E3 10: Nintendo Conference

Microsoft's conference was part of Day 0 yesterday... so now it's Nintendo job to kick off E3 Day 1, and let's recap how their conference went:

Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword
- First trailer/footage show
- Looks like Twilight Princess/Wind Waker
- Video with Miyamoto explaining controls
- Live on-stage demo
- Uses Wii MotionPlus
- Miyamoto teleported on-stage. HOLY SHIT!
- Wiimote calibration looks... off
- Can toss or roll bombs now
- Technical difficulties... [sadface]
- New beetle item to fly around and scout
- Comes out next year, hopefully they can fix the controls by then...

Mario Sports Mix
- For Wii
- Volleyball
- Hockey
- Dodgeball
- Soccer
- Basketball

WiiParty
- 13 different part game modes
- 70 different mini-games
- Coming Holiday 2010

Just Dance 2
- From Ubisoft for Wii
- Sequel to a game you probably didn't even play
- Supports up to 8 players (how?)
- Coming Fall 2010

Golden Sun: Dark Dawn
- aka Golden Sun DS
- New trailer shown
- Coming Holiday 2010

Goldeneye 007
- Yes, a remake of the N64 game
- ... with Daniel Craig as James Bond (wtf?)
- Graphics look.. bad
- From Activision... how can this be without Rare?
- Coming this Holiday, exclusive for Wii

Disney Epic Mickey
- On-stage demo
- 2D animated cut-scenes... I love the style
- Paint and un-paint the world
- Game changes based on your actions (karma system basically)
- Three location types: quest, action, and travel zones
- Looks like a really cool game, especially if you're familiar with Disney animation history

Kirby: Epic Yarn
- A spin-off of Epic Mickey
- First gameplay trailer
- Oozes style, great animations
- Releasing Fall 2010 for Wii

Dragon Quest IX
- Reggie is just talking about it
- But this released in Japan already, so...

Metroid: Other M
- New trailer
- Releasing August 31st

Donkey Kong Country Returns
- From Retro Studios, yup, the Metroid Prime studio
- 2.5D gameplay, looks awesome
- Coming Holiday 2010

Nintendo 3DS
- Reveal trailer shown
- Device is shiny as hell, and small
- Fits in Iwata's one hand
- Top screen is 3.5" and wider than the bottom screen
- Has a 3D depth slider to adjust the effect
- 3D is only on the top screen, touch screen is just as it has been
- New 'Slide Pad' for analog control, D-pad still there
- Includes motion sensor and gyro sensor
- Outside has 2 camera lenses for 3D photography
- Capable of playing 3D movies (including partners Disney, Warner Brothers, and DreamWorks)
- Can use wifi while on or off (think WiiConnect24)

Kid Icarus: Uprising
- The same character model from Brawl
- Honestly, looks better than most Wii games

A ton of games announced in production
- Nintendogs + Cats
- Professor Layton and the Mask of Miracle
- DJ Hero 3D
- Kingdom Hearts 3D
- Resident Evil Revelation
- Saints Row
- Assassin's Creed
- Metal Gear Solid (!)
- and more!

Hilarious 3DS promo video shown. Show over. I'll update with media later.

I was iffy on the 3DS in concept form, and I still obviously don't know how the 3D experience is in person. But from what I saw of Kid Icarus: Uprising and the list of in-development titles... I'm pretty much sold. All I need now is a price and release date, but, honestly, I'm pretty pumped. But, at the same time, the lack of current DS content in the show was upsetting, other than Golden Sun: Dark Dawn, there was no DS content, not even a word of Pokemon Black and White. Does that mean 3DS is around the corner? Who knows.

Also, where was WiiWare and DSiWare? I was really glad of what had to be said about the next generation and 3DS, but I'd of liked to see more about the right now. But, that new Kirby game looks so different from anything I've ever seen and looks awesome, I'm now glad that nameless Kirby game from GameCube got scrapped. And the new Zelda looks great... but the control screw-ups were a bit disappointing. Sony you're next!

Photo Dojo Review

With just ten days left to get it for free, it's about time I finally review Nintendo's latest premiere DSiWare title, Photo Dojo!

What is Photo Dojo? Well, it's one of the few DSiWare titles that actually uses the DSi's extremely-ignored camera features. Taking photos of a friend or even action figures or drawings, you can bring up to eight characters to life, adding sound effects for an amusing but shallow fighting experience. There is an option to photograph yourself, using the front facing camera and setting a timer, but I found this to be a really tedious process because I had to stand so far away from the system that by the time I was actually in frame, I couldn't even tell if I was in the right pose or not. But then I found this form on Nintendo Japan's website:

And thus Pickleman was born. The game itself tells you what each pose is for, so even though I can't actually read the Japanese on the form, I knew what I was doing (i.e. the last two frames are for taunts, or that other face there is the fireball that your character can fire, which I wouldn't have known without the game telling me).

As for the gameplay itself, each character can be placed with one of for different fighting styles, all of which work the same: you walk with the d-pad, and in combination with the d-pad you use any other button to attack. There's a one-player survival mode where you have to defeat 100 opponents in a beat'em-up style fashion, and there's a single system multiplayer, that has each player controlling half of the system, using L or R to attack, and the d-pad or letter buttons to move. As to why there isn't any sort of wireless play that lets DSi owners compete with other peoples fighters is beyond me, but I've had a lot of fun with my own creations at least.

Overall, Photo Dojo is a fun and amusing game, even if it's completely shallow as a fighting game. I can't tell you how many times I've laughed out loud because of the things I've recorded being yelled out by the obnoxious characters I've created. Sure, I got this for free, but after my experience with the game, I'd gladly put down 200 DSi Points for this one.

Overall Score: 8/10

Picross 3D Review

Picross 3D is the newest installment in the puzzler for the Nintendo DS. While I can’t speak about its predecessors, as this is my first Picross game, I can say that I enjoyed it, and like the overall puzzle design.

Picross 3D is the series’ first foray into the three-dimensional realm, and I think it handled the transition very well. You can easily maneuver the camera via the touch screen, as well as use slicers to “cut” into the puzzle. Seeing as how the puzzles are in 3D space, and can be more than a few rows thick, you need to be able to get to those middle sections. This is accomplished via the slicers, which do take a little getting used to. They are easy to control, but conceptually, it can take a minute to wrap your head around.

I felt the slicers were good for what they did, however, I wish they were a little more versatile. There are two of them; one for the X axis and the other for the Z. While it’s obviously not necessary, I wish there was a slicer for the Y axis as well. Also, you can’t slice between the two at the same time, which again, isn’t a serious problem, but I felt at times it could have been useful.

If you are unfamiliar with the game as I was, then there are plenty of tutorials to explain just about all the game has to offer, starting with the very basics. It explains the numbers on the blocks, and how they refer to how many blocks are in that row, column, or….other row. Get rid of the blocks that aren’t needed, and discover the figure hidden in the cubes. There are also a few types of numbers. Regular numbers indicate that all of the necessary blocks are in a single group, all connected. Circled numbers on the other hand, are in two groups, with at least one space between them, while square numbers are in three or more groups. This is very useful information in figuring out which blocks are needed, and which ones aren’t, and the tutorials go over a few strategies to help you succeed.

When you have decided which blocks need to stay and which need to go, marking or destroying them is very simple. To smash a block to pieces, simply hold up on the d-pad and tap the block; to mark it, hold right on the d-pad and tap the block. Like I said, very easy to do, but don’t get in too much of a rush and forget which is which and accidently smash one you wanted to mark. Another handy feature in smashing blocks is the ability to hold down on a row or column and smash through the entire row. This mostly comes to use with those marked with a 0, meaning none of them are in the final image. Unfortunately, this can’t be done for marking an entire row, which is a bit odd.

