. Anyway, I would suggest that the Nintendo Life team squeezes into these boxes and makes a group photo.
Re: Nintendo Download: 6th September 2012 (Europe)
^ Not everyone is a fan of fighting games.
Re: Nintendo Download: 6th September 2012 (Europe)
It's quite good that they are still releasing WiiWare and Virtual Console games for the Wii.
Re: NES Signed by Stars of The Wizard Up For Sale
Someone has smeared something on on old toy and sells it for a fortune. You have to be pretty stoned to fall for that.
Re: Review: Magician Lord (Virtual Console / Neo Geo)
The game has 8 stages. Every stage (except for the last one) consists of an outer stage, inner stage, mini boss and a boss. You can save your progress after each stage to the virtual "Memory Card" and there are unlimited continues. This makes the first 7 stages pretty easy if you are accustomed to games like Castlevania or Ghosts'n Goblins.
Advantageously, when you reach the boss of a stage and lose your lives, you start again at the boss even after continuing. This means if you manage to reach the boss of a stage you've as good as won.
But be warned though: The 8th level is hard as nails and the save/continue feature doesn't help here: You have to defeat all 7 mini bosses and(!) the final boss of the game in a row without continuing. If you lose your 2 lifes you have to start at the beginning of the stage. This is extremely challenging, not to say nearly impossible.
The versions of Magician Lord on the SNK classics collection are much easier. Even after continuing you restart where you died. This makes the game easy like a walk in the park. The Virtual Console version is much more unforgiving.
By the way: After some research I've found out that the original arcade machine has difficulty settings from 1 to 8 where 1 is easiest and 8 is hardest. I think the VC version is set to 2 or 3 and you can't change that. Sounds easy? Well, not really. At least not in the last level when you desperately try to beat the final boss and you are always sent back to the beginning of the stage.
Also worth mentioning: There is a minor issue with the emulation. On the hiscore entry screen the game runs too slow and the music sounds akward. But since you never spend more than 10 seconds on this screen, this shouldn't be too much of a problem. Also when I first fought the final boss the game hung up itself. But that may be a coincidence.
My conclusion: Magician Lord is a great game in the spirit of classics like Shadow of the Beast, Altered Beast, Castlevania or Ghosts'n Goblins. It has great graphics and music (one track even sounds a little like "Intergalactic" from Beastie Boys). But if you really try to beat the final boss you will find it a very hard nut to crack.
Re: La Mulana European Release Also Confirmed for 20th September
One can only hope that the WiiWare is completely different than the original free PC version. Otherwise I feel sorry for those who expect a great game. It seems that some people think this is like Cave Story (for some incomprehensive reason). But it's not. Not even close.
Re: La Mulana Adventures Onto North American WiiWare on 20th September
I'm a little curious how they'd adapted it for WiiWare but I don't expect too much. The original PC game is renowned for it's notorious difficulty.
This is true specially towards the end of the game: The final Boss fight consists of 5 phases and is (for many people) almost impossible to beat. And when you die you have to reload and start at a point so far away that you need about 20 minutes to get to the boss again wandering through 2 big areas full of hazards. To say it's annoying is an understatement.
If they do not have reduced the difficulty a lot, I'm sure that most of today's gamers are not able to beat the game let alone get any enjoyment out of it.
Re: Review: Metal Slug X (Wii Virtual Console / Neo Geo)
We definitely need more NeoGeo games that are not in the fighting or sports genre. There are already 23 NeoGeo fighting and sports titles available and only 11 others. I really hope this Metal Slug comes to Europe, too.
Re: Nintendo Download: 30th August 2012 (Europe)
I think we need some garlic to get rid of Freddy the vampire.
Re: Review: Successfully Learning English: Year 3 (WiiWare)
Why would a vampire want to teach a human child english? I think he has an ulterior motive.
Re: Feature: Classic Gaming Typos, Errors and Translations
In germany it's even worse. There are many games where the german localization is a total joke. And I don't mean games from the past.
Re: Intrepid Programmer Brings Super Mario Bros. to Atari 2600
Programming on old systems is so cool. I'm working on the Commodore 64 version of Super Mario Galaxy. But I'm not quite satisfied yet. I think I need to connect a few more Gamecubes to the expansion port.
Re: Dr Hank Chien Breaks His Own Donkey Kong World Record
He holds a computer science and mathematics degree from Harvard University and is graduate of Mt. Sinai School of Medicine. And does he cured aids, brought world piece, and solved the world hunger? No. He plays Donkey Kong like crazy.
Re: Review: ANIMA: Ark of Sinners (WiiWare)
Finally bought the full version. Bad things first: When I first played through the game it crashed 5 times(!) and only turning off the console helped. I've rarely seen a game crash that often. But that may be coincidence and I think the game is not therefore bad. (Note: The US-version was updated and has a few improvements but the European version not! [As at September 29th 2012.])
Contrary to what some reviewers say, the controls are not broken. It did not take long for me to get used to them and have fun with it. It's not overly complicated, you only use a two button control scheme for jumping and attacking (plus another button for rage mode). And there are a few easy to memorize combos that can be performed. Classic Controller is supported.
You will die a lot in this game during combat but due to how great it is to explore the stunning areas, it never becomes frustrating. There are no confusing mazes where you can get lost for hours and the very few puzzles are easy to figure out. Even finding the eighteen monoliths that tell you the story of Ark, the place where the game takes place, is not hard. (There is only one monolith that is tricky because you need a special move to get over to it.)
Another reason why this game is not frustrating is, whenever you lose one of your unlimited lifes, you start again at a checkpoint nearby. You never repeat long difficult paths and there are more than enough save points where you can save your game to one of the six slots. There are also breakable statues scattered all around the game to replenish your health. And most enemies leave energy orbs behind after defeating them. You can never get in distress for long. I often thought that it's almost too easy at times.
The final boss section isn't too challenging either. Though the game throws merciless waves of enemies at you, this isn't too much of problem. If you die, you don't have to repeat the whole section but only the last wave you reached. If you reach the final boss and die, you can try the boss as long as you wish without having to deal with the mob ever again. Nevertheless, I must admit that the last boss is not exactly easy (it took me a dozen attempts). But with enough tries you can and will finally bring him down.
It's a beautiful looking game, which is reminiscent of Castlevania, with amazing artwork, exploration, small puzzles, an interesting story and cutscenes and a lot to love about it. In the graphics department it can easily compete with the great names in WiiWare history like Chronos Twins DX, Lost Winds, NyxQuest, Dive: The Medes Islands Secret & Co. It may even surpass some of them.
The music is also nice. Although played in short loops, it fits perfectly to the mood of the game. Think of the Latin choirs in Goth metal bands like Tristania or Sirenia and you have an idea.
If I had bought this as retail title for the Gamecube, I would not regret the purchase. It's astounding what some developers can squeeze into 304 Blocks. Ark of Sinners is something that I would rather expect on a CD than as a downloadable title. Despite the doomsayers, for me one of the best WiiWare titles I've ever downloaded and I'm glad that I was not deterred by some reviews.