vincentgoodwin

I actually really liked the Disney Infinity design. They had a nice angularity that made the whole line cohesive, yet fit with their IP. But I also really love Marvel and Star Wars.

The games were fun, lite-Diablo clones. The Star Wars original trilogy set was especially a blast.

I'll miss the series, but I'll continue to have fun with what I have.

@Spiders — I'm not sure I understand your question about Game of Thrones. I haven't read the books since 2006 and stopped the TV show watching partway through the 3rd season.

I remember the characters being extremely young (Arya was like 7, Dany and Robb were early teens), and it was an interesting story point about children being thrust into an adult's world way before they were ready. I was fine with them casting older just because it's hard to find 7-year-old actors that can carry that much screentime.

But could you help me with what you're asking when it comes to your question?

Many comments here say that these changes are to "protect the children" but I think it's more about trying to not push anyone away.

I don’t think children are going to play this game. I think it's adults who want a weird RPG on their Wii U.

And I, for one, find it uncomfortable to play a game where I sexualize minors. I know 17 year-olds have sex with 17-year-olds all the time, and Japan does what Japan does, and that's fine — but I don’t really want to play a game with sexy children. And as my prerogative, I wouldn't buy such a game.

I think Atlus and Nintendo see sexualized minors as potentially off-putting to some customers, and they're trying not to push them away (especially for a niche game that probably already has a low ceiling). You age them up a bit, you don't call them kids, and suddenly I'm not as off-put.

I notice some comments about how Bayonetta got through and this didn't. The difference with Bayonetta is she's an adult. It has less to do with nudity and sexuality and more to do with sexuality & nudity of children (even though they're all fictional).

Could anybody give more information about the Golf and Football/Soccer modes? How do they compare to Mario Golf and Mario Super Strikers?

I really enjoyed both of thosw games and would love to have more content.

@craigmoss19 I agree. I hate using them because they break the game (or you don't have the badges to control them).
Can you put them in the daycare and have them make little baby legendaries that you can use?

@Vineleaf I definitely feel like Sega acquiring Atlus is gonna be good, if Atlus can leverage their localization expertise to the rest of Sega’s catalogue. 7th Dragon looks like the first benefit.

Supposedly the series is one of those great "Never made it West" series. It's from the designer of Etrian Odyssey and the designer of Phantasy Star.

Jeremy Parish had a good writeup on the first game a few years back. He described it as Etrian meets Dragon Quest 3.

Google "gamespite 7th dragon" and you'll find it. HardcoreGaming101 also has a good writeup.

Kuru Kuru Kururin! Sweet! I've been wanting this game ever since I read about in a magazine around the GBA launch.

Is Polarium any good?

Steamworld Dig and me just clicked. Absolutely loved that game. I don't know much about Heist (despite the numerous previews, I have a hard time grasping the concept), but I'll definitely be picking it up just to see the follow-up from Image & Form.

@Geonjaha I think the role of the review differs based on the needs of the reader. For you, it sounds like you're well-versed in the Pokemon Mystery Dungeon series and want to know how it compares.

For me, I really like Pokémon, but don't have any experience with this spinoff series. I've heard good things about the roguelike genre, and was wondering if this would be a good gateway for me.

And others may be big roguelike fans, be passing fans of Pokemon, and may be wanting this review to answer if this game has the depth they're used to.

It's tough to serve all those masters as a reviewer.

How is FAST Racing Neo different than F-Zero X/GX. Everything seems to hint that this scratches the same itch as F-Zero, but the beginning of the article says "Though this game is very different from F-Zero..." but then goes into no detail about what "very different" means.

@Haiassai Whoops! I must have Mario & Luigi on the brain.

@Haiassai If you want a "traditional" Kirby game, Kirby Triple Deluxe for 3DS is stellar. Far and away the best traditional Kirby game since Super Star Saga almost 20 years ago and probably my personal favorite (Superstar Saga and Kirby's Adventure are high points in the series and both on Virtual Console).

But Kirby's better when he's not in a normal platformer. I'd recommend Mass Attack for the original DS. I call it "the Pikmin platformer" because you control 10 different Kirbys and you throw them Pikmin-style at obstacles. Flipping awesome game.