Levels are set up with 8 puzzles, plus 2 bonus puzzles that you can unlock if you gain enough stars. You can get 3 stars per puzzle; one for completing the puzzle, one for doing so within a time constraint, and another for completing the puzzle without any mistakes. Each of the puzzles in the easy difficulty levels had a time constraint of 5 or 10 minutes, with a total time of around 30-45 minutes. If you can’t complete the puzzle within the latter time, then you completely fail and have to restart the puzzle. Also, if you make more than 5 mistakes, you must also restart the puzzle. A mistake is trying to break a block that is needed in the image, and you are alerting of this at the time you try to break the block. Each subsequent puzzle is a bit harder than the last, but when you start a new level, the difficulty goes back down, which is nice. For instance, the starting puzzles in a level are usually 2D, while the last puzzles are in 3D and have multiple rows of columns.

After you complete the puzzle, the hidden figure goes through a little cutesy animation, and is then put in a collection, which will get filled with other themed figures you discover in other puzzles. These collections can be viewed from the main menu, but aren’t interactive. There are also animations you can unlock, which are like little cut scenes with various figures, and seem pretty arbitrary and odd.

The real bonus in the game is the ability to create and download new puzzles. Nintendo is planning to put up new puzzles for gamers to download every week or so, so there’s always something new to look forward to. You can also download other users’ puzzles, as well as create your own. The tool for doing so is very simple to use, and almost exactly like the one used to solve a puzzle. You can mark and delete blocks the same way, as well as add blocks by holding left on the d-pad and tapping the side of a block where you want the new one to be placed. You can also color each block, as well as put an eye on them, if you wanted it to be a person or animal.

One thing I found a bit odd with Picross 3D was how the difficulty was set up and unlocked. It makes sense that beginners would want to work their way from easy to hard, and progress in order, however, this isn’t an option, but a requirement. You only have one level to start with, and then unlock the next when you’ve completed the level entirely. It’s only when you’ve completed all of the levels in a difficulty that you unlock the next difficulty. You can’t choose to skip easy and go straight to normal or hard. So, veterans of the series may have to work through 100 or more puzzles before they get to something that they find challenging.

Another minor complaint is the music. Each level features one song, so you’ll hear the same tune through 10 puzzles, and if you have to restart the puzzle a few times, it can get a little annoying. I found this particularly true in one level, where I first realized this fact about the music, and it became very, very irritating. Otherwise though, the music is very soothing and peaceful and won’t distract or bother you, but I wouldn’t be surprised if you preferred to turn on something else for some background noise.

Also, and this fact can’t be helped, but it seems a little bizarre to me how you can do very poorly in a puzzle, get one star for completing it, but take 30 minutes to do so and make four or five mistakes just randomly guessing; then, figure out the shape, restart the puzzle, and complete it and get all 3 stars. There isn’t much that can be done about this, but they could have had a history of each puzzle, like a high score list, so you can see how you fared the first time you did it, and the second time, etc.

There are over 350 puzzles, plus the extra ones Nintendo will add on via DLC, so there is plenty of content. There are also a few “special” puzzles, which place unique constraints on you, such as not being able to make a single mistake, or placing a special time limit on you, which don’t really add much to the game or work to break up the monotony, but they’re there. Also, you can unlock a “Random” setting, in which you can get a random puzzle. You can set which difficulty(ies) it’s from, as well as set a time constraint and number of mistakes allowed.

Overall, I think Picross 3D is a pretty good package. It’s bargained priced at $20 USD, comes with a ton of puzzles, and is easy enough for everyone to enjoy. Not to say that there isn’t plenty of difficulty, as I’m only in the normal difficulty as of now, and those are starting to give me serious trouble. If you like puzzles like Sudoku, then I think you would really enjoy this game. The concept is simple and easy to grasp, but the puzzles can get complicated, so it has a nice balance to it. And once you get done with the puzzles, you can make your own, and even enter them in contests, which is pretty cool.

Overall Score: 8/10

Game & Watch Collection 2 Review

Following in the footsteps of the first Club Nintendo exclusive game, Game & Watch Collection, comes ... what else? Game & Watch Collection 2. But, unlike the first collection, which emulated three of the Game & Watch's dual-screen games, this collection only features two single-screen games, Octopus and Parachute, and a new game that combines the two, Parachute X Octopus. Knowing this, should you still put down you hard earned 800 Coins for this? Or should you hold out and wait for other Club Nintendo prizes?

The only thing I would like to mention is the new interface. The first game had a very plain and boring menu system, that while stay true to the aesthetic of the Game & Watch games, was still just unappealing. But this second one takes a different route, and has the look and music as if it was something out of The Legendary Starfy series. Obviously this doesn't make up for the poor selection of just two classic games (and a third that just combines the two) for the steep price of 800 Coins, but it was something I liked at least. If anything, I'd of liked to see New/Old version of the games in this style, akin to the old Game & Watch Gallery games with Mario characters.

Parachute
When you select this game or the following, there's something you'll notice right away: the top screen is wasted. The previous collection's use of both screens was neat, because you could have never played those games like that unless you actually had them. But with this, you really have to wonder why it's even on the DS.

The premise of Parachute is simple (as one would expect from a Game & Watch title), a helicopter tosses out characters, and it's up to you to catch them in your boat. It's definitely one of the most fun Game & Watch games around, and once I got the hang of it I kept trying to best my scores, but when the cart only has this and another game it feels a bit like a ripoff.

Octopus
While I may have really liked Parachute, Octopus has always been a Game & Watch title that I hated. I'm not sure if it's the difficulty, or the limitations of the Game & Watch interface, or that big stupid octopus that's always there, but I've just never been able to get into this one. And being that it's just one of two games on this collection, makes me question why I even got this ... and then I realized it was because I didn't feel like wasting my Coins on paper goods...

Parachute X Octopus
And then there's the "new" Game & Watch game, Parachute X Octopus. Sadly, as the name suggests, it's just a combination of the two games already on this collection, and not an entirely new Game & Watch set up. And to make things worse, the game never truly uses both screens as it may look. Instead you start off with a game of Parachute on top, and after a certain number of rescues, you go down and grab some treasure while evading the tentacles in Octopus, and repeat. So basically you're just alternating between both games on the collection, just without having to go through menus, and you only have three strikes between both games. It's not overly fun, and really shouldn't even be called new.

Final Thoughts
What made the first Club Nintendo Game & Watch Collection neat was that for the first time ever, those three dual-screen Game & Watch titles could be emulated to play as they were intended, which would have been impossible in the four Game & Watch Gallery titles that had released for the different Game Boy platforms. With this second collection, you're getting only two games, both of which have been featured in nearly every Game & Watch compilation, and could've easily been made available via DSiWare like a lot of other Game & Watch titles have been recently. The 'new' inclusion doesn't even warrant a purchase, because it's just the two games alternating from one screen to another. Sure there's some collector's value with this, but then again, there's nothing much else to spend 800 coins on, so the choice is yours.

Overall Score: 6/10

Late Night Flickr Update

Hey there, it's been quite a long time since we put the Flickr account to use, so I just put up to images. First off, my Encom Employee Badge:

You can still get one of these for yourself by visiting the TRON Legacy viral site, Flynn Lives, play the Arcade Aid game, and then register for the free badge. Once it arrives you can use it to access Encom's website. It's really simple, and the badge arrives quickly. Quite a neat piece of movie swag.

