artofmana

artofmana

Heyo, everyone and welcome!

Comments 262

Re: E3 2014: No DLC In The Works For Content-Rich Bayonetta 2

artofmana

I'm sure it will be awesome for fans to enjoy both on the same console but as someone who didn't have a means to play the original as I stuck with Nintendo during the last generation, I represent the group that I think most benefits from this: new entrants to the Bayonetta series. I'm sold! I couldn't be more pleased with how this collaboration is turning out. I have a feeling Bayonetta 2 is going to be lauded. Maybe it will bring a few people over to the Wii U, as well!

Re: Chasing Aurora Dev Is Considering Bringing Semi-Sequel Secrets of Raetikon To Wii U

artofmana

Please! Please! I really want it on Wii U. I've been so tempted to get it on Steam but have not because my gaming experiences are so much better on our Wii I keep holding out hope. I'd probably end up getting both at some point but I'd prefer to play it first on the Wii U. I can guarantee this game would have at least my sale. By the way, Chasing Aurora is a fantastic game and worth getting if you don't have it yet.

Re: Here's a Rather Attractive Portable Nintendo 64

artofmana

Wow! Seriously, this deserves the recognition it is getting as the build quality and design is excellent. It pays homage to the source console and controller. It has one of the most elegant cartridge slots thanks to that rounded top. Love it! He does it again!

Re: Nintendo Open To Applying Zelda: Link Between Worlds Approach To Other Franchises

artofmana

I'll add my support for Other M here. I think it was an excellent game in all areas other than voice acting and story. The gameplay was solid and the story was actually compelling but suffered because of melodramatic and at times unbelievable voice acting as well as inconsistencies with the inferred character development of past games. I would not dismiss the game as a whole based on those things alone. Also, I love the control scheme!

Re: Two Tribes Development Studio Shuts Down and New, Smaller Company is Formed

artofmana

That is very sad news. I recently shared my praise for Toki Tori 2+ and Two Tribes via email and received a personal email thanking me back. It was a fantastic show of the kind of passion and groundedness Martijn and the team have and I'll be forever impressed. This is very sad and I wish them luck. I also urge people to pick up Toki Tori 2+ for Wii U.

Re: Site News: How was 2013 for Nintendo Life?

artofmana

Sometimes I forget that you're not officially connected with Nintendo. Yours is always the site I turn to for Nintendo news and reviews. Even if you aren't the first with breaking news (which sometimes happens due to time disparity between you and me on the west coast of the USA), I wait to read your take on things first. Thanks for the great work! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Re: Gunman Clive Sells Quarter Of A Million Copies Across All Formats, "Vast Majority" On 3DS

artofmana

I called this game superb and nostalgia inducing on iOS. I just got my 3DS in November and will pick this game up for it in the next few days with some eShop cards. In the meantime, this is what I wrote for the iOS version and I'm sure the 3DS version deserves even more praises thanks to the 3D effect and controls. Maybe there is extra content, too!

Gunman Clive is a truly polished game with a subtlety and peculiar humor and atmosphere entirely it's own. At first, I thought Sunset Riders with a sketch effect coat. But that doesn't do this game justice. In fact, it seems to pay homage to Mega Man and Metroid with its pacing and some of the angles you have to fire at enemies with. But platforming and "rescuing the princess" is all Mario and there are even terrific gravity platforming a la side scrolling Mario Galaxy levels. Some of the bosses made me think of Sonic the Hedgehog machines and one of the final bosses made me think of The Adventure of Link (the 2D side scroller) with even the music seeming to pay homage to that game.

But with all these excellent allusions to great games, Gunman Clie stands out as its own game. Perfectly balanced with a steady increase in difficulty, attention to detail and the ability to jump in without any explanation. With so many games demanding complicated explanations of their gameplay at the front, it's refreshing to have a game where the game design makes it immediately obvious what and how you are supposed to play.

You probably already guessed that I like this game and while it is a short romp, you will love it--especially if you are a retro gamer. The art and music complete what is a solid game with a quirky sense of humor. Though it is short, I don't think anything needs to be added to it. It is perfect as is and even sports some of the finest touch controls for a game of its kind to date (I played on an iPad).

