May 2010 What’s Hot This Month May 4th, 2010

Captain X

On May 11 we have Lost Planet 2 coming to Xbox 360 and PS3.  This sequal has us back killing REALY big things and using robots and grappling hooks to do it.  The game looks amazing lets hope it plays as well as it looks.

On May 18 we have Red Dead Redemption coming to Xbox 360 and PS3.  Rockstar games brings the GTA formula to the old west.  On paper this should be a fantastic game full of open world exploration and cowboy badassery.  Fingers crossed that this one lives up to the hype.

Also on May 18, the long awaited Alan Wake finally comes to 360. The press on this one has been rather limited but the premise sounds good lets hope all the dev time did not go to waste.

3 New Racers coming this month Split Second on May 18, Blur on May 23, and Mod Nation Racers (PS3 Exclusive) on May 25.  Blur and Split second look sharp and both offer a new take on arcade style racing games, Mod Nation takes equal parts Mario Kart and Little Big Planet for what could be the most replayable game ever.

Look for the return of the Prince of Persia on May 18.  Movie tie-ins are not usually my thing but this game looks pretty damn good.

The retro stylings of 3D Dot Game Heros hits PS3 on May 11.  A retro homage with a new look, I think the old school fans will enjoy.

And on May 23 the first good Wii game for a dog’s age is coming in the form of Mario Galaxy 2.  If you own a Wii you cant miss this one it is likely one of 2 good games to come out this year for the white paper weight next to your tv.

Speaking of the $200 paper weight there will be a new bundle for Wii  and a new color.  Yeah, that was necessary.  Wii will be available in black and include a Wii Motion Plus Wii Remote and a copy of Wii Sports and Wii Sports Resort.  Extra remotes and motion plus and nun chucks sold seperately.  So for $200 you can play alone on your very own black Wii, or if you spend an extra $40 for a second Wii Remote, $20 for a Motion Plus and $20 for a nunchuck you can play with a friend. (Remember when consoles came with “2″ controllers?)

Also spotted another release of Tetris making it the single most released game ever.  I wonder how many Tetrises there have been? Hmmmm I can think of at least 10 without trying so I bet there are 30 or more versions of this block puzzle game that bare the namesake and at least another 100 copy cat games out there.

Well that wraps up what I give a hoot about in May hopefully i get the chance to review a few of those.

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Full Review Nier (Xbox 360)* May 4th, 2010

Captain X


*Also available for PS3

Square-Enix has ventured into the action-rpg realm with the usual trappings associated with the Square-Enix games and action-rpg games.

Not that Nier is a bad game, quite the opposite it is actually a very good game at times, and at other times no so much.

Nier is a story set 1300 years in the future.  The earth has been reverted to more of a medieval existence and the only thing left of the old world are ruins scattered throughout the world and a library in your home village full of books from the old world.  The US version of the game is slightly different from the Japanese release as the main character is about twice as old in the US version and you are searching for a cure for your daughter and not your sister.  From what I understand however is the brother/sister plot was primary and the father/daughter plot was made for a US audience for some reason Square-Enix decided this would be a better fit for the US market.  Cultural design decisions aside this is the US version we are talking about.

So as our hero searches for a cure to a disease called “The Black Scrawl” to cure his dying daughter he encounters a book.  Not just any book, this is a magical tome that can float and cast spells and even speak (He is quite a pompous ass I might add.) The book is called Grimoire Weiss and he apparently has a twin called Grimoire Noir,  You find out that these two books are the cause and the solution to the Black Scrawl disease and the appearance of mysterious creatures called shades that have been running amok killing people and animals all over the land.  Weiss however is the one that has lost his memory and cannot remember what are called “Sealed Verses” the source of his magic power that he would need to defeat Noir.  That is if they even knew where Noir was.  So that is the reason for your toiling in this rather lengthy action adventure game with rpg-like trappings.  Slight twist on the conventional rpg story and much more straightforward than the typical Square-Enix narrative.  You encounter two other characters that join your group at one time or another a strange foul-mouthed chick in lingerie that can kick ass or cast magic, and the rather enigmatic Emil.  There are some interesting moments, some great set pieces and there are also a lot of wide open nothing spaces in the game. Trudging back and forth can be tiresome and fighting the multitude of shades can get repetitive at times the save mechanic is also a point location save whereas you can only save at mailboxes scatterred throughout the world.  On the plus side there is almost always a mailbox right before you begin a boss battle.