This one's pretty obvious, it's the sequel to the previous Club Nintendo exclusive Game & Watch Collection. I've yet to play it, but I'll review it once I do, just like the last one.

Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks Review

It hasn’t been too long since Phantom Hourglass released on the DS, but Nintendo has decided to give us gamers a second dose of the famous hero with The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks. The game follows the same basic formula of Phantom Hourglass and previous Zelda titles, but there are definitely a few things that set it apart and make it another great adventure.

Spirit Tracks opens up like previous Zelda titles with a bit of back-story and introduction of the world and its characters. A long time ago, the Demon King Malladus tried to take over the world, but the spirits of good, after a long battle, managed to subdue the beast and trap him under the Tower of Spirits. Now, Zelda’s Chancellor, Cole, is plotting to resurrect the Demon King using the princess’ own body and Link must stop him, and save Zelda and Hyrule, yet again.

The game takes place around 50 years after Phantom Hourglass, as one character makes a cameo, and relatives of others are present, so while this is a new Link and Zelda, it is still in the same time frame, although that isn’t very important. What is worthy of note, is how similar Spirit Tracks is to Phantom Hourglass, in terms of gameplay. As it is on the same platform, the controls and look and feel of the game are nearly identical to Phantom Hourglass. You still control Link via the touch screen, which works as well as it did previously, although it doesn’t allow for using weapons and moving at the same time, which is disappointing. So you have to trace the boomerang’s path while standing still, etc, but this was also true of the last game.

Your ship and sea have been traded in for a train and tracks. While this doesn’t allow for free range movement, as you are limited to the predefined tracks, there is still ample to explore and look at while traveling, and the game rewards you for doing so. So, while you are bound to your tracks, you can shoot boulders with your cannon to earn some extra rupees, and even find some bunnies, which is one of the more noticeable and entertaining side quests. There are ten rabbits scattered in each of the five regions of the game, and if you collect them all, first by finding them and then by using a net to capture them, you receive a few rewards, some more valuable and cool than others.

Also, enemies will attack you, so you must defend yourself, and there are certain obstacles that must be avoided, so careful planning and quick thinking are needed when riding the tracks. There are lots of forks and paths to take, and choosing a path is very simple. You can draw a route first to make these decisions automatically, but you can always change your mind on the fly and choose to take a different path. You start out with a rather limited set of tracks to ride, but as you progress, you unlock new regions to explore, and more and more tracks will reappear as you complete side quests and help citizens of the land, so there is a good incentive to explore and talk to people.

Similarly to Phantom Hourglass again, you can upgrade your train with various parts and cars. You can’t really add on to your train, but instead exchange parts. This is done by visiting a relative of that smarmy Linebeck and trading him trinkets you find during your travels for the train cars. These don’t really add anything to the game, per say, but they can be fun to collect and exchange if you want to give your ride a new look.

Aside from riding the lines, which is still too slow in my opinion, even though there are numerous teleportation spots, you have the main game still, which includes the dungeon crawling, boss whomping, and puzzle solving that you’ve enjoyed for forever. There are a lot of things that you will find familiar, like some of the enemies and overall artwork and look, just like Phantom Hourglass. Luckily though, there are some new weapons and items in the game, and some pretty cool gameplay mechanics I was surprised about. One new weapon is the whip, which is pretty cool to just look at and whip random things. It lends itself well as a tool, but not so much a weapon. There are other mechanics though, like the ability to freeze water by boomeranging a cold flame to make a path, which I found particularly surprising, inventive, and neat. I think you could use ice arrows to freeze water in a 3D Zelda game of some sort, but it just seemed special here.

There are five dungeons to explore, plus another in the Tower of Spirits. Within these, the bosses are pretty well designed and the fights use the weapons well. None of them are particularly difficult, which is unfortunate, but the tactics used are inventive and fun, and there are even some cool, true 3D moments. The Tower of the Spirits acts as Spirit Tracks’ Temple of the Ocean King, out of Phantom Hourglass. You have to return to this tower numerous times in your journey to unlock new sections of the track so you can visit new regions and dungeons. Fortunately, you don’t have to go through the same areas multiple times, as new floors are unlocked, and there is a stair case that allows you to bypass previous sections. Also, there is no time limit, so you don’t have to be bothered with that either.

As Zelda’s spirit is traveling with you on your journey to save the land and her body, she lends a hand, even though a bit unwilling at first. She has the ability to inhabit the bodies of phantoms. So, like in Phantom Hourglass, you can also control a phantom, and do things like jump on his shield to get through fire pits and the like. There are various types of phantoms, each with their own abilities, so there is about one section of the game where this becomes important, but obviously, the different uses are important in their own way. The mechanic works just about as well as in the previous title, but I found Zelda’s AI to be pretty terrible. She would have trouble finding you when you called her to your side, and would even go through sand pits, which she can’t cross, causing her to sink, when there was a perfectly good bridge two steps to her right. It was very bothersome.

Overall, Spirit Tracks is another great entry in the series. While it is very similar to the look and feel of Phantom Hourglass, there is still plenty of new content to enjoy, and any true fan won’t think twice about picking this one up. The main adventure is fun and enjoyable, and the side quests are engaging as well, so you will find yourself searching for those rabbits and looking for the stamp booths, and talking to people to unlock more tracks and find new stations to visit. There is plenty to do in the game, and while it goes fast at the beginning, it has a decent length. Like most Zelda games, it isn’t that difficult, so veterans can complete it with relative ease, but it’s still a good adventure and with the new mechanics, makes for a fun ride. (Oh, and there's some battle mode too, but I never tried it...only local though it would seem.)

Overall Score: 8.8/10

I CRUSH YOU! With a Nintendo DSi LL

Yes, the rumors you may have heard elsewhere were true. Nintendo (of Japan at least) will be releasing yet another iteration of the Nintendo DS. This time however, things are a little different... instead of making a slimmer sleeker system, Nintendo decided to take the already slim and quite nice DSi model... and made it larger (yes, believe it or not) but adding 4 inch screens to the device, a pen-like stylus, and giving it a classy set of colors (Wine Red, Dark Brown, and Natural White).

As you can see from this helpful image I made for you (from material on the system's official website of course), the DSi LL really topples the DSi in sheer size, not to mention how much it outsizes the DS lite (whose screens are already smaller than the standard DSi).

I'm still not sure why this seems like a good idea though. Perhaps it's because I'm not an old person and I'm quite pleased with the size of my DSi, but I just don't see the practicality in 1) releasing another DS model so soon after the latest, and 2) releasing such a large system targeted a what I think is a niche market. Someone should tell Nintendo that people stopped liking massive portable systems when Game Gear failed. I seriously think this will go the way of the Game Boy Light and never hit US shores.

Visit Nintendo of Japan's Official Nintendo DSi LL website for more info

UPDATE! Looks like the system is, for whatever reason, actually coming to North America and Europe some time next year. However in both regions, the system will be called the Nintendo DSi XL; apparently LL is the Japanese equivalent of XL on say, t-shirt labels. This looks like one Nintendo handheld I'll actually refrain from buying.

The Legendary Starfy review

After seven years of being exclusive to Japan, TOSE's Starfy franchise finally arrives in North America with the fifth game in the series (and the second for Nintendo DS). Has Starfy's arrival been worth the wait, or should this series have stayed in Japan?

