Guitar Hero: On Tour (Guitar Hero DS)

As I've said before, I'm a guitar hero fan, but no guitar hero playing for any player will prepare them for Guitar Hero: On Tour for the Nintendo DS system. Yes it's true, they are developing a guitar hero DS. Before I explain how it will work, check out these pictures for a reference:

Using details from the top picture, we see a new guitar hero fret buttons attachment which will slide into the game boy port. You will hold the game on its side like in Brain Age and the notes will come down the left screen. To strum, you can use your stylus, your finger, or the new included guitar hero pick stylus to pluck the strings on the touch screen. You will also touch the whammy bar on the touch screen for that effect.  As you can see, only four fret buttons have been included, so no insane moving up and down the frets on expert songs, but the game is still expected to be challenging. Also note this attachment will work on both new and old DS systems.

The track list is going to be one of the most diverse in a guitar hero game ever. With over 20 songs including "Spiderwebs" - No Doubt, "All the Small Things" - Blink-182, "Do What You Want" - OK Go,    "Are You Gonna Be My Girl" - Jet, and "We're Not Gonna Take It" - Twisted Sister. Also, a Nirvana song will be included and include other songs from genres such as classic rock, alternative and pop. 

The usual career mode is back, with 6 characters to play, and two new to the series. Battle mode is back from Guitar Hero 3 and co-op play can be done with a direct DS link, so no Wi-fi over the internet. Although slightly different from what we've seen from past Guitar Hero games, Guitar Hero: On Tour should provide a new twist to DS owners on a familiar series. So prepare your rocking spirit to go on the road with Guitar Hero: On Tour on the DS June 22nd (yes, the day Rock Band Wii comes out).

Images and Info credit Wikipedia and Nintendo Power volume 228

Mario Kart Wii

I don't know how many times I've read this, but here I go on about it. On the heels of the super popular Super Smash Bros Brawl comes Mario Kart Wii. It seems now that Nintendo's big name game series have finally all made their debut on Wii. Here they are in a nutshell:

Zelda: Twilight Princess

Mario (plat-former): Super Mario Galaxy

Paper Mario: Super Paper Mario

Metroid: Metroid Prime 3: Corruption

Super Smash Bros: Brawl

Mario Kart: Mario Kart Wii

Does this mean a 2nd Wii generation is on the horizon? Please note that Twilight Princess and Super Paper Mario were originally going to be released as gamecube games, and not built for the Wii base up, Metroid was the first from this list to do that. I for one can't wait to see what a complete Wii Zelda will be like (I'm hoping rumors for a 2009 release coming soon).

Yes, all that is very nice but the game I want to preview in this post is:

For those of you who don't know, the Mario Kart series is a Nintendo-ified, Mario-ified racing game. You get to pick from a selection of characters that hail from the Mario universe in increasing numbers from game to game. Although it may seem like it, the game is not about strategic racing, but rather using items and mini-turbos to bust up your opponents. Mario Kart Wii features a couple of new features and some taken from Double Dash (game cube) and the DS version. I simply compiled a small list for those anticipating this game.

• Along with the ability to race of Karts, you can race of bikes. The differences are as follows: Karts, better charge-up on turns, slower turns Bikes: Ability to do wheelies to get speed on straights, sharper turns
• 32 tracks with a combination of new and old (although reviewers report the new outshine the old)
• Ability to pull of wicked stunts on small bumps and large death-defying jumps. 
• Ability to race as your Mii along with 17 mario characters
• New items, some inspired by old games
• Online racing and battle mode
• WiiWheel attachment to use as a wheel (think Wii Zapper) that makes racing more realistic (you can also stay with a gamecube controller
• Instead of 8 racers, you get 12! (Battle mode too, it gets hectic)

Well, that's my summary of Mario Kart Wii's new game features. Also note Nintendo Power gave the game a 9 out of 10 for being perfect but not as revolutionary as some Wii games and not as packed as Super Smash Bros Brawl. Feast your eyes on these screenshots for the next couple of weeks as April 27 approaches.