The game never seems to know how it was meant to be played and here is the biggest strength of the game.  Though you fight a bunch of the same baddies the perspective shift from a 3rd person hack and slash to a top down to side scrolling platform game are kind of cool and add to the variety of the gameplay.  Sometimes it will make you think they should have stuck with one view and refined it a bit more on the other hand it breaks the tedium of grinding for levels a bit.  Overall the core gameplay mechanics are good, with decent animations and fairly nice graphics some of which stand out more than others.  The gameplay is all over the place as I said with a bit of this and a bit of that some riddles, some simple block sliding, some kill all the bad guys before the door opens kind of stuff.  The main characters look a lot better than the NPCs and the voices of the NPCs dont always seem to fit.  Kaine’s mouth can be quite foul which is apparent from the opening screen of the game where you hear her tearing into Weiss using some rather colorful language.  The game is like a real-time action final fantasy with cleavage and foul language at times.

So in summary, Nier is a great game that could have been better, but fans of JRPG and Adventure games will find lots to love.

Graphics get high marks in lighting effects and creative boss designs, and low marks for some bland texture work and not so great NPC models.

Gameplay works well all around could be a little tighter but the basic mechanics work.

Fun with lots of side quests, farming, fishing, and some pretty cool boss fights, there is a good time to be had.

Overall this game should not be missed for adventure fans the rpg elements are on the light side upgrading weapons is pretty basic and there is not a lot of inventory management going on, leveling up is a simple hey you gained a level affair which boosts life and magic bar length.  A nice foray into the genre from a company usually stuck in the turn-based rut.

Nier gets a “B” 85%

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Review Quickies May 4th, 2010

Captain X

So over this last year I have played a lot of new games so I am going to do a quick and dirty of some of my favs and some bombs I have had the pleasure or displeasure of playing.

These titles are available on both 360 and PS3 and are markedly the same.  If there has been a notable difference I will site it.

The Must Play List

Bayonetta

A marvelous compilation of everything that is awesome about 3rd person action hack and slash games like Devil May Cry, God of War, etc.  As the titular Bayonetta you and your magical hair take on an army of angelic baddies with style and grace, loads of flashy set pieces amazing visuals and animation.  Sexy, funny and a complete joy to play.Some cool Sega throwback moments for oldschool Sega fans and plenty of tongue-in-cheek dialog.  (It should be noted that the PS3 version has some noticeable framerate issues, but is otherwise the same great game.)

Bayonetta gets a “A” 95/100

Brutal Legend

Take everything that was cool about heavy metal and make a video game about it in an open world modeled in the style of the album art of the days gone by when metal was heavy and no one rapped in the middle of a hard rock song.  Then give Jack Black the lead role as a roadie with demonic powers, a magical guitar, and a big axe.  Add some really cool driving and animal riding powers, lots of little side quests, tons of humor and you have Tim Shafer’s masterwork.  Thank you EA for picking this back up after it was almost not published.  The art style and soundtrack are fantastic the battle mechanics are great.  My only gripe is the steep difficulty curve in the stage battles but they are not impossible.  Some cool DLC and online Multiplayer RTS style stage battles make this a must have for fans of Jack Black and fans of Metal.  If you like both you should already have this one in your library.

Brutal Legend gets a “B+” 89/100

Dragon Age: Origins

Ok so this game is great but there are some nit picks I have with it.  The lore of the world is rich and its inhabitants are colorful.  The politics of the land are well thought out and the class separations are apparent.  The multiple origin stories, depending on the character you start with are good incentive to play through more than once. The game is kind of short in the end, the add-ons are pretty good as well.  I think Bioware could have done more with the combat as the one button “Now do this” is kind of PC-centric and I would have liked to see a real fighting engine in the game like Fable or something especially after the revamp of the Mass Effect combat engine for the sequel.  Visually the game is good but again not as good as Bioware’s other title on 360 Mass Effect 2.  The voice acting however is very well done.  You can’t help but like the game if you are a fan of quasi-real time fantasy rpgs I just was left wanting more and Awakenings(The recent disc based expansion) felt like a let down in alot of way but it did extend the game a bit.

DragonAge: Origins gets a “B” 85/100

More coming soon

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Giving it another go – A Year Later May 4th, 2010

Captain X

Well a year has passed since I posted anything on this blog.  Big deal I guess since I am the only one who reads it.  But maybe another year older and wiser I will continue to post if only to vent my own frustrations or to give my opinions to any who might stumble upon this page.

So what has happened in this last year.

Well we got a new dog.