I love the concept of a device that can play multiple systems relatively legally (I love my Retro Duo Portable with Genesis/MegaDrive and GBA adaptors), but it lies in the execution.

Clone consoles have traditionally had a bunch of weird hiccups, especially with weirdly programmed software like Castlevania 3.

I think I like the Retron 5 more than most people. It's a device that plays a bunch of retro systems and outputs through HDMI. I'm not pulling my TV out all the time to change out AV cords. And it supports save states. And it's easy to stream/capture Game Boy footage without the Super Game Boy or GBA Player's overlays.

But the Retron 5 has got a really janky UI, feels cheaply manufactured (the packed-in controller is a POS and the plastic all around feels flimsy), and has questionable design decisions (why does the power button need to be held for 5-10 seconds to turn the system on - it makes me feel like the system's dead / why can I only have one cartridge in the system at a time - I want to put my SNES, Genesis, and GB Shaq Fu carts in at the same time).

So I probably wouldn't get into the hype cycle for this one the way I did for the Retron 5. I'll remain cautiously optimistic, but it likely won't be a godsend.

Wow. I own every game on both lists except Wii Party U. I guess I really am a Nintendo fanboy.

@Cesco I've wanted the Pix'n Love books for ages, but they look like they're out of print in the States.

@Frank90 Totally. Tokyo is precisely where my interest started to majorly drop in SMT4.

@MasterBombad Oh yeah, it's a huge moneysink. But if you wait a few months for sales, the playsets can be found for half-off. I picked up the Starter set of 2.0 for about $35 and the other 2 Marvel playsets for $17 each this past summer. Still, I can't help but feel nickel-and-dimed. The Toy Box Speedway (mentioned in this review briefly) isn't out yet and it's an additional $20.

That said, I dove into Toy Box Takeover last week and had a blast. It's a Diablo clone (definitely not as deep), but a delightful Diablo clone. I had so much fun as Groot piloting an AT-ST as my pet/sidekick Fix-It Felix, Jr. ran around with a bazooka shouting "I regret nothing!" (Groot was eventually killed by Darth Vader, and Captain America had to finish the job).

Donkey Kong '94 (which this game was based on) was my jam! I might call it my favorite 2D platformer, period. I was actually a little disappointed by the first MvDK just because I was so good at the style of gameplay after 10 years of DK94 that I beat MvDK and its Plus worlds in an afternoon. I've gone back a few times, and it's fun, but I prefer the clean graphics of DK94.

While we're waiting for a North American release (and Zero Mission), go and get Donkey Kong '94 for your 3DS. It's a blast.

@OorWullie How odd! I'm the exact opposite. The 1st one didn't click with me, but the 2nd one I absolutely adored. Maybe it was the indecipherable story, maybe it was my mindset at the time.

The 2nd one worked for me really well. I basically describe it to friends as Star Fox but with a lot more bullets (if S&P2 was re-skinned with Star Fox, I feel like a lot more peolle would have enjoyed it).

I'll definitely be giving the 1st one another try.

If we're talking Crazy Taxi on the go, don't forget Crazy Taxi: Catch a Ride for the GBA - where they actually tried to put the full 1st game on the GBA. It's in full 3D, but also a mess to look at. It's interesting as a curiousity though.

I also had Crazy Taxi 1&2 on my PSP (Crazy Taxi: Fare Wars). To date, I think it's the only way to play Crazy Taxi 2 outside of the Dreamcast. They're missing the original music and licensed stores, but it's still fun.

Weirdly, it's the only digital PSP game I bought that I can't re-download to my Vita. So it's trapped on my PSP forever.

@Zombo @ALinkttPresent - I understand the journalistic conflict. On one hand, you're telling people how easy it is to commit an illegal activity. On the other hand, news is news. And it's not good journalism to just ignore major things happening in the gaming space. Most reputable sites and magazinss never talked about emulators or ROMs because they didn't want to be seen as encourage piracy. Even though it was something huge going on - people were downloading the entire NES and SNES libraries. When Nintendo can't release Star Fox or Yoshi's Island on Virtual Console because of supposed emulation issues, reporters call BS because the emulation scene cracked both of those games over a decade ago.