The Kart selection screen, looks nice and clean. Plus color schemes for each character.

Wi-fi, in Japanese! Lot's of Mii's on the track today.

Like I said, some uber tricks on big jumps.

Here it is, Peach's other side, a biker chic. 

Also, check out my Mario Kart Wii event tracker at the very bottom (it wouldn't fit anywhere else) of the page. It provides regularly updated info with images, news, tips, and features. 

(Images courtesy of ign.com, information Nintendo Power)

Legend of Zelda Movie!

Hoax or not? The choice is up to you but it did make the headlines of IGN. Based on the trailer, it seems to follow a combination of Twilight Princess and Ocarina of Time. Rainfall (the production team) does say only a year from this date, April 1st. Check it out:

http://movies.ign.com/articles/863/863492p1.html

Super Smash Bros Brawl Sales

Okay, I know I haven't posted in a while, but I've been very busy with Smash bros. I hope to role out a Solo mode review (by the way my opinion on the Subspace Emissary has changed). I do have all the characters and stages though, so this review will be complete.

What I want to post on is the Brawl sales, which were pretty incredible. Here's the lowdown from the Nintendo website: 

"March 17, 2008 – After just one week on store shelves, Super Smash Bros. Brawl for Wii has become the fastest-selling video game in Nintendo of America’s history. Since its launch on March 9, the feature-packed fighting action game has sold more than 1.4 million units in the United States, including more than 874,000 on March 9 alone. It has sold at a rate of more than 120 units per minute between launch and March 16.

Super Smash Bros. Brawl features a nearly limitless variety of options for players. Dozens of classic Nintendo characters like Mario and Pikachu are joined by industry icons like Sonic The Hedgehog and Metal Gear’s Solid Snake for all-out four-player battles. The endless customization keeps players coming back for more. The previous game in the series, Super Smash Bros. Melee, became the best-selling Nintendo GameCube game of all time with more than 7 million copies sold worldwide, so it’s no surprise to see this latest installment racking up record numbers."

Also, note that I have confirmed launch dates for Mario Kart Wii (4/27/08) and Rock Band Wii (6/22/08).

Super Smash Bros Brawl Review- Release Date

Well, I got Brawl at 8:30 in the morning and have plugged in about 6 or 7 hours, yeah, I really didn’t have anything better to do on a Sunday. For the review of the game, because of its immensity, I’m going to break it down into multiple posts. Here, I’m just going to go over the Subspace Emissary, or main storyline.

            I am only ¼ of the way through the story line, so if my views change in the future, I will tell you, but for the most part, I am highly disappointed. Nintendo Power said that the Subspace Emissary could stand alone as an action game, smashbros.com bragged about how intricate and complex it was, and IGN hated it. At first, I thought IGN was out of their mind, but only after 2 hours of playing, I see they are right.

            I will start off with the pros however. The storyline is beautifully put together, a combination of gorgeous cinemas slowly introducing each character and their goal, and the basic plot of the game. The animations flow seamlessly into the game play except for the fact of a five-ten second load (I will complain about this later). The level design is nice, with new characters and new stages every level, it keeps you interested. You can also go against evil with a buddy, a nice addition. Overall, beating up Primids and other dark creatures is immensely satisfying.

            With all that, the game must sound pretty good, right? Unfortunately, no, it is not. My biggest complaint is it being repetitious. As I mentioned above, the new levels offer new characters and new stages, but it still feels like you’re doing the same thing over and over again, just with new colors. After three or four levels I was bored out of my mind and now I only do it in increments of one or two levels. Another huge flaw is the fluidity. Yes, the animations are beautifully well put together, but when you see dark Bowser rise from the ground to square off against Link and Yoshi, you want to fight, but then there’s a five-ten second load that just cuts you off from the animation. The last main thing I did not enjoy was the camera control. With one person it is fine, but when you include the second person, the camera only revolves around the first player, and the second one is helpless to the slowness or speed of player one. Just playing today, I got into maybe ten or twelve situations where this flaw has caused me or my partner a life, very dissatisfying.