I have replaced my Xbox 360 for the third time due to faulty hardware.

I gained about 40 pounds and now I cant play Wii Fit anymore.

Nothing much else has changed on my end.

The games industry saw a huge Holiday season in 2009 and 2010 started with a bang and has fizzled to a slow crawl in anticipation of E3 and the Holiday season.

So over the next few days I will be posting some reviews and such for the last handful of titles I have been playing and some afterwards thoughts and hope for the future of some of the better games I have played this year.

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Sacred 2: Fallen Angel – A Console port better than it’s PC ancestor May 29th, 2009

Captain X

Most console gamers have never even heard of Sacred so Sacred 2 kind of went unnoticed.  Which is a shame because this Diablo-esque game is quite fun for fans of dungeon crawling world exploring, loot collecting games you can play online either PVP or Cooperative with up to 3 friends.  That was a mouthful so real quick lets explian what kind of game Sacred 2 is not.  It is not a long winded RPG with a deep story.  It is not a hack & slash. Well then what is it you say.  Fun I say.  The kind of midless hours of your life sucking away fun you can only get by killing hordes of nasties with cool weapons and magic.  You gain experience you collect gold you go on side quests the world is VERY big. The baddies are dumb ass all hell but can be tough in large numbers.  The draw here is grinding for the next best set of armor or sword and exploring the enormous world that Ascaron has made.

The Seraphim is certainly a metal chick

Most PC gamers have played a game like Sacred we all call it Diablo II.  In Sacred 2 there is no central hub, depending on what class of character you choose your starting point is a little different.  There are 6 classes of character and a shadow or light campaign element for each of the classes with the exception of the Seraphim can only play on the light side and the Inquisitor can only play on the dark side.  Direct character customization is limited to a few hairstyles and colors for the female characters. The custimaztion comes in the form of the hundreds of swords, bows, axes, laser guns, magic staffs, …… and armor parts you collect on your journey.  Collecting a complete set of armor will net you special bonus abilities and attributes.  Exploration is limited only by your patience you can easily spend over 100 hours playing the game or only 15 or 20 to complete the main quest. (On the Xbox360 there is actually an acheivement you can score for completing the main quest without uncovering too much of the map).  Being that there are two sides to the story you may even decide to play through 2 times or if you are a completionist play through 10 times to experience every plausable aspect netting around 1000 hours of gameplay for $60.  Not a bad deal.

Big Monsters are still pretty dumb, but they look cool.

Sacred is not without issues so lets break the game down into everyone’s 4 favorite catagories:

  • Graphics: The game looks good, but it does look like last year’s PC version. There are a few frame-rate hiccups as well.  The camera works well enough as you can zoom in and out of  the action.  The animation on some of the characters could be better too.  There are some nice touches however the detail is very nice, the seas of grass move and shift as you walk through them and there are some nice ambient effects that look good as well and the magics look nice as well. 7/10
  • Sound: A band called Blind Guardian lends  its metal chops to the title song and somewhere else in the game as well (I dont want to spoil anything it is kind of cool in a cheesy way)  The dialog suffers from a little localization issues and some repetition.  Each character has there own incidental music which is a nice touch but all in all a forgettable sound track.  The sounds you will remember most are the quips and dying quotes from the Kobolds and other silly monsters. 7/10
  • Gameplay:  Here is where the console version learned from the PC game.  The controls are very well done for a game with so many quick changes that need to be made and with all the spells you have etc the use of the triggers is welcome for having multiple weapons/spells equipped since you cannot pause the game (even in offline mode for some reason). The game plays out in a quasi-realtime battle system meaning each press of the button is not a sword swing or a fireball more you press the button adn the target gets a ring around it and you hold the button down and your hero will keep swinging, shooting whatever until the target is dead and then will reacquire a new target automatically and continue to attack.  The targetting system could be better as you will swing at nothing if the enemy is outside your range and the enemies are downright dumb. Each character is similiar in that they can use some form of close and ranged weapons and all have magic of some sort.  The Shadow Warrior is your best bet for your first journey but my personal favorite is the Temple Guardian because he gets a custom mount to ride on that is very cool that is like a giant wheel but he can use his combat arts while seated in it where ther other mounts have different abilities.  Each character gets a custom mount you can acquire or you can buy horses from various merchants. 7.5/10
  • Yes but will I want to play it for 100+ hours?: Oddly enough despite all the little quirks and seemingly simplistic nature fo the game it is very addictive and more fun with a few friends.  If you are looking for fantasy fun while waiting for Dragon Age to hit consoles later this year (fingers crossed) look no further than Sacred 2. 8/10

Overall I give Sacred 2 for the Xbox 360 and PS3 a 7.5 out of 10.