@NintendoFan64 @dadajo — They're uploading everything on YouTube - Their name is "Games Done Quick". They also have a winter event called "Awesome Games Done Quick" in January (or late December).

@vitalemrecords @ikki5 The NX announcement (aka announcement that they're working on a new system) is pretty much on par for Nintendo.
Project Reality (aka the Nintendo 64) had a writeup in Nintendo Power in Fall 1993. I'm not sure of the exact issue, but that was the first mention I remember seeing of the Super Famicom/SNES successor (launched in November 1990 Japan, August 1991 USA). That's a little less than 3 years from the Super Famicom launch to serious talking about the next system. The Project Reality/Nintendo 64 system was not revealed, just the name and general aspirations.
The Gamecube was released in Fall 2001, and the Revolution name (which became the Wii) was unveiled at an E3 2004 presentation. That's 2 and a half years. The Wii/Revolution system was not revealed in 2004, just the project name and general aspirations. If I recall correctly, the controller and system wasn't shown off until Fall 2005.
The Wii U was released in Fall 2012, and the NX discussions began in earnest in Spring 2015. Once again, 2 and a half years. The system was not revealed, just the project name and general aspirations.

I've played the 4-player version of Mario Kart Arcade GP DX this at a Dave & Busters in Texas. (They also have the predecessor - Mario Kart Arcade GP 2 - in a back corner somewhere).

Both Mario Kart Arcade games I've played are...okay. They're missing the polish of MK7 and MK8 and the inventiveness of the home versions.

That said, it baffles me that these Mario Kart games have never been released outside of the arcades. There's three of them - GP (2005), GP2 (2007), and GP DX (2013) - although they have the same general 10 course layouts with variations between each version. But Mario Kart is a huge seller for Nintendo and the Wii U isn't doing too hot. It seems like a no-brainer just to release 10 "new" Mario Kart courses as DLC or a discount disc.

@Peach64 Having the GBC DW 1&2 and DW3 on 3DS is also my dream! That GBC DW1 is a nice, smooth remake. It's a great, pleasant RPG that can be beaten in about 7 hours. I go back to it every few years.

I would love to have all the mainlane Dragon Quests all on one device (and you know, not with a touch screen controls).

@TwilightV Yes. This is exactly the problem with Disney Infinity. With 2.0, there were a bunch of cool campaigns for Avengers, Guardians of the Galaxy, and Spider-Man, but toys/characters are restricted to their campaigns. Like, you can't play Avengers levels as Spider-Man - which I assumed you would be able to do - buy a figure for a game, he can play in any level!

That's what kept me from buying Jack Skellington. He can't play in the campaigns (I really wanted to have him beat up Loki and take missions from Nick Fury). All you can do is use him in the Toy Box mode, which is Minecraft-lite. If that's all I could use the Goblin King for, I don't want any part of it.

But I also haven't explored much of Toy Box - I'm in my 30s and I think I'm wired now to just play existing missions and not build my own worlds.

@TruenoGT I really did think Square-Enix was gonna announce Dragon Quest localizations at E3. The week before, the 8-4 guys hinted at big localization reveals. Dragon Quest was obviously where my mind went.

@Yorumi, DQ7 is a slog. It feels stretched out, and it's hard to play a really grindy RPG with little gameplay depth for 100 hours. I'd rather see DQ8 re-released since I have the least experience with that one.

My favorites are 1, 4, and 9. The Dragon Quest series has very simple games and the combat is not complex, but the appeal is that they're pleasant. They're comfort food. Don't think; just kill monsters. I can turn on a slower sports game like American Football or Baseball and spend hours grinding.

@Nintendian

Four Swords Adventures for Gamecube is probably a better analogue for this new game than the GBA mode attached to A Link to the Past. The GBA multiplayer mode had only 3 or 4 levels and could be cleared in about an hour.

FSA-GCN was a separate retail release and it had a full campaign of 24 levels. It's much deeper than the GBA mode. Even in single-player, it's a great experience that will take hours to complete.

Considering that Nintendo is planning this as a full retail release, I imagine it's going to hew pretty close to the Gamecube game's model.