Story
Being the first game in the series to not have a number in the Japanese title (it's known there as Densetsu no Starfy Taiketsu! Daiiru Kaizokudan) The Legendary Starfy thankfully doesn't require new players to series to know the entire back story of the character or the world he inhabits, though it wouldn't hurt to know.

The original Densetsu no Starfy (released in 2002 for the Game Boy Advance) dealt with Starfy falling from his home in the sky, Pufftop Palace, and landing in the ocean where he is assumed to be a starfish. So just wanting to clear that u for you, that despite the gameplay taking place underwater and revolving around sea creatures, Starfy himself is actually a star, not a starfish.

The Legendary Starfy opens up with the titular hero relaxing in his home in Pufftop, when all the the sudden a mysterious, rabbit-like creature falls from the sky and awakens Starfy; but the two find out they are not alone. After a quick scuffle, the creature escapes to the ocean and Starfy goes after him to see what's going on. You soon learn his name to be Bunston, but because of the fall his memory isn't all there, and it's up to Starfy to help Bunston recover his memory and stop an oncoming threat.

Gameplay
Being that the game centers around aquatic life, it should come as no surprise that 80% of the game will take place underwater. Thankfully, unlike most platformers, the time you spend in the water here is the most enjoyable aspect of the game. Unlike Mario or Kirby, the water is where Starfy belongs, and so it's here that he can move faster and more agile, have better attacks, and so forth. Out of the water, Starfy is reasonably slow, though if you hold the Y button his eyes will burst from his head and he'll scurry around at a faster pace. Otherwise, Starfy plays like the average platformer, you have nine unique worlds, each with 5 or so sub-levels and some unlockable secret levels and mini-games as well.

To aid Starfy, this time around at select parts of the game, you can combine with Bunston to play as four different creatures, each with their own unique abilities. They add a nice change to the gameplay, and each can be leveled up which adds to the replayablity to some levels where you could not obtain something prior. However, a couple of these combinations are obtained late in the game, and are only used a few times, making the inclusion of them feel pretty useless and only necessary for completists.

However there is more to the game than just platforming by yourself, as The Legendary Starfy introduces co-op to the series. At certain levels in the game, and more specifically, the boss battles, you will be asked if you would like to play with a friend. By selecting either single-card (DS Download Play) or multi-card play, a second player can join in the game as Starfy's sister, Starly, who plays similar to her brother, but has a few extra moves that will allow her to access extra points that Starfy won't be able to. Though, don't be scared, you will never be required to connect with another gamer in order to beat the game 100%.

Also included for you to play are five mini games, of which can be played alone or with single/multi cart play. They obviously aren't the focus of the game, but they're a nice distraction from the regular gameplay and are about the only time you'll ever need to use the touchscreen. The game also offers so extras like dress-up items for Starfy and Starly, journal entries from various characters to read, a video gallery of all the cutscenes you've seen, and more to be unlocked after you finish the game.

Graphics
The first thing I noticed when playing The Legendary Starfy was just how eye-poppingly colorful it was; and with the larger, brighter screens on my Nintendo DSi it looks even better. To compare, I played the game on my old DS Phat, and it just doesn't even compare, this game deserves to be played on a DSi or DS lite.

As for the graphics themselves, the stages and character sprites are all 2D, however the stage backgrounds and occasional bosses will be 3D. Some later levels, which require you to raise and lower the water levels, benefit greatly from the added depth of the 3D backgrounds, and overall the game has a great sense of style. Aiding to the style is the usage of both screens, which typically will display one of four hint screens (you choose which to display); however, occasionally a part of a level will have a character on the lower screen that affects the gameplay on the top screen. I found the lower screen sprites the amuse me more so than intimidate me, and I only wish there was more of the dual-screen gameplay included.

Oddly enough, some of the best 3D modeling I've seen on the DS comes from the game's more or less, useless dress up mode. Hidden around the game are treasure chests that may contain clothing items to dress Starfy and Starly with, and you can then view them in a full 360º mode. The level of detail and smoothness was highly surprising, and I'd say the models are on a middle-grade PS2 level; but in the end, they don't do anything besides sit on the pause screen, so it's a lost cause sadly (albeit an amusing to look at one).

The last graphical aspect is something that really bothered me. While everything is colorful, clean, and sprite-based, the cutscenes are not. They look like they were initially made via sprites, but they are actually compressed videos, and sadly the compression on the videos stands out. I just feel it's unfortunate that such a pretty game has to have such ugly compression on otherwise delightful comic-style cutscenes.

Sound
The soundtrack to Starfy isn't the shining aspect of the game by any means, but there are wide array of fun and catchy tunes to be heard. If anything greatly improves from sound it's the character of Starfy himself; I don't think I can count how many times it put a smile on my face to hear his "WEEEEEEEE!" squeals during cutscenes and character chats, especially when paired with the game's overly cute art style. I think the sound alone brings more life to Starfy as a character more so than the fully 3D version of him from Super Smash Bros. Brawl ever will, even though his whole purpose in that game was to be beaten up... poor guy.

Final Thoughts
I think it's safe to say that I was more than ecstatic when Nintendo announced that Starfy was finally hit North American shores. After waiting seven years, and finally being able to play through one of the games, I can say that I am more than pleased; enough to say that I have a new favorite character to look for on Nintendo systems. Starfy's overall cuteness may not hit a note with hardcore gamers, but The Legendary Starfy is definitely a platformer that anyone can enjoy. Here's to hoping the previous four games make it here someday!

Overall Score: 9/10

For more on The Legendary Starfy, visit Starfy.com

Personal Trainer: Walking review

Nintendo ups the peripherals (and the price) on the Nintendo DS with their latest entry into the Personal Trainer series, Person Trainer: Walking.

The main feature of Walking can be seen through a plastic window on the box itself, the "Activity Meters", which are pedometers made by Nintendo to be specifically used with the game. Each pedometer has a button, a blinking light, and an infrared port on it. The button and infrared port are used to transmit and receive data with the game via Walking's infrared DS game card, which looks black but is actually a dark, clear red, and clearly distinguishable to the typical gray DS cards. The light on the device will normally blink red with every step, however, if you achieve your step goal (which I'll get to later), the light will blink green to indicate that you've reached your goal.

The Activity Meters are pretty well built, and are durable. I've been wearing mine daily since I bought the game, either clipping it to my waist when I go outside, or leaving it in my pocket while I'm at work. Though I do have one issue with it, out of the box, the meters do not have their clips attached, instead requiring you to unscrew the original back-plate, and replace it with the included clip plate. It's easy to do, but it just seems like a waste to me, because it's not as if the clip gets in the way when you don't need it, as the meters are pretty much the size of a matchbook. But because the game comes with the two meters, extra clip backings, and the fancy infrared game card, the game prices in at $50, certainly a big step over the $20 that Touch Generations titles are usually priced at.

Gameplay
Despite the pricetag, there isn't much to this "game" in terms of gameplay, as the attention is on the Activity Meter devices. Instead, the game does it's job by reporting and analyzing your walking data, and allowing you to do some things with said data. And if this game sounded to you like it was aimed at the Wii Fit crowd, then you'd be glad to know that it's all hosted by a personified Activity Meter, just like how Wii Fit has the Balance Board guiding you through the game.