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Bionic Commando – Worth Waiting 20 Years For? May 29th, 2009

Captain X

OK so May 28th has come and gone and those who fondly remember the jumpless Rad Spencer and his quest to save Super Joe were chomping on the bit to get a hold of the re-imagining of the classic Capcom platformer.  Was it worth waiting for?  Well it depends to be honest.

Bionic Commando

Parts of Bionic Commando are great, the visuals are good, the framerate, the sound is good, but the dialog is complete cheese.  The gameplay is functional albeit a touch on the obnoxiusly unintuitive side.  The story twists itself into an uninteligable mess of WTF.  However fans of HARD games with BRUTAL boss battles and CHEAP deaths may enjoy the challenge.

Well ok is not all bad, but it is not on par with Capcom’s last two outings this year Street Figher IV which I never botherred to review because it is sheer perfection and Resident Evil 5 which again I was too busy playing to review.  If you notice by the reviews I post anyway I tend review the games that either did not fair well with other editors or I could not find decent unbiased views on or not find one at all.

So lets have a look at Bionic Commando for Xbox360* shall we:

Graphics: The game looks great.  It moves well and the environments and effects are  very well done.  Capcom loves the eye-candy and BC is full of cool explosions and big bosses.  I noticed some minor dips in the framerate but nothing to detract from the visuals.

Gameplay: This is where we seperate the buyers from the renters.  The game is tough, I make no bones about the difficulty.  The swing mechanic works but is limited in the way you can use it.  Dont expect to come out swinging like Spiderman because there are no magical attach points to swing from you have to target and time your swings with precision or you will wind up missing your mark by way of the cable is too short or you release the swing to early or too late and you dont get enough distance to latch on to the next object.  While falling does not always kill you even from serious heights, landing in the middle of a radiation area will do a number on you and water is a slow painful sinking death.  I guess that massive bionic arm is a tad heavy for swimming.  Battling enemies onthe other hand feels solid and being able to reel them in for kick to the face is pretty cool.  Grabbing and whipping objects with your bionic appendage is a satisfying alternative to just shooting them or punching them.  All the old gameply elements are there, just in 3D even terminal hacking (even though it looks like a futuristic coal stove that you are hacking).

Sound: Funny thing about games that originate in Japan is that even the best effort at humor or drama can either go right over your head once they localize the dialog.  Somehow I think the tongue in cheek might be intentional but the dialog is still very cheesy, I mean like Limburger cheesy.  The rest of the audio is good however nice subtle scoring and explosions sound solid, some guns sound a bit wimpy if you ask me.

Yes but is it fun?: Well I enjoyed the challenge, even with its shortcomings it is a fun game for hardcore fans and maybe some new ones who enjoy a good challenge.  Maybe not Ninja Gaiden hard but still a tough game.  Combat is fun, swinging is a drag.  The longer you play the better you get and playing some online multiplayer is a good way to get in the “swing” of things.  The multiplayer is fun if not limited but kudos for adding multiplayer.  I was dissabpointed int he complete package and it did not live up to my expectations but it is a good game that is better than alot of other games in this genre.

Breakdown:

Graphics 8.5/10

Gameplay 6/10

Sound 7/10

Fun 8/10

Overall 7.5/10

*Is also available for PlayStation 3 and Windows PC

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Review ~ Afro Samurai ~ Xbox 360/PS3 March 12th, 2009

Captain X

Oh I’m sorry did I wake you m^tha f&%ka?

afro-samurai-04

That is some cold shit

Let me start by saying that I generally don’t like games based on movies or TV shows, because they are generally cheap slap together projects that are just made to grab a quick buck while a show is still popular.  The Ben 10 games were so-so , but most of the other games to come from Cartoon Network shows have stunk to high heaven.  This Adult Swim show turned action slice and dice game however has given me hope that with the right team and the right vision it can be done.  Afro Samurai may not be as popular as other CN shows and is certainly not for the kiddies, but the beautiful art direction and story of vengence with colorful characters and unique almost otherworldly atmosphere, make it a standout and one of my favorite shows ever to hit the Adult Swim lineup.

Ok well enough there if you a fan of the show and like a good hack/slash action game what the f&*k are you waiting for m^tha f&%ka?  Go get this game.  If you like samurai games in general you should give this one a go.  It is not the best, but surely not the worst.  More accessable than most but not too easy.