What I will be looking forward to and willing to shell out a higher than average iOS game amount of cash for is a sequel. Until then, I think I will keeps this on my device for a replay soon.

Thanks for a great game and a great time. Peace!

Re: UK Champion Sami Cetin Breaks World Record Barrier On First Ever Mario Kart Track

artofmana

I want to thank you for sharing this video. It certainly inspires me to try some new techniques in this game. I've loved it since it came out. Two questions: 1. When and how did you first learn about the starting line boost for this game (it seemed similarly obscured in the initial game)? 2. Do you play with a standard SNES controller or is there another controller you prefer to do these precise runs? Congratulations!

Re: Nintendo of America Keen to Boost StreetPass Participation and Explore New Ideas

artofmana

I'm out and about right now collecting. I think the weekend has so far yielded more hits than ever on my 3DS. Full disclosure: I've only had my system since A Link Between Worlds came out. I have really enjoyed all the games and the experience. It is so simple but works so well. I picked up the four extra games and find them a lot more fun than I thought they could be. They are really killer apps!

Re: Iwata: We Never Fear Failure And Always Seek To Challenge The Status Quo

artofmana

I really respect the way Nintendo does its own thing. They don't respond quickly to trends. Some see that as a negative thing and maybe, at times, it can be. Still, it is nice to know that Nintendo is working hard to create unique experiences without kowtowing to the whims of the marketplace. Often that means Nintendo comes up with an experience so compelling we wonder how he lived without it and why nobody thought of it sooner!

Re: Eiji Aonuma Wants the Wii U Zelda's Hyrule to be "A Setting No One Has Ever Imagined Before"

artofmana

@Goginho I like your ideas. I agree, I would be excited if the game that comes next makes us feel emotionally attached and completely immersed in this fantastic world. I remember feeling that way at points in past games and completely in some (like Ocarina of Time). I think the only thing I would add to your comments is that there needs to be a feeling of distance and closeness. Times where we actually feel claustrophobic and times where we feel completely alone. Perhaps when a dungeon or overworld feels too linear it takes away from the potential for both of those feelings. When I was younger, I remember the artwork in the A Link to the Past Player's Guide fueling my imagination. It was dynamic with intense amounts of mood lighting and complex creatures and settings. That was an artistic interpretation of the game world. Now it just may be possible to create in game with the technology out there. That would excite me a lot. Nevertheless, I'm sure I will be enamored with the new game. I trust Nintendo.

Re: Soapbox: Nintendo Could Have Ruled The Micro-Console Market With Wii

artofmana

I think you make a compelling argument. In fact, even though we own a Wii and a Wii U, I would buy an additional micro console version of the Wii.

Right now the Wii U and the Wii are both hooked up in our living room. The plan is to move the Wii to the den with our older systems. However, once there, it will be far harder to unhook and bring somewhere. A micro console would be a great way to bring a fantastic gaming experience to friends' houses and to events.

Also, I would keep it in the living room when not traveling so that the Wii could use the main TV when the Wii U is using off-screen mode. If there was the HD upscaling mentioned in the article, it would also mean Netflix and Hulu Plus in HD could occupy the TV while New Super Luigi U occupies the GamePad. This would be a fantastic setup for us as we rely on our Nintendo products to stream video content to our TV. We do not have cable nor any channels over the air.

Re: Out Today: The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker HD (North America)

artofmana

I will pick up my preordered Wii U bundle this evening. I really wanted a white system but the Zelda style and the value was hard to pass up. I do prefer physical copies of games, and as a veteran gamer I have a lot of cartridges and discs, but as I already have the Hyrule Historia and Wind Waker on GameCube in physical format, I don't mind not having these that way. I do have the physical New Luigi U already, though. And my wife and I plan on picking up the physical copy of Duck Tales!

Re: DuckTales: Remastered Coming to Retail on Wii U in North America

artofmana

Oh wow! I'm so excited! This is my most wanted game on the Wii U right now. My wife and I preordered the Wind Waker Wii U bundle and we already bought the boxed New Super Luigi U so we can tide ourselves over until November 12. It was planned to be a digital immediate purchase but I prefer this option. Call me old school.