When you first register an Activity Meter (you can register up to 4 per game, though only 2 devices come with the game), you will be asked some questions, such as age, rate of activity, etc. You can then set the device for a human, or a dog; yes, the officially makes it the first handheld game that dogs can participate in. Selecting human will allow you to either make a Mii directly in the game (a DS first), or connect to your Wii and transfer a Mii via the Mii Channel (also a first). The creation tools on the DS work just like the Wii, although now you can select between 6 different outfits. Those looking for the same fun creation tools for dogs though, will be disappointed, as you can only select from the randomly assorted dogs in the game, and you can't customize them to match your own pooch.

But enough about Miis, lets get to where the game is focused, walking. For me, the game seemed intriguing because I personally do a lot of walking, more so when I was living in the city; but I never had a clear idea of how much I was actually walking, so I figured this would be a fun, new way to find out. After doing my daily walking around, I just open up my DSi, start the game up, choose "Check Your Rhythm", press the button on my meter, and BAM, all my data for the day instantly on my DS. What's neat is that the game will show you how active you are ever hour, minute, and if you check your Records, you can also check steps and rhythm by weeks, months, and even year once you get there.

However, if charts and graphs aren't your thing (not sure why you'd get this to begin with then) there's the "Play with Records" option. Here you can play the "Walk the World" mini-game that chooses random world locations, and will draw out pictures of worldly objects with your recorded steps. Once completed, you'll get some facts and maybe even sound clips of the object you've drawn; exciting, I know, but there's over 100 things to draw so at least it's something to do. The next option is "Illuminate" which uses your steps to run a virtual generator to light up a town, however, once you reach 10,000 watts (which took me about a week) the steps generated won't do anything more, making this option pointless. There's also rankings for you to compare various stats with other users on the game.

The last option is mildly neat however, and that's Nintendo WiFi Connection support. Here you can upload your daily step data online, for participation in two events: the Space Walk, and World Rankings. The Space Walk aggregates steps uploaded by players around the world (only 1,311 at this point, sadly) counts them towards a walk a across space. As of writing this review, we're about a 5th of the way to the Moon, with Neptune being over 6 trillion steps away; no idea if it'll be anything like Noby Noby Boy's reaching for Mars, but I doubt it. None the less, it's a neat feature and I'm curious how long it will actually take to complete. The World Ranking works much like the offline Rankings, although now it's obviously everyone's steps and not just your family's; but there's some different sorting options for those that care.

Overall Thoughts
Other than the nice readings, and tacked on mini-game like features, there really isn't much to Personal Trainer: Walking in terms of gameplay, which may make the $50 pricetag sound intimidating. But if you're someone like myself who does do a lot of walking, and are interested in a better understanding of how much you actually walk, the game, and it's well built Activity Meters are certainly a fun, simple way for DS owners to do so. Though I do question the game's title, as it never actually "trains" you to walk, it just tells you how do. Perhaps this shoud've been called Personal Analyzer: Walking instead.

Overall Score: 7/10

For more on Personal Trainer: Walking, check out Nintendo's official website for the game.

After Thoughts: E3 2009 - Day 1

For full impressions and photos, be sure to check each game's respective link to Gamers Platform (where you will find more photos and impressions for games not listed as well; I can only type so much).

Hello again; this is Zach reporting live from E3. As you can see, it's late, and I'm tired, and I have to get up in a few hours and head back to the convention center to see all the stuff I didn't get a chance to today. It's a lot of stuff too, that I need to see...still, I saw and played a ton of stuff today.

I don't want to laundry list anything, but I will; On the Nintendo side of things, I got to play some New Super Mario Bros. Wii, Wii Sports Resort, Zelda: Spirit Tracks, and Sin and Punishment 2, to name a few. For the Xbox 360, I took a look at Halo 3: ODST, Left 4 Dead 2, and a few other treasures. I didn't get a chance to look at too much for Sony, but I did play some Uncharted 2 multiplayer, as well as some MAG.

Then of course there is third party material, like Red Steel 2 and The Conduit, along with countless other titles.

Of course, I'm getting ahead of myself, and need to mention that I went to the Nintendo Conference, which was quite the interesting event. They announced some decent games, along with a shocker or two, like the vitality peripheral and Team Ninja Metroid game; one good, one not so much; can you guess which is which?

After that event, I headed over to the convention center and boy o boy, you have never seen more people. The place was packed; it was crazy. I have pics, but won't upload them until later. Anyways, the place finally opens and we all run in to be the first in line to check out our favorite games. Luckily, the crowd was split between the South and West halls, and the lines for any one game weren't too long at all; I was quite surprised actually as I didn't have to wait over an hour for any game, as opposed to those horror stories you hear where the line winds around the entire hall.

Anyways, I had a great, long day and I plan to do the same tomorrow. I can't wait. Stay tuned to see what kinds of games I play tomorrow, like God of War III, Resident Evil: The Darkside Chronicles, Silent Hill: Shattered Memories, Forza 3, and many, many more. Get ready, it's coming!

For yesterday's After Thoughts see E3 2009 - Day 0

E3 09: Nintendo Conference

Well, as everyone remembers, Nintendo didn't do so hot at E3 in terms of pleasing their fans and showing of games to excite the hardcore crowd. But this year is a new year isn't it? ... isn't it?!

This years show opened up with Ms. Smiles herself, Cammie Dunaway, talking about how Nintendo is for everyone; and reinforced "innovation". But then it was time to put up:

New Super Mario Bros Wii
- 4 Players (Mario, Luigi, 2 Toads)
- Pop-in/out co-op
- Wiimote, NES style controls
- New 'Propeller Suit'
- Worldwide release Holiday 2009

Wii Fit Plus
- Make your own workouts
- 15 new balance games
- Available Fall 2009, with or without Balance Board

Wii Sports Resort
- Includes basketball, archery, golf, kayaking, and more.
- Skydiving intro mini-game
- Releasing July 26th

Trailers:
-Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Crystal Bearers
-Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days

Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story
- North America and Europe release in Fall

Golden Sun DS
- Yes, you just read that
- Completely 3D

James Patterson's Women's Murder Club
- From THQ for DS
- Mystery solving, puzzles
- Seems lame

C.O.P. The Recruit
- From Ubisoft for DS
- GTA console style gameplay

Style Savvy
- Girls Mode for US release
- ... I'm not covering this

Nintendo DSi promo video with people you don't want to watch.

Flipnote Studio
- aka Moving Memo
- coming this summer

Mario vs Donkey Kong: Minis March Again
- Fully user created levels
- Share levels online
- DSiWare title, available this Monday

WarioWare: D.I.Y.
- "Do it yourself"
- Make your own mini-games, share online

Nintendo DSi update
- Photo upload to Facebook

The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks
- ... only mentioned?!
- Playable on show floor at least

Iwata comes out to talk about gamers, difficulty levels, and like topics.

Wii Vitality Sensor
- A pulse sensor for your finger, connects to Wiimote
- Looks like the same pulse sensor you'd use at a hospital
- No actual use of the device shown

Super Mario Galaxy 2
- First 3D Mario sequel for one system
- Includes Yoshi gameplay
- Looks as good, if not, better than the first game

Reggie comes out to talk about third party games
- The Conduit (Sega), Resident Evil: The Darkside Chronicles (Capcom), and Dead Space Extraction (EA).

Metroid: Other M
- Nintendo and Team Ninja project
- Combines 3D, 2.5D and first person
- Set for 2010

END

Sin & Punishment 2 is playable at the show, but go no mention at the conference ... what gives? But seriously, even though this was a much better show than last year's Wii Music debacle, I didn't leave as excited as I was with Microsoft's conference, and I'm far from a Microsoft fan. None the less, I was pleasantly surprised by Golden Sun DS, Super Mario Galaxy 2, and I'm now super interested in Metroid: Other M.