Ok so its not perfect and the camera is a bit wonky at times, mainly because it is too close to Afro which makes being blindsided easy. 

This is my breakdown:

Presentation: 8/10 Good presentation accessable but nothing too exciting.

Graphics:  8/10 Smooth animations, and nice toon shaders give it a very stylish look.  It is like playing the show.  The only complaint is that I wish there was some more variety in the enemies.

Sound: 10/10 The game has one of the coolest soundtacks in the history of Samurai/Ninja games inspired by the Rza of the Wu Tang Clan, and features the voice talents of Samuel L. Jackson as well as Ron Perlman.

Gameplay: 8/10 Not perfect due to some annoying camera issues, but fun fast and easy to learn, with a suprising amount of depth if you really try you can do some pretty cool stuff as Afro.

Overall (Not an Average): 8/10 Undoubtedly there is some room for improvment but the tale of vengance and the 2 sacred headbands is a fun ride even with some annoying camera issues.  Fans of the show will no doubt enjoy every second of this one.

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Review KILLZONE 2 PS3 March 12th, 2009

Captain X

Holy $4!7

That about sums it up.  The hype, the waiting, the unreal trailers, the game is finally here.  Killzone 2, the sequel to the PS2 FPS game that tried to challenge Halo2 in the console FPS world and instead got nods for cool art direction, great graphics, but dumb AI and poor pacing, but overall could not compete with Spartan 117.  Well Killzone 2 redefines what a console FPS can be.  The bar has been officially raised for graphics and intesity, as well as AI.   

Yes that is an in-game screen shot

Yes that is an in-game screen shot

 

 Killzone 2 is my current pick for Action Game of the Year possibly even Game of the Year. I could go on for hours about the game but that is wasting your time.  You need to stop reading this and go buy this game. Lock your door and turn up the volume.  This is one ride that makes the PS3 worth the hype and higher price tag.  It took forver for this game to come out but the extra time was worth it.  The polish on this title makes it shine like a gem, hands down the best console FPS, yes that is right I said it, what you gonna do about it.

This one too

This one too

OK already I hate reviews that get all preachy and long winded.  There are 100 things I could say about this game but instead I will give you the basic breakdown, because we don’t like spoilers.
The Breakdown:
Presentation:  Good, clean, easy to get into, overall this game was buffed until it shined.  Highly polished A-List title all the way. 10/10
Graphics: If you think it looks good in picture you have to play it in all its HD glory to truly appreciate the visuals.  The physics, the environments, the effects like smoke and light and motion blur, perspective blur.  They used every trick in the book on this one. 10/10
Sound:  An FPS game needs one thing in the sound department and that is good gun and explosion sounds, KZ2 has em, it also has a great score and decent albeit cheesy sometimes voice acting.  But if you can get past the “Cole Train” and other cheese-ball action heroes this wont bother you. 9/10
Gameplay:  The enemy AI is great one of the things you notice right off (as long as you are not a punk playing on easy) is that the enemy will try to flank you and does not often stick behind the same piece of cover.  The dont blindly charge into your M85 fire.  The ability to attached to cover is great since you will be doing alot of taking cover due in part to the intense amount of bullets flying at you almost non-stop.   The control itself is initially it is setup like the default Call of Duty control scheme, I prefer the zoom mapped to a trigger and that option is available but as with most FPS games I wish they let you custom map the buttons.  Overall there is a scheme for just about every well known configuation and it plays smooth and silky-like.  8/10
Overall: (Not an Average) 9.5/10 – the only thing that keeps this from perfect is the minor annoyance that most console games have and that is not being able to custom map your buttons to the controller and no CO-OP.  I only deduct a small amount for no CO-OP because nitpicking on a title such as this would be futile.

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Review – Loco Roco 2 – PSP March 12th, 2009

Captain X

Can it be a review for a PSP game.  It is sad that this amazing handheld does not get enough exclusive tiles tailored for portable gaming. The first Loco Roco was crazy fun in a strange and whimsical way.  This second installment takes all the fun of the first and adds even more depth to the gameplay.

Nice Fro

Nice Fro

So the Moja are at it again this time armed with a song that makes black clouds that have adverse effects on creatures and plant-life.  Rocos can bop it away to earn musical notes.  You also take part in some rhythm games to collect notes.  The core game mechanics are the same with some new twists like riding in objects to smash things as you roll or explode.  There are also some new baddies called BuiBui, they are Red MuiMui but they are more mischievous.  Visually the game is the same colorful pallete and screen tilting bouncing rolling goodness.  You still collect pieces of stuff, but this time for the MuiMui house and not the Roco house.  There are also more mini games to play and they integrate into the level selection.