Re: Review: J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings - Volume I (Super Nintendo)

artofmana

Rented this when it first came out. Purchased it used later on. As a huge Tolkien fan, I appreciated the music and opening atmosphere. All of the limitations you pointed out perfectly accurate. Still, I remember putting a mic up to my TV just to record some of the music and I have great memories of playing the Middle-earth CCG with it in the background. Thanks for the review. It's excellent!

Re: Shigeru Miyamoto Wishes Nintendo Had "Done More" With Zelda II

artofmana

I didn't get the original Zelda until the sequel was out. At that point I got both of them together. Between the two, I gravitated towards the sequel. I really like the art direction and the side scrolling fighting. I never did beat it, though. That is, until last year when I went back and played it on my NES. I finally got through it and realized I must have become a better gamer somewhere along the line.

Re: Molyneux: Nintendo Is "Brilliant" At Attracting Players, But Their Hardware "Gets In The Way"

artofmana

I think the problem with the idea that Nintendo should make their own phone is that Nintendo isn't a phone company. They are a video game company. The best they could do would be to make a good handheld system with phone capability. Truthfully, that isn't likely to shake up the marketplace. It's possible it could sell a little bit to a small crowd. Perhaps a younger crowd. It's very unlikely anything they could do would disrupt Apple's momentum unless the company shifted its focus to consumer electronics.

As for putting games on other platforms, I'm no game designer but I imagine it would require a lot of extra effort to learn the ins and outs of additional hardware. Perhaps Mario could exist on the iPhone but without the intimate relationship Nintendo has with its hardware I would be skeptical of its quality.

A strange and unlikely "what if?" that I'm not even totally sold on: Apple and Nintendo could form a partnership. Perhaps, a dedicated Nintendo controller that would work universally with iOS devices. Perhaps have Nintendo curate all games in the App Store splitting all gaming profits and sweetening the possibility of a few Nintendo games on that platform. Essentially, let Apple do what Apple does best in other areas of the iPhone and let Nintendo handle all gaming for iOS. Then open up the App Store games that use the Nintendo controller to be playable on the Wii U with the Nintendo controller. The quality of both companies tends to be similar. Even their design elements have become similar in recent years. I offer it as an entertaining thought. Nothing more.

Re: Tech Site T3 Predicts What The Nintendo Smartphone Would Look Like

artofmana

I hate to say it but I would no longer be interested in a phone like this. I have come to expect a level of computing power out of my iPhone that I don't see happening in a Nintendo phone. Not because Nintendo doesn't rock but because companies like Apple have been building an ecosystem and data centers for years and has a massive App Store that makes my phone a powerful companion for curating my personal information as well as for content creation.

A Nintendo phone would be awesome for games in theory because you would always have it with you but it wouldn't be the phone I'd always have with me so it's sole purpose is defeated. I'd have to carry two devices anyway so why not carry a handheld?

People have mentioned before that Apple and Nintendo should team up. I could see a hybrid iPhone that has physical controls and is the result of a Nintendo/Apple partnership. That would be something I could see having with me always because the two companies would (in theory) bring the best of their respective areas into one device. The problem is, I can't imagine a successful business stragegy in that because both companies would be wanting the majority of profits and since both have stict listening policies I'm sure problems would arise.

From the perspective of quality, design aesthetic and family-friendly image, Apple and Nintendo would seem to be a natural match. I just don't think it would make sense on many other levels from my outsider perspective.

Re: Talking Point: The Next-Gen Console War is Wii U's to Lose

artofmana

@Haywired, it's hard to argue that this won't be a bit uphill but I wouldn't be so quick to compare the Wii U and the GameCube. Even though I'm not a huge fan of Sony, the PlayStation 2 had a lot going for it. There was still a general excitement after the original PlayStation had appealed to mature audiences and wooed so many developers that used to work on Nintendo consoles. It seems like this generation is starting with people remembering Nintendo and the Wii's success. If anything, it seems to me to be the reverse of the situation the GameCube launched in.