Pokemon Platinum Review

Pokemon and I, we go way back, all way back to 1998 when I received my very first Charmander. And, even after all these years, I still have an undying love for the games. But how does Platinum fair up against the others? Is it better than Diamond and Pearl? Perhaps it's the best Pokemon game yet? All of these seem logical, but looks like you'll have to read this review to find out!

Story
I am happy to say that Platinum's story varies greatly from that of Diamond and Pearl. Of course, Team Galactic is up to no good again; but this time Cyrus seems to believe that obtaining both Palkia and Dialga will do the world good. You, of course, are a young Pokemon Trainer who happens to stumble into Team Galactic's affairs and you alone must somehow overcome the odds and stop him! Just remember, friendship always wins!

Pokemon Platinum also introduces some new characters to the story. There's Looker, an undercover cop who is attempting to prevent Team Galactic; he seems to pop up on random occasions and, well, basically is unneeded and gets in the way. And there's Charon, a new member of Team Galactic; he play's little role in the game at first, but later his role grows as he begins to rank up among Team Galactic.

A new area has also been added to Platinum, or perhaps I should call it a new dimension? If you have ever seen the Pokemon Platinum commercial, or watched the most recent movie Giratina and the Sky Bouquet then you will know about this new dimension. It is a separate dimension that truly shows off Pokemon's 3D capabilities. In this dimension you are able to walk on walls, ride on upside down waterfalls, and do something else that's not quite as cool as those 2 things. The reason why I say that this dimension really shows off Pokemon's 3D capabilities is because you can see the different layers of land below you, which I just found really cool.

Graphics
Starting off, the game attempts to fool you. When you start in Twin Leaf Town, you, as well as your Rival, are wearing winter outfits. Twin Leaf is also covered in snow. This fooled me into thinking that all of Sinnoh would be covered in snow, but I was wrong! In fact, Sinnoh is exactly the same as it was in Diamond and Pearl, which kind of disappointed me, I would have at least liked to see it in the winter time...

On the bright side, some of the gyms have been changed. Eterna City has a new "pedal clock" in the middle of it. Hearthome has a much more darker feel to it, and a completely different layout at that. Also, Veilstone has a "boxing" type gym where you must punch punching bags in order to complete it. Another thing to note is that more important characters, such as Gym Leaders, higher ranked Team Galactic characters, and your Rival, now have animated sprites before they throw their first Pokemon. In the end, not much has changed graphically in Platinum, but let's be honest: If your going to buy this game, are you going to buy it because of it graphics?

Gameplay
No, you're not. If your going to buy this game, it will most certainly be for its gameplay! Ever since the dawn of time, the gameplay in Pokemon has been the same. It's simplistic, but always addicting; and Platinum's gameplay is no different. If you have never played a Pokemon game (and I pray that you all have), then it goes a little something like this.

Step 1: Catch a Pokemon (or a few), it doesn't matter which one. It can be the strongest, the coolest, the dumbest, whatever you so choose.

Step 2: Train it to your heart's content. You can keep it until its level 100, or you can keep it until you find a better one OR, if you a real individual, you can train it to enter competitions, like a beauty competition.

Step 3: Defeat everyone!

Yup, that's Pokemon in a nutshell for you!

On a side note, Platinum has added a few new features. They have upgraded the wi-fi capabilities. You can now record your own battle videos, as well as share them, and watch other peoples' battle videos. Not to mention the ability to link the Global Trade System (GTS) to your Wii, and have it send you Wii-mail when you make a trade.

They have also added some new rooms to the Battle Tower. You have the classic room: fight others and their Pokemon, and see how long you can make it; one room where you choose a single Pokemon to fight for you; another room where you receive three random Pokemon to battle with, and lastly, you have a room where you simply choose three Pokemon to fight for you.

I am also happy to announce that, yes, both Dialga and Palkia are available in this version, as well as the transformation of Shamin (if you were lucky enough to snag one at a Nintendo event). You are also able to obtain 5 different transformations of Rotom: Fan, Refrigerator, Lawn Mower, Washing Machine, and Oven Rotom.

Sound
Ah, the sound of Pokemon. How I always think of the low-bit noise that comes out of each and every Pokemon's mouth when they are sent out for battle. I've always wondered why they don't say their name like they do in the show... it's a mystery!

Anyway, as far as sounds go in Pokemon, there's not much to say. I've always liked the music of Pokemon, especially the up-beat battle music they always have to offer. In the end, the music seems to be the same as Diamond and Pearl.

Overall
I suppose it's time that I truly tell you what I think of the game. Drum roll please...

I think that... this is the best Pokemon game that Nintendo has thrown at us since Gold and Silver! Am I saying that it's better than Gold and Silver? Not by a long shot, but it is a wonderful game. It's most certainly better than Diamond and Pearl because of the new features that have been added to the Battle Tower, as well as the ability the take and share battle videos with others around the world. I also like that Rotom can now transform into home appliances (some of which are absolutely amazing!), and well as Shamin's ability turn into its sky form.

I also loved the new dimension that you are able to enter and how they're implementing the movies into the game, it's a nice touch (though I'm sure it's hand in hand). In the end, Platinum is like Diamond and Pearl mixed into one; much like Emerald, Crystal, and Yellow before it. Just the fact that you can get both Dialga and Palkia makes it better than it's predecessors, but for once, Nintendo went the extra step by adding the new story, new features, new Pokemon, and new characters!

Overall: 9.2/10

Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon Review

Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon is a remake of the original Famicom game for the DS, melding together the story from the original with the game mechanics of recent iterations. If you’ve played past Fire Emblem games, like Sacred Stones, then you will be right at home with the goings on. Let’s see what kind of trouble Marth can get himself into.

The game opens with a prologue and training stages, explaining how Marth is forced to flee from his kingdom of Altea after his father, the king, and armies are betrayed by Gra. Marth successfully escapes and must then wait until the time comes when he can reclaim his kingdom and save the continent from the evil forces with the powerful Falchion sword.

These first stages are very simple and are just used to introduce the player to some of the game mechanics. The action and game map are on the bottom screen, where you move your soldiers around, while the top screen displays a myriad of information. Tutorials will pop up on the top screen whenever a new mechanic is introduced and these are very unobtrusive and easy to understand. Aside from displaying tutorials, the top screen can also show character stats or the entire game map with soldier locations.

The main gameplay is fairly simple to understand. Fire Emblem is a turn-based strategy, and you move all of your troops, and then the enemy gets to move theirs. To help you out a bit with your strategy, you can press the X button to display your enemies attack range, so you can stay out of that range until you are ready for battle. There are an assortment of classes and soldier-types so it’s definitely something you need to take into account before haphazardly running into a fight, as some enemies are more vulnerable to certain weapons or classes. Shadow Dragon also makes use of the weapon triangle, with swords, axes, and lances, which works like rock, paper, scissors, however, I found that this isn’t too important. Before you attack, you can also cycle through your weapons with ease to see which will do the most damage, and so forth.

Each character can hold five items, including an assortment of weapons. It’s always good to have a few weapons on hand, as they can only be used a certain number of times before breaking. Also, unlike most games, when a character dies, he or she is gone for good. Each character has a story, personality, and traits, and isn’t some stock soldier you can simply repurchase from a barracks. This adds more urgency to fighting and gives you more of a reason to plan carefully. Luckily, there are ample save opportunities so you can restart if a character does die.