            With all that, I have no motivation to play through the Subspace Emissary after I finish it the first time, even with harder difficulties. Its non-fluid loads and repetitious nature will defiantly not leave me up at 11:00 tonight, or many other gamers for that matter.

Super Smash Bros Brawl- 1 Day Left

Today's Desperate Level: 11!

Wazup? Tomorrow is the day, the dawn of Brawl arriving in North America. If you guys get poned online by some uber Ike player, it's probably me. See you guys out there tomorrow!!

Super Smash Bros Brawl- 2 Days Left

Today's Desperate Level: 7

Wazup?: Most Gamestop's and EB Games around the country are doing midnight releases! Everybody's getting ready! And smashbros.com posted its last addition before the release! Pinch me, I can't believe I'll be playing this game in 48 hours.

Super Smash Bros Brawl- 3 Days Left

Today's Desperate Level: 6

Wazup?: New hidden character at smashbros.com, for the sake of those who don't want it to be spoiled I won't say who, but he/it is a neat one that most people probably wouldn't have thought of. I have to go revisit Melee now (suggested if you own it) ... see ya!

Super Mario Galaxy

As you may have noticed, one of my favorite Wii games is Super Mario Galaxy. Although I haven't finished the whole 121 star deal I would like to give you my low-down on the game before I lock myself in my basement until I finish Brawl.

First of all, I'd like to give you my background on Mario games in general. I've never been a huge fan, I think I have a 3:15 ratio for finished to own mostly because I've never liked the arcade timed and overly difficult parts. Galaxy, I must say however, did break this mold and made an extraordinary game that deserves the spectacular game awards it did receive, including game of the year from Nintendo Power.

It all starts with the presentation and game play. What really impressed me was that Nintendo didn’t go overboard with the motion sensing and stuck to very basic Mario game play. This allowed for a familiar control scheme that makes sense to veterans and players alike. Even navigating swimming wasn’t as bad as in the past, more straightforward in Galaxy, a problem I’ve always had with other Mario games. The game is also given to you in a very straightforward manner with the same basic world-level setup seen in most Mario games. What Nintendo did do different however was to provide the storyline in a separate area, being read from a children’s book. Many fans did not like this style because you had to manually choose to continue the storyline but I liked it because it was easy to go from level to level without much dialogue or extra cut-scenes that sometimes may look nice but sometimes can be downright annoying.

Speaking of cut-scenes, the graphic design of the game was absolutely outstanding. Anywhere from the game’s incredibly animated character models, to the cinematic sequences, to the overall world design, it was a cute, friendly world that has been a tradition in Mario games past to present. I especially goggled over the worlds where Mario assumed the bee costume. I also was totally flabbergasted by the animation Bowser had this time, I mean, he totally looked like the brutal, evil thing he is. The Mario series also continues their tradition of small voice exclamations while characters are speaking, but still fail to do full voice acting. Although it is a nice touch, I wish Nintendo did fully voice their characters considering the epic scale of Galaxy.

Another last pointer I must make was that the fully orchestrated music added to much to the game. You really felt like you were in these rich environments thanks to the music. The different styles really helped with whatever the stage you were working on was; a haunted mansion, a joyous garden, or some totally wacked out Galaxy that you couldn’t of thought of in your wildest dreams. Overall I give the game a 9.8 missing a ten because of some levels that were just too easy or too hard and disrupted the steady stream of pretty difficult, but not at the point of over-the-top gameplay.

Super Smash Bros Brawl- 4 Days Left

Today's Desperate Level: 5

Wazup?: Still excited, 9.5 from IGN, so close, so close!!! Also, item encyclopedia at smashbros.com, pretty neat update, check it out.