What a big nose you have

What a big nose you have

The breakdown:
Presentation:  Easy intuitive interface mixed with bright colors Sony takes care of its star titles and Loco Roco is one of the best games for the PSP and now it has more company in its sequal. 10/10
Graphics:  Nothing ground-breaking but fun art direction and colorful worlds make for a game easy on the eyes.  The graphics fit the game perfectly. 8/10
Sound:  The audio is as colorful and full of life as the graphics and gameplay, simple fun and catchy you may find yourself humming along or whistling the tunes long after you turn off your PSP. 10/10
Gameplay:  True to its roots the gameplay stays mainly unchanged with a few new things thrown in.  I sometimes do wish jumping was mapped to a face button but with time you get used to the controls. 9/10
Overall: (Not an Average) 9/10 “A must have title for its fun and portability”

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Legacy of Ys Book I & II DS February 27th, 2009

Captain X

ysHaving had 24 releases in Japan Ys Books I&II and one of the most hallowed titles in Action/RPG history.  It has been 19 years since an official release of these games hit the US and 22 years since its 4-bit ancestor first graced the the NEC-PC8001 in Japan.  Most people who have played Ys remember it from the TurboCD version, which blew most people away with its anime cutscenes and stellar soundtrack, which is still one of my personal favorites to date.  There was also a version of Ys Book I: Vanished Omen released for Sega’s System III or Master System as it was known in the US.  Other sequals hit the selves YsIII for the TurboCD and Super Nintendo, YsIV never made it to the US and YsV did not either, The recent success of Ys VI: The Ark of Naphistim was short lived and came at a time where the next gen was making it’s entrance so was lost.  It was a decent game but all the sequals never had the magic of the original.

Legacy of Ys Book I & II has the dubious honor of being the first time the games have been released together in the US since the TurboGrafx CD version in 1990.  The game follows a young red haired wanderer named Adol who in this iteration washes up on the shore of the country of Esteria and finds himself knee deep in the mystery of a vanished utopia named Ys.  The game originally had a game mechanic which required you to simply run into the ememy with your weapon equipped to attack, this time you can actually swing your sword making combat a little more interesting.  Ys is alot like the classic Zelda games in where you explore a large world enter various dungeon-like areas kill bosses and solve puzzles using various items found in treasure chests. The story in Ys is conhesive albeit sparse but as a bonus from the older version the game actually tell you what you need to be doing at this very moment on the bottom screen it displays your current objective.

The adventure is short by today’s standards but it is a trip down memory lane for some.  The game’s oldschool gameplay may turn off the jaded younger audience but if you ever were a fan this is the game you remeber with a few new areas, items and bosses thrown in.  I had a good time witht he game and grinding levels is not as bad as it was in the older version and the ability to swing your sword makes for fewer cheap hits and the enemies are not crazy-fast like in the old game either.  You do have to make sure to euip what you need before fighting a boss and you cannot pause to enter the submenu while battling a boss, you can’t even pause to go pee while fighting a boss.

legacy-of-ys-books-i-and-ii-screenshot

The breakdown:

  • Presentation: Simple and easy to use controls for either control pad or stylus play are available nice menus and the frame around the action is gone in favor of giving you the entire top screen for play and using the bottom for inventory an information.  Nothing we have not seen before, but nice anime cutscenes 8/10
  • Graphics:  A leap but not a huge one from the older games, cleaner anime styles and 3d world models with large colorful sprites make it easy on the eyes but I have seen better DS titles. 7/10
  • Gameplay: This is oldschool action/rpg.  Wander around kill monsters get items and weapons from treasure boxes kill boss monsters.  I will say the core gample is mostly unchanged with thexception of being able to swing your sword this time instead of ramming monsters. 7/10
  • Sound: The remasterred soundtrack is just as memorable as it was 19 years ago, however no voice over work made me miss the old TGCD version at times. 8/10
  • Overall:   A great albeit short trip down memory lane with one of the originators of the genre.  Playing this game reminded me of just how many games copied this forumla it is a shame the series has not evolved like Zelda, or is it.  I would love to see a re-invention of the Ys universe next time instead of a remix, but the game is good and all fans of the series and oldschool gamers will find something to like here. 7.5/10

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