The game opens with you only having a few soldiers at your side, but as you progress, more and more allies will come to your aid and join your army. The main characters will simply join along with the story, but you can recruit soldiers on your own in a variety of ways. You can visit kingdoms on the map, which is done by moving over a specific tile and selecting the “visit” option; or by talking with a specific enemy soldier with a specific character. You can get details on these recruit-able soldiers by visiting towns and speaking with villagers, but this isn’t really necessary, as these enemy soldiers are easily identifiable. Recruiting these characters is very valuable and definitely something you should do whenever you get the chance.

Once you get through the third chapter, more options are unlocked that allow you to prepare before a battle, as opposed to just getting thrown into the mix. You can choose which units will be used in the battle, as well as moving them around the map. You can also change the characters’ classes, and sort out the inventory, as well as upgrading and purchasing new weapons. During gameplay, you can also trade with nearby units, as well as visiting a Forgery to upgrade weapons.

Fire Emblem: SD also features some multiplayer and WiFi modes. With these modes, you can play against a friend or anybody around the world. If you are playing with a registered friend, you can make use of the microphone and chat with your buddy, which is neat. You can also lend out and borrow soldiers that people upload, which is a good way to even the playing field. There is also an online shop where you can get the chance to purchase special weapons.

Overall, Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon is another great Fire Emblem game that stays true to the series, but doesn’t really add in anything extra. The touch controls work fine, but buttons are more accurate. The WiFi features are a nice addition, but nothing innovative. It is a good remake though, and definitely nice to see Marth take on some soldiers. If you’re a fan of the TBS genre, then this is a great game to play, and with the added Hard mode and ability to take on actual players from around the world, you’ll have your work cut out for you.

Overall Score: 8/10

Posted in cooperation with GamersPlatform

LEGO Rock Band ... what?!

If there's two things there is too much of these days, it's music games, and LEGO games. That above screenshot, made large to make sure you're not imagining it, is the proof that things have just gone too far. Harmonix announced today that LEGO Rock Band will be co-developed with TT Games, and will play just like any other Rock Band title, but with a set list aimed at teens and younger players.

My question is, besides "what the @&%?!" is "Why LEGO?" At least games like LEGO Star Wars, LEGO Indiana Jones, and LEGO Batman make sense, because there are actual LEGO sets for such franchises, not to mention the constructable aspect of the toys works well for the beat'em up genre. But, here's a case where there's no actual Rock Band LEGOs (I can't see why there would be...) and there's nothing other than possibly gimmicky character construction that would implement the ideal aspect of the product. That's like making a Hot Wheels branded first person shooter, it makes no sense. And really, people of all ages like LEGO, but is the branding alone really going to make someone buy this over say ... Rock Band 2? Or even better, just a Rock Band title aimed at a younger audience, but without the LEGO branding?

Personally, I'd play Rock Band over Guitar Hero any day. And I have to commend Harmonix for making the upcoming The Beatles: Rock Band from the ground up, instead of taking the Activision approach of re-skinning Guitar Hero III and World Tour, and calling them Aerosmith and Metallica respectively. But with a concept like LEGO Rock Band, of all things ... I get the feeling that Rock Band will head down the road of Guitar Hero, with over five spin offs a year, and I'd rather not imagine such a nightmare.

What I really think it comes down to is that companies, and not just gaming now, have run out of creative trust. They're taking the approach of "Why try something new and innovative, when we can just take this and this franchise and promote the hell out of it?" And from a personal stand point, that sucks, because it says I'll never get work if I don't do the job like it's already been done before. I'm all up for a different approach to music games, but if you're just going to slap on an existing franchise, to the same gameplay we've known for years, then you can count me out. I know it may be too early to judge, but I can't say my hopes are high.

If there's any hope for this title, I hope they'll at least let you use your DLC or at least import these tracks into other Rock Band titles. LEGO Rock Band is set for Holiday 2009, and will be releasing on all major platforms (as far as I know)

Nintendo DSi hands-on impressions

Hey everyone, sorry for the delay (despite it actually being a shorter wait than I had thought) but my DSi finally arrived today at six o'clock. Apparently a package can sit in a UPS truck for 13 hours before you get it, even though the shipping plant is just 15 min away... Anyways let's open up with some pictures I added to Flickr:

Sorry for no DS lite in the comparison shots, but I don't have one.

Quick note about the no DS lite, the video feature I have planned in the coming week will be about convincing early adopters of the original DS who didn't upgrade to the DS lite to finally take a step up; because I know I wasn't the only one out there in that situation.

For me, the first thing I noticed, other than the weird yet surprisingly comfortable matte finish, was the screens. Not only are they noticeably larger by comparison, but they're significantly brighter (but I again can't speak for the DS lite), and have less of a glare; heck the touch screen doesn't even get all those lines on it from the stylus. Speaking of the stylus, I was leary at first going from the tiny DS stylus that I was oh so used to the DSi's new, larger stylus. However, after a few run throughs with the DSi's various appilications I found it to be more comfortable, and well... better; I just have to get used to its placement in the system.

While the screens are bigger, the resolution stays the same, which I don't think makes a huge difference. However, while playing Mario Kart DS, the menus looked more jagged to me, though I can't really put the blame on the image being stretched, or if it's just the fact that it may of always looked that way and it only took the bright screen of the DSi for me to actually notice it.

App-wise, I purchased WarioWare: Snapped!(yet to play it) and the DSi Brower (Free) with the 1000 points Nintendo gives with every DSi. On my wifi, the downloads were much quicker than I expected, and I was able to get two downloads quicker than I have an NES game on the Wii Shop Channel. The browser is actually quite nice, though I'll the spare details until the actual review. As for what comes with the system, I played around with the camera, which was fun to an extent, but I had issues with some of the color filters due to my lighting. The Nintendo DSi Sound .. channel?.. was actually pretty fun; it was neat to be able hear my favorite songs and play around with it to make Eddie Vedder sound like Satan himself, or to twist and warp my own voice; not to mention, some of those music visualizer are neat (especially the Excitebike and Mario ones).

Lastly.. what else can I say? I've only had an hour or so to play around with the system because it arrived late, and I wanted to get the battery drained before I got into any serious gameplay (so yes, it is still charging). I also was able to transfer my Nintendo WiFi Connection stats from my old DS to my DSi in a procedure that was actually quite simple and easy, just incase you don't want to wory about remembering all new friend codes.

If there's anything I wish the DSi did have, other than say GBA support (though I can live without, being I have every GBA model) is I wish there was more networking to it. Like, why can't I have DSi friends like I do Wii friends, and have the ability to share photos and sound clips? Or even better, have the ability to share and recieve with Wii consoles? I mean, i'm sure it is possible with a firmware upgrade on both ends, but it's something I'd of liked to seen out of the box.

Other than that, if you still have an original DS, I'd say it's about time to upgrade, at least for the new hardware features like the internal memory, SD/SDHC support, cameras, and improved screens/speakers. But if you're a GBA purist, I wouldn't get rid of the old DS if you don't have any other way to play those games; I would get the DSi to supplement your gaming experience. My hope really comes down to the DSi Shop, if there's games there that you can't find anywhere else, than that will have to be your selling point, especially when the DSi sells for $170, while the still GBA compatible, yet extra feature-less DS lite runs for $130.

Hope this helps your purchase decisions!

GDC09: Nintendo news

Not that other companies don't have anything exciting, but this feels like the first "big" new from this years Game Developers Conference.

Nintendo DS, DSi, and DSiWare
- Nintendo DSi purchasers can redeem 1,000 free Nintendo Points by accessing the Nintendo DSi Shop by October 5th, 2009

- First DSiWare titles include Moving Memo, which lets players create digital flipbooks; and WarioWare: Snapped!, which uses Nintendo DSi Camera for mini-games.

- New Zelda game for the Nintendo DS: The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks. Will be playable on all DS models, i.e. no camera support or anything like that.

Wii, WiiWare, and Virtual Console
- With a firmware update (4.0) available today, Wii owners can now use SD cards, and even High Capacity SD cards (up to 32GB!) to save their Wii Channels, Virtual Console titles, and WiiWare games; all of which can be accessed from the new SD Menu.

- With this new found storage, Nintendo also announced the Virtual Console Arcade, which will bring classic arcade titles to the Wii's Virtual Console. In fact, four games are available right now!

- New WiiWare title announced, and demonstrated: Rock N' Roll Climber, which utilizes the Balance Board and Wiimote/nunchuck to simulate rock climbing. Looked to me like Donkey Kong: King of Swing but with people..

Flickr Update: Pokemon Platinum

Look what arrived in the mail this afternoon! Pokemon Platinum as well as my Giratina Origin Forme figure, for pre-ordering. Had I known the figure was going to be sealed in a air-tight foil bag, I may have reconsidered ... cause there's no *bleeping* way I'll actually tear that open. Collector's OCD, sorry.

Have yet to play the game, but it is in my DS, ready to go. I may post some impressions soon, as it's the first DS Pokemon game I'm playing ... as I opted out of getting Diamond or Pearl because I assumed the inevitable 3rd game would release. And considering there's a Pokemon Emerald cart in my DS Phat right now, I'm sure you can see it's not the first time I've waited.

Just a note, these games are notoriously long, I have a busy schedule till May, and there's no wifi where I'm at right now, so I can't promise a review just yet. But hopefully we can get something up here soon!

Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars Review

Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars hit the streets earlier this week, and I was a bit leery like I'm sure a lot of you are. I was like, yeah, GTA on DS could be cool, but come on; it'll probably be like those birds-eye view classic GTA games and be lame. However, after playing the game for only a few minutes, I soon understood that I was happily mistaken. I can easily say that Chinatown Wars has successfully recreated all the fun you had on the console versions, like GTA III – IV, and brought it to the DS.

The story follows the path of Huang Lee, who has come to Liberty City to give a special sword, Yu Jian, to his uncle after his father was killed. Shortly after arriving in Liberty City though, Huang is ambushed, shot, thrown into the river, and left for dead while having his sword taken. Now, he has sworn to find his father's killer, retrieve the sword, and help his uncle become the head of the Triads. There are some fishy characters and every mission you complete puts you step closer to solving the mystery. The story doesn't take itself seriously at all, poking fun at cliches and all sorts of things, and Huang himself is a very sarcastic, apathetic individual, and is a main driver of the comedy and humorous dialogue throughout the game.

The game is very funny, which mostly comes from the dialogue and random things shouted at you as you narrowly miss pedestrians on the street. And if you're a sick individual, you will also find it humorous to burn people alive with your flame thrower or chop people in half with your chainsaw. Good times. Of course, if you haven't found out from previous GTA titles or the big M on the box, this is not a game for kids, no matter how bright and attractive the graphics are. Aside from the obvious killing of people left and right, you have lots of cussing and adult themes and all sorts of things. There is also a large focus put on drug trading, although it's not graphic or anything.

There are hundreds of drug dealers scattered throughout the city, and each will buy and sell some of the six different kinds of drugs, like weed and heroin. Prices vary from dealer to dealer, so you can spend your time scouring the city for low prices and high buy-backs, making a huge profit, and luckily, the game keeps track of all of these stats and can help you know if you're going to make a profit on a sale. This mechanic doesn't directly go along with the story per say, and it's not particularly entertaining, but it's an easy way to make some cash, and you'll spend time tracking down leads from sellers who need to sell some drugs quickly for cheap, or who know of some rich kids in need of a fix.

The top screen is where all the action takes place, while the bottom screen features your GPS, or map, along with your health and other such stats or information. You can tap on the map and then select a drug dealer or other spot to go to and the GPS will set out a route for you. You can even change some options around so the route will appear on the top screen, which can be very useful. The game does have a top-down view which can make seeing where you're going a bit difficult, but you can change some camera angels around to give you a better view and once you get used to it, it isn't a big deal.

The controls are fairly simple, but take a little while to get used to. B is acceleration and run, while Y is brake/reverse and allows you to jump. You can lock on to people or objects with R and then attack with the A button, which all works very well, except you don't always lock on to exactly what you want. The driving is also really simple, although some cars just flat out suck to drive. There is even a driver-assist option if you really suck. And while the DS cart is somewhat limiting, there are still plenty of different vehicles to drive around in, including a multitude of regular cars you've grown to love, a tank, motorcycles, boats, and all kinds of fun stuff. There are also a lot of guns to have fun with, from pistols, SMG's, RPG's, a chainsaw, grenades, and more implements of destruction.

Of course, when you use these weapons, the cops are going to be all over you, especially if you're rollin' in a tank. Chinatown Wars does things a little different though when it comes to lowering your wanted level. Instead of just running away and staying out of trouble, you actually have to take out the cops to lower your rating. For instance, if you have a two star rating, you have to disable two cop cars to lower your rating to one; then you have to disable one car, and then you can hide. And when I say disable, I don't mean blow them to hell. You have to disable the cars by ramming them into buildings or other such means, but not blowing them up or destroying them. If you completely destroy the cop cars, then your rating will go up. This new mechanic is pretty cool actually and works well, and is more fun then just running away.

Naturally, no DS game gets away with not introducing some “gimmicky” gameplay by using the touch screen, and Chinatown Wars is no exception. The game uses the touch screen for some “mini-games,” such as hot-wiring cars, searching dumpsters for items, making molotovs, making tattoos, and more. Luckily, all of these things are simple and generally not done very often, so it doesn't feel overused or forced. It all works quite well.

The game itself plays out like any other GTA game of recent years. You can go around, exploring the city at your leisure, buying and selling drugs, or do the missions. There are 60 missions to complete, which will take you around 5 hours to do, if you go straight through it, but Chinatown Wars offers plenty more. When I beat the story mode, I only had 50% completion. Aside from the story missions, there are 100 cameras scattered throughout Liberty City to destroy; rampages to complete, which are rated from bronze to gold; stunt jumps; races; taxi, fire truck, ambulance, and vigilante missions to perform; random people to help out; and more. Chinatown Wars isn't some watered down GTA game, as it features just about everything from the console games.

There is even multiplayer, except eh. The multiplayer offered is only for two players, and is restricted to local play. This is mainly unfortunate because there are a lot of cool modes to play, such as races; stash dash, where you try to get a ton of drugs; Liberty City survivor, where you try to kill a bunch of people; gang bang; and defend the base, which is co-op and just sounds awesome. There is some WiFi mode, but you can only swap items and send each other messages, more or less, which is very disappointing.

Overall, Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars is a great addition to the series and a fantastic game for the Nintendo DS. The game has everything you've come to love and expect from a GTA experience, with a decent story, missions, free roaming, hidden items, lots of weapons, ability to massacre everyone, and all kinds of things, like taxi missions and vigilante mode. The game has been hyped plenty and given high scores on other sites, and I would have to say the credit is deserved. Chinatown Wars is definitely a top game on the DS and one of the best 3rd party efforts I've seen for the handheld.

Overall Score: 9.5/10

Posted in collaboration with Gamers Platform